Abstract Afroalpine plants develop under specific climate with great daily fluctuations and weak seasonal dynamics of temperature. Do leaf functional traits of the plants in Mt. Kenya differ from those of temperate plants in NW Caucasus? To answer this question, we conducted a comparative study at the Teleki valley (4000–4500 m a.s.l.), Mt. Kenya, Kenya, and Teberda national park (2600–2900 m a.s.l.), the Caucasus, Russia. We measured leaf area, fresh and dry mass, C, N, P, δ 13 C, δ 1...
Abstract Seagrass meadows provide numerous ecosystem services and their rapid global loss may reduce human welfare as well as ecological integrity. In common with the other ‘blue carbon’ habitats (mangroves and tidal marshes) seagrasses are thought to provide coastal defence and encourage sediment stabilisation and surface elevation. A sophisticated understanding of sediment elevation dynamics in mangroves and tidal marshes has been gained by monitoring a wide range of diferent sites, lo...
Abstract Presently, the food chains of the famous saline alkaline flamingo-lakes of East Africa are the focus of intense scientific discussion as the lakes host toxic cyanobacteria, which when consumed by Lesser Flamingos, weaken the birds and therefore make them susceptible to attacks by infective diseases. The distribution, genetic and toxicological aspects of Microcystis in Kenya has been studied extensively. Although there are reports on the occurrence of Microcystis in Kenya’s hypersa...
Abstract Greywater recycling has been identified as an efficient method to conserve water. The purpose of this study was to investigate some selected hydrochemical characteristics, plant nutrients and metal content of greywater and soils in residential areas of Homa Bay town. Laundry greywater had the highest pH (9.1 ± 0.01), Electrical conductivity (2900 ± 215 S cm-1) and salinity (0.4 ± 0.02 - 0.8 ± 0.01 mg L-1). The lowest electrical conductivity (400 ± 50 S cm-1) was recorde...
Abstract The gap between maize demand and regional supply is increasing as small-holder farmers grapple with many challenges, key among them drought. Research in identifying maize lines that are tolerant to water deficit and that are amenable to A. tumefaciens-mediated transformation is a step towards enhancing food security. The objectives of this study were, to assess the physiological response of tropical maize inbred lines to water deficit, to determine whether A. tumefaciens elicits hos...
Abstract: A study to determine the association of fertilizer with soil water deficit in tea [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze] was conducted in a rain-out shelter using potted plants, in which five rates of fertilizer (0, 75, 150, 225 and 300 kg Nitrogen ha−1) and six levels of soil water content (38, 34, 30, 26, 22 and 18% v/v) were applied in a complete randomized design and replicated three times.The soil water treatment was maintained for a period of 12 weeks during which shoot growth,...
Abstract: Diversité génétique des variétés traditionnelles de niébé [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] au Sénégal : étude préliminaire Des missions de collectes ont été organisées dans les principales régions de production du niébé au Sénégal dans le but d’obtenir des informations sur la diversité morphologique et moléculaire au sein des variétés traditionnelles de niébé. Ces missions ont permis de réunir 58 accessions. Deux classifications des accessions collectées ...
Abstract: Transaction costs are pervasive barriers in agricultural supply chains as they exclude farmers from profitable markets. Identification of these costs without reliance on proxy variables and their effects on smallholder profitability has not been empirically analyzed. The Heckman 2-step model was used to assess the effects of magnitudes of these costs on farmer profitability. Indirect monitoring and negotiation-related transaction costs had significant, positive, association with se...
Abstract: Bean common mosaic virus (BCMV), bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV), and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) cause serious epidemics in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), a vital food security crop in many low-to-medium income countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Aphids transmit these viruses “non-persistently,” i.e., virions attach loosely to the insects' stylets. Viruses may manipulate aphid-host interactions to enhance transmission. We used direct observation and ele...
Abstract: Bean common mosaic virus (BCMV), bean common mosaic necrosis virus (BCMNV), and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) are important pathogens of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), a crop vital for food security in sub-Saharan Africa. These viruses are vectored by aphids non-persistently, with virions bound loosely to stylet receptors. These viruses also manipulate aphid-mediated transmission by altering host properties. Virus-induced effects on host-aphid interactions were investigated using ...
Abstract: We investigated the susceptibility of five cabbage varieties (‘Oxylus’, ‘Super Cross’, ‘Vantar F1 Hybrid’, ‘Santa’F1 and ‘Fortune’) to aphids. Trials were set up in the Accra plains for two rainy seasons in 2017. The first trial examined aphid infestation and the second included weekly blanket spray of neem oil at 0.48 L/ha (60 ml/15 L water) during the second rainy season. Five systematically sampled cabbage leaves per plot were examined for the numbers of aphi...
Abstract: The unfavorable soil (low supply of nutrients, high levels of toxic elements, salinity, compaction) and climatic (drought, waterlogging, high temperature, low temperature) conditions reduce plant and crop productivity (Pereira, 2016). Low fertility soils, and extreme weather events resulting from climate change, are a major threat to global food security (Evans, 2009). Plants have evolved sophisticated adaptive mechanisms to withstand the multiple abiotic stresses to which they are...
Abstract: The use of endophytic fungi has dramatically increased plant performance through the enhancement of plant protection against abiotic and biotic stressors. We previously demonstrated that the endophytic fungus Trichoderma asperellum M2RT4 improves tomato defenses against the tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta through the reduction of oviposition, leafmining, pupation, and adult emergence. However, the underlying mechanism by which the presence of this endophytic fungus within tomato hos...
Abstract: The perception of airborne chemical signals by plants can trigger reconfigurations of their metabolism that alter their biotic interactions. While plant-to-plant chemical communication has primarily been studied in the context of eliciting defenses to herbivores and pathogens, recent work suggests that it can also affect plants’ interactions with their rhizosphere microbiomes. In this perspective, we discuss the potential for integrating the fields of plant-to-plant communication...
Abstract: Production of potatoes in the developing countries has been on the rise. This reinforces the growing importance of potatoes throughout Africa, Asia, and Latin America as a source of food and livelihood. However, this crop continues to experience major postharvest losses that are associated with a lack of effective storage facilities in these regions. This study used magnetic fields (MF) as an innovative technology to reduce potato losses while under storage. The effects of test var...