Assessment of damage caused by Capsid pest (Distentiella theobroma) attack on cocoa varieties in Mukono ditrict in Uganda.

Abstract

Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) is one of Uganda’s major cash crop. It is grown on an estimated 20,000 hectares by 15,000–18,000 smallholder households. About US$65 million of the Nation's total annual foreign exchange revenues come from cocoa. Due to its perennial nature and rapid vegetative development, cocoa hosts a variety of insect pests that have an impact on its production. These insects include Distentiella Thoebroma (Cocoa capsid) which is a major pest affecting cocoa production leading to about 75% of annual loss. The research study aimed to assess farmer’s knowledge on the capsid pest and its damage symptoms as well as the management practices done to control its spread on cocoa farms. The descriptive research design was used to systematically collect qualitative data from a representative sample of cocoa farmers from Mukono to obtain information on the capsid pest in cocoa. Five cocoa regions were purposively selected randomly from the population of those farmers who grow cocoa on their farms. 60 respondents were sampled to obtain the required data information, 12 farmers from each parish. Farmer’s knowledge on the capsid pest in Mukono as well as common practices of farmers to control these pests were assessed. The findings of the research study included farmer’s ability to identify the pest, the pest’s damage symptoms and the management practices done by the cocoa farmer’s. Majority of the farmers had heard about the capsid pest but they could not mention its associate damage symptom. Most of the respondents practiced pruning and use of pesticides for pest management on their farms. A chi square value at 95% showed that there was a significant (P=0.017) relationship between being a member of a farmer association and how pesticide application knowledge is acquired. In so more trainings are needed to enhance farmer’s knowledge of the biology and behavior of key pests in cocoa foe effective pest management.