Cowpea is a major food legume crop in the Sahel with tolerance to drought and to the nutrients-leached acid sandy soils of this region. However, the existing cowpea varieties grown by farmers are low yielding and pest sensitive which make them unsuitable to satisfy farmer's needs. The objective of this study was to identify high-yielding cowpea varieties which are well adapted to the Sahelian ecosystem. Eight dual-purpose cowpea varieties from various sources were tested with and without insects control in Niger during two cropping seasons (2005 and 2007). In 2005, a relatively wet year, KVX 745-11-P and four other varieties (ISV 20, ISV 40, ISV 128 and IT98D-1399) gave highest grain yields ranging from 1220 to 1521 kg ha-1. In the dry year (2007), the highest grain yield was recorded with ISV 128. There were also significant differences in forage yield between varieties in both the wet and dry year. Application of insecticide increased cowpea grain yields significantly. Cowpea produced without insect control (spray) resulted in high grain yields losses and increased cowpea fodder yields in both years. KVX 745-11-P was the most sensitive variety to insects whereas IT98D 1399 seemed to be relatively the most insect tolerant variety. There were no significant differences between varieties in most forage quality parameters. These results provide the possibility of a potential extension of dual-cowpea varieties for improved food security in the Sahel. Keywords: Dual purpose cowpea, grain yield, fodder quality, sahel

A long-term study was conducted to explore the possibility of using traditional rain-fed systems for growing domesticated Ziziphus mauritiana (so-called Pomme du Sahel) in the Sahel. Five varieties, Gola, Ben Gurion, Seb, Umran and Kaithli, were grafted on six rootstocks of Z. mauritiana from various agroecological zones of Niger. Trees were planted inside microcatchments at 8 × 8 m spacing. Over a period of six years, the variety Umran gave the highest fruit yield (3600 kg·ha−1) and the lowest fruit yield was documented for variety Seb (1970 kg·ha−1). Individual fruit weight ranged from 25.8 g for ‘Umran’ to 9.5 g for ‘Seb’. The rootstocks had no effect on average fruits yields and fruit size. There was a significant linear correlation between fruit yield and annual rainfall. In a rainy year (680 mm), the average yield of the five varieties was 7580 kg·ha−1. The results of the current study indicate that dry land plantations of Pomme du Sahel can guarantee food security during dry years in the Sahel. However, further studies are required to evaluate the economic feasibility of this system.

In the Sahel that is typified by an agro-pastoral system and a long dry season between rains, the availability of animal feed is a very serious constraint.The objectives of this study were to identify pearl millet varieties with high forage productivity under rainfed conditions in the Sahel; to identify best planting densities and to find physiological mechanisms conducive to high forage productivity in pearl millet.The experiment was carried out at the ICRISAT Sadore Research Center in Niger during the 2006 rainy season.Five long duration varieties (Malgorou, Batchoudine, Sanioba, Yabo Maiwa and Somno Damari) as forage crops were compared at two planting densities (10,000 and 20,000 hills/ha).Dry matter yield and forage quality was assessed at the boot, anthesis and at the soft dough stages.The higher planting density gave in this year higher dry matter (and grain) yield than the lower density.The dough stage was the most suitable stage for harvest because dry matter was at its highest.However, organic matter digestibility and crude protein are higher at the boot stage compared with the dough stage.The Malgorou variety gave the highest dry matter yield at the dough stage (8.57tons/ha at the high planting density).The high forage productivity of this variety was attributed to the longer growing period of time before anthesis and the bigger number of tillers.The results of this study demonstrated that long duration varieties of pearl millet can become an important source of forage in the Sahel under rainfed conditions.

Introduction. In the water-saving and income-generating agroforestry cropping systems developed and promoted by the ICRISAT in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of West Africa, particularly in Niger, fruits of domesticated Ziziphus mauritiana ("apples of the Sahel") are severely damaged by fruit flies(Carpomya incompleta), and chemical pesticide application poses economic, environmental and human health problems. In the Bio-reclamation of Degraded Lands (BDL) system, apple of the Sahel is the main high-value crop, while in the Dryland Eco-Farm (DEF), it is grown alongside watermelon. Sclerocarya birrea (marula plum) is presently being investigated as a dryland tree species for fruit and oil production, either in orchards or such systems as BDL. Materials and methods. To complete preliminary results of earlier studies published elsewhere, we collected and incubated in 2010 ripe fruits of marula plum and water- melon in Sadore, Niger, where the above-mentioned agroforestry systems are developed, and we recorded emerging fruit flies. We also conducted a spot-spraying experiment (using GF-120) in an apple of the Sahel orchard in Niamey in 2010; we recorded undamaged and damaged fruits and incubated the latter. In the same orchard, we set up in 2011 a fruit fly trapping survey targeting the invasive species Bactrocera invadens (Chempac ® traps using methyl eugenol as the attractant). Results and discussion. The results showed that only Ceratitis cosyra emerged from marula plums, and only Dacus spp. from watermelon. The GF-120 spot-spraying experiment showed that C. incompleta was not attracted / intoxicated, contrary to Ceratitis spp. and Dacus spp.; the sprayed trees yielded significantly more mar- ketable fruits than unsprayed ones; only C. incompleta emerged from damaged fruit. Detection trapping revealed for the first time the presence of B. invadens in the Sahelian zone of Niger, including at the time of apple of the Sahel fruit production. Conclusion. This, alongside results of earlier studies, suggests a repellent effect of GF-120 on the monophagous C. incompleta species (Trypetinae), while it is attractive to oligophagous/polyphagous Dacinae fruit flies; some of them (e.g., Dacus spp.) damage watermelon, which is part of the DEF system, and produce fruit at the same time as the jujube tree. The prospects for harnessing these two opposite regulation pathways are discussed. Niger / Ziziphus mauritiana / Citrullus lanatus / pest control / Carpomya incompleta / Bactrocera invadens / Ceratitis / Dacus / control methods / integrated control / attractants / repellents

The African Market Garden (AMG) is a holistic horticultural production system for small producers based on low-pressure drip irrigation combined with a crop management package. Over the last 10 years, ICRISAT (the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) and partners have tested four AMG models in the Sudano Sahel of West Africa. The Thrifty (80 m(2)) and Commercial (500 m(2) drip kit) AMG systems were developed for individual gardening. The Cluster (multiple kits of 500 m(2)) and Communal systems were developed for producers to benefit from collective use of water, energy resources, land, purchasing and marketing. This paper describes the development pathway of the four different models and assesses their returns to investment. It was shown that irrigated vegetable production is a capital-intensive undertaking where investment and operation cost per unit land can be reduced through economies of scale. The payback period for a 500 m(2) traditional garden and for a single 500 m(2) AMG is 15 months, while for a 5000 m(2) Cluster or Communal AMG it is only 5-6 months. The latter two systems have been tested using alternative energy sources like solar radiation, gravitation or artesian pressure to further cut down costs of water supply. Copyright (C) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), a set of practices farmers use to foster the growth of indigenous trees on agricultural land, has drawn substantial attention as a contributing factor to a trend of increasing vegetation greenness in the Republic of Niger. This paper identifies drivers of FMNR adoption and assesses its impacts on rural households in the Region of Maradi, Niger, an area covering 42,000 square kilometers. The results show that 26% of households practice a form of FMNR involving both pruning and protecting woody vegetation. Adoption is strongly linked to soil type, market access, and the education level of the head of household. FMNR raises household income and increases crop diversity, household migration rates, and the density and diversity of trees on farmland. It is estimated that FMNR raises the annual gross income of the region by between 17 and 21 million USD and has contributed an additional 900,000 to 1,000,000 trees to the local environment. These findings support the value of continued promotion of FMNR as an inexpensive means of enhancing rural livelihoods and an attractive alternative to reforestation efforts relying on tree planting.

Low pressure drip irrigation is being promoted in Sub Saharan Africa as an alternative to traditional methods of small scale irrigation of vegetables. The African Market Garden (AMG) is a horticultural production system for smallholders based on low-pressure drip irrigation combined with an improved crop management package. The agronomic and economic performance of the AMG is compared to two gardens irrigated manually with watering cans. One of these gardens is managed according to the same improved crop management package as in the AMG, this treatment is called Improved Management (IM). The other garden is managed according to common practices of vegetable producers in the area, this treatment is called the Farmer Practice (FP). Crop productivity, labor and water use were monitored for two vegetable species (okra and eggplants). The experiment was performed on-station in Niger on three adjacent 500m2 plots in a sandy acid soil. It was found that improved crop management practices greatly enhance crop productivity over traditional methods at comparable production costs. The AMG gave higher crop yields and higher returns to investment than the treatments irrigated with watering cans. Labor accounts for up to 45% of the production cost in vegetable gardens irrigated by hand, where 80% of the producer time is spent on irrigation. The total labor requirement for the drip irrigated AMG was on average 1.1 man hours per day against 4.7 man hours per day for the Farmers Practice on a 500m2 garden. Returns on labor are at least double for the AMG against the other treatments. The returns on land from eggplant were found to be US$ 1.7, 0.8 and 0.1 per m2 for the AMG, IM and FP respectively. The returns on water for the cultivation of eggplant are around US$ 2 per m3 in the AMG, against US$ 0.1 in the Farmers Practice. This experiment showed the strong positive impact of drip irrigation and improved crop management practices on profits at minimal environmental costs, indicating that transformation of existing practices poses a considerable potential towards sustainable agricultural development.

Moringa leaves rank first among the most widely consumed leafy vegetables in Niger. Glucosinolate contents in leaves of five accessions of three Moringa species (M. oleifera, M. stenopetala and M. peregrina) ranged from 2.65 mu mol/g in old leaves of M. stenopetala (Ethiopian-1) to 28.62 mu mol/g in young leaves of M. oleifera (ICG-42). An Indian introduction, PKM-1 (M. oleifera) gave maximum leaf yield (7.5 t/ha) and had maximum consumer preference than the local (M. oleifera) and Ethiopian-1 (M. stenopetala) genotypes. Large scale dissemination of PKM-1 and use of other species under different production systems are described.

Okra (Abelmoschus spp.) is a traditional vegetable crop with considerable area under cultivation in Africa and Asia with huge socio-economic potential in West and Central Africa. It has been called "a perfect villager's vegetable" because of its robust nature, dietary fibers and distinct seed protein balanced in both lysine and tryptophan amino acids (unlike the proteins of cereals and pulses) it provides. However, okra has been considered a minor crop and no attention was paid to its improvement in the international research program in past. This review describes a general overview of okra's nutritional and economic potential with special reference to its past and recent progress on germplasm regeneration, genetic studies and efforts on genetic improvement in West and Central Africa.

Meeting the food needs of Africa's growing population over the next half-century will require technologies that significantly improve rural livelihoods at minimal environmental cost. These technologies will likely be distinct from those of the Green Revolution, which had relatively little impact in sub-Saharan Africa; consequently, few such interventions have been rigorously evaluated. This paper analyzes solar-powered drip irrigation as a strategy for enhancing food security in the rural Sudano-Sahel region of West Africa. Using a matched-pair comparison of villages in northern Benin (two treatment villages, two comparison villages), and household survey and field-level data through the first year of harvest in those villages, we find that solar-powered drip irrigation significantly augments both household income and nutritional intake, particularly during the dry season, and is cost effective compared to alternative technologies.

Morphological and genetic analyses were applied on 37 saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) accessions collected from distant locations throughout the American continent in order to: 1) develop and identify morphologic and genetic profiles for the saltgrass genotypes; 2) characterize the genetic distance among saltgrass accessions within the given germplasm collection; and 3) identify a possible linkage between patterns of genetic and eco-geographical parameters. Analysis based on 70 RAPD markers revealed broad polymorphism among the genotypes and enabled their individual characterization. A UPGMA dendrogram clustered the genotypes into groups according to a general pattern of their geographical origin. Yet, only the group of Californian accessions was significantly distinct from other groups, as determined by χ2 tests. Various statistical analyses indicated that only minor genetic differences existed between seashore and desert saltgrass genotypes, supporting that these two eco-geographical types belong to the same species, Distichlis spicata. Our results suggest that genetic interactions exist between geographically distant saltgrass populations, in spite of the dominance of clonal reproduction in this species. The contribution of dioecy, seed production, and epizoochory to the distribution patterns of saltgrass is discussed at the geographic and at the genetic levels.

Almost 1 billion hectares of land in the world is affected by salinity and over 50% of irrigated lands have salinity problems (Flowers and Yeo, 1995). Salinization has been identified as a major process leading to desertification of agricultural lands. The process of salinization of arable lands is mostly (but not solely) caused by human activities, and it is associated with malpractices in irrigation projects, mostly in arid and semiarid countries. Soil salinization can also result from natural processes, such as inland intrusion of seawater (i.e. coastal areas of West Africa and northeast China) or due to continuous evaporation from shallow aquifers in desert environments (i.e. coastal regions of north Africa and the Pampas del Tamarugal in Chile).

Salinity is an escalating problem in agriculture worldwide (Szabolics, 1989; Hamdy, 1996; Choukr-Allah, 1996). The use of recycled and saline waters to replace fresh water in agriculture contributes, among other factors, to the aggravation of salinity problems. Most crop plants are sensitive to salinity and poorly equipped to cope with salt stress without suffering from impaired growth and development, and even injury (Läuchli and Epstein, 1990; Maas, 1990). The adverse effects of salinity cause considerable reduction in yields, far below the economic threshold of most crops in present use. It can be stated quite confidently that the prevalent future environment of agricultural crops will be much more saline than today. Therefore, improving salt resistance of crop plants is of major interest in agricultural research. Halophytes are the ultimate candidates to serve as a genetic source for this purpose.

The effect of salinity on the quality of various agricultural crops has not yet been explored much. This information is very important to Israel due to the increasing use of saline water for irrigation. This paper reports the effect of saline irrigation water on the quality, especially the taste, of several crops. Fruits from a processing tomato cultivar exposed to various degrees of salinity had higher values for total soluble solids (TSS) and acidity than their controls. The yield of fruit after saline water irrigation is lower, but this is offset by the nigher fruit quality and its consequent higher value. Melon fruits from plants subjected to saline water scored higher in taste than their controls when the fruits were analyzed fresh. After 3–4 weeks of storage at room temperature, there was no longer any difference in taste. Even though salinity slightly increased the TSS content, this did not correlate with the taste scores. Iceberg lettuce grown with saline water did not significantly differ in taste from its control, even when the sensitive triangle taste test was used. The same was true for peanuts. Thus, for these two crops no advantage of better quality would compensate for possible lower yields. Salinity had little effect on the yield of two varieties of Chinese cabbage, but increased the frequency of tipburn.