Reducing mineral fertilizer use for sustainable agriculture: The influence of seed coating with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal spores and Leifsonia bacteria on maize (Zea mays L.) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) production
September 2023
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) have been proposed as biofertilizers for sustainable agriculture. Nevertheless, many of the delivery approaches for these beneficial microorganisms have the disadvantage of limited applicability. The study aim was to evaluate the fertilizing potential of seed coating with microbial fertilizers on growth and yield parameters of maize and...
Biochemical evaluation of autoclaved and solid state fermented tropical pasture grasses
July 2022
Grass constitutes the nutritional basis for most livestock, whether domesticated or wildlife. The present study evaluates the enhancement of the nutritional value of five different pasture grasses: Palisade grass (Urochloa brizantha), Biscuit grass (Paspalum vaginatum), Giant star grass (Cynodon plectostachyus), Goose grass (Eleusine indica), and Stubborn grass (Sida acuta) for use as animal feeds and xylanase...
Knowledge and understanding about genetically modified (GM) crops among smallholder farmers in Northern Ghana
April 2022
Ghana had made steady progress towards the commercialization of Genetically Modified (GM) crops amidst mounting opposition. This paper presents findings of an empirical study on smallholder farmers’ knowledge and understanding of GM crops. Data used in this study was sourced from a survey conducted among members of Farmer Based Organizations (FBOs) in Northern Ghana in which 120 FBOs across 10 districts in the...
Effects of fertilization experiment by liquid of anaerobic fermentation from livestock field on soil properties and plant nutrition
February 2022
The liquid of anaerobic fermentation from Livestock (LAFL) can supply nutrients for plants. Therefore, it should be beneficial to the growth of crops. The experiment was carried out with a view to study the effect of irrigation based on LAFL and separately, chemical fertilizer (CK) for ten kinds of crops. The results showed that the organic matter in the LAFL were slightly higher than those in the CK. In the LAFL,...
Sorghum landrace germplasm: Genetic resources for demand lead product development and profiling in modern crop improvement
December 2021
Understanding genetic variation underlying adaptive traits responsible for sorghum’s ability to tolerate challenging growing environments is of great importance. The present investigation was conducted to identify sources of genetic traits for utilization in product and hybrid parent development. Result showed that there exists variability for local names with Farafara and Kaura as most common types...
Energy consumption for wheat production under two different tillage systems in River Nile State, Sudan
November 2021
Energy is a scarce resource that must be studied, as it is essential for productive activities like agriculture. In this study, energy consumed for wheat production under conventional and zero-till in River Nile State, Sudan was assessed. Energy consumed for land preparation and harvesting was considered for each tillage system. Data on fuel consumption, energy equivalent factors, human and mechanical work rate/h and...
Characterization of tomato germplasm accessions for breeding research
August 2021
Although tomato is the leading vegetable crop in Kenya, not much work has been done to develop improved tomato varieties with farmer preferred and market demanded traits. This study aims to characterize ten tomato genotypes for morphological and agronomic traits and to identify potential parental lines for use in the breeding program. The experiments were conducted in Kenya during the 2017 long and short rain seasons....
Effects of rootstocks on leaf nutrient concentration of selected apple (Malus domestica L. Borkh) cultivars at Gircha, Southern Ethiopia
May 2021
A superimposed experiment was conducted at Gircha, Chencha district, Southern Ethiopia to determine the effect of four rootstocks on leaf nutrient concentration of five apple cultivars. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Data on leaf nutrient concentrations were collected and analyzed using SAS software. Results revealed that scion-rootstock interaction...
Shorten the producing process of horse manure to fermented compost and appropriate fertilization on crops
February 2021
Horse manure composts may provide nutrients to crops as well as enrichment of good microorganisms for phytoprotection. Previous studies have shown their effectiveness against diseases but there are problems to overcome their composting procedures. The purpose of this experiment is to treat the horse manure starting from the stable to produce compost for crop growth. The results indicate that the manure can be enriched...
Effect of fermentation on sorghum and cowpea flour blends
November 2020
This study was designed to investigate the suitable proportions of cowpea that can be used to improve the nutrient content of sorghum and also to ascertain the effect of fermentation on the sample blends. The raw and fermented sample blends were analyzed for microbial load, proximate composition, mineral and anti-nutrient contents. The microorganisms isolated were Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, B. polymyxa, B....
Enhancement of tef production through popularization of improved Quncho tef variety at Northwestern Zone of Tigray, Ethiopia
August 2020
Tef [Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter] is a cereal crop resilient to adverse climatic conditions. Tef is the most important crop that serves as human food and has a great contribution to food security in Ethiopia, but grain yields are low. Towards enhancing the production and productivity of the tef, the government and non-governmental bodies is therefore promoting the adoption of improved varieties, fertilizers and...
Land suitability for cocoa production in Idanre, Ondo State, Nigeria
August 2020
In Nigeria, cocoa is an important cash crop that contributes to wealth creation and poverty alleviation. This study combined a Geographic Information System (GIS) application and Multi-Criteria Evaluation (MCE) to assess land suitability for cocoa cultivation. Based on the FAO rating standard Landsat ETM (2002) and Landsat 8 (2015) images, AsterDEM data, rainfall data, soil map, and the administrative map of...
Laboratory evaluation of some botanicals and fermented cow urine against Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)
March 2020
Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) is the most important destructive pest of sorghum in Africa which results in complete crop loss. Currently the management strategies rely heavily on chemical insecticides, which do not provide effective control. The uses of bio-pesticides are encouraging over chemical pesticides. The study was carried out to identify effective plant and animal products and optimum concentrations against C....
Assessing the impacts of climate change and variability on maize post-harvest system at Kongwa and Kondoa District in Tanzania
March 2020
This study attempted to investigate the pattern and trend of climate change, its influence and interaction with maize post-harvest system and established the current status of maize post-harvest losses at Kongwa and Kondoa district in Tanzania. Participatory rural appraisal technique and household survey methods were used to collect primary data. Secondary data for the study area including rainfall and temperature data...
Effect of N fortified rice mill waste on soil chemical properties and yield of maize in Nigeria rainforest
December 2019
Organo-mineral nutrient sources are promising soil amendments for sustainable crop production in Nigeria. A field experiment was conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Cross River University of Technology Obubra during the 2016 cropping season. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effects of nitrogen (N) and amended rice mill waste (RMW) on some soil chemical properties and yield of maize (Zea mays...
Evaluation in Gampela (Burkina Faso) of agronomic performances of peanut genotypes (Arachis hypogaea L.) selected in Texas
November 2019
Peanut is of paramount importance in human and animal nutrition, as well as in improving producers’ income. However, its production is faced with abiotic and biotic constraints. Among the biotic constraints, Cercosporiosis diseases are a major handicap in Burkina Faso. In order to minimize the impact of these diseases on peanut yield, important work has been carried out and is still ongoing to select and develop...
Phylogenetic assessment of selected Ghanaian groundnuts, in reference to U.S. mini-core based on Kompetitive allele-specific PCR (KASP) and axiom single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array protocols
October 2019
Groundnut farming has always been an essentially major agricultural venture, both commercially and in subsistence, to the inhabitants of the Northern Regions of Ghana. The current study sought to assess the relationship and genetic diversity, through a phylogenetic analysis, among twenty-five (25) Ghanaian groundnut genotypes, in reference to US groundnut mini-core collection, based on the Kompetitive allele-specific...
The influence of solvent’s polarity on physicochemical properties and oil yield extracted from pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) seed
October 2019
The effect of solvent polarity, polar and non-polar solvents, on pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) seed oil yield and quality based on selected physicochemical properties was investigated. Five different solvents, like petroleum ether, hexane, cyclohexane, acetone and ethanol were used on a laboratory scale in this study. Results showed that both physicochemical properties and oil yield extracted from the pumpkin seed were...
Integrated weed management systems in sorghum based cropping system in Nigeria
July 2019
Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench) is the fifth most important staple food crop after wheat, rice, maize and barley. Sorghum is consumed by more than 70% of the population. Striga hermonthica is a serious biotic constraint to cereal production in the dry savannas of sub-Saharan Africa. Striga infestation in sorghum is reported to be higher in Nigeria than in other West African countries with about 80% (8.7 million ha)...
Morpho-qualitative characterization of ten local cassava accessions (Manihot esculenta crantz) in Njombé, Cameroon
April 2019
The need of characterization of local ecotypes has emerged because of abandonment of traditional varieties and a loss of genetic resources, associated with increasing demography and environmental. Thus, a study was conducted at the Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD) of Njombé multipurpose station with the objective of characterizing ten local accessions of cassava both morphologically and...
Effect of seed coating substance (Genius Coat Disco Cereal AG L-439) on seed yield and yield component of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) in central highlands of Ethiopia
February 2019
Among the challenges of achieving increased chickpea production in Ethiopia is absence of seed quality enhancement technologies. The Genius Coat Disco Cereal AG L-439 is among the seed coating products produced by INCOTEC Company and introduced in our country. The current study was conducted to examine the efficacy of ‘Genius Coat’ on seed yield and to determine its effective dosage for chickpea seed...
Farmers’ knowledge and perceptions of leaf spot disease of groundnut and its management in Northern Region of Ghana
September 2018
Groundnut (Arachis hypogea L.) is an important food source as well as cash crop for the people of Northern Ghana. The crop yield is low partly due to biological constraints which include diseases like leaf spot. A survey was conducted among 200 farmers in four districts of the Northern Region of Ghana, from June to August, 2014 using a structured questionnaire. The objectives of this study were to assess farmers’...
Genetic diversity of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) cultivars from Ethiopia by using ISSR markers
September 2018
Inter Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) markers were employed to reveal genetic diversity and relatedness among 27 chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) cultivars in Ethiopia. Four di-nucleotide repeat primers amplified 24 clear and reproducible bands of which 22 were polymorphic (91.67%). The genetic variation among 27 chickpea cultivars including 12 kabuli and 15 desi verities is high; in which desi type exhibited a genetic...
Popularization of Koekoek poultry breed for enhancing livelihood of poor households: A case of Southern Tigray, Ethiopia
August 2018
Demonstration of Koekoek breed was conducted at Raya-Azebo and Enda-Mehoni Woredas with 10 poor households with the objective of increasing the productivity of poultry thereby improving livelihood of the resource poor farmers in Ethiopia. Koekoek breed had significantly (P<0.05) superior on number of eggs laid per clutch (26 egg/clutch) as compared to local breed (15 egg/clutch). Beside this, the Koekoek breed is...
Combining ability and gene action of hot pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) genotypes in Southern Ethiopia
July 2018
This work identifies the combining ability of 10 hot pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) parents and 45F1 hybrids obtained from 10 x 10 half diallel. The work aims to identify the parents with the best general combining ability (gca) and crosses with high specific combining ability (sca) for yield, quality and nature of gene action involved. The study was conducted during 2015-2016 at six environments in Southern Ethiopia using...
Micro-propagation of Colocasia esculenta (cv. Bolosso I) from corm and sprout tip explants
July 2018
Taro (Colocasia esculenta L.) is a perennial, aquatic and semi-aquatic species, member of the family Araceae grown for its edible tuberous root. The application of conventional propagation techniques for taro could not produce the high demand and quality planting materials due to its low productive capacity and diseases transmission. Therefore, this study was carried out to develop micro-propagation protocol for...
Adaptability evaluation of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) genotypes at Western Ethiopia
July 2018
Fifteen common bean genotypes were tested at four locations with two management regimes of lime treated and lime untreated acidic soils. The experiment was laid out in split plot design with three replications during 2016/17 cropping season. The combined analysis of variance over environments showed significant differences among environments, genotypes, genotype x environment interaction (GEI), management, genotype by...
Genetic analysis for grain yield and yield related traits in maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines in line × tester mating design
July 2018
Maize is one of the most important cereal crop widely grown in the world. Maize crosses along with similar maturing checks were evaluated at Hawassa in 2015-2016 cropping season to understand the nature of gene action governing yield and its attributes through line × tester analysis and to study genetic contribution of line, tester and the interaction of line × tester to total variation. The experiment was...
Limitations and strategies to enhance biological nitrogen fixation in sub-humid tropics of Western Ethiopia
July 2018
Currently, inorganic nitrogen fertilizer becomes a serious threat to the environment and human health. Thus, finding of alternate source of nitrogen is a viable option in assuring of sustainable agricultural system. Biological nitrogen fixation is a critical and key process in sustainable agricultural systems in tropical soils, which are frequently deficient in N and susceptible to leaching of plant nutrients. This...
Growth and yield of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) cultivars as influenced by rates of phosphorus at Jimma, Southwest Ethiopia
June 2018
Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important food and cash crop in southwest Ethiopia with multiple uses. Productivity of the crop is, however, low at national as well as regional levels, mainly due to low soil fertility. Phosphorus (P) deficiency is particularly important in acid soils of southwest Ethiopia affecting growth and yield of seed legumes in general and that of common beans in particular. Therefore, a...
Yield and agronomic performances of desi type chickpea genotypes against acidic soil of Western Ethiopia
June 2018
Currently, 40% of arable land in Ethiopia is affected by acidity and particularly the soil acidity problem that occurs in central and western zones of Oromia deserves immediate intervention for crop production. The objective of the present study was to examine responses of Desi type chickpea varieties against acidic soil of western Ethiopia. Pooled analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated significant difference among...
Implementation of stewardship in African agricultural public research and development institutions
May 2018
The commercial use of biotech crops developed using genetic modification (GM) technologies is very limited in sub-Saharan African agriculture. Efforts are on-going to address this. The need to implement best practices in stewardship to support the responsible and safe management of agricultural biotechnology and maintain the highest research standards on product integrity have received less attention. A pioneering...
Do fertilizers and cropland influence the agricultural production value in the same way? Evidence using the autoregressive distributed lags approach of cointegration
April 2018
Cropland and fertilizers are two prominent and non-spared factors of agricultural sustainable production. This study mainly aimed to examine the response of crop production value to cropland used and chemical fertilizers supplied by using the Autoregressive Distributed Lags approach of cointegration over the period 1980 to 2016. The bound test and the error correction term showed that the amount of nitrogen (N),...
The bio-efficacy of Calpurnia aurea against Sitophilus zeamais (Motschulsky) (Coleoptera; Curculionidae) of stored maize under laboratory condition in Ethiopia
April 2018
N-hexane (non-polar), chloroform (partial polar), distilled water, methanol, acetone and ethanol (polar) extracts (10 g/100, 20 g/100 and 20 g/100 ml extraction levels) and leaf powder of Calpurnia aurea were tested as protectant against maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais on filter paper and in maize grains under laboratory condition. The extracts and powder were applied at rate of 2 and 3 ml on filter paper and at a rate...
Challenges and opportunities of honey production in north- east dry land areas of Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia
April 2018
The study aims to evaluate major challenges, opportunities and future prospects of bee keeping and honey production in three districts of Waghimra Zone (Abergell, Sekota and Gazgibala). To collect data, 332 respondents were selected using systematic random sampling from the three districts. Data were collected using semi-structured questionnaire, observation, keyinformant interveiw and focus group discussion. Data were...
Anthropogenic and climatic factors affecting honey production: The case of selected villages in Manyoni District, Tanzania
March 2018
This paper is based on a study that was conducted in three villages of Njirii, Angondi and Sanjaranda of Manyoni District in central Tanzania. The objectives of the study were: (i) to determine the prevailing status of beekeeping environment and (ii) to assess the anthropogenic and climate factors that reduce honey production. Primary data were obtained using questionnaires and interviews. About 107 participants were...
Hydroponic screening and characterization of aluminium tolerance on finger millet (Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertn) accessions
March 2018
Biotic and abiotic stress combined with the use of less productive local cultivars cause low production of finger millet in Ethiopia. This research was conducted to investigate acidity tolerance of finger millet accessions. Preliminary screening was done on 288 accessions and six improved national cultivars of finger millet. Twenty randomly selected and surface-sterilized seeds of each germplasm were wrapped and...
The effect of inter cross-inoculation host group rhizobia on the growth and nitrogen fixation of Faba Bean (Vicia faba L.) varieties in North Showa, Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia
February 2018
Faba bean (Vicia faba L.) is one of the most widely cultivated leguminous crops grown in the Highlands of Ethiopian. This study was aimed at evaluating the effect of Rhizobium leguminosarum bv.viciae isolates from other cross-inoculation hosts from field pea, grass pea, and lentil on faba bean varieties. Thus, 12 isolates were selected from faba bean, field pea, grass pea and lentil using host trap method on soil...
Tomato leafminer [(Tuta absoluta Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)] and its current ecofriendly management strategies: A review
February 2018
Continue climatic changes in the world enhance the emergence of invasive agricultural insect pests. Tuta absoluta is one of the most devastating tomato leafminer and it spreads extensively in almost all parts of the world. It is a serious threat for tomato production and it results in highest damage. T. absoluta has fast growth rate with developmental stages of egg, larvae, pupa, and adult and it adapts to different...
Enzyme-assisted traditional extraction of shea butter using different levels of pre-treated shea kernels
January 2018
Three different pre-treated shea nut substrates: raw kernels, roasted kernels and shea nut paste from roasted kernels were subjected to treatment with three different industrial enzymes: lipase, pectinase and cellulase, separately and in combination for shea butter extraction. Enzyme mixtures was optimized at pH of 6; 3% enzyme-substrate concentration, 2 h hydrolysis time at a temperature of 60ºC. The results...
Evaluation of multivoltine x bivoltine hybrids of mulberry silkworm, Bombyx mori L. tolerant to disease and high yield at various generation for end users
December 2017
This study was conducted in the Sericulture Research Laboratory of Melkassa Research Center. Four bivoltine and one polyvoltine silkworm were involved in the crossing experiment and laid out in complete randomized design with four replications. Data was collected on fecundity, pupation rate (%), number of diseased larvae, survival rate (%), cocoon weight (g), cocoon shell weight (g), cocoon shell ratio (%) and filament...
Effect of basic fertilizer doses and liquid organic fertilizer concentration on soybean yield
November 2017
The research aimed at examining the impact of fertilizer doses and concentration of liquid organic fertilizers (LOF) treatment on soybean yield. The hypotheses of this study was that LOF effectively influenced soybean yield. The research was conducted in factorial scheme with two factors randomized. Two different treatments were applied (TA and TB). TA is the treatment with basic fertilizer (urea, triple super phosphate...
Improvement of tree growth in salt-affected soils under greenhouse conditions using a combination of peanut shells and microbial inoculation
October 2017
This study aimed at selecting an effective microbial inoculum to enhance the performance of Senegalia senegal, Vachellia seyal and Prosopis juliflora and assessing the combination effect of microbial inoculation and peanut shells amendment on their growth under salinity in greenhouse conditions. In the first experiment, seedlings were individually cultivated in plastic bags containing non-sterile sandy soil. Seedlings...
Analysis of micronutrients variations among sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas [L.] Lam) genotypes in Malawi
September 2017
Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas [L.] Lam) is an important root crop in Malawi and Sub-Saharan Africa where micronutrient deficiency is an eminent health problem. Using 15 sweet potato genotypes grown in a randomized complete block design at Bvumbwe Research Station, a study was undertaken to determine the extent of variability of selected micronutrients in the genotypes as influenced by storage root age and peeling....
Aging effect of two decade old technologies of bean stem maggot (Ophiomyia spp.) management options in Ethiopia: Baseline information generation for future research direction
March 2017
Haricot beans are the most important food and cash crop for most of the Ethiopian farmers. However, bean stem maggot (BSM) (Ophiomyia species) is limiting the production of the crop particularly in dry areas. Three species are involved in the infestation: Ophiomyia phaseoli, Ophiomyia spencerlla and Ophiomyia centrosematis. Two decades ago, two management options of BSM were developed and used for the last twenty years....
Comparative studies on the partial purification and characterization of rhodanese from seed and mesocarp of snake tomatoes (Trichosanthes cucumerina Linn.)
February 2017
Rhodanese enzyme was partially purified and characterized from seed and mesocarp of snake tomato (Trichosanthes cucumerina) using 80% ammonium sulphate precipitation. The enzyme isolated from T. cucumerina mesocarp had a specific activity of 8.8 RU/mg with a percentage yield of 87.8%, while that from T. cucumerina seed had a specific activity of 19.7 RU/mg with a percentage yield of 14.6%. The Km of rhodanese from T....
Entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana as potential biological control agents of Coelaemenodera elaeidis of the oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.)
January 2017
The potential of two entomopathogenic fungi Metarhizium anisopliae.and Beauveria bassiana for the control of Coelaemenodera elaeidis were evaluated. The objective of this study was to control C. elaeidis using entomopathogenic fungi as biocontrol agents. The pathogenicity of M. anisopliae and B. bassiana isolates were tested using direct contamination bioassay set up of 2.5 g conidia (2.5 g of Metarhizium 2.5 x 1010 or...
Evaluation of different carbon and nitrogen sources for better growth and sporulation of T. harzianum (Th14)
December 2016
An investigation was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of carbon and nitrogen sources on mycelial growth and sporulation of Trichoderma harzianum (Th14). Among the tested different carbon sources viz., jaggery, honey, sugar, dextrose and peptone, significantly maximum biomass and sporulation was observed in honey (1190 mg; 7.06×108) followed by dextrose (1037 mg; 5.27×108) and jaggery (992 mg;...
Perception of climate extreme trends over three Ethiopian eco-environments: Comparison with records and analysis of determinants
September 2016
Understanding household perceptions of climate change and determinants of such perceptions are important for planning community/household based climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies. In this study, herding/farming households’ perceptions were studied and compared with recorded trends of extreme rainfall and temperature indicators from nearby weather stations across three eco-environments...
Bioremediation of oil polluted soil: Effect on hill bamboo (Drepanostachyum falcatum) plant emergence and height
August 2016
This study presents the bioremediation effect on the performance of hill bamboo Drepanostachyum falcatum on different soil combinations affected by crude oil pollution. Bioremediation was applied into the soil combination substrates by adding biodegrading bacteria using Pseudomonas fluorescen and Bacillus subtilis. Six treatments made with combinations of soil, bacteria, fertilizer and crude oil were used for this...
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