Enhancing cowpea production through breeding efforts for aphid (aphis crassivora koch) resistance: a review

Cowpea is an important leguminous crop that serve as source of food to man and as fodder to livestock. Despite the economic importance of cowpea, its production is limited by biotic and abiotic stress. The most important biotic stress affecting cowpea are insect pests amongst which are Aphids (Aphis crassivora L.) that can wipe 80–100% of cowpea farm. The insects can also transmit virus diseases including cowpea borne mosaic virus (CBMV) that drastically reduce cowpea yield in farmer’s field. Several methods have been adopted by small holder farmers to control the menace of aphids in their field. Such methods include mechanical, chemical, biological, cultural and integrated pest management. However, these control strategies expensive, unsustainable and unaffordable to resource-poor farmers. The most sustainable, cost-effective, environmentally friendly and viable measure of controlling A. crassivora is the development of host plant resistance which does not require much efforts by farmers. Conventional, molecular and mutation breeding approaches were employed to develop cowpea varieties with resistance to aphid infestation for enhanced cowpea production. This review paper ensured sufficient documentation of information/progresses on the breeding efforts by researchers to enhance cowpea productivity. It will also serve as reference for researchers to determine effective breeding strategies to control the effects of aphids in farmer’s field.