An Evaluation of Traditional Seed Conservation Methods in Rural Malawi

Indigenous traditional methods of saving and storing seeds are often seen as viable alternatives to purchasing hybridised seeds for small‐scale farmers across the developing world. Nevertheless, little research has been conducted on which particular seed saving methods are most effective. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to both document and test the efficacy of different traditional seed saving methods practiced by small‐scale farmers in rural Malawi. Methods involved conducting both a survey and semi‐structured interview with 40 small‐scale farmers all of whom practiced different forms of traditional seed saving. A representative sample of sorghum and maize seeds were collected from each of these farms and grown in laboratory conditions to test the efficacy and germination rates of seeds stored using different practices. The results revealed that farmers used a wide range of indigenous seed saving techniques that include burning animal manure and covering seeds with the resulting ash to being stored in cloth bags or ceramic containers. The impact of these methods range considerably. Some methods, such as smoking the seeds over the cooking fire, proved ineffective, and germination rates were very low in seeds treated in this way. However, other methods, such as grinding up a local leaf into a powder and covering the seeds with the powder, were as effective as treating the seeds with commercial fungicides. Furthermore, these indigenous methods cost a fraction of the amount of commercially available methods' cost and are also much less expensive than buying seeds annually. The implication of this research is that it is important for researchers to test the efficacy of traditional seed saving methods as a way of establishing best practices and developing appropriate agricultural management practices that will help farmers alleviate poverty. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.