• Authors:
    • Akmal, M.
    • Hassan, M. F.
    • Habib, G.
    • Ghufranullah
    • Ahmad, S.
  • Source: Pakistan Journal of Botany
  • Volume: 43
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: The experiment was conducted to compare Pigeon pea (PP) and Sesbania gentia (SG) legumes as catch crop in a permanent cereal based (Wheat-maize) rotation. The residual effect of legumes with or without added fertilizer (N) was studies on subsequent maize crop grown as fodder. The study aimed to evaluate catch crop response as manure or fodder on the following maize. The results showed that SG was higher in crude protein (p
  • Authors:
    • Farajzadeh, N.
    • Yarnia, M.
    • Tabrizi, E. F. M.
    • Ahmadzadeh, V.
  • Source: Annals of Biological Research
  • Volume: 2
  • Issue: 5
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: Potato tuber products that has an important role in feeding the world with annual production of 31 million tons of food products is important and different types of soil and climatic conditions is growing culture. Potato after wheat, rice and corn for the fourth position and the number of producing countries is in the second after the corn. A factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design with three replications was conducted during growing season of 2009 at Islamic Azad University, Tabriz branch, Agricultural Research Station. Treatments including: irrigation of 70 (control), 110, 150 mm evaporation from basin class A and different varieties of potato, including (Agria, Satyna, Savalan, Kaizr and Markis) respectively. The results showed that water stress decreased yield and lowest yield was in cultivar Markis with 150 mm of irrigation water evaporation basin level and most resistant cultivars in the rate of tuber production with 10.68 numbers has been obtained Satyna. Equivalent of 96.12 percent increase than sensitive cultivars. Therefore aim of this study reaction of different cultivars of potato on different traits.
  • Authors:
    • Trethowan, R.
    • Moeller, C.
    • Carrillo-Garcia, A.
    • Verhulst, N.
    • Sayre, K. D.
    • Govaerts, B.
  • Source: Plant and Soil
  • Volume: 340
  • Issue: 1/2
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: A field experiment was conducted under furrow irrigation on a Vertisol in arid northwestern Mexico, to evaluate sustainable production alternatives for irrigated wheat systems. Treatments included: tillage (conventionally tilled raised beds where new beds are formed after disc ploughing before planting [CTB] and permanent raised beds [PB]) and irrigation regimes (full and reduced). Physical and chemical soil quality was compared among treatments. PB improved soil structure and direct infiltration, increased topsoil K concentrations (0-5 cm; 1.6 cmol kg -1 in PB vs. 1.0-1.1 cmol kg -1 in CTB) and reduced Na concentrations (0-5 cm; 1.3-1.4 cmol kg -1 in PB vs. 1.9-2.2 cmol kg -1 in CTB) compared to CTB. Crop growth dynamics were studied throughout the season with an optical handheld NDVI sensor. Crop growth was initially slower in PB compared to CTB, but this was compensated by increased crop growth in the later stages of the crop cycle which influenced final yield, especially under reduced irrigation. These results were reflected in the final grain yield: in the third year after conversion to PB, no difference in grain yield was found between tillage systems under full irrigation. However, under reduced irrigation the improved soil quality with PB resulted in a 19% and 26% increment in bread and durum wheat grain yields, respectively. As projected climatic scenarios forecast higher evapotranspiration, less reliable rainfall and increased drought, our results indicate that PB could contribute to maintaining and increasing wheat yields in a sustainable way.
  • Authors:
    • Nwanguma, E. I.
    • Adebayo, O. S.
  • Source: Acta Horticulturae
  • Issue: 917
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: A statewide survey of commercial irrigated pepper fields was conducted in Katsina, Nigeria to gain information on the incidence of diseases with wilt symptoms, their causative organisms, and the existing pepper production systems. Eighty fields were surveyed at different growth stages of pepper plants. Diseased plants with wilt symptoms occurred in all fields. The percentage wilt incidence in each field ranged from 50 to 100%. Field diagnosis, along with laboratory assays of wilted plants, revealed that the wilting was caused by Ralstonia solanacearum and Phytophthora capsici. The two pathogens were found in 88% of the fields and occurred together in 12% of the fields. Interviews conducted to assess farmers' practices, which contribute to pathogen damage, showed that successive planting of susceptible crops without land rotation may have contributed to the build up of the soil populations of the pathogens. The mode of irrigation also contributed to the pathogen control failures. Intercropping pepper with crops such as tomato ( Lycopersicum esculentum) and Solanum species did not reduce disease incidence in some areas. Results indicate the necessity for the adoption of integrated pest management strategies in pepper production in Katsina State, Nigeria.
  • Authors:
    • Akram, M.
    • Sahota, A. W.
    • Anjum, M. A.
    • Ali, I.
  • Source: Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences (JAPS)
  • Volume: 21
  • Issue: 2
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: A total of 100 samples, 50 each of layer starter and broiler starter feeds manufactured by 10 different commercial feed mills were collected to assess contamination of aflatoxin B 2 and Ochratoxin A in poultry feeds and feed ingredients in Punjab. 440 samples of different poultry feed ingredients including cereal grains and animal and vegetable protein sources were also collected from all over Punjab and were analyzed for Ochratoxin A (OA) content. The mean concentration of aflatoxin B 2 in layer and broiler starter rations was observed to range from 10.80 (2.16) to 39.20 (3.67) g Kg 1. Out of 100 feed samples tested, 40 contained higher than the maximum tolerance level of 20 gKg -1 aflatoxin B 2. Out of the 440, 19.32 percent (n=85) were contaminated with OA. The occurrence of OA was found to be higher in maize (40%), sun flower (30%), wheat (28%), corn gluten (25%) and barley (24%). OA detected in rice, sorghum, peanut meal, soybean meal, guar meal, corn gluten and rice polish was found to be 20 percent. The findings further showed that maize had maximum mean OA concentration of 112.20 (22.69) gKg -1, followed by 59.43 (22.32) gKg -1 in wheat, 50.33 (13.79) gKg -1 in sunflower meal, 49.20 (10.23) gKg -1 in peanut meal and 39.14 (15.06) gKg -1 in rice polishing. Corn gluten meal, sorghum, barley, cotton seed meal and rapeseed meal contained mean OA concentration ranging from 30 to 36 gKg -1. The OA content ranging from 10 to16.67 gKg -1 was detected in samples of wheat bran, fish meal, blood meal and meat meal. The aflatoxin B 2 and OA contamination of poultry feeds and feed ingredients having deleterious effects seems to pose a serious threat for local poultry farming sector which calls for regular testing and surveillance of poultry feeds and adoption of necessary remedial measures.
  • Authors:
    • Risede, J.-M.
    • Foster, J.
    • Rhodes, R.
    • Berry, S. D.
    • van Antwerpen, R.
  • Source: International Journal of Pest Management
  • Volume: 57
  • Issue: 4
  • Year: 2011
  • Summary: Plant-parasitic nematodes cause significant yield losses to sugarcane crops in South Africa. The currently available chemicals for nematode control are both expensive and potentially detrimental to the environment. Various alternative crops have been reported to reduce the numbers of plant-parasitic nematodes. Mindful of this, we evaluated 27 cover crops in pot trials to assess their host status to important plant-parasitic nematodes of sugarcane. All of the crops tested in pots hosted significantly lower numbers of Pratylenchus than did sugarcane. Crops such as cowpeas, tomato and grazing vetch were good hosts for Meloidogyne and would not be good choices as part of a sugarcane rotation system in heavily-infested soils. Conversely, crops such as oats, wheat, forage peanuts and marigolds reduced numbers of Meloidogyne. Velvet beans increased the abundance of Helicotylenchus, a beneficial nematode genus. A field trial was also conducted to study the effect of different cover cropping sequences. Our results show that changes in nematode communities occurred within three months of growing these crops and often remained low for the duration (the remaining 15 months) of the crops' growth. Nematodes such as Pratylenchus and Tylenchorhynchus were significantly lowered and remained so for the duration of the trial.
  • Authors:
    • Kukal, S. S.
    • Christen, E. W.
    • Hira, G. S.
    • Balwinder-Singh
    • Sudhir-Yadav
    • Sharma, R. K.
    • Humphreys, E.
  • Source: Advances in Agronomy
  • Volume: 109
  • Year: 2010
  • Summary: Increasing the productivity of the rice-wheat (RW) system in north-west India is critical for the food security of India. However, yields are stagnating or declining, and the rate of groundwater use is not sustainable. Many improved technologies are under development for RW systems, with multiple objectives including increased production, improved soil fertility, greater input use efficiency, reduced environmental pollution, and higher profitability for farmers. There are large reductions in irrigation amount with many of these technologies compared with conventional practice, such as laser land leveling, alternate wetting and drying (AWD) water management in rice, delayed rice transplanting, shorter duration rice varieties, zero till wheat, raised beds, and replacing rice with other crops. However, the nature of the irrigation water savings has seldom been determined. It is often likely to be due to reduced deep drainage, with little effect on evapotranspiration (ET). Reducing deep drainage has major benefits, including reduced energy consumption to pump groundwater, nutrient loss by leaching, and groundwater pollution. The impacts of alternative technologies on deep drainage (and thus on irrigation water savings) vary greatly depending on site conditions, especially soil permeability, depth to the watertable, and water management. More than 90% of the major RW areas in north-west India are irrigated using groundwater. Here, reducing deep drainage will not "save water" nor reduce the rate of decline of the watertable. In these regions, it is critical that technologies that decrease ET and increase the amount of crop produced per amount of water lost as ET (i.e., crop water productivity, WP ET) are implemented. The best technologies for achieving this are delaying rice transplanting and short duration rice varieties. The potential for replacing rice with other crops with lower ET is less clear.
  • Authors:
    • Keleman, A.
  • Source: Agriculture and Human Values
  • Volume: 27
  • Issue: 1
  • Year: 2010
  • Summary: One of the major adjustments brought on by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was a change in the relationship between Mexican agricultural support institutions and the small-scale agricultural sector. Post-NAFTA restructuring programs sought to correct previous inefficiencies in this sector, but they have also had the effect of marginalizing the producers who steward and manage the country's reserve of maize ( Zea mays) genetic diversity. Framed by research suggesting that certain maize varieties in a rain-fed farming region in southern Sonora are in danger of loss due chiefly to long-term drought, this article explores the ramifications of post-NAFTA agricultural policies for in situ maize diversity conservation. Qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews with agricultural support institutions and participant observation with farmers, were used to gather data on dryland farmers' access to research and extension, as well as possibilities for collective action. In southern Sonora, agricultural support is oriented primarily toward high-tech production, and there are structural barriers to small-scale farmers' access to research and extension institutions. Further, collective action around agriculture is limited. These circumstances represent significant limitations to farmers' options for accessing new techniques which might help maintain maize diversity in the context of economic and environmental change.
  • Authors:
    • Mohammed, S. M.
    • Fayed, T. A.
    • Esmail, A. F.
    • Abdou, N. A.
  • Source: The Bulletin of Faculty of Agriculture
  • Volume: 61
  • Issue: 1
  • Year: 2010
  • Summary: This investigation was carried out during the 2006 and 2007 growing seasons on a 3 year old Le-Conte pear trees ( Pyrus communis L. * Pyrus pyrifolia N.) grafted on Pyrus betulaefolia rootstock and planted at 5*5 meters apart (169 trees/faddan) in sandy soil under drip irrigation system, at El-Kassasien Horticultural Research Station, Ismailia Governorate. One source of organic fertilizers (compost) plus natural rocks (rock phosphate+feldspare), with or without biofertilizers (phosphorein and biogein) plus humic acid plus compost tea, were compared with chemical fertilization. Application of compost with biofertilizers plus humic add plus compost tea gave a better effect on all vegetative characteristics (growth rate of trunk diameter, shoot diameter, shoot length, number of leaves per shoot and leaf area) and chemical leaf constituents (leaf pigments, macro and micro elements, total carbohydrates, C/N ratio, protein contents) and yield compared to other organic treatments. Also vegetative growth, nutritional status and yield were significantly increased from the first till the second season indicating the accumulation effect of organic manure plus biofertilizers plus humic acid plus compost tea. Chemical fertilizer gave the highest vegetative and yield characteristics and leaf chemical contents compared to all organic rates with or without biofertilizers, humic acid and compost tea in the two seasons of study.
  • Authors:
    • Willett, I.
    • Hu, K.
    • White, R.
    • Wei, Y.
  • Source: Ecological Economics
  • Volume: 69
  • Issue: 11
  • Year: 2010
  • Summary: Agriculture's environmental footprint is expanding and one of its most critical impacts in China is the over-exploitation of surface water and groundwater from aquifers. This study investigated an approach for estimating the physical dimensions of the environmental externalities from a maize cropping system in oasis farming of the arid north-west of China, and the monetary valuation of these environmental externalities based on integrated process-based biophysical and economic models. The simulation results show that current farming practices cause 7854 Yuan/ha of groundwater recharge cost, 7696 Yuan/ha of water treatment cost, and 91 Yuan/ha of N 2O mitigation cost. These costs lead to a social benefit-cost ratio of only 0.55, although the farmers' benefit-cost ratio was 1.85. A combination of adoption of recommended best management practices by farmers, and an increase in the water price to 1.1 Yuan/m 3 could maintain both the social and farmers' benefit-cost ratios above 1, but the costs of recharging groundwater were large in all cases.