Healing Plants to Feed a Nation
Growing up in a small village in Western Kenya, I often accompanied my mother and other village women on customary weeding expeditions. Whenever we came across sick plants in the fields—which was all too often—my mother would instruct me to pull them out and cast them aside. I did as she asked, but wondered to…
Citrus canker – a threat to orange production in Pakistan
Last week, key players in Pakistan’s orange production came together for the first Orange Exporters Awards, organised by the Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Association and the Department of Plant Protection. During this meeting, Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research, announced that orange farms in the Sargodha region of…
Plantwise initiative helping improve food security in Zambia
Ever since Lackson Njovu, a farmer in Rufunsa district, learnt how to deal with plant diseases and pests using the natural way, his harvest has improved. Mr Njovu now registers less losses and feeds more by identifying, preventing and curing plant health problems. On his five hectares farm east of the capital, Lusaka, where he…
Perú: Una visita al campo con los Doctores de Plantas en Huamanga-Ayacucho
Texto escribido por los doctores de planta de la Estación Experimental Agraria Canaán (INIA): Victoriano Eduardo Núñez Cuba, Melancio Huamani García y Aníbal N. Huarancca, y editando por Léna Durocher-Granger (CABI-UK). English summary follows El Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agraria (INIA), organismo público adscrito al Ministerio de Agricultura y Riego, a través de la Estación Experimental…
Old friends and new faces at CPM10
Blog post by Roger Day, Deputy Regional Director (Development), CABI Africa. As delegates gathered for the opening of the 10th session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) at FAO in Rome, it was clear from the greetings and smiles, not to mention hugs and kisses, that many of them know each other well already. That’s probably…
Plant clinics help improve yields in Machakos, Kenya
“Approximately 300 farmer-self help groups from Machakos County and its environs under the Katoloni community-based organization have registered improved crop yields in the last one year due to high levels of sensitization on crop pest and diseases at plant clinics in the region,” writes Maugo Owiti of HiviSasa.com. In the article, Pius Ndaka, a farmer…
Perú: Dos nuevas clínicas de plantas para los agricultores Lambayecanos
Autores: Martha Passador (CABI) y Juan Pablo Gonzáles (EEA Vista Florida) English summary follows Debido a las necesidades de asistencia en algunos puntos más lejanos de la región de Lambayeque en Perú, y mediante dos nuevos módulos de asistencia técnica, en el cual las Clínicas de Plantas forman parte del componente de diagnóstico y recomendación…