Source Year: 1997

Tapping panel dryness (TPD) causes losses of about $68 million per year to the rubber industry in Indonesia. In this study, TPD was detected (during the harvest period) by procoagulation on the harvest line. Resting the affected plants for a while did not have any great beneficial effect. The most effective treatment was to scrub the trunk and remove the affected skin. To avoid fungal infection, a mixture of palm oil and fungicide (95 : 5) was spread over the wound then harvesting was suspended for 2 weeks. This method was found to be effective for clone WR101. The highest percentage of cured plants was obtained with the addition of KCl fertilizer at 1.5 times the recommended dose or 250g/plant, twice a year. TPD diagnosis can be advanced by 3-4 weeks by detecting a reduction in the sucrose concentration and an increase in the phosphate ion concentration in the latex. Blocking index and flow rate also increased during the 4 weeks before TPD was noticed.