Pests attack cotton crop in Multan

Whitefly, thrips and pink bollworm damage crops inflict losses of millions of rupees

MULTAN: Cotton crop has entered a critical stage in South Punjab as a number of sucking and chewing pests have attacked the harvest, an agriculture department spokesperson said on Thursday. In most of the fields, whitefly, thrips and pink bollworm have damaged crops inflicting losses of millions of rupees. These pests should be controlled as early as possible so that cotton crop can be saved from a considerable loss during the final yield, he advised farmers. He said that teams from the agriculture department were scouting the fields on a daily basis. The pest’s hot spots, especially those of whitefly, thrips and pink bollworm, are being observed. He added that one of the signs of a pink bollworm attack was the appearance of rosette flowers. “The rosette flowers must be plucked and destroyed as early as possible,” he pointed out.  

Published in The Express Tribune, July 6^th, 2018.