1. Lac hosts

2. Mouth parts of insect Sucking type mouth parts
Suck plant juices (sole mode of feeding)
Host plants for lac cultivation are important

3. Hosts A large variety of plants can function as lac hosts;
Number of host species in use are relatively small
Kerr (1782) gave the first zoological description of lac insect in modern times and mentioned only four host plants in India
Ficus religiosa – “Pipul”
Ficus indica (Ficus benghalensis)- “Bhur”
Plaso hortus malabarici- “Praso”
(Butea monosperma- Palas)
Rhamnus jujuba (Zizyphus mauritiana)- “Beyr”

4. In 1958, Roonwal listed 113 hosts in India
14 common
85 occasional and rare hosts
Around 110 lac hosts have been recorded from Southern China, viz., Yunnan and Tibet

5. State
Hosts
Bihar
Ber (Zizyphus mauritiana), kusum (Schleichera oleosa) and Palas (Butea monosperma)
Madhya Pradesh
Ghont (Zizyphus xylopyra), kusum and palas
West Bengal
Ber, palas, kusum and species of genus Ficus
Assam
Arhar (Cajanus cajan) and species of Leea and Grewia
Jammu & Kashmir
Khair (Acacia katechu)
Punjab
(Hoshiarpur)
Ber, babul (Acacia arabica), khair and some species of the genus Ficus
Rajasthan
Ber and species of Ficus
Uttar Pradesh
(Mirzapur)
Ber, babul, ghont, palas, and species of Ficus
Gujarat and Maharashtra
Ber, babul, khair, palas
Orissa
(Sambalpur district)
Kusum
Andhra Pradesh
(Vishakapatnam)
Palas
Mysore
Jalari
Madras
Ber, babul, palas, jalari (Shorea talura)

6. Categories of lac hosts
On the basis of preference in use for lac cultivation, hosts are classified into three categories:
Common (major hosts)-7 genera and 14 species
Occasional hosts
Rare hosts

7. Common hosts
Excellent hosts: throughout the year and all over in India (very popular) e.g., Butea monosperma, Schleichera oleosa, Zizyphus mauritiana
Good hosts: certain restricted areas of India e.g., Acacia arabica, Cajanus cajan, Leea crispa, L. robusta, Zizyphus xylopyra
Major hosts only for certain specific purposes & in certain specified seasons e.g., Acacia catechu (for winter brood), Ficus spp. (summer brood)

8. Common hosts Acacia arabica: babul Acacia catechu: khair
Butea monosperma: Palas
Cajanus cajan: arhar
Ficus benghalensis: banyan tree
Ficus cunia: jharphali
Ficus lacor: pilkhan
Ficus racemosa: gular
Ficus religiosa: pipal
Leea crispa: ban-chalta
Leea robusta: galeni
Schleichra oleosa: kusum
Zizyphus mauritiana: ber
Zizyphus xylopyra: ghont

9. Acacia arabica
(babul)

10. Acacia catechu
(Khair)

11. Butea monosperma
(palas)

12. Schleichra oleosa
kusum

13. Cajanus cajan
(Arhar)

14. Ficus bengelansis

15. Ficus racemosa
(gular)

16. Ficus religiosa
pipal

17. Zizyphus mauritiana

18. Ecological conditions
lac does best in open areas with plenty of circulating air around the host plants. When trying out new hosts, care should be taken to confine the trials to only those plants that are found occurring in the open or in situations where free circulation of air is assured
Cultivation should not be tried in deep forests
Lac cultivation should not be tried in areas liable to forest fires e.g., scattered trees in grassland
Species which remain deciduous for long periods during the hot months not suitable for summer crop season. They can be taken up for the cultivation only for crops which mature in cold seasons provided alternative host plants are available in the vicinity to take on the summer crop

19. Direct Sowing and Nursery Planting
Lac hosts propagated- either by direct sowing at the site required or by first raising seedlings in nurseries and later on transplanting them to the site required.
Glower (1937) recommends:
Direct sowing for khair and kusum
Nursery sowing and transplanting for: Palas, ber and ghont

20. Quantity required per plant
Manuring
To ensure the healthy establishment of trees, suitable manuring is highly advisable.
Once the trees have become well established, manuring need not be continued.
Glover (1937) recommended the use of the manure which should be dug to an area of about 1 metre radius and a depth of about cm around each plant
If artificial manure is not available, natural manure (well rotted cowdung) may be used instead
Composition of manure
Quantity required per plant
Potassium sulphate
28.4 gms
Ammonium sulphate (or chloride)
Concentrated superphosphate
0.45 kg

21. Soil and water If deficient in calcium: lime may be added
Avoid water logging of young seedlings as that causes mortality
Water should be conserved for the dry months by such devices as contour ridging, terracing, etc.

22. Age of host
Age at which host plant is mature enough to take on its first lac infection varies from species to species
Also depends on the climatic conditions of the area as well as the methods employed for the management of the plant which determine its vigour and vitality to withstand the drain imposed on it by the lac infection
Species
Age when first mature
Khair (Acacia catechu)
About 8 yrs
Ber (Zizyphus mauritiana)
8 yrs
Ghont (Zizyphus xylopyra)
Palas (Butea monosperma)
8-10 yrs
Kusum (Schleichera oleosa)
About 15 yrs

23. Systematic cultivation of lac

24. Systematic cultivation
PURE CULTIVATION (single species of host plant.)
Standard system
Three coupe system for Rangini crop
Normal four coupe system for Kusmi crops
Modified system
Two coupe systems for Rangini crops
Two coupe system for Kusmi crops
Three coupe system for Kusmi crops
MIXED CULTIVATION (Generally alteration of host is practised)

25. Standard Systems
Three coupe standard system for rangini crop: (for palas and ber)
COUPE: field is divided into various region which are called as coupe.
The area is enumerated and divided into three coupes (A, B, C) in ratio 3:1:3 on basis of yielding capacity of the trees.
The time of pruning have to be adjusted according to host plant species and local climate.
A and C coupes are cultivated and rested in alternate years and coupe B is cultivated every year for one crop.

26. Normal four coupe system for Kusmi crop (applies to kusum)
Area to be work enumerated
Divided into four equiproductive coupes (A,B,C,D) worked in rotation
First harvesting in each coupe serve as the pruning for the next crop
Each coupe is cultivated for lac once in 2 yrs, the trees in it bearing lac crop for about 6 months and resting for remaining 18 months

27. Modified Systems
Two-coupe modified system for Rangini crop eg: (Palas and ber)
Two-coupe modified system for Kusmi crop ( eg: kusum)
Three-coupe modified system for Kusmi crop

28. Mixed cultivation
When a cross strain method of lac production is followed, i.e., when alternation of hosts is practised, a mixed type of cultivation is desirable.
Some examples of this method are:
Alternation of palas with ber or khair
Kusum khair alternation

29. Alternation of palas with ber or khair
Can be practiced for rangini crops where ber or khair also occurs in an area with palas
Best plan is to utilize palas for growing the baisakhi crop and ber or khair for the katki crop

30. Kusum khair alternation
Kusum cultivated for jethawi crops alternated with khair which will be cultivated for the Aghani crop
Four coupe system with equiproductive coupes recommended

31. What determines a good lac host?

32. Phylogenetic position
Position of the host in the botanical hierarchy is certainly a useful guide but sometimes the criterion fails
One or two species in a genus may be good hosts and other non hosts
E.g., Zizyphus mauritiana and Z. xylopyra are good hosts while other species of the genus are either non hosts or only indifferent hosts

33. Sap reactions and sap density
pH of the sap of good lac hosts generally range from
pH of non hosts or poor hosts may lie in the range as in Cassia florida, Shorea robusta or in the range as in Dalbergia sisso, Aleurites fordii and Zizyphus rugosa
Sap density of good hosts:
Sap density of non hosts:
High sap density may be a factor responsible for the failure to maintain lac growth as the more viscous liquid may not be so readily absorbed through the proboscis of the lac insect

34. Ecological factors
Response of host to climate: Time of leaf-fall determines the success of a species to serve as good lac-host. Later leaf-fall in the dry winter season and a shorter interval before the appearance of a new crop of foliage, the lower mortality of the over-wintering individuals among the “lac colony” is observed.
Physical situation of hosts in a plant community: lac is absent from thick jungles and occurs only on the outskirts. Lac hosts are successful where free circulation of air is ensured