Archives of Agriculture and Environmental Science
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Genetic variability and cluster analysis of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes in foot hill of Nepal
Get PDFTo study the variability in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes and to identify the superior genotypes for yield and yield attributing traits, a field experiment was conducted during November 2017 to April 2018 at Kamalamai-04, Phant, of Sindhuli district, Nepal. Thirty wheat genotypes were experimented in Alpha lattice design with 3 replications. Observations for Days to heading, days to maturity, plant height, spike length, peduncle length, flag leaf area, no. of spikes/m2, no of grains/spike, weight of kernel/spike, thousand kernel weight, grain yield and biological yield were recorded and analysis was done at 0.05 probability level. High broad sense heritability associated with high genetic advance over mean was observed for the traits, grain yield (90%, 57.52%), peduncle length (93%, 52.58%), plant height (88%, 34%), number of grains/spike (83%, 39.76%), thousand kernel weight (80%, 36.75%), kernel weight/spike (77%, 51.76%) and number of spikes/m2 (77%, 39.16%) which indicated the predominance of additive genes action in controlling the expression of these traits. UPGMA dendrogram grouped thirty genotypes into distinct five clusters. Genotypes of cluster II can be utilized for development of superior cultivar through breeding program. Among all genotypes NL 1336 was highest grain yielder with thousand kernel weight, number of grains/spike and kernel weight/spike higher than local check WK 1204. Therefore, genotypes NL 1336, BL 4837, WK 2884 and BL 4833 can be utilized in breeding program as parents for improvement of wheat lines and development of high yielding wheat variety
A review on water and nitrogen use efficiency of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) in relation to its yield and yield components
Get PDFBest potato growing condition available in Ethiopia compared to African countries. Poor resource and crop management was found one of the major production and productivity limiting factors. This review was conducted to show the gap available in optimum nitrogen rate utilization, limitation of irrigation water utilization, nitrogen and water use efficiency consideration in agronomic work of the country. In Ethiopia the production of potato was showing increasing due to land used for production increased but the productivity showed slight increase. Optimizing resource use efficiency by better management of water and nutrients through temporal and spatial irrigation and fertilization strategies in crop production is now getting concern in the world to enhance the profit of farm and minimize the cost of production. It is useful to consider some efficiency indices, in order to optimize the scheduling of water and nitrogen application. Determining nitrogen rates and irrigation water amount that improve the use of both water and nitrogen, and increasing knowledge of efficient use of resource could minimize the possible N losses thereby minimizing cost and increasing production profit. In the process of optimization, crop type to be grown and variety have also a remarkable contribution. On the last the nitrogen rate, irrigation regime and use efficiency of nitrogen and water were interrelated to each other and should be considered to gather with the yield and yield component of the potato for sustainable production with sufficient benefit
Current status of bacterial contamination in some fish species of Bakkhali river Estuary, Bangladesh
Get PDFThe present study aims to investigate the isolation of human pathogenic bacteria (Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp. Shigella spp. and Vibrio spp.) and in gills, intestines, skin of fishes of Bakkhali River Estuary, Cox’s Bazar. A total of 50 fish species (25 of Pomadasys hasta and 25 of Glossogobius giuris) were collected from two sampling stations namely Station-1 (Rumalia Chara) and Station-2 (Kusturi Ghat). Bacterial analyses were made by standard methods. Total heterotrophic bacterial load of the isolates was found to be lower than the recommended public health and standard. However, the highest pathogenic bacterial (E. coli, Salmonella spp. Shigella spp. and Vibrio spp.) count at Station-2 might be due to the contamination of municipal and domestic wastes and discharges from small industries that constitute the main pollution source of this estuarine river. Skin was found to be the most preferred organs for higher bacterial load compared to intestine and lower count was recorded in gills. Further research on the microbial quality assessment should be undertaken to prevent pollution of this river estuary
Simulating the effects of human urine on phenology and some cultivar coefficients of Cowpea (Vigna unguicalata L. Walp) using the DSSAT-CROPGRO model
Get PDFThe DSSAT-CROPGRO model was used to characterize phenology and cultivar coefficients of cowpea treated with diluted human urine (equivalent to 60 kg-N/ha), simulated under ten irrigation schedules for a 5 year production period in Juba County of Central Equatoria State, South Sudan. Two treatments (T0) without urine and (T1) with human urine dilution during the growing season of 2016 were used and, 5-years model simulations on the grain number/m², LAI, canopy height (m) and pod number/m² compared. Irrigation schedules were carried out once the volumetric soil moisture content measured using the Theta Soil Moisture Probe was close to 15%. Results showed that cultivar coefficients EM-LF, FL-LF and FL-SH for both T1 and Y2015 (calibrant) were on average 6-8 days shorter than under T1. Also, the SIZLF under T1 was about 8-17% greater than under both T0 and calibrant Y2015 indicating the significance of diluted human urine on cowpea cultivar coefficients and phenology. The model also gave good agreement between observed and simulated growth parameters with low RMSE of the pod nr/m² at 17 for T0, and 37.5 for T1, the RMSE for grain nr/m2 was 360 kg for T1, and 347 kg for T0, whereas the RMSE of LAI showed no significant difference. The d-indices in estimating LAI and canopy height were generally low and showed the largest errors than for pod nr/m² and grain nr/m². The results showed that the model satisfactorily simulated and underscored the significance of diluted human urine on both phenology and cultivar coefficients of cowpea
Drudgery reduction for women in agriculture sector in Nepal: An analytical study
Get PDFAnalysis of rural womens’ livelihood identifies a ‘triple burden’ of work to in the productive, reproductive and social spheres. Feminization is the common phenomenon in Nepal where the roles of men and women are unbalanced at household and community level. Due to the migration of economically active men to other countries and urban area for better jobs, the agricultural labor is being increasingly feminized. This paper assesses factors influencing the women drudgery in agriculture sector, possible interventions and recommendation for reducing such drudgery. It consisted desk review, key informant interview and stakeholders’ consortium meetings to collect information, and triangulation of findings during 2017-2019 at regional and national levels. The study suggests that the workload of women (e.g., time and energy) in the farming activities can be reduced in two ways: (1) making existing tasks easier or increasing the productivity of existing labor, or (2) changing farm practices with new technology. Changes in the existing practice or introduction of new technology often reduces the workload of women in terms of both time and energy, but it requires external inputs and extra knowledge and coaching. Such interventions must consider the aspects of wider acceptance, economic viability and environmental friendliness. Further, the mechanization of agricultural tools and technology have alleviated the burden of tasks traditionally handled by both men and women in the sector. This paper recommends major tools, techniques and skills for women drudgery reduction in agriculture sector in Nepal that will be equally applicable in Asian region
Price behavior, marketing and consumption pattern of tomato in selected region of western Nepal
Get PDFTomato is an important marketable vegetable commodity of Nepal; but, due to involvement of middlemen farmers are receiving low price margin, meanwhile, consumer are compelled to pay higher. Keeping these points in view, an attempt has been made to study price behavior, marketing and consumption pattern of tomato in Western Nepal. Pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was administered among randomly selected 90 tomato producers and 10 retailers during march-April 2018. Reports from ministry of agricultural development and journal articles were sources of secondary data. The empirical evidences revealed that, farm gate price, retailers’ price, and price spread was higher for off-seasonal tomato production while producers share was higher for seasonal production; in addition, price of tomato, for both seasons, was increasing. Market analysis depicted, producer-wholesaler-retailer-consumer was the major market channel involved. Low market price, dominancy of wholesaler in price determination, storage problems (mainly in off-season), and malpractices during post-harvest handling were the major problems of marketing. Overall, our study point out that, addressing the mentioned problems, accessing new markets, checking unscrupulous middlemen, and value addition are crucial for sustainable market development
Ichthyofaunal diversity of Basurabad Beel in regards with threat factors and conservation measures, Bangladesh
Get PDFThe present study was conducted to assess the temporal distribution of ichthyofaunal composition of Basurabad beel in Khulna, Bangladesh and investigated the fish biodiversity and core threats to biodiversity to provide recommendations for conservation in the beel. During the study period, total 33 fish species were recorded belonging to 6 orders. The order wise fish species availability was maximum in Perciformes (39.40%) and minimum in Beloniformis (3%). The value of Shannon-Weaver diversity index was found higher in Fultola (1.19±0.41) and lowest in Basurabad (0.68±0.17) while the maximum value of Margalef richness index found in Basurabad (1.12±0.35) and lowest in Debitola (0.68±0.34). The value of Pielou’s evenness index was higher in Boroitola (0.61±0.20) and lowest in Basurabad (0.31±0.16) however the Pielou’s index showed an uneven distribution of fish species in the Basurabad sampling point. The value of Simpson dominance index was higher in Fultola (0.58±0.10) and lowest in Kishmath-Fultola (0.39±0.16). Ten different kinds of fishing gears were identified under 5 major groups in the beel. Among all the gears operated, seine net (Jagat Ber Jal) had the highest catch 31.3±4.1 CC/haul/day/gear (kg) followed by current jal 10.5±2.5 CC/haul/day/gear (kg). This study suggests that comprehensive studies on fisheries biology including reproductive biology, growth, stock assessment and their association with existing laws are essential for the sustainable management and conservation of fish species in the Basurabad beel
Effects of integrated weed management practices on the performance of boro rice cultivars
Get PDFAn experiment was conducted during the period from November 2016 through May 2017 to evaluate the effect of integrated weed management practices on weed suppression and on the performance of boro rice cultivars. The experiment consisted of two cultivars viz., BRRI dhan28 and BRRI dhan29 along with eight different weed management practices. Cultivar did not exert any significant effect on weed density and dry weight. Integrated weed management practices exerted significant effect on weed density and dry weight. The highest weed dry weight was observed in no weeding treatment and lowest one was recorded in application of pre-emergence herbicide followed by one hand weeding at 35 DAT. BRRI dhan28 × no weeding treatment produced the highest weed dry weight and BRRI dhan28 × application of pre-emergence herbicide followed by one HW produced the lowest weed dry weight at different DATs. BRRI dhan28 produced higher grain and straw yields than BRRI dhan29. The highest grain yield was obtained from application of pre-emergence herbicide followed by one hand weeding at 35 DAT. BRRI dhan28 × application of pre-emergence herbicide followed by one HW at 35 DAT produced the highest grain yield and the lowest grain yield was resulted from BRRI dhan28 × no weeding treatment. From the study it may be concluded that BRRI dhan28 × application of pre-emergence herbicide followed by one HW at 35 DAT may be recommended for controlling weeds effectively and for getting the highest grain yield in boro rice
Analysis of environmental damage and environmental economic valuation on tropical rain forest destruction in Simalungun Regency, North Sumatera Province, Indonesia
Get PDFTropical rain forests in Simalungun Regency, North Sumatra Province, Indonesia have experienced environmental damage due to illegal logging. Illegal logging activities can effect to environmental damage as well as environmental economic losses. This study aimed to analyze soil and environmental damage as well as to assess economic loss of environmental damage due to illegal logging activities in tropical rain forests in Simalungun Regency, North Sumatra Province Indonesia. The method of taking samples and analyzing environmental damage were conducted by purposive sampling. Data from laboratory tests of soil physical, chemical and biological properties were analyzed by statistical tests. The economic valuation method of environmental damage used the Permen LH No. 13 year of 2011, Republic of Indonesian. Illegal logging activities caused environmental damage in tropical rain forests (covering 45.65 ha). Illegal logging had a significant effects toward the bulk density increase, as well as the C-organic decrease. In other hand Illegal logging had a significant effects on sand fraction, total microorganisms, and soil respiration. Based on the environmental economic valuation, the economic loss due to illegal logging on tropical rain forests amounting to IDR 319,799,679,000 ($ 22,842,834.21)
Performance of locally discovered rice cultivar (Haridhan) in Bangladesh under urea sprays technology
Get PDFThe research work was conducted at the Agronomy Field Laboratory, Department of Agronomy, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh during the period from July to November 2015 to evaluate the yield performance of BRRI dhan56 and a locally discovered rice cultivar Haridhan under foliar and traditional application of urea. The experiment included six treatments of urea application technique as T1=N0 (control), T2=N65%, T3=N50%+US (15%), T4=N50%+US (20%), T5=N60%+US (15%), T6=N100% (traditional method) and two rice varieties viz. HYV rice cultivar BRRI dhan56 and locally discovered rice cultivar Haridhan. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Foliar application of urea had significant effect on yield and yield components of BRRI dhan56 and Haridhan. It has been found that the treatment N50%+US (20%) produced highest grain yield (6.14 t ha-1) which might be due to the highest number of total tillers hill-1 (15.03), effective tillers hill-1 (12.11), panicle length (26.21 cm) and grains panicle-1 (156.91) got from this treatment. From the result it can be concluded that both the varieties produced highest grain yield with 50% of the required urea applied to the soil and 20% of the required urea applied as foliar spray that can save an amount of 30% of recommended dose of urea in rice field of Banglades