Crops, forest products, pest control
Crop pests and diseases
Research reports for "plant disease"
Crop pests and diseases
Research reports for "plant disease"
- Quick, accurate tests identify plant diseases
Easy-to-use test kits now help laboratory staff in developing countries diagnose diseases rapidly. The traditional tests are expensive and time-consuming. This means that diseases, such as bacterial wilt in potato, groundnut and tomato, and leaf spot in banana, are often not correctly detected, or not detected in time. So, crop losses from these diseases in Africa and Asia are devastating. Now, laboratories in Mauritius, Malaysia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Trinidad use cost-effective kits to detect these diseases quickly and accurately. The design of the kits takes into account the often poor conditions in these laboratories. The tests have great potential for certifying crops for export and import, as well for meeting food safety standards. Many plant pathology laboratories around the world have already asked for them. (Ref: CPP79) - Breeding better groundnut for Sub-Saharan Africa
A variety of new technologies are now available to boost groundnut production in Sub-Saharan Africa. Advances include a new method to detect rosette disease using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the development of high-yielding, fast-maturing varieties that will allow farmers to grow two crops of groundnut per year. This work is complemented by a groundnut production manual that targets agricultural extension agents and NGO staff. To combat disease, researchers have also identified molecular markers that can be used to pinpoint resistance genes. They also developed a basic genetic linkage map for groundnut. Hybrid groundnut breeding lines have also been developed for use in crop improvement programmes. (Ref: CPP38) - Oiling the wheels of groundnut production
By using an improved variety of groundnut and treating their seed with fungicide, farmers in India’s leading groundnut production zones are cutting their losses and limiting applications of fungicide. Previously, late leaf spot and rust caused crop losses of more than 70%. Now, groundnut crops are producing more and better oil for human consumption and fodder for ruminants, which translates into higher milk yields. The integrated management techniques the farmers are using are promoted through farmer-to-farmer extension. A village-level seed system is helping to ensure supplies of quality seed. The new technologies have already made a big difference to the lives of more than 10,000 poor farmers, in particular women, in more than 120 villages. (Ref: CPP15) - Prevention is the best cure for banana viruses
Smallholder growers in the Philippines and Uganda can now recognise virus infections in their banana plants. Simply spotting viruses early and pulling out the infected plants, then making sure new plants are healthy, helps double yields. The banana bunchy top and banana streak viruses devastate banana crops across South Asia and the Pacific. Now they are spreading in southern Africa. No varieties resistant to either virus have been found and, because chemicals don’t work against viruses, prevention is the best option. Growers in Davao-Mindanao, in the Philippines, and in Rakai, Masaka and Ntungamo, Uganda, found that just by removing infected plants they reduce damage and prevent spread of the viruses. They also now make sure that they plant healthy plantlets, produced by low-cost tissue culture. (Ref: CPP75) - Science and partnership take the punch out of finger millet blast
Farmers in East Africa are safeguarding their food security and nutrition thanks to new understanding of finger millet blast: its diversity, aggressiveness and epidemiology. Farmer-selected blast-resistant varieties and improved control techniques are being promoted through scientific conferences, stakeholder workshops, on-farm testing and training, and the mass media. Previously, the lack of linkages between grain processors and other stakeholders was a major barrier to realizing the enormous potential of finger millet in fighting malnutrition and poverty. Now, efforts to foster innovation and linkages along the finger millet production-supply chain are creating an effective pathway for improving finger millet production and use. (Ref: CPP13) - 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) - Combating rice sheath blight in Bangladesh
Farmers in Bangladesh now have ways to lessen the damage that sheath blight can do to their rice crops. Sheath blight is a serious disease and difficult to detect. Due to better methods of detection, improved varieties of rice that are more resistant to blight (but still have good eating and cooking qualities), and simple biological control methods, farmers in the Comilla, Gazipur, Bogra and Rajshahi districts are already reaping better rice harvests. Agricultural organisations in Bangladesh use the new molecular techniques to detect rice sheath blight and develop better varieties. This will help combat the disease and make a major contribution to raising the country’s food production by a quarter within five years - an important government goal. (Ref: CPP59) - Farmers control bean root rot with a blend of science and indigenous knowledge
African farmers - and women farmers in particular -are using a wide range of integrated management options to protect against bean root rot. Researchers and partners in Uganda, Kenya, Malawi and South Africa are using manuals describing new tools, methods and techniques, and Village Information Centres are helping community members to access appropriate information and technologies. Participatory rural appraisals and surveys of indigenous technical knowledge were combined with sophisticated screening, selection and diagnostic techniques to come up the management components, which are specially designed for use in south-western Uganda, as well as in areas with similar conditions. (Ref: CPP09) - Farmers learn to profit from not saving seed
Seed-tuber production schemes are helping farmers in Kenya and Uganda to produce quality potato planting material. Previously, because of the difficulties smallholders faced in purchasing good quality seed-tubers, they found themselves forced to depend on tubers saved from their own harvest. Yet infected home-saved tubers often carried bacterial wilt over to the next crop. A method known as the ‘seed-plot’ technique now allows smallholders with limited access to land to multiply seed-tubers effectively, lessening the impact of home-saved seed practices. Farmer associations, market chains, and communication and management structures support these production schemes. Materials designed to strengthen farmers’ knowledge of marketing, finance and group dynamics help to ensure success. (Ref: CPP10) - Insect visitors are made to feel unwelcome in banana crops
Farmers are controlling a major banana disease, Xanthomonas wilt, by preventing the entry of insects that carry a bacterium (Xcm) that causes the disease. Removing male buds from the plants is one solution. Another is the destruction of infected plants to keep them from continuing to attract insects. Finally, by opting for banana varieties in which the male flower cushions have a natural protective covering farmers make their crops inaccessible to the insect vectors. These findings were made possible thanks to the identification of an improved medium for isolating Xcm from insects, soil and plants. The new control techniques are being promoted in Kenya, DR Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda using participatory methods. (Ref: CPP18) - Kale seed multiplication schemes take off in Kenya
Smallholders in Kenya are producing healthy, good quality kale seed thanks to a new model for sustainable multiplication. The first step was to establish the primary virus diseases responsible for crop loss. Then, researchers identified and compared new, improved varieties with resistance to the major threats to farmer varieties. They also surveyed farmer preferences to determine their preferred multiplication methods. The new model, together with a scheme for improved seed certification, has reached more than 1000 farmers, NGOs and micro-entrepreneurs. Multiplication plots are providing large batches of seed and farmers have been set up as seed producers in remote zones. (Ref: CPP11) - Strengthening registration of biological controls in Africa
Several countries in sub-Saharan Africa have already used new guidelines to develop systems for registering biological controls for pests and diseases - bacteria, viruses, nematodes, fungi, predators and parasites. Although systems for registering chemical controls are often in place, few deal with biological controls. But for produce to meet heath and safety standards, biological controls must be registered. This is vital for horticulture exports from Africa and Asia, particularly those destined for developed countries. Both South Africa and Kenya now have laws - based on the guidelines - that allow biological control agents to be registered, sold and used. Many other countries, including Tanzania, Ghana and Benin, are also using the guidelines to draw up similar laws to help their booming exports of fresh produce. (Ref: CPP44) - 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) - Winning the battle against cassava mosaic disease
Millions of farmers in Uganda and Tanzania are fighting the cassava mosaic disease (CMD) pandemic using new, resistant cassava varieties and other control methods. Government organisations and NGOs are multiplying and distributing these CMD-resistant varieties on a huge scale. And, new options, such as selecting clean planting material and identifying varieties resistant to the whiteflies that spread the disease, are also proving useful. Leaflets and a guide that describe CMD control strategies, developed by Ugandan and Tanzanian partners and validated by farmers, are available in different languages including English, Swahili and Luganda. The solid, scientific knowledge gained about control strategies and how they work will be invaluable to other countries threatened by CMD, such as Rwanda, Burundi, DR Congo, Republic of Congo, Gabon and Nigeria. (Ref: CPP24)
Crop pests and diseases
