| dc.description.abstract | Maize weevils (Sitophilus zeamais) can cause large losses in maize stored by
smallholder farmers. Physical disturbance (tumbling) has been shown to be effective
in controlling bean weevils in common beans, but we found no reports describing this
approach for maize weevils. The objective was to determine effectiveness of storage
container physical disturbance for maize weevil control. We conducted a laboratory
experiment with two treatments: control (undisturbed) containers and disturbed
containers, with three replications of each, and four storage times (40, 80, 120 and 160
days). Recycled 2.6-L capacity plastic coffee containers were each loaded with 1 kg of
maize and 25 live adult weevils/kg. Every 12 h, disturbed treatment containers were
manually rolled through one circumference of the 15.6-cm container. At 40 d, live
weevil numbers were significantly lower (ca. 46% lower) in the disturbed containers,
and after 160 d, live weevil numbers had been reduced by 93% compared to control
containers. Maize moisture did not vary significantly between treatments. Disturbed
containers had significantly lower mechanical damage and broken corn and foreign
material along with significantly higher test weights. This work suggests that physical
disturbance may be effective for control of maize weevils in stored maize. | en_US |
