A.K. Panigrahix1, T.R. Sahoox2, H.S. Beherax3 and N.K. Swainx4

ABSTRACT:

Green revolution was introduced in the country in the early sixties to meet the demand of food and add cereal cultivation in the Rabi. The aftermath of this revolution is alarmingly disastrous. The humus devoid soil has lost its water holding ability, pests have acquired tremendous resistance against pesticides. Indian paddy fields are adding roughly about 37.8 metric tonnes of methane, a green house gas, into the atmosphere. Food and underground water contaminated with pesticides.

The environmental deterioration, food and water contamination demand a paradigm shift from chemical to organic agriculture. With the growing demand of food, diminishing arable land holdings and exodus of the agrarian communities from villages to towns abandoning agriculture, only organic farming will not suffice. The new technique conceived is known as sustainable agriculture, where soil fertility, crop yield and pest management are taken care of together with the environmental protection. This method of agriculture is in harmony with the nature. The article examines three ex site experiments where the above mentioned issues are examined along with the cost benefit ratio and throws light in making agriculture sustainable.

INTRODUCTION

More than six decades ago,Sir Albert Howard explained the nature of soil fertility in his famous book, “An agricultural Testament” as under. The nature of soil fertility can be understood only when it is considered in relation to Nature’s round. To study soil fertility we have to know the natural working system and to adopt methods of investigation in strict relation to such a subject. We must look at soil fertility as we would study a business where the profit and loss account must be taken along with the balance sheet, the standing of the concern, and the method of management. We have to consider the wood, not the individual tree. So it is with soil fertility. According to him, a fertile soil is one which has humus in abundance. If the soil is deficient in humus, the volume of pore space is reduced, the aeration of the soil is impeded, there is insufficient organic matter for the soil population, the soil machinery runs down, the supply of oxygen, water and dissolved salts needed by the root hairs is reduced, the synthesis of carbohydrates and proteins in the green leaf proceeds at a lower tempo; growth is affected.

CHEMICAL AGRICULTURE, Impact Analysis;

Then came the war and the war ended sooner than expected, resulting in stock piling of war surplus explosive related materials, mostly compounds of nitrogen and phosphorus. Global approach to agriculture modified in the event of population growth and developments in material and biological sciences. New seeds were developed and introduced to enhance food production which soon became popular in populous countries like India, China, South East Asian Countries and Japan. War surplus chemicals were converted into compounds called artificial chemical fertilizers. The seeds, popularly called “Green revolution seeds” or “Miracle seeds”, were developed to consume these synthetic artificial chemical fertilizers with water and

produce more food. Thus, monoculture came into being at the expense of agro biodiversity and resources like water diminished.

Four decades into the green revolution in India, the situation is pathetic; soil in general has become humus deficient, excessively hard and bears no pores for holding air and moisture. This soil no longer harbors the beneficial microbes but the pathogens and pest eggs, requiring excessive use of synthetic pesticides. The impacts of these agrochemicals, the artificial chemical fertilizers and synthetic pesticides are well observable. No data have been published by any the Indian agencies like the US Environment Protection Agency (USEPA). The USEPA revealed in 1991 that the projected estimate of methane emission from the Indian paddy fields amounted to 37.8 metric tonnes per year, thus accusing the Indian paddy cultivators in adding to the global green house gas accumulation as methane is also considered as a green house gas. Consequently in Indian more emphasis is now attached to shift to non conventional agriculture and keep paddy cultivation limited to 47 percent of the total arable land. Use of artificial chemical fertilizers especially N- fertilizers always invite the agricultural pests and applications of pesticides, especially synthetic pesticides. The disastrous consequences of the use of these synthetic pesticides over several decades are now clearly observable. There is a rise of pesticides resistance in the pest species and diseases causing microbes at the expense of the beneficial organisms like the beneficial insects (honey bee) and scavenging birds (vultures). Reports of crop failure are also linked to the changes in natural status of the soil. Reports of methane emission are obviously owing to excessive use of nitrogenous fertilizers like Urea. Reports of occurrence of agricultural pesticides in underground water (bottled water and soft drinks) are certainly due to their excessive applications and non degradations. There are reports of people in villages dying after consuming water from shallow tube wells in Orissa (Chakulia, Balasore, 2005).

HYPOTHESIS

It was thus felt essential to find a solution to both, enhance crop yield through enhanced soil fertility organically without further degrading its status and keep the pathogens and pests at bay through the use of natural pest repellants, botanical pesticides and employing biological pest control methods. But the most important one is, following Sir Howard, to bring out a balance sheet of profit- loss, making cultivation a profitable enterprise so that uncalled for future situations like resource retirement, contract farming and above all exodus of the agrarian communities from villages to cities are successfully thwarted. In India, agriculture is a million year old enterprise and has changed Sir Howard from being an western expert to an oriental expert. The population is growing alarmingly but arable land is diminishing. The farmers are committing suicides owing crop failures. There ought to be a shift in approach to the whole practice of agriculture at the moment. The modern agriculture should be made sustainable, i.e., in harmony with the nature. With the foregone objectives set in mind the authors experimented with the principal crop of Orissa, i.e. paddy cultivation, both in Kharif and Rabi.Methodology of approach, application, observation and cost benefit ratio of three such ex site experiments, one of Rabi and the two others of Kharif are furnished below.

Material Method and Observations:

Experiment-1 : Rabi 2003 -04

Farmer’s name and address – Sri Surendra Nath Patra, Vill- Dharampur, Fulwar Kasba, Balasore, Orissa.

Soil type – Deltaic alluvial

Crop type- Paddy (HYV)- Lalat (ORS-26-2014-4) known qualities – Duration: 125-130 days.

Grain type: Medium * Slender, Grain yield/hectare: 40 quintals (as on record)

Experimental Unit Area: 1 Acre

Source of seed : Farmers own saved (OS)

SL No.. Activities associated Control Rs Chemical Rs. Organic Rs

1. Seed cost OS 0.00 OS 0.00 OS 0.00

2. Seed bed preparation 2HL 100.00 2HL 100.00 2HL 100.00

1BL 80.00 1BL 80.00 1BL 80.00

3. Ist cultivation Tractor 600.00 Tractor 600.00 Tractor 600.00

(2 hours) (2 hours) (2 hours)

4. Farm yard manure Not applied Not applied 2 tonnes 0.00

(II)

5. Puddling 6 HL 300.00 6HL 300.00 6HL 300.00

2BL 160.00 2BL 160.00 2BL 160.00

6. Basal application Nil Gromor Pongam 70 kg 700.00 Oil cake MOP 1qt. 400.00 20 kg 100.00 Azolla 0.00

(I.I)

7. Transplantation 35HL 1750.00 40 HL 2000.00 35 HL 1750.00

8. Interculture 5HL 250.00 7HL 350.00 5 HL 250.00

9. a) Ist top dressing Nil Urea Pongam Oilcake

12 kg 60.00 50 kg 200.00

MOP Cow urine

6kg 30.00 250 lts. 0.00 (I.I)

b) 2nd top dressing Nil Urea

10 kg 50.00 Cow urine

MOP 250 lts. 0.00 5kg 25.00 (I.I)

10. Pesticide application Nil 400.00 200.00

(lure appln.)

11. Irrigation (total) 250.00 250.00 250.00

12. Cutting of crop 15HL 750.00 18HL 900.00 15HL 750.00

13. Threshing 10HL 500.00 13HL 650.00 10HL 500.00

14. Miscellaneous expenses Nil 100.00 150.00

(pest management)

15. Total cost involved(in Rs) 4740.00 6855.00 5690.00

16. a.Yield of grains 12.7qntls. 20.2qntls 23.5qntls

@520/-per qntl @520/-qntl @520/-qntl

6604.00 10504.00 12220.00

b.Yield of straw 15.85qntls 25.07qntls 29.47qntls

@80/-=1268.00 @70/-=1755.00 @80/-=2358.00

17. Total yield(in terms of Rs.) 7,872.00 12,259.00 14578.00

18. Net benefit 3,132.00 5,404.00 8,888.00

19. Cost benefit Ratio (17/15) 1.66 1.788 2.562

Experiment -2: Kharif 2004-05:

Name and address of the farmer: Raghunath Barik, Bhimpur

Soil type: Coastal alluvial Crop type: Paddy HYV (Pooja) (recently introduced)

Experimental unit area: 1 Acre Source of seed: Farmer’s own saved seed (0S)

SL No.. Activities associated Control Rs Chemical Rs. Organic Rs

1. Seed cost OS 0.00 OS 0.00 OS 0.00

2. Seed bed preparation 2HL 100.00 2HL 100.00 2HL 100.00

1BL 80.00 1BL 80.00 1BL 80.00

3. Ist cultivation Tractor Tractor Tractor

2hrs 600.00 2hrs. 600.00 2hrs. 600.00

4. Farm yard Manure Not applied Not applied 2 tonnes (II) 0.00

5. Puddling 6HL 300.00 6HL 300.00 6HL 300.00

2BL 160.00 2BL 160.00 2BL 160.00

6. Basal application NIL Gromor Pongam oil cake

70 kg 700.00 1.5q 600.00

MOP Sesbania

20kg 100.00 10kg 110.00

B.F 500gm. 100.00

V.C. 5 qntls.

(I.I) 0.00

7. Transplantation 35HL 1750.00 40HL 20000.00 35HL 1750.00

8. Interculture 8HL 400.00 10HL 500.00 8HL 400.00

9. Ist Top dressing Nil Urea Bacterial fertiliser

12kg 60.00 250 gm 50.00

MOP Compost 2.5qntls.

6kg 30.00 (1.1) 0.00

10. 2nd top dressing Nil Urea Bacterial fertilizers

10kg 50.00 250 gm 50.00

MOP Compost 2.5qntls.

5kg 25.00 (1.1) 0.00

11. Pesticide application Nil Total 400.00 (1.1) 0.00

12. Crop cutting 15HL 750.00 18HL 900.00 15HL 750.00

13. Threshing 10HL 500.00 13HL 650.00 10HL 500.00

14. Miscellaneous Nil 100.00 150.00

15. Total cost involved (in Rs.) 4,640.00 6,755.00 5,700.00

16. a. Yield of grain 16.50qntl. 8,580.00 21.9qntl. 11,388.00 22.10qntl. 11,492/-

b. Yield of straw 22.10qntl 1,768.00 27.5qntl 1,925.00 29.4qntl 2,352/-

c. Total yield(in Rs.) 10,348.00 13,313.00 13,844/-

17. Net benefit 5,708.00 6,558.00 8,144/-

18. Cost benefit ratio (16c/15) 2.23 1.971 2.429

Soil fertility condition of the above crop at different stages.

Plot N (Kg/ha) P (Kg/ha) K(Kg/ha)

Subiah and Asija, 1956 Olsen’s method Ammonium Acetate method (alkaline potassium permanganate)

Initial 45DAT After Initial 45DAT After Initial 45DAT After

harvest harvest harvest

Control 511.9 499.4 426.49 50.00 44.6 15.2 312.0 300.8 200.25

Chemical 511.9 561.2 520.57 50.00 52.2 26.16 312.0 346.6 241.9

Organic 511.9 560.7 564.4 50.00 43.7 18.24 312.0 336.8 251.32

Experiment. 3. Kharif 2004-05

Name and address of the farmer: Sri Pitamber Jena,

At- Mangalpur, P.O.- Chengua- Mangalpur, Via- Bhimda, Dist; Mayurbhanj (Orissa)

Soil type : Sandy loam

Crop type : Paddy (HYV) Kasturi

Source of seed : Purchased from other farmer (PI)

(7.5 kg @ 5/- per kg= Rs. 37.50p)

Known yield potential of the variety (Kasturi) ± 20 quintals per acre (chemical)

Plot size : 30 decimals (100 decimals = 1 Acre)

Ingredients applied:

1. Sesbania (Dhanicha) seed @ 12 kg/acre = 3kg 600gm @ Rs. 11/- 1 kg = Rs. 39.60p)

2. Pongam oil cake @ 150kg/acre = 45 kg @ Rs. 4/-kg = Rs. 180.00

3. Cow urine soaked cowshed soil @ 4 quintals / acre= 1.2 quintals (Internal input)

4. Fresh cow urine @ 7-8 liters twice in a week for 6 weeks (internal input)

5. Home made heap compost – 2 cartloads (I I)

MATERIAL METHOD

Sesbania seeds were sown in the soil after the first ploughing and allowed to grow up to preflowering stage where after the field was ploughed and the plants were incorporated into the soil together with pongam oil cake, cow urine soaked cowshed soil and home made compost. The farm land top soil was thus converted into a paste of soil, sesbania plants, pongam oil cake, urine soaked cow shed soil, home made compost and stagnated water (just enough to create a muddy condition). It was allowed to stand overnight. The field was then transplanted with the paddy seedlings two days after. Thereafter, the field was periodically weeded and fresh cow urine applied at regular intervals to add more potash* to the soil.

[*The authors found out that fresh cow urine is a rich source of available potash to the plants and help in better fruiting.]

OBSERVATION:

1. Soil samples were collected at different stages for study of soil fertility conditions and the NPK values were ascertained.

Study of sample N(Kg/ha) P(Kg/ha) K(K/ha)

Initial 283.7 42.6 168.3

45 DAT 458.2 45.8 273.6

75 DAT 462.1 39.9 260.1

After harvest 393.6 35.2 254.7

2. Yeild of grains at harvest: 8.5 quintals (@ 28.33 quintals/acre –or- 70 quintals/hectare)

3. Yeild of straw at harvest : 9.9 quintals (@ 32.9 quintals / acre)

Cost Benefit Index :

1. Total expenditure incurred: Rs. 1317.10

A. Ingredients: (purchased input)

i. Cost of paddy seeds : Rs 37.50

ii. Cost of sesbania seeds : Rs. 39.60

iii. Cost of pongam oil cake : Rs. 180.00

B. Labour:

i. Seed bed preparation 1 HL : Rs. 50.00

ii. Ist cultivation 1 BL : Rs. 80.00

iii. Puddling I BL : Rs 80.00

iv. Transplantation 10 HL : Rs. 500.00

v. Interculture 1HL : Rs. 50.00

vi. Crop cutting 4 HL : Rs. 200.00

vii. Threshing 2HL : Rs. 100.00

2. Total sale proceeds of yield:

i.Value of grain,

8.5 quintals@ 600/- per quintal = : Rs. 5100.00

ii Value of straw,

9.9 quintals@ 80/-per quintals = : Rs. 792.00

———————

TOTAL Rs. 5892.00

3. Cost benefit ratio (2/1) = 4.47

Abbreviations used :

HL = Human labour, BL =Bullock Labour, MOP = Muriate of potash, N= Nitrogen (total), P= Phosphorus (available), K= Potash(available),II= Internal input, PI=– Purchased input, B.F.= Bacterial Feriliser, V.C.= VermiCompost.

x1 – Principal Investigator, UGC MRP Organic Farming, F.M. (Auto) College, Balasore (Orissa)756001

x2- Project Associate, UGC MRP Organic Farming, F.M.(Auto) College, Balasore(Orissa) 756001

x3- Research Associates, PPBSA- Navdanya, Ranipatna, Balasore(Orissa) 756001.

x4- Co-investigator, UGC MRP Organic Farming, F.M.(Auto) College, Balasore(Orissa) 756001

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:

The authors are indebted to the University Grants Commission, Bahadur shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi-2, and the Navdanya Trust, A/60 hauz Khas, New Delhi-16 for the financial assistances received from them to undertake the ex- situ field studies and laboratory assessments.

References:

Avery, D.1995 saving the planet with pesticides and plastic. Indian polis, the Hudson Institute

Blobaum, Roger. 1983 Barriers to conversion to organic farming practices in the mid western United States.Environmentally sound agriculture, William Lockeretz (ed.), Praeger, New York, N.Y.

Borlaug,N. 1994 agricultural research for sustainable development. Testimony before U.S. House of Representatives Committee on agriculture, 1994

Cacek, Terry. 1984. Organic Farming “the other conservation farming system. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation ; 39:357-360

Dahama, A.K. 1998 Agro’Annual Review of Crop Ecology, Vol. 1

Dindal 1990 Soil Biology Guide. John Wiley and Sons. New York, N.Y.

Eberle,P and D. Holland 1979 comparing organic and conventional grain farms in Washington

Fliessbach,A.,Eyhorn, F., Mader,P., Rentsch, D.and Hany,R. 2001 DOK long term farming system trial; microbial biomass, activity and diversity …… Sustainable management of organic matter, London, CABI

Gliessman, S.R. 1988 Agro Ecology; Ecological Process in Sustainable Agriculture, Ann Arbor Press, Michigan(US)

Gupta, P.K. 2004 a hand book of soil, fertilizer and manure (2nd edition)

Harwood,R.R. 1984 Organic Farming Research……. and its role in sustainable agriculture, Madison, Wisconsin.

Howard, Sir Albert,1940 An Agricultural Testament, Other India Press, Mapusa, Goa, India/RFSTE,NewDelhi.

India 1995. A Reference Annual , publication division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.

Joshi, V.A., Et. Al. 1995 Nitrate in rural area in Nagpur, IZZEP, 15(6)

Kansal, B.D., Et. Al. 1981 Effect of different levers of nitrogen and farm yard manure on yield and quality of spinach

Qual.Plant. plant foods human nutrition 31

Lal. R., Stewart , B. A. 1992 need for land restoration. Adv. soil science

Lampkin, N.H. and Padel, S. 1994 organic farming and agricultural policy in western Europe; an overview.

CAB International, Wallingford

McNaughton, S.L. and L.L. Wolf 1973 General Ecology , Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York

Nannipieri,P.S. and B. Cencanti. 1990 Ecological significance of the biological activity in soil, Soil Biochemistry, Vol.6Marceldekker, New. York

Odum,E.P. 1971 Fundamentals of Ecology, Saunders, Philadelphia

Parr.J.F. Et.Al. 1986 Recycling of organic wastes for a sustainable agriculture Bio.Ag.Hort 3: 115-130

Roberts. K. J. t.Al 1979 The economic of organic crop production, Ag.Eco.P. No.1979-6, University of Missouri, Colombia

Sharma A.K. 2004 A Hand Book of Organic Farming, AGROBIOS(INDIA)

Sultan A. Ismail 1997 Vermicology; the Biology of Earthworms, Orient Longman

Verma, L.N. 1993 Biofertilisers in agriculture, Peekay Tree Crops Development Foundation, Cochin.

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Organic gardening is a science. It is not just simply planting the seeds and waiting for the plant to grow, flower or bear fruit. The process involves careful planning since organic gardening follows the natural principles of nature in soil cultivation, managing pests, and propagating plants.

However, don’t be daunted since we only mention that organic gardening is a science to emphasize that we don’t just let nature do the work. We grow our plants or crops by applying a system that is approved by Mother Nature. That’s the essence of it.

There are a lot of elements involved in organic gardening but for our discussion we will focus on general aspects of soil cultivation and pest management.

To succeed in organic gardening, we need to keep the soil healthy. You can’t use chemical fertilizers, obviously, since it negates the very purpose of the activity and also the long term use of such fertilizers damages the natural components of the soil. Composting is an essential part of organic gardening. Composts have various benefits for your plants. One, it provides the needed nutrients and improves the overall soil constitution. Second, the compost can help the soil retain more water which means less time spraying your plants with a garden hose.

Aside from proper soil cultivation, the problem that is dreaded by most growers is pest control. From flying to crawling, from walking to boring, managing pests is a vital key in producing quality organic produce or maintaining a healthy organic garden.

In an organic garden, the plants should be able to handle the damage of ordinary insect attacks or damage from common diseases. However, if you feel you need to support your plants there are several ways you could do so. You can spray your garden or plants with solutions that are friendly to the environment such as diluted soapy water or organic sprays from naturally occurring insecticide plants, the need tree for instance.

Or another way is to “equip” your garden with friendly insects. You can find out what kind of pests are there in your garden and look for its natural enemies. This way, population of pests can be controlled by your own army of insects. By introducing natural predators, you will no longer fear of pests getting immune from insecticides. But, pest management for an organic garden really involves combinations of techniques.

With proper care, and the right techniques, your organic garden can be sustained. You can be assured that the soil is cared for and healthy, plants will be able to pollinate effectively, water will be conserved, and plants in general will survive longer.

All these elements when combined together will result to a hefty harvest of an organic garden product of your choice. Your vegetables or fruits will be fresher than before. You will have a garden with vibrant and healthy flowers.

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The ants are called “crazy” because they scurry about in a seemingly random pattern, and they’re called `raspberry’ not for their appearance, but for Tom Raspberry, the pest controller who first discovered them six years ago. 

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Usually the size of an ant colony is held in check by other colonies of the same species–all of them competing for the same resources. If an ant from one colony encounters an ant from another, they will start a fight, often to the death. Colonies may also mount massive raids against one another. No so with the Raspberry ants.  Different colonies of raspberry ants are not hostile to each other, but instead treat one another as if they were nest mates. This means that Raspberry ants throughout Texas are just on big happy family, creating what is in effect a single, enormous, statewide “super colony.” Without checks from other members of their species and without any natural predators, the Raspberry ants can achieve an almost total environmental control.

When the ants enter homes or industrial sites, they’re often drawn to the warm buzz of electrical equipment. Their diminutive size, about 3 mm, means that when teeming masses of them crawl across a circuit board, they can fall between the spaces of electrical elements, closing the loop and shorting out connections. They have damaged pumping stations, fire alarms, and personal computers. They’ve even made an unsuccessful play for NASA’s Johnson space center.

It’s clear that the crazy raspberry ants are having an impact on the environment. They kill many other insects, including fire ants and snakes, which has earned them some friends. However, they have also been reported to overwhelm newly hatched birds and small mammals. 

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So what’s being done to control these ants? Bryan Black from the Texas Department of Agriculture says that these ants can be controlled using Termidor, a pesticide used to control termites.  Recently, at the request of Tom Raspberry, the TDA has expanded labeling of this product to allow pest controllers to use it in significantly larger quantities when combating raspberry ants. 

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Too often people will leave food or dirty dishes over night not considering about how this will attract ants and roaches. Unfortunately there are sometimes when no measure of cleaning is able to keep them away. I hate bugs and am so disappointed when every time I clean I still see at least one scurrying around my home.

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There are also other types of fire ants out there, such as the bullet fire ant which can cause you a great amount of suffering and pain to your body. This ant’s bite will not kill you. There are two kinds of fire ants that will burn you. Red ants are extremely deadly, and they blow poisonous toxic at you. This is called the piperidine alkaloid, which is very bad to get on you. Then there is the Southern fire ant. When it bites you, it will give you blisters. It is so painful that you will not be able to stand it.

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If there is an average amount of rainfall in the spring, the number of insects and other pests can increase significantly. Water is an important part of the life cycle, so the rainfall that generally accompanies the shift of weather from the cold of winter to the heat of summer lets pest populations thrive. Unfortunately you can also expect to see more pests in your home as they try to spread out and find food beyond their immediate environment; competition among the individual insects and pests will be higher, so they will attempt to locate food in new locations.

Infestations can get even worse is there’s an excessive amount of rainfall, especially when it comes to ants or other insects which make nests underground. Large quantities of rain means that the insect communities will flood, and while the majority of insects won’t drown immediately from this flooding they’ll seek to escape from it all the same. This means that they’ll be looking for someplace that’s dry and warm with an abundant supply of food chances are your house will be exactly what they’re looking for.

Dry weather won’t necessarily save you from having to deal with pests, of course. If there isn’t a lot of rainfall then moisture will be a priority for the various pest communities. This can lead them to your yard if you have sprinklers, rain collection, decorative fountains, or even a leaky hose nozzle that tends to leave a puddle underneath it. Even if you don’t have an excess if water in your yard or around your house, some insects may find their way into your house in search of the water that their community needs. This can lead to infestations that center around sinks, potted plants, or even pet food and water dishes.

Should the lack of rainfall be substantial, you might be facing even larger infestations. Insect and pets communities will dwindle as less are born and quite a few will die off, but the survivors will become even more determined to make it through the drought so that the colony will survive. They will be more aggressive in their efforts to find water, so if they find their way into your house you might see even greater numbers than you would normally.

Even if you’re facing a cool spring with moderate amounts of rainfall then you won’t necessarily be protected from pest invasions. Should the rain and clouds help to keep the average temperatures a bit on the low side, most pests will be looking for someplace warmer because the cool weather will cause them to be sluggish. Once again, your house can seem like the perfect location for them since compared to the cool earth and air outside the indoors will be like a tropical paradise. Infestations may not be as large as with some of the other weather conditions because not as many pests will be out searching for food, water, and warmth, but if an infestation begins the insects may continue to trickle in for quite some time.

You don’t have to just accept these conditions without a fight, of course. As spring begins to set in you should look for any cracks or obvious entrances to your house and seal them off. You might also consider contacting a professional exterminator to come and pre-treat portions of your home in order to set up a pest boundary in various rooms and around your foundation.

Keep an eye on weather conditions and try to determine exactly what pests will be looking for, and then watch those areas for signs of infestation. Depending on the type of pest that tries to invade your home there are a number of traps, baits, and other products available to help you control and eliminate any pest invasion. Just remember that depending on conditions there might be several waves of pest invaders and that you may need to continue setting up baits and traps for several weeks to ensure that they’re all gone.

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With the spraying method, you are going to have to vacate your home while your home is being sprayed. This is for your own safety, because in order to get rid of the termites there are going to have to be very harsh chemicals that are sprayed on to your home. The spraying will take place both inside and outside of your home. Therefore, you will have to leave your home and you will have to take with you any plants or animals that might be damaged by the spray.

This is the easiest and most popular option for people who have a small termite problem. This is the best option for these people to do because they will be able to get rid of their problem without having to worry about a lot of hassle. It is also usually the cheapest of the termite solutions. However, it only works if the problem has not spread very far. If the termites have eaten too much of the wood your entire home could be in danger.

The second option is for cases where that is true. If your termite problem has progressed, you might need to spray for the bugs and then replace a lot of the wood work. This could be a major undertaking that will cost you a lot of money. You might also have to replace painting and floors in order to get at the wood.

There is no easy way to tell which of the options is going to be best for you. The best thing that you can do is to have your home inspected for termites and if they are there, the people can tell you which of the options is going to be your best bet. Most of the time, you will be able to take care of the problem with sprays because the wood will not be destroyed and you can continue to live your lives. However, if the termites have weakened the home in any way, you might have to do some replacements. This is something that is not easy to do.

Your best option when it comes to what you need to do in order to take care of your problems is to get some people in there to have a look. You want to be sure that they can look at your problems and can also take a sample of the wood in your home. You want to be extra sure that anyone who is looking at your home knows exactly what you are dealing with. It is very important for you to make sure you are giving the inspectors all of the information that you have.

It is also very important that you are following through with the recommendations that you are getting about your home and your wood. If you are told that some of it should be replaced, it is a good idea for you to do so. If you don’t replace it, you will find that you end up with a worse problem because the wood could collapse and you could be injured. It will also greatly lower the property value of your home.

Dealing with termites is never easy, nor is it ever something that you want to do. However, if you can take care of the problem as soon as you know there is one, you will find that it is much easier and cheaper to do it than to wait. If you wait, each day is going to mean that you have more of an expense and more and more problems when you finally get around to doing it. If you are going to take pride in your home and take care of it, you want to be sure that you are able to deal with this problem as soon as you can.

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A sneak peek of the several available rodenticides

For crop protection the pesticides used are many. The rats have a strange habit of taking a cautious small bite of every item. They wait for sometimes to check whether they fall ill or not. If no, then they continue with their feast but if yes, then they move away. So the pesticides are made with precautions so that these rodenticides do not contain any odour or flavour. Many pest control products are available in the market of which most commonly used are anticoagulants. These work mainly on the basis of disrupted blood clotting factors which in turn become fatal during the severe internal haemorrhage caused by consuming this poisonous agent. Another is metal phosphides that have typical pungent garlic- like odour that doesn’t repel rats if not attract them. These phosphides are rather fast acting rat poisons that make rats dye in an open area instead of inside the building. Then is hypercalcemia which helps in crop protection by carrying out certain fatal chemical reactions inside the body of the rodent.

How can you buy the best rodenticides?

Many online agencies have sprung up who have nearly all the branded rodenticides in store for you. You can go and visit their respective websites to gather further information about these available pesticides for the crop protection. They have large array of products of world famous companies. You can order online to avail the discount prices they generally have. Searching the net will lead you to come across several of such agencies through which you can buy pest controls. Go and order one today and save your precious crops from invading rodents!

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If you are a resident of Atlanta, Georgia looking for a reliable termite control company, you must be armed with a few criteria to help you make sure that the service will be worth every penny. After all, the country is still reeling from the economic crisis, and money is quite difficult to earn these days.

First, check for affiliations with pest control associations in the locality, such as the Georgia Pest Control Association, Certified Pest Control Operators Association and the Better Business Bureau. This way, you can be assured of their familiarity with local conditions in which termites thrive, their level of expertise in handling the task and the kind of customer service they provide.

Also, determine whether the technologies they use for termite detection and elimination are the latest and most effective in the industry. Infrared cameras, for instance, will allow technicians to detect termite infestations that will otherwise remain hidden during a visual inspection. Termatrac, on the other hand, is a device that can detect any live infestation.

Finally, take note of the coverage and terms of their warranties or bonds. It is best to find an Atlanta termite control company who can promise frequent inspection, free re-treatment, cheap renewal price, renewability and transferability of warranty and coverage of not only the common Subterranean termites, but also the hard-to-treat species like the Formosan, Drywood, and Dampwood termites.

Resource Box:

The Atlanta termite control services by Breda Pest Management offers the use of the latest termite detection and elimination equipment, reliable customer service and professional experience that spans 36 years. To know more about their service, visit http://www.bredapestmanagement.com or call 770-466-6700.

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