Journal and Journal Articles: Recent submissions

Now showing items 241-260 of 5157

    • Assessing the host status of banana and other plant species to the enset root mealybug Paraputo ensete (Williams & Matile-Ferrero)(Hem.: Pseudococcidae) in Ethiopia 

      Erenso, F.; Blomme, G.; Muanenda, M.; Kearsley, E.; Goergen, G.; Addis, T. (2022-12-01)
      Ninety backyard gardens in the south-eastern Ethiopian highlands with enset (Ensete ventricosum (Welw.) Cheesman), banana and various annual crops were assessed for the presence of enset root mealybugs (Paraputo ensete (Williams & Matile-Ferrero)). This study presents the first observation of enset root mealybugs on banana. This pest has until now been exclusively recorded on enset in Ethiopia. In the Dilla Zuria district of the Gedeo zone, southern Ethiopia, infested banana mats of the ‘Pisang ...

    • Epidemiological analysis of Cassava Mosaic and Brown Streak Diseases, and Bemisia tabaci in the Comoros Islands 

      Shirima, R.R.; Wosula, E.N.; Hamza, A.A.; Mohammed, N.A.; Mouigni, H.; Nouhou, S.; Mchinda, N.M.; Ceasar, G.; Amour, R.; Njukwe, E.; Legg, J. (2022-09-30)
      A comprehensive assessment of cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) and cassava mosaic disease (CMD) was carried out in Comoros where cassava yield (5.7 t/ha) is significantly below the African average (8.6 t/ha) largely due to virus diseases. Observations from 66 sites across the Comoros Islands of Mwali, Ngazidja, and Ndzwani revealed that 83.3% of cassava fields had foliar symptoms of CBSD compared with 95.5% for CMD. Molecular diagnostics confirmed the presence of both cassava brown streak ...

    • Evaluation of the efficacy of Flupyradifurone against Bemisia tabaci on cassava in Tanzania 

      Issa, K.A.; Wosula, E.N.; Stephano, F.; Legg, J. (2022-10-12)
      A novel butenolide insecticide—flupyradifurone (Sivanto SL 200)—was evaluated for efficacy against cassava-colonizing Bemisia tabaci whitefly under laboratory, screenhouse and field conditions. LC50 values from leaf disc spray assays were comparable for both flupyradifurone (12.7 g a.i/100 L) and imidacloprid (12.6 g a.i/100 L). Both insecticides caused high levels of adult whitefly mortality in leaf disc and leaf dip assays when compared to untreated controls. In screenhouse-based trials, longer ...

    • Impact assessment of Striga resistant maize varieties and fertilizer use in Ghana: a panel analysis 

      Martey, E.; Etwire, P.M.; Assfaw Wossen, T.; Menkir, A.; Abdoulaye, T. (2022-11-06)
      This study analyzes the impact of a component of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technology—Striga-resistant maize (SRM) varieties and mineral fertilizer—on maize yield and food security using two rounds of panel data in Ghana. The study employs a multinomial endogenous switching regression model and finds that joint adoption of SRM varieties and mineral fertilizer increased maize yield by 872 kg/ha, food consumption scores by 17, and consumption per adult equivalent unit by 38 kg/ha. The positive ...

    • Predicting intercrop competition, facilitation, and productivity from simple functional traits 

      MacLaren, C.; Waswa, W.; Aliyu, K.T.; Claessens, L.; Mead, A.; Schöb, C.; Vanlauwe, B.; Storkey, J. (2023-06-01)
      Context Recent meta-analyses demonstrate that intercropping can increase the land use efficiency of crop production by 20–30 % on average, indicating a strong potential contribution to sustainable intensification. However, there is substantial variability around this average: individual studies range from half to double the land productivity of monocrops. Legume-cereal intercrops and intercrops with high temporal niche separation tend to be more productive than the average, but these two combination ...

    • Maize yield as affected by the interaction of fertilizer nitrogen and phosphorus in the Guinea savanna of Nigeria 

      Tofa, A.; Kamara, A.; Babaji, B.A.; Aliyu, K.T.; Ademulegun, T.; Bebeley, J.F. (2022-11)
      The soils of the Nigeria savannas are particularly low in nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) and negatively affects maize productivity. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the interactive effect of N and P fertilizers on maize growth, grain yield, nitrogen uptake and N use efficiency. Field experiments were conducted during the 2015 and 2016 cropping seasons at Iburu in southern Guinea and Zaria in northern Guinea savanna zones of Nigeria. The treatments consisted of three levels of ...

    • Multiple-traits selection in White Guinea Yam (Dioscorea rotundata) genotypes 

      Norman, P.E.; Agre, A.P.; Asiedu, R.; Asfaw, A. (2022-11-07)
      Choosing superior parents with complementary trait values for hybridization and selecting variants with desired product profiles to release as a new cultivar are important breeding activities to progress genetic improvement in crops. This study assessed the genetic potential of 36 parental lines of white Guinea yam (Dioscorea rotundata) genotypes using multi-trait index-based factor analysis and ideotype design (FAI-BLUP). The experiment utilized 36 white yam genotypes laid out in a 6 × 6 triple ...

    • Impact of CGIAR maize germplasm in sub-Saharan Africa 

      Krishna, V.V.; Lantican, M.A.; Prasanna, B.M.; Pixley, K.; Abdoulaye, T.; Menkir, A.; Banziger, M.; Erenstein, O. (2023-01)
      This study reports on the adoption and impacts of CGIAR-related maize varieties in 18 major maize-producing countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) during 1995–2015. Of the 1345 maize varieties released during this timeframe, approximately 60% had a known CGIAR parentage. About 34% (9.5 million ha) of the total maize area in 2015 was cultivated with ’new’ CGIAR-related maize varieties released between 1995 and 2015. In the same year, an additional 13% of the maize area was cultivated with ’old’ ...

    • Processors' experience in the use of flash dryer for cassava-derived products in Nigeria 

      Ojide, M.; Adegbite, S.A.; Tran, T.; Taborda, L.A.; Chapuis, A.; Lukombo, S.; Totin, E.; Sartas, M.; Schut, M.; Lopez-Lavalle, L.A.; Dufour, D.; Abass, A. (2022-02-17)
      This study was designed and carried out to ascertain the situation and perceptions of end users of cassava flash drying equipment in Nigeria with the aim of giving suggestions to policies and approaches for improved technology. Forty-one processing firms were selected and interviewed. Descriptive analyses were used and a logistic regression model was estimated. The results revealed that 49% of the firms stopped using their flash dryers due to the low demand for high-quality cassava flour (HQCF) ...

    • Parsimonious genotype by environment interaction covariance models for cassava (Manihot esculenta) 

      Bakare, M.A.; Kayondo, S.I.; Aghogho, C.I.; Wolfe, M.; Parkes, E.; Kulakow, P.; Egesi, C.; Jannink, J.; Rabbi, I.Y. (2022-09-21)
      The assessment of cassava clones across multiple environments is often carried out at the uniform yield trial, a late evaluation stage, before variety release. This is to assess the differential response of the varieties across the testing environments, a phenomenon referred to as genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI). This phenomenon is considered a critical challenge confronted by plant breeders in developing crop varieties. This study used the data from variety trials established as randomized ...

    • Genetic variability and genotype by environment interaction of two major cassava processed products in multi-environments 

      Aghogho, C.I.; Eleblu, S.J.Y.; Bakare, M.A.; Kayondo, S.I.; Asante, I.; Parkes, E.; Kulakow, P.; Offei, S.; Rabbi, I.Y. (2022-10-17)
      Conversion of cassava (Manihot esculenta) roots to processed products such as gari and fufu before consumption is a common practice worldwide by cassava end-user for detoxification, prolonged shelf life or profitability. Fresh root and processed product yield are supposed to be equivalent for each genotype, however, that is not the case. Developing genotypes with high product conversion rate is an important breeding goal in cassava as it drives the adoption rates of new varieties. The objective ...

    • TARIBAN1, TARIBAN2, TARIBAN3, and TARIBAN4 'Matooke' cooking banana cultivars for the Great Lakes Region of Africa 

      Madalla, N.; Massawe, C.; Shimwela, M.; Mbongo, D.; Kindimba, G.; Kubiriba, J.; Arinaitwe, I.K.; Nowakunda, K.; Namanya, P.; Tumuhimbise, R.; Okurut, A.W.; Saria, A.; Ngomuo, M.; Swennen, R.; Brown, A.; Batte, M.; Carpentier, S.C.; Van den Bergh, I.; Crichton, R.J.; Marimo, P.; Weltzien, E.; Ortiz, R. (2022-12-22)

    • Nutritional benefits of improved post-harvest handling practices for maize and common beans in Northern Tanzania: a quantitative farm-level assessment 

      Mutungi, C.; Tungu, J.; Amri, A.; Gaspar, A.; Abass, A. (2022-01)
      The efficacy of improved post-harvest practices for reducing food losses is often reported, but the nutritional benefits remain much less expounded. Meanwhile, nutrient concentration changes during the post-harvest period can influence potential nutrition gains targeted to benefit households. We analyzed contents of selected nutrients in farmers’ maize and common bean stocks under ordinary and improved practices at different post-harvest stages and related them to the physical quality. The improved ...

    • Evaluating the performance of lateral flow devices for total aflatoxins with special emphasis on their robustness under sub-Saharan conditions 

      Cvak, B.; Warth, B.; Atehnkeng, J.; Parich, A.; Moritz, A.; Sulyok, M.; Krska, R. (2021-10-20)
      As aflatoxins are a global risk for humans and animals, testing methods for rapid on-site screening are increasingly needed alongside the standard analytical laboratory tools. In the presented study, lateral flow devices (LFDs) for rapid total aflatoxin screening were thoroughly investigated with respect to their matrix effects, cross-reactivity, their performance under harsh conditions in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), and their stability, as well as when compared with liquid chromatography-tandem ...

    • Physiological responses of cowpea simultaneously exposed to water deficit stress and varying light intensities at vegetative and reproductive growth stages 

      Adeniyi, O.I.; Adejumo, S.A.; Fofana, M.; Adegbehingbe, F.T. (2022-11-09)
      A combination of stresses as it occurs on the field poses more challenges to crop production than individual stress. Crops’ response to single stress also differs from that of combined stresses. The morpho-physiological responses of two cowpea varieties (IT89KD-288 and IT99K573-1-1) to a combination of stresses (water deficit stress and high light intensity) were investigated at different growth stages. Three levels of light intensities (L3: 259 Lux- 36%, L2: 394 Lux-55% and L1: 710.2 Lux-100%) ...

    • Characterization of macro and micro-minerals in cassava leaves from genotypes planted in three different agroecological locations in Nigeria 

      Alamu, E.O.; Dixon, A.; Eyinla, T.; Maziya-Dixon, B. (2022-11)
      Diversity in the mineral composition of cassava leaves bred in sub-Saharan Africa has not been fully investigated. This study characterized macro and micro-minerals in 400 genotypes of Cassava leaves planted in three different agroecological environments in Nigeria. Laboratory analysis of the leaves was done using an Inductively Coupled Optical Emission Spectrometer. Across all three locations sampled in this study, the iron content ranged from 43 to 660 mg/kg, zinc from 16 to 440 mg/kg, Manganese ...

    • Parasitism of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci by aphelinid parasitoids on cassava across five agro-ecological zones of Cameroon 

      Tize, I.; Nukenine, E.; Fotso Kuate, A.; Doumtsop, A.R.P.; Nanga, S.N.; Ajebesone, F.N.; Kulakow, P.; Kumar, P.L.; Fiaboe, K.; Hanna, R. (2023-03-28)
      The whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) is the vector of cassava mosaic viruses causing cassava viral diseases, which are the most important biotic constraints of cassava production in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Presently, B. tabaci management in cassava fields calls for the development of an integrated approach that relies on host plant resistance and biological control. Data on B. tabaci's natural enemies, particularly parasitoids, in Central Africa are limited. Field surveys were conducted from ...

    • Genetic purity of yam (Dioscorea spp.) multiplied through different seed multiplication techniques based on DArT SNP markers 

      Maroya, N.; Agre, A.P.; Balogun, M. (2023-04-04)
      Obtaining high-quality planting material for cultivation is a persisting challenge for yam (Dioscorea spp.) production in Africa. Efforts to provide a solution to this challenge have led to varying seed multiplication techniques but whose efficiency in maintaining the genetic purity of yam genotypes during the rapid multiplication process is yet unknown. Three improved varieties Swaswa, Kpamyo and Asiedu were multiplied through tissue culture, aeroponics system, field condition and vine cutting ...

    • Temporal changes in minimum and maximum temperatures at selected locations of southern Africa 

      Mupangwa, W.; Chipindu, L.; Ncube, B.; Mkuhlani, S.; Nhantumbo, N.; Masvaya, E.; Ngwira, A.; Moeletsi, M.; Nyagumbo, I.; Liben, F. (2023-04-06)
      Agriculture is threatened by ever increasing temperatures and this trend is predicted to continue for the near and distant future. The negative impact of rising temperatures on agri-food systems is also compounded by the erratic and highly variable rainfall in most parts of southern Africa. Minimum and maximum temperatures’ variability and trend analysis were undertaken using daily time series data derived from 23 meteorological stations spread across Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe. ...

    • Characterising quality traits of boiled yam: texture and taste for enhanced breeding efficiency and impact 

      Adinsi, L.; Moussa, I.D.; Honfozo, L.; Bouniol, A.; Meghar, K.; Alamu, E.O.; Adesokan, M.; Arufe, S.; Ofoeze, M.; Okoye, B.; Madu, T.; Hotegni, F.; Chijioke, U.; Otegbayo, B.; Dufour, D.; Hounhouigan, J.D.; Ceballos, H.; Mestres, C.; Akissoe, N.H. (2023-03-30)
      Background: Boiled yam key quality attributes typical for West African consumers are: crumbly, easy to break, and sweet taste. New yam varieties are being developed but high or medium throughput tools to assess the required quality traits and their range of acceptance are limited. This study assessed the acceptance thresholds of these quality attributes and established the predictive models for screening yam varieties that meet the required consumers' preferences. Results: Overall liking was ...