Farmers' perspectives on the biotic constraint of Striga hermonthica and its control in western Kenya

Abstract

Witchweed, Striga hermonthica (hereafter, referred to as “Striga”), is a major biotic constraint to cereal production in sub‐Saharan Africa. The parasitic plant is a socioeconomic problem that has forced some resource‐poor farmers to abandon their farms due to high infestation. This study was designed in order to elucidate farmers' perceptions of Striga control measures and to determine their potential adoption in two villages in western Kenya. Participatory rural appraisals and individual interviews were conducted in 2009 and 2010 in a sample of 128 and 120 households in Kaura and Kogweno‐Oriang villages in Homabay and Rachuonyo districts, respectively. The results revealed that crop production was the main occupation in most households. The farmers identified Striga as one of the major constraints to maize, sorghum, and finger millet production. According to the farmers, the most popular control measures were hand‐pulling, crop rotation, and intercropping, even though rotational systems might need a longer timeframe to reduce the soil seed bank of Striga. Although the level of Striga infestation and damage were increasing in the farmers' fields, the adoption of the control options was limited. The reason for the low adoption level of the control methods by the farmers is because they are “too risky” as there is no guarantee of a direct pay‐off in increased crop yield. Farmer‐led evaluation and adaptation of the various Striga control technologies in real‐life situations will facilitate the choice of appropriate options and facilitate their uptake.

Recent research progress in combatting root parasitic weeds

“…Farmers' perceptions and the potential adoption of S. hermonthica control measures were evaluated in Western Kenya. Although the level of S. hermonthica infestation and damage was increasing in the farmers' fields, the adoption of control options was limited because the farmers thought that the control options were too risky as there was no guarantee of a direct pay-off in increased crop yield [228]. Although parasitic weed infestation was associated with poor soil fertility, farmers did not use fertilizers due to various factors, ranging from fears of undesirable agronomic side effects to a lack of quality control of fertilizers [229].…”

Striga Infestation in Kenya: Status, Distribution and Management Options

“…The major food crops grown in Kenya are maize, sorghum, sweet potatoes, wheat, rice, beans, finger millet and cassava (Taylor, 2009;Atera et al, 2012b). According to FAO (2006), cereal yield in SSA increased by only 29% between 1961 and 2005 compared to 177% in Asia and 144% in Latin America.…”

An explicit AFLP-based marker for monitoring Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. strigae in tropical soils

“…But these approaches were shown to be ineffective when applied individually. Hence, integrated approaches are postulated as control strategies against S. hermonthica (Atera et al, 2012;Hearne, 2009;Menkir and Kling, 2007).…”