Agriculture

Pores and organic matter take a multitude of forms in soil and their characteristics change in space and time following a change in tillage practices as a new “steady state” is approached. Information on the variation with depth (stratification) in the characteristics of pores and organic matter and the rates of changes in these characteristics are vital to interpreting the short- and long-term impacts of the reduction of using conventional tillage on the productivity and hydrology of agricultural soils. This information is also of value in estimating the effect of a reduction in tillage on the sequestration of carbon in agricultural soils. The influence of tillage on bulk density, macro porosity and organic matter content was found to be documented more extensively than the effects on pore size distribution, soil organic matter fractions and their interactions at different soil depths. Many of the reports documenting tillage-induced changes in soil porosity and organic matter were based on measurements at a specific time after initiating the tillage trial. The potential advantages of conservation tillage in organic farming are reduced erosion, greater macro porosity in the soil surface due to larger number of earthworms, more microbial activity and carbon storage, less run-off and leaching of nutrients, reduced fuel use and faster tillage. Conversion from conventional (CT) to no-tillage (NT) resulted in an immediate change in the placement of aboveground crop residue and the reduced fragmentation of the soil matrix may also slow the mineralization of SOC.

Assessment of land response to certain land uses is necessary to reach the sustainable land management. In this study Almagra model from MicroLEIS DSS and remote sensing technology were used to determine the suitability of land for main crops in an arid region east of Tehran (Iran). The weighted average of land and soil characteristic were obtained from representative soil profiles in each land mapping unit, through digital classification of satellite images and entered to the model. Land suitability maps for each crop were presented as thematic maps by integrating soil map with determined land suitability classes in GIS. The results showed that %55 of the area has moderate to high suitability for wheat, alfalfa, maize and melon. Salinity, alkalinity and soil texture are considered as the main soil restrictions for studied crops in this area. According to the obtained results, the priority of the selected crops should be considered as wheat, alfalfa/ melon and maize, respectively. Application of remote sensing technology accompany with land suitability models helped  to enhance the abilities of this model by both saving the data compilation time  and generating georeferenced data to overlay with other information layers and spatialization in GIS.

Conservation tillage (CA) systems are gaining increased attention as a way to reduce the water footprint of crops by improving soil water infiltration, increasing soil moisture and reducing runoff and water contamination. The concept of water footprint is defined as the total volume of freshwater used, directly or indirectly, to produce a product or process including the total amount of water required in agriculture for growing crops. About 141 million and 645 thousand hectares of land in the world have been destroyed by erosion because of inappropriate tillage operations. The total amount of 26 billion tons of soil eroded is estimated and about 2 billion tons comes out from Iran. Parallel to the erosion, loss of soil organic matter that occurs on to several factors, farming has become more challenging. Many strategies exist to combat soil degradation through erosion and compaction on agricultural fields. One of these strategies is conservation agriculture (CA). Reduced or no-tillage techniques, together with crop residue management and crop rotation are the pillars of CA. The term reduced tillage covers a range of tillage practices but it never involves inverting the soil. In this way, soil disturbance is minimized and crop residues are left on the soil. Studies in many European countries have shown that CA can indeed be very effective in combating soil erosion. However, soil and water conservation do not appear as main drivers in farmers’ decisions to shift or not to CA. Economic factors tend to be more important, but there are a lot of uncertainties on this domain. Studies show that production costs are mostly reduced, mainly by reduced fuel costs. Although many European studies have investigated the effect of reduced soil tillage on crop yields, a lot of uncertainties still exist.

Different parts of Moringa oleifera shoot are reportedly useful for nutrition, medicine, water purification and as raw material for the industry. It is however hypothesized that the growth and mineral composition of Moringa could be affected by the medium in which it is growing. Consequently, a factorial experiment involving three pre-determined soil depths of 0-15, 15-30 and 30-45 cm at four soil water levels: 100, 75, 50 and 25% Field Moisture Capacity (FMC ) was conducted in Ibadan, South western Nigeria, to investigate the effect of soil depth and water stress on the growth and mineral composition of Moringa shoot. The total N, C, P, K, Mg and Ca contained in the soil samples collected from the three soil depths were in the order of 0-15>15-30>30-45 cm. As a result, Moringa plants produced in the surface soil (0-15 cm) was superior in height; stem girth, number of leaves and dry matter yield irrespective of water- stress condition. Reduction in FMC from 100 to 50% did not significantly affect growth performance. Surface soil produced stems and leaves richer in mineral composition (Ca, Mg, K, Fe, Cu and Zn) than subsoil. Therefore, growing moringa on a fertile-soil is better for animal health.

This study assessed Farmers’ Perception and Attitudes towards Organic Agricultural Practices in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. The study employed purposive and multistage random sampling procedures in the selection of one hundred and twenty (120) respondents. Primary data were collected through field survey with the aid of a well-structured questionnaire and interview schedule. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were employed in data analysis; which was done according to the specific objectives of the study. Results showed that the major vegetable crops grown in the study area were pumpkin (100%), eggplant (75%) and plantain (50%) among others. Further analysis revealed fellow farmers (82%), radio (74%) and Farmers’ Associations (67%) as major sources of information on organic vegetable farming to the rural farmers. The result further revealed that the respondents have good knowledge about organic farming as shown by their positive perceptions about it. Multiple regression analysis was used to establish the relationship between the socio-economic characteristics of the farmers and the number of sources of information on organic farming. A high R2 of (76%) was obtained. Most of the independent variables were statistically significant and met a priori expectations. The result of factor analysis identified: financial, institutional and environmental factors as constraints to organic vegetable farming in the area. It was concluded that farmers in the study area had favorable perception towards organic farming with moderate knowledge of its benefits. Recommendations such as encouraging youths to get involved in organic vegetable farming, better enlightenments and sensitization of the entire area on the beneficial effects of organic farming were made, among others.

Vermicomposting of textile and dye sludge is an economically viable and environmentally safer method of final disposal. Use of earthworms in the industrial sludge management has been termed as vermistabilization (Neuhauser et al.,1988). The worms and microorganisms enhance the biodegradation of organic matter. During this process, important plant nutrients such as nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, calcium etc. present in the waste are converted through microbial action into forms that are much more soluble and available to plants than those in the parent substrate (Ndegwa and Thompson, 2001).. In this study, textile and dye sludge had only four per cent organic carbon content. The C: N ratio is one among the important factors that affects manure quality. To adjust the C: N ratio of the initial materials, the carbonaceous material like sawdust and crop waste were added at different proportions. At maturity phase, the highest P content was observed in the treatment that received sludge, poultry waste and saw dust (T7, T8). Kaushik and Garg (2003) reported that textile mill sludge could be potentially useful as raw substrate in vermicomposting if mixed up to 30 per cent with cow dung. E. foetida is an epigeic earthworm species which lives in organic wastes and requires high moisture content, adequate amounts of suitable organic material and dark conditions for proper growth and development (Gunadi et al., 2002). The enhancement of P in vermicompost was due to mineralization of the organic matter accompanied by a reduction in the total volume of the waste under ideal conditions. The finished vermicompost obtained by mixing 30 per cent sludge with 20 per cent poultry waste and 50 per cent crop waste contains higher nutrient status (NPK) with narrow C: N ratio (15.5).

Plants respond with changes in their pattern of gene expression and protein products when exposed to low temperatures. Thus ability to adapt has an impact on the distribution and survival of the plant, and on crop yields. Many species of tropical or subtropical origin are injured or killed by nonfreezing low temperatures, and exhibit various symptoms of chilling injury such as chlorosis, necrosis, or growth retardation. In contrast, chilling-tolerant species are able to grow at such cold temperatures. Conventional breeding methods have met with limited success in improving the cold tolerance of important crop plants involving inter-specific or inter-generic hybridization. Recent full-genome transcript profiling studies, in combination with mutational and transgenic plant analyses, have provided a snapshot of the complex transcriptional network that operates under cold stress. The changes in expression of hundreds of genes in response to cold temperatures are followed by increases in the levels of hundreds of metabolites, some of which are known to have protective effects against the damaging effects of cold stress. Various low temperature-inducible genes have been isolated from plants. Most appear to be involved in tolerance to cold stress and the expression of some of them is regulated by C-repeat/dehydration-responsive element binding (CBF/DREB1) transcription factors. Genetic analysis has revealed important roles for cellular metabolic signals, and for RNA splicing, export and secondary structure unwinding, in regulating cold-responsive gene expression and chilling and freezing tolerance. Numerous physiological and molecular changes occur during cold acclimation which reveals that the cold resistance is more complex than perceived and involves more than one pathway. The findings summarized in this review have shown potential practical applications for breeding cold tolerance in crop and horticultural plants suitable to temperate geographical locations.

The soils derived from charnockite in Ekiti State Nigeria were found to be low in zinc and phosphorus. This study was therefore conducted during the rainy seasons of 2006 and 2007 to evaluate growth and yield response of soybean TGX-1440LE from the direct effect and interaction of phosphorus and zinc. Treatments consisted of factorial combination of two levels of P(0,and 30kgPha-1), three levels of Zn(0,2,and 4kg Zns04ha-1) in a randomized complete block design in a soil developed in charnockite in Ekiti State The growth data were collected at 2 weekly intervals while yield components were taken at harvest. Stem girth, number of nodules and nodule weight significantly (P < 0.05) increased with 2kg Zn ha-1 application, which gave 111.2% yield advantage over the control treatment (0kgZn ha-1). Fertilizer rate above 2kgZn ha-1 significantly (p<0.05) decreased P uptake. The 30kgP ha-1 rate produced better growth, which was not significantly different from 0 kgP ha-1 while increase in P and Zn uptake was significant. The P x Zn interaction was significant for grain yield and Zn uptake. The treatment combination that gave the highest yield was 30kgP ha-1 and 2kgZn ha-1.

The knowledge of the women farmers on renewability potential of natural resources are critical determinants of the attitude and farmland conservation measures adopted to achieve a sustainable use. This study was carried out in Ekiti state, Nigeria to reveal the socio-economic characteristics of women farmers and their attitude towards sustainable farmland management practices in food crop production. Multistage sampling technique was adopted in selecting a total of 345 women farmers drawn from eight (8) Local Government Area of the state. Data were collected on socio-economic characteristics and attitude towards farm land management practices. The data were t analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The results revealed that majority (92.8%) of women farmers fell between the age categories of 31 -55 years and most of the farmers (69.5%) were married. Majority of the farmers inherited their farmland and majorly practiced crop rotation system. The correlation analysis revealed that there was a strong positive correlation (r=0.67, P< 0.05) between the attitude score and farmland management practices adopted by the women farmers, there is neutral attitude towards sustainable farm land management practices among women farmers in the study area. This study therefore recommend increase in awareness campaigns on farmland fertility conservation through appropriate management practices and women farmers should be given opportunity to have access to land resources like male counterpart which could be possible through adequate policy formulation on agriculture.

A field experiment was conducted at Jammu during 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 to evaluate the effect of two establishment methods (conventional sowing and zero tillage) in wheat (Triticum aestivum ) and four establishment methods (conventional transplanting of 25 days seedling, dry seeding @ 40 Kg/ha, wet seeding after puddling @ 40 kg/ha and SRI methods) and 4 sowing schedules (15th May, 25th May, 5th June and 15th June) in rice (Oryza sativa) under rice-wheat cropping system. Rice establishment methods and sowing schedules had significant impact on growth, yield attributes and yield of rice. Both the direct seeded methods of rice, being at par, recorded significantly higher mean grain yield and other growth parameters of rice as compared to conventional transplanting or SRI method. Similarly, 15th June rice sowing schedule resulted in marked increased in all the growth parameters, yield attributes and grain yield of rice as compared with other sowing schedules. However, both the establishment methods of wheat failed to cause any significant effect on growth and yield of succeeding wheat crop. Establishment methods of wheat and rice as well as sowing schedules of hybrid rice did not cause marked effect on soil physico-chemical parameters as well as available nutrient (N, P and K) content after completion of rice-wheat cycle. However, bulk density of soil at 0-15 and 15-30 cm depths was observed considerably higher with zero tilled wheat, while the minimum in system of rice intensification (SRI) method. Higher net returns and benefit cost ratio were recorded when wheat was established through zero tillage and rice through wet seeded sown on 15th of June in rice-wheat cropping system.