Sustainable resource management is the critical agricultural research and development challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. The accumulated knowledge on soil management gathered over the last 10 years, combined with solid crop improvement and plant health research at farmers’ level, has brought us to a stage where we can now address with confidence the intensification of cereal–grain–legume-based cropping systems in the dry savanna of West Africa in a sustainable and environmentally positive manner. ...

The introduction of desirable agronomic characteristics into Phaseolus vulgaris L. is being attempted by interspecific hybridization with P. coccineus, but the effects on root nodulation are unknown. Accordingly, cross-inoculation relationships between P. vulgaris ‘Red Kidney’ and P. coccineus ‘Scarlet Runner’ were tested in the greenhouse with a group of 16 Rhizobium strains effective on Red Kidney and a group of 12 strains effective on Scarlet Runner. Both groups had diverse origins, including ...

We initiated a proteomics-based approach to identify root proteins affected by salinity in pea (Pisum sativum cv. Cutlass). Salinity stress was imposed either on 2-wk old pea plants by watering with salt water over 6 wk or by germinating and growing pea seeds for 7 days in Petri dishes. Concentrations of NaCl above 75 mM had significant negative effects on growth and development of peas in both systems. Salinity-induced root proteome-level changes in pea were investigated by 2-D electrophoresis ...

Two shaving methods, one by using a sharp razor blade and the other a small pair of dissecting scissors, were tested on pods of Vigna vexillata accessions to investigate the effect of trichomes on feeding and development of the pod-bug Clavigralla tomentosicollis Stål (Hemiptera: Coreidae). Electron micrographs of unshaved (control) pods showed that all trichome types (glandular, long non-glandular and short non-glandular) were present on the pod surface. Shaving with a pair of scissors shortened ...

The objective of this study was to construct a molecular phylogeny of the genus Musa using restriction-site polymorphisms of the chloroplast (cpDNA) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). Six cpDNA and two mtDNA sequences were amplified individually in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) experiments in 13 species representing the four sections of Musa. Ensete ventricosum (W.) Ch. was used as the outgroup. The amplified products were digested with ten restriction endonucleases. A total of 79 restriction-site ...

A regional Sorghum Head-Bug and Grain Mold Trial was conducted in 1996 and 1997 by WCASRN in, respectively, 15 and 13 research stations in ten west and central African countries. Empirical relationships between weather factors and head-bug damage on the one hand, and between weather factors and grain mold damage on the other hand, were examined using the “Window” computer program. No significant correlation was found between head-bug damage and those weather factors examined. In the case of grain ...

The importance of traditional leafy vegetables (TLVs) in nutrition and employment both in production and marketing among urban and peri-urban households was investigated. An expenditure model of demand using results from a 1998 survey (n=150) in Yaounde, Cameroon estimated that as a group TLVs were normal goods, which contribute a significant share of essential nutrients for the urban poor. Urban consumption of Brassica exotics, which have replaced TLVs in other parts of Africa, was minimal. Price ...

Cassava roots, a major food in Africa, contain cyanogenic glucosides that may cause toxic effects. Malawian women farmers considered fields of seemingly similar cassava plants to be mixes of both ‘cool’ and ‘bitter’ cultivars. They regard roots from ‘cool’ cultivars as non-toxic. Roots of ‘bitter’ were considered to require extensive traditional processing done by women to be safe for consumption. But curiously, these women farmers preferred ‘bitter’ cultivars since toxicity confers protection ...

A survey of the sanitary quality, particularly concerning aflatoxin contamination and practices of the dried yam chips food sub-sector was carried out in Benin. Producers and intermediaries of the yam chips food production sub-sector were interviewed and samples collected. Aflatoxin content was assessed by a biochemo-luminescence method on a total of 107 samples. Twenty-three per cent of the samples had aflatoxin contents over the 15 μg kg−1 CODEX standard value for total aflatoxin. Moisture content ...

Bénin, like other countries in sub-Saharan Africa, has initiated programs to reform agricultural input and output markets. While the impact of the reform programs has been different for each country, it is commonly observed that impact at the farm level has been less than anticipated. A central theme of this paper is to assess the impact of fertilizer market reforms on the fertilizer market structure and fertilizer use for both food and export (cotton) crop production in Bénin. This analysis of ...