Pests overwhelm olive groves in Syria’s Raqaa
RAQQA, Syria (North Press) – An official in Agriculture and Irrigation Committee in Raqqa Governorate, northern Syria, said on Tuesday that they had registered new pests in olive trees, and they could not know all of them due to the lack of laboratories.
Olive farmers in Raqqa complained of diseases affecting their trees, which led to the death of some of them and damage to flowers.
Hamoud al-Khalaf, head of the prevention office in the Agriculture and Irrigation Committee of the Raqqa Civil Council, affiliated to Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), said that during their tours in olive groves, they noticed some diseases and insects on trees.
“Some of these diseases are normal and appear every year,” he added.
While Funguses and bacteria affecting trees have not been identified this year, due to the lack of the necessary capabilities for examination from specialized laboratories and accurate equipment at the committee, according to al-Khalaf.
He said that they depend on observing symptoms in identifying the diseases.
This year, there were infections with psyllids which lead to the failure of olive blossoms, however it was not recorded in the region in largely in the past, according to al-Khalaf.