Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) are amongst the most important tropical fruit crops and are staple foods in most parts of the humid tropics and important sources of income to small scale holders in rural areas. In Kenya, banana is grown as an important food and cash crop. However, its cultivation has largely remained small scale. A common limiting factor to large scale production and expansion of existing plantations is the difficulty in obtaining high quality planting materials. Natural re...
Soil acidity is widespread globally, accounting for about 40% of total arable soils. In Kenya, acid soils cover about 13% of total land area and are distributed widely in the croplands of central and western Kenya regions, covering over one million hectares. The main limitation of crop productivity in Kavutiri, Embu, is soil acidity and more specifically aluminium toxicity. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of agricultural lime in combination with farmyard manure (FYM)...
Agriculture is the dominant source of livelihood in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa. However, in semi-arid eastern Kenya, smallholder farm productivity has been diminishing due to declining soil fertility and frequent droughts. Nitrogen (N) is the principal nutrient element limiting crop productivity in the region, followed by phosphorus (P). The use of N fixing legumes in intercrop with cereal crops is among the cheaper-viable options available for the resource-constraint farmers to enhanc...
Agriculture is the major engine of Rwandese economy, accounting for about 40% of the GDP, 85% of employment and 80% of exports. Known as “meat for the poor”, beans constitute a predominant source of proteins in Rwandese diet since they supply 65% of national dietary proteins compared to 4% from animal sources. However, the on-farm bean productivity is about 0.8 – 1.0 tons/ hectare which is quite low compared to 5 tons/hectare that is achieved under optimal management conditions. The...
Majority of the rural households in Kenya depend mainly on agriculture as a source of food and livelihoods. Agricultural productivity has been declining due to many factors including climate change. Declining agricultural productivity has in turn resulted in increased food insecurity in the country. Consequently, there is a renewed interest in promoting drought-tolerant crops such as sorghum, which are known to perform well in the arid and semi-arid lands of the developing world. Owing to its...
Pumpkin is an indigenous vegetable with huge potential to provide nutrition, food security and income to households in Kenya but its production remains low. The crop has been given little attention in research and has not been promoted as a viable enterprise. Literature indicates that socio-economic factors and farming constraints in pumpkin production, consumption and marketing by smallholder farmers in Eastern and Central Kenya have not been studied nor documented. This research was carrie...
Reduced farm productivity in smallholder farms is the principal cause of food insecurity in semi- arid parts of Kenya. This is mainly attributed to soil fertility depletion, land degradation, low soil moisture and climate change. Climate change due to increased carbon dioxideemission into the atmosphere has impacted negatively on the food productivity in Africa. The objectives of this study were: 1) to determine the effect of different organic residues on soil carbon accumulation in soil. 2)...
Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicun L) is a very important vegetable grown mainly by small scale farmers in most arable areas in Kenya. Tomato production has declined drastically due to attack by Ralstonia solanacearum, a soil borne pathogen which causes bacterial wilt. Transmission of pathogen occurs when bacterial ooze from the plant enters the surrounding water or soil, contaminates farming equipment or by insect vectors. The disease has not yet been effectively managed. Grafting is an asexual pl...
Sudan is a large country with a great diversity of climatic and agro-ecological zones.The horticultural acreage in the Sudan is estimated at 273,000 hectares, representing about 3% of the total crop area. The area under horticultural crops is on the increasing for it is fetching good money for the farmers. Horticultural crops comprise the groups of vegetables,fresh legumes, fruit trees, ornamental plants, plantation crops, medicinal and aromatic plants and spices. The present study was co...
ABSTRACT Indigenous chicken (IC) farming contributes to the livelihoods of many smallholder farmers in Kenya. It constitutes 80% of the poultry population in Kenya. Kakamega and Makueni are Counties where most of smallholder farmers rear IC. However, IC production has been constrained by several bottlenecks including; unimproved genotype, diseases and increased mortalities resulting in low productivity. A strategy by scientists and stakeholders, production technologies such as; improved indi...
Decline in yields and frequent failure of major crops in Embu and Kiambu counties, Kenya, is linked to inadequate or unevenly distributed rainfall and poor agronomic practices, among other factors. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of using mulch and hydrogel in production of yellow passion fruit in Embu and Kiambu Counties, Kenya. The study was set up specifically to (i) determine the effect of mulch and hydrogel on soil moisture and nutrients in a yellow pass...
ABSTRACT Indigenous chickens (Gallus domesticus) are important source of livelihoods and food to majority of rural and urban households in Kenya. Consumers prefer indigenous chicken due to its nutritional and health benefits. Despite these benefits, productivity levels of Indigenous chicken are low resulting to shortages in supply. In the recent past, research has focused on increasing productivity levels of indigenous chicken resulting to improved indigenous chickens. However, acceptabilit...
Despite being a culture-centred livelihood activity, pastoralism alone has not guaranteed food and nutrition security for households in Turkana, Kenya. The frequency of droughts and their negative impact on livestock production in the County translate into reduced purchasing power of the pastoral households; causing perennial food insecurity and consequent human indignity. As a growing response to this perennial situation, rain-fed crop production has been introduced in the County at sub...
ABSTRACT Coffee ranks second after petroleum in international trade. In Kenya, it supports over 600,000 households, contributes up to12% of export revenue and employs 30% of the total workforce in Agriculture. Arabica (Coffea arabica L.) and Robusta (Coffea canephora Pierre) are the two species under commercial cultivation. Arabica coffee has low genetic diversity and susceptible to Coffee Berry Disease (CBD) and Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) while Robusta Coffee has considerable diversity and tole...
ABSTRACT Smallholder farmers in Runyenjes are experiencing decline in agricultural productivity. The yield decline has been caused by degraded soils as a result soil erosion and inappropriate soil management, nutrients mining due to continuous cropping as well as leaching of minerals. To address these crop production challenges, there is need for balanced nutrient management options with appropriate tillage system. This study was therefore carried out under on-farm trials to: i) assess maize...