Twin fungal attacks may hit apple yield

Kuldeep Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 3

The twin fungal diseases — alternaria blotch and marssonina blotch — have invaded the apple belt, triggering premature leaf-fall and impacting the fruit size in orchards. These diseases may result in all estimates about a heavy apple crop going haywire.

The farmers resent that they do not get the chemicals recommended by the Horticulture Department in time from government suppliers. “These ‘government’ outlets in Chopal, Rohru, Jubbal and Kotkhai have their pet number of buyers and when we go to purchase the chemicals, we are unable to get it,” the farmers rue.

Not only this, well-entrenched “cartel of commission agents, buyers and private controlled atmospheric (CA) store owners” expect huge profits from the current apple market crash. They are buying good quality apple at a price ranging between Rs 30 and 40 a kg and are storing the fruit in CA stores to make profit in winter months, the farmers rue.

But the fungal attacks reported from Rohru, Chopal, Jubbal-Kotkhai, Kotgarh and Kumarsain and Rampur have sent all their estimates of heavy crop haywire as only one crore apple cartons have been exported out of the state so far, while season in the lower and half middle heights is over.

But the farmers continue to reel under the market crash and fungal diseases. “The reasons for flare-up in fungal attacks include intermittent spells of cloudy and sunlight weather prevailing in the apple belt for the past two months,” said Dr Vijay Thakur, vice-chancellor, Dr Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan.

The excessive humid weather, growth of weeds and grass and lack of sunlight during the monsoon facilitate fungal attack of marssonina blotch, he says.

The leaves had shown some signs of shrinking in orchards in June and July, but the farmers might have delayed sprays, Dr Thakur said.

“The alterneria is caused by the cloudy weather. The farmers should not fall in the trap of chemical sellers recommending untested sprays of tonic on trees which only add to the problem,” he cautions.

Dr Thakur says the fungi trigger premature leaf-fall, damage the fruit quality, put the trees under stress and mar the chance of the fruit crop next year as well. The impact will be on total output and may be difficult for farmers to control the fungal disease in the years to come and the government needs a new strategy to tackle it, he cautions.

The middle and high middle altitude orchards where apple season is at peak are the worst sufferers as the premature leaf fall has hit the fruit size. The output may reduce to half due to the poor size and the farmers are now concerned about the quality and availability of recommended chemicals, says Lakshman Thakur, chairman, Ecohorts, Nandpur.