Miguel Braganza
It is Dusshera or Vijaya Dashmi today. It is a day on which the soldiers polished and greased their weapons for battles and farmers sometimes converted their ploughshares into swords and crowbars into spears. They worshipped the
tools of their trade, known as ‘Auth Puja’, by breaking a coconut as ‘Shreephal’, applying vermillion and lime paste to the tools and placing marigold flowers.
The marigold, Tagetes erecta, go beyond colour and symbolism. It’s saffron colour is the symbol of valour and sacrifice according to the Indian tradition. It is also the colour of the firstband of India’s national flag.
For the agricultural and home tomato growers, root knot nematodes (Meloidogyne incognita) can plague the tomato plants. Marigolds are extremely useful in this scenario. Planting marigolds between tomatoes protects the tomato plants from harmful root-knot nematodes in the soil by trapping and killing them. Marigolds contain a substance called limonene, which is a natural insect repellent. When planted as a companion to tomato seedlings, the limonene in marigolds helps to keep pests like whiteflies at bay.
The root-knot nematode when infesting tomato plants have very conspicuous root galls or knotty swellings on the roots. Toxins in marigold root exudates kill the nematodes before they grow and reproduce. This also works for banana, heliconia and other plants that have roots infested with nematodes. Plant marigolds in areas known to be infested with such pests.
Marigold and tomatoes are good garden buddies with similar requirements for growing. They both grow best in full sun, have similar watering requirements, and are heat tolerant. If planted in a space where both plants have enough room to thrive, tomatoes and marigolds make great companions. The marigolds protect the tomatoes from its enemies: the insect pests and deadly nematodes.
Slugs and snails love anthuriums, caladiums, cabbages and tomatoes. Luckily, they like marigolds even more, making marigolds an effective “trap crop” for slugs and snails. You can plant the marigold on the periphery of more valuable plants to attract slugs and snails as a trap. They also provide additional income to the tomato growers in India for Dusshera and Diwali and all through the wedding season, till the beginning of the monsoon rains in June.
The Directorate of Agriculture has provided farmers in Goa with marigold seedlings to encourage commercial cultivation of this flower crop with high demand in Goa for festivals and celebrations. The marigold flowers have a massive market for making garlands and decorating wedding mantaps. It makes good sense to plant marigolds. Join the increasing number of marigold growers: there is scope for more!
