Improving the identification, handling and storage of âdifficultâ seeds ...

Improving the identification, 

handling and storage of 

“difficult” seeds 

Stakeholder Workshop 

24 th – 28 th July 2006 

Pretoria, South Africa 

organised by the 

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 

UK 

and supported by the 

National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

South Africa 

Supported by 

Also supported by

Copyright © 2007 

Editors 

Address 


Vanessa Bertenshaw, with support from Kate Gold and Moctar Sacande 


Seed Conservation Department 

Wakehurst Place, Ardingly 

Haywards Heath, West Sussex 

RH17 6TN 

UK 

Tel + 44 (0) 1444 894100 

Fax +44 (0) 1444 894110 

www.kew.org

Improving the identification, handling and storage of “difficult” seeds 

Stakeholder Workshop 

24 th – 28 th July 2006 

Pretoria, South Africa 

Contents 

1. Project background 

1.1. Project background and workshop objectives 

1.2. Workshop programme 

1.3. FAO presentation: International Context on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and 

Agriculture 

1.4. RBG Kew introduction: Improving the identification, handling and storage of “difficult” 

seeds 

2. Country report summaries 

2.1. Angola 

2.2. Botswana 

2.3. Ecuador 

2.4. Ethiopia 

2.5. Ghana 

2.6. Kenya 

2.7. Lesotho 

2.8. Libya 

2.9. Malawi 

2.10. Mozambique 

2.11. Nigeria 

2.12. Sao Tome and Principe 

2.13. Seychelles 

2.14. South Africa 

2.15. Sudan 

2.16. Uganda 

2.17. Zambia 

2.18. Zimbabwe 

3. Other stakeholders’ presentation summaries 

3.1. IPGRI 

3.2. EAPGREN 

3.3. SPGRC 

3.4. NFCI 

4. RBG Kew species analysis of “difficult” seeds 

5. Group sessions 

5.1. Format of group sessions 

5.2. Group 1 report 



6. Plenary 

6.1. Plenary of South Africa stakeholder workshop 

6.2. Summary of Burkina Faso stakeholder workshop 

7. Annexe 

7.1. Workshop participants 

7.2. Questionnaires (for country and NGO/CBO reports) 

7.3. List of “difficult to conserve” species, as identified by the workshop 

7.4. Acronyms

Workshop participants, Pretoria, July 2006

1. Project background 

Supported by 

Also supported by

1.1. Project background 

The urgent need to build capacity to conserve plant genetic resources for food and agriculture is 

acknowledged in the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

(ITPGRFA) and The Global Plan of Action (GPA). Specifically, Article 5.1 (e) of the ITPGRFA 

commits contracting parties to promote the development and transfer of appropriate technologies ex 

situ conservation with a view to improving the sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food 

and agriculture, while Action 19 of the GPA prioritises the expansion and improvement of 

education and training. 

In light of the above, the UK’s Department for Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has funded a 3- 

year capacity building programme, delivered by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in collaboration 

with FAO, to address this need. 

Aware that certain crop species may present difficulties due to recalcitrant storage behaviour, 

inappropriate handling and/or germination problems, the purpose of the project is to improve the 

identification, handling, storage and use of such species. 

Although aimed primarily at gene banks, the project also hopes to benefit community seed banks, 

and others aiming to maintain seed quality during storage, thereby contributing to Article 5.1 (c) of 

the ITPGRFA to promote or support, as appropriate, farmers and local communities’ efforts to 

conserve on-farm their plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Focusing on the ITPGRFA 

Appendix 1 species, tropical forages, and non-Mediterranean vegetables species, the outputs of the 

project will include improved understanding and awareness of the problems of ‘difficult’ seeds, and 

increased uptake of appropriate seed conservation technologies. The principal activities include a 

desk study/literature review, stakeholder workshops, development and translation of training and 

dissemination materials, training workshops and follow-up. 

Workshop objectives 

▪ To identify the major seed physiology-related constraints facing gene banks, farmers and smallscale 

seed traders in handling and storing seeds. 

▪ Propose solutions to the above

1.2. Workshop programme 

The workshop was opened by Dr Julian Jaftha, Director of Genetic Resources Management in the 

Department of Agriculture, South Africa. 

The workshop was attended (see Annexe 7.1.) by: 

▪ participants from 16 African Anglophone countries (Angola, Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, 

Kenya. Lesotho, Libya, Malawi, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, South 

Africa, Sudan, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe) and Ecuador representing “other regions” 

▪ representative of IPGRI- SSA (Arusha, Tanzania) 

▪ representative of EAPGREN (Entebbe, Uganda) 

▪ representatives of SPGRC (Lusaka, Zambia) 

▪ representative of Nairobi Friends Club International (NGO, Nairobi, Kenya) 

▪ representative of FAO (AGPS, Rome, Italy). 

The workshop programme included country presentations, the external policy context (FAO), 

technical background (Kew), and presentations from IPGRI and other stakeholders. The country 

presentations and accompanying reports follow the format provided by Kew (see Annexe 7.2.) 

which was specifically designed to relate to and build upon the questions in the reporting format for 

monitoring the implementation of the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable 

Utilization of PGRFA. The questions focused on seed drying and storage facilities and viability 

monitoring, including listing of species that demonstrate low levels of viability during initial tests or 

after a period of storage. Participants were also asked to provide information about any activities 

their institutes were implementing in support of on-farm management and improvement of PGRFA. 

NFCI presented their experience of working with farmers to implement community seed banks. 

Tours around the NPGRC gene bank and the ISTA-registered seed-testing lab allowed useful 

discussions and exchange of information on seed handling and seed quality assessment. 

Presentations were followed by focus groups sessions and plenary discussions on ‘difficult species’, 

training and information needs, and priority equipment needs. 

Workshop timetable 

Monday 24 th July 2006 

9:00 – 10:30 Welcome and Introduction to workshop 

Overview of the problems of conservation of recalcitrant and other ‘difficult’ seeds 

and presentation of the project (RBG Kew) 

International context, International Treaty, GPA (FAO) 

10:30 – 11:00 Coffee break 

11:00 – 12:30 Reports from Angola, Botswana, Ethiopia 

30 mins each (20 mins + 10 mins questions) 

12:30 – 13:30 Lunch 

13:30 – 15:00 Reports from Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho 



15:30 – 17:00 Reports from Libya, Malawi, Mozambique 


Tuesday 25 th July 2006 

9:00 – 9:30 Wrap up from day 1 and introduction to day 2 

9:30 – 10:30 Reports from Sao Tome & Principe and Seychelles 

30 mins each (20 mins + 10 mins questions)


11:00 – 12:30 Reports from South Africa, Sudan and Uganda 


12:30 – 13:30 Lunch 

13:30 – 15:00 Reports from Zambia, Zimbabwe and NFCI, Kenya 



15:30 – 17:00 Tour of NPGRC 

Wednesday 26 th July 2006 


9:30 – 10:30 Reports from Latin America (Ecuador) 

30 mins (20 mins + 10 mins questions) 


11:00 – 12:30 Reports from: EAPGREN, SPGRC, IPGRI 


12:30 – 13:30 Lunch 

13:30 – 17:00 Visit to Maropeng ‘Cradle of Humankind’ 

Evening Workshop dinner 

Thursday 27 th July 2006 


9:30 – 10:30 RBG Kew species analysis presentation 


11:00 – 12:30 Group discussions 

12:30 – 13:30 Lunch 

13:30 – 15:00 Group discussions cont. 


15:30 – 17:00 Group discussions cont. 

Friday 28 th July 


9:30 – 10:30 Presentation of group discussions and recommendations 


11:00 – 12:30 Plenary discussion of workshop recommendations 

Presentation of Burkina Faso Workshop summary 

Workshop closure 

12:30 – 13:30 Lunch

1.3. FAO presentation 

International Context on Plant Genetic Resources 

for Food and Agriculture 

Mr. Juan Fajardo 

Food and Agriculture Organization 

Improving the Identification, Handling and Storage of ‘Difficult’ Seeds 

▪ Project presented by the United Kingdom in 2004 during the 10th Session of the Commission 

on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

▪ In line with international action framework towards strengthening institutions and building 

capacity for an enhanced management of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture 

(PGRFA) 

▪ Project supported by FAO through the Seed and Plant Genetic Resources Service (AGPS) 

Value of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

▪ Basic material for farmers and breeders to improve the quality and productivity of crops 

▪ Farmers have domesticated wild plants and created diversity, by adapting crops to new 

ecosystems and demands 

▪ Farmers maintain this diversity within their farming systems. Unless conserved ex situ, it 

vanishes when farming systems die. 

▪ Countries and regions are interdependent: for their food and agriculture, they all depend on 

crops originated elsewhere. 

▪ Therefore, these resources are absolutely essential for the food security of the world. 

▪ Most of the world’s genetic diversity lies in the tropical and semi-tropical countries. 

▪ Many efforts have been made in the last years to increase the number and diversity of 

accessions in gene banks, but emphasis must be in improving the efficiency of conservation 

(Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources, 1996). 

Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

A strong linkage between conservation and utilization 

National and International Programmes 

To meet the specific needs of PGRFA, countries are developing national programmes. The 

international community has also established a global system aimed at ensuring the safe 

conservation and promoting the availability and sustainable use of PGRFA. Elements of this system 

are: 

▪ The Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

▪ 

▪ 

The Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of PGRFA 

The International Treaty on PGRFA 

The Commission 

The Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture is a permanent forum where 

governments discuss and negotiate common policy and sectorial matters relevant to genetic 

resources for food and agriculture, both from plants and animals. The Commission advises FAO on 

policy, programmes and activities related to genetic resources. 

Objectives: to ensure the conservation and sustainable utilization of genetic resources for food and 

agriculture, as well the fair and equitable sharing of benefits derived from their use. At present 167 

countries and the European Community are members of the Commission. Regular sessions every 

two years. 

The Global Plan of Action 

▪ Adopted by 150 countries in 1996 

▪ Action framework aimed at guiding the international cooperation in filling in gaps, overcoming 

constraints and facing emergency situations in the field of PGRFA 

▪ Describes the priority activity areas for the conservation and sustainable utilization of PGRFA 

▪ Contributes to the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity in the field of food 

and agriculture 

Main Objectives: 

▪ To ensure the conservation of PGRFA as a basis for food security 

▪ To promote sustainable utilization of PGRFA 

▪ To promote a fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the use of PGRFA, 

recognizing the role of traditional knowledge, innovations and practices relevant to the 

conservation of PGRFA and their sustainable use 

▪ To assist countries and institutions responsible for conserving and using PGRFA to identify 

priorities for action 

▪ To strengthen national, regional and international programmes for the conservation and 

sustainable utilization of PGRFA 

20 Priority Activity Areas: 

▪ In Situ Conservation and Management 

▪ Ex Situ Conservation 

▪ Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources 

▪ Institutions and Capacity Building 

Activity Areas on ex situ Conservation: 

▪ Sustaining existing ex situ collections: safeguarding existing collections; developing 

international cooperation to sustain collections; promoting planned safety duplication avoiding 

unnecessary redundancy; developing efficient and sustainable conservation systems 

▪ Regenerating threatened ex situ accessions: development of regeneration plans for priority 

species and accessions; reinforce research to improve conservation technologies: lengthening 

the interval between regeneration cycles (orthodox seeds), physiological mechanisms linked to 

low temperature tolerance and dehydration (non orthodox seeds) and in vitro conservation 

technologies. 

▪ 

▪ 

Supporting planned and targeted collecting of PGRFA 

Expanding ex situ conservation activities: development of strategies and transfer of appropriate 

technologies for conservation of plants with “difficult” seeds and neglected species; 

strengthening the involvement of botanical gardens and field genebanks in conservation

Activity Areas on Institutions and Capacity Building: 

▪ Building Strong National Programmes 

▪ Promoting Networks for PGRFA 

▪ Constructing Comprehensive Information Systems for PGRFA 

▪ Developing Monitoring and Early Warning Systems for Loss of PGRFA 

▪ Expanding and Improving Education and Training 

▪ Promoting Public Awareness of the Value of PGRFA Conservation and Use 

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

Objectives - the Treaty provides for: 

▪ The conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture 

▪ The fair and equitable sharing of benefits derived from their use, in harmony with the 

Convention on Biological Diversity, for sustainable agriculture and food security 

▪ Adopted by the FAO Conference in 2001 

▪ Entered into force on 29 June 2004 

▪ Currently ratified by more than 100 countries 

General Provisions - each Contracting Party shall: 

▪ promote an integrated approach to the exploration, collection, conservation (in situ and ex situ), 

characterization, evaluation and documentation of PGRFA 

▪ develop and maintain appropriate policy and legal measures that promote the sustainable use of 

PGRFA 

▪ integrate these activities into its national programmes and policies and cooperate with other 

Parties and with international organizations 

Provisions regarding collection and conservation of PGRFA (Art. 5.1) 

▪ Survey and inventory PGRFA 

▪ Promote the collection of PGRFA and relevant associated information on those under threat or 

of potential use 

▪ Promote or support, as appropriate, farmers and local communities’ efforts to manage and 

conserve on-farm their PGRFA 

▪ Promote in situ conservation of crop wild relatives and wild plants for food production 

▪ Promote the development of an efficient and sustainable system of ex situ conservation, giving 

due attention to the need for adequate documentation, characterization, regeneration and 

evaluation, and promote the development and transfer of appropriate technologies 

▪ Monitor the maintenance of the viability, degree of variation, and the genetic integrity of 

collections 

Farmers’ Rights: 

▪ Recognition of the enormous contribution that farmers and their communities have made and 

continue to make to the conservation and development of plant genetic resources. 

▪ The responsibility for realizing Farmers’ Rights rests with national governments. Measures can 

include 

- protection of traditional knowledge 

- right to equitably participate in sharing benefits 

- participation of farmers in making decisions at national level 

The Multilateral System of Access and Benefit Sharing: 

▪ States have the sovereign rights over their PGRFA 

▪ Establishment of a Multilateral System (MLS) 

- to facilitate access to PGRFA

- to share, in a fair and equitable way, the benefits arising from the utilization of these 

resources 

Species covered under the Multilateral System (Annex I): 

▪ 35 crop genus + 30 forage genus (incl. maize, rice, pearl millet, sorghum, beans, cowpea, 

pigeon pea, potato, yam, sweet potato, banana/plantain, cassava, coconut) 

▪ Some important exclusions 

- Food crops: soyabean, groundnut, sugarcane, tomato, onion 

- Most tropical forages 

- Industrial crops: tea, coffee, cocoa, oil palm, cotton 

Facilitated Access to PGRFA within the MLS: 

▪ Access provided for conservation/utilization for research, breeding and training for food and 

agriculture. Excluded chemical, pharmaceutical and/or other non-food/feed industrial uses. 

▪ Standard Material Transfer Agreement (adopted by the Governing Body) 

- Speedy access, free of charge or minimal administrative costs 

- Passport data and other descriptive information also provided 

- Recipient cannot claim any intellectual property right that limit the facilitated access in 

the form received from the MLS. 

- Recognition of intellectual property rights over the resource. 

- Recipient will make available the resource to the MLS. 

Benefit-sharing in the MLS: 

Benefits arising from the use, including commercial, of PGRFA under the MLS shall be shared 

fairly and equitably taking into account the GPA, through: 

▪ Exchange of information: catalogues, inventories, results of research 

▪ Access to and transfer of technology: conservation, characterization, evaluation, partnership in 

research 

▪ 

▪ 

Capacity-building: training, strengthening facilities, scientific research 

Sharing of monetary and other benefits of commercialization 

- The Standard MTA provides for payment of a share of the monetary benefits of 

commercializing PGRFA products incorporating material accessed from the MLS 

- …except when the developer has enabled all users without restriction to utilize the new 

product for research/breeding, in which case the payment is voluntary 

→ in Parties with patent schemes - the patent holder must pay 

→ in Parties with plant variety protection systems (UPOV) - the breeder is encouraged to pay 

Supporting Components of the Treaty: 

▪ Contracting Parties should promote the effective implementation of the Global Plan of Action 

▪ International Agricultural Research Centres of the CGIAR make their collections available 

under agreements with the Governing Body (already approved – likely signed in October 2006) 

▪ Cooperation in international PGRFA networks is encouraged 

▪ Contracting Parties shall cooperate to develop a global information system on PGRFA 

Financial and Institutional Provisions: 

▪ Funding Strategy for the implementation of the Treaty 

▪ Governing Body composed of all Parties: one vote each, sessions at least every two years, 

decisions taken by consensus. 

▪ Secretary appointed by the Director General of FAO with the approval of the Governing Body 

▪ Mechanism for settlement of disputes 

FAO Activities on PGRFA

Through the Seed and Plant Genetic Resources Service (AGPS): 

▪ Technical support to the International Treaty and to the Commission 

▪ Facilitate the implementation of the Global Plan of Action in the countries 

▪ Support to international agreements on biodiversity and biosecurity in relation to seed and 

PGRFA 

▪ Prepare Report on the State of the World’s PGRFA 

▪ Promote seed security, improvement of seed policies, development of seed systems, 

rehabilitation of seed systems after disasters 

▪ Technical assistance to enhance conservation and use of PGRFA 

Conclusions 

▪ This project is fully consistent with the international framework on PGRFA and contributes to 

the implementation of the Global Plan of Action (ex situ conservation and capacity building) 

▪ Participatory approach of preliminary workshops: widest possible participation of stakeholders 

to identify major common constraints and set a plan of action to mitigate them 

▪ Challenges of this workshop: 

- Ensure sustainability 

- Establishing links for collaboration 

- Information sharing

1.4. RBG Kew Introduction 

Improving the identification, handling 

and storage of “difficult” seeds 

Dr. Kate Gold 


Seed Conservation at Kew 

Kew has more than 30 years experience in seed conservation. In addition to the Millennium Seed 

Bank Project (MSBP), we are also lead partners in the DIRECTS (Darwin Research Exercise in 

Community Tree Seeds) and ENSCONET (European Native Seed Conservation Network) projects. 

Millennium Seed Bank project 

Aims: 

▪ To collect 24,200 species from the drylands by 2010; 

▪ To develop bilateral research, training and capacity building relationships worldwide in order to 

support and advance the seed conservation effort 

Outputs: 

▪ Partnerships - >32 (ABSA) partners in 17 countries 

▪ Quality collections – seeds, vouchers, data 

▪ Research 

▪ Technology transfer 

▪ Education & public awareness 

Technology transfer: 

▪ more than 500 people trained since 2000 - our training programme essentially combines 

partners’ knowledge of their native floras with the seed conservation skills developed at MSB. 

The training activities are key to achieving the seed conservation aim of the project. 

▪ improving facilities & equipment - capacity building activities are key to the project and are 

valued by partners as important opportunities in Access and Benefit Sharing Agreements. 

Technologists at the MSB work with partners in seed bank design, to help improve seed 

conservation facilities and acquire equipment. 

▪ information dissemination 

- Seed Information Database – SID 

- Scientific and Technical enquiries 

- Technical Information sheets 

The “difficult” seeds project 

▪ Funded by UK government: Department for Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) 

▪ Kew personnel - Kate Gold, Moctar Sacande, Vanessa Bertenshaw, Robin Probert 

▪ FAO focal point - Juan Fajardo (AGPS) 

▪ Transfer technology – build capacity 

- National gene banks 

- Farmers (via activities with national gene banks) 

▪ Africa–focused 

▪ 3 years (2006 – 2008) 

▪ “Difficult” species (excluding. forestry species) 

▪ Complement national/regional initiatives 

Goal: a wider range of food and fodder plant species conserved and sustainably utilised (to 

contribute to poverty reduction and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals /GPA

GSPC /ITPGRFA). Purpose: improved identification, handling and storage of “difficult” seeds by 

African seed banks and farmers 

Outputs: 

▪ Improved understanding and awareness of the problems of “difficult” seeds 

▪ Increased uptake of improved seed conservation technologies 

Activities: 

▪ Stakeholder workshops 

- Burkina Faso 

- South Africa 

▪ Production & dissemination of information/training materials 

▪ Training workshops 

▪ Follow-up 

Outputs from BF and RSA workshops: 

▪ Country reports 

▪ Reports from farm-level projects 

▪ List of “difficult” species 

▪ List of constraints 

▪ Technology transfer priorities (species, techniques/methods) 

▪ Report/Proceedings 

▪ Programme of activities 

What do we mean by “difficult” seeds? 

The ultimate purpose of storing seeds, be it by farmers or gene banks, is to use them. Seeds in gene 

banks are primarily used for breeding, but, increasingly, gene banks may also supply materials for 

scientific research, in-situ projects with farmers/communities, restoring diversity lost to local 

genetic erosion etc. Some gene bank collections may not yet have been adequately used, mainly due 

to lack of resources for characterization and evaluation, or because there is no active breeding 

programme for a particular crop species. However, the expectation must be that at some point, 

collections will be used. Gene banks are not museums - even long-term conservation collections, 

regarded as an ‘insurance policy’, may be called upon at some time in the future. 

Farmers’ seeds are usually only stored from one year to the next, but community seed banks and 

similar initiatives aim to increase seed security by storing seeds for more than one season. Again, 

the objective must be to maintain high levels of germination for as long as possible. 

When the time comes to use stored seeds, the expectation is that they will germinate and produce 

strong healthy plants. If, for whatever reason, seeds do not germinate, or only germinate to a low 

level, then the resources spent on collecting, storing, characterising and evaluating, and 

documenting will have been wasted. For the purposes of this project, “difficult” seeds are defined as 

those seeds that, when the time comes to use them, do not germinate to an acceptable level. 

Sometimes the difficulty might lie in the seeds themselves, other times it may be the way they have 

been handled or stored that results in poor germination. The first indication of problems may 

become apparent during initial viability testing, either prior to, or immediately after, banking. 

Subsequent viability monitoring will also flag up species/collections with low viability. 

Poor germination at the time of use may be due to 

▪ inherent difficulties 

- recalcitrant or intermediate seeds (seed storage behaviour)

▪ 

- orthodox but dormant 

- orthodox but short-lived 

or to handling and storage difficulties reducing seed viability 

- immature orthodox seeds dried too rapidly 

- orthodox seeds insufficiently dried prior to storage and/or stored under poor conditions 

- seeds that have been damaged by insects (on-farm storage) 

Seed storage behaviour 

Defining seed storage behaviour 

▪ Orthodox/desiccation-tolerant - water can be removed safely 

▪ Recalcitrant/desiccation-sensitive - water removal is lethal 

- High critical moisture content – variable 

▪ 50% for Dipterocarps 

▪ 20% for Cacao 

▪ Intermediate - some water can be removed 

- Lose some viability after drying to < 8 % moisture 

- Dry seed longevity at 15 °C > 0°C > -20°C 

- Start to lose viability after 3 to 6 months at -20°C 

- e.g. coffee, papaya, oil palm, tropical, endospermic oilseeds in fleshy fruits 

Species with recalcitrant seeds present obvious difficulties for gene banks. Recalcitrant seeds are 

not easy to conserve. They need to be stored moist - not too wet or they will germinate, not too dry 

or they will die – and at an appropriate temperature - 15 to 10°C for tropical material and 1 to 5°C 

for temperate material. Even so, storage life is limited: only 3–6 months for tropical and up to 12 

months for temperate species. Depending on the species, and the resources available, field 

genebanks, ‘slow growth’ in vitro storage or cryo-preservation are alternative conservation methods 

for recalcitrant species. However, only 7% of species with known storage behaviour are recalcitrant 

and several species have been misclassified. 

The Seed Information Database (Flynn et al, 2006) contains information on seed storage behaviour 

for more than 10,600 species (biased sampling towards drier regions): 

▪ Orthodox = 9281 sp (89%) 

▪ Recalcitrant = 527 sp (5%) 

▪ Intermediate = 68 sp (1%) 

▪ Uncertain = 551 sp (5%) 

▪ Desiccation sensitive seeds are most common in wet environments e.g. tropical rain forest 

Seed provenance can provide clues about likelihood of desiccation tolerance (Tweddle et al.,2003): 

▪ tropical rainforest sp more likely to be intolerant 

▪ savannah sp more likely to be tolerant 

Seed morphology provides the best indicators. Desiccation intolerant species have large seeds with 

‘thin’ seed coats (Daws et al, 2006) 

If resources allow, this can be confirmed by desiccation tolerance screening (Hong and Ellis, 1996). 

Determining seed storage category, following the Hong and Ellis method (1996): 

▪ 

▪ 

Cannot have false positives – if a seed germinates after drying it must be desiccation tolerant 

Could have false negatives 

- wrong germination conditions 

- immature orthodox seeds 

- already germinating orthodox seeds

Orthodox but dormant 

Although less of a problem in the major cultivated crop species, dormancy is an issue in some crop 

wild relatives and underutilised/lesser known species. Specific requirements for germination may 

include e.g. dry after-ripening, alternating temperatures, stratification, smoke treatment, 

mechanical scarification etc. 

Orthodox but short-lived 

Information about relative seed longevity can help gene banks better plan viability monitoring and 

regeneration activities. A recent study (Walters, 2005) determined the time taken for germination to 

decline to 50% for 276 species, stored from 16 to 81 years, defined as the relative longevity value. 

▪ Short - Arachis hypogaea, Guizotia abyssinica, Oryza sativa, Carum carvi 

▪ Medium short – Zinnia violacea, Lupinus angustifolius, Lepidium sativum 

▪ Medium – Linum usitatissimum, Triticum aestivum, Sesamum indicum, Lolium perenne 

▪ Medium long – Citrullus lanatus, Eragrostis tef (abyssinica), Sorghum bicolor, Melilotus alba 

▪ Long – Abelmoschus esculentus, Eleusine coracana, Zea mays, Vigna radiata 

Immature orthodox seeds dried too rapidly 

Collections showing a low level of viability during initial testing may have been harvested too early. 

Desiccation tolerance is acquired during the later stages of seed development, around, or slightly 

after, mass maturity or maximum dry weight. Immature orthodox seeds behave as recalcitrant seeds 

and are killed by rapid drying. It is possible that some so-called recalcitrant and intermediate 

species are in fact orthodox species that were collected too soon. 

Collections with good initial viability but poor viability during re-testing may also indicate a degree 

of immaturity. Maximum storage potential (potential longevity) is achieved during the latter stages 

of seed development in most species, typically around natural dispersal in wild species. Although 

initial viability may be similar, seeds harvested too early will lose viability faster than those 

harvested at the optimum stage. 

Orthodox seeds insufficiently dried prior to storage and/or stored under poor conditions 

Not all gene banks meet international standards (3-5% moisture content, -18ºC storage conditions) 

for long-term storage. In many cases, long-term storage is not required – the species is adequately 

conserved elsewhere – and short-medium term storage of active collections is the purpose. Here too, 

drying and storage practices may not be optimal. Power failures can lead to fluctuating storage 

temperatures, but this is not as damaging as a high seed moisture content, caused by inadequate 

drying or poorly sealed containers. 

Resources spent on improving these procedures will save time and resources on regeneration (the 

mean regeneration need, as reported in 1996, was 50% of collections) and/or re-collecting. 

Consequently, this will free up resources for much-needed characterization and evaluation. 

At the farm level, ambient drying may be sufficient to dry seeds for one year’s storage or even 

longer. In humid regions, farmers have more difficulties in drying and storing seeds for any length 

of time. 

Harrington’s rules - seed life span doubles: 

▪ for every 1% reduction in moisture content (or approximately, every 10% reduction in RH) 

▪ for every 5°C drop in temperature 

On-farm seed losses due to insect damage 

▪ 75-100% (soft floured maize seeds, Peru) 

▪ >75% (beans, Amazonia, Peru)

References 

Daws, MI, Garwood, NC & Pritchard, HW (2006). Prediction of desiccation sensitivity in seeds of 

woody species: A probabilistic model based on two seed traits and 104 species. Annals of Botany 

97: 667-674. http://aob.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/97/4/667 

Flynn, S., Turner, R.M., and Stuppy, W.H. 2006. Seed Information Database (release 7.0, October 

2006). http://www.kew.org/data/sid 

Hong, TD & Ellis, RH (1996). A protocol to determine seed storage behaviour. IPGRI Technical 

Bulletin No. 1 (JMM Engels and J. Toll, vol. eds). International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, 

Rome, Italy. http://www.bioversityinternational.org/publications/Pdf/137.pdf 

Tweddle, JC, Dickie, JB, Baskin, CC, Baskin, JM. (2003) Ecological aspects of seed desiccation 

sensitivity. Journal of Ecology 91: 294-304 

Walters, C, Wheeler, LM, & Grotenhuis, JM (2005). Longevity of seeds stored in a genebank: 

species characteristics. Seed Science Research 15, 1-20.

2. Country report summaries 

Supported by 

Also supported by

2.1. ANGOLA presentation 

Angola National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

Mr. Pedro A.Moçambique 

Supporting On-Farm management & improvement of PGRFA (question 2.1) 

Although there is no specific project on that issue, but the Angola National Plant Genetic Resources 

Centre, together with the Agricultural Development Institute have been promoting in situ 

conservation on farm. So farmers keep growing local varieties a apart of exotic seeds. 

Germplasm storage facilities (question 5.3) 

The germplasm is stored under conventional storage conditions. Accessions are stored in freezers, 

at –18 ºC. This storage conditions in the genebank is for long term-conservation, whether for base 

or active collections. There is a thermometer inserted in the freezer for temperature control. The 

freezers have also got shelves where accessions are placed. The number of shelves per freezer 

varies between 7 and 8. At the moment the space available in storage room is not enough to 

accommodate more freezers. Several germplasm collections still remain to be stored. Now we are 

considering how to increase the storage room space. The duplicated accessions are stored in large 

packages for the base collection and small packages for distribution and multiplication. The 

accession size for the base collection depends on the amount of seed available. In the case of small 

collections, the minimum quantity taken is 1000 seeds. 

So far there are no in vitro conservation activities at the Angola National Plant Genetic Resources 

Centre. However, a tissue culture laboratory is under construction in Malange province, located in 

the northern part of Angola. 

There is a field genebank for roots and tubers, located in Malanje province. Only 2 crops are grown 

in the field genebank, Manihot esculentum and Ipomoea batatas. Although the field gene bank is 

under Agricultural Research Institute control, there is a network with Angola NPGRC. 

Drying facilities/methods 

Seeds are dried using two methods: desiccators with silica gel and automatic drying equipment. The 

automatic drying machine can dry seeds to 12% RH at a temperature of 18 ºC. Currently the gene 

bank has two driers. 

Storage containers 

The containers used to store the seeds are aluminium foil bags. This material is completely moisture 

proof, resistant against micro-organism and insect attack and can be sealed. The bags are labelled 

using permanent markers. 

Viability monitoring (question 5.5) 

Although the first collections were made in 1991, so far there is no particular programme to carry 

out seed viability monitoring. However, some of the accessions distributed to farmers or NGOs, 

have not showed any drop in seed viability. To assess seed viability, germination tests have been 

carried out using filter paper, instead of sand. So far there is no incubator in the lab but it is already 

mentioned on the NPGRC budget. 

Constraints (question 5.10) and possible solutions 

▪ The space available in the storage room is limited. This is the main constraint and this issue will 

be presented for discussion very soon to the Angola NPGRC committee meeting. 

▪ Another constraint is the lack of equipment, such as an incubator to assist germination testing, 

and a seed blower for seed cleaning.

2.2. BOTSWANA presentation 

Botswana National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

Mr. Tlhaloganyo Ounce Ofentse 


The material collected by the gene bank is stored in cold storage here in Botswana and duplicated in 

other gene banks like the SPGRC and RBG Kew. The NPGRC has two types of cold storage: a cold 

room operating at around –5 o C and 10 upright freezers operating at around –20 o C. Until the cold 

room temperature can be reduced to –20 o C, it will be used for temporary storage and the freezers 

will be used for long-term storage. Although the freezers are more expensive than the cold room, 

they have been found to be easier to manage than the cold room. Filing in both cold rooms and the 

freezers follows the same format. The cold room has been installed with static steel shelves for ease 

of filing. Since the accessions are contained in foil bags, it can be difficult to file them in storage as 

they are. To solve this, the foil bags are put into cardboard cartons before they are placed on 

shelves. This makes documentation and filing easy as the freezers, the cartons and the foil bags are 

all numbered. The foil bags are also tagged with the accession number of the accession they 

contain. 


The NPGRC has a walk-in dryer of about 16m 3 , installed with a sorption air dehumidifier and 

temperature controlling system. Since there is plenty of space in the dryer, the collections are spread 

in well-labelled jute bags and left to dry for several weeks. The dry room is set at 15ºC and 15% 

RH. 

Before acquiring a dry room, the NPGRC tried a number of drying techniques: drying under the 

sun, using silica gel and oven-drying. Desiccators with silica gel were also tried, but the space was 

too small to dry a number of accessions at a time. This meant a lot of silica gel and desiccators had 

to be bought. The gene bank resorted to drying the seeds by spreading them under the shade until 

they dry and moisture contents as low as 10% were obtained. This was not always possible since the 

technique is totally weather dependent. 

Measuring seed moisture status 

The NPGRC has been using the traditional gravimetric method for measuring the moisture content. 

This method proved to be difficult to sustain as it took time to produce results for each accession 

and it wasted a lot of germplasm as it is destructive. Recently the gene bank adopted the technique 

of measuring equilibrium relative humidity (eRH) as an alternative. The seed moisture content is 

checked at storage and then periodically checked. The gene bank has not yet set the frequency at 

which this has to be checked. It is recommended that the moisture test be conducted under dry 

conditions as seeds are hygroscopic, preferably in the dry room. 


Some factors that the NPGRC took into consideration in choosing containers were availability, cost, 

durability, strength and usage of space. The aluminium foil bag was chosen as it is readily available, 

strong, and occupies the volume of the contents. Heat sealing is cheap and the bags are re usable. 

The main shortcoming of these bags is that they are not transparent. This would be good for 

indirectly monitoring moisture levels using self indicating silica gel. 


The NPGRC carries out germination testing, as it is seen to be the most direct and reliable method 

for determining the percentage of seeds in a seed lot that are viable. When there are enough seeds in 

the seed lot, 200 seeds are used in germination tests. There are situations where as few as 50 seeds

have been used for germination tests, since there were limited numbers of seeds. These results 

cannot be analysed statistically, but they can help the gene bank manager to make relevant decisions 

on the seed lot. The seeds showing germination below 75% are rejuvenated. Before a germination 

test is conducted on the dry seeds extracted from cold storage, they are left in open air at room 

temperature over night to slowly warm up and absorb moisture from the atmosphere. This helps 

reduce imbibition injuries on the seeds. 

Two germination test techniques have been adopted by the NPGRC. These are the ‘water agar 

technique’ for smaller seeds and the ‘between paper technique’ for larger seeds. With the agar 

technique, the seeds are sown on 1% water agar in a Petri dish, which is placed in an incubator set 

to the right temperature. The between the paper technique was adopted from the national seeds 

testing laboratory in Botswana. The right size of the paper is identified and moistened with water. 

The paper is put on a flat surface and seeds arranged on the paper. The seeds are then covered with 

another moistened paper. The two sheets are rolled up with the seeds between them. The roll is tied 

and tagged with the accession number of the accession being tested. The rolled-up papers are put in 

plastic bags or boxes, then placed in an upright position in a growth chamber set to the right 

temperature. Germination is then recorded weekly until there is no more germination, discarding the 

seeds recorded as germinated. The seeds are recorded as germinated seeds if there is at least 2mm 

protrusion of the radicle. 

Improvement in germination percentage after specific pretreatments 

Berchemia discolor Euclea undulate Orbeopsis sp. 

Citrullus lanatus var citroides Grewia flava Pappea capensis 

Corchorus olitorius Harpagophytum procumbens Phoenix reclinata 

Corchorus tridens Hoodia gordonii Senna italica 

Cucumis africanus Mimusops zeyheri Stomatostemma monteiroae 

Euclea divinorum 

High percentage at storage 

Hoodia curorii ssp lurgadii Rhygozium brevispinosum 

Old seeds giving high germination percentages when tested or planted 

Corchorus olitorius 

Myrothamnus flabellifolius 


▪ Lack of botanical expertise 

Botswana generally lacks the trained staff in the field of botany especially in the field of taxonomy 

and systematics. This is the reason why there is a problem of generating more reference material 

e.g. floras, botanical publications, guide books, inventories etc. These people are vital in planning 

and implementing the conservation strategies. Both formal and informal training are important and 

have to be planned strategically to solve the prevailing problems. 

▪ Academic support and training with local university and postgraduate research 

There is no formal working relationship between the various local institutions and the local training 

institutions to train relevant people locally. Most postgraduates train in the temperate regions, 

mainly Europe and North America. This has proved to be a weakness as people are trained in a 

totally different environment and when they get back they have to start to adjust first with limited 

guidance. If postgraduates are trained locally, they can make an immediate impact, as the 

information they generate will be relevant to the local environment allowing continuity. Training 

institutions need to plan their academic programs to target the local market, especially in researchbased 

postgraduate studies. 

▪ Poor linkages between stakeholders 

This has lead to fragmentation in implementing and developing conservation strategies. It has also 

lead to duplication of efforts and waste of resources, with little success. The government has

ecently released a biodiversity strategy and action plan, in which institutions were identified and 

allocated specific activities to undertake. 

▪ Limited staff numbers 

This is a main concern as it limits the activities of the institution. In the 2000 national workshop on 

plant genetic resources it was recommended that the NPGRC be made autonomous so that it can 

directly address conservation issues with a deliberate program. This will mean staffing will be 

planned according to needs and determined by the strategy of the institution. The other strategy is to 

involve other institutions for generating conservation information, e.g. universities for developing 

germination protocols and storage conditions etc. This will reduce work-load for the limited 

NPGRC staff. This is only possible if there is formal networking relationship between the 

institutions. 

▪ Genebank operating under Department of Agricultural Research (DAR) 

If the NPGRC has to look at the wider picture of conservation then it has to be an autonomous body 

that can make decisions for conservation. Currently the NPGRC, operating under the DAR, depends 

mainly on the mandate, program and resources of DAR. This may be the main reason why there is 

limited staff in the NPGRC all the times. It has to be noted that DAR’s primary mandate is to 

generate technology for improving the Agriculture sub sector. This therefore has to be reflected in 

all its sections, including the NPGRC.

2.3. ECUADOR presentation 

Instituto Nacional Autónomo de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIAP) 

(National Institute of Agrocultural Research) 

Dr. Eduardo Morillo 


“Complementary conservation and utilisation of neglected traditional crops in Ecuador” is a project 

financed by the US program PL-480 and the Agricultural Department of US (USDA) operating in 

the northern area of Ecuador (Province of Imbabura, Cotacachi) since 2002. 

Four operational components (with the participation of farmers) are included: 

▪ Ex situ and in situ complementary conservation activities 

- agro diversity inventory 

- establishment of ex situ community bank 

- participatory on farm characterization 

- fairs promoting seed exchange 

- introduction of materials from the bank) 

▪ Agro-industry and marketing 

▪ Agro-biodiversity education 

▪ Agro-tourism 


▪ INIAP is a public institution which includes 7 main experimental stations in the country 

▪ Since 1980, INIAP began collection activities focusing on native Andean species 

▪ In 1991 the National Plant Gene bank was officially created with the mission of carrying out the 

conservation of agro biodiversity through ex situ and in situ activities (main centre in Santa. 

Catalina) 

▪ 

Ex situ conservation in INIAP nowadays includes around 15 000 accessions, collected in country, 

donated from other institutions and for custody 

▪ 17 % in field 

▪ 2% in vitro 

▪ 80% as seed 

Field collections: 

Field collections are located in three INIAP experimental stations: coast (Pichilingue), highland 

zone (Santa Catalina) and Napo (Amazonia) 

In vitro germplasm storage facilities: 

Santa Catalina has a biotechnology laboratory (culture room and a long-term storage room of 40m 3 ) 

which conserves duplicates of field collections or complete collections (e.g. national collection of 

Solanum tuberosum). 

Long term conservation - seed banks: 

▪ Santa Catalina unit has the most important seed bank in Ecuador - 10200 accessions of 170 

genus which belong to 400 food, medicinal, forage and forestry species 

▪ Storage of seeds is performed in two cold rooms - a base bank of 66m³ at -15°C and an active 

bank of 40.6m³ at 5°C 


Seed samples which arrive at the bank (from collecting, exchange or regeneration) are treated as

follows: 

▪ Selection of good seeds by visual inspection (maturity, health status) 

▪ Drying - Seeds are first dried at room temperature (11.6°C and 79% RH) and then dried further 

in a dry room (28.6m³, 21°C and 40% RH) 

▪ Moisture status measurement is done before and after drying (around 3 to 7% mc) 


▪ The containers used in the INIAP seed bank are aluminium foil bags for many reasons, 

following IPGRI recommendations (strong, not transparent, impermeable, easily sealed) and 

locally available 

▪ The dried accession is stored in three bags: one as a reserve, a second for germination testing 

and the third one for distribution 


▪ Germination tests are carried out using filter paper. Tests are carried out 

- Prior to storage 

- Periodically during storage 

▪ Germination tests comprise: in general 100 seeds per test per accession (this amount can be 

reduced depending on the availability of seed) 

Results of some viability monitoring in the seed bank 

Species Conservation time (years) Germination % 

Chenopodium quinoa 25 84.5 

Cyclanthera pedata 15 95 

Glycine max 13 100 

Cicer arientinum 13 88 

Lens culinaris 13 90 

Allium cepa 13 92.5 

Avena sp. 12 67.14 

Gossypium sp. 13 38.82 

Helianthus annuus 13 64.66 

Constraints (question 5.10) 

▪ A low number of seeds and viability for some seed collections conserved for more than 25 years 

▪ Lack of knowledge of pathogens which could be associated to the loss in seed viability 

▪ Lack of knowledge of the storage behaviour of some species 

▪ In some cases, incomplete documentation of the conserved material (passport data, initial 

viability, moisture content) 

▪ Lack of a systematic regeneration process for the conserved seed collections 

Possible solutions to the constraints 

▪ More research related to seed conservation: A project recently supported, proposes to identify 

six important seed collections based on their low viability and importance, for regeneration and 

characterization (establishment of core collections). Besides, this project aims to identify 

whether the presence of pathogens is associated with the loss of viability 

▪ Carry out research in the dormancy of seeds testing different methods of germination

2.4. ETHIOPIA presentation 

Ethiopia Institute of Biodiversity Conservation 

Dr. Gemedo Dalle 


“A dynamic farmer-based approach to the conservation of the Ethiopia’s plant genetic resources” 

was a biodiversity conservation project. The project addressed a neglected aspect of plant diversity: 

that of the indigenous crop varieties maintained by farmers in dynamic agro-ecosystems. Through a 

novel approach of establishing community gene banks (CGBs), the project played a vital role in 

linking farm communities and their landraces (farmers’ varieties) with the existing genetic 

resources conservation efforts of IBC. The in-situ conservation programs were undertaken in six 

regions (12 districts) covering wide range of agro-ecological conditions. 

Achievements of the project: 

▪ Capacity building (scientists, technical support staff, extension agents and farmers) 

▪ Establishment of Crop Conservation Associations (CCAs) 

▪ The seed supply system developed by the CCAs has provided the opportunity for farmers to 

take seed loan from the community gene bank with minimum interest rate. 

▪ Socially, this has alleviated the shortage of seeds for planting and also positively contributed to 

enrich diversity. 


The total capacity of the seed storage is about 325m³ and possesses four different cold store 

compartments. Three of these operate at sub-zero temperatures (-10°C) and one at + 4°C and 35- 

40% RH. 

The 3 conservation systems being used are: 

▪ Long-term storage (base collection): samples are kept for a long time under appropriate 

conditions and are never touched for any kind of routine activities. The storage consists of seed 

samples dried to the minimum required moisture content (3-8%) depending on the species and 

hermetically sealed in order to be kept at low temperatures (-10°C). 

▪ Medium-term storage (active collection): this is a representative of base collection and is a 

primary source for internal and external seed distribution activities. The storage temperature is - 

10 °C. 

▪ Short-term storage (temporary collection): collections with insufficient seed sample size are 

kept under this condition until they attain the required amount after being multiplied. The 

storage temperature is + 4 °C and 35-40% RH. 


IBC follows the standard procedure of the International Plant Genetic Resource Institute and rules 

of the International Seed Technology Association (ISTA). The drying room is maintained at about 

15–20°C and 10–15% RH with air recirculation. This environment is achieved by an air 

dehumidifier with refrigeration to lower the temperature and remove the heat generated by the air 

dehumidifier. Seeds are dried to attain moisture content between 3-8% for long-term conservation: 

4-8% for cereals and pulses and 3-5% for oil crops. Seeds are exposed to this environment in thin 

layers on open trays and/or thin woven cotton bags on metal shelves. 


▪ Dry oven method - seed moisture status is routinely measured on a weekly basis. 

▪ Gravimetric method, following the modified ways of ISTA:

- Low Constant temperature oven method, particularly used for oil crops. To attain the 

required moisture content, samples are kept at 101 – 103 °C for 17 hours. 

- High constant temperature oven method – This method is used to determine the moisture 

content in cereal seeds, samples are kept at 130–133 °C for 4 hours for large seeded cereals 

(like maize) and for 2 hrs for other cereals and also 1 hr for other species. 


Seeds being kept in the long- and medium-term are sealed in laminated aluminum foil bags. Paper 

bags are used for those seeds that are stored under short-term storage condition. 


The Institute performs viability monitoring on ex-situ collections. Monitoring is usually done every 

7-10 years from the date stored. Different substrates are used for germination testing: 

▪ Sand for large seeds (100 seeds per Petri dish with 2 replications) 

▪ Filter paper for small and medium sized seeds (50 seeds per Petri dish with 4 replications) 

Species that demonstrate low level of viability during initial tests 

Sorghum sp. 

Oryza sp. 

As studies that focus on the effect of storage age on species under conservation are lacking, it is 

difficult to generalize about species that show a significant increase or decrease in % germination or 

no significant change. 


▪ Drying room facility – the old drying room has been working for 30 yrs (1976-2006), the 

equipments of the dry room are so old , the dehumidifier is not working properly, causing a 

reduction in viability 

▪ Lack of trained manpower to maintain gene bank facilities (high dependency on 

experts/technicians from abroad) 

▪ Lack of proper data base management 

▪ Lack of duplicate gene bank 


▪ Installation of new drying room facilities 

▪ Build human capacity through training & strengthen facilities for study and data management. 

▪ Establish a duplicate gene bank and other mini-gene banks elsewhere in the country.

2.5. GHANA presentation 

Ghana Plant Genetic Resources Research Institute 

Dr. Samuel Bennett-Lartey 


The Plant Genetic Resources Research Institute (PGRRI) of the Centre for Scientific and Industrial 

Research (CSIR) participates in the activities of the Centre for Biodiversity Utilization and 

Development (CBUD), in the indigenous leafy vegetable program. In this program, farmers are 

aided to plant indigenous leafy vegetables for the market. PGRRI’s role in this programme is as 

follows: 

▪ Planning of activities in the programme 

▪ Raising of seeds of various indigenous vegetables for supply to farmers. 

▪ Training farmers on how to cultivate the various vegetables. This includes methods of breaking 

dormancy, nursery practices, field practices and handling of the vegetables against pests. 

▪ Short-term, medium-term and long-term conservation of leafy vegetable seeds for the 

programme. 

Indigenous leafy vegetables used in programme 

Solanum macrocarpum Celosia argentea Telfairia occidentale 

Cleome gynandra 

Amaranthus hybrides 


The facilities for short term, medium term and long-term conservation are as follows: 

▪ Deep freezers at -20 o C 

▪ Rooms for in vitro conservation (no equipment yet) 

▪ New rooms for cold storage (no equipment yet) 

▪ Fields for the conservation field collections 


After seeds have been extracted and cleaned, they are placed in plates for drying. The first line of 

action is to dry the seeds under ambient conditions until the moisture content falls to 10%. The 

drying is then continued using silica gel in seed bins. 

Other equipment for drying includes: 

▪ Ovens for seed drying 

▪ Silica gel 

▪ Plates for sun drying 


Seed moisture status is routinely measured using the oven method. A seed weighing container is 

firstly weighed empty and then it is weighed with the seed sample to be dried. The container and 

the seed sample are put in the oven at 105 o C for 24 hours. They are then cooled in a desiccator 

containing silica gel. The container and the dried seed sample are weighed again. 


The seed containers used at the PGRRI to store seeds are aluminium envelope containers which are 

sealed with a heat sealing machine. 


The institute monitors viability of ex-situ collections under cold storage. This is carried out using a 

‘germination test’ method. Under this test, various substrates are used:

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Blotting paper in Petri-dishes 

Paper towel method 

Top soil in pots/seed boxes. 

Species that demonstrate low levels of viability after a period of storage 

Arachis hypogaea Vigna subterranea Solanum sp. 

Abelmoschus esculentus 


▪ High relative humidity in the environment of the genebank, making seed drying very difficult. 

▪ High rates of fluctuation in the electricity supply to the seed bank, which houses individual deep 

freezers. This causes the deep freezers to breakdowns frequently and is very deleterious to the 

seeds under storage. 


▪ Provision of infrastructure with relevant fittings for cold storage. The relevant fittings include a 

dehumidifier for stabilizing RH in the drying facility, and temperature control equipment. 

▪ Cold stores for medium- and long-term storage. 

▪ A high-powered stand-by generator to be used in case of power outages. 

▪ Provision of an electronic moisture meter.

2.6. KENYA presentation 

National Genebank of Kenya 

Mr Peterson Wambugu 


The National Genebank of Kenya started community based activities with the objective of 

promoting on-farm conservation of the most suitable dry land indigenous and/or naturalized 

security food crops in various arid and semi arid regions of Kenya. The programme/activity is 

conducted under the auspices of EAPGREN (East Africa Plant Genetic Resources Network) which 

is funded by ASARECA and KAPP (Kenya Agricultural Productivity Project) which is funded by 

the World Bank. To achieve its objectives the project undertakes the following activities: 

▪ Participatory characterization and evaluation of indigenous crops which helps farmers to select 

superior ones for introduction/re-introduction into the farming system. 

▪ Multiplication of the seeds of the varieties selected by farmers and subsequent distribution for 

planting. 

▪ Training local communities in various aspects of seed production, processing and storage. 

The goal of the project is to contribute to enhanced conservation and sustainable utilization of biodiversity 

in Kenya. Some of the crops that have already been introduced into the farming system 

include sesame and several species of indigenous vegetables. The Genebank is working towards the 

enhancement of appropriate storage practices for rural farmers. 

Seed storage facilities and containers 

In Kenya, farmers have developed a variety of storage practices and the most common methods 

include: 

▪ Hanging seeds over the fireplace 

▪ Granaries 

▪ Hangings seeds on trees 

▪ Hanging seeds from the roof of the living house 

Some of the containers that are used by farmers include: 

▪ Gunny bags 

▪ Pots 

▪ Polythene bags 

▪ Plastic containers 

▪ Open baskets 

Seed Drying 

Small-scale farmers in Kenya just like in other parts of the world, have for ages successfully 

exploited the combined effects of sun and wind as a means of drying seeds. Sun drying is therefore 

the most widely used method for small-scale seed drying. 

There are, however, two major disadvantages to sun drying. Prolonged direct exposure to the sun 

may cause seeds to overheat resulting in loss of viability due to ageing, or physical damage due to 

cracking. Farmers in Western Kenya have actually reported that seeds placed on iron sheets during 

drying do not germinate and this can be attributed to the detrimental effects of high temperatures. 

This problem can be alleviated by regular turning of the seed or by providing some appropriate 

shading material. Furthermore, as soon as the seeds are dry, they should be removed from the hot 

sun.

The second problem associated with sun drying is that of erratic drying. During the dry season, sundrying 

can be a realistic and predicable option. During wet weather farmers are forced to cover their 

seeds. To avoid re-absorption of moisture by seeds at night, seeds should be transferred to airtight 

containers after daytime drying. 

Controlling pests and diseases 

Resource poor farmers in Kenya use indigenous local products for the control of stored product 

pests. The most commonly used products include: 

▪ Ash 

Farmers use various types of ash with the most common types include cow dung ash, sheep’s dung 

ash, ashes collected from kitchens and ashes from specific plants such as neem tree and rice. Ash 

has been reported to damage the cuticle of insects and to have a detrimental effect on egg 

development (Grant, 1990). 

▪ Smoking 

Smoking acts not only as a seed storage and drying method but also a method to control insects. 

The farmers themselves believe that the smoke has both an insecticidal and a repellent effect. 

▪ Oil 

In Kenya, Rheenen et al., (1983) found that an application of vegetable oil can be as effective as 

chemical insecticides such as Lindane in protecting Phaseolus sp. or Vigna unguiculata seeds 

against bruchid damage. The exact mechanism by which vegetable oils works is not completely 

clear, but it appears that they affect egg laying, embryo and larva development on the surface of 

seed. Vegetable oils cause the eggs and larvae to die before they can bore into the seed. The oil may 

also cause suffocation on the insects thereby leading to death. 

▪ Local plant extracts 

Some of the indigenous local plant products that have been used by resource poor farmers to treat 

their seeds during storage in Kenya include pepper, leaves of neem trees and Lantana camara. The 

cost and availability of conventional insecticides and potential health hazards, both to the 

environment and consumers, have necessitated continued use of these local plant products. 

However, some of the materials provide unsatisfactory protection due to their limited efficacy. 

▪ Mixing seeds with other non-plant based products 

Other compounds that have been used by farmers in Kenya include kerosene, cement, and crushed 

dry cells (Muasya et al., 2004). 

Germination testing 

Most farmers do not conduct any germination tests but they have an idea of how to select seeds 

which most likely will have good germination capacity on planting. In Western Kenya, farmers use 

the floatation method to select good quality seeds. The seeds are soaked in water and those that float 

are discarded while those that sink are taken for planting. It has also been reported that a very small 

proportion of farmers conduct germination tests in soil. 

Constraints to in-situ conservation 

Seed insecurity is caused by the following: 

▪ Inadequate facilities and methods for seed storage thus leading to reduced seed quality and in 

some cases loss of seed 

▪ Inadequate skills in seed production and inappropriate on-farm post-harvest seed handling hence 

compromising seed quality 

▪ Inability of small-scale farmers to save seeds of some species due to their short-lived nature 

▪ Inability of farmers to propagate some species due to seed germination problems especially 

caused by seed dormancy 

▪ Limited access to seeds of some species and appropriate varieties particularly by the resource 

poor farmer

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Lack of incentives to cultivate some species for example due to lack of market for some plant 

products 

Lack of information on in-situ conservation status of wild crop relatives 

Declining species diversity in non-protected areas 

Declining agro bio-diversity due to genetic erosion in-situ occasioned by factors such as 

abandonment of some traditional foods in favour of exotic ones 

Proposed solutions for in-situ conservation 

▪ Farmer participatory storage trials/experiments aimed at promotion and improvement of 

indigenous seed storage and preservation practices 

▪ Farmer seed training programmes and field days to improve the capacity of the farmers in seed 

propagation and general handling 

▪ Appropriate seed technology transfer 

▪ Post-harvest seed processing and handling studies 

▪ Production of leaflets and other training materials on how to store, dry and propagate seeds of 

particular species of importance to the community 

▪ Rural seed fairs 

▪ Participatory germplasm characterization, regeneration and multiplication 

▪ Establishment of community seed banks 

▪ Inventory of species diversity 

▪ Habitat enrichment of the protected areas 


The National Genebank of Kenya is the only long-term conservation facility in the country. There 

are about 12 other facilities which offer short and medium term storage facilities. The Genebank has 

2 cold storage cells each 75 cubic meters and have a storage capacity of 60,000 accessions. One 

runs at -20 0 C while the other one at +5 0 C. Currently, the Genebank holds over 47,400 accessions 

of various crop and plant species collected from various parts of the country. It also holds donations 

and duplicate collections from various parts of the world. 

During the first phase of the establishment of the Genebank, five cold stores were established in 

various agricultural research centres affiliated to the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI). 

These were short/medium term storage facilities to provide breeding work with day to day working 

germplasm stocks. The Genebank maintains the same base collection from the above-mentioned 

KARI Centres. Besides conservation of crop germplasm, the Genebank targets other plant species 

with medicinal, socio-economics and cultural value. Duplicate collections of ICRISAT sorghum 

and millet, African mulberry and world Sesame collections are stored at GBK. 


The Genebank has a dehumidified walk-in drying unit which runs at 20 o C and 18-20% RH. It has a 

handling capacity of about 200-300 seed accessions and is capable of drying the seeds to below 5% 

moisture content. The seeds are placed in labelled muslin cloth bags on the open racks of the drying 

room until the moisture content is likely to be in the range required for storage after the moisture 

content is determined. Those seeds that are found to have attained the required moisture content, i.e. 

3-7%, are packaged and subsequently banked while the rest are put back in the drying unit for 

further drying. 


The National Genebank of Kenya has, over the years, used the traditional gravimetric method in 

measuring seed moisture content but this method is slow and wastes valuable genetic resources. 

However, over the last 3 years, GBK has adopted the measurement of equilibrium RH as an 

alternative method. Equilibrium RH measurement is currently being used for seed accessions with

inadequate seed numbers such as endemic species. Accessions with eRH of about 20% and less are 

considered to have attained required moisture levels for safe storage. 


Once dried, seeds at GBK are stored in aluminium foil bags. Laminated foil packets are preferred 

by many genebanks because they occupy less space as compared to other plastic or metallic 

containers and provide hermetic properties if they are sealed properly. In addition, aluminium foil 

packets are easy to label and are cheap. 


The National Genebank of Kenya, having been in existence for more than a decade, is currently 

conducting viability monitoring of materials that have been in storage for 10 years or more. 

Collections whose viability has fallen below the conservation standards can be determined and 

regenerated as necessary. Regeneration is conducted for those accessions with a germination 

capacity of less than 85%. Viability at GBK is monitored by conducting a germination test on a 

fixed sample size. 

Species that demonstrate low germination 

Barleria acanthoides Kleinia kleinioides Becium angustifolium 

Celosia schweinfurthiana Felicia muricata Fuerstia africana 

Lannea triphylla Tarchonanthus camphoratus Leucas neuflizeana 

Lannea alata Vernonia brachycalyx Endostemon ctenoneurus 

Ozoroa obovata Heliotropium zeylanicum Hibiscus aponeurus 

Sorindeia madagascariensis Cordia sinensis Sida cordifolia 

Annona senegalensis Commiphora schimperi Malva verticillata 

Xylopia tettensis Maerua grantii Xylocarpus moluccensis 

Hunteria zeylanica Combretum sp. Turraea sp. 

Landolphia watsoniana Tetracera litoralis Pandanus kajui 

Aristolochia bracteolata Bridelia taitensis Sesamum latifolium 

Gomphocarpus stenophyllus Caesalpinia sp. Eleusine indica 

Vernonia anthelmintica Apodytes dimidiata Leptothrium senegalense 


▪ Poor germination due to seed dormancy 

▪ Limited information on seed storage behaviour 

▪ Unknown viability status of the conserved germplasm due to lack of capacity to conduct 

viability tests 

▪ Inadequate seed samples for conservation and to support research. 

▪ Low viability of collected and conserved germplasm 

▪ Limited collections available for utilization in research programmes 

▪ Inadequate information on geographic and taxa coverage 

▪ Inadequate diversity in ex-situ collections 

▪ Inadequate information on the diversity of the conserved germplasm 

▪ Lack of information on the potential value of the conserved germplasm hence limiting its use by 

interested users such as plant breeders. 

▪ Inadequate documentation of the working collections 

▪ Inadequate dissemination of the information on conserved germplasm 

▪ Intolerance to desiccation and/or freezing 

▪ Non-seed producing species (Vegetatively propagated)


▪ Training of staff to empower them with skills to conduct seed dormancy, seed storage and 

viability monitoring studies. 

▪ Strengthening the infrastructural capacity of institutions to conduct experiments and routine 

tests through for example the purchase of incubators. 

▪ Germplasm multiplication 

▪ Germplasm regeneration 

▪ Conducting germplasm collections for research purposes. 

▪ Eco-geographic surveys 

▪ Targeted geographic and taxa collections 

▪ Morphological and molecular characterization to enable selection of core collections and hence 

add value to the conserved germplasm. 

▪ Improving both the human and infrastructural capacity to conduct the above activities. 

▪ Preliminary evaluation 

▪ Documentation of working collections 

▪ Preparation of seed lists of the conserved germplasm for circulation to germplasm users and 

other stakeholders 

▪ Field genebanks 

▪ In-vitro conservation

2.7. LESOTHO presentation 

Lesotho National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

Mr Sebili Naha 


The Lesotho National Plant Genetic Resources Centre (LesNPGRC) works in collaboration with a 

local NGO, World Vision Lesotho, to conserve plant genetic resources on-farm. LesNPGRC 

distributes germplasm to farmer associations who are affiliated with World Vision Lesotho. 

Participating farmers are in the lowlands and the foothills, mainly in the northern (Butha-Buthe) and 

central (Nazareth) areas. Germplasm distributed includes both Zea mays and Phaseolus sp. 

Individual farmers coming to request seeds are also informed about on-farm conservation and 

eventually asked to participate in the activities. 


Germplasm is stored as active collections in cold storage at LesNPGRC, and duplicate base 

collections at SADC Plant Genetic Resources Center (SPGRC). The general objective of these 

activities is to ensure medium- to long-term conservation of both indigenous and exotic genetic 

material of socio-economic importance and to promote their utilization for crop improvement and 

development of sustainable agriculture. In terms of facilities, LesNPGRC has a small storage room 

with only six freezers. We are currently faced with a serious problem of limited space to 

accommodate additional freezers, coupled with frequent power failure. 


LesNPGRC has one dryer used for drying seed. This is not currently functioning, so there is a lot of 

material waiting to be dried. Sun drying is used only to lower the moisture content if collected or 

harvested material shows high moisture. 


Seed moisture status is measured after reception of germplasm and during drying. When germplasm 

has reached 5% moisture content, it is then packaged for storage. A few seeds are ground using a 

seed grinder and placed in a moisture analyzer from which a moisture content reading is taken. This 

method however wastes many seeds. 


LesNPGRC uses aluminum foil bags, which are put in cartons and placed in freezers. 


The seed genebank consists of living materials which must be monitored frequently for viability. 

We are compelled because of frequent power cuts to regularly test our material for viability. This is 

carried out by the Seed Testing Section in the Agronomy Division. Regeneration of the material is 

conducted if viability is below 85%. 


▪ LesNPGRC is faced with staff shortages. Current staff are also expected to do other duties of 

the department. The staff at the center therefore do not work full-time. 

▪ LesNPGRC faces a problem of regular power cuts, which may affect the material in storage. 

Sometimes this happens during weekends, meaning that even if power returns, freezers will be 

off for a number of days. 

▪ The small storage room needs expansion to safely store the material.


▪ The government should hire more staff so full-time employees are working in the gene bank. 

▪ There should be a standby generator to run in case of power failure. 

▪ The storage capacity should be expanded. This could incorporated into the budget, if it is seen 

as one of the priorities for running the gene bank well.

2.8. LIBYA presentation 

The National Gene Bank of Libya 

Dr. Ibrahim Ben Amer 


So far, we do not have a direct contact with farmers for such activities. However, the seeds of stored 

germplasm (local varieties, landraces, etc.) are available to breeders in ARC and to graduate 

students in agricultural institutes for further research. On the other hand, some of the conserved 

materials were collected either directly from the farmers or from local markets. 


The seed conservation facilities include: 

▪ Medium term cold storage room, 50m², with controlled temperature of 5ºC and RH at 35% 

▪ Long-term storage in 2 deep freezers (-18ºC) is available, however they are not used because of 

the lack of air vacuum pump and the proper seed containers 

▪ Field conservation (on-farm conservation), located in research stations belonging to the 

Agricultural Research Center, for fruit trees, citrus, date palm, olives, etc. 

▪ So far there are no activities in in-vitro conservation and cryo-preservation. 


The gene bank is equipped with a drying room of 18m², with controlled temperature at 20ºC and 

15% RH. The sample is introduced to the drying room and monitored from time to time. When the 

final weight is reached the sample is moved to conservation room. 


The initial moisture content of the collected seeds is determined after cleaning, using a hot air 

drying oven: 

▪ for starchy seeds 1-4 hours drying period at 133 o C 

▪ for oily seeds 17 hours drying period at 103 o C 

Large seeds are usually crushed before moisture determination. The seed moisture is adjusted to (6- 

10 o C) using the drying room. 


At the beginning of our work we used plastic containers of different sizes (depending on the 

quantity of the seeds), however, we noticed frequent change in the RH of the conserved samples. 

Therefore, we shifted to using air-tight glass gars with a rubber seal. A small bag of silica gel is 

added to each container for visual monitoring of stable RH. In the case of a color change, the 

moisture content of the conserved sample is re-determined, and if needed, re-dried. 


The viability of the seed collections is initially observed upon arrival to the gene bank. So far, we 

only use germination percentage as an indicator of seed viability. We do not have yet any data on 

species with low initial viability or species that demonstrate loss of viability after a period of 

storage. However, we did notice with some Hordeum vulgare collections that the samples showed 

low germination percentages in lab testing. However, when the seeds were planted in the field, they 

showed a good level of germination. The problem we see for viability monitoring is the lack of 

experience on how we can deal with forest trees and wild plants seeds which show a high degree of 

dormancy.

Normal germination test: 

▪ Seed collection cleaned 

▪ Broken and foreign seeds removed 

▪ Surface sterilization 

▪ Samples are incubated on wet papers at 25ºC 

▪ The number of replicates and the number of seeds per replicate depends on seed quantity 

available 


From our short experience in gene banks we can point out some constraints: 

▪ Lack of proper knowledge in gene bank management 

▪ Lack of references on how to conduct evaluation and characterization of germplasm collections, 

in terms of (physiology, morphology and genetics) 

▪ Lack of well trained staff members 

▪ Language barriers - all the staff members only understand Arabic, and most of the references are 

written in English 

▪ Low level of contact with national and international institutions dealing with genetic resources 


To solve at least some of these problems, international institutions should give more attention to 

capacity building in terms of training on national and international levels. Visiting experts can assist 

the infrastructure of different gene banks by studying the constraints directly on the spot (real 

diagnostic) and discussing with the gene bank management, a working plan to solve the problems.

2.9. MALAWI presentation 

Malawi Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

Mr. Lawrent Pungulani 


In order to promote on farm conservation of plant genetic resources Malawi was involved in a 

project coordinated by (IPGRI) The project was titled, “Community-based management of on-farm 

plant genetic resources in arid and semi-arid areas of Sub-Saharan Africa”. It was carried out in 

eight different African countries of arid and semi-arid conditions and it was aimed at investigating 

how policy interventions can be instituted in order to promote the continued maintenance of crop 

landraces. The objectives included investigating the best practices that are part of the production 

system, which assist most in the continued maintenance of various landraces. It also sought to 

investigate if such best practices can be employed in other areas. The methodology used was 

participatory in nature in that farmers were allowed to contribute as much as possible in 

determining which practices they value the most as being influential in the production of the various 

landraces. 

From the survey results it was learnt that farmers are keeping many different landraces of both 

Sorghum sp. and Vigna unguiculata. However, variability was noted more in Sorghum sp. Although 

there is continued maintenance of different landraces, there is gradual loss of some landraces 

especially due to changing rainfall season which was reported to be getting shorter. Score results on 

the 12 practices that were used showed that the four most valued practices, in descending order of 

importance were: 

▪ selection of good seed for planting 

▪ availability of organizations that can assist with farm inputs 

▪ storability 

▪ choice of variety to grow as per their response to environmental conditions. 

From the results obtained, several major lessons were learnt. For instance, policy interventions that 

target several different production practices are likely to succeed rather than those that target just a 

single practice. The different practices, be it use, management or marketing have a complimentary 

effect on conservation. It was also learnt that conservation is not by chance but by plan, therefore 

conservation through use is likely to succeed in promoting the continued maintenance of those 

landraces. 

Since the genebank was established, a number of programmes have been conducted in collaboration 

with farmers. Farmers were involved in an agro-biodiversity project that looked at different aspects 

of Sorghum sp. and Vigna unguiculata. Through this exercise, four varieties were released through 

participatory plant breeding. In addition to participatory plant breeding, nutritional analyses were 

conducted for farmers to appreciate importance of local materials in terms of nutrition. 

Through the SPGRC project, Vigna subterranea evaluation was initiated. This looked at 

participatory variety development. Upon completion of the exercise, three varieties of Vigna 

subterranea were partially released by the Department of Agricultural Research Services in the 

Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. In order to popularise the developed varieties, farmers 

are given seed to plant in their fields. These fields act as demonstration plots. This encourages 

maintenance of local materials on farm. 


On a large scale, Malawi Plant Genetic Resources Centre uses deep freezers for long-term storage 

of seed materials. Seeds are stored at -18 o C for seeds with moisture content of between 5-8%. All

the seed samples are maintained at national genebank at Chitedze Research Station in Lilongwe. 

The gene Bank has 25 deep freezers, 19 of which are full, while four are empty and two are faulty). 

It is expected that about five more will be procured this year using funds from the Millennium Seed 

Bank Project. 

Beside seed storage, some materials are stored vegetatively in field genebanks. In Malawi there are 

three sites that are used for maintaining vegetative materials: 

▪ Chitedze Research Station in the central region growing Manihot esculentum, Ipomoea batatas, 

Theobroma cacao, Dioscorea sp., Brassica oleracea (kale) and Plectranthus esculentus. 

▪ Bvumbwe Research Station in the southern region growing Musa sp. 

▪ Kasinthula Research Station in the southern region with Saccharum sp. 


Drying is a very big problem in Malawi. In the initial stages of genebank, the Nordic genebank 

funded the purchase of a drier through SPGRC, for drying seed samples. Due to electrical problems 

however, it was burnt. Thereafter, silica gel was used in drums to dry samples. This created more 

problems because of the rate at which seeds dry. Many samples were left under normal conditions 

without drying. This facilitated the ageing of seeds which led to seed requiring rejuvenation. In 

2003, the Millennium Seedbank Project bought two incubators that are now in use. The arrival of 

these incubators facilitated the drying of samples. The 2 incubators can be used as both seed driers 

and germinators. Plans are underway to construct a walk-in seed drier. 


Seed moisture status is commonly measured during the time of storing seeds. There is no routine 

program of monitoring moisture content of seeds once the seeds are in storage. The method used to 

determine moisture content is the gravimetric method that uses oven drying. 

Another method, which is less commonly used, is the non-destructive Rotronic Hygropalm, 

purchased by the Millennium Seedbank. This method requires other supporting instruments such as 

isotherms for calibration. In absence of the isotherms, accuracy of the data is not good. 


In line with the regional program, Malawi uses airtight aluminium foils for storing seed samples. 

The foils are sealed with heat sealers, ensuring that there is no exchange of moisture between the 

seeds and the outside environment. Another method for storing seed samples was recommended by 

the Millennium Seedbank for storing tree seeds. This uses airtight bottles. This method has a 

weakness in that it requires a lot of space in deep freezers. Also, besides requiring a lot of space in 

storage, the bottles are not easy to access locally. The Millennium Seedbank recommended that the 

use of aluminium foils be extended to storage of tree seeds in order to address the problem of 

inaccessibility. 


In Malawi, viability monitoring is not conducted very frequently due to lack of adequate staffing. 

This year this exercise will be prioritised and will be conducted as a routine exercise. For viability 

testing two major methods are used: germination testing and TZ analysis. Germination testing is 

being used on a large scale. This is done on most of the agricultural crop species. 

For the tree samples, no germination tests are conducted. The tree seeds are not tested due to the 

nature of the programme. Seed samples that are received are in very small quantities that testing 

viability will mean leaving nothing for storage. No tests are being conducted on the tree seeds as 

this is done by Forestry Research Institute of Malawi.

Species that demonstrate low levels of viability during initial tests 

Helianthus annuus 

Species that demonstrate low levels of viability after a period of storage 

Helianthus annuus 

Arachis hypogaea 


Malawi is constrained in many ways for proper management of ex situ collections. Below are some 

of the constraints according to priorities: 

▪ Lack of appropriate infrastructure 

The offices occupied by genebank are not suitable for genebank operations. The current building 

requires redoing in order to suit genebank requirements. For instance, the current building does not 

have a laboratory for seed testing, yet seed testing is a prerequisite to conservation of germplasm. 

Also in terms of vegetative materials, Malawi genebank does not have tissue culture equipment for 

cleaning materials that have been affected by diseases and also for slow growth 

▪ Backup power 

Malawi has a major problem with power interruption. This problem requires immediate attention by 

procuring a generator that will give power in times of power cuts. This is a big challenge but the 

Nordic Genebank has promised to purchase a standby generator. 

▪ Inadequate staff 

For Malawi Plant Genetic Resources Centre to fully function, it requires the following officers: 

curator, collection officer, characterization and multiplication officer, documentation officer, and 

storage officer. At the moment there are only three officers and one is pending retirement. This 

leaves a gap in terms of professionalism. At technical level, the MPGRC has only two technical 

officers against five areas in the genebank. In addition to the technical officers, there are three 

technical assistants. The current staffing level is far from the requirement of genebank for efficient 

performance. Other area that is lagging behind is the documentation. This area needs highly skilled 

personnel to handle different types of data generated in the genebank. Currently there is only one 

officer who is conversant with database management. 

▪ Lack of technical skills in managing ex situ collections 

Most of staff members have their background in general agriculture, not in the area of genetic 

resources. This deters proper management of plant genetic resources. This requires continuous 

training of genebank officers in different fields. The following areas require immediate attention: 

tissue culture, database management, seed testing procedures, taxonomy (for species identification) 

and molecular biology. 

▪ Inadequate local support 

There is still an apparent lack of recognition of the conservation work at National level as evidenced 

from resource allocation which has resulted in heavy reliance on funding from donor projects. 

▪ Lack of modern computers to document materials in the genebank 

Documentation is very critical in management of ex situ collections as such modern computers are 

required for this exercise. 

▪ Lack of financial support to rejuvenate old samples 

Malawi is ecologically diverse. Samples under storage were collected from different ecological 

zones. This implies that samples need to be multiplied or rejuvenated in sites that have similar 

ecological conditions to their collection points. This exercise requires a lot financial resources. 


From the problems highlighted above, an appropriate genebank office is the first and critical 

problem. Since constructing a new building is capital intensive, it is not possible to raise a new 

building using meagre local resources. This requires support from external donors that can support 

the local resources. Therefore, Malawi requests support from donors to construct a new genebank 

office so that ex situ collections are sustainably maintained.

For back up power, the Nordic genebank has given a green light to purchase a generator. 

In order to woo more local support, there is need for public awareness activities. Decision makers 

should be sensitized on the need for conserving biodiversity. This will require financial support 

from well-wishers. In addition, to create public awareness, the genebank intends to write proposals 

for submission to different national and international organisations for support. 

Computers are a necessity to proper management of ex-situ collections. Computers that are used are 

almost obsolete except for one. Malawi will try to get support from government resources to acquire 

new computers. This does not deter well-wishers who can ably provide support in this area.

2.10. MOZAMBIQUE presentation 

Agricultural Research Institute of Mozambique 

Mr Maurício Francisco 


Facilities and equipment: 5 freezers, fully operational. 

There are 1901 germplasm accessions at the NPGRC comprising crops, wild crop relatives, fruit 

plants and wild plants (table 2). Field genebanks need to be strengthened or/and established. Some 

germplasm accessions have been sent to SPGRC for conservation as duplicates. 

List of germplasm accessions held by NPGRC 

Zea mays Triticum sp. Vicia faba 

Sorghum bicolor Vigna unguiculata Arachis hypogaea 

Pennisetum sp. Phaseolus vulgaris Helianthus annuus 

Eleusine corocana Vigna subterranea Glycine max 

Oryza sativa Vigna radiata Cucurbita maxima 

Oryza longistaminata Mucuna pruriens Citrullus sp. 

Oryza punctata Cajanus cajan Cucumis sativus 

Leersia hexandra Lablab hypogaea Abelmoschus esculentus 

Triticale sp. 


Facilities and equipment: 1 sealing machine, operational. 


There is a great need for: 

▪ Equipment 

- germination chamber 

- altimeter 

- desiccator 

- oven 

- moisture tester and shredder 

- seed counter 

- glassware 

▪ Capacity building: 

- training at MSc level, PhD level 

- Areas of interest (statistics, molecular characterization, management of field gene banks, 

biotechnology , etc. 

▪ Funds

2.11. NIGERIA presentation 

Nigeria National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology 

Mr. S. E. Aladele 


The Centre has been working in collaboration with farmer groups in making available relevant 

planting materials endangered to their environment. We collaborate with individual farmers and 

large-scale farmers in sourcing their planting materials. We monitor and coordinate on-farm reports 

in collaboration with relevant Research Institutes that have the mandate for a particular crop, e.g. 

Ogun Farmers’ Association, OLOFA Farms etc. 


Physical facilities available for plant genetic resources conservation and utilization include a seed 

preparation and processing laboratory, viability testing equipment and drying rooms. Equipment 

installed and in use includes: 

▪ Seed cleaners 

▪ Separators 

▪ Dehumidifiers 

▪ Incubators 

▪ Digital moisture content machine among others 

▪ Bulk threshing machine 

▪ Ovens 

▪ Weighing balance(Mertler) 

▪ Ceiling machine 

There is a short-term/active collection storage room, maintained at 18ºC and 30% RH. For mediumterm 

storage facilities, deep freezers are being used to maintain some valuable germplasm as a back 

up to the short-term. Long-term/base collections are held in a prefabricated room, maintained at - 

20ºC and 10% RH. About 9,000 accessions of 216 crops species, i.e. economic and food crops, are 

being kept in the seed bank for short- and long-term storage. 

The field genebank covers an area of approximately 12 hectares of farmland with a reasonable 

number of stands. About 2500 herbarium specimens have been collected, preserved in steel cabinets 

and documented for future reference. 

The issue culture laboratory at NACGRAB complements the activities of the field genebank for 

various plant species. Tissue culture techniques such as meristem, nodal cutting, shoot tip and 

embryo culture are used routinely for rapid multiplication and disease elimination of endangered or 

underutilized plant species, as well as root and tuber crops. The center is about to commence cryopreservation 

of our recalcitrant plant species. Facilities are being acquired and staff have already 

been trained. 


The Centre maintains a drying room fitted with an air conditioner at low temperature, for drying 

cereals and legumes immediately after harvest. We sometimes oven-dry some crop species at a 

regulated temperature to reduce the moisture content to the required level. Silica gel and sun-drying 

are also used.


▪ Digital moisture content computer: this provides an automatic moisture level of the seed and it 

is non-destructive. The only disadvantage is that a sizeable quantity of seeds is required to 

measure the moisture content. 

▪ Gravimetric method: this is destructive and is measured on a fresh weight basis. It is the amount 

of water in the seed and is usually expressed as percentage. 

We normally measure seed moisture content from time to time. The method used is that we select 

some accessions from a particular tray randomly. We then determine the moisture content using the 

fresh weight basis. 


The following containers are used: 

▪ Aluminum foil 

▪ Plastic bottles 

▪ Aluminum container 

▪ Paper packets 


Viability tests are carried out on our ex-situ collections on a regular basis, using the following 

methods: 

▪ Germination test in germinating trays or Petri dishes, using a seed incubator at a regulated 

temperature 

▪ Tetrazolium chloride(TZ) 

Species with initial low level viability 

Sphenostylis stenocapa Cajanus cajan Phaseolus lunatus 

Species with low level viability after a period of time 

Glycine max Abelmoschus sp. Arachis hypogaea 

Gossypium sp. 


▪ Inadequate laboratory equipment 

▪ Irregular electricity supply 

▪ Inadequate field equipment 

▪ Inadequate funding 

▪ Lack of capacity building 


▪ Adequate funding of ex-situ collections 

▪ More field and laboratory equipment 

▪ Local, national and regional workshops, seminars and training on PGR conservation should be 

conducted more regularly

2.12. SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE presentation 

Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources 

Mr. José de Menezes 


▪ Some support from Mesquita Becaf 

Vegetables of Sao Tome 

Daucus carota Aspargus officinalis Brassica juncea 

Zingiber officinale Solanum tuberosum Allium cepa 

Brassica oleracea Brassica campestris Spinacia oleracea 

Cucumis melo Citrullus vugaris Cucumis sativus 

Lycopersicon esculentus Capsicum annuum Hibiscus esculentus 

Solanum melogena 

Phaseolus vulgaris 

Fruticulture in Sao Tome 

Psidium guajava Syzygium samarangenes Zizyphus mauritana 

Averrhoa carambola Citrus sp. Zea mays 

Glycine max Arachis hypogaea Mangifera indica 

Passiflora edulis 

Vigna radiata 


▪ Small vertical freezer 


▪ There are no collective drying facilities 

▪ Dehumidifier - out of service 

▪ Oven - out of service 


▪ By experience only 

▪ Knowledge passed from one generation to another 


▪ As we do not have a national programme, so there is no seed storage 


▪ No control whatsoever 

▪ We do not have any organized programme now 

▪ Lack of control of our genetic resources (vegetable, animal) 


▪ Lack of financial support 

▪ Lack of technical support 


▪ Need of a medium term project with technical and financial suport 

▪ Need to sensitize farmers 

▪ Need to sensitize politcians and law makers 

▪ Then move to a long term project to establish a seed bank

2.13. SEYCHELLES presentation 

Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources 

Mr. Keven Selwin Nancy 


Presently, there are 520 farmers who are registered with the Ministry of Environment and Natural 

Resources (MENR) and are farming either on private or state land. The registered farmers benefit 

from a range of services and concessions offered by the government. Altogether, 6,714 households 

(one third of the total households) are involved in some form of small-scale agricultural practices 

such as backyard farming. 

Plant Genetic Resources Development Section 

The Plant Genetic Resources Development Section (PGRDS) falls under the Crop Promotion and 

Development Division of the Department of Natural Resources. The PGRDS is based at the Grand 

Anse Research Station, which cover and area of approximately 8 hectares. 

The main of activities of PGRDS is the promotion and conservation of PGRFA. The section has 

worked extensively to inventory to rise and bring awareness on PGRFA over the past few years. In 

the year 2005, inventory of PGRFA was carried out in 150 home gardens in the district of Port 

Glaud and Grand Anse, Mahe. 

The use of the media to raise awareness of the mass population on the implementation of PGR has 

been extensive, especially through the local radio and television agricultural programmes. Last year 

the PGRDS helped with the production of television programmes entitled “Conservation and 

Utilisation of Traditional Crop Plant in Seychelles”. 

In line with the aspect of awareness on the conservation of PGRFA, the annual National 

Agricultural and Horticultural Show has as theme “Every Home a Garden” since the year 2001. In 

the year 2005 there was a home beautification competition where the conservation of PGRFA was 

the main aim behind the competition. 

Tropical Fruit Nursery 

The Tropical Fruit Nursery is a unit within the PGRDS based at Grand Anse, Mahe. The Tropical 

Fruit Nursery produces planting materials, mainly selected varieties of fruit trees for sale to the 

farmers and the public in general. The best selling items are grafted eggplants, pawpaw, citrus 

(lemon and orange), banana, mango, star fruit and avocado of which there are various varieties. 

There are other plants that are not so common and not produced on a large scale, but still need to be 

conserved as genetic resources. 

New partners and stakeholders 

There is a range of partners and stakeholders that the PGRDS work with for the sustainable 

conservation and utilization of PGRFA. The homeowners were the target of the PGRFA awareness 

campaign and they were interested to grow some local traditional food crops in their back yard. 

The tourist establishments and hotels occasionally use traditional fruit trees as part of their 

landscape. A collection of local fruit trees could provide an additional attraction for nature lovers 

and allow tourists an opportunity to explore “the exotic fruits of the tropics”. 

The Wildlife Clubs in the different schools are active with regards to the conservation of PGRFA. 

In 2005 a three-day workshop entitled “To Promote the Conservation and Utilization of Threatened 

and Neglected Plants” was held for Wildlife Club Leaders. The workshop was done in

collaboration with Nature Seychelles as part of their capacity building programme on sustainable 

production and consumption of the neglected crops. The aim was to look into the possibility of how 

school gardens could be used as a propagation centre to conserve and promote the plants. The 

project was financed by the German Government. 

International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture which was adopted 

on 3 rd November 2001 was ratified by Seychelles in May 2006. 

The aim of the International Treaty on PGRFA is to ensure the conservation and sustainable 

utilization of PGRFA and to see that the benefits from their utilization are shared in a fair and 

equitable manner. The Treaty is vital to Agricultural Development and World Food Security, for 

the good of present and future generations. 

Seychelles would benefit from funding under the Global Trust Fund for related projects in PGRFA 

conservation and utilisation. This will include assistance to regenerate the threatened collection e.g. 

the orchard at Grand Anse, Mahe. Benefits will also come in the form of education and training. 

FAO Project Management and Conservation of Agricultural Germplasm 

PGRDS benefited from the FAO project entitled “Management and Conservation of Agricultural 

Germplasm”. The US $200,000 project was initiated in 2001. During the life of the project 63 farms 

were surveyed and farmers welcomed the idea of on-farm conservation of crops identified during 

the inventory. The inventory is on going with the re-inventory to see what still exists and what has 

been destroyed. 

When the project was still ongoing Seychelles was a member of Southern African Development 

Community (SADC), hence benefited from the SPGRC meeting, study tour and training workshop 

both locally and internationally. 

Project Proposal for the Establishment of an Ex-situ Field Gene Bank to Conserve and Protect 

Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

There are 11 hectares of land within the National Biodiversity Centre based at Barbarons, Mahe 

which will be used for the conservation of PGRFA. The area is to be used to grow those species 

and varieties of crops that are threatened, rare, indigenous, endangered and neglected which are of 

value as a Plant Genetic Resource for Food and Agriculture. 

The project will include: 

▪ Land clearing – The topography of the site does not allow for mechanical clearing therefore 

most of the work will have to be done by hand using simple tools. 

▪ Infrastructure development – There will be need for a proper road/ footpath network. This is 

also necessary when in future the site is offered as a tourist attraction. There will be offices, 

stores, shed for workers to have meals and meet, and toilet facilities will be necessary. An 

irrigation system will have to be designed and installed to meet the needs of the various crops to 

be established. 

▪ Security system – The entire area will have to be fenced and secured from praedial larceny and 

vandalism. 

▪ Establishment of the orchard – Planting material will have to be collected from where they are 

available. A small nursery will be required to propagate planting materials and offer care and 

maintenance. Once they have been well hardened in the nursery, they will be planted out into 

the field and will need constant attention until well established. 

▪ Long term maintenance of the site will include a supervisor/ manager as well as technicians and 

field workers.

Crops to be considered for conservation include: 

▪ Orchard fruit crops 

▪ Oil Producing crops “Essential Oil Crops” 

▪ Spices and herbs 

▪ Root Crops 

▪ Beverage Crops 

▪ Medicinal 

In- situ/on-farm conservation 

Traditional farmers have formerly maintained a high diversity of crops and old varieties on their 

farms. This is now diminishing with the substitution by modern varieties, although some farmers 

still maintain their old varieties. There is evidence that the older varieties are less demanding in 

terms of fertiliser than the newly introduced varieties. 

The result of the PGRFA inventory shows that many varieties of major fruit crops that were 

conserved in field gene banks are still to be found on farmer’s land and private gardens. On-farm 

conservation is stressed with farmers during inventory visits and it is envisaged that is the way 

forward in view of the limited land resources. 

PGRDS encourages the use of farm saved seeds as a means of PGRFA conservation. Saving seeds 

of the better yielding varieties, which are adapted to the local condition and resistant to pests and 

diseases is a common practice amongst traditional farmers. Such crop includes beans, tomatoes, 

cucumber, pumpkin, bitter gourd (Momordica charantia) and snake gourd (Tricosanthes 

cucumerina). 


There are two types of germplasm storage facilities available at the Tropical Fruit Nursery. These 

are the short-term storage and the field gene banks. Most of the seeds are stored up to 6 months then 

they are sown on the field for bulking up and the surplus seeds are stored. Seeds stored at the 

Tropical Fruit Nursery are Vigna unguiculata, Solanum mammosum, Citrus sp. and other fruits such 

as Psidium guajava, Carica papaya, Annona muricata, Annona squamosa. There are certain 

varieties of seeds which are stored for short period which will later be used at the nursery for root 

stock e.g. Solanum mammosum and Citrus sp. 

Storage of orthodox seeds 

There are no facilities for cold storage conservation of orthodox seeds. Nor is there any in-vitro 

storage method. However, since the most important crops for the PGRDS have been fruits and root 

crops, field gene banks conservation has been an appropriate method up to now. 

Field gene banks 

Major collections were established at Grand Anse Crop Research Station in the late 1970s and a 

large collection of fruit trees was also planted at Beau Vallon in the early 1980s including both 

imported tropical fruit species and locally collected varieties. The Beau Vallon field bank was 

incorporated into a state farm in the 1980s. When the state farm system ended the field gene bank 

area was allocated for, as a result of which only a few of the original collection is left growing now 

on private property. 

The PGRDS maintains 8 ha of farm to include collections of major and minor tropical fruits. 

Superior cultivars are grafted on suitable rootstocks and are made available to farmers and the 

general public from the plant nursery. The Persea americana, Psidium guajava and Mangifera 

indica orchards (field gene bank) comprises of 4.8 ha, coconut 2.4 ha and banana 1.2 ha. There are

other tropical fruits such as Nephelium lappaceum, Annona squamosa, Annona muricata etc. also 

present at the Tropical Fruit Nursery field gene bank. 

Barbarons Biodiversity Centre 

The Barbarons biodiversity centre has 19 ha of land of which 11 ha will be used for field gene bank 

for PGRFA. Currently the biodiversity centre is working only with non PGRFA crops such as 

palms and other endemic plants. 

Upon the materialisation of the project “Establishment of an Ex-situ Field Gene Bank to Conserve 

and Protect Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture”, 11 ha will be permanent field gene banks 

where accessions of vegetative crops and fruit trees will be planted. Other species with nonorthodox 

seeds will also be included. The field bank will be jointly run by PGRDS and the 

Department of Environment 

Plant Genetic Resources of Seychelles for Food and Agriculture 

Manihot esculentum Flalourtia indica Momordica charantia 

Dioscorea Sandoricum koetjape Cucumis sativa 

Dioscorea bulbifera Litchi chinensis Tricosanthes cucumerina 

Colocasia esculenta Syzgium cummini Cucurbita masechata 

Ipomea batatas Psidium cattleyanum Sechium edule 

Maranta arundinaceae Ziziphus mauritiana Lagenaria siecraria 

Citrus sinensis Gossypium sp. Luffa sp. 

Citrus autantium Ceiba pentandra Lycopersicon esculentum 

Citrus grandis Benincasa hispida Solanum melogena 

Citrus limon Cucumis melo Solanum mammosum 

Citrus paradisi Persea americana Capsicum sp. 

Citrus reticula Cinnamomum sp. Solanum nigrum 

Citrus medica Psidium guajava Hibiscus esculenta 

Citrus aurantofolia E.malccensis Nasturtium officinale 

Citrus mitis E. uniflora Amaranthus sp. 

Mangifera indica Syzygium samarangense I. aquatica 

Anacardium occidentale Theobroma sp. Vigna sesquipedalis 

Passiflora sp. Carica papaya Vanilla swartz 

Camellia sinensis Carica caulifera P.nigrum 

Pouteria caimito Annona reticulata Zingiber sp. 

Durio zibethinus Annona muricata. L Thymus vulgaris 

Averrhoa carambola Annona squamosa Petroselinum crispum 

Averrhoa bilembi Annona cherimolia Allium schoenosprasum 

Ananas comosus Punica granatum Allium ascalonilum 

Musa sp. Vitis vinifera Curcuma domestica 

Musa cavendishii Coffea sp. Zea mays 

Artocarpus altilis Chrysophyllum cainto Myristica fragrans 

Artocarpus nobilis Manilkara zapota Eugenia caryopyllus 

Artocarpus heterrophyllus Terminalia catappa Mimusops coriacea 

Mangifera indica Cocos nucifera Passiflora quadrangularis 

Ficus sp. Lodocea maldivica Rollinia pulchrinervia 

Tamarindus indica Chysobalarus icaco Richardella campechiana 

Garcinia mangostana Phyllanthus acidus Nephelium lappaceum


The protocols for the drying of seeds are not used at the Tropical Fruit Nursery as there is no 

appropriate equipment. Cleaning of the seeds is carried out by Tropical Fruit Nursery workers. For 

fleshy fruits such as Mangifera indica and Annona squamosa, the seeds are removed from the 

mature fruits. They are then washed and cleaned before drying. Some of the seeds such as Persea 

americana are dipped in fungicide (Benlate) as a seed treatment before storage. For Citrus sp., the 

fruit is cut in half, the seeds are squeezed out, washed and dried before storage. Seeds such as 

Averrhoa bilembi, Phyllanthus acidus, and star fruit Averrhoa carambola the seeds are first washed 

in water so as to remove the mucus on the seeds, otherwise the seeds will never germinate. 

The seeds are air-dried at room temperature on a table inside the nursery building. This takes 2 - 4 

days for drying depending on the prevailing weather. At the Barbarons biodiversity centre there is 

an oven and a desiccator with silica gel which are used for the drying of seeds. The equipment is 

rarely used due to lack of trained personnel. 


At the Tropical Fruit Nursery seed moisture determination is not carried out since the required 

equipment is not available. Seed moisture is occasionally determined at the biodiversity centre. 

Seed drying is done in an oven and is measured on a wet weigh basis. There is also a desiccator 

which is used for that purpose. 


At the Tropical Fruit Nursery seeds are stored in plastic jars and plastic bags. They are then stored 

in a refrigerator at a temperature of about 18°C. The relative humidity is not controlled and the 

seeds can be stored up to 6 months. 

Seeds are stored in plastic airtight jars, standard plastic bags and aluminium foil bags at the 

biodiversity centre. The seeds are then stored in a deep freezer at temperatures ranging from 0 °C to 

-20°C. 


Seed quality and health are assessed visually before storage at the Tropical Fruit Nursery. There is 

no initial test for seed viability and it is not monitored during storage since the seeds are stored for 

about 6 months only 

The seeds are tested by carrying out germination tests. After the 6 month storage period, the seeds 

are usually planted out for bulking up and storage. Seed germination tests are carried out at the 

biodiversity centre, normally when seed shows strange physical characteristics during storage. The 

tests are carried out using both the imported and the locally made germination tray, in the nursery. 

Species that demonstrate low levels of viability during initial tests, if any is carried out, are citrus 

root stock seeds. Species that demonstrate low levels of viability after a period of storage usually 

after 6 months are Vigna unguiculata, Citrus sp., Solanum mammosum and Carica papaya. 


The priority is to materialize the project entitled “Project for the Establishment of an ex-situ field 

gene bank to conserve and protect PGRFA”. The PGRDS is still seeking funds for the project. 

There is a need for appropriate equipment for short- and medium-term storage of PGRFA, this 

would include oven, desiccator, electronic balance, appropriate bags and containers, sealer for the 

bags, deep freezer, etc. for the storage of seeds.

There is a serious need for the training of staff in the domain of field gene banks and seed banks 

management. 

The main constraints are: 

▪ With the substitution of older varieties by new high yielding imported varieties of many crops, 

there is considerable evidence that farmers have completely abandoned locally adapted 

varieties. There is a real danger of extinction of these old varieties; 

▪ Land is by far the biggest limiting factor for development in small islands and there is intense 

competition by all sectors. Much of the land traditionally used for farming and agriculture was 

absorbed into housing and other social development; 

▪ Skilled labour for agriculture became less available as many young people moved out of the 

sector for better job prospects in tourism and the service industry ; 

▪ Government’s budget can no longer afford to keep a huge work force to maintain huge orchards 

or field gene bank; 

▪ There is a shortage of PGRFA conservation and utilisation technical literature; 


For the future food security of the country there is an urgent need to conserve the PGR of adapted 

crop plants introduced into Seychelles over the past 250 years. Some of the solutions to the 

constraints are: 

▪ Promote education and awareness about plant diversity for the benefit of present and future 

generations so that every sector of society recognises its role in plant conservation; 

▪ The National Agricultural 2003 – 2013 perceives households as a major potential contributor to 

National Agricultural production in the next decade. It is estimated that households can 

contribute to almost a 25% increase of the area currently under intensive agriculture. In the 

same light, households can be made to be custodians of rare, neglected, endangered or 

threatened species of PGRFA; 

▪ Inventory of all varieties of fruit trees growing on the islands, including those in the field banks, 

on private land and in farmers’ fields; 

▪ Where local varieties of crop plants are found, samples should be collected and transferred to 

secure ex-situ conservation sites, seed bank and field gene bank; 

▪ Many traditional farmers maintain high diversity of crops and varieties on small farms, 

providing year round varied produce for their families and for the market. Incentives should be 

found to encourage them to continue with this system, possibility in the form of advantageous 

conditions at the local agricultural input outlet; 

▪ Training is required in the area of PGR conservation and utilization for technical and 

professional staff at all levels. There is also a need to train one taxonomist in the field of 

identification of PGRFA; 

▪ Approach should be made to different international organisation for technical literature

2.14. SOUTH AFRICA presentation 

South Africa National Gene Bank 

Mr. Andre Lezar 


The NPGRC of South Africa is in the process of appointing an in-situ Specialist and two 

technicians that will be responsible for the following: 

▪ In-situ conservation of crop species through developing in-situ conservation strategies, 

including on-farm projects, for long term conservation of landraces, especially those possessing 

special traits and social losses. 

▪ On-farm conservation projects with provincial or local authorities as a sustainable strategy to 

making seed material available for local farmers as well as supplying the national gene bank for 

crop development. 

▪ Contribution towards the functions of the IKS Policy through the characterization of biological 

resources and practices of local communities. 

▪ Maintaining of a database on the status of on-farm conservation projects of crop species as well 

as activities that promote their cultivation, like seed diversity fairs to facilitate exchange of 

genetic material and prevent social losses. 

▪ Maintenance of an in-situ database for crop species and other mandate species in existing 

reserves as well as wild crop relatives. 

▪ Assist the collection officer in the collection of all plant genetic resources for food and 

agriculture (landraces, wild relatives and endangered medicinal plants) from all ecological 

zones. 

▪ Assist in characterization, multiplication and regeneration activities of the national gene bank. 

The NPGRC has further initiated on-farm multiplication projects from 2005-2006 planting season, 

whereby local small-scale farmers are employed to conduct seed multiplication of previously 

collected accessions. 


▪ Short-term storage: 4°C (12 incubators, 2 upright freezers) 

▪ Medium-term storage: -18°C (11 chest freezers) 

▪ In vitro: (3 incubators – limited facility) 

▪ Cryo-storage: (1 Cryo 100 not in use at present) 

▪ Field: 42 accessions of Opuntia ficus-indica, 17 accessions of Colocasia esculentum and various 

medicinal plant species. 

Accessions held at National Genebank 

Abelmoschus esculentus Cucurbita sp. Phaseolus sp. 

Amaranthus sp. Eleusine coracana Pisum sativum 

Arachis hypogaea Fagopyrum esculentum Sesamum indicum 

Capsicum sp. Hibiscus sp. Solanum tuberosum 

Chenopodium album Ipomoea batatas Sorghum bicolor 

Citrullus lanatus Lagenaria siceraria Triticum aestivum 

Cleome gynandra Manihot esculentum Vigna radiata 

Colocasia esculenta Momordica sp. Vigna unguiculata 

Corchorus olitorius Nicotiana tabacum Vigna subterranea 

Cucumis sp. Pennisetum glaucum Zea mays 


Refrigeration drying is used – dry room at 18°C and 15% RH


Using refrigeration drying, seed moisture will be reduced to between 3-7% within 30-40 days. 

Moisture tests are performed on a few random samples before seeds are sealed for storage. 

Destructive methods are used – oven method or infra-red. 


High quality aluminium foil packets. 


Germination is tested before sealing and storage and then every 5-10 years. The NPGRC is situated 

within the same building as the Official Seed Testing Station that is ISTA accredited. All 

germination tests are done for the NPGRC by the Official Seed Testing Station using the ISTA 

rules. 

Species that exhibits initial low viability include tree species and wild species (i.e. Solanum sp. and 

Aneilema sp.) of which germination protocols are unknown. Although the NPGRC has not been in 

existence long enough to provide accurate examples of species losing viability over longer periods, 

a general observation has been that vegetable species are more prone to losing viability. 

Possible germination problems that can be encountered 

Avena Dormancy may occur in freshly harvested seed. Can be broken by placing the 

planted seed samples for 5 days at -2°C and thereafter at 20°C for the required 

germination period. 

Beta Difficulties in evaluation of seedlings infected with fungi (Phoma betae) may arise 

and the following is recommended: 

▪ Pre-washing, i.e. placing the seeds in running water at 25°C for 1 hour and then 

drying back overnight on a piece of filter paper, to remove the inhibitory 

substance. 

▪ A fungicide pre-treatment may be applied before planting the seeds to reduce 

the occurrence of the spread of fungi on the substrate. 

▪ Use a substrate that offers a barrier between seeds to also limit the spread of 

infection from one seed to the other. 

Brassica Seedlings should not be evaluated before all essential parts have developed i.e. the 

cotyledons have freed themselves form the seed coat. The evaluation of the 

cotyledons is very important to determine necrotic and decayed areas and also for 

chlorophyll deficiency i.e. white or yellow areas). Seedlings must therefore be 

grown in full light or at least 24 hours before evaluation takes place. 

Helianthus A well developed primary root is essential when evaluating sunflower seedlings as 

this root will need to anchor the plant. The development of the primary root tends 

to be better in the between paper (paper rolls) than the sand substrate. 

Oryza Germination can be promoted by pre-soaking the seed for 48 hours in water. 

Thereafter the seed is planted in the normal manner. The sand substrate can be 

used for rice. 

Phaseolus Bean seed can be planted using the between paper or sand method. Depending on 

the method chosen the seedlings may look very different. The sand method is 

recommended allowing the seedlings to develop to the stage where the primary 

leaves expand and show photosynthesis activity. 

▪ Primary leaves are considered normal if they show the normal shape and are 

not smaller than ¼ of the average leaf size in the sample. 

▪ Primary leaves that are damaged or deformed must have 50% of the original 

leaf area functioning normally. 

Zea Coleoptile defects, i.e. split, bent over, to missing, split at the base and split at the

Legume 

forages 

Grass 

forages 

back, can be regarded as normal if the first leaf is intact or only slightly damaged. 

Hard seed, i.e. seed which remain hard at the end of the test period because they 

have not absorbed water, may occur in the legumes. Report the % of hard seed 

found and a method to remove hardseededness may be applied to these seeds. This 

can be achieved by mechanical scarification such as careful piercing, chipping, 

filing or sand papering. However, be careful to apply this to the small to medium 

seeds where the scarification may damage the embryo and the seed may then be 

rendered dead or the emerging seedling damaged and show abnormalities. 

Often grass seed can be dormant, especially in freshly harvested seed. Unfortunately 

experience has proven that a specific dormant grass seed does not always react to a 

specific pre-treatment and no specific treatment can be applied to all grass seed. This 

has most probably to do with the state of dormancy of the particular seed. As the 

analyst is usually unaware of the state of dormancy, more than one method, including 

interactions of methods can be tried out e.g. the basic method involves a "top of 

paper" substratum incubation at 20/30°C (16h/8h) in the presence of dark/light cycles 

(16h/8h). Treatments can involve pre-chilling for 5 days at 5°C; a 0,2% KNO 3 

treatment; a combination of the latter two treatments in interaction; dry storage; 

preheating for 7 days at 30–35°C; application of Gibberellic acid (GA 3 ) are just a few 

that can be tried to break dormancy. 


▪ Accurate seed storage behaviour information 

▪ Germination protocols 

▪ Regeneration of cross-pollinated species 

▪ Capacity and training in the sciences of tissue culture and cryo-storage 

▪ Maintenance of field gene banks 


▪ Increased research in the field of PGR conservation, i.e. seed storage behaviour and germination 

protocols 

▪ Increased opportunities for training as well as improved knowledge of available training 

possibilities 

▪ Improved infrastructure for the regeneration of cross-pollinated varieties, i.e. isolation cages. 

▪ Capacity building in alternative ex-situ storage methods of recalcitrant species other than field 

gene banks in order to reduce the risks and costs of maintaining accessions in field gene banks. 

▪ Faster, easier and non-destructive moisture testing

2.15. SUDAN presentation 

Sudan Plant Genetic Resources Unit 

Mr. Awadelkarim Alamelhuda Ahmed 


The program participates with communities in the conservation of plant genetic resources through 

ex-situ and in-situ conservation. The conservation of farmer varieties by in-situ methods 

conservation are encouraged by the program and at the same time the seed and field banks are used 

to maintain the genetic variability. The program also redistributes seeds to regions which loose local 

germplasm because of displacement or food shortages. 


In the PGR program, the following equipment is available: 

▪ 19 deep freeze chests, 10 in good working order 

The germplasm is stored using the following methods: 

▪ Seed gene bank - more than 8000 accessions from different crops are maintained in deep 

freezers in long tem storage (-20ºC and 5-7% mc), with space for medium- and short-term 

storage. 

▪ Field gene bank: This in Kassala area for the conservation of Musa sp.; more than 400 

accessions were conserved in a field in the river Gash. 


▪ 1 seed drying machine 

▪ 6 split unit air-conditioners, 4 in good working order 

▪ 5 window air conditioners, 3 in good working order 

The drying of seeds in the gene bank is done immediately after seed collection and seed 

multiplication through shed drying, dehumidification and silica gel drying. The optimum moisture 

content varies with the crop and the type of conservation which could be long-term or medium-term 

or short-term. 


▪ 1 oven 

▪ 2 precision top balances, 1 in good working order 

▪ seed moisture analyser 

The seed moisture is measured for any accession before conservation after seed recipient or seed 

multiplication and the oven method is used to determine the moisture content 


▪ 3 sealing machines for aluminium envelopes, 2 in good working order 

The seeds collected and obtained from the multiplication process are first kept in bags. When ready 

for conservation, they are put into the aluminium foil envelopes. Other containers used for large 

quantities include cotton sacks and plastic or iron barrels. Smaller quantities are put into polythene 

bags and glass containers. 


Viability monitoring is supposed to be practiced every 5 years. This done through testing the seed 

by the seed germination method. However at present, viability is only tested on seed samples of

which the viability seemed to be deteriorating due reasons such as bad sealing of aluminum packets 

or storage under ambient conditions for a long period. For testing viability through germination 

tests, four samples of 100 seeds each are taken randomly and placed in the incubator following 

ISTA rules. However in the case of low quantities, two samples of 50 seeds for each could be used. 

Usually we experience no or bad germination of wild species like Seamum sp. and Abelmoschus 

esculentus and this might be due to dormancy. The store pests also lead to very fast deterioration of 

seeds for certain species, e.g. Vigna unguiculata. If seeds are not extracted properly, this might lead 

to slow germination, e.g. in seeds of Lycopersicon esculentus. 


The priority for the ex-situ collections is the urgent characterization and evaluation, to facilitate 

enhancement. The needs are the replacement and maintenance of the old equipment and capacity 

building. Although some progress in the conservation of plant agro-biodiversity has been achieved 

by the PGR programme in the ARC, it has been based on activities under the conditions of a lack in 

adequate infrastructures and clear policy and legislative frameworks. Gaps and constraints 

hindering this programme from fully achieving its goals could, therefore, be identified in the 

following: 

▪ Lack of clear policy for conservation of local genetic resources of both animals and plants. The 

existing programme on crop genetic resources in the Agricultural Research Corporation (ARC) 

is not sufficiently supported with clear policies and adequate capacities. 

▪ The only proper genebank existing in the country is that of the Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) 

Unit in ARC. Although some progress has been achieved since 2003 in the infrastructure and 

human capacity of this unit, it still lacks sufficient personnel, suitable buildings and equipment, 

in the centre and regions, to properly manage the plant crop diversity of such a big diverse 

country as Sudan. 

▪ Lack of a national framework with legislative and institutional instruments on agrobiodiversity 

issues is a criterion featuring the work on crop and animal genetic resources in Sudan. The 

country has been a party to the CBD since 1995 and ITPGRFA since 2002. However, no 

national legislation has yet been developed on matters related to access to the genetic resources, 

benefit sharing and farmers' rights. 


▪ Development of strategies in any country to organize the management of the agro biodiversity 

▪ Support from organizations to counties with rich agrobiodiversity, to support the national 

program 

▪ Awareness programs to convince the country managers of the value of plant genetic resources

2.16. UGANDA presentation 

Uganda National Genebank 

Ms Eva Zaake 


The program and activities in with local farmer communities in which our organization participates 

include: 

▪ Womens group and youth associations are invited to come to the garden for specific training in 

aspects of propagation and conservation techniques especially in fruit trees, indigenous 

vegetables and herbal medicine. 

▪ Pest and disease project - this project promotes conservation and use of crop genetic diversity to 

control pests and diseases in support of sustainable Agriculture in Uganda. It targets use of local 

cultivars with high resistance to pests and diseases in the following target crops; Musa sp., 

Phaseolus vulgaris, Oryza sativa, Hordeum vulgare, Manihot esculentum among others. Its 

major goal is to conserve crop diversity in ways that improves the ecosystem health and 

increased food security. 

▪ Development of a National Policy for Food and Agriculture for Uganda - the development of a 

policy on PGRFA which fulfills the intentions of the international treaty for Plant Genetic 

Resources. The policy development is on going in the country. 

▪ Neglected and under utilized crop species - collection, conservation and documentation of 

neglected and under utilized species which contribute considerably to food supply in certain 

periods (e.g. indigenous fruits as well as there importance nutritionally in a well balanced diet 

(e.g. indigenous vegetables). 

▪ Community based management of on- farm Plant Genetic Resources - on-farm conservation of 

food crops as a major contributor to conservation of PGR and best practices for conservation of 

crop land races on farm e.g. Musa sp. conservation and utilization. 


Presently in cold storage we have 21 samples of Sorghum sp., Eleusine sp, Pennisetum sp., 

Amaranthus sp. and Zea mays stored in both medium term and long term storage and several 

samples of Amaranthus sp., Cleome gynandra, Solanum sp., Hibiscus sp. which are still under 

processing. In the field we have Mondia whytei, Carissa edulis, Syzygium cordatum, Rhus vulgaris, 

Landolphia dawei, and Saba comorensis, among others. 

The types of storage used are: 

▪ Medium-term storage for active collections which are used for characterizations, regeneration 

and distribution, stored at -20ºC 

▪ Long-term storage for base collections which are stored at -20ºC 

▪ Field genebanks for conservation of vegetative material. 


Seeds are dried using a drying cabinet. After extraction, germplasm is placed in muslin cloth bags 

and spread on shelves inside a drying room for about a week. Collections are then transferred to the 

drying cabinet and spread on racks for 3-4 weeks, depending on the amount of moisture in the 

germplasm. The drying cabinet is set at a temperature of 15ºC and 10% RH and left to run non-stop 

until the germplasm is dry. 


We routinely measure moisture content. A sensitive moisture analyzer is used. The machine is set 

according to manual regulations and about 2g of seed is placed on a sample pan and set to start. The 

final moisture content percentage is displayed after some minutes of running, which indicates the

amount of moisture in that sample. Safe levels for storage should be between 3% oily seed and 7% 

other crops - above this samples are subjected to further drying. 


Samples are placed in aluminum foil packets, sealed hermetically and placed in waxed paper boxes 

then placed in freezers for storage. 


Germination tests are used to determine the proportion of viable seed in an accession. Viability 

monitoring is a pre-requisite. The following methods are used: 

▪ Top of paper in a Petri dish 

▪ Sand – for large seed, e.g. maize 

▪ Agar 

Tests are placed under lights or room temperature conditions. The tests run for the recommended 

number of days, i.e. 6-10 days. Seed counts are taken and results recorded. A sample that qualifies 

for storage should have 70-85% viability. 

Species that demonstrate low levels of viability 

Cleome gynandra Amaranthus sp. Solanum villosum 

Garcinia buchananii 

Eriosema shrense 

As the Genebank is at its initial stages of storage, we have not yet tested any stored samples, but 

will share experiences from other genebanks. 


▪ Equipment and infrastrustructural development 

▪ Power fluctuations 

▪ Destruction and theft of some in-situ collections in the garden(e.g. Mondia sp.) and bad 

harvesting techniques of medicinal plants 

▪ Automatic change-over power system 

▪ Air lock laboratory to ensure that attained moisture content levels are not interfered with. 

▪ More training on seed handling and seed physiology 

▪ Plant descriptors 

▪ Insufficient knowledge in seed physiology - as a new facility we are still learning all the 

genebank activities hence the need for more training especially in seed physiology and handling 


▪ More specialized training especially in seed physiology and handling. 

▪ Provide airlock laboratory.

2.17. ZAMBIA presentation 

Zambia National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

Mr Frank Sichone 


There are some activities relating to the promotion of on-farm conservation that have been initiated 

in the programme. These activities involve farmer participation to managing their genetic resources 

with a pilot site in Rufunsa, Chongwe district. 

There are approximately 100 plant species that are cultivated in Zambia (MENR, 1998). Out of 

these, about 15% are indigenous and include Sorghum sp., Eleusine sp., Pennisetum sp., Vigna 

unguiculata, Vigna subterranea, Sesamum indicum and a number of vegetable species. About 75% 

of these are exotic out of which 7% are naturalised and include Zea mays, Phaseolus sp., Arachis 

hypogaea, Manihot esculentum, Ipomoea batatas, Mangifera indica and Persea americana. These 

crops have undergone adaptation that has led to the generation of unique and valuable crop genetic 

diversity that has played and continues to play an important role in agricultural productivity and 

contributing to household food security. Wild relatives of crops found in Zambia include those of 

Oryza sp, Vigna sp, Sorghum sp, a range of cucurbits, Hibiscus cannabinus and Sesamum sp. A 

wide range of indigenous vegetable species and fruit trees that may be semi-cultivated or gathered 

from the wild are also found throughout the country. 

Germplasm distribution 

More than 1226 accessions of germplasm have been distributed to stakeholders (farmers, breeders, 

institutions of learning, etc) from 1991 to 2005. Users have requested conserved genetic resources 

for the purposes of crop improvement, research and training. The following categories of users have 

accessed the genetic resources conserved in the genebank, including breeders, researchers, teachers 

and students at national, regional and global levels. The other category of users is the farmers who 

freely access germplasm materials especially in the restoration of the traditional farming systems. 

On-farm germplasm conservation 

The in-situ method as a strategy for conservation of plant genetic resources (PGR) has not been 

used by NPGRC. This method is most suitable for conservation of wild plant species including wild 

relatives of cultivated crops. However, in-situ conservation may also cover maintenance of farmers’ 

varieties within the farming systems in which they have evolved. This has been referred to as onfarm 

germplasm conservation or management. NPGRC has initiated work in the area of on-farm 

conservation aimed at gathering data and information that would assist to develop methodologies 

for on-farm conservation. 

The main focus of this activity was to create awareness at the farm level on the importance of the 

conservation of local crop genetic diversity as well as make the farmers and the farming 

communities appreciate the value of their own local crop germplasm in relation to introduced 

germplasm including improved crop varieties. The other long-term objective was to broaden the 

genetic diversity of important food local crops. 

This activity is aimed at gathering preliminary information on the interactions between the different 

players on the farmer’s field and gain some experience for further work regarding on-farm 

conservation in general and participatory characterisation in particular. More specifically the 

activity aimed to achieve the following: 

▪ 

▪ 

Characterise the local traditional sorghum varieties. 

Evaluate the agronomic attributes of traditional local sorghum varieties in comparison to other 

varieties.

▪ 

Encourage and promote the conservation and use of traditional sorghum varieties. 

Methodology 

The planned field activity was designed as an on-farm participatory characterisation of Sorghum 

germplasm. This entailed putting the characterisation and evaluation plots at selected farmers' fields 

originally in the two target areas of Lusitu and Rufunsa in Siavonga and Chongwe districts 

respectively. At the moment it is now being conducted at Rufunsa in Chongwe. Germplasm 

material to be included and planted included local farmers varieties found in the target area, those 

collected from other parts of the country and maintained in the genebank and commercially released 

and improved varieties. 

The implementation team at the field level included farmers, local agricultural extension, 

Biodiversity and Conservation Network (BCN) a non-governmental organisation, NPGRC and 

SPGRC staff. The extension staff assisted in the selection of participating farmers, data collection 

together with farmers and crop monitoring. The farmer was responsible for all crop management 

issues starting from land preparation and harvesting. All collaborators participated in planting and 

evaluation of the general crop performance. 

The activity was introduced to the community through local structures being used under the 

Participatory Extension Approach (PEA) being used for to disseminate agriculture information 

among farmers. The entry point was the Farmer Village Groups (FVGs) where the idea was 

introduced and discussed with the aim of creating awareness and getting community acceptance and 

ownership of the activity so that the participatory concept can be fully realised. The characters on 

which data was to be collected were arrived at through discussions among all the players. The main 

criterion used was relevance in distinguishing varieties both from the point of view of the farmer 

and researcher. 

The list of both morphological and agronomic characters used for data collection was agreed upon 

by all players involved in conducting the trial. The scientifically derived descriptor lists for the 

crops involved was used with possible modification of the descriptor states. Agronomic evaluation 

included, plant vigour, general performance, yield potential and grain acceptability and others that 

farmers consider important. 

Lessons Learnt and Suggestions for Future Work 

It was observed that focusing on one crop may not be quite attractive to the farmers and as such it 

may be necessary to include one or two more crops that have local importance such as Pennisetum 

glaucum and Vigna unguiculata. It may also be useful to have two adjacent plots of the same entries 

but at two different management levels e.g. one with fertiliser applied and the other with no 

fertiliser applied. 

The farmers involved showed a lot of interest in the on-farm activity. This has the potential 

therefore of being a major avenue for the promotion of on-farm conservation and use of local crop 

diversity among traditional farming communities in Zambia. 

Farmer Group discussions indicated that Sorghum sp. crop was relatively more appreciated than any 

other cereal crop in the area because of its tolerance to drought. The white-grained sorghum 

varieties were preferred to the brown grained when sorghum is used for nshima, a staple food in the 

area. The improved varieties of sorghum namely Kuyuma and Sima were of interest to the farmers 

because of their early maturity characteristic. Early maturing characteristic was important to the 

farmers in the area because these genotypes tend to escape drought and lowers duration of bird 

scaring. The genebank accession ZM5071 was late maturing but had larger grain size characteristic.

The farmer varieties, Kasela, Misale and Bulule exhibited higher levels of stem lodging than the 

control varieties Sima and Kuyuma and genebank sorghum materials. 

Most of the households grow more than one crop in a particular season, possibly as a guard against 

total crop failure. It will necessary that the host farmer’s choice of any other crop(s) should be taken 

into account when deciding the number of entries. It was observed that focusing on one crop may 

not be quite attractive to the farmers and as such it may be necessary to include one or two more 

crops that have local importance such as maize and cowpea for Rufunsa if the farmer desired it. 


The main method of conservation used at the National Genebank is ex-situ and involves the storage 

of seed samples for orthodox seeded germplasm and to limited extent maintenance of living 

collections in field genebanks for such crops like Manihot esculentum and Ipomoea batatas. 

Although the NPGRC is supposed to maintain an active collection the storage conditions employed 

are good enough to allow for long-term storage used for base collection. The seed is conserved in 

deep freezers which are maintained at a temperature of -20ºC. There are 19 deep freezers in good 

working condition. 


The drying of seed is being done by SPGRC. The NPGRC has no drying facilities. The seed after 

cleaning is taken to SPGRC for drying. The process used is a slow drying process where the seed is 

put into the dryer until the moisture content reaches the required amount, and this usually takes 

about 3 to 4 weeks. The temperature in the seed dryer is set at 15 to 20ºC with RH at 18 to 20%. 

The packaging of seed in aluminium packets is done by NPGRC personnel at SPGRC, after the 

seed has dried to the required moisture. Cereals are dried to 6% to 7% while legumes are dried to 

7% to 8%. 


Steps involved in moisture content analysis: 

▪ Firstly the drying procedure requirements are: when you harvest a crop from the field, carry out 

an initial MC analysis of the harvested accessions to be dried which are usually 12 to 15%. 

▪ Recommended conditions for the Drier are 15 to 20 0 C (temperature) and 18 to 20% (relative 

humidity). 

▪ Dry accessions up to 6-7% for cereals and 7-8% for legumes. 

▪ Use the Domestic Grinder to grind 2.5g per sample to be tested for moisture content analysis. 


The seed is packed in aluminium foil packets. Once sealed in the aluminium foil packet the seed is 

supposed not to gain or lose moisture. The moisture content is from 5% to 8%. Five small 

distribution packets are used for each small accession. Big packets are used for extra seed. 


The viability of seed samples maintained in the genebank is monitored through germination tests. 

The general standards for acceptable minimum viability levels recommended by IPGRI are 

followed. For most field and horticultural crops, accessions with germination percentage of 85% or 

below, will be recommended for regeneration (Ellis et al, 1985). In the interim, the monitoring 

interval has been put at 5 years. 

Most of wild Oryza sp. collections show low level of viability. Actually most of it has failed to 

germinate at all. The seed lot was kept under room conditions after collections for a long time

efore the NPGRC acquired storage facilities of deep freezers. There is also a problem with Vign 

subterranea in germination in field conditions when multiplying the seed. 

The determination of viability of seed samples before accessioning to the seed store and those 

stored in the Genebank is an important aspect of germplasm management in the genebank for the 

maintenance of the genetic status of the collection. The NPGRC has been collaborating with Seed 

Control and Certification Institute (SCCI) where SCCI has been undertaking the germination testing 

of the germplasm collections for the genebank. SCCI, as a sole official seed testing institution in 

Zambia has its core activities and germination testing of varieties from seed companies and farmers 

is one of them. Over a number of years, SCCI has been overwhelmed by increased workload from 

seed companies and farmers against the background of limited capacity at that institution. Where 

germination testing is concerned, priority has been given to handling seed samples from the seed 

companies. The trend has been a downward one in terms of actual materials being accommodated 

for germination testing at SCCI. Consequently, it has virtually been difficult to determine the initial 

viability of seed samples of germplasm collection prior to accessioning. With the growing number 

of collections in the genebank demand for germination testing has continued to increase 

necessitating availability of the seed germinator in the NPGRC laboratory. 


The following are some of the major constraints that the NPGRC faces:- 

▪ Government funding to meet operational costs. 

The following facilities and equipment are required by the NPGRC in order to enhance the 

implementation of genetic diversity conservation and use: 

▪ A functional and reliable seed dryer 

▪ Irrigation system for a hectare 

▪ Screen house for protection of plants 

▪ Glass house for planting some germplasm. 

▪ Tissue culture facilities especially for conservation of vegetatively propagated crops 

▪ Germinator and its accessories so that the NPGRC can carry out its own germination tests 

▪ Stand by generator to cover periods of electricity black outs 


There is need for NPGRC personnel to be trained in specialised fields and in using relevant 

equipments through long and short trainings. The NPGRC should acquire sufficient equipment, so 

that operations can be done within the same premises. Facilities for doing different operations like 

germination tests and drying of seed samples should be done at NPGRC. The stand by generator is 

required to supply electricity to counter act black outs especially experienced during rainy season. 

Support is required from regional and international organisation to do collaborative work in 

different PGR management. Financial support is also required as the NPGRC has insufficient funds 

from the government to carry out the required programme activities.

2.18. ZIMBABWE presentation 

National Genebank Of Zimbabwe 

Mr. Kudzai Kusena 


Participatory on-farm characterization and seed multiplication of neglected crops in three 

Zimbabwean districts 

The National Genebank of Zimbabwe in collaboration with Biotechnology Trust of Zimbabwe 

(BTZ), a Non Governmental Organization, are implementing a project of on-farm multiplication 

and characterization of marginalized (orphan) crops in Zimbabwean districts, namely Makoni, 

Buhera and Hwedza. The main aim of the project is to reintroduce a larger diversity on production 

of these landraces which are better suited to these marginal environments. 

A survey was conducted during the initial stages of the project, mainly to assess the state of 

germplasm diversity. The survey targeted Vigna subterranea, Vigna unguiculata, Sorghum sp., 

Pennisetum glaucum and rapoko. It turned out that a lot of germplasm that was present historically 

was no longer present or was being farmed by very few farmers on a small area in the targeted 

districts. Based on the survey report, it was noted that there was need to promote the lost genetic 

diversity. Farmers were organized into groups at ward level. The project then carried out a 

collection mission for those threatened crops. However, parts of the collection (duplicates) were 

sent to the Genebank for conservation and the other portions were taken back to farmers for 

multiplication and characterization. The team also out sourced some other germplasm materials 

from other districts as well as from Genebank to reintroduce into the targeted districts. 

So in the first year each ward carried out seed multiplication on farm and a series of training were 

carried out on quality seed production. The material multiplied were those materials that we 

collected from their area plus those which were introduced from other districts. During the 

multiplication period a field day was held at each site where all the community members were 

invited. During multiplication farmers also characterized their materials with the help of the 

extension workers. 

Taro field genebank 

The National Genebank of Zimbabwe is currently running two Colocasia esculenta (taro) field 

Genebanks in Makoni District. A farmer-based committee is responsible for the day-to-day 

management of taro field Genebank. The establishment of these two taro field genebanks banks 

came as a result of alarming fast erosion of taro genetic diversity that has been fueled by drought 

that has been ravaging the whole SADC region for the past ten years. However, Zimbabwe was not 

spared and most of our community wetlands where large diversity taro germplasm was kept dried 

out. 

The project team gathered some information on new techniques that were adopted by farmers in 

order to conserve their landraces. These measures were being employed by farmers to bridge the 

dry gap in winter. Farmers were now harvesting all taro crops during dry winter and pack them in 

sacks where they monitor the moisture. However the method is not good enough since most of the 

materials were rotting during the storage period, and another method employed by farmers was to 

harvest all taro and bury them in a small pit which they cover mixed with soil, constantly the 

farmers would monitor the moisture content level. However this method is not effective as well to 

conserve the diversity since most of the materials were rotting during storage. Therefore the 

National Genebank of Zimbabwe went on a collection expedition and a number of landraces were 

collected from farmers (about 15 different landraces). The collected materials were now planted at a

perennial wetland, as the field genebank. The wetland is managed by the community and they are 

free to exchange materials. On these wetlands characterization is in progress with the help of the 

extension workers. 


▪ Long term storage in freezers 

▪ Medium term storage in field genebank 


The organization has a walk-in dryer. The dryer is maintained at 11ºC and 5% RH. The seed is 

packed into khaki bags and placed on shelves. The process takes two or more months to dry the 

seed to the required standards or more depending on the seed type. 


A sample (about 5g) of an accession is withdrawn for moisture testing. A moisture test meter is 

used and the procedures are that 5g of the samples is grinded to powder or flour, the flour is heated 

in the moisture meter to 100 degrees Celsius, therefore the meter measures the amount of water that 

evaporates and this will be the moisture content of the sample. This test is carried out after two 

months of storage, and if the moisture is good the sample is packed for storage in the freezers but if 

the moisture is below standard, the drying procedure continues. 


We use freezers as storage facilities and the seed is packed into airtight aluminum foils. 


The organization carries out germination monitoring of ex-situ collections, though the process is 

slow due to the fact that the organization does not have facilities to do the test. The organization 

therefore depends on borrowing facilities from other organizations. 

A sample is extracted from the existing accession for germination test. The sample is planted and 

incubated at 25ºC for a period of 7 days or more depending on the type of seed. Germination counts 

will be carried out and the percentage of seed that germinated will be considered as the viability of 

that particular accession. 

Species with low levels of viability during initial tests 

Cleome gynandra gourds Pennisetum glaucum 

Vigna subterranea 

Eleusine sp. 

Species with low levels of viability after a period of storage 

Sorghum sp. Zea mays Arachis hypogaea 


▪ Securing germination test facilities 

▪ Staff shortages - improving staff establishment 

▪ Funding for recruiting more staff working on ex-situ conservation 

▪ Training on PGR management, policy issues and documentation 

▪ More financial support on field genebanks 

▪ Operational limitations (finance) 

▪ Low awareness to intended stakeholders 

▪ Low expertise (capacity building) 


▪ Source more funding for staff establishment

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

More funding directed towards operational cost, e.g. characterization, multiplication 

Stakeholder awareness workshops, capacity building 

Need more training especially PGR policy issues

3. Other stakeholders’ 

presentation summaries 

Supported by 

Also supported by

3.1. IPGRI presentation 

Diversity for well-being: 

making the most of agricultural biodiversity 

Dr. Wilson Marandu 

International Plant Genetic Resources Institute 

Change of Name 

With effect from November 2006: 

International Plant Genetic Resources Institute → Bioversity International 

Overview 

▪ Agricultural biodiversity 

▪ IPGRI’s new strategy? 

▪ IPGRI’s research activities – past and current 

▪ IPGRI in the Sub Saharan Africa 

▪ Challenges for the future 

What is agricultural biodiversity? 

▪ Agricultural biodiversity is a sub-set of general biological diversity developed as a result of 

human activity in the search for food and livelihood 

▪ Includes elements at all levels of the biological hierarchy, from genes to ecosystems, involved 

in agriculture, forestry and food production. 

Biological hierarchy: 

Biological diversity encompasses all the levels of the biological organization from genes to 

ecosystems. These levels are interdependent: 

▪ Ecosystem 

▪ Community 

▪ Species 

▪ Population 

▪ Individual 

▪ Gene 

Agricultural biodiversity components: 

▪ Three functional groups 

- Species providing goods (food, medicines, shelter etc.) - diversity farmers have 

developed and nurtured over centuries 

- Species providing support services (pollinators, soil microorganism etc.) 

- The pests pathogens and predators of the first two functional groups. 

▪ Includes all crops and livestock, their wild relatives and all interacting species of pollinators, 

symbionts, pests, parasites, predators and competitors. 

Central challenge: 

▪ Contribution of agricultural biodiversity to sustainable development 

▪ Livelihoods (especially rural poor) and support and integration of diversity maintenance into 

agricultural production. 

▪ Diversity is vital for healthy agro-ecosystem function. 

▪ Integration into national and international development polices. 

▪ How to reverse the rate of loss of diversity

IPGRI’s Vision 

People today and in the future enjoy greater well-being through increased incomes, sustainably 

increased food security and nutrition, and greater environmental health, made possible by the 

deployment of agricultural biodiversity on farms and in forests. 

Strategic areas: 

▪ Demonstrating the benefits - demonstrating the social, economic and environmental benefits of 

agricultural biodiversity 

▪ Biodiversity for food security - ensuring that agricultural biodiversity is maintained, 

characterized and used to improve productivity 

▪ Researching agricultural biodiversity - generating knowledge about agricultural biodiversity and 

making such knowledge available 

▪ Enabling and empowering - developing human and institutional capacity to conserve and make 

use of agricultural biodiversity 

▪ Supportive policies - fostering a policy environment that supports the conservation and use of 

agricultural biodiversity 

▪ Getting the word out - raising awareness of the value of agricultural biodiversity 

IPGRI’s role in PGR conservation 

▪ Global coordinating centre for collection and conservation of threatened PGR 

▪ Early research (1970s and 1980s) focused on ex situ conservation technologies mainly on 

cereals and food legumes: 

- seed physiology of orthodox seeds 

- seed storage methods and procedures 

- genebank design and operation 

- genetic diversity research 

- characterization and evaluation 

- information management 

▪ Publication of a series of handbooks for genebanks 

▪ In 1980s, ex situ conservation research included non-orthodox seeds and vegetatively 

propagated 

▪ Research on germplasm health and transfer procedures - SMOGS 

- techniques for storing seed in imbibed conditions 

- in vitro techniques, especially tissue and embryo culture 

- cryopreservation, which permits the long-term storage of seed and tissue 

- management of germplasm in living collections (field genebanks) 

▪ Establishment of IPGRI in 1993 - work expanded 

- Forest genetic resources 

- On farm (in situ) conservation 

- Legal issues and policies 

- Cryopreservation protocols 

- Recalcitrant Seed storage behaviour 

▪ Management and use of ex situ collections 

▪ Development of manuals and tools for conservation and use of PGR 

▪ Training courses - capacity building 

Seed conservation 

▪ Long term conservation – genetic diversity and integrity. The purpose of any conservation 

activity is to conserve material as long as possible in a viable state and in good quality. 

▪ Conventionally PGR has been conserved as seeds which the are the most convenient form for ex 

situ conservation. However different species have seeds which behave differently under 

conventional storage systems.

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Seed storage behaviour – orthodox, intermediate and recalcitrant. 

In the past focus has been on food crop species (cereals legumes etc.) which in most cases have 

orthodox seeds. 

Conventional Seed Banks – 3-7% mc, -20ºC or +4ºC. Technologies for seed conservation are 

very well advanced and have been based on a good understanding of the relationship between 

seed moisture content, temperature and relative humidity. 

Last 10 years or more, focus on species which are difficult to conserve conventionally 

In vitro/cryo conservation 

- IPGRI has played a lead role in promoting research activities on “difficult” species - 

since 1980’s, by working on alternative conservation technologies. 

- Developing in vitro conservation techniques - research activities on 51 species (tropical 

and temperate) into cryopreservation techniques 

Research activities 

▪ Developing protocols is of critical importance for successful in vitro and cryopreservation work. 

In the framework of IPGRI funded projects, research has been performed on more than 50 

species. Work is more advanced for vegetatively propagated spp. than spp. with recalcitrant 

seeds. 

▪ Research on recalcitrant seeds performed by very few teams 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Research very preliminary stage 

Understanding seed recalcitrant behaviour - work with University of Kwa Zulu Natal: 

- Rehydration studies, role of cytoskeleton 

- Cryostorage, drying followed by rapid cooling 

Work on Citrus between Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) Montpellier, France 

and Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) on Citrus 

- optimize cryopreservation protocols based on hydration window of unfreezable water 

content 

Large scale experimentation on coffee seed cryopreservation at CATIE (Turrialba, Costa Rica) 

NBPGR (India) - establishment of almond germplasm cryopreserved collection 

INIBAP/ KU Leuven, Belgium- large scale application for Musa – 70 accessions cryopreserved 

The Species Compendium 

The Species Compendium is a searchable database providing information at taxon level about: 

▪ Seed survival during storage 

▪ Germination requirements and dormancy 

▪ Reproductive biology 

▪ Pests and diseases 

http://www.ipgri.cgiar.org/themes/exsitu/IPGRISpeciesCompendium/ 

IPGRI work in SSA 

Supporting On-Farm management & improvement of PGRFA: 

▪ Directed towards mitigating the effects of drought in marginal areas. 

▪ IPGRI’s work is focusing on patterns of intra-specific crop diversity and how this diversity 

contributes to survival strategies. 

On-farm conservation activities: 

▪ Zimbabwe 

- The Department of Research and Extension (AREX) and the University of Zimbabwe 

have on-farm conservation activities implemented with close collaborations with NGOs. 

- Community genebanks have been developed (IFAD support)

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Mali 

- Traditional seed storage techniques have been documented and are being evaluated. 

- The project is also attempting to develop 'farmer field fora' on plant genetic resources, a 

participatory activity aimed at providing a forum for exchange among farmers and 

researchers 

Kenya 

- Ethno-botanical studies have been conducted in Kenya in an effort to conserve the 

bottle gourd 

On-farm Conservation through agro-forestry 

- Farmer managed natural regeneration in Niger 

- Nurseries for Community Conservation of Forests have been initiated in Goromonzi 

and Nyanga Districts in Zimbabwe 

Recommendations 

▪ Focus on priority crops for developing countries - little research done 

▪ Develop protocols for problem species 

▪ More collaboration with scientist in developing countries 

▪ Capacity building in national programmes in handling difficult seeds 

▪ Dissemination of information 

▪ Mobilizing funds 

▪ Difficult? - But we must attempt now, before the next flood.

3.2. EAPGREN presentation 

Improving the Identification, Handling and Storage of ‘Difficult’ Seeds 

Dr. Abebe Demissie 

Eastern Africa Plant Genetic Resources Network 

Background 

▪ Network establishment meeting 

- Kampala, Nov.97 

- Organized by: IPGRI, NARO, Sida 

- Participating institutions - government delegates, NGOs, CG Centres, UN agencies 

▪ Membership 

- Open to all Eastern Africa and IGAD countries 

- Current members: Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Rwanda, Sudan and 

Uganda 

▪ Designed for a 20 year framework 

- initial 5 year establishment phase - with donor funding 

▪ Sida funding 

- Committed to provide $ 3.0 million 5 years 

- Current agreement for 3 years 

- Sustainability mechanisms: country contributions, Competitive Grant Schemes (CGS) 

▪ Operates under the umbrella of ASARECA 

ASARECA 

▪ ASARECA is an acronym for Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern 

and Central Africa 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Non-political sub regional organization of NARIs of ten countries 

ASARECA Aims at increasing the efficiency of agric research so as to facilitate 

- economic growth 

- food security 

- export competitiveness 

Carries its work thru regional research networks, CGS, etc 

Network Mission 

To harness, conserve and to promote greater use of PGRs for: 

▪ food security 

▪ improved health 

▪ socio-economic advancement 

- rural communities 

- present and future generations. 

Network goal 

Overall goal is to contribute to sustainable agricultural productivity and food security through 

conservation and sustainable use of PGR in the ECA region 

Programmatic areas 

▪ Capacity building - development of operational and effective programs 

▪ Research and development 

- address PGR constraints 

- adding value 

- bio-prospecting

▪ 

Support services 

- development of compatible reg. information and documentation system 

- Strengthening linkages 

- Public awareness at all levels 

Modus operandi of EAPGREN 

▪ Strengthens collaboration, networking and linkages, through the pooling of resources and the 

use of comparative advantages 

▪ Mission can be achieved thru capacity building & dev sustainable linkages 

Expected outputs 

▪ Develop an operational regional PGR network 

▪ Develop well coordinated national PGR programs 

▪ Collection and/or conservation through ex situ and in situ methods done 

▪ Developing and applying research methodologies 

▪ More germplasm accessed and utilised 

▪ Critical mass of trained personnel available in National Programs 

▪ A compatible regional information and doc. system developed and used 

▪ Level of awareness of PGR increased at policy levels 

Functional Structure at National level 

▪ National PGR centers as focal points 

▪ Focal persons and members of RSC 

▪ Directly linked to country-based 

- networks and institutions, 

- NGOs, CBOs and private sector 

Functional Structure at Regional level 

▪ Regional networking operates thru EAPGREN CU 

▪ EAPGREN builds on existing commodity NWs 

▪ EAPGREN works thru thematic WGs 

- Info and doc TWG 

- Ex situ conservation 

- In situ conservation 

- Policy and public awareness 

- PGR utilization 

Governance 

▪ ASSRECA CD 

▪ RSC 

▪ ASARECA Secretariat 

▪ Coordinating Unit 

Backstopping Institutions 

▪ IPGRI 

- Development of network implementation strategy 

- Development of thematic working groups 

- Development of PGR policy and legal frameworks 

- Development of PGR research methodologies 

- In situ conservation 

▪ NGB - Ex situ conservation 

- Information and documentation system development

- Standard of equipment identification 

Activities 

National level: 

▪ Undertake actual PGR activities 

▪ Renovation and acquisition of conservation facilities 

▪ Capacity building 

- Infrastructure 

- Human resources 

Regional level: 

▪ Developing a platform for info. & documentation system 

▪ Creation/promotion of awareness, sensitization 

▪ Domestication of Intl conventions 

▪ Harmonization of PGR policies 

▪ Development of strategic plan 

▪ Capacity building, training & infrastructure, negotiation skills 

▪ Addressing sustainability issues 

▪ Promoting research and dev on NUCs 

Tools & Technologies: 

▪ Morphological, biochemical, etc for characterization and evaluation 

▪ Biotechnology, molecular biology 

▪ Comparative genomics for gene discovery (genomic map) 

▪ Bio-informatics

3.3. SPGRC presentation 

Gene Bank Management 

Lerotholi Qhobela 

SADC Plant Genetic Resources Centre (SPGRC) 

SPGRC was established in 1989 as a facility to conserve plant genetic resources of the region 

through a network of National Plant Genetic Resource Centres (NPGRCs) thereby contributing to 

the well being of people of the region. The facility maintains base collection of germplasm and 

coordinates all matters of plant genetic resources in the region, whereas, the NPGRCs maintain 

active collections for use in crop development and coordinates genetic resource activities at national 

level. 

The project was fully funded by the Nordic countries from 1989 to 1999 after which SADC 

assumed funding 10% of cost of activities in 1999 and increased its funding by 10% annually. 

Member states will take full charge of the project in 2009 when the Nordic countries’ funding 

comes to an end. The facility is managed by a Board composed of chairmen of the National Plant 

Genetic Resource Committees (NPGRComs). 

SPGRC Main Objectives 

▪ Establish, over 20 years, a regional PGR centre and a network of NPGRCs. 

▪ Conserve, within the region, indigenous PGR and crop genetic resources 

▪ Train PGR personnel in order to build capacity in the region. 

Supporting On-Farm Management & Improvement of PGRFA 

Pilot studies were conducted in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, aimed at developing 

methodologies and strategies for on-farm conservation. Follow-up activities are on-going. Farmers’ 

groups have been identified in some countries in the region, of which, some are actively working 

collaboratively with NGOs in the area of on-farm conservation (Swaziland, Zambia, Malawi). 

Main focus is directed to seed availability instead of crop improvement. Rural resource-poor/smallscale 

farmers still rely on farmer-saved seed. 

Germplasm Storage Facilities 

At SPGRC, ex-situ seed conservation is in a form of cold storage in deep freezers and up-right 

fridges for medium and long-term storage of seeds. Medium term storage of accessions up to five 

or six years entails storage of seed in airtight aluminium foil packets (sealed with an aluminium foil 

sealer). Accession’s passport data are attached with adhesive labels to each accession packet. 

For long-term storage, seeds are in bottles that are sealed with a bottle-sealing machine. Unique 

accession and batch reference numbers are engraved on each bottle to show the label. All passport 

data are kept in triplicate in an Accession Register File, Base Collection File, and all the data is 

electronically kept in a ’Windows’ based SPGRC Documentation and Information System (SDIS). 

To supplement the commercial power supply, a diesel generator is connected and automatically 

switches on each time there is power cut-off. This avoids defrosting in freezers and maintains 

viability of stored seeds. 

Drying Facilities and Methods 

▪ Seeds are dried in a walk-in-drier which has a dehumidifier and a freezing component 

▪ The dehumidifier sucks in cool dry air and releases warm moist air in the atmosphere. The drier 

is set at 15 – 20 o C and 15 – 20% RH.

▪ 

The process results in slow seed drying and takes 2 to 4 weeks to complete - resulting in the 

seeds maintaining viability 

Measuring Seed Moisture Content 

▪ The MC of seed is routinely measured. After harvesting, before and after drying of accessions. 

▪ Destructive method of MC Analysis is used. About 2.5g of seed is ground using grinder on a 

small metal tray, then put on switched-on moisture analyser and then reading taken after few 

minutes 

▪ For germplasm conservation, the recommended MC for storing cereals is 4 – 7% and legumes 7 

– 8% which is slightly higher due to their oil content 

▪ Data is then entered in the Moisture Content Data File 

Storage Containers 

▪ SPGRC stores seeds in deep freezers, at –20 o C, in aluminium foil packets (for Duplicate 

Collection) and in bottles (for Safety Duplicate Collection). 

▪ 

▪ 

Seed is kept under airtight conditions and frozen. 

Gene bank is well ventilated. The ventilator sucks in cool dry air and pushes out warm, moist air 

resulting in ideal conditions for germplasm to remain viable for a long time. 

Viability Monitoring 

▪ Seed viability is determined upon receipt of accessions and is monitored periodically during 

storage. Germination tests are carried out to ensure if the entry is fit for storage. Seed is stored if 

the viability is above 85%. 

▪ Seed germination tests use distilled water, filter paper and Petri dishes, for small grains like 

Sorghum bicolor (Sorghum), Pennisetum glaucum (Pearl millet). For large grains like Zea mays 

(Maize), Phaseolus vulgaris (Beans), paper towels are used with distilled water. 

▪ Replicates of 50 x 2 seeds are used per accession. A germinator is used to germinate accessions. 

It is set in a way that it simulates growing field conditions of 100% (light), 20 o C (temperature) 

and 90% (relative humidity). 

▪ Viability monitoring is systematic, using a printed hard copy of accessions in the gene bank. 

When an accession’s viability falls below 85%, regeneration is recommended. 

▪ Accessions to be tested are withdrawn from the Gene bank and exposed for 48 hours (2 days) to 

break seed dormancy, and then put in deep freezer for 48 hours (2 days) to kill fungi or bacteria. 

On the 5th day, accessions are then placed in a switched-on Germinator. Germination normally 

occurs after 5 – 10 days depending on the species being tested. 

▪ Cross-pollination is avoided by covering plant flowers before flowering (booting stage) with 

waxy pollination bags. 

Species which demonstrate low viability levels during initial tests and after a period of storage 

Glycine max Mucuna deeringiana Arachis hypogaea 

Alium cepa Cleome gynandra Carica papaya 

Challenges 

▪ Need for additional freezers in the gene bank as it is received annually from NPGRC’s. 

▪ Donor-dependent procurement arrangements for storage materials like aluminium foil packets, 

bottles and adhesive labels, etc, which normally have to be imported from outside the SADC 

region. 

▪ Inadequate financial resources for regeneration, characterization and multiplication of the 

existing germplasm at SPGRC and the SADC region in general. 

▪ Need to disseminate and maximize information on the Use (utilization) of Plant Genetic 

Resources to the end users.

▪ 

To fully operationalize SPGRC herbarium for identification of particularly less known and or 

unique germplasm. 

Possible solutions to Challenges 

▪ Improved training for the existing PGR staff is needed. 

▪ Financial support for acquisition of storage equipment and conservation materials. 

▪ Computers with bigger RAMs are vital, including extensive training in Documentation for PGR 

staff. 

▪ A web-based SDIS would enhance real-time reporting by both SPGRC and NPGRCs as updates 

would be done on-line. NPGRCs need to invest in internet communication equipment and skills 

(e.g searches on the web). 

▪ Print and translate newsletters and other information of existing ex-situ collections, into major 

local languages, to promote PGR use. 

▪ To increase participation in Seed Fairs and Agricultural Shows in SADC region, to promote 

utilisation of plant genetic resources.

3.4. NFCI presentation 

Supporting On-farm Management & Improvement 

of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PRGRFA): 

Report of field projects conducted in arid and semi-arid parts of Kenya 

Mr. Christopher A. Nyakiti 

Nairobi Friends Club International (NFCI) 

In Kenya, the attainment of a satisfactory food security is a national priority goal. The country has 

made a significant progress in improving food production through modern agricultural farming 

methods especially in high potential agricultural regions. However, the continued drought and food 

shortage resulting in dependency of people in Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) on food relief is 

a major concern for the government and other development partners alike. In order to improve the 

level of food production and agricultural biodiversity in such marginal areas, there is an urgent need 

to promote appropriate traditional farming systems aimed at maintaining, popularizing and 

improving the accessibility of a wide range of traditional cultivars and their wild relatives resilience 

to natural hazards such as drought, pests and declining soil fertility. The major challenge therefore, 

is to empower smallholder farmers in enhancing their capacity to develop core seed collections. 

They also need to develop a combination of techniques for cost effective germplasm conservation 

and management methods that can increase the amount and quality seeds available at affordable 

prices, reducing losses in storage and extending the storage life of seeds. 

Nairobi Friends Club International (NFCI) is a Non-Governmental Organization of friends 

promoting Sustainable Use of Biodiversity, Community Development and Gender Equality. The 

organization was formed in 1995, based in Nairobi Kenya. NFCI has more than seven years 

experience in implementing community development projects through field surveys, capacity 

building and training in Rural Agriculture and Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources. 

Through such activities, NFCI has worked in partnership with the National Genebank of Kenya 

(NGBK) and other national and research institutions in conducting the following projects: 

▪ 

▪ 

In 2001, NFCI in partnership with the NGBK carried out a study on traditional seed systems and 

germplasm collection mission in Suba District, Kenya. The objective of the project was to study 

the methods used by farmers on On-farm Seed Management and Conservation with the aim of 

developing strategies to strengthen community-based seed management in the region. The 

project was supported by IPGRI-SSA Germplasm Conservation Programme. 

In 2002, NFCI in partnership with the NGBK carried out farmer groups’ capacity building and 

training on On-farm Seed Management and Conservation in Suba District, Kenya. The training 

focused on strengthening the knowledge and skills of the smallholder farmers on Seed 

Production, Selection, Processing and Storage methods. The project was funded by the 

International Development Research Centre (IDRC). 

▪ In 2003, NFCI received funding from Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) – 

Agricultural Technology and Information Response Initiative (ATIRI) to undertake capacity 

building and training to women groups in Limuru - Kiambu District, Kenya on African 

Vegetables Seed Production, Processing, Selection and Marketing. NFCI also conducted a 

research on African Leafy Vegetable Seed Systems in relation to Gender Issues in Suba District 

funded by the IPGRI – African Leafy Vegetables Programme. 

▪ 

In 2004, NFCI conducted a study to assess the extent and status of informal seed security 

initiatives in Kenya. This project provided an overview of all key stakeholders with the 

objective of building capacity of smallholder farmers on existing seed regulations and policies 

to enhance their participation on on-going revision of the Seeds and Plant Varieties Act (Cap 

326) of the Laws of Kenya. The project targeted 25 districts though the funding raised so far

▪ 

have achieved the desk study and field surveys in five districts (Suba, Meru, Tharaka, Kitui and 

Machakos) through the support of ACTION-AID, Kenya. 

In 2004/5, NFCI in partnership with the NGBK carried out a study on Community-based 

Management of On-farm Plant Genetic Resources with farmer groups in Suba District, Kenya. 

This project focused on combining community based indigenous knowledge, the findings of 

scientific research and past practical experience in an analysis and synthesis of viable farming 

systems in arid and semi-arid ecosystems. It was carried out with the support of the UNEP- 

GEF/IPGRI. 

Based on the case studies on seed security initiatives (community seed banks) in Suba, Meru, 

Tharaka, Kitui and Machakos Districts, the desk studies on the informal seed systems and the 

capacity building and trainings undertaken by NFCI and NGBK to various groups on on-farm seed 

management and conservation, the followings are briefs of some of the outcomes. 

Collaboration between Community seed banks/farmers and Genebank of Kenya (NGBK) 

In Kenya, community seed bank projects are initiated by the local communities in partnership with 

the NGOs working especially in arid and semi-arid regions with the objective of enhancing seed 

security at the farmer level due to the frequent shortage experienced in such areas. In the past, most 

farmers were never aware of the activities of the genebank although a few have been involved in 

one way or the other during germplasm collection missions by the researchers from the institution. 

It is after the projects mentioned above that the local communities have started working with 

genebank and showing interest in getting more information and participating in activities that can 

help them to re-introduce some of the crop varieties which are at the state of getting extinct. In 

response, the genebank has initiated projects with the local NGOs and CBOs to provide capacity 

building and training in various aspects of on-farm seed management and conservation at the 

community level, development of seed banks as well as providing farmers with “small samples” of 

seeds for re-introduction upon their request. 

Seed storage facilities 

During the assessment of the informal seed security projects in Kenya, it was noted that the local 

NGOs and other development partners have assisted community farmer groups in building 

permanent structures in the form of seed banks. Most individual farmers store their grains in 

granaries, while seeds are kept in various containers and stored in the different kinds of seed stores. 

Above the fire place is a practice which was found to be still existing with some farmers especially 

the older generation hanging or arranging Zea mays cobs, Sorghum/Pennisetum heads in make 

shifts above the fire place though this method only serves small quantity of seeds. 

Based on the studies carried out by NFCI and NGBK, most materials (seed/grain) kept in storage 

both at the community seed bank and the farmer household are stored for between one to two 

seasons i.e. within one year. This is based on the fact that in arid and semi-arid areas the farmers 

have less food and hence sometimes materials stored as seed stocks are consumed at the times of 

starvation. Although the study also found that a certain group of farmers considered being resourceendowed 

and knowledgeable “nodal” farmers in the matters of seed production and diversityminded 

keep many varieties and store seeds for more than one year and sometimes even up to five 

years. The older women were also found to be able to keep small samples of varieties of seeds for 

more than one year. 

Seed Drying 

Both community seed banks and farmers normally sun-dry their seed/grain for two to three days 

before dressing them with traditional concoction or pesticides then storing. The study also reveals 

that for the seeds to stay healthy for a long time while in storage, they are periodically removed, sun 

dried and re-dressed once again then stored.

Measuring seed moisture 

Farmers generally measure seed moisture by observations. After harvesting, the grains are sun-dried 

for two to three days. This allows the seeds to dry and where necessary the farmers literally carry 

out tests such as breaking the grain by teeth to observe its strength if can withstand storage. The 

same observations are made during harvesting so that harvesting is done when the crops are very 

mature and the grains are dry enough to withstand mould. 

Storage Containers 

Storage containers range from polythene bags, paper bags, sacks, gunny bags, gourds, pots, bottles, 

plastic jars to metal cans. Pre-treatment is very necessary for better storage life of the seed such as 

cleaning, drying and then dressing with concoctions or pesticides before storage. It is the storage 

structure and its construction which plays a vital role in reducing the losses of seed during storage. 

▪ Plastic jars, drums etc – It was realized that most farmers use plastic jars/drums. This was also 

highlighted as effective method of storing seeds but only in clean, dry airtight jars/drums kept in 

cool dry conditions in a farm store or storeroom. The lids of such drums must be tightly fitted 

because when the jar/drum is completely filled with seeds, any insect present will deplete the 

oxygen in the jar/drum and die. 

▪ Plastic bags – Have been found to be frequently used by community seed banks especially with 

the training and support of the Genebank. Water-proof plastic bags are found to be the best way 

of storing seeds. Though these kinds of bags are expensive for smallholder farmers and require 

technical training. 

▪ Sacks, papers and gunny bags – These bags are also commonly used by farmers and community 

seed banks. At the very least, bagged seeds must be kept off the ground to prevent spoilage by 

translocation, water and/or termites. Alternatively, the bags should be stacked on dunnage or 

waterproof sheeting, away from walls in a rodent-proof barn. 

▪ Gourds and pots – In the past, pots and gourds were common facilities for seed storage, farmers 

have indicated that the trend has drastically changed as gourds have become very rare species 

and pots are costly and cumbersome to use especially when one has many crops and varieties 

for storage. Farmers are advised to be very careful when using gourds since they tend to harbour 

weevils which are major threat to seeds. The Kamba community in Kenya has been associated 

with gourds for the last century. 

▪ Metal Cans (Silos) –metal silos have been introduced as seed storage facilities to community 

seed banks. The containers are very effective in conserving seeds except they are expensive to 

produce hence they are not cost effective to smallholder farmers. 

Storage Structures 

▪ Granary – the common storage structure for farmers in most communities is the granary. 

Though frequently used, farmers have been advised to keep the surrounding of the granary clean, 

the structure should be elevated to keep off termites and rodents. The granary should be well 

covered on top to avoid leaking of rainwater and plastered with an improvised clay layer to 

avoid termite or other insects attack. 

▪ Above the fireplace – there are few farmers who still keep selected types of seeds such as Zea 

mays cobs, Sorghum sp. heads and Phaseolus sp. pods tied or hanged at the roof by the fireplace. 

This method is not effective for large quantity of seeds. Farmers are advised that this method 

exposes the grains to rodent and weevils especially at early stages and moisture exposure during 

rainy season which may result in mould. 

Controlling pest and diseases 

There are a number of methods to control insect pests or fungal infestation, used by both farmers 

and community seed banks. The major pests are weevils, bruchids and the larger grain borer. The 

common methods used by farmers to prevent pest attack are traditional e.g. dressing seeds by 

concoctions such as ash from fire wood, cow dung or sisal. Farmers also mix seeds with leaves of

Mexican marigold and leaves of neem tree - both plants are well known for their multipurpose uses 

and treatment of various diseases in animals, plants as well as humans. 

Keeping the storage containers from damp and humid environments helps to control mould and 

other fungal infestations which can destroy seeds. Dusting seeds with chemicals such as super grain 

dust keeps away weevil. Farmers were advised that fumigants and pesticides should be used only if 

necessary but with caution and as last resort. In general fumigant or pesticide should not be used as 

they are known to have adverse effect on seed quality and longevity in storage. As explained earlier, 

constant check on the conditions of seeds in store and re-drying and replacing pesticides as 

appropriate reduces chances of spoilage. 


Optionally, farmers test viability of seeds both at the time of storage and before planting. Viability 

tests are mostly carried out for seeds, which are “at risk”. This gives the farmer surety of the 

germination viability of the seed after planting. 

The frequent method used by most farmers to test seed viability is by soaking a sample of the seeds 

in water for two to three days for the seed to sprout. Sometimes the farmer just plants a sample of 

the seed to test the viability status. 

Species known to consistently demonstrate for low germination (

▪ 

▪ 

Seed regulatory reforms for production, promotion and marketing of competitive or valued local 

varieties through formal channel also need attention. For example where local varieties are 

competitive with modern cultivars in certain niches and valued traditional crops (e.g. African 

Leafy Vegetables). 

There is a need for further training on On-farm Seed Management Techniques on the areas of 

Production, Processing, Selection and Storage especially among communities living in Arid and 

Semi-Arid areas.

4. RBG Kew species analysis 

Supported by 

Also supported by

4. RBG Kew species analysis 

Improving the identification, handling and storage of “difficult” seeds: 

Species Analysis 

Ms. Vanessa Bertenshaw 


Abstract 

In order to get some idea of the extent to which “difficult” species cause problems for gene banks, 

we analyzed several databases to produce a combined list of 768 species. 80% of these species 

produced desiccation-tolerant (‘orthodox’) seeds. A further 15% are probably orthodox but may 

need further investigation. Only 5% are definitely or likely desiccation-intolerant (‘recalcitrant’) 

species. Several species from the Poaceae family present difficulties due to dormancy. Relative 

longevity values for 39 ITPGRFA Annexe 1 species are presented. 

What do we mean by “difficult” seeds? 

▪ Inherently difficult 

- recalcitrant or intermediate seeds 

- orthodox but dormant 

- orthodox but short-lived 

▪ “Difficult” due to poor handling/storage 

- immature orthodox seeds dried too rapidly 

- orthodox seeds insufficiently dried prior to storage and/or stored under poor conditions 

- Seeds that have been damaged by insects (on-farm storage) 

The purpose of the study was to highlight species that were truly difficult because of storage 

behaviour, germination requirements or inherently short storage potential, and distinguish them 

from species which are “difficult” because they have been poorly handled. 

Data sets analysed for “difficult” species 

▪ Species listed in Annexe 1 of the ITPGRFA (www.fao.org/ag/cgrfa) 

▪ Tropical Forages list (www.tropicalforages.info) 

▪ A list of underutilized species (Padulosi, 1998) 

▪ A list of leafy vegetables (Sheela et al, 2004) 

▪ Groundnuts, onions and tomatoes stored by CENARGEN at Embrapa genebank 

(www.cenargen.embrapa.br) 

The combined species list represents 768 species from a total of 97 families. The families with the 

highest numbers of species included in the study are shown in Table 1. Of note are the 

Leguminosae-Papilionoideae and Poaceae families with 210 and 143 species, respectively, in the 

list.

Table 1. Families with greatest numbers of species represented in combined list 

Family Number of Species Family Number of Species 

AMARANTHACEAE 10 

LEGUMINOSAE- 

ANACARDIACEAE 11 

CAESALPINIOIDEAE 

13 

CHENOPODIACEAE 13 

LEGUMINOSAE- 

COMPOSITAE 23 

MIMOSOIDEAE 

32 

CRUCIFERAE 30 

LEGUMINOSAE- 

CUCURBITACEAE 18 

PAPILIONOIDEAE 

201 

POACEAE 143 ROSACEAE 16 

LABIATAE 30 SOLANACEAE 20 

UMBELLIFERAE 14 

Ex-situ holdings of combined list species: 

The combined species list was also cross-referenced to an ex-situ collection database of plant 

genetic resources holdings at national, regional and international genebanks in Africa. The database 

used was provided by the World Information and Early Warning System (WIEWS) on Plant 

Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PGRFA), established by FAO 

(http://apps3.fao.org/wiews/wiews.jsp). A total of 439 species from the combined species list are 

held by African genebanks. 211 genera and 53 families are represented, (Table 2). In all, a total of 

386774 accessions of species from the list are held at 155 organisations in 38 countries. 

Table 2. Accessions of species from the combined list held by African genebanks, sorted by family 

Family Accessions Family Accessions 

ALLIACEAE 1001 LEGUMINOSAE-PAPILIONOIDEAE 76258 

AMARANTHACEAE 1239 LINACEAE 3121 

ANACARDIACEAE 2502 LYTHRACEAE 15 

ANNONACEAE 26 MALVACEAE 2045 

APOCYNACEAE 2 MORACEAE 92 

ARACEAE 172 MUSACEAE 1727 

ASPARAGACEAE 36 MYRTACEAE 329 

BALANITACEAE 22 OLEACEAE 36 

BASELLACEAE 29 OXALIDACEAE 13 

BOMBACACEAE 12 PALMAE 662 

BURSERACEAE 61 PASSIFLORACEAE 7 

CAPPARACEAE 58 PEDALIACEAE 1769 

CHENOPODIACEAE 152 POLYGONACEAE 32 

COMPOSITAE 1349 PORTULACACEAE 1 

CONVOLVULACEAE 2 RANUNCULACEAE 25 

CRUCIFERAE 2871 RHAMNACEAE 24 

CUCURBITACEAE 890 ROSACEAE 546 

CYPERACEAE 2 RUBIACEAE 1 

DIOSCOREACEAE 2671 RUTACEAE 542 

EUPHORBIACEAE 8689 SAPINDACEAE 34 

GRAMINEAE 120595 SOLANACEAE 4445 

GUTTIFERAE 1 STERCULIACEAE 131 

IRVINGIACEAE 53 TILIACEAE 206 

JUGLANDACEAE 9 UMBELLIFERAE 89 

LABIATAE 3 VITACEAE 66 

LEGUMINOSAE-CAESALPINIOIDEAE 91 ZINGIBERACEAE 37 

LEGUMINOSAE-MIMOSOIDEAE 921 

Total no of families 53 

Total no of genera 211 

Total no of species 439

A total of 346 species from the combined list are held at the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB), 

representing 220 genera and 67 families. This amounts to 2067 accessions originating from 94 

different countries. Table 3 shows the families represented in the combined species list with the 

greatest number of accessions at MSB. 

Table 3. Families represented in the combined species 

list with the most accessions at MSB 

Family 

Accessions 

GRAMINEAE 537 

LEGUMINOSAE-MIMOSOIDEAE 161 

LEGUMINOSAE-PAPILIONOIDEAE 607 

Analysis 

The species list was analysed against Kew’s Seed Information Database (Flynn et al, 2006) and the 

MSB’s in-house Seed Bank Database, in order to produce information on seed storage behaviour 

and germination requirements. It was also cross-checked against a recent study of species seed 

longevity characteristics (Walters et al, 2005) 

Storage behaviour 

420 individual records of storage conditions were found in SID, representing 375 species from the 

combined species list. Most of the species showed orthodox storage behaviour (Table 4). Orthodox 

seeds can be dried to low moisture contents and their longevity increases with reductions in 

moisture content and temperature, over a range of storage environments. Approximately 15% of 

the species were “questionably” orthodox and only 5% were found to be recalcitrant. Recalcitrant 

seeds do not survive drying and so are not suitable for long term storage. In SID, this category 

includes seeds described as viviparous, including some aquatic species. 

Table 4. Species from combined list with storage behaviour records in SID 

Storage behaviour Number of species % 

Orthodox 299 79.73 

Recalcitrant 15 4.00 

Recalcitrant? 2 0.53 

Intermediate 2 0.53 

Intermediate? 1 0.27 

Orthodox? 21 5.60 

Orthodox p 33 8.80 

Uncertain 2 0.53 

Total no of species 375 

Of the species in the ITPGRFA list with storage behaviour records in SID, only two (Artocarpus 

altilis and Cocos sp.) are recalcitrant. One (Colcasia esculenta) is classed as possibly orthodox and 

the remainder are fully orthodox. 

Identifying “difficult” species from MSB germination tests 

The combined species list was analysed for germination data in MSB’s Seed Bank Database. 

Germination testing at the MSB involves initial testing after at least 1 week of cold storage, 

followed by re-testing at 10-year intervals. Initial tests are conducted (depending on the size of the 

collection) until a germination percentage of 75% or more is achieved. Germination test results are 

available for a total of 292 species (1620 accessions) from the combined species list, amounting to a 

total of 4441 germination tests, including initial tests and re-tests (Table 5).

Table 5. Completed tests and proportion of fails for species from the combined list at the first three intervals (initial, 1 st 

and 2 nd ) 

Test No of completed tests No of failed tests Proportion of failed tests 

Initial 2624 952 36% 

1 st retest (10 years) 1279 244 19% 

2 nd retest (20 years) 538 46 9% 

Total 4441 1242 

A total of 1242 tests have failed (germination percentage of 75% or less). Failure to germinate 

could indicate inappropriate testing conditions, the need to overcome dormancy (by seed coat 

scarification or cold stratification for example), poor initial viability (immature seeds, post harvest 

handling) or, in the case of re-tests, declining viability in storage (poor storage conditions, short 

lived species, immature seeds that had not reached max. storage potential). As expected, the 

proportion of failed tests declines after the initial stage, as germination protocols are established for 

each particular species. 

The number of initial tests required to obtain a satisfactory germination percentage of 75% or above 

might be considered as an indication of how “difficult” a species is with respect to germination 

requirements. The higher the number of initial tests, the more likely that there are dormancy issues 

The average number of initial tests was calculated for each of the 292 species (Table 6). 

Table 6. “Difficult” species from the combined list, requiring an average number of tests of 4 or more, to complete 

initial stage 

Family Genus Species Family Genus Species 

VALERIANACEAE Valerianella locusta POACEAE Panicuma sp 

UMBELLIFERAE Pimpinella sp POACEAE Panicum brizantha 

AIZOACEAE Tetragonia tetragonioides POACEAE Panicum maximum 

GENTIANACEAE Gentiana lutea POACEAE Digitaria eriantha 

CANNABACEAE Humulus lupulus POACEAE Setaria sphacelata 

COMPOSITAE Vernonia sp POACEAE Digitaria sp 

CAPPARACEAE Cleome gynandra POACEAE Setaria incrassata 

LABIATAE Teucrium polium POACEAE Phalaris arundinacea 

MALVACEAE Hibiscus sabdariffa POACEAE Eragrostis curvula 

LEGUMINOSAE- Ceratonia siliqua POACEAE Paspalum notatum 

CAESALPINIOIDEAE 

POACEAE Panicum sp 

Of those species requiring an average of 4 or more tests to pass the initial test, Poaceae species 

feature frequently. According to the Handbook of Seed Technology for Genebanks (Ellis et al, 

1985), some species of Panicum show persistent dormancy and often require scarification of the 

seed coat, the addition of Potassium nitrate to the germination medium.or lengthy after-ripening 

periods to remove dormancy. Digitaria sp. also express extreme dormancy, overcome by afterripening. 

The removal of covering structures in many species of Poaceae is an unreliable method of 

breaking dormancy, and often causes damage to the seeds. 

Relative longevity 

The ITPGRFA Annexe 1 list was queried against relative longevity values, as defined by Walters et 

al (2005) in a study of longevity of genebank-stored seeds. 48 species from the ITPGRFA list 

featured in their study,. Most were found to be long-lived or with medium-term longevity (Table 7). 

The three main families represented were Cruciferae, Gramineae and Leguminosae-Papilionoideae. 

There appears to be no consistent pattern in relative longevity amongst genera within these three 

families.

Table 7. Species featured on ITPGRFA list with defined relative longevity values 

Genus Species Relative longevity Genus Species Relative longevity 

CRUCIFERAE 

LEGUMINOSAE-PAPILIONOIDEAE 

Brassica hirta long Pisum sativum long 

Raphanus sativus long Medicago sativa long 

Lepidium sativum medium short Vicia sp long 

Crambe abyssinica short Lens culinaris long 

Brassica oleracea short Vigna radiata long 

Brassica napus variable Cicer arietinum long 

Isatis tinctoria variable Trifolium repens long 

POACEAE Lathyrus odoratus medium long 

Eleusine coracana long Melilotus alba medium long 

Avena sativa long Lotus corniculatus medium 

Zea mays long Trifolium incarnatum medium 

Hordeum vulgare medium long Trifolium pratense medium 

Sorghum bicolor medium long Lespedeza cuneata medium short 

Phleum pratense medium Trifolium hybridum medium short 

Lolium perenne medium Lupinus angustifolius medium short 

Lolium multiflorum medium Onobrychis viciifolia short 

Dactylis glomerata medium Phaseolus vulgaris variable 

Triticum aestivum medium 

Poa pratensis medium 

Secale cereale medium short 

Oryza sativa short 

Festuca rubra short 

Festuca arundinacea short 

Pennisetum glaucum short 

Other combined list species for which Walters et al (2005) provide relative longevity rankings are 

listed in Table 8. 

Table 8. Other selected species with defined relative longevity values 

Genus Species Relative longevity 

Cucumis melo long 

Abelmoschus esculentum long 

Lycopersicon esculentum long 

Citrullus lanatus medium long 

Sesamum Indicum medium 

Arachis hypogaea short 

Allium cepa short 

Capsicum annuum short 

Glycine max short 

Viability constants, enabling estimations of longevity under known storage conditions, are available 

for more than 60 species (http://www.kew.org/sid/viability/index.html), including 21 species from 

the ITPGRFA list. 

Summary 

▪ 80% of species from combined list are orthodox 

▪ Less than 5% of species are recalcitrant 

▪ 15% ‘orthodox?’, ‘orthodox p’ and ‘uncertain’ species may be “difficult” 

▪ Many species of Poaceae are “difficult” because of dormancy 

▪ Some species inherently short-lived 

In conclusion, it is clear from these analyses that the storage problems associated with “difficult” 

crop species are not simply an issue of recalcitrance. Only a small proportion of the species

investigated were found to be recalcitrant, and most showed orthodox storage behaviour. However, 

post-storage germination problems have been encountered amongst some of these species at MSB, 

suggesting that dormancy-breaking methods may need to be added to germination protocols to 

achieve successful results. Alongside this, special care may need to be taken during seed collecting 

in order to be certain about maturity and optimum post-harvest drying methods. Some species are 

simply short-lived and will not maintain viability during extended periods of storage. 

These species are well represented at the MSB and in several African genebanks, giving the 

potential for further germination and storage investigations. At the farm level, further information 

needs to be gathered on the harvesting, drying and storage conditions of seeds, so that the factors 

causing these species to be “difficult” can be fully assessed. 

References 

Ellis R H, Hong T D and Roberts E H (1985). Handbook of Seed Technology for Genebanks: 

Volume II. Compendium of Specific Germination Information and Test Recommendations. 

International Board for Plant Genetic Resources, Rome. 

http://www.ipgri.cgiar.org/publications/HTMLPublications/52/index.htm 

Flynn, S, Turner, R M, and Stuppy, W H 2006. Seed Information Database (release 7.0, October 

2006). http://www.kew.org/data/sid 

Padulosi, S (1998). A comprehensive vs. limited list of crops: the role of underutilized crops and 

opportunities for international centres, donor communities and recipient countries. Paper presented 

at the IAO workshop on" Interdependence and Food Security: which list of PGRFA for the future 

Multilateral System?" Instituto Agronômico per l’ Oltremare, Florence, Italy, 1 a 3 de outubro de 

1998 

http://biodiv.iao.florence.it/proceedings/pgrfa/padulosi.PDF 

Sheela K, Nath K G, Vijayalakshmi D, Yankanchi G M and Patil R B (2004). Proximate 

composition of underutilized green leafy vegetables in Southern Karnataka. Journal of Human 

Ecology 15(3): pp 227-229. 

Walters C, Wheeler L M, Grotenhuis J M (2005). Longevity of seeds stored in a genebank: species 

characteristics. Seed Science Research 15: pp 1-20.

5. Group sessions 

Supported by 

Also supported by

5.1. Format of group sessions 

Outputs from BF and RSA workshops 

▪ Country reports 

▪ Reports from farm-level projects 

▪ List of “difficult” species 

▪ List of constraints 

▪ Technology transfer priorities (species, techniques/methods) 

▪ Report/Proceedings 

▪ Programme of activities 

Questions for group sessions 

1. Why are the listed species “difficult”? 

2. What are the most urgent training needs? 

- What is already being addressed? 

- Where are the gaps? 

- How can they best be filled? 

- Info needs 

3. How can seed technologist/scientists support on-farm conservation? 

4. Top 5 equipment needs to enable your gene banks to better fulfil their mandate 

5. Recommendations 

Organisation of groups 

Group 1 Group 2 Group 3 

Pedro Moçambique Samuel Bennett-Lartey Tlhaloganyo Ofentse 

Lawrent Pungulani Peterson Wambugu Gemedo Dalle 

Maurício Francisco Sebili Naha Keven Nancy 

Eva Zaake Jose Menezes Awadelkarim Ahmed 

Ibrahim Ben Amer Andre Lezar Kudzai Kusena 

Bongo Nkosi Frank Sichone Lerotholi Qhobela 

Christopher Nyakiti Eduardo Morillo Wilson Marandu 

Elizabeth Malebana Robin Probert Lydia Ranta 

Juan Fajardo 

Vanessa Bertenshaw

5.2. GROUP 1 report 

Group members 

▪ Eva Zaake (Chair) 

▪ Lawrent Pungulani (Rapporteur) 

▪ Pedro Moçambique 

▪ Mauricio Francisco 

▪ Ibrahim Ben Amer 

1. Difficult seeds 

Groups 

▪ Cereals 

▪ Legumes 

▪ Vegetables 

▪ Other crops 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Bongo Nkosi 

Christopher Nyakiti 

Elizabeth Malebana 

Juan Fajardo 

Group/species 

Cereals 

Sorghum bicolor, Pennisetum glaucum, 

Eleusine coracana, Oryza sativa 

Legumes 

Arachis hypogaea, Glycine max, Phaseolus 

vulgaris, Mucuna pruriens 

Comments 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Orthodox 

Low viability 

Immature seeds (harvest well matured seeds 

for storage). 

Maybe problems come from poor handling 

before and during storage with exception of 

wild relatives 

▪ Orthodox but short-lived 

▪ Problems from over drying 

▪ Mechanical treatment (some seeds are soft 

such that mechanical processing leads to 

physical destruction of the seed). 

▪ **Oily seeds are sometimes dried with non 

oily seeds 

Vegetables 

Amaranthus sp. ▪ Dormancy 

▪ Problems with handling 

▪ Maybe immaturity 

▪ Cleaning 

Solanum nigra, Solanum villosum ▪ Dormancy 

Cleome gynandra ▪ Dormancy – needs Scarification, 

Abelmoschus esculentus ▪ Short-lived/ easily attacked by insects 

Allium cepa ▪ Problem with handling 

▪ Conflicting results on viability 

Other crops 

Helianthus annuus ▪ Orthodox 

▪ Mechanical damage 

▪ Oily seed (short lived) 

▪ Toxicity during viability testing 

Carica papaya ▪ Intermediate 

▪ Dormancy 

▪ **Dry the seeds with ash

2. Most urgent training needs 

Main training areas for genebank staff: 

▪ Genebank management 

▪ Seed conservation technology (seed physiology, in-vitro/cryopreservation etc) 

▪ Characterization and Evaluation (Morphological & molecular) 

▪ Documentation and Information 

▪ Establishment and management of field genebanks. 

Gaps partly addressed: 

Upgrading of skills is a key component to sustainable management of PGR. In this regard, other 

regions have on-going programs that are addressing human capacity building in different areas. 

▪ SADC countries – ex-situ conservation, in-situ conservation, electronic documentation systems 

▪ Seed physiology: Uganda (SIDA) planned for. 

Concern: 

Though training has been done in several areas in SADC, there still remains a need to train people 

further due to 

▪ Exodus of trained personnel to look for greener pastures and retiring 

▪ Technological advancement 

Training gaps - main priority topics for training: 

▪ Characterization (morphologic and molecular) 

▪ Genebank management (seed physiology, processing, germination etc) 

▪ Participatory approaches in management of pgr particularly on-farm (Participatory variety 

selection, community seedbanks etc) 

▪ In-vitro and cryopreservation 

▪ Establishment and management of field genebanks 

▪ Documentation and information (database management, data processing, analysis, packaging 

and dissemination, GIS) 

▪ Collection procedures and techniques 

Methods/modes of filling gaps: 

▪ Group training courses (national, regional and continental level for not less than two weeks) 

▪ Individual training courses (topic, crop) 

▪ Degree training (BSc. MSc. PhD) 

▪ Provision of well developed training materials like: manuals, guidelines and procedures, 

literature etc. 

Information needs: 

▪ Guidelines, standards, protocols, descriptors, relevant literature (ISTA, IPGRI) 

▪ Manuals 

▪ Flow of information within and between regions 

▪ Translate important instruments into local languages to cater for local communities’ needs. 

▪ Standardize genebank documetation systems in other regions to take after SADC. 

3. Role seed technologist/scientists in supporting on-farm conservation 

▪ Transfer of basic technology (including training) to key farmers in processes that contribute to 

loss of viability/bodiversity 

- Storage 

- Drying 

- Processing 

- Breaking dormancy

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

- Seed selection 

- Phytosanitory issues 

- Seed quality 

Develop linkages between genebank (ex situ) and farmers (on –farm) 

Sensitise farmers, public sector, private sector etc on importance of maintaining indigenous 

varieties/crops. (nutritive value, medicinal value, basic material for developing new varieties. 

Reintroduction of germplasm 

Involve farmers in variety selection and their contribution should be acknowledged. 

4. Top 5 equipment needs 

▪ Driers 

▪ Freezers 

▪ Moister analyzers 

▪ Incubators 

▪ Vacuum pump and sealers 


▪ Hold similar two workshops to review and assess progress of the project either at regional or 

continent level… 

- Mid way 

- End of 

▪ Sustainable training should rank high in the project 

▪ Priority should be given to countries with lower level of implementation of PGR conservation 

activities. 

▪ Strengthen collaboration between regional, country networks and other partners 

▪ The project to recommend the need to strengthen agro-biodiversity conservation to policy 

makers in different countries through the focal points 

▪ International organizations to promote awareness of this project in decision-makers about policy 

issues that affect technical issues 

▪ Participants to initiate domestication of international instruments affecting conservation of plant 

genetic resources e g. the International Treaty to attract the attention of policy-makers 

▪ International organisations to play a supportive role 

These are really difficult seeds that need immediate attention before we lose them. Let’s act now 

otherwise our grand children will have very few options for survival.


Group members 

▪ Samuel Bennett-Lartey 

▪ Peterson Wambugu 

▪ Sebili Naha 

▪ Jose Menezes 

1. Reasons for “difficult” seeds 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Andre Lezar 

Frank Sichone 

Eduardo Morillo 

Robin Probert 

Species 

Reason 

Cleome gynandra ▪ Dormancy 

Amaranthus sp. ▪ Some are dormant 

Corchorus sp. ▪ Dormancy 

Gossypium sp. ▪ Oil content? 

▪ Climate cool and moist 

▪ Immature 

▪ Storage 

Helianthus annuus ▪ Oil content? 

▪ Climate cool and moist 

▪ Immature 

▪ Storage 

Avena sp. 

Dormancy 

Abelmoschus esculentus 

Physical dormancy 

Vigna subterranean 

Immaturity (leave in pods) 

Arachis hypogaea 

Immaturity (leave in pods) 

Allium Isp. 

Inherently short lived, small embryo 

Daucus carota 

Variation in seed maturity 

Oryza sp. 

Dormancy 

Research needed into understanding natural dormancy breaking – ecosystems. 

2. Training priorities 

▪ Seed physiology 

- Specialized training in seed physiology 

▪ Seed dormancy studies 

- Species by species on how to handle each 

- Include basic principals on what to do for species that are not in such a manual. 

▪ Purity of samples 

- Removing immature, damaged and empty seeds 

▪ Equipment often supplied without technical support 

- Training or sharing of laboratory management skills (knowledge of equipment and 

available expertise) and quality assurance 

▪ Risk associated with conservation of recalcitrants in field gene banks 

- Cryo-storage training for SADC gene banks. University of KZN = Darwin funding for 

training 

▪ On-farm approach 

- Need social skills to succeed, learn from NGO’s 

Training recommendations: 

▪ Training need to be hands-on, practical and extensive 

▪ Level 1: training the trainers – Kew 

▪ Level 2: training of technicians - regional

Information needs: 

▪ Need knowledge of available information 

▪ Info available on-line 

▪ Information of what NGB etc. are doing 

▪ Info about quality assurance systems 

▪ Info about partners with different expertise in required areas. 

3. Scientists and on-farm conservation 

▪ Seed handling and storage by farmers is very poor – need to change this 

▪ To do this need the necessary social skills – training 

▪ Adapting and making small changes to storage methods 

▪ Farmers need to buy in and see results for themselves 

▪ Rather let other influential farmers that were worked with previously speak to other farmers. 

▪ Participatory! 

▪ Storage experiments 

Recommendations: 

▪ Depending on resources can use different approaches 

- Surveys (Kenya) 

- Invite farmers to planning meetings (Ghana) 

- Get farmers to come to gene banks 

▪ Enough resources 

- Hands-on approach 

▪ Not enough resources 

- Other options such as training of influential people in communities “ex-situ” and then 

sending those back with knowledge, then take on a monitoring approach 

▪ Transferring of knowledge 

- Using simple “charts” to make an impact on practices (visual aids) - local language at 

community level 

- Use templates of charts that can be adapted for each country and language 

4. Equipment needs 

Country 

Needs 

Kenya ▪ Germination equipment 

▪ Seed cleaning – blower 

Sudan ▪ Needs analysis 

Zambia ▪ Drier 

▪ Germination equipment 

Lesotho ▪ Seed cleaning - blower 

▪ Moisture meter 


▪ Drier 

Equador ▪ Well equipped 

▪ Maintenance of equipment 

▪ Germinator 

▪ Moisture meter 

Ghana ▪ No equipment yet 

▪ Depends on location of regional facility 

South Africa ▪ Moisture meter - Rotronic

Top 5 equipment needs for group: 

▪ Drier 

▪ Seed blowers 

▪ Power stabilizer and generator 


▪ Moisture meter (non-destructive) - Rotronic 

What I hear, I forget; what I see, I remember; what I do, I understand.


Group members 

▪ Wilson Manduru (Chair) 

▪ Kudzai Kusena (Rapporteur) 

▪ Gemedo Dalle 

▪ Lydia Ranta 

▪ Lerotholi Qhobela 

1. Why are the listed species “difficult”? 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Tlhaloganyo Ofentse 

Keven Nancy 

Awadelkarim Ahmed 

Vanessa Bertenshaw 

Artocarpus altilis ▪ very small seeds 

▪ not successful at germination and testing 

▪ only achieved by root cuttings 

Citrus sp. ▪ now reclassified as recalcitrant 

Cochorus sp ▪ difficulties at initial stage 

▪ may be overcome over time 

Cocos nucifera ▪ can carry out embryo rescue and store as tissue culture 

▪ also storage in field genebank 

▪ recalcitrant 

Ipomoea batatas ▪ seeds of sweet potato not often found, only flowers 

▪ seeds cannot be used for propagation 

▪ if seeds germinate they segregate very heavily 

Musa sp. ▪ diploid seeds in non-fruit varieties 

▪ germination is difficult 

▪ possible problems with dormancy 

▪ slowly germination, radicle takes long time to extend 

Oryza sp. ▪ Oryza sativa is short lived species 

▪ low germination after storage 

Solanum melogena, ▪ germinate very poorly at different times 

Solanum 

▪ wild eggplant used as rootstock 

macrocarpum ▪ eggplants do not do well in Seychelles soil 

Vigna unguiculata ▪ germination protocol needs to be established 

▪ attacked by store pests 

Lagenaria sp. ▪ spherical shaped seeds, suspected difficult 

▪ might have high oil content 

▪ also may have problems in maturity 

Aroids ▪ do not produce seeds very often 

▪ usually conserved by vegetative propagation 

Vigna subterranea ▪ short storage life 

▪ mixed experience between institutions 

▪ drying for storage is problem 

▪ may be shelled too quickly, before reaching max maturity viability 

Fleshy fruits ▪ e.g. Mangifera indica, Persea americana, Carica papaya 

▪ problems in germination 

▪ necessary to wait for fruits to mature, then remove pulp and wash seeds 

to avoid fungal infection (also use fungicide), then dry 

▪ can conserve for 5 to 6 months, regenerate after this time 

▪ also have problems with germination during drying due to high relative 

humidity 

Sesamum indicum ▪ problems with dormancy 

Abelmoschus ▪ problems with dormancy

esculentus 

Lycopersicon ▪ problems in extraction, will ferment if not done quickly enough 

esculentus 

Hoodia gordonii ▪ problems in getting germination rates above 50% 

Citrullus lanatus ▪ problems in germination in Tanzania 

▪ do not have problems with cultivated species 

▪ problems in germination for wild species 

▪ difficulties at initial stage, may be overcome over time 

Allium sp ▪ short lived 

▪ problems in germination 

Pennisetum 

▪ problems at SPGRC, could have been due to poor handling 

glaucum, Eleusine ▪ should be relatively easy to handle 

coracana 

Gossypium sp. ▪ oil content, short lived 

▪ South Africa only doing germination testing at initial stage 

2. What are the most urgent training needs? 

Training needs already being addressed: 

▪ Seed physiology/seed technology 

- SPGRC - short term courses with Nordic MSB partners, Regional training workshops 

run by MSB, including Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. 

- SADC seed security network course, monotonous 

- Seychelles – out of SADC network, so have missed chance to take training 

- South Africa – SADC offer PGR training, supervisors receive training and not 

technologists carrying out work 

▪ 

Taxonomy 

- Seychelles – short course for two weeks in 2002, managed to build foundation in 

taxonomy. Has stopped since leaving SADC 

- Botswana - National herbarium and university have taxonomists, engaged with other 

activities. Try to work with MSB to receive hands-on training, one field person from 

Kew on collecting trips, short courses once per year in taxonomy, classroom based. 

Also digital photos should be included for every expedition. 

- Ethiopia – taxonomy and seed physiology should be done locally, should be trained in 

country with local materials. Could encourage universities to have dept of 

botany/taxonomy to train in taxonomy. 

- Global Taxonomy Initiative, region should be aware of this. Genebanks also assigned to 

be members of this initiative. Funds from GEF, see CBD website. 

- SABONET project – should be SADC initiative for training in taxonomy and botany 

training within region. Might have phased out, funds not available. Has not achieved 

primary objectives. 

▪ 

Genebank management 

▪ Sudan – one person currently trained to manage genebank, but want to make sub units, 

will need more managers. 

▪ Zimbabwe – PGR course with Nordic Gene Bank covers this, also covered by 

Wageningen in Netherlands. 

▪ Seychelles – training not needed at the moment, genebank is part of tropical fruit nursery. 

One member of staff attended plant genetic resources master’s course in Birmingham, 

now has been appointed as director, so have to find new manager. Now someone else is

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

being trained as genebank manager – scheme will allow them to stay in job with pay 

rises, so will stay in job. Genebank trained staff can easily diversify and are in demand 

and hence rapid staff turnover. 

Ethiopia – technicians trained in Germany. 

Botswana – policy makers need idea of what is expected of genebank, need to involve 

people from outside region. 

Seychelles – same people are doing different jobs. Small population and limited 

resources, lack of specialisation. 

▪ 

▪ 

Database management 

▪ Ethiopia – Highlighted their strong need and they already have service personnel for 

databases, but not specifically in genebank data. 

▪ South Africa – IT specialists, but do not have specialists in genebank data, techncians 

already have training in doing this. 

▪ SPGRC – already covered in database training. Gaps exist between SPGRC and 

national institutions as data not matching; the documentation system is still under 

construction. Need on-line updating of database, need to make sure database is updated 

directly from genebanks. 

▪ Need to train national institutions. Need to be able to analyse, summarise data and make 

it useable. 

▪ SADC – modules for database management training to be released soon. 

▪ Sudan – technician trained in Zurich, more training needed, for documentation. 

▪ Seychelles – not trained in data management, data is recorded on simple spread sheets. 

Equipment technicians 

▪ SPGRC – have been contracting outside companies to address equipment problems, not 

sure if effective 

▪ Botswana – No training for maintenance and repairing of Genebank equipment. 

Equipment failure has been a chronic problem. Need specialised technicians to address 

these problems 

Gaps identified: 

▪ Ethiopia - Burning problem regarding training of seed physiologists, specialists in storage 

behaviour 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Short term courses for personnel needed for maintaining equipment 

Short term training should be given to director general, section leaders, so they all understand 

process undertaken and be able to carry out rationale decisions concerning plant genetic 

resources management 

Botswana- Networking with other institutions capacities will strengthen expertise, e.g. 

characterisation in form of university student projects 

Need to network with universities to address needs in taxonomy 

Being able to identify at least family level will be useful, gives genebank staff at least an idea 

how to approach taxonomy and how to access information. 

Managers should be trained to collect sufficient data to aid taxonomist to identify help towards 

final identification. 

Need to develop strategy for fixing equipment, working permanently with companies from 

where equipment was bought. Work with manufacturers, and be able to report problems 

immediately, rather that wait for two years for SADC planning meeting. Problems are not 

reported immediately within network, so other institutions are not aware of problems that may 

occur. Need strategy for reporting problems 

Sudan – Training for seed taxonomists needed 

Have specialists in plant breeding but not enough seed physiologists

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Seychelles – Training of seed bank managers 

Training on inventory of seed species, inventory of PGRFA, needs taxonomists 

Short term training needed for inventory so as to keep the Genebank operational 

Need to train on preventative maintenance, changing filters and keeping in running order 

South Africa- Training on data base management skills 

Problem with management of genebank, technicians in pathology have to work in genebank, 

However money and facilities are available but not effectively utilized as high concentration is 

on research and not on genebank management. 

Zimbabwe- Needs one trained taxonomists, however there has been training going on with the 

Herbarium staff 

All Genebanks – requires trained staff on genebank equipment maintenance 

SPGRC – need to have standard equipment from few companies and need to allow programme 

to be established with several institutions. 

Need to use same make through out region, this will allow easier maintenance and repairs. 

Need to provide regional training for several institutions. 

General comments on training: 

▪ Would like to see staff more well defined, staff at the moment have to be good at everything, 

need specialize in germ testing, seed handling, policy, equipment maintenance, researchers all 

lumped together. 

▪ Opportunity for seed pathology course in Denmark, course has since been moved to Tanzania, 

focus on Africa. 

▪ Focussing on training individuals is more risky, need to train people with different backgrounds, 

promote short course training. Long term training not sustainable, as it makes people more 

marketable. Short training empowers people to do job instantly. Short courses will be 

sufficient for new staff. 

3. How can seed technologists/scientists support on-farm conservation 

▪ Awareness campaigns on the importance of conserving landraces, e.g. conserving cultural 

values, nutritional values, adapted materials to low fertile soils and drought tolerance. 

▪ Seed technologists need to be carrying out more research with the farmers on different species 

on farm and not in lab. Will have more positive results. 

▪ Need to educate/raise awareness in seed handling for farmers. Processing techniques to 

reproduce high quality seed right through the cropping cycle. Also control of pests and diseases. 

Technologists can be looking at storage techniques, handling bulk. 

▪ Expertise on seeds can be used to support on-farm conservation 

▪ Conservation from harvesting time to storage, resources wasted in traditional methods. Train 

farmer on better post harvest handling techniques 

▪ Appropriate technology e.g. integrated pest management and not wasting resources on 

herbicides and pesticides if these can be overcome in other ways. 

▪ Need to link with crop production with market, cooperatives that do product value addition and 

marketable outputs. 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Scientists can help to identify opportunities 

Farmers are denied rights, need to be involved in developing material, instead of material being 

used by corporate companies, need to be directly involved in varieties. Good varieties may be 

produced out of their material through participatory varietal selection; this has already been 

carried out in India and Nepal. Need to learn from other networks that are successful. 

Direct use/ development. Scientists can give information to farmer in terms of scientific 

information; identify major features that will be useful to farmers. 

Need to compare maize with sorghum, need to protect invasions by commercial varieties against 

landraces. Originally perceived to be high-yielding, but later found to be unproductive. Policy 

should be directly related to conservation, not simply to promote certain varieties.

4. Equipment needs 

Shopping list:

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Ethiopia 

- hygrometer x 2 

- dehumidifier x 2 

- aluminium foil bags 

South Africa 

- generator 

- dehumidifier 

Zimbabwe 


- hygrometer 

- generator 

Seychelles 

- deep freezers 

- hygrometer 


- drying chamber 

- heat sealer and foil packets 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Sudan 

- deep freezers 

- sealing machine 

- incubator-dryer 

- hygrometer 


Botswana 

- generator 

SPGRC 

- dryers 

- generators 

- hygrometer 

- old freezers, will need replacing 

- stereo and dissecting microscope 


▪ Species 

- Each national genebank and regional institutions need to carry out investigations on species 

that are difficult and why, depending on subjective decisions 

- Information exchange on findings on website to discuss species and species related issues, 

research. 

- More information on germination protocols, scientific papers, Web of Knowledge. 

▪ 

▪ 

▪ 

Better linkages with other networks/institutions with same issues. 

Training priorities 

- Training must address specific people and level at which it is required, avoid sending wrong 

people. 

- Hands on training in laboratories. Short term attachments to successful genebanks when 

institution lagging behind in germination testing. Also refresher courses/training workshops 

for staff of genebanks. 

- Each genebank should carry out training needs analysis, so as to know which aspect of 

training is needed in, then can send to Kew, SADC or SPGRC. Will avoid training courses 

in subjects staff are already versed in. Tailor made training for regions, or training in new 

techniques. 

- More focus on short courses than long courses. 

- Training on local materials using local personnel. 

- Exploring ways of summarising information that is available in data bases. Have standard 

reporting system. 

- Use more of capacity available in universities, should be involved in workshops, creating 

public awareness in academic circles. Ambassadors in universities, have to work with these 

people to facilitate this. 

On-farm conservation/technologies 

- Importance of drying and storage, research into techniques used on farm to understand 

problems in species being conserved. Working with farmers, carrying out research on-farm. 

- Understanding market, evaluation of landraces and conservation and sustainable use of 

landraces.

▪ 

- Awareness generating, working with policy makers, workshops run by scientists to inform 

importance of conservation at on-farm level. Need to find a way of retaining interest with 

ministers and policy makers Participatory approach in research, farmers must benefit from 

royalties, farmers rights regarding material being used for improved crops. Trade secrets. 

Equipment needed as soon as possible

6. Plenary 

Supported by 

Also supported by

6.1. Plenary of South Africa stakeholder workshop 

Chairperson 

Dr. Robin Probert, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 

Species 

▪ Some lack of consensus between “difficult” species 

▪ Also some agreement about dormancy/storage issues – e.g. Cleome, Abelmoschus esculentus, 

Amaranthaceae 

▪ Other difficulties due to storage/handling need to be addressed 

▪ Need to carry out scientific study on difficult species 

▪ Make existing information accessible on “difficult” species 

▪ Need to generate better understanding of seed production in species that are vegetatively 

propagated, e.g. Andean tubers, Dioscorea sp. 

Equipment 

▪ Each genebank has different equipment needs 

▪ Ideally equipment should be locally sourced, using same manufacturers and suppliers within 

region 

▪ Need to establish maintenance contracts for equipment and identify “lab manager” to take 

responsibility for equipment maintenance 

▪ Project budget allocated to equipment should be directed towards most “needy” genebanks 

Training 

▪ “Training Needs Assessments” to be carried out to identify training levels required 

▪ Need to engage with local universities to identify academics (if available) who can support 

graduate level training 

▪ “Train the Trainer” training workshops for local experts/genebank managers to be provided by 

Kew 

▪ Need for basic training and understanding of seed biology/physiology for technicians, to be 

delivered by local experts/genebank managers 

▪ Build on existing training initiatives, e.g. in regional networks, SIDA 

On-farm Conservation 

▪ Need to directly engage with farmers regarding issues of seed handling in on-farm conservation 

and develop strategies to facilitate this and provide a service to farmers 

▪ Build on and share experiences of engagement between gene banks and farmers 

▪ Explore possibilities of collaboration with IPGRI in addressing constraints to seed handling and 

storage at on-farm community level 

▪ Gene bank liaison at farm-level 

- Angola – not direct, through extension workers 

- Botswana – not direct 

- Ecuador – direct with NGOs 

- Ethiopia – direct through Ministry of Agriculture 

- Ghana – new activity with Ministry of Agriculture, indirect 

- Kenya – direct 

- Lesotho – direct with farmers 

- Libya – not direct, through cooperation 

- Malawi – direct, in-situ officer, collaboration with extension and NGOs 

- Mozambique – not direct 

- Seychelles – both direct and indirect, through extension officers and staff of the PGR 

unit

- South Africa – direct new project, mandate with Ministry of Agriculture 

- Sudan – direct, through extension 

- Uganda – not direct but have mandate, through other research institutes 

- Zambia – direct, both with NGO and extension staff 

- Zimbabwe – direct, part of mandate, collaboration with other NGOs 

- SPGRC – have mandate, through national gene banks 

Other issues 

▪ Project website including communication forum to address seed conservation issues amongst 

stakeholders

6.2. Summary of Burkina Faso stakeholder workshop 

Améliorer l’identification, la manutention et la préservation 

des graines à ‘conservation difficile’: 

10 th to 14 th July 2006 - Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso 

Dr. Kate Gold 


The stakeholder workshop on conservation of difficult seeds was held from 10 th to 14 th July 2006, at 

Ouagadougou Burkina Faso. The workshop was opened by the Minister of Agriculture in the 

presence of the Minister of Environment and the Representative of FAO in Burkina Faso. The 

workshop was attended by: 

▪ 21 participants from 13 African francophone countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, 

Centrafrique, Cote d`Ivoire, Gabon, Mauritius, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Rwanda, 

Togo) 

▪ Representative of GRENEWECA / IPGRI (Cotonou, Benin) 

▪ Representative of IPGRI (Rome, Italy) 

▪ Representative of FAO (AGPS, Rome, Italy) 

▪ NGO representatives from the Association of Support to Local Initiatives on Rural 

Development (AIDR) and the National Union of Seed Producers of Burkina 

▪ RBG Kew 

▪ 26 participants in total 

The programme followed a similar format to that of the South African workshop, and included 

country presentations, the external policy context (FAO), technical background (Kew), and 

presentations from IPGRI, GRENEWECA and other stakeholders. The Association of Support to 

Local Initiatives on Rural Development (AIDR) and the National Union of Seed Producers of 

Burkina talked about their roles, interests, organisation and their relationship with Research and 

Agricultural departments. They were interested in the outcomes of the workshop and how their 

activities to improve seed production and conservation could be facilitated. Field visits to Centre 

National de Semences Forestières (CNSF) and the Laboratoire du Service National des Semences, 

allowed participants to see basic seed conservation and analysis equipment, and exchange with 

scientists on how they handle and assess seed quality. 

Presentations were followed by focus groups sessions and plenary discussions on ‘difficult species’, 

training and information needs, and priority equipment needs. 

Group sessions 

Participants worked in two groups, to discuss needs related to training, information, basic and 

priority equipment, and to establish a preliminary list of species that are difficult to store for 

different institutes. 

Main recommendations: 

▪ Training of target groups of researchers, technicians and seed producers, in techniques and 

methods of handling “difficult to store” seeds appropriately 

▪ Acquisition of basic technical equipment for strengthening operational capacities of institutes 

which are in charge of seed conservation. 

▪ Compilation and access to scientific and technical information in relation to conservation and 

handling of seeds that are difficult to store 

▪ Valorisation and dissemination of available technical information on seeds that are difficult to 

store, to institutes or countries, which are taking part in the project, and support of scientific 

writing in order to publish new or existing data from grey literature.

7. Annexe 

Supported by 

Also supported by

7.1. Workshop participants 

Mr. Pedro A. Moçambique 

Centre national des ressources phytogénétiques 

Prédio CNIC 

Av. Revolução de Outubro 

PO Box 10825 (BG) 

ANGOLA 

E-mail: cnrf@ebonet.net 

Tel: +244-2-321688/5673 

Mr. Peterson Wambugu 

National Genebank of Kenya 

PO Box 781 

Kikuyu 

KENYA 

E-mail: werupw@yahoo.com 

Tel: +254 06 632 587 

Fax: +254 06 632 587 

Mr. Tlhaloganyo Ounce Ofentse 

Botswana NPGRC 

Department of Agricultural Research 

Private Bag 0033 

Gaborone 

BOTSWANA 

E-mail: ounceofentse@yahoo.ca 

tofentse@gov.bw 

Tel: +267 366 8100 

Fax: +267 3928965 

Mr. Eduardo Morillo 

Dpto Nacional de Recursos Fitogenéticos y 

Biotecnología 

Estación Experimental Santa Catalina 

Panamericana sur km 1 

PO Box 17 01 340 

Quito 

ECUADOR 

E-mail: denaref@ecnet.ec 

Tel: +593 269 0695 

Dr. Gemedo Dalle 

Institute of Biodiversity Conservation 

PO Box 30726 

Addis Ababa 

ETHIOPIA 

E-mail: gemedod@yahoo.com 

Tel: +251 (11) 6612 244 

Fax: +251 (11) 6613 722 

Mr. Sebili Naha 

Lesotho NPGRC 

Department of Agricultural Research 

PO Box 829 

Maseru 100 

LESOTHO 

E-mail: cbd19662002@yahoo.co.uk 

Tel: 266 22 312395 

Dr. Ibrahim Ben Amer 

National Gene Bank of Libya 

ARC 

Sidi El-masre St. 

Tripoli 

PO Box 2480 

LIBYA 

E-mail: benamer55@yahoo.com 

Mr. Lawrent Pungulani 

Malawi NPGRC 

PO Box 158 

Lilongwe 

MALAWI 

E-mail: genebank@malawi.net 

lawrentp@yahoo.co.uk 

Dr. Samuel Bennett-Lartey 

Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

PO Box 7 

Bunso 

GHANA 

E-mail: sblartey@yahoo.com 

Tel: +233 81 22124 

Fax: +233 81 24124 

Mr. Maurício Francisco 

Instituto de Investigacao Agraria de 

Mocambique 

PO Box 3658 

Av. Forcas Populares No.2698 

Mavalane 8, Maputo 

MOZAMBIQUE 

E-mail: mauricio1973mz@yahoo.com.br 

Tel: +258 21 460097/098/099/130/255 

Fax: +258 21 460074/460255

Mr. José de Menezes 

Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources 

Avenida Marginal 12 de Julho 

Caixa Postal 718 

SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE 

E-mail: dpeme2@cstome.net 

jodeumenezes15817@hotmail.com 

Mr. Awadelkarim Alamelhuda Ahmed 

Agricultural Research Corporation 

PO Box 126 

Wad Medani 

SUDAN 

E-mail: awadelkarima@yahoo.com 

Mr. Keven Selwin Nancy 

Plant Genetic Resources Dev Section 

Department of Natural Resources 

Ministry of Environment and Natural Res 

PO Box 166 

Victoria 

Mahe 

SEYCHELLES 

E-mail: pgr@seychelles.net 

Mr. Andre Lezar 

South Africa NPGRC 

Directorate Genetic Resources 

Private Bag X973 

Pretoria 

0001 

SOUTH AFRICA 

E-mail: lezara@arc.agric.za 

Tel: +27 12 808 5387 

Fax: +27 12 808 5383 

Ms. Elizabeth Malebana 



Pretoria 

SOUTH AFRICA 

E-mail: elizabethm@arc.agric.za 

Tel: +27 145363113 

Ms. Lydia Ranta 



Pretoria 

SOUTH AFRICA 

E-mail: lydiar@arc.agric.za 

Tel: +27 145363113 

Ms. Eva Zaake 

National Agricultural Research Organization 

PO Box 295 

UGANDA 

E-mail: curator@infocom.co.ug 

Tel +256 41 320638 

Fax: +256 41 321070 

Mr. Frank Sichone 

Zambia NPGRC 

Mount Makulu Central Research Station 

Private Bag 7 

Chilanga 

ZAMBIA 

E-mail: franksichone@yahoo.co.uk 

Tel: +260 1 278380 

Mr. Kudzai Kusena 

Genebank of Zimbabwe 

Dept of Research and Specialist Services 

Ministry of Lands and Agriculture 

5th St. Extension, PO Box CY 550 

Causeway Harare 

ZIMBABWE 

E-mail: ngbz@mweb.co.zw 

Tel: +263 4 704531/2519 

Fax: +263 4 728317 

Dr. Wilson Marandu 

IPGRI 

Sub-Saharan Africa Group 

c/o AVRDC-RCA 

PO Box 10 

Duluti 

Arusha 

TANZANIA 

E-mail: wmarandu@avrdc-rca.co.tz

Dr. Abebe Demissie 

EAPGREN 

Plot 15 John Babiiha Road 

PO Box 765 

Entebbe 

UGANDA 

E-mail: a.demissie@asareca.org 

Tel: +256 41 320212/322131 

Fax: +256 41 321777 

Dr. Bonga Nkosi 

SADC Plant Genetic Resource Center 

Private Bag CH6 

ZA 153 02 

Lusaka 

ZAMBIA 

E-mail: spgrc@zamnet.zm 

bsnkosi@yahoo.com 

Tel: +260 1 233391/2 

Fax: +260 1 611031 

Mr. Lerotholi Qhobela 

SADC Plant Genetic Resource Center 

Private Bag CH6 

ZA 153 02 

Lusaka 

ZAMBIA 

E-mail: lqhobela@yahoo.com 

spgrc@zamnet.zm 

Tel: +260 1 233391/2 

Fax: +260 1 611031 

Mr. Christopher A Nyakiti 

Nairobi Friends Club International 

Agip House, Wing B 

2 nd Floor, Room 239, Haile Selassie Avenue 

PO Box 40585-00100 GPO 

Nairobi 

KENYA 

E-mail: canyakiti@yahoo.co.uk 

nfcikenya@yahoo.com 

Tel: +254 20 243 084 

Mr. Juan Fajardo 

FAO 

AGPS 

Viale delle Terme di Caracalla 

00100 Rome 

ITALY 

E-mail: juan.fajardo@fao.org 

Tel: +39 06 57 05 35 59 

Fax: +39 06 57 05 63 47 

Dr. Kate Gold 

RBG Kew 


Wakehurst Place 

Ardingly 

Haywards Heath 

West Sussex, RH17 6TN 

UK 

E-mail: k.gold@kew.org 

Dr. Robin Probert 

RBG Kew 



Ardingly 



UK 

E-mail: r.probert@kew.org 

Ms. Vanessa Bertenshaw 

RBG Kew 



Ardingly 



UK 

E-mail: v.bertenshaw@kew.org

7.2. Questionnaires (for reports) 

The format for the reports relates to and builds upon the information that GPA National Focal 

Points will have compiled for the process of monitoring the implementation of the Global Plan of 

Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization o f PGRFA. Question numbers in brackets 

refer to this survey. 

Country Reports 


Briefly describe any programme/project/activity with local farmer communities in which your 

organization participates. 


List the type (short term, medium term, long term, in vitro, cryopreservation, field) and conditions 

of germplasm storage facilities in use at your organization. 


Describe how your organization dries seeds. 


Do you routinely measure seed moisture status? Describe the method used. 


What containers does your organization use to store seeds? 


Does your organization monitor viability of ex-situ collections? 

▪ What method is used? 

▪ Please list any species that demonstrate low levels of viability during initial tests. 

▪ Please list any species that demonstrate low levels of viability after a period of storage. 


Please comment on priorities, needs and constraints to sustaining existing ex situ collections. 


Briefly describe the solutions you would envisage to solve the problems, in terms of training, 

support in infrastructure or any other solutions. 

NGO/CBO Reports 


Briefly describe any programme/project/activity in which community seed banks/farmers 

collaborate with local/national genebanks. 

Seed storage facilities 

▪ How do community seed banks/farmers store seeds? 

▪ How long are seeds usually stored for? 

Seed Drying 

Describe how community seed banks/farmers normally dry seeds.


▪ Do community seed banks/farmers measure/estimate seed moisture status? 

▪ Describe the method used. 


What containers do community seed banks/farmers use to store seeds? 

Controlling pests and diseases 

Do community seed banks/farmers carry out any treatments to control insect pests or fungal 

infestation? 


Do community seed banks/farmers carry out germination tests? 

▪ What method is used? 

▪ Please list any species that consistently demonstrate low germination (< 65%)? 

Constraints 

Please comment on priorities, needs and constraints to On-Farm seed management. 


Briefly describe the solutions you would envisage to solve the problems, in terms of training, 

support in infrastructure or any other solutions.

7.3. List of “difficult to conserve” species, as identified by the workshop 

Family Genus Species Issues/germination results 

ACANTHACEAE Barleria acanthoides Low germination 

ALLIACEAE Allium cepa 92.5% germination after 13 years storage. 

Problem with handling. Conflicting results on 

viability. Inherently short lived, small 

embryo. 

AMARANTHACEAE Amaranthus sp Low viability. Some dormancy. Problems 

with handling. Maybe immaturity. Cleaning 

issues 

AMARANTHACEAE Beta sp Germination problems - difficulties in 

evaluation of seedlings infected with fungi 

AMARANTHACEAE Celosia schweinfurthiana Low germination 

ANACARDIACEAE Lannea alata Low germination 

ANACARDIACEAE Lannea triphylla Low germination 

ANACARDIACEAE Mangifera indica Problems in germination. Have to wait for 

fruits to mature, then remove pulp and wash 

seeds to avoid fungal infection (also use 

fungicide), then dry. Can conserve for 5 to 6 

months, then regenerate after this time. Seeds 

may germinate during drying due to high 

relative humidity. 

ANACARDIACEAE Ozoroa obovata Low germination 

ANACARDIACEAE Sorindeia madagascariensis Low germination 

ANNONACEAE Annona senegalensis Low germination 

ANNONACEAE Xylopia tettensis Low germination 

APIACEAE Daucus carota Variation in seed maturity 

APOCYNACEAE Hoodia curorii ssp lurgadii High germination % at storage 

APOCYNACEAE Hoodia gordonii Problems in achieving germination rates 

above 50%. Improvement in germination % 

with pretreatment. 

APOCYNACEAE Hunteria zeylanica Low germination 

APOCYNACEAE Landolphia watsoniana Low germination 

APOCYNACEAE Orbeopsis sp Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

APOCYNACEAE Stomatostemma monteiroae Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

ARECACEAE Cocos nucifera Embryo rescue and storage as tissue culture 

possible. Storage in field genebanks. 

Recalcitrant. 

ARECACEAE Phoenix reclinata Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

ARISTOLOCHIACEAE Aristolochia bracteolata Low germination 

ASCLEPIADACEAE Gomphocarpus stenophyllus Low germination 

BIGNONIACEAE Rhigozum brevispinosum High germination % at storage 

BORAGINACEAE Cordia sinensis Low germination

BORAGINACEAE Heliotropium zeylanicum Low germination 

BRASSICACEAE Brassica sp Germination problems - seedling evaluation 

BURSERACEAE Commiphora schimperi Low germination 

CAPPARACEAE Cleome gynandra Low viability in initial tests. Dormancy – 

needs scarification. 

CAPPARACEAE Maerua grantii Low germination 

CARICACEAE Carica papaya Problems in germination. Intermediate. 

Dormancy. Have to wait for fruits to mature, 

then remove pulp and wash seeds to avoid 

fungal infection (also use fungicide), then dry 

with ash. Can conserve for 5 to 6 months, 

then regenerate after this time. Seeds may 

germinate during drying due to high relative 

humidity. 

CHENOPODIACEAE Chenopodium quinoa 84.5% germination after 25 years storage 

CLUSIACEAE Garcinia buchananii Low viability 

COMBRETACEAE Combretum sp Low germination 

COMPOSITAE Felicia muricata Low germination 

COMPOSITAE Helianthus annuus Low viability in initial tests, low viability 

post storage, germination problems - seedling 

evaluation. 64.66% germination after 13 

years storage. Orthodox. Mechanical damage. 

Oily seed? (short lived). Toxicity during 

viability testing. Climate cool and moist. 

Immaturity. Storage issues. 

COMPOSITAE Kleinia kleinioides Low germination 

COMPOSITAE Tarchonanthus camphoratus Low germination 

COMPOSITAE Vernonia anthelmintica Low germination 

COMPOSITAE Vernonia brachycalyx Low germination 

CONVOLVULACEAE Ipomoea batatas Seeds not often found, only flowers. Seeds 

cannot be used for propagation. Seeds 

segregate heavily when germinated. 

CUCURBITACEAE 

CUCURBITACEAE Citrullus lanatus var 

citroides 

Low viability in initial tests 

Difficulties ingermination at initial stage. 

Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments. Problems in germination of 

wild species, not with cultivated species. 

CUCURBITACEAE Cucumis africanus Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

CUCURBITACEAE Cyclanthera pedata 95% germination after 15 years storage 

CUCURBITACEAE Lagenaria siceraria Spherical shaped seeds, suspected difficult. 

May have high oil content. Immaturity 

issues? 

DILLENIACEAE Tetracera litoralis Low germination 

EBENACEAE Euclea divinorum Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments

EBENACEAE Euclea undulate Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

EUPHORBIACEAE Bridelia taitensis Low germination 

ICACINACEAE Apodytes dimidiata Low germination 

LAMIACEAE Becium angustifolium Low germination 

LAMIACEAE Endostemon ctenoneurus Low germination 

LAMIACEAE Fuerstia africana Low germination 

LAMIACEAE Leucas neuflizeana Low germination 

LAURACEAE Persea americana Problems in germination. Have to wait for 

fruits to mature, then remove pulp and wash 

seeds to avoid fungal infection (also use 

fungicide), then dry. Can conserve for 5 to 6 

months, then regenerate after this time. Seeds 

may germinate during drying due to high 

relative humidity. 

LEGUMINOSAE 

Germination problems - lack of imbibition, 

hardseededness. Orthodox. Problems from 

over dryingbut short-lived. Mechanical 

treatment (some seeds are soft such that 

mechanical processing leads to physical 

destruction of the seed). Oily seeds are 

sometimes dried with non oily seeds. 

LEGUMINOSAE Arachis hypogaea Low viability in initial tests, low viability 

post storage. Immaturity (leave in pods). 

Short storage life. Mixed experience between 

institutions. Problems in drying for storage. 

LEGUMINOSAE Caesalpinia sp Low germination 

LEGUMINOSAE Cajanus cajan Low viability in initial tests 

LEGUMINOSAE Cicer arientinum 88% germination after 13 years storage 

LEGUMINOSAE Eriosema shrense Low viability 

LEGUMINOSAE Glycine max Low viability after time. 100% germination 

after 13 years storage. 

LEGUMINOSAE Lens culinaris 90% germination after 13 years storage 

LEGUMINOSAE Phaseolus lunatus Low viability in initial tests 

LEGUMINOSAE Phaseolus vulgaris Germination problems - sand or paper, 

different results 

LEGUMINOSAE Senna italica Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

LEGUMINOSAE Sphenostylis stenocapa Low viability in initial tests 

LEGUMINOSAE Vigna subterranea Low viability in initial tests, low viability 

post storage, low viability in field. 

Immaturity (leave in pods). 

LEGUMINOSAE Vigna unguiculata Short term seed storage - low viability post 

storage, insect infestation. Germination 

protocol needs to be established. 

MALVACEAE Abelmoschus esculentus Low viability post storage/physical 

dormancy? Short-lived. Easily attacked by 

insects. 

MALVACEAE Corchorus sp Difficulties at initial stage. May be overcome 

over time. 

MALVACEAE Corchorus olitorius High germination % when tested or planted, 

improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments

MALVACEAE Corchorus tridens Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

MALVACEAE Gossypium sp 38.82% germination after 13 years storage, 

low viability after time. Oil content? Climate 

cool and moist. Immature. Storage problems. 

MALVACEAE Grewia flava Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

MALVACEAE Hibiscus aponeurus Low germination 

MALVACEAE Hibiscus cannabinus Low viability after time 

MALVACEAE Malva verticillata Low germination 

MALVACEAE Sida cordifolia Low germination 

MELIACEAE Turraea sp Low germination 

MELIACEAE Xylocarpus moluccensis Low germination 

MORACEAE Artocarpus altilis Very small seeds. Little success in 

germination testing, only achieved by root 

cuttings. 

MUSACEAE Musa sp Diploid seeds in non-fruit varieties. 

Germination testing difficult and slow, 

radicle takes long time to extend. Possible 

dormancy. 

MYROTHAMNACEAE Myrothamnus flabellifolius High germination % when tested or planted 

PANDANACEAE Pandanus kajui Low germination 

PEDALIACEAE Harpagophytum procumbens Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

PEDALIACEAE Sesamum sp Low viability/dormancy? 

PEDALIACEAE Sesamum latifolium Low germination 

POACEAE 

Germination problems - dormancy in freshly 

harvested seed 

POACEAE Avena sp Germination problems - dormancy in freshly 

harvested seed. 67.14% germination after 12 

years storage. 

POACEAE Eleusine coracana Low viability in initial tests. Orthodox. 


for storage). Maybe problems come from 

poor handling before and during storage with 

exception of wild relatives. 

POACEAE Eleusine indica Low germination 

POACEAE Hordeum vulgare Low germ in lab 

POACEAE Leptothrium senegalense Low germination 

POACEAE Oryza sp Orthodox. Low viability after storage. 




exception of wild relatives. Dormancy. 

POACEAE Oryza sativa Germination problems - pre soak and sand 

substrate, low viability in initial tests. Short 

lived species. 

POACEAE Pennisetum glaucum Orthodox. Low viability. Immature seeds 

(harvest well matured seeds for storage). 

Maybe problems come from poor handling 

before and during storage with exception of 

wild relatives.

POACEAE Sorghum bicolor Low viability in initial tests. Orthodox. 




exception of wild relatives 

POACEAE Zea mays Germination problems - coleoptile defects, 

low viability in initial tests 

RHAMNACEAE Berchemia discolor Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

RUTACEAE Citrus sp Short term seed storage/root stock - low 

viability in initial tests. Now reclassified as 

recalcitrant. 

SAPINDACEAE Pappea capensis Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

SAPOTACEAE Mimusops zeyheri Improvement in germination % with 

pretreatments 

SOLANACEAE Lycopersicon esculentus Possible slow germination if not extracted 

properly fermentation. 

SOLANACEAE Solanum sp Low viability post storage. Dormancy 

SOLANACEAE Solanum mammosum Short term seed storage/root stock - low 

viability post storage. 

SOLANACEAE Solanum melogena Germinate poorly at different times. Wild 

eggplant used as rootstock. 

SOLANACEAE Solanum villosum Low viability. Dormancy. 

TILIACEAE Corchorus sp Dormancy

7.4. Acronyms 

CBO - Community Based Organisation 

FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 

GRENEWECA - Genetic Resources Network for West and Central Africa 

IPGRI - International Plant Genetic Resources Institute 

ISTA - International Seed Testing Association 

ITPGRFA – International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

NGO - Non-Governmental Organisation 

NPGRC - National Plant Genetic Resources Centre 

PGRFA - Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture 

RBG Kew - Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew 

RH - Relative Humidity 

SADC - Southern African Development Community 

SID – Seed Information Database (RBG Kew)

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