Assessing effectiveness of macropropagation technology to produce healthy seedlings of banana varieties with high market demand in Eastern and Central provinces, Kenya

Abstract

Banana is an important food and cash crop in Kenya. However, its cultivation is hindered by scarcity of seedlings, pests and diseases, among other factors. Naturally regenerated seedlings which most farmers rely on are likely to carry pests and diseases. On the other hand adoption of tissue culture has been hindered by high capital and skill requirements. This study is investigating an alternative cost effective propagation method. Macropropagation is an inexpensive technology that can produce large quantities of high quality seedlings. However, this technology has not been evaluated to demonstrate its effectiveness to produce healthy seedlings with regard to local genotypes, pests and pathogen populations in Kenya. This is the focus of this study.