Participatory assessment of potato farming systems, production constraints and cultivar preferences in Uganda

Abstract

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a major food and cash crop mainly grown by small-scale farmers in the highland regions of Uganda. Farmer practices and constraints in potato production and management differ from one area to another and so are desired attributes. A survey was conducted in eight major potato producing districts of Uganda. The study districts were from Central, Eastern and South Western regions of the country. The survey was carried out from May to August 2015. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 577 individual farmers. The results showed that potato is produced for both food and cash benefits in all the districts. Only 2% of the respondents from Eastern and South western Uganda obtained seed from research stations while all respondents from Central Uganda used farm saved seed. Major production challenges were pests and diseases. The major pests were aphids and cutworms while late blight and bacterial wilt were the prominent diseases. Across the three regions Rwangume and Victoria were the commonly grown cultivars while Cruza and Marierahinda were the most rejected varieties. These were rejected on account of being white skinned with low marketability and Cruza becomes marshy on cooking. High yield, resistance to late blight, early maturity and marketability were the most preferred attributes in new varieties. Late blight had been experienced by 98% of the farmers and 96% of these reported to have used fungicides to manage the disease.