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Development of well adapted, high yielding maize varieties for the Lake Victoria region

 M.J.F. Onim & M. Dida

There is a serious lack of suitable germplasm from which adapted maize varieties can be developed for the medium and low elevations of the east African region, particularly the Lake Victoria Region (0–1500 m).  This has resulted in a lack of adapted and high yielding maize varieties for this region.  There are many yield reducing stresses in the low and medium elevations of Lake Victoria Region of east Africa.  These stresses include low soil fertility, the parasitic weed Striga (Striga hermontheca), drought, diseases, insect pests, and small land holdings.  Diseases include streak, common smut (Ustilago maydis), head smut (Sphacelotheca reiliana), grey leaf spot (Cercospora zeae-maydis), rust (Puccina polysora and P. sorghi), northern leaf blight (Helminthosporium turcicum = Exserohilum  turcicum) and ear and stem rots.  Insect pests include stalk borers (Buseola fusca and Chilo partellus), aphids, termites, and armyworms.  Lowlands Agricultural and Technical Services Limited (Lagrotech Seed Company) is a young seed company that has been developing maize varieties for the lowland and medium elevations of Kenya with the main effort to incorporate genes for overcoming some of these stresses.  One of the most important characteristics in this region is low soil fertility.  These soils have very low pH (4.0–5.5) that leads to a widespread deficiency in plant nutrients, especially phosphorus (P).   Our recent soil surveys show that many macro- nutrients are deficient in the soils of the Lake region, including nitrogen (0 – 70%), organic carbon (20–80%), phosphorus (10–100%) and potassium (0–65%).  Deficient micronutrients include magnesium (0-50%), copper (0–45%), and zinc (0–100%).  Lagrotech Seed Company is developing maize varieties for lowland and medium elevations for (i) low soil fertility, (ii) drought tolerance, (iii) diseases, (iv)  insect pests and (v)  good cooking and eating grain qualities.  Since a majority of farmers in the Lake Region find purchasing of fertilizers too expensive, Lagrotech Seed Company is collaborating with CIMMYT to test a large number of low nitrogen tolerant hybrid maize varieties in the Lake Victoria region.  One trial has 25 entries, and the second one has 27 entries.  These trials were established in the long rains of 2002.   Lagrotech has developed a very prolific maize variety called Maseno Double Cobber (MDC) for smallholder farmers who have acute land shortage.  The most Striga-tolerant maize variety in Kenya at the moment is KSTP 94 which was developed by Dr. Omari Odongo of KARI, Kakamega.  This variety was developed from 1989 to 1994.  It is an OPV that was officially released in 2001.  It performs very well under moderate Striga infestation, but succumbs under very heavy infestation.  Lagrotech Seed Company is actively working on genetic striga tolerance on a number of maize inbred lines.  It is hoped that an OPV or hybrid maize varieties will be developed from this work in the next 2–5 years.  These stresses call for niche breeding where the developed maize varieties may not necessarily be adapted to a large range of ecological zones, but they should rather be adapted to specific niches of the stressful Lake Victoria Region.