Build healthy soil. Healthy soil provides a home to friendly insects and helps prevent many plant diseases.
Plant resistant varieties. Ask farmers or extension agents about seeds to make sure the ones you choose are resistant to common pests and diseases.
Space plants correctly. Planting crops too close together limits the sunshine and air that reaches the leaves, and allows diseases to thrive. But planting crops farther apart leaves room for weeds, dries the soil, and may reduce the harvest. Experiment to see what spacing works best for each crop.
Plant at the right times. Pests and diseases often respond to the weather, such as the first rains or the first warm day. Watching how each crop grows and talking with other farmers about these patterns can help you decide the best time to plant. Planting earlier than usual can make sure crops are big enough to resist pests or diseases that come at a certain time. Planting later can cause most of the pests or diseases to die out for lack of food.
Women tending different types of plants.
Plant a variety of crops and change crop patterns. Large areas with only 1 kind of plant attract pests who like that plant.
Water from below. Watering from above can cause diseases that live in soil to splash onto plants. And wet leaves and stems are good places for diseases to grow. Using drip irrigation or flood irrigation can keep plant leaves and stems healthy.
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Answer:
Build healthy soil. Healthy soil provides a home to friendly insects and helps prevent many plant diseases.
Plant resistant varieties. Ask farmers or extension agents about seeds to make sure the ones you choose are resistant to common pests and diseases.
Space plants correctly. Planting crops too close together limits the sunshine and air that reaches the leaves, and allows diseases to thrive. But planting crops farther apart leaves room for weeds, dries the soil, and may reduce the harvest. Experiment to see what spacing works best for each crop.
Plant at the right times. Pests and diseases often respond to the weather, such as the first rains or the first warm day. Watching how each crop grows and talking with other farmers about these patterns can help you decide the best time to plant. Planting earlier than usual can make sure crops are big enough to resist pests or diseases that come at a certain time. Planting later can cause most of the pests or diseases to die out for lack of food.
Women tending different types of plants.
Plant a variety of crops and change crop patterns. Large areas with only 1 kind of plant attract pests who like that plant.
Water from below. Watering from above can cause diseases that live in soil to splash onto plants. And wet leaves and stems are good places for diseases to grow. Using drip irrigation or flood irrigation can keep plant leaves and stems healthy.