Inovasi Baru Pertanian: Perlindungan Untuk Tanaman / Plant Protection

PENGENALAN: Tanaman memerlukan perlindungan dari beberapa perkara:

Haiwan - Dari pelbagai jenis termasuklah burung-burung, haiwan pemakan tanaman/bunga seperti siput dan tikus, semut dan lain-lain. (Sebahagian besar dari haiwan-haiwan jenis ini dapat dielakkan dengan menggunakan rumah lindungan yang berjaring). Oleh itu, ianya bukanlah masalah utama bagi kaedah penanaman hidroponik/fertigasi/aeroponik dan seumpamanya.
Serangga - Serangga boleh mendatangkan masalah dalam pelbagai segi: * kemusnahan fizikal secara langsung seperti memakan daun, bunga atau buah * suntikan bahan toksin dari tubuh serangga yang boleh membantutkan pertumbuhan pokok atau pembuahan * Pemindahan bakteria, virus atau patogen yang menjadi organisma yang menyebabkan penyakit pada tanaman. Serangga merupakan perosak tanaman yang utama. Serangannya boleh merosakkan secara langsung akar, batang, daun, bunga dan buah. Jenis-jenis serangga yang biasa menyerang tanaman (terutamanya sayuran daun/buah) terdiri daripada serangga penghisap seperti koya-koya dan bena, serangga penebuk atau pengorek seperti Dacus, pemakan daun dan pemotong daun seperti belalang tanah, ulat gulung dan ulat ribu, pemakan bunga dan pemakan akar seperti sorok-sorok atau yang membawa virus/patogen di kakinya seperti teritip dan white fly. (walaupun sebahagian besar jenis serangga ini boleh dielakkan dengan memasang jaring kalis serangga yang paling kecil lubangnya seperti saiz 16 mesh, namun kawalan masih perlu kerana ada juga serangga yang masih boleh melepasi lubang jaring tersebut)

Lalat putih (whitefly) dari dekat dan bagaimana koloni lalat putih ini boleh merosakkan daun. Bahaya lalat putih ialah kerana ia membawa virus yang merosakkan tanaman seperti cili (menyebabkan penyakit kerinting pada daun dan tunas) ------------->
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INTRODUCTION

Plants need to be protected against several things:

Animals - of all sorts, including 1) Birds that steal fruit from trees, shrubs, vines, etc. 2)Herbivores that browse your favorite fruits and flowers 3) Harvester ants that denude your shrubs of leaves to feed to their fungus 4) Errant children who want your tomatoes, peppers, etc. (NOTE: Most of these problems can be solved by erecting some form of physical barrier between the perpetrator and your prized plants. Barriers might include a fence or wall, bird netting, “tangle foot”or even a locked greenhouse.)NOTE: The above animals do not usually pose a significant problem in CEA and will therefore not be considered further here.

Insect and mite pests: Whiteflies, aphids, thrips, spider mites and other pests do pose a significant threat, particularly to crops growing in greenhouses. Insects and mites can cause different types of damage: Direct physical damage: chewing, sucking, etc. Injection of toxins into the plant during feeding that effect growth or quality of the plant and/or fruit. Transmission of bacterial, fungal or viral diseases. Disease-causing organisms: In order for a pathogen to be considered “disease causing” it must meet 4 criteria, “Koch’s Rules” (from Plant Pathology by Agrios, 1988): 1) The pathogen must be found associated with the disease in all the diseased plants examined. 2) The pathogen must be isolated and grown in pure culture on nutrient media, and its characteristics described (non-obligate parasites), or on a susceptible host plant (obligate parasites), and its appearance and effects recorded. 3) The pathogen from pure culture must be inoculated on healthy plants of the same species or variety on which the disease appears, and it must produce the same disease on the inoculated plants. 4) The pathogen must be isolated in pure culture again, and its characteristics must be exactly like those observed in step 2.