Purple witchweed (Striga spp.)
The parasitic weeds Striga spp. known as witchweeds, are important pests of maize, particularly in drier areas. The weeds grow on the roots of maize affecting development of maize plants. The young weeds tap the roots of maize plant and draw water and nutrients. A single weed plant produces many thousands of tiny seeds that survive in the soil for long periods. A heavy infestation can cause complete yield loss.
Striga weeds infest 40% of the arable land in the savannah region, causing annual crop losses of 7 to 13 billion dollars. Around the Lake Victoria basin infestation by Striga hermonthica causes 30 to 100% loss in maize yield. Striga infestation is associated with increased cropping intensity and declining soil fertility. Witchweed infestation has resulted in the abandonment of much arable land by farmers in Africa. The problem is more serious in areas with low soil fertility and rainfall.
None of these methods described will, alone, provide complete control and without complete control there is the certainty that surviving plants will mature and replenish the soil seed bank. Therefore, integration of one or more methods is essential for any substantial reduction of the problem. Furthermore, such integrated treatments will almost certainly need to be repeated over a number of years for long-term control.
- Weed regularly. This is the conventional method for striga control, but is time-consuming and labour-intensive.
- Rotate maize with trap crops. Some plants, such as such as sunflower, pulses and cotton, stimulate the germination of striga seeds, but also inhibit post-germination growth of the weed. Thus, although the seeds germinate, striga cannot develop successfully in these roots.
- Intercrop maize with Desmodium or other legumes. Desmodium have been shown to be more effective in reducing striga when interplanted with maize in the field than other legumes such as cowpea, soybean and sun hemp. Desmodium progressively reduces the number of striga seeds in the soil. For more information on Push-pull click here
- Use resistant/tolerant varieties. Some maize varieties show partial resistance, such as "Katumani" in Kenya.
