The currents status of Maize Lethal Necrotic Disease awareness and control in Bomet County, Kenya

The study aimed at determining the level of awareness about Maize Lethal Necrosis Disease in Bomet County in Kenya. Random sampling method was used to obtain a sample of respondents from a target household population of maize farmers. Structured questionnaire was used in collection of data and was subjected to R statistical software for analysis. The findings indicated that 54.8% of males were involved in decision making while 45.2% were females. Majority of the respondents 50% had attained their highest level of education as primary students, 35.8% were secondary schools holders, 8.8% had no formal education, while 5.4% had tertiary education level. Most dominant maize variety in Bomet County was DK777 grown by 97.5% of the farmers. It was also observed that a greater percentage of the farmers (77.5%) used crop rotation to control MLND in their farms, 55.0% applied the glow season strategy, 30% preferred clearing the weeds, 27.5% applied intercropping method whereas 22.5% of the farmers in this county applied spraying method to control the disease. There was no significance difference in the maize production between the sub counties (p-value 0.071). The correlation between maize yields and Maize Lethal Necrosis Disease indicated a negative relationship. Most of commercial maize cultivars grown were susceptible to MLND. This research recommended that MLND awareness be carried out in the County. Also, further screening of landraces and other genotypes for possible resistance to Maize Lethal Nesuosis Disease should be carried out.