BOW BEFORE THE ORCHIDS

many writers have tried to convey the essence, appeal and worth of orchids. But most have been unsuccessful in their endeavour. Three years ago, I went to the Kew Orchids Festival in London to find out more about them. I have known orchid enthusiasts in the past and have wondered whether there was any medical treatment for their addiction.

Anti-greening measures

GREENING of citrus or huanglongbing disease affects oranges, kinnows, lemons and other members of the citrus family.

Huanglongbing

It was earlier thought that a virus caused the disease. In 1993, research by Joseph-Marie Bove, a French scientist, and Anupam Varma of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute confirmed the bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus caused the greening disease.

Mango resistance

Sushil Kumar Lodhi, 32, walks about Dashehari village with newspaper clippings, which carried news of his grandfather’s death. His grandfather suffered a heart attack on his way back from Lucknow.

Nurseries of ancestor worship

As dusk falls on the dark moon day in the Malayalam month of Karkidakam—between end-July and early August—devotees make their way to the bank of Kodayar river. At Kuzhithurai, in Kanyakumari district on the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border, it’s time to honour ancestors. The day begins with families squatting before priests at the Ayappa temple chanting mantras for the souls of the departed. Family members then immerse the san-ctified items of the rituals in the holy waters. Then they go to the vlc grounds near the temple where nursery owners wait expe-ctantly. Their ware is a big draw at the Vavubhali festival.

Apples go higher in

NREGS expansion

To include private land of small farmers, freezing wages the rural development ministry recently issued a notification expanding the scope of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (nregs) to allow asset creation on private land of small and marginal farmers. The work, the notification said, will include "irrigation facility, horticulture plantation and land development facilities". As of now, there is provision to include work

No pesticides no debts

Enabavi and Ramachandrapuram villages broke away from the pesticide-debt trap. They are now teaching other villages to become debt free and self-reliant

What a waste

as a part of a centrally-sponsored scheme non-recommended pesticides were being distributed to farmers in Rajasthan. Farmers were being forced to buy unnecessary pesticides as a part of the subsidy package under the National Horticulture Mission (nhm). These chemicals have not been approved for use in the crops that were being cultivated in the area.

Saving papaya

Specific aphid identified as predominant virus vector the papaya ring spot virus causes extensive damages to papaya, watermelon, squash, cucumber and pumpkin. Scientists suggest that the best way to reduce the loss is to cultivate these plants at a distance from each other and avoid their monoculture.