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July 3, 2024
Farmer to Farmer Program in Nepal
I was invited by CRS/USAID F2F Nepal program to conduct field investigation and trainings on citrus greening (CG, official name: huanglongbing (HLB)) in June, 2024. The local host organization was the National Center for Fruit Development (NCFD), the Government of Nepal (GN). Nepal is believed to be the original place to several species of citrus, the fruits play significant rule in the rural economy and nutrition in the country. Very recently, GN designated mandarin as the national fruit, recognizing its status as a native crop of the country. However, like many other citrus production countries in the world, citrus orchards in Nepal suffers heavily from the devastation of CG and other citrus pests and diseases in the recent decades. One of the main goals of this visiting was to assess CG disease and recommend strategies for its management under the changing climate.
Site Visit: Citrus/nursery production in Nepal is quite different from what we see in U.S. Most of the groves are in the elevated land, ranging from 500 – 1,500 meters above sea level. Citrus farms are usually small-scale, multi-croppping, mixed with the surrounding natural forest. The majority of the groves are poorly managed, with few fertilization, irrigation, and pruning, almost no pesticide are applied. CG is widespread and severe in most groves. Surprisingly & mysteriously, I can’t find the CG vector, the Asian citrus psyllids (ACP), Diaphorina citri, in the groves or nurseries. According to several surveys conducted in Nepal, ACP widely occurs in the citrus production area. Another strong evidence of the wide presence of the vector is that CG is common on the matured tree aged > 10 years, indicating that CG on these plant are transmitted by the vector pysllids. So why can’t we find a single vector insect there?
Seminars and Trainings. One of the main activities during the trip was to give seminars and/or provide trainings to Nepal’s federal and provincial citrus extension staff, researchers/scientists, growers, and college graduate/undergraduate students. A total of 6 trainings/seminars were conducted at NCFD headquarters and two colleges. Honorable Ms. Sabnam Shivakoti, the Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Nepal, and Dr. Shanta Karki, Chief of NCFD, attended the close session.
Climbing Annapurna Base Camp: Nepal is a beautiful country, heaven for mountain hiker. I took this opportunity climbing to Annapurna Base Camp (the ABC trek).
Written by Yulu
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