Farmers Agronomic Practice in Management of the Tomato (Solanum lycopersicon L.) Yellow Leaf Curl Virus in Central Region of Ghana

The study assessed farmers’ awareness of the Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) disease and their agronomic and disease management practices in the Efutu municipality, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem (KEEA), and Mfantseman districts which are leading tomato producing centres in the Central Region of Ghana. The study also surveyed the incidence and severity of the TYLCV disease in tomato fields across the three districts. Household data were collected using structured questionnaire from 150 respondents using multi-stage procedure, and analysed using descriptive statistics. Incidence (DI) and severity index (SI) of TYLCV disease were determined from forty (40) tomato fields selected from each of the three districts. The field data was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the means separated with least significant difference (l.s.d) method at 5% level of probability.Majority of the farmers (92.6%) were aware of the TYLCVdisease and said it could cause yield losses rangingfrom less than 10% to over 41% but did not know the cause.Majority (60.4%) of the farmers managed the TYLCV disease in their farms mainly by applying insecticides (55.6%) and roguing of diseased plants (43.1%). About 60.7% of the farmers practiced mixed cropping, and most of them cultivated tomato in both the major and minor cropping seasons, using mainly an improved form of Solanum pimpinellifolium. The highest mean disease incidence and mean disease severity indices were recorded at KEEA (52.9±2.7%, 26.89±1.2%), followed by Efutu (49.5±1.19%, 25.29±0.9%), and Mfantseman (42.1±2.7%, 21.41±0.8%) respectively.In conclusion, TYLCV was highly prevalent in the study area, but infection was moderate due to the use of improved tomato variety. Â

Farmers Agronomic Practice in Management of the Tomato (Solanum lycopersicon L.) Yellow Leaf Curl Virus in Central Region of Ghana

The study assessed farmers’ awareness of the Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) disease and their agronomic and disease management practices in the Efutu municipality, Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem (KEEA), and Mfantseman districts which are leading tomato producing centres in the Central Region of Ghana. The study also surveyed the incidence and severity of the TYLCV disease in tomato fields across the three districts. Household data were collected using structured questionnaire from 150 respondents using multi-stage procedure, and analysed using descriptive statistics. Incidence (DI) and severity index (SI) of TYLCV disease were determined from forty (40) tomato fields selected from each of the three districts. The field data was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the means separated with least significant difference (l.s.d) method at 5% level of probability.Majority of the farmers (92.6%) were aware of the TYLCVdisease and said it could cause yield losses rangingfrom less than 10% to over 41% but did not know the cause.Majority (60.4%) of the farmers managed the TYLCV disease in their farms mainly by applying insecticides (55.6%) and roguing of diseased plants (43.1%). About 60.7% of the farmers practiced mixed cropping, and most of them cultivated tomato in both the major and minor cropping seasons, using mainly an improved form of Solanum pimpinellifolium. The highest mean disease incidence and mean disease severity indices were recorded at KEEA (52.9±2.7%, 26.89±1.2%), followed by Efutu (49.5±1.19%, 25.29±0.9%), and Mfantseman (42.1±2.7%, 21.41±0.8%) respectively.In conclusion, TYLCV was highly prevalent in the study area, but infection was moderate due to the use of improved tomato variety. Â

Studies on the use of Trichoderma harzianum and natural plant products in the management of Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici on tomato

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Horizon scanning for prioritising invasive alien species with potential to threaten agriculture and biodiversity in Ghana

Invasive alien species (IAS) continue to shape the global landscape through their effects on biological diversity and agricultural productivity. The effects are particularly pronounced in Sub-Saharan Africa, which has seen the arrival of many IAS in recent years. This has been attributed to porous borders, weak cross border biosecurity, and inadequate capacity to limit or stop invasions. Prediction and early detection of IAS, as well as mechanisms of containment and eradication, are needed in the fight against this global threat. Horizon scanning is an approach that enables gathering of information on risk and impact that can support IAS management. A study was conducted in Ghana to establish two ranked lists of potential invasive alien plant pest species that could be harmful to agriculture, forestry, and the environment, and to rank them according to their potential threat. The ultimate objective was to enable prioritization of actions including pest risk analysis, prevention, surveillance and contingency plans. Prioritisation was carried out using an adapted version of horizon scanning and consensus methods developed for ranking IAS worldwide. Following a horizon scan of invasive alien species not yet officially present in Ghana, a total of 110 arthropod and 64 pathogenic species were assessed through a simplified pest risk assessment. Sixteen species, of which 14 were arthropods and two pathogens, had not been recorded on the African continent at the time of assessment. The species recorded in Africa included 19 arthropod and 46 pathogenic species which were already recorded in the neighbouring countries of Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo. The majority of arthropod species were likely to arrive as contaminants on commodities, followed by a sizable number which were likely to arrive as stowaways, while some species were capable of long distance dispersal unaided. The main actions suggested for species that scored highly included full pest risk analyses and, for species recorded in neighbouring countries, surveys to determine their presence in Ghana were recommended