Hwasun County Issues Rice Disease and Pest Alert Amid Humid Weather

Minimizing Damage Through Continuous Monitoring and Timely Control Measures

Hwasun County has urged farmers to conduct thorough monitoring and timely control measures, as the recent spell of humid weather has raised concerns about the outbreak of rice blast, sheath blight, and bacterial leaf blight.

According to the county on July 8, prolonged high humidity can lead to an increase in rice diseases. In particular, pests such as planthoppers are also entering the West and South Coast regions, requiring special attention for disease and pest monitoring and management.

Rice blast disease is more prevalent when cloudy weather continues and humidity is high. The risk increases especially when excessive nitrogen fertilizer is applied or when weeds around rice paddies are not properly managed.

A paddy field with severe rice leaf blight caused by excessive use of nitrogen fertilizer and dense planting. Provided by Hwasun County

Sheath blight tends to increase with excessive nitrogen fertilization or when the rice grows excessively tall and air circulation is poor.

Bacterial leaf blight mainly occurs in early to mid-July, when there is frequent damage from monsoons, typhoons, and flooding. Initially, the tips of the leaves start to wither and turn white, and in severe cases, the entire rice plant can wither and die.

Choi Eunsun, Director of the Hwasun County Agricultural Technology Center, stated, "Preventing diseases and pests is more important than anything else for stable rice production," and urged, "Please manage irrigation properly, apply fertilizer appropriately, and frequently inspect the fields to carry out timely control measures before diseases and pests can spread."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.