ABSTRACT Gulella taitensis is a land snail of the family Streptaxidae and genus Gulella. It is endemic to Taita hills and categorized as endangered on the IUCN Red List. The species is threatened by habitat loss and disturbance due to human activities. Two people sampled snails at four sampling plots using standard timed direct search for one hour. Soil samples were collected from four different points within these sampling plots, and its pH, calcium and electrical conductivity obtained using...
ABSTRACT Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) culture in Kenya is mainly conducted in low input ponds where supplementary feed is given alongside pond fertilization. Excess nutrients in the culture water in form of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) may make the culture environment susceptible to invasion by disease-causing microorganisms. In the recent past, probiotics have received much attention as a new strategy in fish health management and have been documented to improve fish growth p...
ABSTRACT An experiment was carried out for two seasons in Kiambu County to investigate the influence of organic and inorganic fertilizer on growth, anti-nutrients characteristics in amaranth species and the changes in the soil rhizosphere. This is because continuous usage of inorganic fertilizer affects soil structure. Hence, organic manures can serve as alternative to mineral fertilizers. Application of pesticides and inorganic fertilizers had adverse effects on nutrient leaching, pesticide...
ABSTRACT The International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe), undertook a biological control (BC) programme for control of stemborers from 1993 to 2008, to reduce cereal yield losses due to stemborer attack in East and Southern Africa. The programme released four biological control agents—Cotesia flavipes, Cotesia sesamiae, Telenomus isis and Xanthopimpla stemmator—to control the economically important stemborer pests Busseola fusca, Chilo partellus and Sesamia calamistis. ...
ABSTRACT The tea industry in Kenya is rural-based and provides a livelihood to over three million people. Tea is grown in prime agricultural land and can be potentially productive for 100 years if well managed. Peak yields under optimal management are obtained at 20–40 years after planting only if gaps that arise due to factors such as lightening, pests, diseases, unfavorable climatic conditions and incorrect pruning are taken care of through an elaborate infilling program and use of appro...
ABSTRACT Drier parts of Embu County endure high atmospheric heat, prolonged dry spells, declining soil fertility and erratic rainfall. Local soil and climatic variability contributes to large variations among replications of experimental treatments and inconsistence in research results leading to poor comparability of results within and without different agro-ecological zones (AEZs) hence need for site specific scenario analyses through modelling. Thus, this study sought to; i) evaluate seaso...
ABSTRACT Nitrogen is a major mineral nutrient limiting growth, development and production of crops in Kenya. The cost of production is way beyond the purchasing power of smallholder farmers, coupled with the low availability of nitrogen in the soil has significantly contributed to the reduction in rice productivity in Kenya. In rice growing regions, including Busia, Kisumu and Kirinyaga counties, there is evidence of pollution due to high losses of N experienced from agricultural fields. Redu...
ABSTRACT Populations of riverine fishes have been on a continuing decline since the early 1970s. This has been attributed to channeling, destruction of riparian vegetation, agricultural and industrial pollution, hydrologic alterations, introduction and invasion of exotic fish species, illegal methods of fishing such as the use of herbs and nets with small mesh sizes and other anthropogenic factors. Estimates from throughout the globe suggest that 75 to 95 percent of riverine habitats are deg...
ABSTRACT Riverine benthic communities play a crucial role in trophic relationships by providing major sources of energy to economically and ecologically important fishes. With the declining production of the Lake Victoria fisheries, the importance of surrounding rivers as sources of fish will continuously increase. There is therefore need to refocus the management of the riverine ecosystems in order to improve their fisheries production, particularly concerning their natural fish food product...
ABSTRACT Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is an under-utilized crop that is tolerant to drought, flooding, saline-alkaline, infertile soils and high temperature. Farmers maintain landraces through preference selection and obtain seed from different sources. Local germplasm provides greater genetic variability and may provide useful traits to broaden the genetic base. Decline in use may erode the genetic base, preventing use of distinctive traits in crop adaptation and improvement w...
ABSTRACT Low crop responses to fertilizer application among small holder farms are common phenomena in degraded acidic soils of western Kenya. Continuous growing of maize without commensurate soil nutrient replenishment coupled with application of soil acidifying fertilizers, especially Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and Sulphate of ammonia (SA) have aggravated the soil acidity problem. An on-farm trial was sited in Shianda sub-location, East Wanga division in Mumias district, Western province, ...
ABSTRACT Low sugarcane productivity has persisted in Western Kenya where most of the crop is grown. A study conducted by Kenya Sugar Research Institute in January 2011 at, Nyando Sugar Zone indicated that sugarcane yields were varied based on fertilizer type applied to the crop. Average sugarcane yield was 64 tones/ha as opposed to a potential yield of more than 100 tones/ha under rain-fed conditions. Declining soil fertility and lack of critical nutrients in fertilizer formulations applied t...
ABSTRACT Soybean production in Kenya is estimated at 9,061MT. This is low compared to the annual demand of 100,000MT. This large deficit is met through importation which puts a strain to the economy’s foreign exchange. Soybean has the highest protein content (40-42%) among the food crops with oil content of18-22% comprised of 85% unsaturated fatty acids. These attributes make it an inexpensive source of proteins and desirable human diet. Released soybean varieties in Kenya have been evaluat...
ABSTRACT Soil is a significant reservoir for plant nutrients and hence necessary for plant growth. Soil pH is a very important chemical property of the soil, as it dictates the availability of plant nutrients. Low soil pH reduces soil nutrients. Some of the factors leading to acid soils include continuous cultivation of soil due to scarcity of arable land, excessive use of inorganic fertilizers, climate change and deforestation. Reclamation of acidic soils includes addition of lime which...
ABSTRACT Erosion due to water runoff is one of the major factors that lead to poor soil productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa. The increase in population has driven the populace to inhabit marginal frontiers; worsening the erosion problem. This study evaluated the effects of some soil and water conservation (SWC) techniques on soil productivity and bean yield in Nyamasheke District; characterized by steep topography, higher precipitation and intensive agricultural activities. The study was condu...