Pests

: 16 August 2018; Hits: 5552

Dudutech launches natural biological solution to control fungal diseases

Dudutech Limited has released a biological solution for control of soil borne fungal diseases in a bid to promote environmentally and socially intelligent farming at a time when 14,300 Kenyans are dying annually due to soil, air and water pollution.

The solution, trichotech, contains spores of a soil dwelling fungi that prevents potential harmful microbes by a providing a barrier to combat disease causing fungi.

In this, the solution produces chemical metabolites, which inhibit various developmental stages of plant disease causing fungi in crops such as tomatoes and pepper.

According to Dudutech, the biological solution produces enzymes that enable the fungus to invade and parasitize plant pathogenic fungi.

This thus increases plant growth vigor by releasing locked nutrients from decaying organic matter; supplying nutrients to plant roots.

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Trichotech is applied preventively – before diseases occur in the plants.

The application recommendations on plants vary depending on the target crop and method of application.

In case of drip irrigation, apply 125g of trichotech per hectare. The biological solution is added into five liters of water and mixed thoroughly. The suspension is then added into a large tank and the volume increased to 1500 liters. It is then applied to plants using the drip system which ensures even distribution.

For drench application, prepare a suspension of trichotech at the rate of 125g/ha in five liters of water and mix thoroughly. Add the mixture into a large drenching container and make up the volume of water to adequately cover the target area. Pour into a watering can or sprayer/applicator and apply evenly onto the target area.

In dip application is recommended as a pre-transplant application for rooted plants or cuttings. Prepare a paste of 125g/ha trichotech in 20 liters of water. Place rooted transplants/cuttings in a perforated crate and dip roots into the paste. Plant the seedling as soon as they are dipped.

The biological solution should be stored in a cool dry place, away from direct sunlight and may be stored for up to six months inn original unopened container marinated at eight to 12 degrees Celsius.

Real gross value added in the agricultural sector grew at a decelerated rate of 1.6 per cent from Sh879.6bn in 2016 to Sh893.3bn in 2017. This was occasioned by drought, pests and disease incidence which resulted in reduced crop and livestock production. Maize production declined from 37.8 million bags in 2016 to 35.4 million bags in 2017. Tea and coffee production decreased by 7.0 per cent and 11.5 per cent to 439.8 thousand tonnes and 40.8 thousand tonnes, respectively in 2017.

Dudutech can be reached on +254 704 491 120

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: 01 August 2018; Hits: 5954

FAO helps Kenyan farmers rescue harvest from Fall Armyworm

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has helped Kenyan farmers reduce maize losses due to Fall Armyworm menace by training them on how to control the pest thereby saving 88.5 per cent of the projected harvest.

A research body, the Center for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI) has warned that the African continent stands to lose between eight and 20m tonnes of maize in 2018 if the pest is not properly managed.

In 2017, FAO initiated a pilot project where specially trained scouts were sent to farmers’ fields in Embu to monitor the crops.

In this, the scouts helped farmers manually control FAW by identifying the eggs and larvae then destroying them by hand.

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Agnes Waitherea Muli, a farmer in Embu County says FAO scouts were able to help her monitor her crops twice a week for six weeks thereby saving her crops.

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A FAO scout (rght) explaining how to control FAW to farmer in Embu. Photo/FAO

“Last year I lost more than three quarters of my maize due to the FAW, but I am expecting the losses to reduce this harvest season,” said Agnes.

Agnes and her husband have a one acre piece of land which they have sub-divided into several pieces and have so far saved crops in a quarter acre piece of land with more land under monitoring.

Salesia Mugo is also another beneficiary farmer from the mechanical control of FAW with the help of FAO scouts.

“I now expect to harvest at least four bags of 90kg maize up from two he harvested last season,” said, Mugo.

In May, FAO launched a mobile app to combat the fall armyworm menace that has been reported in 44 out of 54 Sub-Saharan African countries.

The app which runs android smartphones according to FAO will help farmers, researchers and donors better understand the threat posed by the pest.

With the app, farmers can check for the level of infestations in their farm by examining 10 plants in a row in different locations of their farm. In this, the app would enable them mark whether or not the fall armyworm larvae is present in their crops.

The sample data collected will then be uploaded to FAO’s servers where it can be analyzed by researchers, said Keith Cressman, the lead person who developed the app.

A majority of farmers in Kenya may be able to use the app as the latest report released in March 2018 by e-commerce company Jumia shows that the country has a high adoption rate of smart phones in Africa with the internet penetration at 83 per cent.

In Kenya, the fall armyworm was first detected in Western Kenya in March 2017 and was confirmed by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization and the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service.

The initial affected counties were Busia, Uasin Gishu, Trans Nzoia, Bungoma, Bungoma and Nandi. By the end of the year 2017, the pest had ravaged approximately 800,000 hectares of crops leading to losses of Sh26.7bn.

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: 01 August 2018; Hits: 5204

CABI launches new technology for fight against crop-devastating pest outbreaks in Kenya

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John Mutisya, a plant doctor at the Katoloni plant clinic examines a potato sample. Photo: David Onyango, CABI

Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI), a leading a consortium funded by the UK Space Agency’s International Partnership Programme (IPP) has launched a Pest Risk Information Service (PRISE), which uses state-of-the-art technology to help inform farmers in sub-Saharan Africa of pest outbreaks that could devastate their crops and livelihoods.

The service is now being provided in Kenya after it was launched at a Plantwise plant clinic in Manyatta in Kenya’s Eastern Province.

Plant clinics are a meeting place where local plant health extension officers, known as plant doctors, help farmers struggling with plant pests and diseases. They provide diagnoses and management advice for any problem and any crop.

PRISE builds upon the UK Department for International Development (DFID)-funded Plantwise programme which works globally to help farmers lose less of what they grow to plant health problems.

Other donors of Plantwise include the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC); the European Commission DG DEVCO (EuropeAid); the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Netherlands (DGIS); Irish Aid; the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR); and the Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China.

Datasets obtained from a combination of the plant-pest lifecycle, earth observation and satellite positioning, are being used to spearhead the fight against pests that devastate an estimated 40% of the world’s crops. The project will help farmers fight back against potentially disastrous pests such as the fall armyworm.

The project consortium includes UK partners from Assimila, Kings College London, the Centre for Environmental Data Analysis. The technology being deployed better places CABI’s Plantwise plant clinics to give timely alerts and advice to farmers, in person and by tablet or smartphone so they can respond more efficiently to the risks posed to their crops.

The PRISE project, whose other partners include the Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Kenya, is expected to be rolled out to five further sub-Sarahan African countries in due course. The project was launched in Zambia in December and will be launched in Ghana later this month.

Cambria Finegold, Global Director, Knowledge Management, said, “CABI’s recent evidence note on Fall Armyworm, funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), predicts that this species’ effect on maize losses in just 12 African countries could range from 8.3 to 20.6 million tonnes per year – let alone the risks posed by other pests.

“It is vital therefore that we use the very latest in technology and work in partnership to bring the best insights on pest population behaviour right to the farmer’s door.”

Ray Fielding, Head of the International Partnership Programme at the UK Space Agency, said: “We are delighted to be working with CABI to help transform the lives of farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. The £6.3 million of funding from the UK Space Agency will see CABI provide pest risk predictions in time for farmers to take vital preventive action and thus increase resilience to pest outbreaks. Innovation is essential to provide new solutions to the problem of pest outbreaks, and this project combines novel EO technology, satellite positioning, plant health modelling, and on-the-ground real-time observations to deliver a science-based service for sub-Saharan Africa.”

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