Indigenous Pest Management Practices of Indian Hill Farmers: Introspecting Their Rationale and Communication Pattern for Secure Ecosystems

Abstract

Indigenous technical knowledge derived from traditional wisdom is an asset of farmers in developing countries. To ensure the continuity of these practices for future generations, we need to understand the scientific rationality and their communication patterns, and then document them. This study aimed to document the indigenous pest management practices, test their scientific rationality, and determine their communication pattern among the farmers. A total of 120 farmers from district Bageshwar in Uttarakhand, India, were selected through the simple random sampling method. Interviews and focussed group discussions were used to collect data. Out of a total of 32 documented indigenous practices, 27 were found to be rational by the scientists. Neighbours ranked first as the source of information, followed by friends and relatives. Knowledge related to managing pests through indigenous methods was shared by the farmers, mainly in temples. They learned the practical application of these indigenous practices during childhood while working with parents in the fields, followed by observing their friends and relatives. The indigenous technical knowledge should be conserved and combined with the scientific cognizance for sustainable agriculture. Next- generation farmers need to be motivated to adopt these practices.

Traditional knowledge-based agricultural practices in Tribal dominated District Anuppur, Madhya Pradesh

“…Ash works as a potent deterrent against chewing and sucking insects and is a very popular practice followed by farmers of this region. It is known to provide protection to plants against various insects like red pumpkin beetle, flea beetle, aphid etc., serves as a physical toxin to various insects and also enriches potassium level of soil (28). Severity of Aphid (Lipaphys erisimi) infestation increases progressively with the delay in sowing (29), to overcome this problem sowing of rai is done early i.e.…”

Cultivation of underutilized fruit trees by indigenous people in Urug Village, West Java, Indonesia

“…If there are pests that interfere, usually, the indigenous people use table salt to control them. According to Rathore et al (2021), Indian Hill Farmers in Uttarakhand, India, also uses salt as much as 1 kg/200 m 2 to control white grub, slugs, and beetles. Table salt is sprinkled around the fruit tree at a distance of about 50 cm from the fruit tree, as shown in Figure 8.…”

“…Besides climate change, this research still needs reinforcement of cultivation techniques through standardization of cultivation practices (Kour et al 2018) and improvement to obtain data on the utilization of bamboo leaf ash as fertilizer and the utilization of salt as indigenous pest management practices in Urug Village. The ecological effect of salt as a pesticide is influenced by the range of sensitivities among community members and community structure (Rathore et al 2021). Other research about the uses, socio-economic roles, nutritional and vitamin content, and underutilized factors of UFTs would be necessary to face the challenge of cultivating UFTs (Kamboj et al 2021;Mondo et al 2021), especially in Urug Village.…”

Review: The effect and possible mitigation of UV radiation on baculoviruses as bioinsecticides

“…The difference in the effectiveness of imported isolates and local isolates has been studied to ensure the efficacy and stability of both isolates for use in the local area (Akhanaev et al 2017). It has been widely shown that the indigenous natural resources have provided a good control of insect pests (Grzywacz et al 2014;Rathore et al 2021). The strain isolated in North America (LdMNPV-45/0) diminished its potency significantly and more rapidly than the strain isolated in Western Siberia (LdMNPV-27/0) when exposed to sunlight.…”