Heavy pesticide use puts Keralam’s cardamom ecosystem under pressure

AI Summary

Cardamom growers in Kerala are using mixtures of as many as five or six agricultural products amid year-round harvesting linked to warmer temperatures. Experts warn that these pesticide and chemical “tank cocktails” can weaken plants, raise disease risk, and harm pollinators.

As growers face a year-round harvest cycle driven by warming temperatures, they mix up to five or six different products, including insecticides, fungicides, micronutrients, and growth promoters, into a single tank. Experts warn that such ‘tank cocktails’ can actually weaken cardamom plants, increase their disease risk, harms essential pollinators.