Extracts of Common Pesticidal Plants Increase Plant Growth and Yield in Common Bean Plants
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Department of Sustainable Agriculture, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Management, Centre for Research, Agricultural Advancement, Teaching Excellence and Sustainability (CREATES), The Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, Box 447 Arusha, Tanzania
2
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Bunda, Malawi
3
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 3DS, UK
4
Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
5
Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Central Avenue, Chatham Maritime, Kent ME4 4TB, UK
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Plants 2020, 9(2), 149; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9020149
Received: 10 December 2019
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Revised: 13 January 2020
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Accepted: 20 January 2020
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Published: 23 January 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pesticidal Plants: From Smallholder Use to Commercialisation)
Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an important food and cash crop in many countries. Bean crop yields in sub-Saharan Africa are on average 50% lower than the global average, which is largely due to severe problems with pests and diseases as well as poor soil fertility exacerbated by low-input smallholder production systems. Recent on-farm research in eastern Africa has shown that commonly available plants with pesticidal properties can successfully manage arthropod pests. However, reducing common bean yield gaps still requires further sustainable solutions to other crop provisioning services such as soil fertility and plant nutrition. Smallholder farmers using pesticidal plants have claimed that the application of pesticidal plant extracts boosts plant growth, potentially through working as a foliar fertiliser. Thus, the aims of the research presented here were to determine whether plant growth and yield could be enhanced and which metabolic processes were induced through the application of plant extracts commonly used for pest control in eastern Africa. Extracts from Tephrosia vogelii and Tithonia diversifolia were prepared at a concentration of 10% w/v and applied to potted bean plants in a pest-free screen house as foliar sprays as well as directly to the soil around bean plants to evaluate their contribution to growth, yield and potential changes in primary or secondary metabolites. Outcomes of this study showed that the plant extracts significantly increased chlorophyll content, the number of pods per plant and overall seed yield. Other increases in metabolites were observed, including of rutin, phenylalanine and tryptophan. The plant extracts had a similar effect to a commercially available foliar fertiliser whilst the application as a foliar spray was better than applying the extract to the soil. These results suggest that pesticidal plant extracts can help overcome multiple limitations in crop provisioning services, enhancing plant nutrition in addition to their established uses for crop pest management.
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Keywords:
induced systemic response; foliar fertiliser; rutin; tryptophan; phenylalanine; botanicals
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MDPI and ACS Style
Mkindi, A.G.; Tembo, Y.L.B.; Mbega, E.R.; Smith, A.K.; Farrell, I.W.; Ndakidemi, P.A.; Stevenson, P.C.; Belmain, S.R. Extracts of Common Pesticidal Plants Increase Plant Growth and Yield in Common Bean Plants. Plants 2020, 9, 149. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9020149
AMA Style
Mkindi AG, Tembo YLB, Mbega ER, Smith AK, Farrell IW, Ndakidemi PA, Stevenson PC, Belmain SR. Extracts of Common Pesticidal Plants Increase Plant Growth and Yield in Common Bean Plants. Plants. 2020; 9(2):149. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9020149
Chicago/Turabian StyleMkindi, Angela G., Yolice L.B. Tembo, Ernest R. Mbega, Amy K. Smith, Iain W. Farrell, Patrick A. Ndakidemi, Philip C. Stevenson, and Steven R. Belmain. 2020. "Extracts of Common Pesticidal Plants Increase Plant Growth and Yield in Common Bean Plants" Plants 9, no. 2: 149. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9020149
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