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Originally Posted by sputinc7
I don't believe shipping of any plant materials, especially bananas, is allowed into or out of Hawaii, and they are serious about it.
Gabe, what do you mean social dynamics?
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In Hawaii, it's largely a problem because non-farmer folks do not remove infected plants, either because they are ignorant or uneducated about it, they see it as being too much work, or they just refuse to, believing they will perform a magic spell or sorts and cure it. I often diagnose BBTV in folks gardens, and a very common reaction is that I must be wrong, and they are just going to wait it out and see, or when I tell them how to take care of it, they insist on alternate, non-effective techniques.
If everyone removed infected plants in a timely manner, it would be a minor disease in Hawaii because the source of virus would be diminished. Production farmers are typically very good about controlling it on farm, but on small islands where residential and agricultural areas are often in close proximity, it doesn't matter how good a job the farmer is doing if gardeners nearby are continuing to allow infected plants to remain growing.
So that is how it is also a social issue in addition to the biological difficulties inherent to it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sputinc7
A few months back, someone on here stated that nematodes are easily managed... I am still waiting on those instructions.
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It basically involves controlling them in your soil from the start, which may include a number of different techniques, such as suppressant cover crops and healthy soil biology, and then making sure you are not bringing them in on new plants.
For bananas, this means if you have plants which potentially may be harboring them, such as field dug suckers, the corms should be pared clean of all roots and the outer layer of corm, and then soaked in either 130°F water or 10% bleach solution for 20min. I personally prefer the hot water.