In jute production, starting from land selection, all kinds of care have to be completed on time. Fertilizer, water, weeds and management are very important for good yield of jute.
Fertilizer management: Soil fertility test is required to determine the correct level of fertilizer. Soil testing can accurately determine the amount of fertilizer required in the soil. In one experiment, it has been found that if a balanced fertilizer is applied to the jute land, it is possible to get 10.5 manas per acre or 3.5 manas per bigha more than the normal yield.
In jute crop urea fertilizer has to be applied in two installments and other fertilizers in one installment during the last tillage of land preparation. If cow dung fertilizer is not used in the land, 33 kg urea, 10 kg TSP, 12 kg MOP, 16 kg gypsum and 4.5 kg zinc sulphate should be mixed in the soil and sown during the last cultivation. Similarly, 40 kg of urea, 21 kg of TSP, 24 kg of MOP, 36 kg of gypsum and 4.5 kg of zinc sulphate should be applied on the tosha jute. The second installment of urea fertilizer should be applied after 40-45 days of age of jute crop. During application, care should be taken to ensure that there is sufficient moisture in the soil. Before applying urea fertilizer, weeds should be weeded and the soil should be loosened. After spraying the fertilizer so that the applied urea does not stick to the young leaves or tips of the tree, the sticky manure should be removed with a jute stick or something else. Note that it is better not to apply urea fertilizer during hot sun or rain.
In case of application of dung manure in the land, it is necessary to apply dung manure 2-3 weeks before sowing of seeds and mix it well with the soil with cultivation and ladder. If 45-60 ounces of dung manure is used per acre of land, only 12 kg urea per acre should be applied on desi jute and 16 kg urea, 4.5 kg MOP, 20 kg gypsum should be applied on tosha jute. In this case also, if the age of the tree is 40-45 days, in the second installment urea should be applied at the rate of 33 kg per acre on desi jute and 40 kg on tosha jute.
Water management: When it is not raining, light irrigation is often required to bring the soil in good condition. As jute is a rainfed crop, no further irrigation is required. However, if there is excess rain, the drain should be cut as soon as possible and the water accumulated in the land should be removed. Because jute crop cannot stand standing water. Moreover, if there is excess sap in the jute land, the incidence of weeds increases, resulting in higher weeding costs. In case of severe drought, the land needs to be lightly irrigated. If there is not enough sap in the soil, the applied fertilizer cannot take the jute plant properly. As a result crop growth is disrupted. After irrigation, the soil has to be weeded with a hoe to understand the condition of the lice. This keeps the sap in the soil for a long time and accelerates the growth of the jute plant.
Weed Management: Weeds are the worst enemy of any crop. Weeds divide the food of the jute crop, so it cannot absorb sufficient nutrients from the soil. As a result, the growth of the crop is severely hampered and the yield is reduced. About 130 species of weeds are found growing in different parts of Bangladesh. Of these, 26 species are important as weeds and 6 species cause more damage to jute crops. Therefore, before sowing jute crop, the land should be well cultivated and weeds should be cleared with a ladder. If weeds appear in the land, timely control measures should be taken. If weeds are not controlled in time, the cost of weeding increases a lot. A large part of the cost of jute cultivation is for weeding. Weeds can also be controlled by changing the crop pattern. For example, if jute is cultivated in potato land, the cost of weeding is reduced a lot. Within 30 days of sowing the jute crop, if the seedlings are thinned and given 1st weeding, the incidence of weeds is much less and the growth of the plant is accelerated. However, the first weeding must be completed within 45-50 days. The second weeding should be done within 60-70 days after understanding the level of weeds. In general, timely control of weeds is very important in jute crop.
Jute is mainly a summer crop. At this time the ambient temperature and air humidity are high. Due to this weather various diseases occur in jute crop. Every year jute is severely damaged by various diseases. The amount of damage can be up to 20-40 percent. Diseases are mainly caused by fungi, viruses and worms. Jute can be protected by timely diagnosis and control.
At this stage we will discuss various diseases of jute.
Seed plague: Seed plague is the first disease that occurs after sowing seeds. The disease can occur when the jute tree is 1 inch to 4-5 inches tall. The infected seedlings die with black spots at the base. It is a type of fungal disease. If the disease occurs widely in the land, Dithene M-45 should be mixed with 10 g per liter of water and sprayed on the seedlings. In addition, if the soil is well drained by applying potash fertilizer to the land, the disease is reduced. Care should be taken to ensure that the soil is not wet and damp.
Falling disease: In this disease the whole tree falls down and dies. Jute can be affected by this disease in both small and large conditions. The disease is more prevalent in Tosha Patte from the time of flowering. If there is water in the affected land, it should be removed. The base of the tree should be kept clean. Indigenous jute can be planted in the affected field for 2-3 years instead of tosha jute.
Stem rot disease: The most harmful disease of jute is stem rot disease. Due to this disease the yield can be reduced by 50 to 60 percent. It is a fungal disease. Jute is affected by the disease from the time the seedlings are 6-7 inches tall to adulthood. The leaves and stems of the tree have dark brown spots. These spots can appear on any part from the beginning to the end. On closer inspection, numerous black dots can be seen in the spotted areas. These black dots contain fungi. They are transmitted through wind or rainwater to nearby trees. Sometimes the whole tree falls on the affected area.
Black bandage disease: The symptoms of black bandage disease are almost the same as stem rot disease. However, it has black fence-like spots on the stem. Rubbing on the affected area causes black powder stains on the hands. The disease is more common in middle age of the tree.
Dry wound disease: It is seen only in native jute. This disease causes seedling plague in seedling stage. Dark spots appear on the trunks of large trees. The affected area ruptures. Infected trees do not die, but the affected part becomes hard. So even after the jute is decomposed, the bark of the affected area sticks to the jute stick. As a result, the ash is inferior.
Stem rot, dry-wound and black bandage are the three diseases seed, soil and airborne. So their remedy is the same.
1. After cutting the jute, the weeds of the land should be uprooted and the roots of the abandoned trees should be uprooted and burnt.
2. Seeds should be cleaned before sowing. The use of Vitavax-200 (4 gm per kg of seed) for seed purification is quite beneficial. In addition, seeds can be purified by raw garlic paste. In that case 125 g of bata garlic should be mixed with 1 kg of jute seeds and dried well. If purification is not possible, the seeds should be dried in the hot sun before sowing.
3. Chemical spraying should be done whenever there is an outbreak of the disease in the soil from seedling stage to full stage. Mix 20 gms of Dithene M-45 in every 10 liters of water and spray 2-3 times in 3-4 days.
4. Seeds should be collected from disease free jute plants.
5. Water drainage should be arranged in the land at all times.
Dryness of the tip: This disease can be more if the tree is injured due to storm or any other reason. The affected part is brown in color and dries from the tip down. This disease usually occurs after flowering. The disease is more prevalent in Tosha Patte. As soon as the disease occurs, the fungicide Dithene M-45 should be mixed in 20 gm per 10 liters of water and sprayed on the plant at least twice in a row for 2/3 days.
Root rot disease: In native jute fields where water cannot be drained, a type of fungus like white cotton fiber grows overnight at the base of the tree when the tree is mature. After a few days, brown germs like mustard seeds are also seen. As a result of this disease, the roots of the tree rot and the tree breaks. If this disease occurs in the land, the tree should be cut down and fiber should be collected. Dithene M-45 is mixed with 35-40 grams per 10 liters of water and applied at the base of the plant for two consecutive days to reduce the prevalence of the disease.
Root-git disease: Many small and big git can be seen in the roots of the affected tree. A type of worm or nematode is located inside the git and damages the plant. Due to this disease, the growth of the tree is reduced and the flowers are less. To control this disease, the chemical drug Furadan-5 should be applied at the rate of 40 kg per hectare to weed and finally thin the plants.
Yellow-green leaf spot mosaic disease: This disease is caused by sowing seeds collected from mosaic infected jute trees. As the tree grows, yellow-green spots appear on the leaves. The growth of infected trees is reduced and the amount of fiber can be reduced by up to 50 percent. The disease is spread through pollination and a type of small fly called white fly. Infected seedlings should be uprooted as soon as they are seen in the ground. In order to kill white flies, 15 ml of Diazin-50 per 10 liters of water is sprayed on the 30-40 day old plant 2-3 times in 7 days.
White powder on the leaves: There are numerous umbrella disease germs like light powder on the leaves. This disease is seen in jute trees kept for seed collection at the end of jute season. As soon as the symptoms of the disease appear, thiovit or any sulfur drug should be mixed in 30 g per 10 liters of water and sprayed.