Development of Rice Breeding and Cultivation Technology Tailored for Kenya’s Environment

A method for evaluating cold tolerance in rice during reproductive growth stages under natural low-temperature conditions in tropical highlands in Kenya

“…Filled grain ratio was high in WAB 56-104, which is the japonica parent of NERICA 1−NERICA 11, and 7 out of the 11 NERICA varieties (Table 1), which confirmed the finding by Wainaina et al (2015) that genotypic differences observed among NERICA varieties in response to cold stress are, at least partly, attributable to the genomic contribution from their parents. A quantitative trait locus for cold tolerance was detected on chromosome 10 with enhanced effects on the trait coming from the WAB56-104 allele (Wainaina et al, 2018). Thus, the cold-tolerant varieties selected in this study are a good genetic resource for improvement of cold tolerance in rice by breeding programs in East African tropical highlands.…”

“…In East African countries, such as Madagascar, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Rwanda, which produce rice in highlands (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2018), screening of coldtolerant rice varieties is being conducted in multiple locations at different altitudes (Zenna et al, 2010), but suitable trial sites should be identified for this screening method (Stress-Tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia, 2020). As active rice research in Kenya is fairly recent, leading to insufficient research facilities and systems (Makihara et al, 2018), facilities to control temperature are not available, and identification of suitable fields at high altitude for screening of cold-tolerant rice varieties has not been completed.…”