I grow seed potato and aphids are a problem. How do aphids affect seed potato and how do I manage them?
How to control aphids that spread virus and reduce seed potato (aloo) quality?
BBalwinder Singh8mo ago · 365 views
6 Answers
🌾Farmer.in Krishi TeamExpert ✓7mo ago
For seed potato, aphids are a serious problem because they spread potato viruses that degrade the seed, which is why seed crops are grown in the low aphid season and dehaulmed before aphid numbers build up. The seed plot technique used in the Indo Gangetic plains times planting and haulm cutting so the crop largely escapes the peak aphid period, and that timing is the single most important step. Use certified virus free seed to start, rogue out diseased and off type plants regularly, control weeds that host aphids, and monitor aphids with yellow sticky and water traps. Cut and remove the haulm at the recommended time before aphids peak so the virus does not move down into the new tubers. Recommended insecticides per label and KVK advice supplement this but timing of dehaulming matters most. Renew your seed regularly from a certified source.
AAvtar Singh7mo ago
Cutting the haulm on time, before the aphid numbers shot up, was the make or break step for my seed crop. The year I delayed dehaulming the virus moved into the tubers and the seed quality dropped. The timing matters more than any spray.
KKuldeep Singh7mo ago
Roguing regularly kept my seed clean. Walking the plot and pulling out the diseased and off type plants before the aphids could carry virus from them to the healthy ones really helped. If you leave a few sick plants they become the source for the whole plot.
MManjit Singh Gill7mo ago
Renew the seed from a certified source every few years. I kept multiplying my own seed too long and the virus slowly built up and yields fell. Bringing in fresh certified seed reset the quality. Starting clean is half the job in seed potato.
HHarbhajan Kaur6mo ago
Planting in the recommended low aphid window for our area was the biggest single thing for me. The seed crop largely escapes the peak aphid period that way, so the virus pressure is far lower before I even spray. Getting the timing right matters more than any insecticide here.
IInderjit Singh6mo ago
Yellow sticky and water traps let me watch when the aphids start building so I can time the haulm cutting before they peak. Without watching, I used to guess and cut too late one year and the seed quality dropped. The traps take the guesswork out of the timing.