An Evaluation of Lucerne Varieties Suitable for Different Agro-ecological Zones in Kenya

Lukuyu, Ben A.; Methu, J.N.; Mwangi, D.M.; Kirui, Josephine; Mwendia, Solomon W.; Wamalwa, J.; Kavatha, A.; Ngae, G. N.; Mbure, G.N.

doi:10.1007/978-90-481-2543-2_48

Cited by 2 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Napier grass is one of the most important fodder crops, particularly in Eastern and Central African smallholder farming communities [1,2]. It is mainly used to feed livestock in cut and carry feeding systems [3,16,17].…”

Section: Economic Importancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The infected plants have thinner and shorter stems, a reduced numbers of leaves, and suffer from slower re-growth after cutting. The continual spread of the disease to other parts of the country, including the Rift valley and lower eastern region has also been recorded [1], which raises concerns about the possible future spread of this disease. Fungicide treatment is not currently an option to control the disease, especially for vegetatively propagated cuttings.…”

Section: Fungal Diseasesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Napier grass, also known as elephant or Uganda grass, is one of the most important tropical forage crops. It is widely used in cut and carry feeding systems [1][2][3] and is of growing importance in other agricultural systems. Napier grass possesses many desirable characteristics, including high yield per unit area, tolerance to intermittent drought and high water use efficiency [2], making it a forage of choice.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Opportunities for Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum) Improvement Using Molecular Genetics

Negawo¹,

Teshome²,

Kumar

et al. 2017

Agronomy

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Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach.) is a fast-growing perennial grass native to Sub-Saharan Africa that is widely grown across the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. It is a multipurpose forage crop, primarily used to feed cattle in cut and carry feeding systems. Characterization and diversity studies on a small collection of Napier grasses have identified a moderate level of genetic variation and highlighted the availability of some good agronomic traits, particularly high biomass production, as a forage crop. However, very little information exists on precise phenotyping, genotyping and the application of molecular technologies to Napier grass improvement using modern genomic tools which have been applied in advancing the selection and breeding of important food crops. In this review paper, existing information on genetic resources, molecular diversity, yield and nutritional quality of Napier grass will be discussed. Recent findings on characterizing disease resistance and abiotic stress (drought) tolerance will also be highlighted. Finally, opportunities and future prospects for better conservation and use arising from the application of modern genomic tools in Napier grass phenotyping and genotyping will be discussed.

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Section: Economic Importancementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Fungal Diseasesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Opportunities for Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum) Improvement Using Molecular Genetics

Negawo¹,

Teshome²,

Kumar

et al. 2017

Agronomy

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“…Green manure legume crops such as velvet bean ( Mucuna pruriens L.) improve soil fertility (Robertson et al , 2005; Sanginga et al , 1996). For example, pure stands of velvet bean produce as much as 7–12 t ha −1 biomass (Lukuyu et al , 2012) and this can contribute up to 200 kg N ha −1 under non-nutrient limiting conditions (Sanginga et al , 1996). Legumes such as cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Legumes such as cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) and velvet bean ( Mucuna pruriens L.) provide high quality livestock feed, and can therefore reduce the demand on crop residues for dry season livestock feeding (Gwiriri et al , 2015; Lukuyu et al , 2012). Mhlanga et al (2015) showed that green manure legumes can be incorporated into CA systems and significantly suppress weeds during the cropping season.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fertilization Strategies in Conservation Agriculture Systems With Maize–legume Cover Crop Rotations in Southern Africa

Mupangwa¹,

Thierfelder²,

Ngwira³

2016

Ex. Agric.

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Multilocation experiments were established to determine the best strategy for using inorganic fertilizer in conservation agriculture (CA) systems that use green manure cover crops, namely sunhemp, velvet bean and cowpea grown in rotation with maize. The objectives of the study were to determine (i) the effect of half and full rates of basal fertilizer on maize and legume biomass yields, (ii) the residual effects of unfertilized, half and fully fertilized green manure legumes on maize grown after the legumes, and (iii) the residual effect of unfertilized, half and fully fertilized green manure legumes combined with basal and topdressing fertilizer on maize yields. Experimental design was a randomized complete block with basal fertilizer as a treatment in the green manure legumes phase. Previously, in the maize phase, green manure legume species were the main treatment with basal fertilizer as a subtreatment (sunhemp, velvet bean and cowpea: 0, 75, 150 kg ha −1 and 0, 50, 100 kg ha −1 , respectively). Nitrogen was applied in the maize phase at 0, 23, 46, 69 kg N ha −1 as a sub-subtreatment in Malawi. Results showed that inorganic fertilizer is the most effective when applied to the maize, not green manure legumes. Biomass of green manure legumes, sunnhemp 8084 kg ha −1 , velvet bean 7678 kg ha −1 and cowpea 4520 kg ha −1 , was not significantly affected by application of basal fertilizer. Maize production increased after the application of green manure legumes with maize-after-maize, maize-after-velvet bean, maize-after-sunnhemp and maize-after-cowpea, yielding 3804, 5440, 5446 and 5339 kg ha −1 , respectively. Nitrogen increased maize yield regardless of the previously used green manure legumes species. Our results suggest that farmers should apply fertilizer to maize and grow green manure legumes on residual soil in CA systems. Despite growing green manure legumes, smallholders should apply nitrogen topdressing to maize grown using the green manure legumes in some agro-ecologies.

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An Evaluation of Lucerne Varieties Suitable for Different Agro-ecological Zones in Kenya

Cited by 2 publications

References 7 publications

Opportunities for Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum) Improvement Using Molecular Genetics

Opportunities for Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum) Improvement Using Molecular Genetics

Fertilization Strategies in Conservation Agriculture Systems With Maize–legume Cover Crop Rotations in Southern Africa

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