What is a Disease?

Diseases affect Plants too!

What is a Disease?

A disease is a condition caused by tiny organisms which hamper the growth and development of a plant. A diseased plant does not produce in the way it should (both in terms of quantity and quality) and can die prematurely.

Plant Diseases
Most plant diseases are caused by:
• Bacteria
• Fungi
• Nematodes
• Viruses

Disease Organisms Affect Plants:
• By producing toxins
• By depriving the plant of food
• By occupying space (nematodes)
• By blocking water

Diseases are Transmitted
Pathogens that cause diseases are spread by:
• Wind
• Pests
• Water
• Humans
• Animals and Birds
• Contaminated equipment
• Infected planting materials
• Soil splash
• Plant to plant by physical contact

Symptoms of Diseases

Wilting (Partial or the entire plant- bacterial wilting). This
can be confused with inadequate watering. A plant that wilts
due to lack of water will recover when watered (temporary
wilting). Plants infected with bacterial wilt will not
permanently recover.
Discoloration (yellowing; mottling- colored spots, chlorosis) may be caused by viruses.
Water-soaked areas may be caused by fungi.
Abscesses (anthracnose- sinking of fruit; rotting of fruit)
maybe caused by bacteria or fungi.
Unnatural Growth- narrowing of leaf blades; curling and
crinkling of leaves and shoots, root galls.
Fuzzy growth, caused by bacteria.
Leaf spots caused by bacteria or fungi

Other things that may mimic disease symptoms include:
1. Fertilizer burn
2. Pesticide burn
3. Spay drift (herbicide)
4. Nutrient deficiency symptoms can mimic some disease symptoms.
Example; Blossom end rot is a calcium deficiency (large, dry brown, or black and often depressed leathery area at the blossom end of the fruit).

Blossom-end rot is a physiological disorder, not a disease.

For more information on Pests and Diseases that occur in the Home Garden please visit the Ministry of Agriculture Land and Fisheries Website and download or print our Pest and Disease Manual for Home Gardening.https://agriculture.gov.tt/…/management-pests-diseases-hom…/

Video- Disease Management

https://www.facebook.com/103936031246037/videos/1067657016938106/

Information courtesy the Extension Training and Information Services (ETIS) Division

Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries

Fertilizing and Weed Control

So it’s time we learned about fertilizing those plants you have recently planted

What is a Fertilizer
• Any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that are added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of pants.

Fertilizers may be Organic or Inorganic.

Organic ( derived from living sources)
-Manure from animal waste
-Compost derived from plants & organic material
Inorganic (Manufactured or mined chemical compounds)
-They may be Simple or complex
-Are derived from elements that are bonded together
-May be in the form of a Solid: Granular; Crystalline or Liquid

Now remember all fertilizers are not the same. Every fertilizer will have different mineral compounds. Depending on the stage of growth your plant is in it will need different fertilizers to provide it with the raw elements necessary for it to grow and produce.

The Three Main Nutrients are:
N : P : K
Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium

These will be the letters you commonly see when you go to purchase fertilizers at the agro shop.

If your soil is now being prepared you will need a fertilizer high in Phosphorus (P)- Root development

If your plant is now growing and producing leaves you will need a fertilizer high in Nitrogen (N)- Shoot development

If your plant is already grown and mature enough to flower and fruit you will need a fertilizer high in Potassium (K)- Flower and Fruit development

Nutrients needed by Plant
• Macro/ Major:
– Nitrogen (N); Phosphorus (P); Potassium (K)
• Secondary:
– Calcium (Ca); Magnesium (Mg); Sulphur (S)
• Micro:
– Iron (Fe) ; Chlorine (Cl); Copper (Cu); Manganese (Mn); zinc
(Zn); Molybdenum (Mo); Boron (Bo)

Nutrients needed by Plant
• In the soil before planting – 12:24:12 + TE
• While growing – 20:10:10 + TE
• While flowering and fruiting – 9:6:24 + TE
• Seedlings after they are transplanted– 20:20:20 + TE (equal parts of all N: P: K but at a high level and soluble so plant can access it easily.

Video– How Should Fertilizers be Applied

https://www.facebook.com/103936031246037/videos/646513979534181/

Information courtesy the Extension Training and Information Services (ETIS) Division

Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries

What is a Weed?

Weed Management in the Home Garden

The simple definition of a weed is:

A plant that is growing in an area where it is not wanted.

The complicated definition is:

Weeds are plants which are undesirable, persistent, damaging and interfere with growth of other crop plants thus affecting human activities, agriculture, natural processes and economy of the country.

Weeds can impede the proper development of a crop as they:

Compete for light, moisture and nutrients affecting quality and quantity of produce
Interfere with and damage harvesting equipment
Harbor pests and diseases

In addition to adversely affecting the Crop they also:

Have toxic properties that can cause health problems to humans and animals
Contaminate aquatic resources
Interferes and adversely affects natural ecosystem.

Methods of Weed Control

Manual Weed Management

Via hoeing or hand weeding
Vegetables that are delicate as seedlings
Done when weeds are young
Before roots are intertwined and
Before seeding

Mulching

During dry season
Smothers weeds

Drip Irrigation

Distributing appropriate amounts of water to root system
Reducing water loss
Allowing surface of soil to dry and thereby offering less water for weeds

Cultural control methods

Controlled spacing
Good crop canopy
Optimum growing environment for plant
Crop rotation

Chemical Control

Integrated Weed Management

Chemical control of weeds is not encouraged in the home garden as the space may be small, so leaching and cross contamination can easily occur. This can cause damage to crops, seedlings and even you!

Chemical Herbicides also commonly known as Weedicides can be classified based on several attributes.

Classification Based on Translocation

Systemic/Translocated – passes all through plant and kills it
Non-systemic/Contact- kills where it comes in contact with

Classification Based on Time of Application

Pre-emergent – kill weeds before emergence from soil i.e. seeds
Post-emergent- eradicate weeds that have already emerged from soil

Classification -Method of Application

Soil Applied – to soil
Foliar Applied – to plant

Classification Based on Specificity

Selective Herbicides- kills certain plants

Non-selective Herbicides- kills all plants present

Classification Based on Site of Action

Herbicides generally target essential metabolic processes in plants e.g. photosynthesis, mitosis or amino acid biosynthesis. These processes are common in both crops and weeds. Herbicides can stop these essential process thereby killing the plant.

So remember to choose your method of weed control properly so your crop does not suffer and you do not have a loss of production.

Video –Weed Control

https://www.facebook.com/103936031246037/videos/156572375720151/

Information courtesy the Extension Training and Information Services (ETIS) Division

Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries

How and When to Harvest Crops

Harvesting Crops from the Home Garden

Now that we have learnt all the steps in growing crops and keeping them free of pests and diseases, we can finally harvest a wonderful crop.

What is Harvesting?
Harvesting is the process of removing your produce (fruits, vegetables and root crops) from the plant when mature, at the time they are ready for immediate consumption, sale or storage.

When should you harvest?
• The time of harvest varies with each crop
• Harvest produce at the stage for consumption
• The expected time for harvest is based on the time of
planting or transplanting

Crop- Lettuce, patchoi
Harvest time- 4-5 weeks ( before they flower)
Crop – Chive, celery
Harvest time – 4 weeks
Crop – Melongene
Harvest time – 10 weeks
Crop – Okra, Cucumbers
Harvest time – Once mature, every other day
Crop – Tomatoes, Hot Peppers
Harvest time – 10 weeks, Mature but still green, allowed to ripen in
storage
Crop- Bananas, Plantains, Tomatoes, Peppers
Harvest time – Harvest when fruit is mature, when it has changed to the colour you desire

Be guided by
• Sight- colour, size, shape
• Touch- texture, hardness, softness
• Smell- odour, aroma
• Taste-sweetness, sourness, bitterness
• Resonance-sound when tapped

Methods of Harvesting
• Handpicking
• Harvesting Using Tools
• Knife
• Secateurs
• Fruit Picker
• Picking Pole
• Garden Fork
• Harvesting Using Machinery

Now that you have bought or harvested your produce the next step is to clean and prepare for storage and/ consumption. Please follow along with the accompanying posters for this information.

Video –Harvesting

https://www.facebook.com/103936031246037/videos/550281708956591/

Information courtesy the Extension Training and Information Services (ETIS) Division

Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries

Selecting of Planting Material

So now you know how to select and store healthy seeds for the home garden. Let us now look at other types of planting material you can use to set up your home garden.

Here is some of the information on how much planting material you will need and what parts of the plant you will need to collect them from.

Selecting Cuttings and Other Plant Pieces
Some plants may be grown from plant parts or cuttings e.g.:

Sweet potato slips
– taken from the tip of the vine
– ~30 cm (12”)
Cassava cuttings/ sticks
– the middle of the cassava stem
– from 8-9 mths old plants
– ~23cm-30cm (9”-12”),
– with 9-12 nodes
Yam setts
– pieces or whole yam heads
– 5cm x 5cm x 8cm (2” x2” x3”)
Dasheen
– pieces of the corm head with pieces of petiole
– from vigorous, healthy plant
– 5 cmx 8 cm (2”-3” )
Ginger – with 2-3 nodes (eyes)
– ~5cm (2”) piece

Selecting Suckers

When choosing suckers:
• Only take suckers from vigorous banana/ plantain plants
• Suckers should be about 3 feet high and have small spear
shaped leaves

Selecting Budded and Grafted Fruit Trees

Fruit trees for the Home Garden should not occupy a large space
• Branches should allow easy movement
• Choose disease free plants
• Roots should be a deep tap root system

Advantages of Budded and Grafted Plants
• Grafted plants more uniform in their growth habit
• Flower or bear fruit earlier than plants grown from seeds
• Can select a root system adapted to your environment
• Some root-stock produce extreme vigor
• Can propagate more species or varieties

Video – Selecting of Planting Material Part 2 https://www.facebook.com/103936031246037/videos/2996880023666765/

Information courtesy the Extension Training and Information Services (ETIS) Division

Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries

National Seed Initiative Launched

9^th May, 2020: Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries (MALF), Clarence Rambharat earlier today launched the Grow Trinbago Seed Initiative, #plantsomething at the First People Heritage Site off Blanchisseuse Road, Arima.

The initiative objectives will be to encourage households to get more involved into home gardening and “Plant Something”. Over 50, 000 seeds are expected to be distributed in the coming weeks to the national community via their respective Member of Parliament (MP) and Local Government Councillor.

Speaking at the event, the Agriculture Minister said, that the reason for selecting the proposed site of the First People Heritage Village for the launch of this programme, was due to the fact that they were the first farmers in the country, and that their the group have maintained the tradition of farming during their existence. He added, that the First People were also the first Agro-Processors in this part of the world, having taken their primary produce and made value added produce for production. If ever there was a model for farming, they are an excellent example, the Minister said.

Also present were, the Minister of Education and Member of Parliament for the area Mr. Anthony Garcia Mayor of Arima- her Worship, Mrs. Lisa Morris-Julien and Ricardo Bharath Hernandez, Carib Chief of the Santa Rosa Community.

Minister Garcia said he was very appreciative of the efforts of the Agriculture Ministry on this initiative and gave his assurance that the seeds will be put to great use for the benefit of the country by the various communities. In her comments, the Mayor of Arima, Mrs. Morris-Julien praised the initiative and thanked the Minister of Agriculture for selecting Arima as the first point for the national seed distribution, which she says is significant, based on the constituency’s history.

The Mayor added, that the Borough Corporation have already initiated a programme for persons who are interested in home gardening. The Corporation has assisted with the supply of dirt, manure and also with planting containers for individuals who don’t have enough yard space. She says that distribution of the seeds will commence soon, but persons must first register with their Local Government Councillor in order to receive the seeds.

The Arima Borough Corporation will be providing technical assistance for all interested persons while at the same time implementing a check and balance system to ensure the programme’s long term viability.

Speaking on behalf of the First People, Chief, Ricardo Bharath Hernandez said, that today marks thirty (30) years to the day, that the Santa Rosa First People community was recognized by the Government as the representative voice of all first people in the country. He said he is very grateful for the launch of this programme, since agriculture has always been part of their culture, and it will continue to be an integral part of the Heritage Village and other areas occupied by the First People for generations to come.

At today’s event over 1000 packets of seeds were distributed from the MALFs National Seed Bank in Chaguaramas, they included, pigeon pea, melongene, bodi, corn, pumpkin and ochro. Along with the seeds, there were also instructional booklets for the ‘soon to be’ home gardeners.

At the conclusion of the formal ceremony, Minister Rambharat planted some of the seeds with the First People at the Heritage Village site.

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30,000 Local Food Baskets: Ministries partner for COVID Food Initiative

The Ministry of Social Development and Family Services (MSDFS) as the core Government agency charged with the responsibility to serve and protect the vulnerable of our country, recently partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries for another initiative, to assist persons in immediate need of food support for during the COVID19 Stay at Home period.

In this regard, over three months, starting May 1 2020, 30,000 Local Food Baskets will be distributed across the country. Each recipient will get a $250.00 supermarket voucher, a bag of ground provisions, callaloo, pumpkin, a bag of local fruits and vegetables including pineapples, melons, melongene, a box of tomatoes, sweet peppers, cucumbers and seasonings, and two chickens. The food basket will be supplied by NAMDEVCO and sourced from farmers across the country.

The recipients of the Local Food Baskets and supermarket vouchers will be drawn from those persons who are unable to access the social support grants, as well as those households with children under the School Feeding Programme that were unable to access food cards from their Member of Parliament. This initiative commenced from today with The Honourable Camille RobinsonRegis, Minister of Social Development and Family Services, assisting with the delivery to some of the MP Offices. Recipients will be contacted by their respective Member of Parliament for collection accordingly.

This initiative will cost taxpayers the sum of $15,000,000.00. The Government through the Ministries of Social Development and Family Services and the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, remains committed to bringing relief to those who have been negatively affected by the impact of the COVID19 pandemic to ensure that no one is left behind as we begin to chart the road to recovery.

Minister Robinson-Regis distributes local food baskets and vouchers to Ms Nathalie Hector-Hoyte (2nd from left) today at the Longdenville Government Primary School.

A cross-section of fruits and vegetables for distribution to assist persons in immediate need of food support for during the COVID19 Stay at Home period.