KOMAZA is excited to announce a four-year research partnership with the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI). We are participating in KEFRI’s nationwide entomology research project to better understand the eucalyptus pest blue gum chalcid (BGC). The project will test mitigation strategies in order to limit the ravaging effects the chalcid wasp has on eucalyptus plantations.

The economic impacts of BGC

Blue gum chalcid, Leptocybe invasa (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) is a pest that has invaded eucalyptus, stunting tree growth and in some cases causing broad mortality across woodlots. Given that eucalyptus is a significant part of Kenya’s forest cover, with over 90 species present in Kenya, the tree is a vital contributor to the national supply of wood. Some estimate that it contributes about KSH 1 billion to the economy each year. It is critical to protect farmers from the blue gum chalcid, as widespread mortality would cause significant economic losses.

The spread of BGC

The pest originates in Australia and came to Kenya in 2002 by way of Israel, migrating down through northern Africa. It is now causing mortality in woodlots in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania – and is expected to continue marching toward South Africa. Within Kenya, the chalcid wasp has affected trees in Nyanza, Western, Central Rift Valley, Eastern, and Coast Provinces. Introduced to the Coast in 2003, the pest spread across most Coastal districts by 2009. KEFRI has been monitoring the spread of BGC attacks along the Coast since 2005.

Ngumbao Karisa (X-farm employee), Eston Mutitu (Senior Entomologist at KEFRI) and Clare Hunt discuss the research trial.

Responses to BGC

Effectively managing BGC is a challenge. Widespread use of chemical controls (such as systemic insecticide Methomyl or Methomex 90SP) is both environmentally unsound and economically unviable. Species diversification is one effective way to reduce the spread and severity of BGC attacks, a step that KOMAZA is embarking on with the introduction of the indigenous Melia volkensii as part of KOMAZA’s evolving farmer package (research continues into other commercially viable tree species).

One of the most effective pest management strategies is a Classical Biological Control (CBC) strategy, which involves the introduction of a biological control agent that is a natural enemy of blue gum chalcid. KEFRI has identified two parasitoids, Quardivasticus mendeli (QM) and Selitrichody koycevv (SK) as potential biological control agents which together have been effectively used against BGC in Israel and elsewhere in East Africa. It is these two parasitoids that KEFRI is evaluating in this “biological control” study.

Trial design details

KEFRI has applied for – and been approved for – governmental permits to import Quardivasticus mendeli (QM) and Selitrichody koycevv (SK) from Israel, first to conduct safety tests and then to be introduced into BGC-infested woodlots in Kenya. These parasitoids have been screened against a number of indigenous trees and plant species similar to eucalyptus to ensure that they will not have unintended effects on the ecosystem.

The trial design involves three plots of 500 eucalyptus trees each, each plot planted with different types of eucalyptus (E. urophylla, GC167, and GC10). KOMAZA’s plots are part of dozens of test plots in three provinces across the country (with at least three test plots per region in Western, Nyanza, and Coast provinces), which will be both pre- and post-release monitoring sites for several years after woodlot planting.

We will collect data on the incidence and severity of blue gum chalcid on the three trial plots. Then, the two parasitoids will be released onto the woodlots and data collection will continue to see whether the incidence and severity of BGC attacks decrease due to the natural predators. Specifically, the research will determine:

1. The population and damage dynamics of BGC in the Coastal region
2. The most effective method of the biological control agent’s release by assessing its establishment and dispersal rates
3. The impact of the parasitoids on reducing the impact incidence and severity of BGC

The team is collecting data on the incidence of BGC on the trial plot trees. To do so we shake the tree leaves over a white sheet and count how many fall out.

BCG are very small - hard to see with the naked eye. The team examines the sheet for any pests.

KOMAZA role in the trial

KOMAZA’s role is to plant and maintain three research plots of eucalyptus, each plot containing a different variety of the tree. KOMAZA will gather data on blue gum chalcid outbreaks. Over time, KOMAZA will help KEFRI analyze the data from various research plots across Kenya to determine the effectiveness of the parasitoids in stemming the spread of BGC. As well, KEFRI hypothesizes that E. urophylla, unlike other types of eucalyptus, is not a host of BCG, and can thus act as a natural buffer to the spread of BGC; therefore the incidence of BGC on E. urophylla will be comparatively analyzed to see if this hypothesis bears out with the data.

KEFRI’s role in the trial

KEFRI’s role is to lead the research trial, which involves:

• Providing technical expertise and necessary equipment
• Conducting site visits several times a year and as necessary if any problems arise
• Analyzing data as part of larger study
• Publishing the summary article in a scientific journal

The research will be conducted over the next four years, and the results of which are expected to be communicated in an academic journal.

Our experimental farm

The joint research is just one trial that KOMAZA is conducting on its experimental farm – the “X-Farm.” KOMAZA is committed to conducting best practice research about our crops – to ensure that they grow as successfully as possible while establishing a net positive environmental impact. We make operational improvements based on our research findings which help us better serve our farmers.

Meaghan Hawes, former Director of Crop Production, watches as Eston Mutitu, Senior Entomologist at KEFRI, signs an MOU to formalize the project with KOMAZA.

Over the past few weeks KOMAZA field staff have been busy preparing for the planting season. Facilitators have traveled from farm to farm making sure families have prepared their shambas and are ready to put trees in the ground.

As the rainy season began, we received our first shipment of seedlings at our experimental farm in Ganze. The bulk of these grew at the Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) nursery in Nairobi. Over the course of three weeks, we are receiving more than 165,000 seedlings.

Our team is now busy distributing these to 500 new farmers living in incredibly remote regions of Kenya. Under the guidance of our Extension Network, each farmer is planting a half acre of drought-resistant trees that will help him or her overcome poverty. So far nearly all of our seedlings have been delivered and almost as many are already in the ground. We’re seeing our biggest and most successful planting yet.

KOMAZA’s value capture team, which encompasses all areas of the business from harvesting through processing and logistics to final sale, spent an extremely successful week in Nairobi meeting with relevant experts and conducting field site visits related to KOMAZA’s work.

In all, we met with over 25 people from a variety of leading Kenyan organizations and companies, including:

• World Wildlife Fund
• Forestry Stewardship Council
• Finnish embassy
• World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)
• Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI)
• Kenya Forest Service (KFS)
• Timsales (one of Kenya’s largest logging and wood processing companies)
• Biashara (Kenyan sawmill)
• Kakuzi (best practice eucalyptus plantation and roundwood processing facility)

A highlight of the trip was our meeting with the World Agroforestry Centre. One of ICRAF’s major projects is encouraging the planting of fertilizer trees between rows of maize or other crops. These trees are nitrogen-fixing species that are indigenous to Africa and naturally improve soil fertility – boosting yields and reducing the need for costly artificial fertilizers.

For example, half a million farmers in Malawi, Tanzania, and Zambia have seen their maize yields double or even triple by intercropping with the fertilizer tree Faidherbia Albida. (For more information see ICRAF publications “Evidence for impact of green fertilizers on maize production in sub-Saharan Africa: a meta-analysis” and “Creating an Evergreen Agriculture in Africa – for food security and environmental resilience.”)

In Ganze, this kind of natural innovation is critical. Our partner farmers live on barren arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL ) receiving only 550 millimeters of rain per year. Appropriate fertilizer trees could improve their eucalyptus tree growth and subsistence maize yields, providing higher income and more food for their families.

Already, KOMAZA farmers plant nitrogen-fixing legumes, which Stanford research findings recently praised for their effect on agricultural yields and the environment. Now, after our recent meeting with ICRAF, we are incredibly excited to test tree species that will help KOMAZA farmers reap even greater benefits from their land.

Beyond intercropping, our meetings unearthed valuable information on a variety of topics, such as:

• Optimal planting, maintenance, harvesting, and processing regimes for eucalyptus
• GIS mapping and GPS technologies
• Optimal sawmill and roundwood processing facility design
• Forestry monitoring and evaluation systems and tools
• Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for sustainable woodlot management and processing
• Sustainable charcoal production techniques
• Species diversification in low-productivity arid and semi-arid lands (or ASAL lands – these are KOMAZA’s targeted farmer areas because they are the hardest to serve and few crops grow, making poverty alleviation that much more challenging)
• Rainwater harvesting (to minimize impact of drought conditions and improve crop productivity)
• Fruit trees (to increase nutrition)

Each conversation shed light on new possibilities for our farmers. Our value capture team is now exploring innovations we can apply to our model and preparing for follow-up visits with more of the region’s leading experts in our field.

Check back as we profile some of our findings over the next few weeks.