Comparison of physicochemical characteristics of the soils of termite galleries and the surrounding soil in mango orchards.
Samra J. S., Tandon P. L., Thakur R. S., Chadha K. L.
Author Affiliation: Central Mango Research Station, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 226 006, India.
Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 49 : 892-895
Abstract : Odontotermes wallonensis (Wasm.) is a serious pest of mango in Uttar Pradesh, India, making an underground nest in the root zone of trees. Workers feed on roots, stems and branches under the cover of a sheet of soil. Severely infested plants start drying and finally die. A survey conducted in 24 mango orchards randomly selected around Malihabad revealed that an average of 66.19% of trees were infested by the termite. In further studies in 3 orchards at Lucknow in 1976, it was found that trees were attacked up to 6.24 m above ground level and the maximum weight of the soil transported by termites was 5.35 kg/tree. Termite soil had significantly more organic carbon, calcium, magnesium, available nitrogen, silt and clay than the surrounding soil, and a lower pH and less sand. However, available phosphorus and potassium and soluble salt content did not differ significantly between the soils.