Asian Journal of Advances in Agricultural Research
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In vitro Studies of Imazethapyr and GR24 Effects on Early Developmental Stages of Striga hermonthica (Del.) Benth.
No full textAims: A series of laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of Imazethapyr on Striga germination and haustorium initiation in response to different chemical stimulants.
Study Design: A completely randomized design with five replicates.
Place and Duration of Study: A series of laboratory experiments was undertaken at the College of Agricultural Studies, Sudan University of Science and Technology (SUST) at Shambat, during the season 2012/2013.
Methodology: Striga seeds were sprinkled on (GFFPD), in Petri-dishes. Aliquots (5ml) of the herbicide at 10, 20, 40, 60, and 80 µM were added to each petri-dish. The Petri-dishes, were sealed with Parafilm, wrapped in aluminum foil and incubated in the dark at 30°C±2 for 14 days. A control with water was included. The seeds were subsequently treated with 20µl (aliquots) of GR24 at 0.01 and 0.1 ppm per disc. A piece of filter paper, moistened with sterilized distilled water, was placed in the centre of each petri-dish to maintain moist condition. The Petri-dishes were sealed with parafilm, wrapped in aluminum foil and incubated in the dark at 30°C±2 for 24 h.
Results: Seeds conditioned in Imazethapyr at 10-80 µM displayed inconsistent germination in response to GR24 and the germination was poorly correlated with herbicide concentration (r= -0.2). Seeds conditioned in imazethapyr at 60-80 µM for 10 or 15 days prior to treatment withGR24 at 0.01 ppm.reducedStriga germination comparable to the respective control. Striga germilings resulting from seeds conditioned in imazethapyr at 40 µM exhibited significant reductions (36%) in haustorium initiation in response to DMBQ as compared to the control.
Conclusion: Imazethapyr, irrespective of concentration reduced Striga germination, radicle length and haustorium initiation significantly
Characteristics of Rainfall Variations in Kaduna State, Nigeria
No full textRainfall trend and variation characteristics across Kaduna State in selected locations in the Southern, Northern and Central Kaduna State within 50 years period (1966-2015) from the Mann-Kendall test and variance coefficient revealed a significant monotone positive trend in only two out of the eleven (11) locations, while one location revealed an insignificant monotone negative trend. Kauru, where the trend was decreasing, is now witnessing an increasing trend of 113.333 mm of rainfall per year, and Kaduna North witnessing an increase of 58.889 mm per year. The increasing trend comes in the fourth decade (1996-2005). The result of the variance coefficient ranges from 0.065 to 0.351, which shows that there are no much variations in the total amount of rainfall between the locations. The estimator Sen’s slope has been calculated for the five decadal periods showing rising slope magnitude in some locations. In (1996-2005) decadal period, Kauru Sen’s revealed 113.33, Kaduna North 58.889, Saminaka 52. In (1966-1975) decadal period, Kafanchan revealed 67.429. Some locations are shown rising insignificant decreasing trend magnitude. Decadal period of (1996-2005), Zaria revealed -55.33, Kafanchan -49.429. The decadal period of (2006-2015), Kaduna North shows -51.667, Kaduna South -51.875. These results were quite significant as the decades where Mann-Kendall has shown a negative trend, similar trends were observed for the Sen’s Slope and vice versa
The Social, Economic and Health Impacts of Urban Agriculture in Zambia
No full textUrban agriculture practices are on the rise among the Southern Africa populations bringing with it positive and negative impacts. Nevertheless, the impacts of urban agriculture over Southern Africa cannot be equated to an individual country due to varying characteristics of each nation such as: national policies, geographic location, context of urban agriculture and the socio-economic and political conditions of the area. As a result, this paper, focusses on one nation only, in particular, Zambia. Agriculture in Zambia is vital for economic growth and poverty reduction, mostly focusing on rural areas rather than urban locations. Therefore, there is not sufficient knowledge on the impacts that urban agriculture brings to its urban populations. In this regard, this paper investigates the benefits of urban agriculture in Zambia, with a specific focus on the social, health and economic impacts on the Zambian urban population
Effect of Different Organic and Inorganic Mulches on Soil Properties and Performance of Brinjal (Solanum melongena L.)
No full textAn experiment was conducted at the Experimental Field Laboratory of the Department of Environmental Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh during the period for 19th March, 2015 to 5th August, 2015 to investigate the effects of different organic and inorganic mulches on soil properties and brinjal growth and yield. The experiment included five treatments viz. black polythene, transparent polythene, rice straw, saw dust and control. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with four replications. The black polythene mulch reduced soil acidity and increased available potassium content in the soil. On the other hand, saw dust mulch was better in respect of total nitrogen and organic matter contents. All the mulches generated higher soil moisture over the control. The soil moisture content of the black polythene mulch was higher compared to other mulches. Growth parameters like dry weight of shoot plant-1, dry weight of roots plant-1, and leaf area index (LAI) were significantly influenced by different mulches over the control. Yield also increased significantly over control where maximum yield was found in rice straw treated plot (35.17 t ha-1) and minimum in the control (26.42 t ha-1). The yield was found in order of rice straw > transparent polythene>saw dust>black polythene>control plots. Though black and transparent polythene mulches superior for microclimate but rice straw mulch showed better performance on yield and yield contributing characters of summer brinjal
Decolourisation of the Textile Dye Methyl Red from Aqueous Solution Using Sugarcane Bagasse Pith
No full textThe present study investigates the potential of sugarcane bagasse pith, an agro waste as an effective adsorbent for the removal of methyl red. Physicochemical parameters like concentration of dye, amount of adsorbent, temperature, pH and contact time were optimized to develop faster decolourization process. The spectrophotometric technique was adopted for the estimation of the concentration of dye before and after the adsorption. The results showed that the maximum decolourization (86%) of methyl red by sugarcane bagasse pith was found in 10 mg/L dye, 500 g/L of the adsorbent dose at pH 5 with temperature 30°C for 5 days. UV-vis spectral analysis showed a new peak at 781 nm which confirms the degradation of methyl red. The surface structure of the adsorbent treated with dye showed a significant difference when compared with control. The earlier results justify the applicability of the bagasse in removal of methyl red from textile wastewaters and their safe disposal
Heavy Metal Content of Pteridium aquilinum from Njere River Bank in Umuakam Okaiuga Nkwoegwu, Umuahia North L.G.A of Abia State
No full textAims: To assess the heavy metal content of P. aquilinum from Njere river bank in Umuakam Okaiuga Nkwoegwu, Umuahia North L.G.A of Abia state.
Study Design: Plant samples were collected from upstream, midstream and downstream locations of the river bank.
Place and Duration of Study: Department of Chemistry, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike between June 2009 and December 2009.
Methodology: Composite samples were made from the samples from the various locations. They were air-dried, milled, sieved and used for Atomic absorption Spectroscopy.
Results: Total concentrations of Ni, Cd, Fe, Zn and Pb, soluble metal concentrations of Ni, Cd and Zn and exchangeable metal concentrations of Ni, Cd, Fe, Zn, and Pb were below the W.H.O standard for all the plant samples.
Conclusion: The plant from Njere river bank is relatively safe for animal and human consumption
Availivility and Marketig Activities of Kuchia (M. kuchia) in South-Western Region of Bangladesh
No full textThe present study was done for creating a better understanding of the current marketing activities and trading practices for kuchia. The study area was Paikgacha Upazila in Khulna district and its two large markets; Paikgacha Kuchia market and Kopilmony Kuchia market. The data were collected over twelve months from January to December, 2012 using semi-structured questionnaire among the cross section of marketing operators at Paikgacha. Data were collected from randomly selected 57 marketing operators where 17 were depot owners, 12 collectors and 28 kuchia catchers. Total availability of live kuchia was 18118 Kg at Paikgacha market and 18140 Kg at Kopilmony market. The marketing chain passes through a number of intermediaries: Kuchia catchers, collectors\ foria, small depots, large depots, local agent from exporter, exporter and finally export to the foreign countries. Kuchia marketing was considered as a profitable and feasible business by most of the marketing operators. However, reduced demand in the domestic market was reported by the operators. The social and religious restriction on consumption of kuchia was also reported as a problem that hinders the business and prevents obtaining realistic prices in the domestic market. Most of the kuchia in the domestic market are used as bait for catching crab
Social Factors of Derived Savanna in Northern Edo State, Nigeria
No full textClimate change has affected the erstwhile northern fringes of the Rain Forest in Nigeria leading to change of the Rain Forest to derived savanna. Edo North is one of such areas referred to as derived savanna in Nigeria. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of the change in the environment on the social life of the people of Edo North. The objective was the evaluation of the changes in six social factors of derived savanna zone of Edo North in comparison with the more environment-stable Edo Central and South. Secondary data obtained from EDSG [1] were collated and analyzed by percentage incidence. There was evidence of avoidance of skilled personnel such as medical doctors and teachers in Edo North compared to Edo Central and South. Enrollment in primary one class recorded increase of about 5% in Edo North, but about 19% in Edo South. These are indices of adverse social factors of Edo North. Sustainable climate smart agriculture is hereby recommended in Edo North to arrest further degradation of the ecosystem, restore the forest vegetation and empower the natives economically