Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization and interZiziphus Jujubealleys cropping on blue panic grass (Panicum antidotale Retz) yield
Abstract— In order to test the effects of intercropping and nitrogen fertilization on blue panic (Panicum antidotale) yield, a field experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station of King Abdulaziz University, located at Hada Al-Sham during two consecutive seasons (2013 and 2014). Blue panic was intercropped between interspaces alleys of Ziziphus Jujube under three different levels of nitrogen fertilizer (0 kg N/ha, 200 kg N/ha and 400 kg N/ha in the form of commercial Urea,46%) and three distances from the jujube tree (1m ,2m and 4m). Blue panic fresh and dry forage yield (tons/ha) and quality was assessed during ten cuttings harvests. The results exhibited significant effects of intercropping, nitrogen fertilization and distance from the tree on forage yield and quality. Forage yield across all ten harvests were higher under intercropped plots compared to sole crops and in plots treated with 200 and 400 kg N and 2-meter distance from the trees. Total fresh forage yield /ha/10 cuts of the intercropped blue panic under 400 kg N/ha and 2m distance reached 186 tons/ha/year. Whereas the highest protein content means overall the different cuts was 11.51% in plots fertilized with 400 kg N/ha at 1m distance from the trees. This current study highlights the importance of utilizing jujube alleys to maximize land use value of this widely planted arid land tree.
Keywords— Forage yield, Forage quality, Jujube tree, alley cropping.
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Effect of Stocking Density on the Resistance to Fasting, Growth and Survival of the African Catfish Heterobranchus bidorsalis (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809) Larvae
Abstract— After artificial reproduction of African catfish Heterobranchus bidorsalis, larvae of two days old and 2.18 ± 0.35 mg of mean weight were used to perform two experiments in order to assess the effect of stocking density on their fasting resistance, growth and survival. During the first experiment which lasted 11 days with four batches of larvae at densities of 1, 2, 3 and 4 individuals/ml, results showed that density did not significantly affect (p˂0,05) the resistance to fasting of larvae. However, first mortalities were observed at D5 for all the densities, the higher daily mortality was recorded at D10 and the last mortalities were obtained at D12.
Results of the second experiment revealed that the weight and growth performance of larvae decreased with the increasing of the density after 28 days of rearing. In contrast, the larval survival rate increased with the density. The values of survival rate were respectively 30.53 ± 4.32 and 55.30 ± 21.70 % for the densities 1 ind./l and 20 ind./l.
Keywords— Fasting, Growth, Heterobranchus bidorsalis larvae, Stocking density, Survival
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Population Density of Leaf Miner Lirimoyzatrifoliiand Cotton Aphid Aphis Gossypiiinfesting Castor Oil Plant Ricinuscommunis
Abstract— A field study was conducted at plant protection department, college of Agriculture/University of Baghdad to determine castor oil plant pestsRicinuscommunis, for the period between 2/9/2014 to 17/6/2015.
Results showed that castor oil plant (Ricinuscommunis) was infested by the castor oil plant leaf minor Lirimoyzatrifolii and cotton aphidAphis gossypii.The highest population densities of the leaf minor at western side were 6.8 insect/leaf and the lowest were 0.6/leaf dated in 30/4,7/5 and17/6 , respectively.Whereas,the highest population densities at northern side were 5.6 insect /leaf recored in 9/9 while The lowest population densities of the leaf minor at northern side were 0.3 insect/leaf dated in 10/6,17/6 and 30/4 respectively. The highest population densities of the leaf minor at southern side were7.5 and the lowest were0.3insect/leaf dated in 3/6 , 2/1 respectively. At eastern side, the highest densities were 5.6 insect/leaf dated in2/9 and the lowest were 0 in 10/6 respectively. For cotton aphid, the highest population densities were for the northern side with4.2 cm2/leaf discdated in 2/9and the lowest were 0 cm2/leaf disc dated in12/4 and 30/4 . Whereas they were 4.8cm2/leaf disc in 19/11 and 0cm2/leaf disc in 30/1and 30/4 for western as highest and lowest densities respectively the highest population densities for the eastern sides were 3.6 in 19/11 while the lowest population density were 0.3 in 23/1 ,30/1 , 22/2 ,23/4 and 7/5 ,the highest population densities for the southeren side were 7cm2/leaf discin 23/4 while the lowest population density were 0.2 in 9/9 respectively. The highest incidence was for the parasite Pediobiusmetalicus. While, the hymenopteran Neochrysochairsformosa, Digylphuscrassinervis and Pediobiusmetalicus were reported to parastize on castor oil leaf minor.
Keywords— Lirimoyzatrifolii, Aphis gossypii , Ricinuscommunis
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Redox Mediated Decolorization and Detoxification of Direct Blue 80 by Partially Purified Ginger (Zingiber officinale) Peroxidase
Abstract— Textile industries are releasing a large number of toxic synthetic dyes into waste waters. Hence, the removal of such compounds from environment prior to their final disposal is necessary. In the present study, potential use of ginger (Zingiber officinale) peroxidase in decolorization and detoxification of direct blue 80 has been investigated. It was found that only 0.166 U/ml of ginger peroxidase was sufficient for maximum decolorization of dye (25 mg/L). H2O2 was required in low concentration (0.3 mM) in the presence of 0.6 mM 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. Direct blue 80 was also successfully removed in stirred batch process. It was observed that ginger peroxidase was highly stable over a wide range of pH and temperatures. Km and Vmax of the enzyme for direct blue 80 was found to be 27.8 mg/L and 2.09 mg/L/min, respectively. In UV-visible spectral analysis a sharp decline in peak was observed for the treated direct blue 80 which substantiates the breakdown of chromophore group of dye. Genotoxicity assessment by comet assay and chromosomal aberration test confirmed that the direct blue 80 was successfully detoxified by ginger peroxidase. Other direct and acid dyes were also treated either as a single or a mixture of different dyes and it was observed that these dyes were also decolorized significantly under similar experimental conditions. Our study suggests that this enzyme-redox mediator system constitutes a cost effective model which can decolorize the industrial textile effluents and also can reduce the toxic load of environment.
Keywords— Decolorization; peroxidase, 1-hydroxybenzotriazole, Zingiber officinale
Abbreviations: DB 80, direct blue 80; DY 4, direct yellow 4; DY 50, direct yellow 50; DR 23, direct red 23; AB 1, acid black 1; AB 210, acid black 210; AY 42, acid yellow 42; GP, ginger peroxidase; HOBT, 1-hydroxybenzotriazole; PBS, phosphate buffer saline; MI, mitotic index; MMS, methyl methane sulphonate; CA, chromosomal aberrations.
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Insecticidal activity of Tagetes sp. on Sitophilus zeamais Mots
Abstract— The indiscriminate use of agricultural inputs, such as fertilizers e and synthetic pesticides, can cause high levels of toxic residues in food, biological imbalance, environmental contamination, intoxication of humans and animals, and other direct and indirect effects. The use of plant extracts as alternative insecticides is a way to minimize the problems caused by synthetic insecticides. Insecticides are in the second position in the trading market of agrotoxics in Brazil. The species Tagetes erecta L. and Tagetes patula L. have antioxidant properties, larvicidal, fungicidal, antimicrobial, nematicide and insecticide. In order to verify the possibility of Tagetes sp. extracts be suitable alternative to the use of synthetic insecticides, the bioassays laboratorial were designed through of insect mortality test of Sitophilus zeamais. We evaluated the antioxidant activity by the test of DPPH, in addition to screen the chromatographic profile of the extracts. It is concluded that the extracts evaluated are efficient in insect mortality, checking still considerable amount of antioxidant compounds, as identified also flavonoids, terpenes and alkaloids in extracts. According to these results we conclude that T. erecta and T. patula has phytotoxic compounds that can promote and expand its use as a natural insecticide.
Keywords— Alternative insecticides, natural defensive, organic agriculture, plant extracts.
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Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Rice Fields of Bengaluru Urban District, India
Abstract— Anaerobic decomposition of organic material in flooded rice paddy fields produces methane and is considered one of the most prevalent sources for atmospheric methane. Methane from the rice paddy fields escapes to the atmosphere primarily by diffusive transport through the rice plants during the growing season. This paper aimed at the inventarisation of greenhouse gas emissions from the flooded rice paddy fields using Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2006 guidelines – Tier 1 approach for Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land-use sector. The methane emission from rice paddy fields for the year 1990-1991 was 1.255 Gg or 31.364GgCO2e, while 2012-2013 accounts for 0.269Gg or 6.725GgCO2e. The overall decrease of 21.44% of methane emissions from rice paddy fields was observed during the last two and half decade. The rice paddy fields are decreased over the years due to rapid expansion of the built-up environment in the outskirts of the urban area.
Key words: Agriculture, greenhouse gas, methane, flooded paddy fields.
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Phytochemical Screening and Gc-Ms Analysis of Garudan Samba Traditional Rice Variety
Abstract— The Garudan Samba, an important Traditional variety of Tamil Nadu was investigated for its phytochemical screening and GCMS study. The brown rice was extracted using ethanol. The results obtained after GCMS studies were confirmed by spectral analysis. The analysis of the ethanol extract showed the presence of n-Hexadecanoic acid, 9,12-Octadecadienoic acid (Z,Z)-, and Oleic acid, as major constituents of the total compounds (76.33%), which have the capacity to prevent many health related disorders. It also contained the medicinally important compounds like Caryophyllene, Ethyl Oleate, Squalene, γ-Tocopherol, Lup-20(29)-en-3-ol, acetate, (3β)-, and phyto sterols like Campesterol, Stigmasterol and β-Sitosterol. Hence, Garudan samba may be considered as one of the important Traditional variety with high level of medicinally important phytoconstituents.
Keywords— Garudan Samba, Phytochemical Screening, GC-MS.
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Evaluation of fungicides and biological agents for the management of mango anthracnose
Abstract— Mango is an important fruit crop in area and production in Gujarat also, where it is cultivated over an area of about 130.1 thousand hectares with annual production of 911.3 thousand tones with productivity of 7.01 tones/ha. Its plantation has become quite popular in the districts of Valsad, Junagadh, Navsari, Kutch, Surat, Amreli and Bhavnagar because of favourable agro-climate condition. Mango is affected by number of diseases at all the stages of its development right from plant in nursery to the fruit in storage or transit. Mango is prone to many fungal diseases like Anthracnose, Rhizopus rot, Stem end rot, Penicillum rot, Black mould rot, Mucor rot, Phyllosticta rot, Pestalotiopsis rot, Macrophoma rot and powdery mildew, leading to heavy loss in yield. Among these diseases, anthracnose is the major disease of mango as it occurs at all the growing parts including leaves, twigs, flowers, fruits except root and trunk throughout the year. Anthracnose caused by Glomerella cingulata (Stoneman) Spauld and H Schrenk (anamorph: Colletotrichum gloeosporioides (Penz.)) appear to be more severe causing devastation of mango fruits during grading, packing, transportation, storage and marketing (Pathak, 1980).
Keywords— Mango, Anthracnose, fungicides and botanicals.
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Assay on Vegetable Production and Marketing in Zanzaibar Island, Tanzania
Abstract— Production of vegetables is a key factor in ensuring a continuous supply of raw materials for the development of agribusiness in horticulture. It is often argued that vegetable production in Zanzibar has reasonable advantages but the information regarding the commercial potential of local farmers in producing and retailing vegetables is limited. The present work has assessed the situation of vegetable production and marketing in Zanzibar. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to gather the necessary information, including interviewer administered questionnaires, informal group discussions, field observations and key informant interviews. The study revealed that about 59% of the farmer’s population produces vegetables commercially, though only 30% to 35% of their yields are sold in market. It was also observed that out of 16 types of vegetables that were found to dominate the market, only 9typeswereproduced profitably by the local farmers. In general, almost all vegetables encountered were imported from regional countries to fill the market demand gaps.It is recommended that both or (the) government and non-government organization should extend their supports to local vegetable farmers, through (by providing them with) information, technology, production inputs and credit as a means of improving the quality and the quantity of their yield.
Keywords— Local farmers, Marketing, Production, Vegetables, Zanzibar.
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Do fine-scale factors shape the use of riparian galleries by carnivores in a Mediterranean agro-forested environment?
Abstract— Riparian galleries are key structural elements of Mediterranean landscapes and their importance for carnivores has been widely demonstrated. However, humanization of the landscape has led to their degradation with consequences not fully understood. In this study we assessed the response of mesocarnivores to the fine-scale variation in the quality of a riparian gallery (Vale do Cobrão stream, central Portugal), evaluated on the basis of the QBR index (‘Qualitat del Bosc de Ribera’ in spanish) and an adaptation of the same considering mesocarnivore ecological requirements. These were represented through four parameters that could influence habitat quality for these species, namely refuge (total riparian cover, cover structure), disturbance and food availability. For the latter we considered the known main food resources for Mediterranean mesocarnivores: small mammals, lagomorphs, insects and fruits. Mesocarnivore use was evaluated through camera-trapping and sign surveys. For both indexes a concordance was observed between quality variation and its use by carnivores, and we also found a positive correlation between both indexes. The adapted QBR, being more laborious but also more realistic, could serve as guidance for conservation practice at the local scale, benefiting both land managers environmentally concerned, conservation practitioners and carnivore populations inhabiting humanized landscapes. However, for spatially wider approaches the original QBR proved to be a good indicator for the presence of mesocarnivores, being useful in the development of restauration or conservation strategies, as well as for research and monitoring activities of carnivore guilds.
Keywords— Habitat quality, mesocarnivores, QBR Index, riparian systems, conservation management.
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Arsenic Accumulation in Rice (Oryza sativa): An Overview
Abstract— Accumulation of arsenic (As) in rice is highly variable across the globe and depends on a number of factors. Presently, there are no set standards on what can be considered as a regulatory concentration in rice, yet studies related to As toxicity to humans are abundant. This study is an overview of the range of As concentrations in rice grown globally and examples of the relevant contributing factors. Based on this overview, As concentration in rice can range from 0.01 to 0.8 mg kg-1, and some of the factors that can cause it are growing conditions, varieties, soils and water quality.
Keywords— rice, arsenic, accumulation, soils, uptake, global.
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Community Breeding Practice and the Challenges in Dairy Cattle Management in North Gondar, Ethiopia
Abstract— Dairy product is an important feed supplementation. However, rearing dairy cattle is became a challenge especially at smallholder level due to lack of indigenous dairy cattle breeds. As a result, the country has established cross breeding program since 1990`s. Nevertheless, it is not uniform and does not consider smallholder farmers. Therefore, this research initiated to identify the breeding practice and the main challenges of smallholder farmers in rearing dairy cattle. For this purpose, first systematic field survey was conducted to generate preliminary information and breed judgment. Then two study areas were selected purposively based on milk production potential and dairy breed characteristics. Two focus group discussions per study area were conducted. Then, randomly 200 respondents per study area were selected. Finally, individual interview and field observation were employed to generate the needed data. Even though there is no established breeding scheme, the smallholder farmers practiced breed improvement by either cross breeding or straight breeding. They implemented Cross breeding to improve milk productivity using 50-100% exotic blood sire/semen. Pure exotic semens were preferred for AI (Artificial insemination). The smallholder framers do not select indigenous caw for cross breeding practice. However, they selected indigenous caw/heifer for replacement based on pedigree history, body stature, and udder vein. Regarding mating system, more than 50% of the respondent exercise control-mating system in their herd. Mostly this was done by pertaining the sire and dam together for a single day. In addition to this partiality in preference of sire, less productive individual cattle culled from the herd by castration, sell and slaughtering. The management system, early castration and lack of accurate estrus detection were the major challenges in dairy cattle development. As the result of this survey in the two study areas, indiscriminate cross breeding without consideration of the production system, body size and blood levels were predominant. Therefore, successive training for smallholder farmers on breeding system is highly recommended.
Keywords— Milk, Breeding scheme, Cross breeding, Straight breeding.
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Competitive Performance of the Olive Oil in Tunisia
Abstract— This article presents an application of the method of the Matrices of Analysis Policies (MAP) for the estimate of the total competitiveness of the olive oil. Calculated on the basis of relative data in campaigns (2006-2014), the coefficient of the CRI is lower than the unit what indicates than the country to a comparative advantage in the production of the olive oil and consequently its production should be encouraged.
Keywords— Export produce, Tunisia, domestic resources costs, competitive performance.