Blogs

Kazibwe Edward, a farmer from Mpigi District in Central Uganda, has been growing the Robusta coffee variety for the last ten years, and since then, he has never known a reliable solution to one of the cash crop's seemingly unending problems—diseases.

To Mr. Kazibwe and many other farmers in Mpigi, coffee remains the crop that powers their lives. Its existence is as good as theirs, and its thriving means better lives for the people and the...Read more

Le manioc est un produit alimentaire de base vital pour une plus grande partie de la population Africiane. Le manioc offre une diversité de mets pouvant contribuer à la diversification des habitudes culinaires. Ces dernières années nous constatons l'intégration du manioc et des produits dérivés dans les habitudes alimentaires des Burkinabès.

La production du manioc est simple, peu coûteuse et...Read more

White chunks of cassava have already started to dry as they soak up the sun’s heat — on the way to becoming dried cassava chips.

Hellen Taaka popularly known as “Mama Muhogo” knows the routine of processing cassava tubers well. At 58, she runs a small cassava business in Budokomi village in Busia County in Kenya. She is confident of the entrepreneurial opportunities found after harvest; when yields processed...Read more

A farmer in Buggayi Village of Mpigi District, Uganda, has come up with an interesting innovation in potting soil for planting tomato seeds.

Ssalongo Kabubi Gerald Magyera, who is growing the Asal tomatoes, an improved variety, has found convenience in using old newspapers rather than the common polythene bags, which he cuts into a pot-like shape, compacts soil inside, and plants the seeds.

This is very effective because it...Read more

Dans le cadre de renforcer les capacités des petits producteurs, les DreamTeam du Burkina Faso forment et assistent les producteurs sur les bonnes technique d’installation de pépinière en culture maraichers.

La pépinière est définie comme le lieu qui sert à élever les jeunes plants d’une forte densité sur une aire réduite, pour leur...Read more

Agricultural AI consists of two types, AI software and AI robots. The AI software is a computerized set of instructions that provides data, information and recommendations as programmed. This type retrieves the data from the farm whose details were recorded, the confined climate details and machinery data. The combination of AI methods i.e. machine learning, deep learning, reinforcement learning and satellite information provide the forecast, which...Read more

The first phase of Cassava demo plots in Kilifi County was established in early 2021 with an aim of providing clean cassava cuttings to farmers and act as learning sites to farmers.

Farmers through the demo plots learned about good agricultural practices in cassava production, cassava pests and diseases and control measures. This was because cassava diseases such as cassava brown streak and cassava mosaic disease are the major causes of low...Read more

Cultiva Dream Team Uganda received visitors from USAID and PlantVillage on 22 June 2022 for a 2-days visit. The visitors included Dr. Zachary Stewart, a soil scientist and production system specialist from United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Annalyse Kehs, PlantVillage operations director, Peter McCloskey, PlantVillage A.I engineer and  Dr. John Chelal, a plant pathologist and the director of Dream Team Agro...Read more

Any time a farmer hears of fall armyworms, he or she falls back on the sickening thought of a creature capable of turning his or her life upside down.

Farmers in Kenya have desperately tried a variety of methods to combat these damaging pests in their maize crops, with little or no success. They put into practice measures, both traditional and modern, such as the use of neem-based solutions, ash and pesticides. Pesticides have proved...Read more

Dans un contexte de changement climatique accouplé aux dégradations accélérer des sols ces dernières années, la maîtrise de l'eau et la conservation des sols réprensentent une alternative pour nos producteurs pour une agriculture durable.

Une grande partie des terres agricoles au Burkina sont dégradées. Le défis...Read more

Coffee is Uganda's top earning export crop and has employed up to 5 million people in production and other coffee-associated businesses. 

Robusta coffee, which accounts for roughly 80% of all coffee produced each year, faces a challenge due to the Black Coffee Twig Borer pest.

Black Coffee Twig Borer (BCTB) 

The black coffee twig borer, Xylosandrus compactus, is an ambrosia beetle belonging to the scolytidae family and tribe Xyleborini...Read more

Caroline Dama, a lead farmer from Basi Mwangaza Village in Kilifi County, Kenya, is thrilled to be part of the PlantVillage community. 

It has been two years now since she joined the organization, and she says her experience has led to more success.

"My interaction with PlantVillage as a farmer throughout the years has led to increased crop yields, especially in cassava,’’ she says.

The ardent farmer represents 34...Read more

A pest is defined as a biotic constraint that retards the successful growth and development of a crop. Examples of these constraints that are common in Uganda are insects, pathogens, weeds, rodents, mites, and parasitic plants. 

The least addressed of these are the parasitic plants. In Uganda, the most well-known parasitic plant is the witch weed (Striga sp.), which is a common sight in the eastern and northern regions of the country in fields...Read more

Participants in the recently concluded 3-day virtual training on Project Management organized by Michigan State University (MSU) in collaboration with USAID CETC Innovation Lab at Pennsylvania State University, have received their certificates.

The webinar sessions, which ran in English, Spanish, and French, were organized by MSU Program Managers Dr. Callista Rakhmatov and Dr. Karim Maredia May...Read more

Coffee fields in Uganda are drying over the past three decades. Annual temperatures have risen across the country, potential evapotranspiration increased, and the distribution of precipitation has become more variable. In order to reduce vulnerability to climate change, smallholder farmers are applying innovative approaches to manage climate change.

The different mitigation programs with indigenous knowledge

Bottle...Read more

Banana is one of the major crops grown in central Uganda which promotes farmers’ income levels and foster food security. More than 75 % of farmers in Uganda grow banana.It is the country’s staple food. Production is however hindered by pest and diseases that results to low yield.

One of the diseases affecting bananas in central Uganda is xanthomonas also known as banana wilt. It is the single most important threat in the banana sub...Read more

Dans le cadre du volet renforcement des capacités des produteurs Guillaume anime une formation sur la fabrication du Bokashi en collaboration avec monsieur SANOU Gaoussou, un homme expérimenté en la matière.

En effet le Bokashi est une autre forme d'engrais biologique à maturation précoce. Pour la fabrication du bokashi nous avons utilisés les matières...Read more

On average, women add up to a greater percentage of the agricultural labour force in Kenya. This indicates that if women are given the same access to productive resources as men, they could increase yields in their farm hence raising the total agricultural output. Women are recognized to be major producers of food and therefore help in increasing household income, yet their efforts are always hampered by the lack of access to productive...Read more

The Plant Health Initiative Inception forum that was held on May 13, 2022 in Nairobi to commemorate Plant Health Day has unveiled new ideas on how to deal with the crop pest and disease problem in Third World countries.

The hallmark event that was convened at the Safari Park Hotel in the Kenyan capital brought together stakeholders from across the globe to find ways of protecting the...Read more