English - McKnight Foundation Collaborative Crop Research Program

McKnight Foundation Collaborative Crops Research Project No: 06-741
Although IT97K-825-15 had the least Alectra infestation at all on-farm sites it was the least preferred by
the farmers. At all sites farmer’s variety was the latest, and it had not even flowered when all the other
entries were maturing.
It was noted that only early maturing varieties were most preferred, forgetting the advantage of late
maturing varieties for having other traits such as prolonged availability of leaves as relish. This suggests
that there is a need to evaluate the materials according to maturity groups.
Cowpea and pigeon pea as the main source of vegetable protein in the project target sites; it was
observed that early maturity of the cowpea bridge the hunger period of February/March, while waiting
for the pigeon pea to mature late in the season.
Wrap up:
- Released varieties showed better yields than test lines
- Early maturing varieties save as source of food in hunger periods
- Seed system for cowpea is very poor
- More cowpea seed should be sent to Balaka and Kasungu districts as there is high demand for seed
of the improved varieties.
- Farmers in Rivirivi recommended forming farmer research groups for better access by researchers
and extension staff as compared to individual isolated farmers
TANZANIA
27 th -30 th April, 2009
Introduction: The monitoring and evaluation tour for Tanzania was done in three regions (Iringa,
Dodoma, and Morogoro) from 27 th to 30 th April, 2009. The tour involved visiting seed multiplication,
on-farm, on-station, and crossing activities. The objective was to monitor progress in implementing
agreed strategies and action plans for the project. This report gives information on sites/farmers/stations
visited, varieties evaluated, team observations and way forward.
The monitoring and evaluation team comprised the following:
Ambonesigwe Mbwaga (Project Leader) ARI, Uyole Mbeya Tanzania
Joseph Mligo (Breeder) ARI, Ilonga Kilosa Tanzania
Vernon Kabambe (Striga specialist) Bunda College, Lilongwe, Malawi
James Bokosi (Breeder) Bunda College, Lilongwe, Malawi
Boukar Ousmane (Breeder,) IITA Nigeria
On-farm visits: A number of farmers groups were visited in the two regions (Iringa, and Dodoma). In
general farmers were required to plant five IITA lines and two locally released varieties (Fahari and
Vuli-2). The two released varieties showed to be more adapted and performed consistently well across
locations despite the prevalence of drought in many locations. The major problem is that they are both
susceptible to Alectra. In a participatory variety trial conducted at Mpunguzi, Dodoma region, farmers
selected IT 00K-126-3 as the best entry despite being susceptible to Alectra. Many of the farmers
visited showed dedication to running the on-farm trials.
On-station visits: The first on-station trial visited was at Ismani. The trial had 14 entries replicated four
times. Each plot had five rows of four meter length. Although drought had an impact the performance
of the entries was far better than the farmers’ fields. Alectra pressure was not as high as the previous
year. This could have been due to the prolonged dry spell during the growing season. Vuli-2 and Fahari
performed very well despite sustaining some Alectra plants. Except for the two check entries the rest
had no Alectra emergence. The second trial was at Bihawana (Bihawana farmers training centre). The
entries were similar to those planted at Ismani but four extra entries. Rainfall distribution was not good.
The site received a mere 250 mm (normal 330 -488 mm) of rainfall between February (151.3mm) and
March (98.8mm) and poorly distributed. This site had the heaviest infestation of Alectra and is good for
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2009