• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Office of the Provincial Agriculturist confirmed on Wednesday (June 19) an outbreak of armyworms in three local government units (LGUs) of the fifth district of Negros Occidental.
Provincial Agriculturist Dina Genzola said that they are now conducting an assessment and validation in coordination with the affected LGUs.
Genzola did not have details yet on the extent of the damage as they are still in the process of consolidating the official reports.
Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo said that armyworms hit portions of Isabela and Himamaylan City as well as the upper barangays of Binalbagan.
He added that the armyworms outbreak may have been caused by the climatic change, which was triggered by El Niño and subsequent rains.
During the dry season, armyworm larvae stay close to the ground, feeding on grasses and other plants, then later on, move up to feed on plant leaves and fruit.
Based on reports he received, Yulo said armyworms attacked a large portion of a sugarcane plantation although their favorite target is corn.
Armyworms are destructive pests that got their names from their army-like movement in agricultural fields, according to the Department of Agriculture.
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, it added. | GB
