http://www.newsfromafrica.org/newsfromafrica/articles/art_12429.htmlMonday 28 March 2011
Plant clinics are modeled on the human health advice concept, where plant ‘doctors’ provide expert advice on pests and diseases affecting their crops and provide prescriptions for affected plants.
NAIROBI---As human beings visit doctors when feeling unwell, that is the same way farmers are now taking their ‘sick’ plants to clinics for information and prescription.
Plant clinics are modeled on the human health advice concept, where plant ‘doctors’ provide expert advice on pests and diseases affecting their crops and provide prescriptions for affected plants.
The global plant clinic concept was developed in 2003 by the Centre for Agricultural Bio-Science International (CABI) in Bolivia then piloted in Bangladesh and Nicaragua. In Kenya CABI, jointly partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture’s extension services, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate (KEPHIS) to initiate the project in October last year.
Mr. Peter Karanja, a field technician at CABI says that under the programme, farmers take their affected crops to the plant clinics, normally held at public places like market centres where they are given recommendation by trained personnel referred to as “Plant Doctors” from the Ministry of Agriculture.
He says the aim of establishing plant health clinics in different parts of Kenya is to provide farmers with regular and reliable access to locally relevant advice on management of plant health issues.
“Last year in September, I planted maize on my three quarter acre piece of land expecting to get good returns but I lost 60 per cent of it due to maize stalk borers, “ says Beth Wanjiku, a farmer who had visited the plant clinic stationed at Wangige market in Kikuyu District.
The retired civil servant, who has specialized in horticultural crops, explained that she had earlier visited the clinic when it was too late to save her maize but after she planted some more in the following season in December, she followed the advice and prescriptions of the plant doctors.
“The maize is looking good now in the garden, two weeks from now I will be harvesting them and I can assure you I am expecting good returns,” says Wanjiku happily, who had brought some of her infected spinach to get further advice. Other crops that Wanjiku grows include kales, bananas, onions and dhania.
Meanwhile, the plants doctor, Elizabeth Njoroge, who is also the Divisional Extension Agricultural and Crops Officer in Kabete division states that they receive up to 60 cases from farmers in every single clinic day.
“We normally have two plant clinics in every month, second and fourth Thursdays and every time, famers flock the place with different types of plant infections. We analyze the whole plant, identify the infected areas and prescribe medication which they can easily buy from agrovets,” she says.
Njoroge names some notable pests and diseases that the plant clinics keep addressing which include white fly, maize streak, nematodes and headsmut, adding that 60 per cent of the cases they receive are of white fly.
Under the programme, farmers take their affected crops to the plant clinics. The plant doctor diagnoses a problem and writes down prescription containing recommendations which the farmer takes away for action.
The plant doctor however bemoans poor greenhouse management by famers stating it is the major cause for spreading pests and diseases on their crops.
“Due to global warming, most farmers are opting for greenhouse but the problem is they are not able to construct them well and this attracts insect vectors, which, when feeding on the crops, transmit the diseases,” she says.
Karanja also adds that because of global warming, there has been an upsurge of crop diseases that had been suppressed and this is becoming a major challenge for the plant doctors. However all is not lost as the plant doctors are on high surveillance especially at the border points to diagnose the pests and diseases.
One case that has put the Kenyan government on high alert is the rough dwarf disease from Uganda, which affects maize. It is a virus transmitted through the leaf hopper insect which prevents the maize from growing. Karanja says two clinics have been set up at both Kapkoi and Kwanza areas bordering Uganda.
The 20 plant clinics, spread out in Central, Eastern, Western and Rift Valley provinces have been operating for the last six months and have so far served over 5,000 small scale farmers for free by 100 trained ‘doctors’.
Where necessary, infected plant samples that may not be diagnosed at the plant clinics, they may be referred to partner laboratories, giving the famers access to more expertise diagnostic services.
Njoroge says, so far the plant clinics have seen various achievements which include farmers being able to deal with plant health problems, ability to identify new and emerging pests and diseases and managed to create a data bases for diseases and pests.
Others include acting as vigilance and surveillance tool for pests and diseases, assisting researchers to control their spread and helping them to prioritize areas of research.
However, Njoroge says that it has been quite challenging trying to advise farmers on crop rotation and spacing.
“The recommended spacing for most crops is 60 by 60 centimetres. However, most farmers are eager to maximize on their yields and they will use smaller spacing of 15 by 15 centimetres. They will get good outputs but if the crops got infected, the pest or disease will spread very fast, and this will lead to more losses,” She says.
Unhealthy plants are a major source of concern for farmers around the world. For many subsistence farmers, a healthy crop can mean a plentiful food supply to him, his family and the country, and also for commercial purposes.
However, majority of small scale rural farmers in developing countries do not have access to adequate and timely advice to deal with existing and emerging plant health problems.
They always require low cost solutions for their plant health problems. In Kenya, the plant clinics have therefore complimented the services provided by agriculture extension staff
Plant clinics are modeled on the human health advice concept, where plant ‘doctors’ provide expert advice on pests and diseases affecting their crops and provide prescriptions for affected plants.
NAIROBI---As human beings visit doctors when feeling unwell, that is the same way farmers are now taking their ‘sick’ plants to clinics for information and prescription.
Plant clinics are modeled on the human health advice concept, where plant ‘doctors’ provide expert advice on pests and diseases affecting their crops and provide prescriptions for affected plants.
The global plant clinic concept was developed in 2003 by the Centre for Agricultural Bio-Science International (CABI) in Bolivia then piloted in Bangladesh and Nicaragua. In Kenya CABI, jointly partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture’s extension services, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate (KEPHIS) to initiate the project in October last year.
Mr. Peter Karanja, a field technician at CABI says that under the programme, farmers take their affected crops to the plant clinics, normally held at public places like market centres where they are given recommendation by trained personnel referred to as “Plant Doctors” from the Ministry of Agriculture.
He says the aim of establishing plant health clinics in different parts of Kenya is to provide farmers with regular and reliable access to locally relevant advice on management of plant health issues.
“Last year in September, I planted maize on my three quarter acre piece of land expecting to get good returns but I lost 60 per cent of it due to maize stalk borers, “ says Beth Wanjiku, a farmer who had visited the plant clinic stationed at Wangige market in Kikuyu District.
The retired civil servant, who has specialized in horticultural crops, explained that she had earlier visited the clinic when it was too late to save her maize but after she planted some more in the following season in December, she followed the advice and prescriptions of the plant doctors.
“The maize is looking good now in the garden, two weeks from now I will be harvesting them and I can assure you I am expecting good returns,” says Wanjiku happily, who had brought some of her infected spinach to get further advice. Other crops that Wanjiku grows include kales, bananas, onions and dhania.
Meanwhile, the plants doctor, Elizabeth Njoroge, who is also the Divisional Extension Agricultural and Crops Officer in Kabete division states that they receive up to 60 cases from farmers in every single clinic day.
“We normally have two plant clinics in every month, second and fourth Thursdays and every time, famers flock the place with different types of plant infections. We analyze the whole plant, identify the infected areas and prescribe medication which they can easily buy from agrovets,” she says.
Njoroge names some notable pests and diseases that the plant clinics keep addressing which include white fly, maize streak, nematodes and headsmut, adding that 60 per cent of the cases they receive are of white fly.
Under the programme, farmers take their affected crops to the plant clinics. The plant doctor diagnoses a problem and writes down prescription containing recommendations which the farmer takes away for action.
The plant doctor however bemoans poor greenhouse management by famers stating it is the major cause for spreading pests and diseases on their crops.
“Due to global warming, most farmers are opting for greenhouse but the problem is they are not able to construct them well and this attracts insect vectors, which, when feeding on the crops, transmit the diseases,” she says.
Karanja also adds that because of global warming, there has been an upsurge of crop diseases that had been suppressed and this is becoming a major challenge for the plant doctors. However all is not lost as the plant doctors are on high surveillance especially at the border points to diagnose the pests and diseases.
One case that has put the Kenyan government on high alert is the rough dwarf disease from Uganda, which affects maize. It is a virus transmitted through the leaf hopper insect which prevents the maize from growing. Karanja says two clinics have been set up at both Kapkoi and Kwanza areas bordering Uganda.
The 20 plant clinics, spread out in Central, Eastern, Western and Rift Valley provinces have been operating for the last six months and have so far served over 5,000 small scale farmers for free by 100 trained ‘doctors’.
Where necessary, infected plant samples that may not be diagnosed at the plant clinics, they may be referred to partner laboratories, giving the famers access to more expertise diagnostic services.
Njoroge says, so far the plant clinics have seen various achievements which include farmers being able to deal with plant health problems, ability to identify new and emerging pests and diseases and managed to create a data bases for diseases and pests.
Others include acting as vigilance and surveillance tool for pests and diseases, assisting researchers to control their spread and helping them to prioritize areas of research.
However, Njoroge says that it has been quite challenging trying to advise farmers on crop rotation and spacing.
“The recommended spacing for most crops is 60 by 60 centimetres. However, most farmers are eager to maximize on their yields and they will use smaller spacing of 15 by 15 centimetres. They will get good outputs but if the crops got infected, the pest or disease will spread very fast, and this will lead to more losses,” She says.
Unhealthy plants are a major source of concern for farmers around the world. For many subsistence farmers, a healthy crop can mean a plentiful food supply to him, his family and the country, and also for commercial purposes.
However, majority of small scale rural farmers in developing countries do not have access to adequate and timely advice to deal with existing and emerging plant health problems.
They always require low cost solutions for their plant health problems. In Kenya, the plant clinics have therefore complimented the services provided by agriculture extension staff
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