Page 7 - Lac culture operations - IINRG, Ranchi

I
LAC CULTURE OPERATIONS - WHEN, WHY & HOW?

Lac is a natural resin secreted by the tiny lac insects, mainly Kerria lacca (Kerr), for pro-
tection of young ones and self. The insects are cultured on tender shoots of several plants
called hosts. lt derives its nutrition by sucking the saps from the host plants. There are two
strains (biotype) of the Iac insect namely- rangeeni and kusml. Each of these strains completes
its life cycle twice in a year, thus producing two crops in a year. Flowever in coastal region of
West Bengal and Orissa, a tri-voltine insed, Kerria sharda is found which produce three crops
in a year. The crop periods and duration of biotypes has been provided in Table 1. The suit-
ability of lac hosts for different crops has been given in Table 2.

Table 1. Different crops and their life period

Approx.
Period
Strain/
Crop Season Duration
biotype
Raised (lnoculated) Mature (Harvested) (Months)
Rangeeni KATKI Rainy June/July October/ November 4
BAISAKHI Summer October/ November lune/ )uly 8
Kusmi AGHANI Winter June/ July )anuary /February 6
JETHWI Summer )anuary /February )une/ July 6
Trivoltine Winter October/ November March/April 5
Summer March/April JulylAugust 4
Rainy )uly / Aug, October/ November

Table 2. Lac- host plants and their suitability
sl Host Common name Strain Suitable Crop

Major hosts:

'l Butea monospema Flame of forest Rangeeni Summer and Rainy
2. Schleichera oleosa Kusmi Summer and Winter
Ziziphus mauritiana PIum tee Rangeeni Premature summer

4. Z. maDriliana Plum tee Kusmi Winter

Other hosts:
5. Acacia catechu Khair Kusmi Winter
6. Albizia le,hhek Sitis Kusmi Winter

7. Albizia lucida Galwang Kusmi Summer
8. Albizia saman Rain tree Rangeeni Summer and Rainy

9. Croton oblongifolius Putri Rangeeni Summer