Learning from Gaja, Agriculture department asks farmers to take precautionary measures to face cyclone Phethai

Met department has predicted that the cyclone Phethai is likely to cross the coast in between the northern coastal districts - Tiruvallur to Nagapattinam on December 15.
A family checking the remains of their coconut trees that were entirely levelled by cyclone Gaja at Ambalapattu in Thanjavur, on Wednesday. (Photo | MK Ashok Kumar)
A family checking the remains of their coconut trees that were entirely levelled by cyclone Gaja at Ambalapattu in Thanjavur, on Wednesday. (Photo | MK Ashok Kumar)

CHENNAI: Taking lessons from the devastation caused by cyclone Gaja, the State agriculture department has initiated measures to save the standing agricultural and horticultural crops in coastal districts as the cyclone Phethai is expected to cross the coast in northern Tamil Nadu on December 15.

As part of this efforts, the department has issued a set of precautions to be adopted by the farmers to face the Phethai cyclone and contain the damage to their produces. 

Horticultural crops including coconut, mango, jackfruit and other long term crops in the districts of Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, Thanjavur and Pudukottai had faced huge destruction when cyclone Gaja hit the 
central districts of Tamil Nadu recently. 

Now, the Meteorological department has predicted that the cyclone Phethai is likely to cross the coast in between the northern coastal districts - Tiruvallur to Nagapattinam on December 15 and that there could be heavy blow of winds.

As far as coconut trees are concerned, it is expected that the trees between the age of seven to 40 years are likely to be affected. As such, the coconut growers should identify them and remove the coconuts, tender coconuts and leaves which weigh much. Through this, the weight on the top of the trees would be reduced so that they can withstand the speed of the winds when the cyclone crossing the coast.

Further, Agricultural department officials say, “From now on, watering for coconut trees should be stopped. Through this, the roots of the trees would get tightened and this would also help withstand the speed of the winds during the cyclone.”

For protecting the paddy, pulses, millets, cotton, sugarcane and groundnut crops, the water should be drained completely and water channels should be kept ready so that rain water does not stagnate. 

As far as the mango, jackfruit and cashew trees are concerned, the extra branches and leaves should be removed, giving way to the speedy winds to pass through. This would prevent uprooting of the trees.
 After cutting the branches copper oxychloride mixture should be applied. For these trees also, watering should be stopped from now. Further, applying fertiliser by removing the soil around the tree could be done after the cyclone crosses the coast.

For banana trees, the channels should be created for the easy flow of rainwater. This would avoid stagnation of water in banana grove could be avoided which in turn would save the trees. 

For saving neem, poovarasu (Indian Tulip tree) and Pungan (Pongamia pinnata), most of the branches could be removed.

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