Fall armyworm infestation and management practices on maize fields of smallholder farmers in Northern Tanzania

This research article published by the Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences (JBES), 2019Fall armyworm (FAW) is native to America and is currently affecting maize production in different parts of Africa, and recently reported in Tanzania. In the present study, FAW infestation levels and their associated management practices were investigated in 90 maize fields in the 18 villages in Arusha, Kilimanjaro and Manyara regions. Infestation levels were assessed using a scale of 0 (no damage) to 9 (100% damage), while the management practices information was collected through a survey and questionnaires from 210 maize growing farmers in the 18 villages. Results showed that all fields were infested by FAW at low (1-4) to moderate (5-7) damage levels. Arusha scored the highest (66.59% and 5.422) significant mean incidence and severity (P