P.O. Box ,Thika; Tel:

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1 Title PI Co-Researchers Promotion of Technologies to Enhance Passion Fruit Productivity under Recurring Drought Events in Semi-arid Eastern Kenya Dr. Maina Mwangi Department of Agricultural Science and Technology, School of Agriculture and Enterprise Development, Kenyatta University. Dr. Jesca Mbaka (KALRO) P.O. Box ,Thika; Tel: Dr. Stephen Runo Kenyatta University Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology P. O. Box Nairobi, Kenya or Tel: Purpose Project Summary Dr. Joseph Onyango Agricultural Science and Technology Tel.: ; To improve the yield and quality of sweet yellow passion fruit varieties through agronomic practices and technology packages for nutrient and water management under water stress conditions in arid and semi-arid conditions Sweet yellow passion fruit varieties were recently released to farmers by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) after preliminary trials showed better performance compared to purple passion. The yellow variety has been promoted on the basis of early trials indicating adaptation to the semi-arid mid and lower altitudes. The fruit is of much higher value than the traditional crops grown in the area and hence presents an opportunity for farmers to diversify their sources of income. The proven high productivity and anticipated better incomes have motivated farmers to enthusiastically adopt the crop, extending its ecological range into the semi-arid parts (ASALs) of eastern Kenya. However, inadequate and irregular rainfall in the ASALs is hindering productivity and dampening the initial enthusiasm by farmers towards the crop. Water stress causes severe pre-mature flower abortion, fruit and leaf drop and wilting. 1

2 To reduce yield loss, some farmers have been applying up to 20 liters/day/plant which is costly and causes leaching of nutrients, and the quality for water could also cause salinization. In addition to fruit drop, high incidence of crop failure due to fruit malformations has been reported. There is speculation the malformations could be due to a combination of factors including plant genetic make-up, moisture stress, poor pollination and nutrient imbalance. To address the constraints, this project will evaluate and recommend optimal water application practices that costeffectively sustain high productivity of yellow passion fruit under low rainfall conditions, determine the relationship between water and plant nutrition management under water stress conditions and determine the causes and management measures of the fruit malformation. The project builds on previous work and complements on-going efforts of the project on Improving incomes for mango and passion fruit farmers and other value chain actors through enhanced production and distribution of superior varieties, post-harvest technologies, value addition and utilization of their products and by-products funded by the World Bank through Kenya Agricultural Productivity and Agribusiness program (KAPAP). Th e m ethodolog y for this pro ject includes field baseline surveys and on farm experiments in which household data, water management practices and changes in nutrient levels in soils, and passion fruit crops will be assessed. The project will incorporate at least 2 MSc. students and 4 undergraduate students to be trained through engagement as research assistants. The project will work closely with a spectrum of stakeholders including the Embu County Agriculture Office, passion fruit growers in the study region, KALRO, KADI, a community development organization, private sector (Farm and Community Technologies Ltd.). Key words: Sweet yellow passion fruit, water stress, nutrient management, malformations Country and Specific Location(s) Participating Institutions Kenya: Mbeere Sub County, Embu County and Kenyatta University experimental farm 1. Kenyatta University 2. KALRO (Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization) 3. Maki Yellow Passion Farmers Group 4. Kamurugu Development Initiative (KADI) 2

3 5. Farm and Community Technologies Limited Start Date 1 st July 2015 End Date - 30 th July 2017 Amount of Funding US$ 59,909 3

4 Maina Mwangi (PhD) Department of Agricultural Science and Technology, School of Agriculture and Enterprise Development, Kenyatta University Main Campus, Thika Road. P.O. Box Nairobi, Kenya. Telephone Dr. Maina Mwangi teaches at the Department of Agricultural Science and Technology, Kenyatta University (Kenya) with key responsibilities in teaching, research and outreach. He specializes in Plant Pathology with a focus on integrated crop pest management, seed health, vegetative crop propagation, fruits and vegetables production. Dr. Maina is also the Director, Grant Writing and Management, where he coordinates university initiatives to raise funds through grant funding. Dr. Mwangi holds BSc. and MSc. degrees from the University of Nairobi and PhD from the University of Bonn (Germany). Prior to joining Kenyatta University, he undertook postdoctoral research at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) based at Ibadan, Nigeria ( ) and later as Plant pathologist based at IITA East and Southern Africa Center at Kampala, Uganda ( ). Dr. Mwangi has a passion in the areas of increasing productivity and profitability through commercialization of small scale farming systems; attracting and retaining youth interest in agriculture; and enhancing quality of agricultural teaching in universities. He currently leads a regional EDULINK project to enhance skills of faculty in agriculture teaching and curriculum development and writes scientific articles in Kenyan media on youth engagement in agribusiness. He has supervised numerous graduate research projects and is well published on appropriate technology for small scale farming systems; IPM and improved seed systems for staples and high value crops including cassava, sweet potato, banana (macropropagation); low cost tissues culture; passion fruit improvement; tomato (greenhouse farming), among others. He is an active member of the International Society for Horticultural Sciences and the Horticulture Association of Kenya. Selected Publications Wangungu, C.W. Mwangi, M., Gathu, R., Muasya, R. (2014). Good Orchard Maintenance and Agronomic Practices as Working Components in Management of Dieback Disease on Passion Fruit (Passiflora sp.) in Kenya. Annual Research & Review in Biology. 4(9): , Mwadalu, R., Mwangi, M. (2013). The potential role of sorghum in enhancing food security in semiarid eastern Kenya: A review. Journal of Applied Biosciences 71: Karani Gichimu, C., Macharia, I., Mwangi, M. (2013). Assessment of Input-Output Transformation in purple passion fruit production in Central-Eastern and North Rift, Kenya. Current 4

5 Research Journal of Economic Theory 5(2): 32-37, ISSN ; e-issn X. Karani Gichimu, C., Mwangi, M., Macharia, I. (2013). Assessment of passion fruit orchard management and farmers technical efficiency in Central-eastern and North-Rift Highglands, Kenya. Journal of Economics and Sustainable Developemnt, Vol 4, ISSN (paper), ISSN Okinyi-Ogero, K., Nkanata-Mburugu, G., Mwangi, M., Mugambi-Ngugi, M., Ombori, O. (2012). Low Cost Tissue Culture Technology in the regeneration of Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas (L) Lam). Research Journal of Biology (2012), Vol. 02, Issue 02, pp Okinyi-Ogero, k., Mburugu, G.N., Mwangi, M., Ombori, O., Ngugi, M. (2012). In vitro Micropropagation of Cassava through Low Cost Tissue Culture. Asian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 4(3): Ogero, K. O., Gitonga N. M., Mwangi M., Ombori O., Ngugi, M. (2012). Cost-effective nutrient sources for tissue culture of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz). African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 11(66), pp , 16 August, Available online at DOI: /AJB ISSN Academic Journals. Okinyi-Ogero, k., Nkanata Mburugu, g., Mwangi, m., Ombori, o., Ngugi, M.M. (2012). Response of Two Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas L. Lam) Varieties Regenerated on Low Cost Tissue Culture Medium pp. Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology B. Volume 2, Number 5, May 2012 (Serial Number 13) Wangungu, C., Maina, M., Mbaka, J. (2012). Proposed assessment scale for dieback disease severity on passion fruit. J. Animal and Plant Sciences [ISSN ] 12(2): Njau, N., Mwangi, M., Gathu, R., Mbaka, J., Muasya, R. (2011). Banana weevil (Cosmopolites sordidus) reduces availability of corms for seedling production through macropropagation technology. Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences [ISSN ] Volume 12(1): Selected Funded Projects : EDULINK Project FED/2013/ : Enhancing nutrition and food security through improved capacity of agricultural higher education institutions in East and Southern Africa. Euro 585, Principal Investigator : Passion fruit component of the Fruits value Chain project funded by Kenya Agricultural Productivity and Agribusiness project (KAPAP) KShs. 24,000, 000 (initialisation); Passion fruit component KSh. 7,052, (phase 1); 1.8 million Ksh (phase 2); Principal Investigator : Delivering technologies to salvage and sustain the high tunnel ( greenhouse ) innovation for profitable small holder tomato production in rural Kenya KShs. 2,000,000 funded by NCST through Women Scientists Fund. Collaborating Researcher. 5

6 : Integrated Soil Fertility Management Training programme grant to Kenyatta University by the Alliance for A Green revolution in Africa (AGRA) to train 15 MSc level professionals from Mozambique, Rwanda and Kenya and equip state of the art laboratory for soil and plant tissue analysis. USD750, 000. Coordinator : Farmer Voice Radio project in Kenyatta University. Funded by American Institutes for Research (AIR), with KENFAP, JKUAT, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC), FIT Resources, PUEA and Ministry of Agriculture. Budget to Kenyatta Univ. USD 250,000. Coordinator : RUFORUM Banana macropropagation project. USD 60, 000. Principal Investigator 6