Youth-led Education & Strategies to fight against weeds in Pakistan

Farmers from Adillpur, in the Ghotki-Sindh district in Pakistan – where the major crop is wheat - were having some feeling of frustration when considering their cultivation devastated by abrupt weeds which harbor insects, pests and microorganisms - making their labor fruitless.

Our dedicated and tireless volunteer: Mr. Abdul Rauf along with other Young Professionals (YPs) visited the fields and recommended the use of an herbicide to control weeds, which take 35% of the fertilizer, water, sunlight and nutrients of wheat crop. By controlling the weeds, the wheat production increased of about 25% per acre. In order to facilitate the wheat production and eradicate the weeds & pests, proposed actions and suggestions were undertaken:

In order to control weeds/unwanted plants in wheat crop and increase crop productivity, a workshop on “awareness of weed control” & “awareness program about use of fertilizer” was conducted among twenty three farmers/YPs where Physical, Cropping and Chemical Methods were introduced to them. In order to kill the weeds, a solution of the herbicide was sprayed on the standing crops in the fields with the help of a sprayer. The herbicide kills the weeds selectively without damaging the crop. Herbicide are very effective in killing broad-leaves weeds. The removal of weeds from the growing curves facilitates harvesting and gives a high quality product.

The chemical method is easier, less time consuming and less costly than manual weeding. The biological method of weed control is a natural enemy of the weed plant. For the success of this method, it is necessary that the destructive agent must be highly specialized and should not harm the crop even under starvation conditions.

Reliable sources from Adillpur, district Ghotki-Sindh/Pakistan, informed that under the directives and proposed remedies taken for enhancement of productivity and maximum yield of the crop, productivity of the same district was tremendously enhanced.

If you have any comment about youth-led advisory services in Pakistan, and beyond - or if you want to share your experiences about herbicide's usage, please log-in and comment below.

Learn more about the Young Agriculture Professionals (PARD) in Pakistan