Growing Food: A Guide to Food Production

• Cutworms—more serious in arid and semi-arid regions. The larvae attack at or
  below the soil surface.

developing grain causing a reduction in seed yield and quality. Can be controlled

with Parathion.

break and fall over. Control is normally by natural predators, but crop rotations and

efficient ploughing also help.

• Hessian Fly—adults have a dark coloured body about 3 mm long. Red, round
  eggs are laid on the upper leaf surfaces. The larvae are initially red, then become
  white; they can kill young plants, and cause older plants to lodge. Control is by
  using resistant varieties (not resistant to all strains of the fly), by destroying
  volunteer wheat plants, and by choosing an appropriate sowing date.


• Grain Moth—very serious in primitive farming systems in the Near East, where it

the soil and wait for good rains, then attack the leaves which turn yellow, killing

many plants. Can be controlled by using heavy machinery to plough deeply and

thoroughly.

• Angoumois Moth—eggs are laid on the wheat ears; larvae enter the developing
  grain and reappear as adults in the stored grain.


• Rice Weevil—adults are brown/black weevils about 3 mm long. They do some
  damage in the field, but main damage is in stored wheat. They can multiply very
  rapidly. Controlled by having clean storage containers and fumigating immediately
  they are observed.


• Dusty Brown Beetle—yellow larvae attack roots of seedlings. Control with seed
  dressing.

the leaf edges. Most damage is by the larvae, which attack the stem just below the

Diseases:

which become black, on all parts of the plant but mainly the stem. Plants become

yellow. Grain is shrivelled, or sometimes absent. Control is by using resistant

varieties. Some species of Barberry (genus Berberis) are a host for the fungus and

those near wheat fields should be destroyed.

regions, but losses are usually less than with Stem (Black) Rust. Orange-brown spots

are mainly on the leaves and are smaller than those of Stem Rust; they also become

black. Control is also by using resistant varieties. Durum wheats are mainly resistant

to Leaf Rust.

Control is also by using resistant varieties.

• Suni Bug—a yellow-brown stinkbug, which sucks sap from the plant and


• Sawflies—black and yellow flies that look like wasps. Larvae enter stems, which


• Shiny Cereal Weevil—bronze coloured weevils which eat irregular patches from

is called el Doodeh— “the pest”. Eggs are laid in the soil in the spring, larvae enter

—

147

soil surface. In Northern Europe, the frit fly, leatherjackets and slugs often cause
major damage.

Stem (Black) Rust—Puccinia graminis. Can be very destructive. Red spots,

Leaf (Brown) Rust—Puccinia triticina. Worse in humid and semi-humid

Stripe (Yellow) Rust—Puccinia striiformis. Does not develop in hot dry weather.

Small light yellow spots appear on all plant parts, which join together to from

long yellow stripes. Spread by wind the spores can travel enormous distances.

GROWING FOOD – THE FOOD PRODUCTION HANDBOOK