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September 2010 - N°6
First Congress and
International Oil Palm
Fair in Ecuador
ANCUPA celebrated its first Congress and International oil palm fair in Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas, and ASD Costa Rica had the honor of participating by giving two talks at the Congress and exhibiting its products in a stand at the fair. Our participation as speakers at the Congress included a talk on our views regarding PC problems (PC stands for ‘pudrición del cogollo’ or spear rot), and an overview of ASD’s oil palm breeding program. Summaries of these talks follow:
PC in oil palm: the need for an integrated management approach
Carlos Chinchilla
Spear and whorl rots (pudriciones del cogollo) in oil palm stand as the sword of Damocles on all plantations in tropical America and possibly the whole world over. Many plantations have remained free of these problems for years; in others, incidence is low and of no significant economic importance, but for others, the economical impact has been major. Some have survived (plants eventually recovered from symptoms), but the consequences have been catastrophic in other cases, and whole plantations have been abandoned leaving behind a disaster, in terms of both economic and social impacts.
For many years, an elusive single pathogen has been sought, whose sole presence would explain all aspects of the syndrome. The idea was that a frontal attack on the enemy would solve the problem. So far, this approach has not been successful. A growing group of people now think that most (if not all) spear and whorl rots in oil palm have a complex nature where secondary or opportunistic pathogens are only part of the causes of the effects. A conclusion seems to be emerging: spear and whorl rots in oil palm follow the main principle in plant pathology: there are three participants: the host, the environment where it grows, and one or more organisms involved (mainly secondary or opportunistic pathogens); but, similar to what has been observed in the so-called ‘declines’, the environmental effect is of paramount importance so a preventative approach could avoid much of the pain involved after the problem emerges in a plantation.
As a result of these considerations, a guide for managing the predisposing factors associated with the problems was presented, considering that an integrated approach is required for success. We recognize that a lot still needs to be known, and that the last word on the nature and management of these problems is still far from being said, but we can still do something based on the need to look for better ways to manage soils, weather effects, nutrition and genetic materials. The guide is based on our experience in Costa Rica and many other countries where PC and related ‘diseases’ occur and have been reasonably managed to reduce their impact. The guide is available to ASD clients.
Oil palm varieties adapted to adverse conditions
Amancio Alvarado and Francisco Peralta
The rapid expansion of oil palm cultivation in recent years has caused some plantations to be established in areas that are clearly marginal for most commercial varieties. Poor agronomic management combined with stress-causing agents, such as water deficit, excess rainfall and low solar radiation, have led to poor yields and the presence of several phytosanitary problems. Part of the solution to this problem could be found in the development of new varieties better adapted to those stress-causing factors. Yield potential could be partly compromised, but such varieties would easily out-yield traditional varieties that despite their higher yield potential would not be able to express it when planted under marginal conditions.
ASD has an extensive collection of genetic resources, some obtained from harsh environments, which allows revision of particular combinations seeking stress-tolerant varieties. Some of these introductions came from highlands and other cool and dry areas in Zambia, Uganda, Cameroon, Tanzania, Malawi and Sierra Leone. In addition to the samples with origins in the species Elaeis guineensis, there are several sources of E. oleifera (Brazil, Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica and Ecuador) that were used to create OxG hybrids (E. oleifera x E. guineensis). The aim of this breeding effort is to eventually produce commercial materials to be used beyond the normal geographical boundaries traditionally used in oil palm cultivation. The work includes improving agronomic and bunch characteristics by using compact progenitors in the program, which would permit a better use of land with rustic varieties that have shorter leaves and can be planted at higher densities.
International Oil Palm Fair
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An important part of the activity in Ecuador was the fair where different companies presented their products to producers. ASD participated with a stand where its products were promoted, emphasizing the compact planting materials (varieties with short stems and leaves, which allows planting at higher densities), and the OxG Amazon hybrid, developed to be used as an alternative for growers where PC (pudrición del cogollo) continues to be an important threat to the industry.
Giving a Hand to Our Clients in the Field
ASD technical personnel make regular visits to our clients around the world to observe the performance of planting materials under different environmental and management conditions and to offer their technical advice aimed at obtaining the best yields. Several plantations were included during a recent visit to several regions in Ecuador where both seed varieties and clones had been planted.
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Titan clone, about two years of age showing an excellent bunch load. Ecuador |
ASD technical personnel sharing experiences on PC (spear rot) management with a grower |
Seeking a Genetic Solution for PC (Pudrición del Cogollo)
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ASD has a serious commitment to the sustainability of the oil palm industry and is always on the look for genetic solutions to the several phytosanitory problems of the crop. In the particular case of tropical America, it is imperative that a genetic solution be found for spear rots, particularly for the so-called PC (pudrición del cogollo) that has caused great losses across several countries. The company has been in the vanguard, searching its ample genetic pool for those genes that can confer tolerance to this disorder. The idea that stress tolerance (i.e. water deficit) and PC tolerance can be associated has helped the research progress, since several crosses have already been identified with both characteristics. As an outcome of several field trials planted in countries and places where PC symptoms are prevalent, it has become clear that tolerance to PC is present in both Elaeis guineensis and the OxG crosses (E. guineensis x E. oleifera).
ASD’s Most Valuable Resourse: People
Nidia Guzmán: an example of professionalism
Nidia has dedicated most of her professional life to creating and consolidating technology for cloning oil palms. This remarkable effort over more than 20 years is unique, since Nidia uses young inflorescences to obtain her ramets (instead of young leaves as is normally done by other research groups), and an efficient and reliable rooting technique, all by using rather low growth regulator concentrations in the growing media. Today, after countless hours of dedication and drive to pursue the final goal, the technology is mature and consolidated.
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Cloning superior compact varieties (palms with short leaves and stems) in terms of oil-producing potential holds the promise of a revolution for the oil palm agro-industry. Compact clones can be planted at much higher densities than traditional varieties to improve land use and they carry genes that will expand the normal agro-ecological frontiers of the crop.
Nidia is a tireless worker, highly dedicated to what she loves to do, with a firm conviction of the importance and potential of what she does. Thanks to her efforts, ASD now has several clones that have already shown their agronomical and economical potential on several hundred hectares already planted in the field, mainly in Costa Rica.
Many obstacles cropped up along the way and some clones did not perform as expected. But Nidia’s abilities as a keen observer of what was going on in hundreds of laboratory experiments allowed her to triumph over those dark episodes and finally reach the goal of obtaining a superior quality product. She knows however that there is always room for improvement and this keeps her searching for the ‘ideal’ clone. ASD acknowledges Nidia’s dedication, achievements and many contributions to oil palm cloning and the industry as a whole.
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