DAVAO CITY, Oct. 8 (PIA) The Department of Agriculture in Davao Region has intensified its campaign against the Banana Fusarium Disease that afflicts the banana industry by enhancing broadcast skills of community information officers involved in the disease management.
Noel Provido, Regional Information Officer of the DA 11 said the activity is outcome of the initial gathering among community information officers in Tagum City recently, where they asked for improving their knowledge in handling agriculture information through broadcast.
“We need to hone the skills of our partners for them to effectively address this problem that affects the banana farmers through the broadcast media,” he said.
Several information officers from the local government units in Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur and Compostela Valley and other line government agencies participated in the activity while the DA provided the inputs for the Fusarium wilt based on the perspective of a government agriculturists.
The Promusa, a knowledge-sharing platform on bananas defined Fusarium wilt of banana or Panama disease as a lethatl fungal disease caused by the soil-borne fungus called Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense where it enters the plant through the roots and colonizes the xylem vessels thereby blocking the flow of water and nutrients.
Disease progression results in the collapse of leaves at the petiole, the splitting of the pseudostem base and eventually plant death.
Once established in a field, the fungus persists in soil for an indefinite period of time and cannot be managed using chemical pesticides.
The solution best adapted to the continued production of bananas in infested soils is replacing susceptible cultivars by resistant ones.
Fusarium wilt is the first disease of bananas to have spread globally.
The activity also involved several media personalities who would also share their know in handling public affairs programs in both radio and television. (PIA 11-Joey Sem G. Dalumpines)
No comments:
Post a Comment