Estimate energy, energy balance and economic indices of watered farming Potato Production in North of Iran
One way to evaluation of sustainable developing in agriculture is using of energy flow method. This method in an agricultural product system is the energy consuming in product operations and energy saving in produced crops. In this article, evaluation of energy balance and energy indices under rain fed farming potato in north of Iran (Guilan province) was investigated. Data were collected from 72 farms by used a face to face questionnaire method during 2010 year in Guilan province. By using of consumed data as inputs and total production as output, and their concern equivalent energy, energy balance and energy indices were calculated. Energy efficiency (energy output to input energy ratio) for watered farming potato production in this study was calculated 3.48, showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems potato production. Energy balance efficiency (production energy to consumption energy ratio) for watered farming potato production in this study was calculated 2.58, showing the affective use of energy in the agro ecosystems potato production.
Article source: Volume 3, Number 11, November 2013 – IJB
Effect of biological soil crusts on soil chemical properties: a study from Tunisian arid ecosystem
Biological soil crusts (BSCs) composed of cyanobacteria, green algae, bryophytes, and lichens are a major biotic component of arid and semi-arid rangeland environments worldwide. They are recognized and studied in many parts of the world. However, they have been the subject of very few studies in Africa. The current study deals with the assessment of the influence of BSCs on soil chemistry in an arid ecosystem in Southern Tunisia. Our main objective is to test whether biological soil crusts are able to improve soil chemical properties. Our investigation showed that biological soils crusts had an expressive effect on soil chemistry. In fact, biologically crusted soils hadhigher levels of pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter, organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, Ca, K, Na, Cl and lower C: N ratio compared to biologically un-crusted soils. The differences between crusted and un-crusted soils were statistically significant at 95% confidence. The PCA results demonstrate further that BSCs significantly enhance soil surface properties. These data support other studies revealing an improvement of the soil chemical properties by means of biological soil crusts.
Article Source: Volume 4, Number 5, May 2014 – IJAAR
Characteristics of saline soil and effect of fertilizer application to rice yield
Characteristics of saline soil determine the rice yield along the seaboard. High concentration of dissolved salt decreases growth and rice yield. The study aimed to evaluate physical and chemical characteristics of saline soil in Sidoarjo and Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. The result analysis of soil exchangeable Na+, K+, Ca++, and Mg++respectively was 0.8-1.94; 0.33-2.73; 16.32-20.4, 1.83-8.88 me.100g-1.The value of soil pH was 7.35- 7.55, EC value of soil was 0.64-1.83dS.m-1, and the content of organic-C was between 1.1-2,4,6 %. The result of soil characterization was then crosschecked with the rice yield in saline soil by weighing dry rice grains per clump. The rice yield was 3-4.1 ton.ha-1 and negatively correlated to the exchangeable values of Na, SAR, bulk density and dust content. It was positively correlated with organic-C, fertilizer, exchangeableof Ca++, Mg++, and K+, as well as soil’s CEC. The ratio value of Ca:Mgnamely2.2-8.2, and K:Mgnamely0.18-0.21 exceeded the limit of ideal value and caused low production. The rice yield was negatively correlated with the content of exchangeableNa+, values of pH and EC. It achieved more than 4 ton.ha-1when added with 300-450 g.plant-1 of organic materials and 1.0-1.3 g.plant-1 of NPK.
Article Source: Volume 6, Number 1, January 2015 – IJAAR
Biodiversity in oak forests (Quercus castaneifolia and Quercus macranthera) in Ramsar, Northern Iran
The study was accomplished in pure and mixed stands of Quercus castaneifolia and Quercus macranthera in northern Iran. collection of the sample and study of the ecological factors including the seasons, spring, summer and autumn of the years 2009 and 2010 was conducted and the scientific name of the species, life forms and Chorology were recorded using the available resources. 186 species have been identified of 6 Pteridophytes families, 2 families from Gymnosperms and 52 families of Angiosperms (8 families from a Dicotyledone and 44 families of Monocotyledon). The maximum number of species was related to the flowing family: Asteraceae, Papilionaceae, Lamiaceae, Orchidaceae and Poaceae. Raunkiaer’s classification of Hemicryptophytes 49%, Cryptophytes 20%, Phanerophytes 19%, and 8% Therophytes, Chamaephytes 3 percent and 1 percent of Epiphytic species are allocated to the region. Chorology study area showed the highest value in zone of Europe-Siberia (the Caspian), with 41% belonging. The study of the list of endangered species showed one endangered species, 5 vulnerable species. 20 species were identified as lower risk. Lilium ledebourii was identified as a rare species with relatively wide distribution in different parts of the region.
Article Source: Volume 4, Number 6, March 2014 – IJB
Taxonomic studies of trees of the cholistan desert, Pakistan
The present studies were carried out to document the taxonomic studies of species of the trees of Cholistan Desert of Pakistan with the aim of their precise identification and dispersal in the area. Total species of ten plants representing with six genera of Acacia Mill. (2 species), Capparis Linn. (1 species) Prosopis Linn. (2 species), Salvadora Linn. (1 species), Tamarix Linn. (1 species) and Ziziphus Mill. (3 species) were explored and studied taxonomically first time from the study area. A complete morphological taxonomic characteristics enumeration of each species with their botanical name, local name, flowering period and distribution in the project area were evaluated.
Article Source: Volume 6, Number 1, January 2015 – JBES
Evaluation of infection type and inheritance of resistance to powdery mildew in two crosses in barley
In order to evaluate the gene number, gene effect and heritability to powdery mildew in barley Two resistant cultivars were crossed with a susceptible cultivar. In a field study, the parents (P1, P2) and the generations (F1, F2 and F3) of two crosses were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The infection type of flag leaf and the whole plant was assessed in booting stage using Saari, E.E., and Prescott method. The Scaling test indicated that the effects of additive, dominant and epistatic, and mainly additive × additive effect has an important role in controlling to resistance to powdery mildew in barley. In the cross Hebe × Arigashar, using 2 c test for segregating F2 generation , it was determined that duplicate dominant epistasis shows 15:1 ratio. Also in the cross Igri × Arigashar, using 2 c test the F2 generation, it was determined that the distribution of 2 F generation of threefold dominant epistatic shows 35:1 ratio. general heritability of infection type in two crosses were estimated respectively 68% and 88%. Depending on traits and crosses, the gene number ranged from 1-2 and 3-6.
Article Source: http://www.innspub.net/volume-3-number-12-december-2013/
Contact toxicity of Canarium schweinfurthii Engl. tissues against Callosobruchus maculatus in stored bambara groundnut
The production of bambara groundnut is in the hands of peasant farmers and its improvement is militated by storage pests, such as Callosobruchus maculatus. Laboratory experiments were conducted on powders, extracts and oils of Canarium schweinfurthii for their insecticidal activity against C. maculatus in bambara groundnut.
This was done at ambient conditions (30 – 350C and 70 – 80% r.h) between January 2011 to December 011. Randomized completely block design in four replications was used. The results showed that contact toxicity of C.schweinfurthii tissues (cotyledon and mesocarp powder) caused 25 - 97% and 42.5 - 95% mortality, rerspectively,commercial prossed mesocarp oil caused 55 - 100% and laboratory processed cotyledon oil caused 62 - 100% mortality to C. maculatus. The highest mortality against C. maculatus were observed in methanol extract and petroleum ether of the mesocarp tissues which caused 80 - 100% and 90 – 100% mortality, respectively at the application rates of 1.25 and 2.5mg/ml/50g grain within 3 days post-treatment. In conclusion, C. schweinfurthii had insecticidal activities against C. maculatus using contact toxicity. The highest activities were observed in mesocarp and cotyledon tissues. These suggest that C. schweinfurthii can serve as alternative botanicals in protecting stored bambara groundnuts against C. maculatus.
link source: Volume 5, Number 5, November 2014 – IJAAR
