Crops, forest products, pest control
General pests and disease
Research reports for "disease resistance"
General pests and disease
Research reports for "disease resistance"
- Seed priming in mungbean and chickpea strengthens disease resistance
Chickpeas sown from primed seed in farmers’ fields in Bangladesh have proved to be more resistant to collar rot than chickpeas from seed that was not primed. Likewise, primed mungbean proved resistant to Mungbean Yellow Mosaic Virus in Pakistan. Then, tests in glasshouses showed that primed pearl millet was resistant to Downy Mildew. All this means that priming helps prevent serious damage to pea and bean crops from common diseases. Farmers in the High Barind Tract of Bangladesh and in eastern India now readily prime chickpea seed. They’ve seen for themselves that primed chickpeas are more resistant to disease than those that aren’t primed. (Ref: PSP29) - Cost-effective breeding for disease resistance in pearl millet
A cost-effective method of breeding millet resistant to disease is now available. This new technique has already been used to insert genes resistant to downy mildew - the most devastating of all the pearl millet diseases - into top hybrid varieties. Poor farmers in Haryana and Rajasthan now grow these hybrids over 150,000 hectares, both as food grain and for animal feed. Government and international laboratories in India use these methods. Millet resistant to mildew could have a huge impact in India where 40% of the world’s millet is grown and over half of world’s poorest people live. Now, the techniques are spreading to the private sector and research organisations in Africa, South Asia, and the Americas. (Ref: PSP24) - Maize farmers in East Africa have a new basket of options
Farmers in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are using a new ‘basket of options’ to fight a maize disease know as grey leaf spot (GLS). They tested and approved the practices in farmer field schools, and posters, leaflets, radio programmes, videos and a television documentary are helping to spread the new knowledge. Seed companies are also using a rapid screening method to select locally available varieties with good levels of resistance. A wide range of stakeholders in the East African region, including individual farmers, farmer groups, seed companies, community-based organisations, NGOs and researchers, is using these new options. More than 20,000 households are benefiting from the package, and demand for the promotional materials continues to grow. (Ref: CPP04) - New sorghums combat witchweed
Small farmers in dry areas of Tanzania can now grow sorghum again. Previously, rampant witchweed stifled their crops of sorghum and maize, so they had to grow pearl millet and cassava instead. Now they plant two new varieties of sorghum that are resistant to witchweed. And they apply manure as another weed deterrent. Farmers themselves tested the new varieties of sorghum. The ones they chose, as well as doing well where there’s witchweed, are drought-tolerant and mature early, yield well and are good to eat. When farmers apply manure, yields are a quarter to half as much again. These two varieties are now registered and formally released, and farmers in Tanzania are already using them. (Ref: CPP78) - New varieties and methods boost maize production in Tanzania
New strategies are improving the quality and yield of maize to benefit poor people in the southern highlands of Tanzania. Two new varieties - which are highly resistant to important maize diseases, among other attractive attributes - were tested and validated by farmers and other stakeholders. Improved management approaches were developed and promoted through leaflets in English and in Kiswahili. To ensure regular supply of quality seed, a public–private partnership for certified seed production and distribution was put in place. Farmers, scientists, extension services, seed companies, NGOs and stockists in at least 60 villages in Tanzania’s southern highlands are using the new strategies and materials. (Ref: CPP01) - Partnering with farmers in cassava-breeding pays dividends
New cassava-breeding skills, and high-yielding cassava varieties which are resistant to pests and diseases - including cassava mosaic disease - are benefiting both farmers and processors in Ghana. The new varieties developed jointly with farmers yield well with few inputs in rain-fed fields. They also meet local people’s preferences for taste and food preparation, and are suitable for other West African countries. Involving processors in selection too has led to high-starch varieties that farmers can find a ready market for. The new, participatory breeding method has produced these new varieties fast, in just five cycles of cropping and selection. It is also being used in Uganda and Tanzania for sweet potato, and could easily be applied to other crops like potato and yam. (Ref: CPP23) - A billion people stand to benefit from pigeonpea production improvements
Research has overcome a long-standing barrier to improved pigeonpea production by identifying the cause of the pigeonpea sterility mosaic virus (SMD). This has permitted the development of diagnostic tools and improved methods of screening for resistance, as well as integrated technologies to combat this and two other major pigeonpea problems: fusarium wilt and pod borer. Over 600 resource-poor farming families who grow pigeonpea in India now have high-yielding, disease-resistant varieties, integrated control components, village-level seed systems, special machines to help them in hulling, and bio-pesticides to safeguard their harvests. Pigeonpea is the principal dietary protein source for an estimated 1.1 billion people. (Ref: CPP17) - Beating tungro virus disease in rice
A suite of new techniques to tackle the devastating rice losses caused by tungro is now helping small-scale farmers in Indonesia, the Philippines and India. Better understanding of the leafhopper insect that spreads the virus has led to better growing practices, especially late planting. New resistant rice varieties have been produced, as well as a spatial model which helps identify the best strategies to cut the incidence of disease. A simple, reliable and relatively low-cost diagnostic kit for the virus has also been developed to help rice breeders and extension services. Farmers in Bali (Indonesia) are already growing the improved varieties on over 40,000 hectares, while farmers in East Java and Lombok (Indonesia), and Mindanao and the Visayas (Philippines) are also benefiting. Training manuals are also available. (Ref: CPP45) - Better sweet potatoes boost farmers from subsistence to the market economy
Sweet potato growers in Uganda have gone from not having enough produce to eat, to wondering how best to market all the sweet potatoes they harvest. Previously, vines for planting sweet potato crops were in extremely short supply. Plus, sweet potato virus severely damaged tubers. Now, farmer groups produce and market plenty of quality planting material - varieties resistant to virus disease. The new sweet potatoes, high in beta-carotene, also help reduce serious vitamin A deficiencies which affect 30% of children and 50% of women. Quality sweet potatoes for export fetch high prices. A new growers association is already working to export the new varieties. The potential is huge and the improved varieties have spread to D.R. Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan and even Chad. (Ref: CPP53) - Biotech tools improve pearl millet
Genes can now be inserted into pearl millet to make them more tolerant to heat and drought, and more resistant to disease. Millet is a staple cereal and important animal feed in the hot dry regions of Sub-Saharan Africa and India. High temperatures often kill millet seedlings. This means that the crop has to be re-sown and so doesn’t ripen before the rains end. When the rains end early, millet produces very little grain or leaf. Plus, up to a third of the crop is often lost to downy mildew. The genes that help plants withstand the three main threats - heat, drought and mildew - could vastly improve harvests. They are already being used in India by government and international research laboratories. (Ref: PSP23) - Communities reap the benefits from new, improved cassava varieties
Locally adapted cassava varieties with resistance to cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) are promoting improved food security and livelihoods in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda. Specially designed seed systems are being used to produce disease-free planting material for wide distribution. An information campaign, using radio, leaflets and posters, is helping to get the word out. The CBSD-resistant varieties are used by smallholders in semi-arid and coastal fishing communities that supply fresh cassava to urban areas. They are also used for processing to make cassava flour. Previously, CBSD damage resulted in poor yields and root quality. Over five years the improved materials have reached more than 1 million people in eastern and southern Africa, and their use is still spreading. (Ref: CPP22) - Learning is made easy by new sweet potato guides and manuals
New learning tools are providing a fast, easy way to access important knowledge on pre- and post-harvest management of sweet potato in East Africa. The materials include information on the farmer field school (FFS) approach, validated in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, as well as on the control of important sweet potato diseases. Posters, leaflets and training guides are available in English, Ateso, Swahili and Luganda. A manual with comprehensive technical information for farmers and facilitators has also been field-tested and published as individual farmer guidebooks in local languages. The materials, relying heavily on photos, are specially designed to help in training people who are illiterate or for whom the language of the materials is not their native tongue. (Ref: CPP21) - Life is sweet with new sweet potato varieties
Hundreds of thousands of farmers in central Uganda and Tanzania are counting on improved sweet potato varieties to boost their nutrition and incomes. These sweet potatoes were chosen through a process involving farmers at all stages. Some varieties were selected from available materials, under local smallholder farming conditions: taste, market characteristics and resistance to pests and diseases were some of the things farmers were looking for. Farmers and scientists also worked side by side to develop new varieties through client-orientated breeding at decentralised, on-farm communal sites. This process has provided - in addition to the new sweet potatoes - knowledge among farmers about the potential of variety development, as well as scientists’ insights into farmers’ needs. (Ref: CPP20) - New techniques multiply success with potatoes
A new method for multiplying potato tuber seed is helping poor smallholders to overcome a deadly potato disease known as bacterial wilt. The seed production system includes field inspection and on-farm detection of bacterial wilt. Collective marketing activities through a new Seed Producer Association are ensuring that the increased production translates into improved livelihoods. The members of the association have acquired skills in marketing and post-harvest handling. Simple potato storehouses are preserving tuber quality and extending product life. Local committees control distribution of the seed potatoes to ensure that all members receive their fair share, giving priority to women and poor households. The successful techniques have now spread to farmers in Kenya and Uganda. (Ref: CPP02) - Poor farmers in Uganda boost their income with new groundnut varieties
Farmers throughout Uganda are using new disease-resistant groundnut varieties - validated in on-farm trials - to overcome a rosette disease, a problem that was seriously limiting their yields. Previously, their only recourse was chemical control, but this was too expensive for poor farmers. To make seed of the new varieties widely available, a farmer-led multiplication plan was developed under the supervision of parish development committees. These committees oversee repayment and redistribution of seed to ensure that women and poor households receive priority. Farmer groups also learned improved groundnut production and seed handling techniques, as well as how to process the groundnuts using a manual grinder. Finally, collective marketing associations are building their links to markets. (Ref: CPP03) - Virus-fighting tomatoes
Three new varieties of tomato that are resistant to Tomato leaf curl virus (ToLCV) are boosting Indian farmers’ profits up to ten times over and are capturing much commercial interest. Previously, the disease could cause farmers to lose their whole crop, and infection spread rapidly, as the virus is carried by whiteflies. Now, the new varieties ‘Sankranthi’, ‘Nandi’ and ‘Vybhav’ give very high yields and don’t need to be sprayed with insecticide. Sixteen seed companies have already used the new varieties to produce hybrid tomatoes - which are being grown by an estimated 55,000 farmers in southern India alone. Seed of the three varieties has reached more than 14 institutes in 13 different countries, and there is continuing global demand, which is being met mainly through the World Vegetable Center. (Ref: CPP33)
General pests and disease
