Integrating varietal resistance and phosphonate fungicide in management of foliar late blight in potato

Conventional potato production is not possible without fungicide and the commonly used fungicides are expensive and are considered as environmental and human hazards. The aim of the experiment was to evaluate the efficacy of Phosphonate fungicides, the potential of combination with potato cultivars and economic impact as late blight control alternative. Two Phosphonates formulations; Agrifos 400 and Fosphite were compared Ridomil alternated with Mancozeb on different potato varieties in Kabete and Koibatek. Agrifos 400 alone was compared with Ridomil alternated with Mancozeb on different varieties in Kisima, Njambini and Limuru. Planting was done in 3m×3m plots with four row and 10 tubers per row. Experimental units were replicated three times in a split-plot design. The results showed an effect of Phosphonates, which represent lower risks to human health and environment than conventional fungicides, on control of foliar late blight. In all the five sites Agrifos 400 was not significantly different with Ridomil alternated with Mancozeb in control of foliar late blight in most the varieties used and they were also comparable in yields with no significant differences in most of the sites. Preliminary economic analyses were also done and the result showed that there is more economic benefit in the use of Phosphonate formulation Agrifos 400 compared to conventional fungicides Ridomil and Mancozeb. The study suggests that the relatively inexpensive Phosphonate fungicides have significant potential to become an effective management tool for control of foliar late blight, and can be used as alternative to the hazardous conventional fungicides

A global information system for the conservation and sustainable use of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PGRFA)

Poster presented at 2008 Annual Meeting of TD WG-Biodiversity Information Standards. Fremantle ( Australia), 19-24 Oct 200

Household welfare, investment in soil and water conservation and tenure security: Evidence from Kenya

In Kenya, conservation and sustainable utilization of the environment and natural resources form an integral part of national planning and poverty reduction efforts. However, weak environmental management practices are a major impediment to agricultural productivity growth. This study was motivated by the paucity of literature on the poverty-environment nexus in Kenya, since poverty, agricultural stagnation and environmental degradation are issues of policy interest in the country¿s development strategy. The paper builds on the few existing studies from Kenya and explores the impact of household, farm and village characteristics as well as the development domain dimensions on household welfare and investment in soil and water conservation. The results show that strengthening the tenure security improves household welfare. Further, soil quality, topography and investments in soil and water conservation affect household welfare. Agroecological potential, which is related to environmental conservation, is also a key correlate of poverty. Results for investment in water and soil conservation confirm the importance of tenure security in determining adoption and also the intensity of SWC investments. We also find that household assets, farm characteristics, presence of village institutions and development domain dimensions are important determinants of adoption and intensity of soil and water conservation investments. The results for both poverty and investment in soil and water conservation suggest the existence of a strong poverty-environment link in our sample. The results also suggest that rural poverty can be alleviated by policies that improve environmental conservation and strengthen land tenure security. The study also underscores the importance of village institutions in both investment adoption of soil and water conservation and in improving household welfare

Photo-elicitation and time-lining to enhance the research interview: Exploring the quarterlife crisis of young adults in India and the UK

The aim of this article is to convey our experience of using photo-elicitation along with time-lining to enhance the research interview. We reflect on a study on the ‘quarterlife crisis’ in India and the UK. Participants were aged 22-30 years and self-defined as having experienced difficulties ‘finding their place in the world.’ There were 16 British (8 women, 8 men) and 8 Indian participants (4 women; 4 men). First, we consider how photo-elicitation proved highly compatible with our method of analysis – interpretative phenomenological analysis – through affording a deep connection with participant experience. Second, we explore how participants engaged with photo-elicitation and time-lining, providing examples of image content (events and feelings), image form (literal and symbolic), and creative use of timelines. Third, we reflect on how photo-elicitation and time-lining appeared to enhance participant agency, and to have a therapeutic value for participants, as well as providing particularly rich material for analysis

Exploring genetic variation for salinity tolerance in chickpea using image-based phenotyping

Soil salinity results in reduced productivity in chickpea. However, breeding for salinity tolerance is challenging because of limited knowledge of the key traits affecting performance under elevated salt and the difficulty of high-throughput phenotyping for large, diverse germplasm collections. This study utilised image-based phenotyping to study genetic variation in chickpea for salinity tolerance in 245 diverse accessions. On average salinity reduced plant growth rate (obtained from tracking leaf expansion through time) by 20%, plant height by 15% and shoot biomass by 28%. Additionally, salinity induced pod abortion and inhibited pod filling, which consequently reduced seed number and seed yield by 16% and 32%, respectively. Importantly, moderate to strong correlation was observed for different traits measured between glasshouse and two field sites indicating that the glasshouse assays are relevant to field performance. Using image-based phenotyping, we measured plant growth rate under salinity and subsequently elucidated the role of shoot ion independent stress (resulting from hydraulic resistance and osmotic stress) in chickpea. Broad genetic variation for salinity tolerance was observed in the diversity panel with seed number being the major determinant for salinity tolerance measured as yield. This study proposes seed number as a selection trait in breeding salt tolerant chickpea cultivars