Eggplant Integrated Pest Management AN ECOLOGICAL GUIDE

___________________________________________________________________________________Major Agronomic Practices6. Building terraces on steep slopes.On steep slopes, building horizontal terraces is a common and good practice to prevent soil erosion.Often, a small “dike” is made (or a row of weeds is allowed) at the border of a terrace. A commonpattern is the following:7. Plant along gradient of the slope.On slopes without terraces, it is recommended to plant the rows of vegetables along the gradient ofthe slope. When rows are planted top-down, rain and irrigation water flow down hill and may takenutrients, soil particles and organic matter down. Those valuable matters are then lost for the crop.Also, with water, soil-borne diseases like bacterial wilt or nematodes can easily spread into the lowerparts of the field.☺Top down planting stimulates erosion....... plant along the gradient of the slope!Related exercises from CABI Bioscience/FAO Vegetable IPM Exercise Manual:2-A.2. Soil conservation: why?3.8 Fertilizer managementPlants use nutrients from the soil in order to grow and produce a crop. Nutrientsare also lost through erosion, leaching and immobilization. Fertilizermanagement aims at compensating this loss of nutrients. This can be achievedby adding organic materials, chemical fertilizers, or a combination.A well-balanced amount of available nutrients results in healthy plants. A healthy plant can resist pestsand diseases better. Well-balanced fertilization is not the same as excessive fertilization! For example,too much nitrogen is known to increase disease occurrence in crops! Also, adding too much (chemical)fertilizer may simply be a waste of money.The use of compost, green manure or other organic materials, which release nutrients slowly, requirescareful planning and consideration of long-term goals such as improving the structure and biologicalactivity of the soil. This requires basic understanding of some of the processes that take place in the soil.The following sections describe some principles of fertilizer management and ways to improve soilstructure, fertility and biological activity (Peet, www1).3.8.1 Macro and micro nutrientsMacronutrients are nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). These are nutrients that all plantsneed in relatively large amounts.20Eggplant Ecological Guide