Abstract
A survey was conducted on the source of planting materials and pre-planting seed treatment practice by pepper farmers in Obenemasi and Ofoase-Kokoben communities in the Ashanti Region of Ghana using a well-structured questionnaire in June, 2011. Seed health test was conducted on 40 farmer-saved pepper seed samples collected from the farmers interviewed using the blotter method in the laboratory. Efficacy of garlic, ginger and neem botanical extracts in managing the seed-borne fungi of pepper seeds was also investigated in this study in-vitro. Results of the questionnaire-based survey indicated that, majority of respondent farmers, about 75% recycled seeds from previous harvest, 20% of respondents also used seeds obtained from friends and 5% obtained their pepper seeds from local markets. Nine genera of fungi including 12 species were identified from the pepper seed samples collected. The three botanical extracts proved effective as Mancozeb in controlling one or more of the test seed-borne fungi. Garlic aqueous extract (60% (w/v)) was effective as Mancozeb in controlling Colletotrichum capsici and Colletotrichum gloesporioides. Ginger aqueous extract (60% (w/v)) was also effective against seed-borne Fusarium and Aspergillus spp. whereas aqueous neem extract (60% (w/v)) was effective in controlling Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger.
Highlights
Chili pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a herbaceous perennial dicotyledonous plant of the family Solanaceae
The aims of this study were to identify the sources of planting materials and pre-planting seed treatment practice by the pepper farmers, document seed-borne fungi associated with farmer saved-seeds of pepper from Obenemasi and Ofoase-Kokoben in the Ashanti Region of Ghana and to explore the possibility of managing the seed-borne fungi with garlic, ginger and neem botanical extracts
Nine genera of fungi including 12 species were identified from the pepper seed samples collected from the two communities
Summary
Chili pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a herbaceous perennial dicotyledonous plant of the family Solanaceae. It is called cayenne, chili, bird’s eye or red pepper (Tindall, 1983). Chili has many culinary advantages and contains chemicals such as steam-volatile oils, fatty oils, capsaicinoids, carotenoids, vitamins, protein, fibre and mineral elements (Bosland & Votava, 2003). Chilies are low in sodium and cholesterol free, rich in vitamins A and C, and are a good source of potassium, folic acid and vitamin E (Bosland & Votava, 2003). Fresh green chili peppers contain more vitamin C than citrus fruits and fresh red chili has more vitamin A than carrots (Marin et al, 2004; Osuna-García et al, 1998). In Ghana, pepper is the second most popular vegetable after tomato (Schippers, 2000)
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