Agriculture

Grape is one of the most delicious, refreshing and nourishing fruits. One of the most important cultivars of grape, cv. Perlette is being grown extensively in northern India owing to its attractive colour, heavy bearing and good fruit quality. However, more thrust is to be laid on further improvement of the fruit quality. In this report we demonstrate the effect of girdling, thinning and application of GA3 on fruit quality and shelf life of grape. Girdling + 40 ppm of GA3 proved most effective in increasing the quality in terms of total soluble solids (TSS) (17.47 %), total sugar (8.94 %) reducing sugar (10.35 %), TSS/acid ratio (27.24 %) and resulted in decrease in acidity (24.59 %). During storage at room temperature minimum physiological loss in weight (9.42 %) was observed after three days of storage. The present study therefore suggests that girdling and growth regulator application is a desirable practice to enhance berry ripening and fruit quality in grape cv. Perlette.

This study was carried out to assess the performance, haematological, biochemical indices and bacteria load of broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with copper sulphate (CuSO4) at 0%, 100ppm, 200ppm and 300ppm inclusion levels. A total of one hundred and twenty (120) broiler chicks were careful selected and assigned to four (4) dietary treatments. The experiment was performed in three (3) replicates with ten (10) chickens per replicate making a total of thirty (30) chicks per diet. The birds were randomly selected using the Completely Randomized Design (CRD). The birds were fed ad libitum and given clean and cool water. At the end of the feeding trial, at four (4) weeks, birds fed diet 1 had the highest total fed intake (g/bird) of (34.64) and at 8 weeks, diet 2 containing 100ppm of copper sulphate has the highest feed intake (g/bird) of (180.67). The highest total weight gain (g/birds/day) in birds fed diet 2 containing 100ppm CuSO4 (1632.96) at eight (8) weeks of age. The highest feed conversion ratio was observed in the birds fed diet 3. The results obtained showed that all the haematological indices measured were not significantly (p>0.05) influenced by the treatments as the birds fed the supplemented diets were not different from birds fed the control diet which fall within the normal range. The serum biochemical values showed that cholesterol, albumin, total protein, bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Alkaline phosphate (ALP), creatinine and globulin were not significantly affected by the dietary treatment. The blood cholesterol level of the birds ranged between 25.09g/l in the 100ppm CuSO4 inclusion to 40.12g/l in the control diet. A decrease at 100ppm CuSO4 inclusion level was observed followed by an initial increase in blood cholesterol was recorded in 200ppm and 300ppm CuSO4 inclusion level. The fact that values obtained for both alkaline phosphatase and globulin concentration did not differ significantly among treatment means showed that the utilization of CuSO4 in the diets of broiler birds will have no detrimental effects on their physiological functions. The bacterial load of liver, spleen and duodenum in birds fed diets 1, 2 and 3 decreased as the levels of inclusion of CuSO4 increases but got higher in those fed diet 4. Keywords: Copper Sulphate, Performance, Haematological indices, Biochemical properties and Bacterial loads

Soils inherently low in nutrients may respond dramatically to conservation management, yet evaluation of soil nutrients on absolute basis may not detect change. This study was primarily aimed at investigating the depth distribution of soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), soil carbon: nitrogen ratio (C:N), soil dry bulk density (BD), total porosity (TP), saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat) and their stratification ratios as affected by conventional tillage (CT) and no-tillage (NT) under cocoyam in a Typic paleudult in two agroenvironments in southeastern Nigeria. The experiment was conducted at the Teaching and Research farm of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resource Management, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Agbani Enugu (06?52' N, 07?15' E) and The Research and Experimental farm of Enugu State College of Agriculture and Agro-Entrepreneurship, Iwollo (06026'N; 07016'E), respectively during 2013 and 2014 planting season. The design of the experiment was Randomized Complete Block (RCBD) with five replications and four treatments which comprised of conventional tillage with 150 and 300 Kg/ha of NPK15:15:15 and No-Tillage with 150 and 300 Kg/ha of NPK15:15:15. Soil analysis was carried out at both pre- and post planting at two soil depths (0-20cm and 20-40cm) in both locations. The data collected was analyzed using Analysis of variance test (ANOVA). Result showed that Conventionally-tilled plots that received 300 Kg/ha NPK had 0.121percent N. This plot had between 7% - 30% lower N content when compared to No-till plots amended with both 300 and 150 Kg/ha for 2013 and 2014 planting season. The results showed that No-till plots had significantly higher (18-43%) post-harvest percent soil nitrogen, organic carbon and carbon: nitrogen content when compared to conventionally-tilled plots at both 0-20 and 20-40 cm soil depths. The stratification ratio of N (1.09-2.14 and 1.02-2.29 for CT and NT respectively), OC (CT, 1.10-3.07; NT, 1.01-2.42) and C:N ( CT, 0.79-3.02; NT, 0.74-1.99) whereas stratification ratio of bulk density (CT,0.72-0.98; NT, 0.74-0.99), total porosity (CT, 0.98-1.20; NT, 0.90-1.22) and hydraulic conductivity (Ksat)(CT,1.07-1.29; NT, 1.03-1.49) for both sites and years did not follow any particular trend. This implies that soils vary in inherent properties and that absolute values of soil properties at the surface can vary. However, a reference is needed to separate inherent from management-induced changes. Generally taller plants (P>0.05) were found in Conventionally-till plots when compared with No-till plots. At harvest (210 DAP), the highest corm yield was obtained in Conventionally-tilled with 300kg/ha N plots which gave 8.58 and 7.83t/ha in Iwollo site for 2013 and 2014 planting season respectively followed by no-till treated 300kg/ha of NPK which also had 6.58 and 6.00t/ha. Conventionally-tilled plots amended with 300kg/ha N had 35% and 36% higher yield when compared with No-till plots amended with 150kg/ha of NPK plots for 2013 and 2014 planting season. The high yield advantage of Conventionally-tilled with 300kg/ha N over the other treatments may be due to differences in tillage practices and N fertilization rates. Tillage and fertilization helped increase the rate of crop emergence, improved soil moisture status, soil air (aeration), and improved general edaphic conditions of plants resulting in better yields. The relatively high stratification ratio of soil organic C, and some other soil properties, implies that conservation tillage and fertilizer application can compensate to some degree for the removal of above-ground plant residues

The simple random sampling technique was employed in selecting 62 farmers drawn from the sampling frame obtained from the list of Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) contact farmers in the four Local Governments Areas (LGAs) of Egbedore, Olorunda, Ede South and Ife Central, which made up the study area. The main instrument for collecting the primary data was structured questionnaire. It is evident from the result is that an average total cost of N371486.35 was incurred per annum by fish farmers while gross revenue of N791242.52 was realized with a gross margin of N 574314 and a profit of N 419756.17. The rate of return on investment of 0.58 implies that for every one naira invested in Fish production by farmers, a return of N1.5 and a profit of 58k were obtained. The multiple regression result revealed that fish output was significantly determined by pond size, labour used, cost of feeds, cost of lime and cost of fingerlings. The coefficient of determination indicates that 52.2% of the variation in the value of fish output was explained by pond size, quantity of labour used, cost of feed, cost of lime and cost of fingerlings. The study concluded that fish production in the study area is economically rewarding and profitable.

Trichoderma has been widely used to control R. Solani. However, there is need to evaluate the different mechanisms used to administer the biological control agent into the plant environment. A greenhouse experiment to compare the efficacy of three T. Harzianum application methods; seed bio-priming, seed coating and soil treatment to control R. solani in peas was conducted. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of T. harzianum application methods for controlling root rot and damping off caused by R. solani in peas. There were significant differences (p<0.001) between different T. harzianum application methods in reducing pre and post emergence damping off. Seed biopriming recorded the lowest pre emergence damping off incidence of 2.64 % compared to 7.16 % recorded on untreated control. Seed coating had pre emergence damping off percentages and root rot severity scores of (4.22%; 1.87) respectively. Soil treatment recorded the highest population increase of T. harzianum (2.855 x 104 CFU) 6 weeks after sowing.

The effects of moringa leaves and seeds fortification on the nutritional value and overall acceptability of Sorghum-Maize ‘ogi’ was investigated. The ‘Ogi’ produced from sorghum and maize was enriched with moringa leaves and seeds at substitution level of 10%. . Sorghum, maize and moringa seeds/ leaves were constituted in the ratio 45:45:10 while sorghum ogi with moringa leave/seeds was constituted in the ratio 90:10 The proximate content, mineral and vitamins content and the sensory properties of the ogi samples were determined. There was increase in the proximate content with the variation in the ratio of sorghum and maize and 10% Moringa seed enrichment. There was increase in the mineral content. The swelling capacity decreased with 10% moringa leaf and seed substitution. The ogi sample with 10% moringa seeds substitution was rated close to the unfortified ogi sample.

No one can imagine an agricultural revolution without pesticides, in addition to fertilisation and mechanisation. The world should have been more crude without food or probably highly diminished in population due to chronic competition for scarce and raw food. There is population boom due to quicker and more dependable access to food and medicare. The economic growth of citizens and nations have depended primarily on agriculture. Part of the aftermath of human civilisation is chemical and pesticide contamination/pollution. The danger lies on the pollution level of these substances in our food chain and the environment. This paper reviews the place of pesticides in crop management, environmental implications and challenges for the future. It proffers acceptance of opinions of major stakeholders: scientists, investors, farmers, government, policy makers, regulators, health professionals, environmental experts/carers, regulators and recommends the use of contaminant level pesticide in contrast to pollutant level pesticide in crop management, pending the discovery of alternatives to synthetic pesticides, including botanic or bio-pesticides, to feed a hungry world.

Effect of supplementary phytase and mineral chelators were determined in 28-day chicks’ growth assay. Six isonitrogenous, isocaloric diets, equal in minerals, sulphur amino acids and lysine were formulated; a control with no inorganic phosphorus and 5 other diets containing 0.03% phytase, 0.1% EDTA, 1.5% citric acid, 0.03% phytase + 0.1% EDTA and 0.03% phytase + 1.5% citric acid, respectively. Diets were randomly assigned to 36 individually caged chicks. Phytase, EDTA or citrate supplements resulted in increase in feed intake, body weight gain and feed efficiency improvement (P<0.05). Serum alkaline phosphatase and organs relative weights were insignificantly different (P>0.05) but a significant increase in serum phosphorus and bursa of Fabricius were observed when phytase fed combined with EDTA or citrate (P<0.05). Minerals in tibia, P and Mg in toes were increased by citrate or EDTA supplement (P<0.05). Supplementary phytase plus citrate or EDTA generates more phosphorus and enhances nutrients utilisation.

Effect of different doses of nitrogen with or without GA3 application on plant height, nutrient uptake (N,P,K and S). Yield parameters in NDR-8501 Brassica juncea cultivar in year 2013-14. Field experiment was conducted at Instructional Farm of N.D.U.A.&T., Kumarganj, Faizabad (U.P.) during Rabi season, mustard seeds were grown under different treatments. Three doses of nitrogen (90, 120 and 150 kg ha-1) and GA3 (50 ppm) spraying at 30 and 60 DAS, nutrient uptake, siliquae plant-1, seed siliquae-1, seed yield increases at 120 kg N ha-1 with spraying of GA3 at 30 DAS as compared to without GA3 spraying GA3 at 60 DAS spraying increase the observed parameters but it was low in comparison of 30 DAS. The optimum dose of nitrogen of recommended dose of fertilizer along with spraying of 50 ppm GA3 at 30 DAS can be used as optimum recommended source for improving mustard seed yield under local agro climatic conditions.

The presence of heavy metal residues in food products is a potential hazard to humans and animals as these metals cannot be degraded and stay permanently in the environment hence there is a need to ascertain the safety of these products for human consumption. The concentration of heavy metal residues in meat, milk and cheese were assessed in three locations in Ondo State. A total number of 120 animals (comprising 30 cows and 90 bulls) and 30 cheese samples were sampled for the investigation. The samples were digested with concentrated nitric acid and the resulting solutions were analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) for lead, copper, zinc, cadmium and chromium. The result revealed that the concentration of each metal was significantly (P < 0.05) different due to the location. The results were compared with Maximum Recommended Limit (MRL) as set by FAO. The cadmium concentration in the kidney samples obtained from Owo has a mean concentration level of 1.23mg/kg, which is above those collected from Ondo (0.53mg/kg). However, Cadmium was not detected in kidney samples from Akure. Chromium concentration was high in kidney samples from Ondo and Owo with values of 1.11 and 1.21mg/kg respectively than those recorded in Akure (0.31mg/kg). The mean level of copper in skeletal muscle from Akure (3.17kg/kg) was higher when compared with the 2 other locations (Ondo 1.48mg/kg; Owo 1.82mg/kg). The mean concentration of lead in skeletal muscle (2.09mg/kg) and kidney samples (0.89mg/kg) were significantly higher than liver samples (0.78mg/kg). Of these skeletal muscle, kidney and liver samples, 100%, 46.7%, 73.3% exceeded the MRL by FAO respectively. For cadmium, the result showed that kidney samples of slaughtered cattle contained a mean value of 0.59mg/kg. Also, the concentration of zinc in skeletal muscle and liver of slaughtered cattle were 37.65and 50.55mg/kg out of which 36.7% and 43.3% exceeded the MRL by FAO for skeletal muscle and liver respectively. The mean concentration of chromium is higher in kidney samples (0.88mg/kg) than skeletal muscle (0.77mg/kg and liver (0.83mg/kg). Of these skeletal muscle, kidney and liver samples, 16.7%, 36.7%, 20% exceeded the MRL as set by FAO respectively. Copper mean concentration was higher in liver samples (20.57mg/kg) of which 100% of liver samples exceeded MRL by FAO.