Scientists urge farmers, extension agents on insect resistance management practices – EnviroNews

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Agricultural scientists have urged farmers and extension agents to strictly follow insect resistance management (IRM) practices to protect the effectiveness of the Pod Borer Resistant (PBR) cowpea variety, SAMPEA 20-T, warning that poor management could allow the Maruca pod borer to develop resistance to the crop’s built-in protection.

The call was made at a stewardship training and value proposition workshop held at the Institute for Agricultural Research, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, organised by the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) and the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR) under the ACIAR-funded Pod Borer Resistant Cowpea project.

Speaking at the event, AATF PBR Cowpea project manager, Dr. Jean Baptiste Tignegre, said farmers and extension agents were central to the project’s success, noting that no scientific breakthrough could benefit farmers unless it was properly delivered and managed at the farm level.

He said the project’s objective was to ensure SAMPEA 20-T reaches smallholder farmers “in a manner that is agronomically sound and responsibly managed at every level.”

According to Dr. Tignegre, the Maruca pod borer can destroy up to 80 per cent of an unprotected cowpea harvest, forcing farmers to spray insecticide six to ten times a season at high cost. He said farmers using SAMPEA 20-T had reduced spraying to two applications per season while recording yields 30 to 100 per cent higher than conventional varieties under pest pressure.

He described the required stewardship as a shared responsibility, saying every actor in the value chain- extension agent, farmer, and seed producer, must understand and consistently fulfil their role. He added that farmers involved in the National Performance Trials and on-farm trials must plant on time, follow protocols and record field data accurately, as the data would shape the programme’s future in Nigeria.

In a technical presentation, Prof. I.M. Utono of IAR, ABU Zaria, said insect populations could develop resistance to a control measure over time if naturally tougher individuals survived, reproduced and passed on the resistant trait. He said this could eventually make Bt-protected cowpea vulnerable to Maruca again if not proactively managed.

Prof. Utono outlined recommended IRM practices, including maintaining a refuge of non-Bt cowpea near PBR fields, regular scouting for unusual pest damage, prompt reporting of anomalies for expert confirmation, and a disciplined insecticide spray schedule for pests not covered by the Bt trait.

He recommended a first spray at 40 to 45 days after sowing to manage thrips, and a second spray at 50 to 55 days after sowing to manage thrips and pod-sucking bugs, with a third spray only where infestation of pod-sucking bugs is heavy.