Plant Health Diagnostic Facility Lab
ICAR, New Delhi has sanctioned Plant Health Diagnostic Facility Centre at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Sandhiyur, Salem for the benefit of the farming community. This Krishi Vigyan Kendra has established a plant health clinic that provides farm consultancy services of all types, free of cost to farmers. Farmers may visit us with their queries or write to us for guidance. The laboratory is well equipped with several modern equipments for analysis of nutrients in soil and plant and also to assess quality of water for irrigation purpose. The laboratory is functioning in pest and disease diagnosis, identification of causal organisms and remedies to the farming at large community. Most diagnoses are based on microscopic examination of the specimen and visual identification or culture of plant pathogens such as fungi, bacteria and nematodes. Identifications of plants, insects and mites attacking plants are also performed. The laboratory provides information on water testing, for maximizing the productivity by maintaining soil health. From seedling to harvest, constant vigilance is required against every possible pest or disease epidemic in order to grow a healthy crop to its maximum yield. For appropriate disease management diagnosis of plant diseases is prerequisite and necessary. It will tell about the real cause (biotic/abiotic) of the disease. While most diseases (biotic/abiotic) often reduce crop yields. Sometimes may occasionally cause total ruin if detected too late. Therefore, it is very essential to detect the disease/pest outbreak at the earlier stages. Hence, control measures are sometimes started as soon as infection has been reported in neighbouring areas, and well before there are any signs of symptoms in the crop in the field. In the same way diseases of abiotic nature, deficiencies of mineral/ elements in the soil and the disease / disorders caused by phanerogamic plants also produce symptoms like those of fungi, bacteria, virus and nematodes and all these must be diagnosed properly for exact remedy. This pre-emptive response is often coordinated by the advisory services through an integrated approach of Pathologist, Entomologist and Soil Scientist etc. It has also advantage to analyze seed moisture EC, and pH of soil and water. Another achievement of this lab has also been produced half tonnes of Pseudomonas fluorescens and Trichoderma viride sold to the farmers for Rs.0.5 lakhs in the district under RF mode. About 500 farmers were benefitted till date from this centre.