Officers of Ngoc Lac District Agricultural Service Center guide people of Kien Tho commune to recognize and prevent cassava mosaic disease.
In the spring crop of 2025, Ngoc Lac district has planted 1,690.5 hectares of raw cassava, concentrated in the communes of Kien Tho, Phuc Thinh, Nguyet An, Ngoc Trung... Currently, the area of raw cassava is growing in the seedling stage of about 9 to 10 leaves. However, through field surveys by the Ngoc Lac District Agricultural Service Center, more than 10 hectares of raw cassava in the communes were found to be infected with mosaic disease. This is a disease caused by a virus, with typical symptoms easily seen on the leaf blades, mottled yellow mosaic, severe disease causes cassava leaves to curl, bend, and wrinkle. Symptoms appear at all stages of cassava growth from germination to maturity. Young cassava plants are infected with the virus, the plants cannot grow and develop; mature cassava plants are infected with the virus, reducing productivity, severe disease does not allow harvesting. According to Ms. Phung Thi Phuong, Tho Phu village, Kien Tho commune (Ngoc Lac): "In the spring crop of 2025, my family cooperated with Phuc Thinh cassava starch processing factory to plant nearly 10 hectares of raw cassava. Due to using old seeds from the previous crop, nearly half of the area was infected with mosaic disease from mild to severe."
Faced with the above situation, the Ngoc Lac District Agricultural Service Center is coordinating with communes and towns to count cassava area, planting time, structure and origin of cassava varieties. At the same time, instructing people to spray insecticide to kill whiteflies and uproot and destroy areas that are heavily infected according to the technical process of preventing cassava mosaic disease. According to Mr. Nguyen Duc Thai, Director of the Ngoc Lac District Agricultural Service Center: For areas infected with mosaic disease at a level of 25% to less than 70%, the center instructs people to thoroughly uproot and destroy diseased plants and spray insecticide twice, 7-10 days apart to eliminate harmful whiteflies. At the same time, instructing people on measures to care for areas that are not yet infected by adding fertilizer and watering to keep the cassava plants moist. In cases where cassava is severely infected with more than 70% of plants and leaves, the entire field must be completely destroyed and other crops must be grown. In addition, the center regularly sends staff to visit the fields, inspect, and detect cassava mosaic disease early to take preventive measures right from the start, avoiding widespread spread. At the same time, it propagates and guides producers about the harmful effects of cassava mosaic disease, preventive measures, and minimizes the damage caused by cassava mosaic disease.
In the 2025-2026 cassava crop year, the whole province has planted nearly 15,000 hectares of raw cassava for processing, concentrated in the districts of Muong Lat, Ba Thuoc, Ngoc Lac, Thuong Xuan, Nhu Thanh, Thach Thanh, Nhu Xuan, Cam Thuy, Tho Xuan, and Trieu Son. From the beginning of the crop, the agricultural sector has recommended that people choose cassava mosaic disease-resistant varieties, healthy, disease-free varieties, with clear origins, and not plant cassava varieties that have been identified as infected from the previous crop. In addition, people clean the fields, clear cassava residues from the previous crop, and clear weeds on the banks and areas surrounding the planting area. At the same time, apply good measures to rotate cassava with other crops such as sugarcane, soybeans, jicama, and peanuts to cut off the transmission source of mosaic disease. However, as of June 12, 2025, through investigation by the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, 558.9 hectares of raw cassava in the districts of Ba Thuoc, Ngoc Lac, Thuong Xuan, Nhu Thanh, Thach Thanh, Nhu Xuan, Cam Thuy, Tho Xuan, and Trieu Son were found to be infected with cassava mosaic disease causing local damage on the KM94 and KM140 varieties.
To proactively prevent and combat cassava mosaic disease, the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection is coordinating with localities to regularly update information and closely monitor the development of cassava disease to promptly warn the people. At the same time, sending specialized staff to regularly visit fields, investigate, and detect cassava mosaic disease early in order to promptly guide people to apply preventive measures to avoid the disease spreading widely.
Article and photos: Le Hoi
Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/phong-chong-benh-kham-la-san-252592.htm
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