EVALUATION OF THE QUALITY STATUS OF AFRICAN NIGHTSHADE SEED PRODUCED BY FARMERS IN KENYA

Seed as an important input in crop production should be of high quality, pathogen free, have desired germination and emergence. This study was carried out to evaluate the quality status of African nightshade (Solanum scabrum and S. villosum Miller) seed produced by farmers in Kenya. A household survey was carried out in 240 farms using a structured questionnaire and a total of 164 samples of farm saved, market and certified seeds were obtained during this survey. Seed samples were tested in the laboratory at the University of Nairobi and Pearson’s correlation between seed quality and germination parameters was done. The analysis showed that majority of farmers use farm saved (50%) or seed purchased from the local markets (28%) which have low purity and germination rates. The farm, market and certified seed differed (p<0.05) significantly with regard to seed purity, moisture content, seedling vigor index and germination percentage. Farm saved and market seed had low seed purity 68.6% and 74% respectively, compared to certified seed 94.4%. In addition, only certified seed met the recommended moisture and germination percentage as per the International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) standards. There were significant (p≤ 0.05 and p≤0.01) positive correlation comparing seed quality and germination parameters, for example seed purity had significant positive correlation (r=0.76**) with germination percentage. This study affirms that the use of clean seed increases germination percentage of crops