article · East African Journal of Agriculture and Biotechnology
Black pepper is an important cash crop in Tanzania, yet the identities and circulation of planting materials have lacked systematic documentation. An investigation across Morogoro Rural, Muheza, and Magharibi A districts revealed that farmer-recognised genotypes are strongly linked to specific geographic areas. Growers in Morogoro Rural mainly cultivate types named BABUKUBWA, ISMAILIA, and BABUNDOGO, whereas FUPI, NDEFU, and KATI dominate in Muheza and Magharibi A. Producers distinguish these varieties primarily by leaf shape, berry size, spike length, and growth habit. Planting materials circulate largely through informal channels, predominantly from neighbours and saved personal stock. While farmers reported similar yields across varieties, they noted significant differences in drought resistance, disease response, quality, and market value. Major production constraints across the districts include low crop prices, technical knowledge gaps, and drought conditions.
Understanding how smallholder farmers source and select black pepper varieties is vital for improving crop yields and rural incomes. Because current seed systems rely on informal local exchanges, planting materials risk being misidentified or vulnerable to stresses. Documenting these practices helps agricultural programmes target genuine bottlenecks, improve local seed quality, and design interventions that address severe challenges such as drought and market access.
This research is at an early stage, offering foundational data for spice-sector breeding initiatives, agricultural extension programmes, and decentralised nursery enterprises. By identifying preferred local varieties and reliance on informal seed networks, the findings could guide public or private seed suppliers in formalising high-performing, drought-resilient planting stock. Real-world commercial use requires systematic germplasm collection alongside morphological and molecular validation to confirm distinct varieties before commercial propagation can begin.
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Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) is an economically important spice crop in Tanzania, but the identity, distribution, and circulation of farmer-maintained planting materials remain poorly documented. This study investigated the spatial distribution of farmer-recognised black pepper genotypes, local identification knowledge, planting-material pathways, farmer preferences, and production constraints in three Tanzanian production environments. An exploratory convergent mixed-methods design was implemented from January to April 2026 in Morogoro Rural, Muheza, and Magharibi A districts. Structured survey data were collected from 60 growers, while qualitative evidence was obtained from 18 experienced farmers, 12 key informants, and field observations. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test, Cramér’s V, Kruskal–Wallis tests, and Holm-adjusted p; interview data were analysed using codebook-supported thematic analysis. Occurrence of farmer-recognised black pepper genotypes was strongly associated with district [χ² (14) =68.77, p<0.001, V=0.757]. BABUKUBWA, ISMAILIA and BABUNDOGO genotypes were characterised in Morogoro Rural, whereas FUPI, NDEFU and KATI genotypes predominated in Muheza and Magharibi A. Farmers distinguished genotypes mainly through leaf shape and berry size (100% each), and spike length and growth habit (98.3% each). Planting-material sources differed among districts [χ² (8) =25.33, p<0.001, V=0.459], with neighbours and farmers’ own stock accounting for 55.0% and 23.3% of sources. Preferred genotypes were also strongly associated with district [χ² (12) =74.04, p<0.001, V=0.786]. Farmer-perceived yield did not differ significantly among genotypes (H = 11.28, p = 0.127), but perceived stability, drought response, disease response, quality, market performance, and overall value differed significantly (H = 19.04–33.50, p = 0.008 to < 0.001). The leading cross-cutting constraints across districts were low price (70.0%), knowledge gap (50.0%), and drought (48.3%). The findings show that black pepper planting materials in the surveyed areas are maintained through geographically differentiated farmer knowledge and socially embedded exchange networks. Farmer-recognised names, however, do not confirm genetic distinctness. Systematic germplasm collection, morphological and molecular validation, participatory evaluation and progressive improvement of decentralised planting-material systems are therefore required.
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DOI: 10.37284/eajab.9.2.5643
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