PEST AND DISEASES OF CROP PLANTS

Back to: Agricultural Science Primary 5

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Pests and diseases are enemies of crop plants. Pests are animals that damage agricultural produce by feeding on them. Common pests of crops are insects, birds, bats, rodents and monkeys.

COMMON PESTS

The common cereal crops usually affected by pests are rice, maize, sorghum, millet and guinea corn. The pests that affect them are insects, rodents, birds and monkeys eases are cereals, tubers, legumes, fruits and vegetables

     

Insect Pests: The insects that damage cereal crops include stem borers, weevils and army worms. The stem borer damages the crops by boring holes into, and chewing the stems of maize, sugarcane, sorghum and rice. It also damages the cobs of maize.

The common insects that affect tuber crops are grasshoppers, aphids, termites and beetles. Grasshoppers eat up the leaves of cassava plants.

Rodents: The common rodents that damage cereal crops are rats and grasscutters. They also damage the young seedlings of cereal crops. Lizards also eat up the cotyledons of germinating cereals by digging into the soil where they are sown.

The common rodents that attack tuber crops are rats. They eat yam and cassava tubers by digging into the soil to reach them. They also eat harvested yam tubers in the barn.

Birds: Common birds that damage cereal crops include weaver birds, quella and bush fowls. Weaver birds eat up mature grains of cereals, such as rice, maize and guinea corn.The birds that attack tuber crops include bush fowls and guinea fowls. They peck at exposed yam tubers in the field.

Pests have these adverse effects on the growth and development of crop plants:

1. Pests reduce the growth of crop plants by eating up their leaves.
2. Pests and diseases reduce the yield of crop plants by reducing the quality of fruits and seeds harvested.
3. They reduce the quality of farm produce and stored grains.
4. Some pests transmit diseases to humans by poisoning and contaminating harvested produce of crop plants meant for human consumption.

 

EVALUATION

1. Name five common pests of farm animals.
2.  Mention and describe the damage they do to crops.

 

ASSIGNMENTS

1. State four adverse effects that pests have on crop plants

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