African Journal of
Agricultural Research

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Agric. Res.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1991-637X
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJAR
  • Start Year: 2006
  • Published Articles: 6837

Table of Content: 12 May, 2012; 7(18)

May 2012

The organophosphate, chlorpyrifos, oxidative stress and the role of some antioxidants: A review

  The present paper reviews the current state of our knowledge of the role of oxidative stress in the mechanism underlying chlorpyrifos poisoning, and the role of some antioxidants in ameliorating adverse effect of pesticides. In order to understand better the nature of oxidative stress, the principle of free radical generation, the body’s normal defense system including antioxidants are discussed. The...

Author(s):   Chidiebere Uchendu, Suleiman F. Ambali and Joseph O. Ayo    

May 2012

Agricultural land markets and land leasing in the Republic of Macedonia

  This paper aims to identify the driving force that shaped agricultural land structures, land market and land leasing in the Republic of Macedonia. Institutional developments and land reforms have so far been modest, and have not contributed to significant changes in agricultural ownership, operational structures, or land market and land leasing arrangements. Land ownership and land use are bimodal, consisting...

Author(s): Neda Petroska Angelovska, Marija Ackovska and Štefan Bojnec

May 2012

A review of Agricultural Education and Training in South Africa

  Agricultural Education and Training is vital for economic development and food self sufficiency, poverty alleviation and environmental protection. This review assesses the Agricultural Education and Training in South Africa focusing on sub-Saharan Africa including factors affecting students and teachers attitude towards their performance and teaching. Literature shows that teaching and research system in...

Author(s):   T. T. Kidane and S. Worth

May 2012

Hydrothermal characteristics of pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) flour during cooking into ‘fura’

  The effects of hydration times (HT) (1, 3.5 and 6 h) and cooking times (CT) (20, 40, and 60 min) on the thermal characteristics of cooked pearl millet flour (CPMF) was investigated. The differential scanning calorimetry thermograms depicted two separate endothermic transitions identified as starch gelatinisation (29 to 30°C) and disruption of the starch-lipid complexes (90 to 120°C). The...

Author(s):   V. A. Jideani and D. J. Scott        

May 2012

Study on morphologic variation of different Iranian melon cultivars (Cucumis melo L.)

Information about the correlation and linkage among different horticultural characteristics is of primary importance in the field of crop improvement. In order to determine a morphologic variation of eleven native melon cultivars, a field trial conducted in completely randomized design at Torbat-e-Jam, Razavi Khorasan province, Iran, during 2010 and 2011 was carried out. Statistical parameters used included; mean...

Author(s): Hossein Nastari Nasrabadi, Hossein Nemati, Alireza Sobhani and Mansoureh Sharifi

May 2012

Effect of bag removal on Fuji apple coloration

Red Fuji apple (Malus domestica Borkh, cv. ‘Nagafu No. 2’) fruit was used to study the variation of pigment content and the activity of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) in the peel and sugar content of apple flesh during growth and development after bag removal. The transcription regulatory factor MYB10d (GenBank Accession Number: GQ183802) was cloned and its expression in fruit was measured at...

Author(s):   QU Shen-Chun, DU Bei-bei, XIA Jing, ZHANG Ji-yu, LU Dong, Gao Zhi-hong and Zhang Zhen        

May 2012

Plant parasitic nematodes associated with vegetable growing greenhouses in Southeastern Anatolia Region, Turkey

  In this study, plant parasitic nematodes determined in greenhouses of vegetables growing in some provinces of the Southeastern Anatolia Region (Batman, Diyarbakir, Mardin, Siirt and Åžanliurfa) were examined faunistically and taxonomically. Nematode species obtained from soil and root samples were measured and identified by preparing their permanent preparations. The descriptions, synonyms, possible...

Author(s): Tan, A. N. and Kiliç, M.

May 2012

Biological characteristics of grafted eggplant on tomato rootstocks

Grafting eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) on tomato rootstock is an effective method to control Verticillium wilt (caused by Verticillium dahliae), a soil-borne disease. This study investigated the fruit quality and biological characteristics associated with disease resistance of eggplants grafted onto tomato rootstocks ‘Lydl’. The plant height, stem diameter, leaf area and root volume of grafted...

Author(s): Liu Na, Zhou Bao-li, Hao Jing, Lu Bo and Zhu Wei-min

May 2012

Effects of lime, phosphorus and rhizobia on Sesbania sesban performance in a Western Kenyan acid soil

  Aluminium (Al) toxicity, phosphorus (P) deficiency and low rhizobia populations limit Sesbania (Sesbania sesban) performance in tropical acid soils. The study determined the i) indigenous rhizobia populations that nodulate sesbania and ii) effects of lime (0 and 4 t/ha), P-fertilizer (0 and 60 kg/ha) and acid tolerant rhizobia (0and inoculation) on soil...

Author(s): P. O. Kisinyo, S. O. Gudu, C. O. Othieno, J. R. Okalebo, P. A. Opala, J. K. Maghanga, J. J. Agalo,W. K. Ng&#;etich, J. A. Kisinyo, R. J. Osiyo, A. O. Nekesa, E. T. Makatiani, D. W. Odee and B. O. Ogola

May 2012

Dissolved organic carbon and its controls of urban soil in Hefei, Eastern China

  Soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC) plays an important role in the biogeochemical cycling and energy transformation in the ecosystem. The objectives of the study were to assess the impacts of land use types and planation modes on carbon dynamics and to determine the major soil factors influencing the DOC concentration in urban soils. The spatial pattern of DOC was studied with soil sample collection from a...

Author(s):   Xiao Tao, Hongfei Zhao, Kai Zhang, and Xiaoniu Xu        

May 2012

Carbon sequestration potential of Scenedesmus species (Microalgae) under the fresh water ecosystem

  The study was conducted to investigate the carbon sequestration potential of Scenedesmus species (a microalgae species) under the fresh water ecosystem. Biofixation of CO2 by microalgae mass cultures represents an advanced, climate friendly biological process that enables the direct utilization of fossil CO2streams produced from concentrated sources, such as power plants. The study was...

Author(s):   Vinod R. Maraskolhe, Ashish R. Warghat, Guru Charan and P. B. Nandkar        

May 2012

Behavioural patterns of cattle in the communal areas of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

Incorporating knowledge of cattle activity or social behavior in rangeland management has the potential to improve both range condition and cattle productivity through intervention in and using the ongoing expression of behavior to detect veld condition changes. Currently, there is limited information on free ranging cattle activity patterns despite a concerted effort to introduce rotational grazing in communal...

Author(s): Bethwell Moyo, Sikhalazo Dube, Mota Lesoli and Patrick Masika

May 2012

Changes in rainfall characteristics in Southwestern Iran

  The study of rainfall characteristics changes is critical for agricultural, environmental and water resources projects. Generally, trend test performs for evaluation of direction and magnitude of changes, but the test is not able to demonstrate abrupt change in time series if it occurs. In this research work, recent changes of rainfall characteristics of the Karun and Dez watershed, located in southwest of...

Author(s):   Hadi Moazed, Meysam Salarijazi, Mostafa Moradzadeh and Samere Soleymani        

May 2012

Alkali stress induced the accumulation and secretion of organic acids in wheat

In this study, the seedlings of wheat were treated with salt stress (molar ratio of NaCl:Na2SO4 = 1:1) and alkali stress (NaHCO3:Na2CO3 = 1:1). The contents of organic acids and inorganic ions in the seedlings then were measured, and the organic acids in root secretions also were analyzed to probe the roles of organic acids in wheat alkali tolerance. The results showed that the content of Na+ increased...

Author(s): YANG Guo-Hui

May 2012

The importance of a single floral visit of Eucara macrognatha and Tetralonia fraterna (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in the pollination and the yields of Abelmoschus esculentus in Maroua, Cameroon

  Experiments were made to determine the effects of a bee visit on the pollination and the productivity of okra,Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench (Malvaceae). Three treatments were used on 30 randomly-selected plants each. These included Autonomous Self-Pollination (ASP) with flowers from which insects visit, with airborne pollen flow excluded, flowers that received a single bee visit (SBV) of Eucara...

Author(s): Michelson Azo’o Ela, Madi Ali, Fernand-Nestor Tchuenguem Fohouo and Jean Messi

May 2012

Empirical research regarding European funds accessing process by the Romanian entities in the agricultural sector

European funds are instrumental for implementing EU policies and funding a wide range of activities in various fields, one of them being agriculture. By aligning the Romanian agriculture to European standards, Romania benefited from European funds in pre-accession period (SAPARD program) and will benefit further as a full rights member of the European Union from non-reimbursable amounts allocated from the Agriculture...

Author(s):   Ileana Cosmina Pitulice, Daniela Artemisa Calu and Mădălina Dumitru          

May 2012

Effect of different levels of irrigation and planting pattern on grain yield, yield components and water use efficiency of corn grain (Zea mays L.) hybrid SC. 704

  Corn production management including irrigation and planting pattern might be different under various conditions. This research was conducted to study the effects of different levels of irrigation and planting pattern on grain and biological yield, yield components, and water use efficiency of grain corn (hybrid SC.704) in 2010 cropping season at Natural Resources and Agricultural Researches Center of...

Author(s):   Sh. Lack, H. Dashti, Gh. Abadooz and A. Modhej        

May 2012

Study of drought stress effect on some traits of lentil cultivars and the correlations between them

  Drought stress, which has a great impact on agricultural and forestry production and often causes yield reduction, is one of the most important agricultural research topics, therefore, in order to assess drought tolerance in lentil cultivars Ardabil region, a factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design with three replications in the 2010 Farm Agricultural Research Station University,...

Author(s): Shahzad Jamaati-e-Somarin and Roghayyeh Zabihi-e-Mahmoodabad

May 2012

Effect of nitrogen fertilization on carrot quality

  A study was carried out during the 2005 and 2006 growing seasons to evaluate the effect of increasingnitrogen fertilization rates on nitrate accumulation, vitamin C and ß-carotene content in two carrot genotypes. Nitrogen fertilizer (calcium ammonium...

Author(s): Ljiljana Boskovic-Rakocevic, Rados Pavlovic, Jasmina Zdravkovic, Milan Zdravkovic, Nenad Pavlovic and Milena Djuric