1 kg of Desmodium seed is needed to plant one acre. Napier grass is a fodder grass that produces a lot of high-protein forage. Ways of promoting integration of herbaceous forage legumes into a napier grass fodder system were evaluated with the aim of increasing forage quantity and quality on smallholder dairy farms in central Kenya. silverleaf desmodium (push), and planting an attractive trap crop, Napier grass (pull), around the intercrop. Show all. Nairobi (Kenya) developed the push-pull technology, an innovative integrated approach to ecologically control pests and weeds of cereal crops, without using chemicals. Desmodium also offers a good cover to the soil that leads to improved soil moisture content and organic matter, and reduced weeds. Flowering – July to October After germination the field … miriko (bsc. Desmodium and Brachiaria grass are high quality animal fodder plants. Basic Bana grass facts. Many areas in Kenya show symptoms of deficiencies in the grass fields. There is no need for inoculation. At planting DAP can be used at a rate of 1 bag per acre. Approximately 80% of the dairy animals in Kenya are kept in this system (ILCA, 1979). This method indicates that napier grass should be fed to dairy cows at 55-60 cm (7-8 wk) and 130-140 cm (9-10 wk) in the medium and high rainfall areas in Kenya, respectively. Desmodium is a legume that successfully grows together with Napier grass. Kenya Natural History Guide >>> Plants >>> Fabaceae >>> Desmodium uncinatum. This name seems to be used as the same name for several cultivars of brachiaria cultivars. Some of this seed is exported to Kenya every year. Silver-leaf Desmodium Spanish Clover Desmodium uncinatum Observed in an agricultural area near Kitale, Kenya. Grass Feeds, Supplements & Seeds in Kenya. In the Desmodium intercropping systems, Striga counts were reduced by 95% in Busia and by 65–90% in Siaya with higher reductions when Desmodium was cut at 18 weeks after planting. The recommended spacing for establishing Desmodium is the recommended spacing of Napier grass. Muia Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor op gezag van de rector magnificus van Wageningen Universiteit dr. CM. However, height may not be an important estimate on the expected biomass yield, as it has been clearly demonstrated that the shorter Eth. In addition, desmodium stimulates the germination of striga and then inhibits its growth. Rations were randomly assigned to four cows in a 4*4 Latin square design and means separated using Tukey’s range test at 95% confidence level. Napier grass is best suited to high rainfall areas, but it is drought-tolerant and can also grow well in … Silverleaf desmodium can be sown in pure stands or in mixed pasture with grasses or other legumes ().It does well with other legumes such as greenleaf desmodium (Desmodium intortum) and siratro (Macroptilium atropurpureum), and with cold tolerant grasses such as the giant setaria (Setaria sphacelata var. The herbaceous legumes Desmodium intortum cGreenleaf (ILRI 104), Macrotyloma axillare cAxillare (ILRI 6756 and Neonotonia wightit cTSnaroo (ILRI 9794 were intercropped Bana grass is a particular variety of Pennisetum. Mulato II seed is only produced in three areas in the world. effect of phosphorous and rhizobia inoculation on growth and yield of desmodium and lucerne in kiambu county, kenya mutuerandu .c. Tagged: desmodium, maize, napier grass, pest control, Push-pull, stemborer moth, striga, Sudan grass, yield. • When intercropping under the conventional method, make furrows along the Napier grass lines or in betwe en rows and drill desmodium seed at a seed rate of It can also be grown under a maize crop or even as a cover crop under bananas or coffee. They do know of napier grass. 3 Intercropping • Napier grass can be intercropped with forage legumes in both methods of planting. Desmodium can be grown as a pure stand or as a mixture with Napier grass in cut-and-carry plots. Its scientific name is Pennisetum purpureum. Nairobi, Kenya and John A. Pickett Rothamsted Research Harpenden, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom The ‘push-pull’ strategy, a novel tool for integrated pest management programs, uses a combination of behavior-modifying stimuli to manipulate the distribution and abundance of insect pests and/or natural enemies. • The legumes to be intercropped with Napier grass include desmodium, stylosanthes and Macrotyloma axillace. Church members here are interested in trying the “Push-Pull” system but they are not familiar with desmodium. Photographic images and information about a Fabaceae, Desmodium, from Kitale in the East Africa nation of Kenya. Height – 3 to 13 feet (1 to 4 m) Exposure – full sun Foliage – deciduous in cold weather. The technology involves intercropping cereals with a repellent plant such as the African native desmodium and planting an attractive trap plant, for instance Napier grass, as a border crop around this intercrop. As a vet, I will focus on it because it is a land mark that you can never miss in any livestock farm, just like ugali in any Kenyan home. FLOWERS: Small, delicate pink flowers are typical pea-flowers. The name brachiaria grass is very confusing. If your pastures do not look green and healthy during rainy seasons, it will pay to get a soil sample analyzed to see what is missing. In Kenya, the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) ... Napier grass and Desmodium are nutritious fodder/forage crops. It is also known as “elephant grass”, “Sudan grass” or “king grass”. The agronomic characteristics result indicated that all ecotypes tested recorded higher PH than other Brachiaria grass cultivars (Llanero, MG4, Marandu, Piata, Mulato II, Basilisk and Xaraes) in Kenya dry lands as reported by Nguku et al. Types: Seeds 16. grass 30. It is better to use the proper cultivar name. Additionally, chemicals produced from desmodium roots inhibit Striga. Piata brachiaria brizantha, Mulato II hybrid brachiaria and so on. groups, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and Agricultural Training Center (ATC). Thailand, Mexico and Brazil. We evaluated farmers’ perceptions of the pests, PPT attributes and factors influencing the likelihood of its adoption in 15 districts in western Kenya. Napier grass was fed ad libitum while Desmodium was wilted and fed at 10kg/cow/day. Indeed napier grass is the livestock ugali. Bracharia Grass ... Sudan grass, desmodium, Lucerne and kikuyu grass. Some of the more common deficiencies are copper, cobalt and selenium deficiencies, but also nitrogen, phosphorous and potassion deficiencies are common. (A case of Desmodium and Calliandra in central Kenya) J. Sinja,ab*J. Karugia,b D. M Mwangi,c I. Baltenwecka; ... mainly Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum), grown and cut and carried to the animals in a production system referred to as zero grazing. Description: • Shape- Round • Head Size – 3-4Kg • Red Color, medium-sized • Plant Spacing (cm) 60x60 • Seed rate/acre(Kgs) 0.12 • Maturity – 65-70 Days VIP TOP+ 5. As a result, the food crop is left protected from the pests. … December 2012. Use of napier grass to improve smallholder milk production in Kenya John M.K. The technology has been reported to effectively control stemborers, striga weed, and fall armyworm (FAW), and to improve soil nutrition, resulting in increased grain yield. Results showed increase in forage quantity across the various cutting times and treatments used. The leguminous greenleaf desmodium becomes repellent, emitting a blend of compounds that help push armyworms away from maize while Brachiaria Mulato II grass around field edge produces chemicals attractive to the pests. To establish a mixed stand of Desmodium and Napier grass; First establish Desmodium in a clean seed bed. To establish a mixed stand of Desmodium and Napier grass; First establish Desmodium in a clean seed bed. The recommended spacing for establishing Desmodium is the recommended spacing of Napier grass. Army worms are a problem in this area and I have read that the “Push-Pull” method using desmodium and napier grass has been successful in Tanzania as well as Kenya and Uganda. Napier Grass (Pennisetum purpureum) commonly referred to as elephant grass is popular fodder crop for small scale dairy farmers in the high and medium potential dairy production areas of Kenya under the cut & carry system of production. Push–pull involves intercropping of cereals with Desmodium as a “push” crop and planting Napier grass/Brachiaria as the “pull” crop at the border. Name – Pennisetum purpureum x americanum Family – Poaceae Type – grass. The legume is sensitive to shading therefore grows well with short grasses especially Kikuyu grass. 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