Posted on August, 2, 2018 at 11:07 am
By From Hazla Omar
Arusha — A NEW grain seed variety has been launched by agricultural researchers to curb the notorious maize lethal necrosis disease.
Introduced to farmers during a special ceremony held at the Seliani Agriculture Research Institute (SARI) farms outside Arusha City, the code-named 'DK777' ('Saba-Saba' seed) is described to be of high crop yield.
"The new seed variety thrives well in areas rising between 800 and 1,800 me tres above sea level and can produce up to 10 tonnes of maize per hectare or 44 bags of grain in a single acre," said Mr Honest Temu, technology Development Representative for Monsanto Tanzania and head of research.
He added that the new variety needs to be grown in areas with favourable rainfall and it takes between 130 and 150 days to mature.
He said all seedlings ripen at the same time, which is suitable for large scale estates.
The seed can also withstand negative effects of the climate in addition to be resilient to maize lethal necrosis disease (MLND), according to the researchers involved in the project.
"In areas affected by farm mice, this new variety develops long, thick and piercing roots. Therefore, rodents cannot reach deep enough to destroy the roots," added Mr Temu. Monsanto Tanzania Director Frank Wenga said his company always worked to solve farmers' problems and deal with all issues affecting agriculture in the country.
"We conducted extensive research in Maroroni, King'ori, Kikatiti, makiba and Kikwe wards of Arumeru District and came up with the new seed variety," noted Mr Wenga.
Gracing the event, Tanzania Seed Trade Association (Tasta) Executive Director Bob Shuma said: "Farmers do not want sweet words on good seeds, but prefer the availability of quality inputs and at affordable prices," he said.
MLND is described to be a result of the combination of two viruses, the maize chlorotic mottle virus and any of the cereal viruses in the Potyviridae group, like the sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV), wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV) or maize dwarf mosaic virus (MDMV). These are said to be also resistant to all forms of treating chemicals, thus causing major losses to local farmers.
Source: Daily News