Pests and pest risk factors in Jatropha plantations in West Africa

Jatropha curcas is a shrub in the species rich family Euphorbiaceae, which has become extensively cultivated in various parts of the world, mainly for its high oil content, particularly in the seeds to be used in the production of bio-diesel. Being extrem ely drought tolerant, J. curcas can be cultivated on almost any tropical or subtropical land, including under semi-arid conditions and impediment. Jatropha grown sustainably can counteracting desertification, aid in soil and water conservation, sequeste ring carbon and will not compete with arable land. Properly grown Jatropha plantations can improve local livelihood by e.g. intercropping with beneficial plants. Despite the clear benefits of cultivating the plant, one aspect that has almost been neglec ted is the pests and diseases. Contrary to popular belief that toxicity and insecticidal properties of Jatropha are a sufficient deterrent for insects that cause economic damage in plantations, several groups of insects have overcome this barrier. The lis t of potential economical pests now counts more than 60 species. In this project, we intend to shed light on Jatropha plantations and its potential pests, in order to present growing and cropping conditions which will minimise the risk that the quality a nd quantity of the final produce is reduced by pests. We will concentrate our sampling regime in two areas, northern Ghana and western Niger, one plantation under establishment for commercial purposes and one which has been established for scientific pu rposes. The plantations will be surveyed for pests with conventional sampling techniques and where plants have been grown under a wide specter of environmental conditions. The specific outputs of this project will be: - A hand book presenting a synthesi s of the environmental conditions that had a positive effect on reducing the number of pests on Jatropha. - One scientific article, published together with collaborators at ICRISAT and Scanfuel.