• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Armyworms were also reported to have infested corn crops in three more local government units (LGUs) in Negros Occidental.
Nilo Basco, coordinator of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) Crop Protection Coordination Section, said on Friday (June 21) that armyworms hit corn areas in Barangay Tabu in Ilog and Barangay Quintin Remo in Moises Padilla.
They are still confirming similar pest infestations in La Castellana and Barangay Concepcion in Talisay City, he added.
Provincial Agriculturist Dina Genzola reported earlier that 82 hectares of sugarcane fields were hit by armyworms in Himamaylan City, and 45 hectares of cornfield in Isabela, Binalbagan and Himamaylan City, affecting 208 farmers.
Basco said they are still in the process of assessing damage to crops hit by armyworms.
The OPA is now fast tracking the purchase of initial P3 million worth of pesticides to prevent the further spread of armyworms, he added.
Massive spraying of sugarcane fields hit by fall armyworms were already conducted by the OPA and Sugar Regulatory Administration in tandem with private firms in Sitio Iling Iling, Barangay Cabadiangan, Himamaylan City, Fifth District Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo said.
According to the Department of Agriculture, armyworms are destructive pests that got their names from their army-like movement in agricultural fields.
They usually consume turf grass but would eat any vegetation in their path and can be controlled using neem oil-based sprays, or with biological controls like earwigs, spiders, and predatory wasps. | GB
