Madras State Research Articles

Some Important Caterpillar Pests of Madras State

Insects, as a group, are more injurious than beneficial to mankind. Imms (1947), has recorded seven lakhs of species of insects of which about ten thousand are known to be injurious, affecting plants and of these about five hundred are major pests. In South India alone, Ramakrishna Iyer (1932) has recorded under various families, two hundred forms causing considerable damage to the cultivated crops in some form or other. Unlike many other groups, the members of this order, with few rare exceptions, are herbivorous vertable pests during the larval stage. The larval stage is familiarly known as caterpillars. The large majority are external feeders but a good number, work unseen inside plant tissue. In a large number of cases, the plant may be disfigured, the foliage reduced considerably or the growth of the plant ratarded. Some- times the evidence of damage is seen in the form of castings on the leaves, bore-holes, scrapings, cut-ends of the leaf, fluffy secretions on the stem and dead hearts.

Research, Education and Propaganda in Relation to the Improvement of Chewing Variety of Tobacco in Madras State

It is a recognised principle that to agricultural workers in all walks of life whether in the field or in the laboratory, the most essen- tial function is to help the cultivators to meet their needs. Researcli, education and propaganda in the field of agriculture have hitherto progressed in a co-ordinated manner in dealing with the problems of the cultivators. However, the chewing variety of tobaco is one which has not received due attention in Madras State until very recently. The object of the paper is to present and discuss the different problems which need such a co-ordinated effort of all concerned to impart practical knowledge to tobacco cultivators in the scientific method of cultivation.

Marketing of Turmeric

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L) is an important cash crop largely grown in the districts of Coimbatore (4,000 acres) Tiruchirapalli (1500 acres) and Salem (900. acres) in Madras State. It is grown mostly as a pure erop under canal or lift irrigation, in well manured, fertile and well drained soils. The yield of processed and dried turmeric is about two tons per acre. The yield of green rhizomes are about four time greater. Both the finger ("virali") and round (Kizhangu') turmeric is used as seed material, though there are different ideas about the final yield of the crop in terms of fingers and rounds. Generally in the harvested crop the proportion of bulbs to fingers is about 1:4 by weight. The cost of cultivation of turmeric is roughly about Rs. 1,200/- per acre. The produce is harvested between January to March and is in the market after processing from February onwards. It is mostly exported to Calcutta, Bombay, Delhi, Colombo and other places outside the Madras State.

The Control of the Rice Mealy Bug-Ripersia Oryzae Gr-in the Tanjore Delta of the Madras State

Mealy bugs and scales are serious pets on culti- vated crops-The mealy bug Ripersia Oryzae Gris responsible for the malady popularly known as "soorai" on paddy in the Madras State. It is widely distributed in the Madras State and has been noted in Tanjore, South Arcot, Tiruchirappalli, Coimbatore, and Malabar districts. It occurs in a fairly severe form more often in the Tanjore delta than in other tracts.

Modern Trends in Multiplication and Distribution of Improved Seeds of Groundnut

Commercial crops cover about a fifth of the area under cultivation and form the bulk of our country's exports. They are oilseeds, jute, tea and tobacco. Among these, oilseeds, occupy the foremost place. In the Madras State, oilseed crops viz., ground- nut, gingelly, castor and coconut are grown over a total area of about 28 lakhs acres, representing nearly 16 per cent of the total cropped area. Of these, groundnut is the most important one as it covers nearly 78 per cent of the total area under oilseed crops and earns the much needed foreign dollars for the country. In oilseed crops, yield and oil content are the most important factors which determine the merits of a strain. The different improved strains of groundnut, gingelly and castor evolved by the State Department of Agriculture combine the above economic attri- butes and they are acclaimed as superior to the local varieties. Seed purity is one of the fundamental principles in Agriculture. To maintain this purity, the farmer, the plant breeder, the seed organi- sations and the Government strive hard alike. The production of nucleus seeds of improved strains marks the beginning of the seed multiplication programme.

Modern Trends in Indian Agriculture with Reference to the Cultivation of Oilseed Crops

India is one of the major oilseeds producing countries in the world and it will not be incorrect to say that oilseeds occupy a very prominent place in the agricultural and industrial economy of the State. The all India acreage is 29-3 million with a production of 53 lakhs tons and the major oilseed crops viz. groundnut, gingellyand caster cover an area of 20.3 million acres, producing 40-5 lakhs tons. In the Madras State they are cultivated in an area of over 20 lakhs acres with an annual production of 8-23 lakhs tons. The area of coconut in India is 1.53 million acres the world acreage being 8-4 million. In this State it is grown in an area of 5'5 lakh acres, producing 1,200 million nuts.

Soils of Madras State Part I Distribution in Various Districts

Madras State as in 1955 consisted of the following thirteen districts, Chinglepet, North Arcot, South Arcot, Salem, Coimbatore, Tanjore, Tiruchirapalli, Madurai, Ramanathapuram Tirunelveli, Nilgiris, Malabar and South Kanara. It lies between longitudes 80 and 73 and latitudes 9 and 13. The total area of the State is about 38,500,000 acres and the total population is 42 millions. Rice is the staple food of the majority of the population with millets occupying the second place. The State is bound by the Bay of Bengal on the east and the Arabian sea borders the coast line on the west in the districts of Malabar and South Canara. No part of the State is very far from the sea and the climate on the whole is equable. The temperature in the interior districts may record of 100° to 105° in the height of summer while in the Coastal districts a maximum temperature near about 100° is normal. The west coast districts of Malabar and South Kanara enjoy an annual rainfall of about 100 tc 150 inches while the east coast and the interior districts get an annual precipitation of about 30 to 40 inches only. In the Western region the rainfall is received mainly in the South West Monsoon (June tc September) while in the rest of the state the North East Monsoon (October to December) is more important. Rainfall has had profound influence on the type of soil which has developed in an regions of the state.

Economic Spacing for Irrigated Bunch Groundnut

Cultivation of groundnut during the summer season as an irrigated crop is becoming increasingly popular in the Madras State. While the scope for such increase is rather limited in garden lands, extension of cultivation in rice fallows offers vast possibilities. This new development deserves all round encourage- ment because (a) the increase in the production of oilseeds, which is in short supply now, is achieved without encroaching on the area sown to food crops; (b) the cultivator is financially benefited by this money crop; and (c) the leguminous crop not only improves soil fertility but also gives adequate green manure for the following rice crop.

Studies on Weed control by Herbicides: Observations on the phytocidal action of chemical herbicides on some weeds in Madras State

That growth-regulating substances have found wide use in the field of agriculture as weedkillers in recent years, revolutionising the method of eradication of weeds is too well known to need emphasis. Among the synthetic hormones, derivatives of phenoxyacetic acid such as 2, 4-D (2, 4-Dichloro-phenoxy acetic acid), MCPA (2-methyl 4-chloro phenoxyacetic acid) and 2,4,5-T (2,4,5-Trichloro phenoxy acetic acid) have proved to be the most effective. Commercial preparations of these are available in various forms such as acids, mineral salts, organic salts or amines and esters under different trade names. Against broad-leaved weeds 2, 4-D and MCPA are the most commonly used hormone weedicides. There is no great difference between these two chemicals in their biological activity. 2, 4, 5-T is also closely allied to 2, 4-D and has been found very effective in killing shrubby weeds and woody plants. It finds use also as an arboricide for killing trees and tree stumps.

Lawyer (Quarterly Law Journal). Edited by V. C. Gopalratnam and N. R. Raghavachari. [Published by Madras State Bar Federation, High Court Madras. Inland Rs. 5; foreign 10s. annually.

Lawyer (Quarterly Law Journal). Edited by V. C. Gopalratnam and N. R. Raghavachari. [Published by Madras State Bar Federation, High Court Madras. Inland Rs. 5; foreign 10s. annually.] - Volume 6 Issue 1

Soil Erosion Problems in the Nilgiris

The Nilgiri district in the Madras State lies between latitude 11°-7' and 11°-40'N and longitude 76°-15" and 77° and has an area of 989 squire miles. It is bounded on the north and south by the rivers Moyar and Bhavani and by Coimbatore district on the east and Malabar-Wynaad on the west. The whole of the district has a very undulating topography with mostly very steep and long slope and was once covered with dense vegetation such as forest, grasses, bushes, etc. But the introduction of potato during the latter part of 19th century and leasing of Government lands for its cutivation led to extensive clearance of these areas. During the grow more food campagin, a large extent. was still further brought under potato cultivation through the extensive destruction of the protective cover. During the last 40 years the area brought under cultivation has practically doubled. At present more than 1,20,000 acres are being cultivated with semi-permanent and annual crops.

A Note on the Tapioca Scale (Aonidomytilus albus, Cockerell)

Tapioca (Manihot utilissima) is an important root crop grown extensively in Kerala and Andhra States and in parts of South Arcot, Salem, Coimbatore, Chingelput and Tanjore districts of Madras State. Though widely grown in this State, there is no record of any insect pest damaging the crop. Fletcher (1917) and Subbiah Mudaliar (1951) have mentioned that this crop is free from any insect attack. But recently a scale-insect Aonidomytilus- albus, Okll., was noted attacking the crop in a severe form in parts of Salem, Pattukottai and Coimbatore. This scale is a pest of plants belonging to the genus Manihot in foreign contries viz. Africa, Florida, West Indies, Mexico, Formosa, Argentina, Brazil, etc. and is known there popularly as Cassava scale. The report on the first occurrence of this insect in pest form was received from Salem in the year 1951 and later reports of such occurrence are from Coimbatore, Tanjore, and South Arcot. At present the infestation is getting widespread throughout the State, wherever Tapioca is grown.

Manuring Crops

Experimental work on potato cultivation has been confined to the Agricultural Research Station, Nanjanad which was established in 1917 in the Nilgiris District of the Madras State.

Curing Trials on Groundnu.

Of the two million acres sown to groundnuts in the prosent Madras State nearly 90% of the area is in the rainfed season. Sowings are done in July August with the receipt of south west monsoon rains and the crop utilises both the monsoons for growth and development. Harvest synchronises with the declin- ing activity of the north east monsoon. Groundnut harvest. is a big problem to the cultivators as ideal conditions are obtained possibly once in a few years. Without adequate soil moisture harvests become costly and inefficient and in rare cases the crop is altogether abandoned. When continuous wet weather prevails harvests are no doubt easy but adequate drying facilities are lacking and invariably the quality is affected. The groundnut crop is valued primarily on its quality as may be seen from the fact that while good quality produce fetches Rs. 150/- per candy of 531 lb. to-day, poor quality produce is offered Rs. 90/- or even less per candy. Quality is mainly influenced by the stage of maturity and the post harvest handling of the produce.

Manuring Crops

Manurial experiments have been conducted during the past four decades on sugarcane in Madras State primarily in the Research Stations at Gudiyattam in North Arcot District and Palur in South Arcot District.

Cotton Research and Extension in Madras State

Before it is proposed to tackle the problem of the present paper of "Cotton Research and Extension in Madras State", it is necessary to give a brief account of what is already achieved in Cotton Research and Extension in the Madras State". In the symposium held last year a review of recent advances in Cotton Breeding Reseach in the Madras State was presented by Kalyanaraman and Santhanam and the progress in Cotton Extension Work was reviewed upto 1952 by Balasubramaniam in the symposium on cotton extension held in the Fifth Conference of Cotton-growing Problems in India by the Indian Central Cotton Committee, Bombay.

Additional notes on some aphids in the Madras State

Of the seventy species of aphids recorded by the writer (David 1954 a, b, c), sixty-eight are known to occur within the Madras State. Collections made since then include three species which were noted by George (1927) previously. In this paper these species are reviewed as to their present systematic position, distribution and status in economic entomology. For fourteen other aphids which have already been commented upon in previous papers, additional notes are given.

What Next in Millets and Pulses Research?

Millets are grown mostly as unirrigated crops in areas of poor fertility. Being highly drought-resistant, they are the only staple food crops that could be grown in areas unsuited for the cultivation of paddy. Thus millets are complementary and not competitive to rice. Millets also provide fodder for cattle. It is estimated that they give nearly 6.5 million tons of straw to support 60 per cent of our cattle population. Cholam fodder, especially from the sweet juicy-stemmed varieties, is a prized fodder for the milch cattle of our State. There are eight millet crops, of which Cholam, Cumbu and Ragi are known as the major millets and occupy nearly 75 per cent of the area while Tenai, Varagu, Samai, Kudiraivali and Panivaragu form the minor millets. These are cultivated over an area of nearly 5 million acres in the Madras State and the estimated production is 1.7 million tons of grain as against 6 million acres and 3 million tons of paddy. Pulses, which are subsidiary food crops, are of great importance as the major source of protein supply in our diet. They occupy 1.2 lakhs of acres with an estimated production of 0.1 lakh ton of grain. This production meets only 10 per cent of our requirements viewed from nutritional standards. Large quantities are imported from other Indian States but the net available quantity for consumption in the State is still low.

What Next in Agricultural Extension?

In considering the future for agricultural extension work in the Madras State as well as in India it is well to remember that in the next five years the whole country will be organised in the Community and National Extension Blocks. In the Madras State 498 such Blocks will be spread over the entire State. The impact of these Blocks on agricultural extension work has also to be considered. It is well to emphasise that so far as agricultural extension is concerned it is very necessary that in these Blocks work should be on a more and more intensified character and on a much larger scale, with increased agricultural production, as well as improvement of agricultural standards.

A Technical Note on Coir-rope Filter-Points for Tube Wells in the Madras State.

The "drive points" made completely of metal also called "Filter Points" are made in a variety of types and their choice depends upon the soil structure in the water-bearing stratum. Ordinarily an inner mesh of size 60 is used in these drive points. The generally advocated type of filter point is made of G. I. material consisting of a sufficient length of G. I. pipes of about 6 feet length and diameter 3" or 4" with holes not more than 1/2" diameter drilled on it at distances varying from 1" to 12" centres. These drilled holes are arranged in a staggered manner and their number and size are limited so that the drive point will not lose its strength. This 6 foot G, I. pipe is closely jacketed with a 60 mesh metal cloth of either copper, brass or galvanised iron. This square mesh cloth is again covered over by a brass or. G. I. perforated sheeting. Both these metal covers are welded or soldered at the top and at the bottom to G. I. pipe to avoid being torn while driving in the filter point. A solid G. I. tip of slightly larger diameter than the drive point itself, to pierce the soil and which when driven down will open up a passage way for the point, is fitted at the bottom of the filter point. On the top of the filter point, a coupling of the correct diameter is screwed and welded. The approximate cost of a 4" size metal filter point ranges from Rs. 129/- to Rs. 130/-.