Homeopathic medicines protect environment, health and development by controlling mulberry disease.
Datta SC, Datta R.
Abstract
Plant diseases, caused by pathogens, significantly reduce food production
particularly in the developing world where farmers have little knowledge of these
pests. In sericulture, mulberry is an economical plant because silk production
depends on the nutritive quality of the leaves which is hampered by various
pathogen attacks like nematodes, fungus, virus, bacteria and insects etc. Recently,
synthetic- and chemical- pesticides are the most effective means of control, but they
are both expensive and environmentally unfriendly. The “evils” of synthetic- and
chemical- pesticides has been a major concern to environmentalists. The use of
chemical pesticides may achieve a measure of control of those mulberry diseases
but there remains the problem of residual toxicity in the treated plants and this
toxicity results in reduced palatability of the leaves to the feeding silkworm larvae,
reduction in growth of the larvae and also in silk production. These are serious
issues which directly cause crises of financial losses, food productions, and climatic
changes, but in combination, their impact could be catastrophic for the global
economy. To move forward will require new and more efficient solutions,
technologies and products. Climate change and resource productive economies are
now universally recognized as a significant global environmental challenge. To meet
the challenge of the problems, a number of plant bio-nematicides though effective
and easily biodegradable are not easily available in large quantities from natural
sources and isolation of only a small quantity of an effective metabolites requires
huge quantities of plant materials. This would result in rapid depletion of natural
resources, particularly in tropical regions. Indiscriminate use of plant resources have
already created problem of biodiversity conservation in the world. Bio-nematicides
from animal origin (like nematode extract) reduce nematodes infestation in different
plants and root callous by using their defenseresponse against nematode infection.
But it remains as a problem. To conquer this situation, the only ‘Homeopathy’ can
solve all the above mentioned problems. Here, Homeopathic medicines; Cina,
prepared from the flowering meristems of Artemisia nilagirica (Clarke) pamp and
Aakashmoni, prepared from the funicles of Acacia auriculiformis A. Cunn, mixed with
distilled water @ 7.2 mg/ml, were applied by foliar spray once daily for 15 days @
10ml/plant on mulberry (Morus alba L., cv. S1) are highly effective in ameliorating
mulberry diseases; root-knot [Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood],
leaf spot [Cercosporam moricola (Cooke)], powdery mildew [Phyllactinia corylea
(Pers.) Karst], mosaic disease (mosaic virus) and tukra disease [Maconellicoccus
hirsutus (Green)]. Both the drugs also improve the plant growth effectively which
directly increase photosynthesis rate and significantly reduce CO2 in the
environment. Both the drugs also improve the growth of silkworms, shell weight, sex
ratio percentage [SR%] and egg laying capacity of mother moth and also increase
silk production and effective rate of silkworms rearing [ERR] commercially which
directly enriches sericulture industry as well as agriculture sector. These costeffective
homeopathic medicines are easily available, biodegradable, non-phytotoxic
and non-pollutant as well as conserve our biodiversity which will contribute towards
“Sustainable Environment, Health and Development”.