The importance of coconut seedling production in guyana

The demand for coconut water and coconut oil is increasing thus there is interest in expanding coconut cultivation. Coconut is primarily planted on approximately 28,500 acres by more than 1,400 farmers along the Guyana coastline with the Atlantic Ocean and in the Pomeroon Riverain area. Tall types (e.g. Jamaica Tall) are planted for oil while Dwarf types (e.g. Malaysian Dwarf Green, Suriname Brown) are planted primarily for water. At least 50% of the Tall type population is more than 50 years old and needs to be replanted to increase productivity. Farmers traditionally collect seedlings growing from dropped nuts at the base of trees without attention to prolificacy. Since a coconut tree productive life is more than 50 years, the economic impact of this practice can be significant. Via training programs, CARDI is encouraging the structured production of coconut seedlings to increase yields. This project aims to enhance the supply of quality seedlings using local seed nuts. Mother palms that display prolific bearing habits, resistance to pest and diseases plus vigorous growth habit were geotagged and recorded in a database. Seed nuts were purchased from farmers who own these trees and subsequently distributed (in batches of 400) to ten selected (age, gender, location) lead farmers to establish coconut seedling nurseries. Each lead farmer was assisted by 10 second ring farmers in the establishment of their nurseries under CARDI supervision. Results to date show that weed control and irrigation were important nursery activities. Some nurseries needed to be fenced to counter damage by animals (cows, sheep, goats). Average germination of seed nuts was approximately 50%. Available seedlings are being distributed to second ring farmers and lead farmers. CARDI will continue the national survey to identify outstanding mother palms. Measures to increase average germination must also be implemented. Local coconut seedling nurseries should therefore be encouraged as their “success” will alleviate the pressure to import seed nuts thus avoiding the attendant risk of introducing exotic diseases (e.g. lethal yellowing disease) into Guyana. Further, given that a coconut palm will live 50 to 70 years, the importance of carefully selecting premium quality coconut seedlings as a bedrock to develop and grow the industry cannot be over emphasized.

The importance of coconut seedling production in Guyana

The demand for coconut water and coconut oil is increasing thus there is interest in expanding coconut cultivation. Coconut is primarily planted on approximately 28,500 acres by more than 1,400 farmers along the Guyana coastline with the Atlantic Ocean and in the Pomeroon Riverain area. Tall types (e.g. Jamaica Tall) are planted for oil while Dwarf types (e.g. Malaysian Dwarf Green, Suriname Brown) are planted primarily for water. At least 50% of the Tall type population is more than 50 years old and needs to be replanted to increase productivity. Farmers traditionally collect seedlings growing from dropped nuts at the base of trees without attention to prolificacy. Since a coconut tree productive life is more than 50 years, the economic impact of this practice can be significant. Via training programs, CARDI is encouraging the structured production of coconut seedlings to increase yields. This project aims to enhance the supply of quality seedlings using local seed nuts. Mother palms that display prolific bearing habits, resistance to pest and diseases plus vigorous growth habit were geotagged and recorded in a database. Seed nuts were purchased from farmers who own these trees and subsequently distributed (in batches of 400) to ten selected (age, gender, location) lead farmers to establish coconut seedling nurseries. Each lead farmer was assisted by 10 second ring farmers in the establishment of their nurseries under CARDI supervision. Results to date show that weed control and irrigation were important nursery activities. Some nurseries needed to be fenced to counter damage by animals (cows, sheep, goats). Average germination of seed nuts was approximately 50%. Available seedlings are being distributed to second ring farmers and lead farmers. CARDI will continue the national survey to identify outstanding mother palms. Measures to increase average germination must also be implemented. Local coconut seedling nurseries should therefore be encouraged as their “success” will alleviate the pressure to import seed nuts thus avoiding the attendant risk of introducing exotic diseases (e.g. lethal yellowing disease) into Guyana. Further, given that a coconut palm will live 50 to 70 years, the importance of carefully selecting premium quality coconut seedlings as a bedrock to develop and grow the industry cannot be over emphasized.

Adonidia merrillii (Christmas palm).

Adonidia merrillii is one of the most popular ornamental palms worldwide. Native to the Philippines and Malaysia, it has been extensively introduced, mostly in tropical regions but also as an indoor plant in subtropical and temperate areas. Currently it is listed as invasive in Cuba, the Bahamas and Anguilla. On these islands, this palm species has escaped cultivation and is now competing with native plant species. Because A. merrillii is highly susceptible to lethal yellowing disease, it is considered a threat for the conservation of native palm species in the Bahamas.

Multilocus Sequence Analysis Reveals Three Distinct Populations of “CandidatusPhytoplasma palmicola” with a Specific Geographical Distribution on the African Continent

ABSTRACTTo sustain epidemiological studies on coconut lethal yellowing disease (CLYD), a devastating disease in Africa caused by a phytoplasma, we developed a multilocus sequence typing (MLST) scheme for “CandidatusPhytoplasma palmicola” based on eight housekeeping genes. At the continental level, eight different sequence types were identified among 132 “CandidatusPhytoplasma palmicola”-infected coconuts collected in Ghana, Nigeria, and Mozambique, where CLYD epidemics are still very active. “CandidatusPhytoplasma palmicola” appeared to be a bacterium that is subject to strong bottlenecks, reducing the fixation of positively selected beneficial mutations into the bacterial population. This phenomenon, as well as a limited plant host range, might explain the observed country-specific distribution of the eight haplotypes. As an alternative means to increase fitness, bacteria can also undergo genetic exchange; however, no evidence for such recombination events was found for “CandidatusPhytoplasma palmicola.” The implications for CLYD epidemiology and prophylactic control are discussed. The usefulness of seven housekeeping genes to investigate the genetic diversity in the genus “CandidatusPhytoplasma” is underlined.IMPORTANCECoconut is an important crop for both industry and small stakeholders in many intertropical countries. Phytoplasma-associated lethal yellowing-like diseases have become one of the major pests that limit coconut cultivation as they have emerged in different parts of the world. We developed a multilocus sequence typing scheme (MLST) for tracking epidemics of “Ca. Phytoplasma palmicola,” which is responsible for coconut lethal yellowing disease (CLYD) on the African continent. MLST analysis applied to diseased coconut samples collected in western and eastern African countries also showed the existence of three distinct populations of “Ca. Phytoplasma palmicola” with low intrapopulation diversity. The reasons for the observed strong geographic patterns remain to be established but could result from the lethality of CLYD and the dominance of short-distance insect-mediated transmission.

Cuticular Wax Composition of Coconut Palms and their Susceptibility to Lethal Yellowing Disease

A number of metabolites isolated and identified from cuticular waxes have been used as chemotaxonomical markers and to explain the role of the wax layer in plant-insect and plant-pathogen interactions. Chromatographic analysis of the cuticular wax from pinnae of five coconut palm ecotypes showed that the three main components (<strong>I</strong>, <strong>II</strong>, <strong>III</strong>) in the wax can be used as chemotaxonomical markers for classification. The positive correlation found between the content of metabolites <strong>I</strong>, <strong>II</strong>, and <strong>III</strong> in the wax from the various ecotypes and their resistance or susceptibility to the lethal yellowing disease of coconut palms, did not coincide with the results obtained in an antifeedant assay. The results suggest that while the individual components do not play a significant role in the palm-insect interaction, the full composition of the cuticular wax does.