The tricot approach: an agile framework for decentralized on-farm testing supported by citizen science. A retrospective.

Matching crop varieties to their target use context and user preferences is a challenge faced by many plant breeding programs serving smallholder agriculture. Numerous participatory approaches proposed by CGIAR and other research teams over the last four decades have attempted to capture farmers' priorities/preferences and crop variety field performance in representative growing environments through experimental trials with higher external validity. Yet none have overcome the challenges of scalability, data validity and reliability, and difficulties in capturing socio-economic and environmental heterogeneity.

Molecular Diversity and Pathogenicity of Species Complex Associated With Bacterial Wilt of Potato in Rwanda.

Bacterial wilt (BW), caused by species complex (RSSC), leads to substantial potato yield losses in Rwanda. Studies were conducted to (i) determine the molecular diversity of RSSC strains associated with BW of potato, (ii) generate an RSSC distribution map for epidemiological inferences, and (iii) test the pathogenicity of predominant RSSC phylotypes on six commercial potato cultivars. In surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019, tubers from wilting potato plants were collected for pathogen isolation.

Evaluation of Performance of Introduced Yam Bean () in Three Agro-Ecological Zones of Rwanda.

The yam bean () was recently introduced as a root crop with high-yield potential, considerable protein and micro-nutrient concentration to investigate its potential for food production in Rwanda. Except for Chuin types () which have high storage root dry matter (RDM) (26 to 36%), most accessions are consumed raw and are reported to have low RDM. The present study aimed to evaluate and identify adapted high yielding yam bean accessions in major agro-ecological zones of Rwanda.

Combining Ability, Maternal Effects, and Heritability of Drought Tolerance, Yield and Yield Components in Sweetpotato.

Knowledge on gene action and trait expression are important for effective breeding. The objective of this study was to determine the general combining ability (GCA), specific combining ability (SCA), maternal effects and heritability of drought tolerance, yield and yield components of candidate sweetpotato clones. Twelve genotypes selected for their high yield, dry matter content or drought tolerance were crossed using a full diallel mating design.