A Farmers’ Field Day on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in lablab bean was conducted by the Centre for Plant Protection Studies (CPPS) and Directorate of Extension Education, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) in association with State Department of Horticulture under the One CGIAR’s Plant Health Initiative project on 17 February 2023 at Mettubhavi village and on 02 March 2023 at Sennanur, Tenkarai village of Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu, India.

Two large-scale field demonstrations of an IPM package based on the application of neem cake, application of Bacillus subtilis and Trichoderma asperellum mixed with organic manure, seed treatment with chemical pesticides before planting, installation of yellow and blue sticky traps for sucking pest management, installation of pheromone traps for pod borer management and application of bio-pesticides were piloted by TNAU.

In Mettubhavi, the steps taken by TNAU to scale out the newly piloted IPM package was highlighted by Dr. P.P. Murugan (Director of Extension Education, TNAU). Mr. M.K. Muthukaruppanasamy, Former Member of Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu government was also present in the occasion. A total of 179 farmers (men: 141 and women farmers: 38), 16 horticulture extension staff, 21 final B.Sc. (Hons.) Agriculture and Horticulture students under Rural Agricultural Work Experience (RAWE) programme and nine PhD students participated in the field day. The event was also promoted through print and digital media to disseminate the IPM package beyond the pilot project sites. The event has also been featured at https://youtu.be/3xWZe5YIZEo.

In Tenkarai, Dr. M. Shanthi (Director, CPPS, TNAU) released the technical booklet on lablab bean IPM package and introduced the newly piloted IPM package to the farmers and other stakeholders. She also emphasized the use of IPM technologies from WorldVeg and TNAU for enhancing yield and reducing input costs especially on inorganic pesticides. Mrs. Bhuvaneshwari, Deputy Director of Horticulture and Mrs. Sheela Possalakshmi, Assistant Director of Agriculture explained the role of State Horticulture and Agriculture departments for scaling out IPM packages in vegetables, especially tomato and lablab beans. Mr. Sanjay Kumar, Chairman of the Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA) and Mr. S.A. Krishnaswamy, Convenor, Farmer Interest Group (FIG) also shared their experience on the newly introduced IPM package. A total of 147 farmers (men: 119 and women farmers: 28), 30 horticulture extension staff, and 27 final B.Sc. (Hons.) Agriculture students under RAWE programme participated in the field day. The event was also promoted through print and digital media to disseminate the IPM package beyond the pilot project sites. The event has also been featured at https://youtu.be/dXriMopGSDs.