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Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata avoids transferred organic mulch - insight from a mark release trial [Dataset]
No full textThe Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (CPB) is one of the most relevant pests in potato cultivation. Even in organic potatoes, CPB are often managed using organically certified insecticides that may also affect non-target organisms and increase the risk of insecticide resistance. Applying transferred organic mulch to potatoes has been shown to reduce egg masses and larvae of CPB, however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. To assess effects of mulch on initial infestation of CPB, marked individuals were released in the field between plots with transferred organic mulch and plots with bare soil and counted after 12 h in 2021 and 2022. In 2022, one additional assessment was carried out 72 h after release and eggs and larvae where assessed after 10 days. More than 75% of CPB adults preferred the unmulched plots, a major reason for the reduction of eggs and larvae in mulched potatoes found in previous field trials. Barrier effects, olfactory disruption or disorientation could be responsible for the reduction
Revenge of a Jinn
No full textAssalamu Alaikum, this tale I heard from my grandfather. When he first came to this village [toba], it was in a serene forest which did not contain any sign of a nearby human settlement and visibility was very limited. This was in sharp contrast to today's conditions with much water shortage when people often travel for miles to collect drinking water. Over time, as the population increased, the canal from which people used to collect water also slowly changed its course. We used to go there collect water and this is how our life was passing by. There was another village close to our village and its people are very kind and polite. People used to come and go back and forth between the village for basic trade. I made a friend there named Kareem Baksh a very good and hospitable person and we used to go together to collect firewood in the forest spending the whole day together.
One day, Kareem Baksh's wife got very sick and we became worried. We took her to the village healer for help. The local doctor checked her up but he could not find any disease in her that he could treat. He advised us to take her to the Peer Murshid so that he could perform rituals on her and she would recover. However, with time, the condition of my friend's wife worsened even more. We returned home, took our camels and went towards the Peer. It was a long journey, it took us two days to get there and to return. Finally, we came back with the Peer Sahib who looked at her and after a little started performing some rituals. He sensed someone (some jinns) in her and started talking to them. He asked them what was going on. The jinns replied: "She went to canal to wash clothes and there she has killed (accidentally) our children." Then Peer said: "But she cannot see." They replied: "This is not our fault." So, after performing some more rituals the peer went back and a few days later, my friend's wife passed away.2.9.12.
Different Phases of Gilgit and the Rule of Dadi Jawari
No full textInitially in the Gilgit area, first Naupur Valley was established followed by Barmas Bala in the lower Valley. In early times, the whole of Gilgit-Baltistan was covered with forest of mostly thorny plants. In the Sonikot area there were many cattle (bepus) but there also were three brothers who one day shot their arrows from a little hill to hunt an animal. Thereafter, the brothers came down and started arguing about who should slaughter the hurt animal. One after the other declined in doing it until the youngest one was asked to slaughter. As he did it he was left there while the other two brothers went on. He then remained at that place and cultivated the land which quickly became a garden. One day Dadi Jawari spotted that place and went there as it belonged to the wazeer of Astore district and had plenty of water. Thereafter, Bushporo came, followed by a queen on a horse together with high ranked officer. The queen felt a lot of disrespect and was sent away from the area. That is how Gilgit was habitated.2.4.2.
The Jealous Stepmother and the Enchanted Bird
No full textIn old Baltistan, there once lived an elderly man and an elderly woman named Basino. Both were widowed, and each had a son and a daughter. One day, carrying their children - Basino her daughter on her back and her son in her arms, and the man his daughter on his back and his son in his arms - met on the road and asked each other where they were heading. Basino said: "I am looking for a husband for myself." The man replied: "I am looking for a wife for myself." Realizing they could fulfill each other's needs, the elderly man suggested: "Let's marry each other, and I will take care of your children as well." They married and began living together. However, as much as Basino loved her own children, she despised her stepchildren. While her own children lived in comfort, her stepchildren were burdened with endless chores. One day, there was a polo match attended by the king and other dignitaries. Basino dressed her own children in fine clothes and took them to watch the match, leaving her step-children at home to do chores. When her husband returned from work, she pretended to be busy with work herself. This charade continued every time. One day, while working, the stepchildren began to cry, lamenting that everyone else got to watch the polo match while they were always left with chores. One day, while herding goats in the pastures, the stepchildren discovered a mysterious hole from which a light was shining and someone was reciting the Holy Quran. When they approached, a voice from below asked: "Why didn't you go to watch the polo match?" The children explained their plight. The voice, which was their deceased mother's, reassured them, saying: "I will handle the chores. You go and watch the match." She gave them beautiful clothes and golden shoes, instructing them to return before the match ended and change back into their old clothes. For some time, the children enjoyed watching the polo matches. However, one day, as they hurried back, one of the girl's golden shoes fell off and was left behind. The king found the shoe and declared that he would marry the girl whom the shoe fitted perfectly. Many girls in the village tried on the shoe, including Basino's daughter, but it didn't fit any of them. Finally, the stepdaughter tried it on, and it fitted perfectly. The king married her and took her to live in the palace. One day, the king's new bride visited her old home with the king. Basino and her daughter were there and Basino pinched her own daughter, who cried out. The king's bride asked what was wrong, and Basino replied: "Your sister is asking to wear your dress." The bride handed over her dress. Basino pinched her daughter again and she cried out once more. The bride asked again, and Basino replied: "She wants to wear your scarf." The bride gave her scarf. This continued until Basino asked for the bride's shoes. When she finally asked for her face, the bride refused, saying: "The dress, scarf, and shoes were fine, but how can I give my face?" In a fit of rage, Basino threw hot water on the bride's face, causing her skin to peel off. Basino then applied this skin to her daughter and sent her to the king. The real bride, now disfigured, transformed into a bird and flew away. She perched on a chinar tree near the palace and kept asking the king's servant about the polo match: "Did our king win the match?" The servant, hard of hearing, told her to come closer. The bird then perched on his shoulder, and he captured it. The king had announced a reward of 100 dinars for anyone who could catch the bird. The servant brought the bird to the king, who placed it in a cage and looked after it lovingly. The bird kept repeating: "I am in the cage, the king is on the ground." The king went hunting one day, and the false queen, knowing the bird was her stepsister, killed it and cooked it. The bird, even while being cooked, kept saying: "I am in the pot, the king is on the ground." When the king returned, he asked her why the bird was killed. The false queen lied, saying there was nothing else to cook. The king, although saddened, ate the bird. Afterwards, he could hear the bird's voice from his stomach: "I am in the stomach, the king is on the ground." The king's peace was completely disturbed by this, so in frustration, he called his ministers and said: "I'm going to the desi washroom locally called chaksa, you all stay down here with sticks and wait." The desi washroom had multiple holes at different sides. The king, being foolish, sat over one of the holes without covering the rest, intending to relieve himself so the bird would come out from inside him. When the bird began to come out, the ministers poked upwards with their sticks. The bird exited from another hole, and the stick hit the king, breaking his leg. The bird, now sitting on an apricot tree, sang: "Nothing of mine is broken, but the king's leg is broken. Nothing of mine is broken, but the king's leg is broken." Realizing the truth, the king punished the false queen and reunited with his true bride, who had returned to her human form. The stepchildren were freed from their hardships, and they all lived happily ever after.2.7.7.
Shigar's Prosperity and the Legendary Chandan Tree
No full textOnce upon a time, a saying was famous throughout Baltistan: "If you lack food or prosperity, go to Shigar". This was because Shigar was known for its abundant agriculture and fertile land, unlike Khaplu and Kharmang, where the scarcity of land limited agricultural activities. The secret to Shigar's prosperity [reportedly] laid in a Chandan tree, known locally as "Chandanne nkholam".This ancient tree stood tall at a spot from where the entire lush and thriving Shigar valley was visible. Invaders once attacked and destroyed much of Shigar, including its greenery. However, they were baffled when, upon returning to the viewpoint (initially called "Nar e lo"), they saw Shigar green and flourishing again. They could not comprehend how the valley remained verdant after their destruction. To uncover the mystery, the invaders offered money to an old woman, who revealed the secret: the Chandan tree was the source of Shigar's vitality. They cut down the tree, but the valley's greenery persisted. Returning to the old woman, they were told to burn the tree's roots using apricot seed kernels. Even then, the greenery diminished only slightly because a part of the root remained, sustaining Shigar's verdancy to this day. Years later, an argument broke out between a man from Skardu and one from Shigar. The Skardu man insulted the Shigar man by calling him a "Cow thief." The Shigar man, known for his poetic nature, responded in verse, highlighting Shigar's wealth and abundance, contrasting it with Skardu, where families shared a single goat for milk. He spoke of Shigar as a land of gold, milk, diamonds, and the Chandan tree. He implied that while Skardu struggled for basic sustenance, Shigar thrived with livestock and agriculture. His poetic retort, mentioning the Chandan tree, underscored Shigar's enduring prosperity. The Shigar man apologized if his words offended, explaining that the tale was shared to emphasize Shigar's richness and the legendary tree's role in their heritage.2.7.4.
Voices of the Night: Encounters with the Unseen
No full textOne day me and my three friends left from Gilgit to Ghizer whereby we drove to the village center and continued from there. As we reached the center, the evening call to prayer sounded. My friends mentioned that their sister was staying there and I told them that my brother was too, thus we all agreed to meet after dinner. After dinner, I went to my brother's house but forgot my Quran which I realized only after a while when I returned alone to retrieve it. As I rejoined my friends, we started to hear strange voices, sometimes from the right, sometimes from the left, sometimes from up or down the road. The voices followed us, growing more unsettling. One friend, armed with a gun and in possession of a Quran, encouraged us to continue. We eventually reached a place with three houses and, out of fear, decided to wake up a family. They were hospitable, and after some rest, my friends wanted to stay, but he insisted to leave. As we walked on, the creepy (eerie) voices returned, but we pressed on until we neared a village where barking dogs seemed to chase the voices away. By morning, we reached home, shaken and pale. When we shared our experience, villagers recounted similar tales, confirming the presence of jinns and ghosts in the area. One villager recounted a tragic event involving a sick child, tormented by a jinn. The child eventually died, which intensified the fear and superstitions surrounding these entities. In those days, the fear of jinns and ghosts kept people indoors after dark, especially in the Ghizer valley, where such stories were common.
Once, the entire village was disturbed by loud noises from the hills at night. The next morning, a local grandmother, known for her connection to fairies, explained that the noises were made by fairies, not jinns or ghosts. She shared that a hunter named Bajji had died from a stomach ache, and the fairies were communicating the event to each other.2.3.11.
The Healing Power of Mountain Herbs
No full textPeople use local mountain herbs to treat various illnesses. Among them tumbruk is very famous but makhoting is also used. These and other herbs are extremely beneficial for people’s health but can also be dangerous due to their potent properties. If used as medicine, they are very beneficial, but if used as poison, they can be very dan-gerous. The fragrance of these herbs causes sneezing in passing animals, making them run away from the area. In some places, they cause dizziness, while in others, they provide relief and comfort. People from village Sermik bring plants from the mountains, such as skiorbu and balakson. These are mountain delicacies, and in return, we give the local people apricots, apples, tomatoes, and onions that do not grow up in the mountains. If you have stomach pain, use tumbruk. If you suffer from cold and constant illness due to it, use shamdu. Eating shamdun helps people with respiratory issues. If you drink the juice of the flower of makhotang or boil it and drink the water, it can heal you.2.6.6.
Changkyal: Traditional Butter-Making in Baltistan
No full textIn the old times, there was a traditional method of making cream or butter in Baltistan. Cream or milk would be shaken vigorously for about half an hour to make delicious butter and buttermilk. Then, one would soak the skin of a slaughtered goat in hot water for three days, after which they would clean it with a blade to remove any remaining hair. To eliminate any odor, one would rinse it with hot water and then shake it for some time before removing the water, leaving the skin odor-free. After this process, the cream was used to make butter and butter-milk. This traditional method of extracting butter in a vessel is called changkyal, and approximately 1 to 2 kg of butter were produced at a time.2.7.11.
Danyal Niyat Shah and his 14 deu
No full textI have 14 deu (which appear when juniper is smoked). The purpose of smoking juniper is that juniper is totally clean and these deu like cleanliness and only appear when the juniper has made everything entirely clean. Initially, when I started seeing these deu, they used to tell me that they would take me to the mountains or arrange my marriage. They claimed to have come from Karbala and even showed me visions of Karbala. At first, there were few of them, starting with 1, then 2, then 5, then 7, and finally, there are now 14. These deu have been serving me, and over time, word spread that there is a person named Niyat Shah, a Danyal who makes amulets and performs spiritual healing. Consequently, people started coming to me with their problems. I ask my deu about their illnesses and the purpose of their visit, and they tell me the details along with the treatment. Ultimately, it is Allah who provides the cure, but these deu serve as the intermediaries. For many years, I have been performing this work. When people come to me, I recite Surah Yaseen and different mantras over water, honey, and oil and give it to them, and through this, Allah grants them healing. Additionally, there is a type of danyal who is associated with devils and has 21 devils under his command. He sends them to different areas such as Sakwar, Rawalpindi, or Iran, assigning those tasks to observe and report back. Many of these devils lie and fabricate stories, but one among them tells the truth. Therefore, the words of a devil's danyal cannot always be trusted, as they may often be incorrect.
People call me a danyal, but I am not a danyal. A danyal is someone who communicates with devils and dances in gatherings. However, if there is any singing or dancing, it causes me discomfort because the deu with me are very pure, and if I take them to such places, they cause me distress. Let me describe their appearance.
These beings have eyes that are oriented upwards. While they resemble humans, there are slight differences. For example, humans have horizontally aligned eyes, whereas these beings have vertically shaped eyes. Fairies always wear blue dresses and nothing else, while the spirits wear either black, red, or white, only three colours they wear. Our area, Naupur, is the oldest area of Gilgit and was the first to be inhabited, where the deu originally lived. People from Iran, India, America, and China have also lived here. There is also a Buddha here that we call yasheni, which was created by the Chinese. The Chinese left this Buddha on the mountain as a mark of their presence.2.5.20.
Rgialosalbu's Anger Haled the Water's Course
No full textWe have heard from our elders that the name of our village, Rgiayul, has two meanings: one is "The land of Rgialosalbu" and the other is derived from "Rgialfu" which in Balti means a "Large or vast area". Rgialosalbu had a polo ground which still exists today, where he used to play polo with his team. As usual, one day while they were playing polo, the ball suddenly got lost towards a small settlement in Rgiayul called Spangthang. In Balti, Spangthang means a land of grassy, weedy, and greenery. This settlement still bears the same name. At that time, there was an abundance of irrigation water, making the entire area lush and green. Unfortunately, due to lacking irrigation water, this land has now turned into barren soil. When the ball got lost in that lush area, Rgialosalbu told the people there to find his ball, or else he would cause such harm that their generations would regret it. He threatened that he would curse the land, turning all the greenery and grassy areas into barren soil. The people did not take his warning seriously. Therefore, in anger, he placed a large rock at the source of the spring that supplied water to the entire region of Rgiayul, completely covering it. The place where he placed the rock is called "Zakz Chumik" in Balti, which literally means "Spring overflow water". Even today, the drinking water for the entire area comes from that overflow water, but ever since he covered the spring, there has been a scarcity of irrigation water in Rgiayul. Later, the local elders went to Rgialosalbu and asked him to release the water. He replied that he would not release the water for free and demanded a human sacrifice. None of the wealthy and cunning people of the area offered to go, but instead they presented a dumb person to him. However, the dumb person managed to escape, saving his life. Since no one else was willing to sacrifice, Rgialosalbu covered the water source again. As a result, the once lush and green village has turned into barren land, and due to the lack of irrigation, crops do not grow well. Although the spring is not visible now, if you go to the place and listen closely at ground level, you can still hear the sound of water flowing underneath. Recently, the irrigation and water management department conducted extensive surveys and attempted to extract the water, but all efforts have failed.2.7.8.