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Abstract: Tephritid fruit flies are among the notorious pests of horticultural crops in Kenya and have been documented to cause yield losses of 30-100%. Tephritid fruit flies from the Bactrocera and Dacus genera have been identified on cucurbit farm traps, however, their losses have not been quantified. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the occurrence, diversity and host preference of tephritid fruit flies infesting cucurbit and other horticultural crops in coastal Kenya. Infe...
Abstract: This study aimed at comparing the economics of rice production for two different groups of farmers in Mwea Irrigation Scheme (MIS). One group is under the management of Mwea Multi-Purpose Rice Growers (MMRG) and grows a single crop of rice in a year without rotation. The other group is composed of the sons and daughters of MMRG tenant farmers and grows a double crop of rice in a year. It is however not clear which of the two production systems is efficient or realises higher return...
Abstract: French bean is the most important export vegetable crop cultivated in Kenya. Pests and diseases are the major constrains to its production. The major pests of French beans are bean flies, thrips, and bean aphids. Amongst these pests, thrips are the most notorious and account for 63 – 68% yield loss of fresh marketable pods. Frankliniella occidentalis is the most widespread thrips species which has developed resistance to the commonly used synthetic pesticides. Farmers rely heavil...
Abstract: Sericulture (Silk farming) is the rearing of silk moths for the production of raw silk. Silk farming originated from China where it was secretly practiced for many years before spreading to other parts of the world. Silk moths are grouped into mulberry silk moths (domesticated) and wild silk moths. Silk moth cocoon has a double filament made of insoluble protein known as fibroin which is embedded in a water soluble protein called sericin. Prior to processing cocoons, are boiled in ...
Abstract: French bean, (Phaseolus vulgaris) L. is key commodity for export in Kenya. The value of export increased from 4,466.7 Kenya Shillings in 2002 to 4,466.7 Kenya Shillings in 2006. Production of French beans is constrained by many factors including pests, lack of capital and credit facilities, fluctuation in demand, and difficult accessibility to the market, and improper grading. The major arthropod insect pests of French beans include bean stem maggots, flower thrips, pollen beetles,...
Abstract: Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) represent the major constraint for fruit production worldwide, where they cause direct and indirect damages. The species B. dorsalis and C. cosyra are the main species attacking mango in Mozambique. For implementation of control measures, knowledge of population dynamics is essential. However, there is no record of spatio-temporal dynamics studies for orchard level and evaluation of the dynamics of B. dorsalis and C. cosyra, together, in Mozambique.
Abstract: Honeybees are of great value in Africa for both their economic and ecological importance. Economically, they are important pollinators of a great host of commercial crops as well as a source of food and livelihoods for thousands of small-scale beekeepers. Ecologically, they contribute to floral biodiversity and conservation throough their pollination activity of both cultivated and wild plants. In Kenya, bee keeping as an income generating activity is being utilized as a tool to fi...
Abstract: Napier grass remains an important strategic grass species in east African mixed crop-livestock systems. However, production of several varieties of the grass remains constrained by phytoplasmic disease, Napier stunt disease (NSD), which is transmitted by the leafhopper, Maiestas banda. For smallholder farmers of western Kenya who rely on the grass for livestock feed and pest control in push-pull farming systems, effective control strategies of the disease and the vector remain elus...
Abstract: Banana production in Kenya has been on the decline due to among other factors, pests and disease of which banana weevil is major. Although, entomopathogenic fungi such as Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae have been used successfully to control various agricultural and pasture pests, lack of effective application system limits their wider application.This study therefore seeks to evaluate the potential of utilizing the fungus to control the banana weevil using infected w...
Abstract: Xanthomonas campestris pv.manihotis (Bondar, 1912) (Xcm) and Xanthomonas campestris pv. vignicola (Burkholder, 1944) (Dye, 1978) (Xcv) are both worldwide important pathogens, causing bacterial blight diseases of cassava and cowpea, respectively. The presence of the pathogens in/on the variegated grasshopper Zonocerus variegatus (L.) (Orth.: Acrididae), an occassionally important pest of cassava and cowpea in West Africa, was demosntrated. X. campestris pv. manihotis and X. campestr...
Abstract: The green leafhopper Empoasca decipiens Paoli (Homoptera: Cicadellidae) has recently become a serious pest of vegetables and ornamentals grown under field conditions and in greenhouses in many European countries. The egg parasitoid Anagrus atomus L. (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) is a promising biological control agent of E. decipens. The objectives of this research were to assess the influence of host plants on the leafhopper and its parasitoid. Therefore, host plant acceptability ans s...
Description: Msc. Thesis
Abstract: Mango is the third most important fruit in Kenya in terms of area and total production. nutritionally, mango fruit is important for vitamins and mineral provision in the dail diet of Kenyans. as an export.....(continue from the attached PDF)