scholarly journals Distribution and Relative Abundance of Bean Leaf Beetles (Ootheca spp.) (Insecta: Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in Uganda

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1048
Author(s):  
Charles Halerimana ◽  
Samuel Kyamanywa ◽  
Samuel Olaboro ◽  
Pamela Paparu ◽  
Stanley T. Nkalubo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Common Bean ◽  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Species Distribution ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Leaf Beetle ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Leaf Beetles ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Bean leaf beetles (Ootheca spp.) (Insecta: Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) are one of Africa’s most destructive pests of common bean and other leguminous crops. The beetles are widely distributed in Africa where they are estimated to cause annual crop yield losses of 116,400 tons of crop yields in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their importance, little is known about the distribution, relative abundance and damage caused by bean leaf beetles in Uganda. As a result, the development of effective management methods has been hampered. We conducted surveys in six key Ugandan agro-ecological zones to determine the species distribution and relative abundance of bean leaf beetles. Findings indicate that leaf beetles belonging to 12 genera are present, including members of the genera Afrophthalma Medvedev, 1980, Buphonella Jacoby, 1903, Chrysochrus Chevrolat in Dejean, 1836, Diacantha Dejean, 1845, Exosoma Jacoby, 1903, Lamprocopa Hincks, 1949, Lema Fabricius, 1798, Nisotra Baly, 1864, Neobarombiella Bolz and Wagner, 2012, Ootheca Dejean, 1935, Parasbecesta Laboissière, 1940, and Plagiodera Dejean, 1835. We identified only three species belonging to the genus Ootheca: O. mutabilis, O. proteus, and O. orientalis. Seventy percent of all the beetles collected were O. mutabilis and these were present in all agro-ecological zones studied. The Northern Moist Farmlands (21.9%), West Nile Farmlands (12.9%), Central Wooded Savanna (4.4%) and Southern and Eastern Lake Kyoga Basin (1.4%) were the only agro-ecological zones where O. proteus was found. Only one specimen of O. orientalis was found at a single site in the Central Wooded Savanna. The Northern Moist Farmlands had a significantly (p < 0.05) higher bean leaf beetle density than the West Nile Farmlands and Southwestern Highlands. Similarly, the Northern Moist Farmlands had the highest beetle foliar damage per plant (1.15 ± 0.05), while the Southwestern Highlands had the lowest (0.03 ± 0.02). We provide the first information on Ootheca species distribution, abundance and damage in Uganda. Our findings provide a foundation for assessing the importance of Ootheca spp. as common bean pests in Uganda.

scholarly journals Performance of elite grain sorghum varieties in the West Nile Agro-ecological Zones

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 139
Author(s):  
E Awori ◽  
M Kiryowa ◽  
A Basirika ◽  
F Dradiku ◽  
R Kahunza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Grain Sorghum ◽  
The West ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

scholarly journals Assessing the Productivity of Common Bean in Intercrop with Maize across Agro-Ecological Zones of Smallholder Farms in the Northern Highlands of Tanzania

Agriculture ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 117
Author(s):  
Eliakira Kisetu Nassary ◽  
Frederick Baijukya ◽  
Patrick Alois Ndakidemi
Keyword(s):  
Common Bean ◽  
Grain Legume ◽  
Total Biomass ◽  
Lower Altitude ◽  
Land Equivalent Ratio ◽  
Grain Yields ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Equivalent Ratio ◽  
Cropping Seasons ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important grain legume for food and cash of the smallholder farmers worldwide. However, the total potential benefits to be derived from the common bean as a source of food and income, its complementarities with non-legume food crops, and significance to the environment are underexploited. Intensification of common bean could provide approaches that offer new techniques to better manage and monitor globally complex systems of sustainable food production. Therefore, this study tried to assess the productivity of common bean bushy varieties when are involved as part of an intercrop with maize (Zea mays L.) in varying agro-ecological zones. The factors evaluated were the cropping seasons/years (S) (2015 and 2016), agro-ecological zones (A) above sea level (lower 843 m, middle 1051 m, upper 1743 m), and cropping systems (C) (sole, intercrop). The data collected were the total biomass, number of pods per plant and seeds per pod, 100-seed weight as yield components, and grain yield. Bean and maize grain yields were used to calculate the partial (P) and total land equivalent ratio (LER). Results indicated that the main effects of S, A, C, and the interaction effects of S × A, S × C, S × A × C were significant on bean grain yields. Interactions of S × A × C were also significant on all measured variables. Results also indicated that continuous intercropping of bean with maize over two cropping seasons resulted in the increase of bean grain yields from 1.5 to 2.3 t ha−1 in the lower altitude, 2.0 to 2.3 t ha−1 in the middle altitude, and 1.8 to 2.9 t ha−1 in the upper altitude. Land utilization advantage of intercrops over monocultures yielded a total LER of 1.58, whereas the average partial land equivalent ratio (PLER) of individual beans was 1.53.

scholarly journals The effect of legume supplementation on the gut microbiota in rural Malawian infants aged 6 to 12 months

2020 ◽  
Vol 111 (4) ◽  
pp. 884-892
Author(s):  
M Isabel Ordiz ◽  
Stefan Janssen ◽  
Greg Humphrey ◽  
Gail Ackermann ◽  
Kevin Stephenson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Common Bean ◽  
Intestinal Permeability ◽  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Linear Growth ◽  
Fecal Microbiota ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Controlled Clinical Trial ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Fecal Microbiome ◽  
Α Diversity

ABSTRACT Background Common bean and cowpea contain about 25% protein and 25% fiber, and are recommended as complementary foods in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective The objective of this study was to determine if a daily legume supplement given to Malawian infants aged 6 to 12 mo alters the 16S configuration of the fecal microbiota as read out by amplicon sequence variants (ASVs). Methods This study was conducted within the context of a randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial to assess whether cowpea or common bean supplementation reduced intestinal permeability or increased linear growth. There were 2 village clusters in which the study was conducted. Fresh stool collections were flash frozen from 236 infants at ≤6 time points. The stools were sequenced using Earth Microbiome project protocols and data were processed using Qiime and Qiita, open-source, validated software packages. α-diversity was measured using the Faith's test. The 16S configuration was characterized by determining the weighted UniFrac distances of the ASVs and comparing them using permutational multivariate ANOVA. Results Among the 1249 samples analyzed, the α-diversity of the fecal microbiome was unchanged among subjects after initiation of legume supplementation. Neither cowpea nor common bean altered the overall 16S configuration at any age. The 16S configuration differed between children with adequate and poor linear growth aged from 6 to 9 mo, but no specific ASVs differed in relative abundance. The 16S configuration differed between children with normal and abnormal intestinal permeability at 9 mo, but no specific ASVs differed in relative abundance. Among categorical characteristics of the population associated with different 16S configurations, village cluster was most pronounced. Conclusion Legume supplementation in breastfed, rural African infants did not affect the structure of the gut microbial communities until the children were aged 9 mo. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02472262.

scholarly journals Genetic diversity of aflatoxin-producing Aspergillus flavus isolated from groundnuts in selected agro-ecological zones of Uganda

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amos Acur ◽  
Renée S. Arias ◽  
Steven Odongo ◽  
Samuel Tuhaise ◽  
Joseph Ssekandi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Aspergillus Flavus ◽  
Lake Victoria ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Aspergillus Species ◽  
Lake Victoria Basin ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Post Harvest ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Abstract Background Aspergillus is the main fungal genus causing pre- and post-harvest contamination of groundnuts. Aspergillus flavus belongs to section Flavi, a group consisting of both the aflatoxigenic species (A. flavus, A. parasiticus and A. nomius) and non-aflatoxigenic species (A. oryzae, A. sojae and A. tamarii). Aflatoxins are food-borne toxic secondary metabolites produced by Aspergillus species, causing hepatic carcinoma and stunting in children and are the most toxic carcinogenic mycotoxins ever identified. Despite the well-known public health problems associated with aflatoxicosis in Uganda, information about the genetic diversity of the main aflatoxin causing fungus, Aspergillus flavus in this country is still limited. Results A cross-sectional survey was therefore carried out in three main groundnut-growing agro-ecological zones (AEZs) of Uganda; West Nile farming system, Lake Kyoga basin mixed farming system and Lake Victoria basin farming system. This was to assess the genetic diversity of A. flavus and to establish the contamination rates of groundnuts with Aspergillus species at pre- and post-harvest stages. Out of the 213 A. flavus isolates identified in this study, 96 representative isolates were fingerprinted using 16 insertion/deletion microsatellite markers. Data from fingerprinting were analyzed through Neighbor Joining while polymorphism was determined using Arlequin v 3.5. The pre- and post-harvest contamination rates were; 2.5% and 50.0% (West Nile farming system), 55.0% and 35.0% (Lake Kyoga basin mixed farming system) and 32.5% and 32.5% (Lake Victoria basin farming system) respectively. The Chi-square test showed no significant differences between pre- and post-harvest contamination rates among AEZs (p = 0.199). Only 67 out of 96 isolates produced suitable allele scores for genotypic analysis. Analysis of genetic diversity showed higher variation within populations than among populations. Two major clusters (aflatoxigenic and non-aflatoxigenic isolates) were identified as colonizing groundnuts at pre- and post-harvest stages. Conclusions These findings provide a first insight on the existence of non-aflatoxigenic strains of A. flavus in Uganda. These strains are potential candidates for developing local Aspergillus bio-control agent.

scholarly journals Spatial variability and environmental drivers of cassava—arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF) associations across Southern Nigeria

Mycorrhiza ◽  
2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bolaji Thanni ◽  
Roel Merckx ◽  
Pieterjan De Bauw ◽  
Margaux Boeraeve ◽  
Gerrit Peeters ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Arbuscular Mycorrhiza ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Soil Characteristics ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Environmental Drivers ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Shannon Diversity ◽  
Amf Diversity ◽  
Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Fungi ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

AbstractCassava, forming starch-rich, tuberous roots, is an important staple crop in smallholder farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa. Its relatively good tolerance to drought and nutrient-poor soils may be partly attributed to the crop’s association with arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF). Yet insights into AMF-community composition and richness of cassava, and knowledge of its environmental drivers are still limited. Here, we sampled 60 cassava fields across three major cassava-growing agro-ecological zones in Nigeria and used a DNA meta-barcoding approach to quantify large-scale spatial variation and evaluate the effects of soil characteristics and common agricultural practices on AMF community composition, richness and Shannon diversity. We identified 515 AMF operational taxonomic units (OTUs), dominated by Glomus, with large variation across agro-ecological zones, and with soil pH explaining most of the variation in AMF community composition. High levels of soil available phosphorus reduced OTU richness without affecting Shannon diversity. Long fallow periods (> 5 years) reduced AMF richness compared with short fallows, whereas both zero tillage and tractor tillage reduced AMF diversity compared with hoe tillage. This study reveals that the symbiotic relationship between cassava and AMF is strongly influenced by soil characteristics and agricultural management and that it is possible to adjust cassava cultivation practices to modify AMF diversity and community structure. Graphical abstract

scholarly journals Carbon sequestration and selected hydraulic characteristics under conservation agriculture and traditional tillage practices in Malawi

Soil Research ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 759
Author(s):  
Pacsu L. Simwaka ◽  
Eyob H. Tesfamariam ◽  
Amos R. Ngwira ◽  
Paxie W. Chirwa
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Pore Size Distribution ◽  
Pore Size ◽  
Size Distribution ◽  
Particulate Organic Carbon ◽  
Hydraulic Properties ◽  
Conservation Agriculture ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Conservation agriculture (CA) is increasingly promoted among smallholder farmers of sub-Saharan Africa in a quest to improve food security while sustaining the natural resource base of the agro-ecosystems where agriculture is based. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of CA and traditional tillage on soil organic carbon (SOC) and selected hydraulic properties in two contrasting agro-ecological zones of Malawi. Six farmers hosted on-farm trials in each location, with each farmer having the following treatments: CA with continuous sole maize (CA-SM), CA with maize–legume intercrops (CA-ML), and traditional tillage with continuous sole maize (CT-SM). Soil samples were randomly collected in October 2015, from farmers’ fields located in Chipeni, Chinguluwe, Lemu, and Zidyana where CA had been implemented for 10 years (2005–2015) at six depth intervals: 0–10, 10–20, 20–40, 40–60, 60–80, and 80–100 cm. Bulk density, soil water characteristics, and pore size distribution were determined using undisturbed core samples. At all sites, CA improved total SOC, carbon stocks, and the stable fraction of particulate organic carbon. Maize–legume intercropping under CA had 35%, 33%, and 73% more total SOC than CT-SM in Chipeni, Lemu, and Zidyana respectively. In Chinguluwe and Lemu, CA-ML had 0.54 and 0.50 g kg–1 respectively more stable fraction of particulate organic carbon (POMP) than CT-SM; whereas in Chipeni, CA-SM had 0.73 g kg–1 higher POMP compared with CT-SM. CA also improved soil porosity, pore size distribution, and water retention capacity by increasing the proportion of mesopores and micropores compared with CT-SM. Thus, changing management practices from CT-SM to CA has the potential to improve the soil organic matter and soil hydraulic properties across agro-ecological zones in Malawi, which is important for sustainable agriculture. Farmers should be encouraged to minimise tillage, retain residues as mulch on the soil surface, and practice crop rotation.

Weeds in Human Affairs in Sub-Saharan Africa: Implications for Sustainable Food Production

1991 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 680-690 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Okezie Akobundu
Keyword(s):  
Food Production ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Sustainable Food Production ◽  
Vegetation Zones ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Annual Weeds ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has the world's largest human population growth rate, some of its poorest soils, and a high incidence of crop pests. Weeds are the major pest in virtually all of the agro-ecological zones of SSA. Parasitic and perennial weeds dominate the savanna vegetation zones whereas rapidly growing annual weeds overwhelm crops in the forest vegetation zones. High weed pressure coupled with inefficient weed control practices have tied up a disproportionate percentage of SSA's economically active population in the primary task of food production and also have kept crop yields down. In the absence of organized weed research and professional training in weed science to meet the needs of the region, improved cultivars of virtually all crops fall prey to weeds, and available arable land becomes limited to that area that can be kept free of weeds. A preponderance of annual weeds in humid parts of SSA together with hard-to-kill perennial grasses and parasitic weeds in the subhumid and arid agro-ecological zones hamper crop production and frustrate farmers throughout the region. Sustainable food production in the region can be achieved by introducing improved weed management technologies and by addressing other food production constraints of the region.

scholarly journals Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers Induced Yield Increment of Two Pearl Millet Varieties in Sudanian and Sahelian Agro-ecological Zones in Mali

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 158
Author(s):  
Halimatou Aboubacar Toure ◽  
Kalifa Traore ◽  
Idriss Serme ◽  
Korodjouma Ouattara
Keyword(s):  
Grain Yield ◽  
Pearl Millet ◽  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Block Design ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Research Station ◽  
Yield Gap ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Local Variety ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones

Soil fertility is inherently low in sub Saharan Africa. The objective of this study was therefore to determine millet yield for two varieties in each zone using organic and inorganic fertiliser in two agro-ecological zones in Mali. A two-year experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Station of Sotuba and Cinzana in 2013 and 2014. A combination of two pearl millet varieties and four fertilizer treatments were used. The fertilizers treatments used were: T1 Control (no application); T2 MANURE of 23:10:17 (5000 kg/ha); T3 NPK of 15: 15: 15 (50 kg/ha) and T4 combination of NPK + MANURE. The experiments were conducted in a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with four replications in a plot size of 10 m x 4.2 m. The varieties evaluated at Sotuba station were Sanioni, an improved local variety and Cho, a local variety while at Cinzana station Sosat, an improved variety form IER /ICRISAT and IBV8001, and an improved variety from ICRISAT were used. At Sotuba high grain with NPK+MANURE (1948 kg ha-1) followed by NPK (1281 kg ha-1), MANURE (1130 kg ha-1)and the Control (813 kg ha-1). In 2014, the grain yield NPK+MANURE) was 1602 kg ha-1, followed by NPK (1502 kg ha-1), MANURE (1466 kg ha-1) and the control (1440 kg ha-1). The grain yield gap for the Control treatment in 2013 (813 kg ha-1) and in 2014 (1440 kg ha1) was high compared to the NPK+MANURE, MANURE and NPK treatment grain yield gap for the same years. In Cinzana In 2013, higher grain yield with the treatments of NPK+MANURE, (1440 kgha-1)> NPK (1429 kg ha-1)> MANURE (1416 kg ha-1)>Control (1276 kg ha-1) were observed . In 2014, the highest grain yield with NPK+MANURE (1915 kg ha-1) followed by NPK (1561 kg ha-1), MANURE (1523 kg ha-1 1) and Control (1121 kg ha-1). The grain yield gap for the combined NPK+MANURE treatment in 2103 (1440 kg ha-1) and in 2014 (1915 kg ha1) was high compared to the others for the fertilizer grain yield gap for both years.

scholarly journals Environmentally stable common bean genotypes for production in different agro-ecological zones of Tanzania

Heliyon ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. e05973
Author(s):  
Mashamba Philipo ◽  
Patrick Alois Ndakidemi ◽  
Ernest Rashid Mbega
Keyword(s):  
Common Bean ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Agro Ecological Zones
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