The Gyeonggi-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services (Gyeonggi ARES) has urged farmers to conduct thorough monitoring and pest control, as the continuing heatwave and hot, humid weather conditions increase the likelihood of crop pest and disease outbreaks.
According to Gyeonggi ARES on the 5th, managing rice blast and the brown planthopper is key for rice as it enters the heading stage. As blast has recently been confirmed in some areas including Yeoju, preventive control is needed around the heading period. The brown planthopper can also multiply rapidly during the high-temperature period of mid-to-late August, requiring regular monitoring and timely control.
For soybeans, management after the pod-setting stage is important. Farmers should check for the bean bug and the beet armyworm, and control them before damage spreads. For peppers, caution is needed against anthracnose, phytophthora blight and the tobacco cutworm.
In particular, anthracnose can spread quickly after rain, so it is effective to remove diseased fruit and apply pesticides before and after rainfall. The tobacco cutworm must be controlled during the larval stage to enhance the effect of treatment.
For apples and peaches, ahead of the harvest season, sunscald and fruit-cracking prevention must be carried out alongside control of anthracnose and the oriental fruit moth. When temperatures above 31 degrees Celsius persist, management to lower fruit temperature through methods such as micro-sprinkling is helpful, and damaged fruit should be removed immediately to prevent secondary infection.
Choi Ha-young, director of the Technology Extension Bureau at Gyeonggi ARES, said, "Hot and humid weather in August and September can lead to the spread of pests and diseases and a decline in agricultural product quality." He added, "Please use the Agricultural Weather Disaster Early Warning Service to check weather information for each farm and respond preemptively."
