First agri-forestry pest and disease meteorological grade forecast of the year released

Reporters learned from the first issue of 2015 "Agri-forestry Pest and Disease Meteorological Grade Forecast," jointly released by the China Meteorological Administration and the Ministry of Agriculture on March 24, that most areas of the Yangtze River Basin currently have rapeseed at the full flowering stage, entering the peak period of rapeseed sclerotinia stem rot occurrence and the critical stage for control. The China Meteorological Administration and the Ministry of Agriculture jointly remind people to closely monitor weather changes and strengthen disease monitoring and prevention during the flowering period; according to the actual disease situation, apply pesticide control promptly to effectively control the damage.

From late mid-February to mid-March, the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River experienced continuous overcast and rainy weather with little sunshine. The number of precipitation days was mostly more than 10 days, and most of Jiangnan reached 15 to 25 days, with sunshine 40 to 90 percent below normal, and some low-lying farmland soil remained continuously overly wet; moreover, the field canopy was highly closed, rapeseed had been planted continuously year after year or in successive crops, and sources of sclerotinia inoculum were abundant, so rapeseed sclerotinia stem rot appeared early. As of March 20, most areas of the Yangtze River Basin had rapeseed sclerotinia stem rot at the early peak stage of leaf disease occurrence, with an affected area of 14.42 million mu, an increase of 10.8% over the previous year.

In the next 10 days, there will be more overcast and rainy weather in the south, with rainfall in Jiangnan of 25 to 60 mm, including 70 to 120 mm in parts of southern Hunan. Overcast, rainy and highly humid weather is suitable for the occurrence and spread of rapeseed sclerotinia stem rot. It is expected that rapeseed sclerotinia stem rot will occur relatively severely in most areas of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, with major outbreaks in eastern Hubei, southwestern Anhui, northern Jiangxi and northeastern Hunan, and moderate occurrence in other rapeseed-producing areas.

The China Meteorological Administration and the Ministry of Agriculture remind farmers and relevant departments to closely monitor weather changes and strengthen disease monitoring and prevention during the flowering period; according to the actual disease situation, apply pesticide control promptly to effectively control the damage.