Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya

The widespread occurrence of potato bacterial wilt significantly contributes to the reduced potato yields in Kenya. Implementing effective management strategies for this disease usually necessitates understanding the knowledge and practices of farmers regarding potato bacterial wilt. To gain insigh...

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Main Authors: Samuel Musah, Rael Birithia, Hellen Kamiri, Esther Kahariri
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Agricultural Extension Society of Nigeria 2025-01-01
Series:Journal of Agricultural Extension
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Online Access:https://journal.aesonnigeria.org/index.php/jae/article/view/4583
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author Samuel Musah
Rael Birithia
Hellen Kamiri
Esther Kahariri
author_facet Samuel Musah
Rael Birithia
Hellen Kamiri
Esther Kahariri
author_sort Samuel Musah
collection DOAJ
description The widespread occurrence of potato bacterial wilt significantly contributes to the reduced potato yields in Kenya. Implementing effective management strategies for this disease usually necessitates understanding the knowledge and practices of farmers regarding potato bacterial wilt. To gain insights into farmers' knowledge and practices in managing bacterial wilt and to outline feasible intervention strategies, a survey was conducted involving 136 randomly selected farmers from four key potato-growing counties in Kenya between April and June 2019. The results indicate that farmers mainly identified potato bacterial wilt through visual indicators like plant wilting (53.7%) and tuber rot (30.9%). It was also noted that 59.6% of farmers believed the disease to be seed-borne, however, only 5.9% used certified seeds and 35.3% left rotting tubers in the field. This suggests a gap in farmers' understanding of the link between infection and disease control. Potato breeders should consider marketability traits alongside pest and disease resistance when developing new varieties. Education on diagnosis, epidemiology, and management of bacterial wilt is also needed.
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institution Kabale University
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publisher Agricultural Extension Society of Nigeria
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spelling doaj-art-39e3455eb7c24199aed44e6e04b37ead2025-02-01T06:35:57ZengAgricultural Extension Society of NigeriaJournal of Agricultural Extension1119-944X2408-68512025-01-01291Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in KenyaSamuel Musah0Rael BirithiaHellen KamiriEsther KahaririKaratina University The widespread occurrence of potato bacterial wilt significantly contributes to the reduced potato yields in Kenya. Implementing effective management strategies for this disease usually necessitates understanding the knowledge and practices of farmers regarding potato bacterial wilt. To gain insights into farmers' knowledge and practices in managing bacterial wilt and to outline feasible intervention strategies, a survey was conducted involving 136 randomly selected farmers from four key potato-growing counties in Kenya between April and June 2019. The results indicate that farmers mainly identified potato bacterial wilt through visual indicators like plant wilting (53.7%) and tuber rot (30.9%). It was also noted that 59.6% of farmers believed the disease to be seed-borne, however, only 5.9% used certified seeds and 35.3% left rotting tubers in the field. This suggests a gap in farmers' understanding of the link between infection and disease control. Potato breeders should consider marketability traits alongside pest and disease resistance when developing new varieties. Education on diagnosis, epidemiology, and management of bacterial wilt is also needed. https://journal.aesonnigeria.org/index.php/jae/article/view/4583Disease IncidenceManagement PracticesKnowledge StatusSeverity
spellingShingle Samuel Musah
Rael Birithia
Hellen Kamiri
Esther Kahariri
Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
Journal of Agricultural Extension
Disease Incidence
Management Practices
Knowledge Status
Severity
title Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
title_full Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
title_fullStr Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
title_full_unstemmed Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
title_short Farmers’ Management Practices of Potato Bacterial Wilt and Its Implications in Disease Prevalence in Kenya
title_sort farmers management practices of potato bacterial wilt and its implications in disease prevalence in kenya
topic Disease Incidence
Management Practices
Knowledge Status
Severity
url https://journal.aesonnigeria.org/index.php/jae/article/view/4583
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AT hellenkamiri farmersmanagementpracticesofpotatobacterialwiltanditsimplicationsindiseaseprevalenceinkenya
AT estherkahariri farmersmanagementpracticesofpotatobacterialwiltanditsimplicationsindiseaseprevalenceinkenya