African Journal of
Agricultural Research

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Agric. Res.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1991-637X
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJAR
  • Start Year: 2006
  • Published Articles: 6838

Table of Content: 26 JANUARY; 7(4)

January 2012

Re-orienting participatory plant breeding for wider impact

  This paper concerns the need to re-conceptualise participatory crop improvement in order to explore new ways of making the outcomes of scientific plant breeding and knowledge production more effective, accessible and relevant to those smallholders who hitherto have been unable to benefit more fully from the advances in formal crop improvement. Main perspectives on participatory crop research are reviewed and...

Author(s): A Lone B. Badstue, Jon Hellin and  Julien Berthaud        

January 2012

Effect of Gibberellic acid (GA3) and α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) on the growth of unproductive tillers and the grain yield of rice (Oryza sativa L.)

  In the present study, GA3 and NAA were used to inhibit the growth of unproductive tillers of rice plants, and we measured the tiller occur and the grain yield of different treatments, the object of this study was to determine the effect of external hormones on the tiller growth and grain yield, and whether we can regulate the tiller growth by some manipulations of the hormone levels. The results indicated...

Author(s): Yang Liu, Weiping Chen, Yanfeng Ding, Qiangsheng Wang, Ganghua Li and Shaohua Wang

January 2012

Efficiency of salicylic acid delay petal senescence and extended quality of cut spikes of Gladiolus grandiflora cv ‘wing’s sensation’

  Gladiolus (Wing’s sensation) is one of the popular cut flowers that demonstrates postharvest problems which cause shorter vase life and loss of quality. In this research, effect of salicylic acid (SA) continuous treatment on the quality and vase life of cut Gladiolus cv ‘wing’s sensation’ flowers over four developmental stages (bud stage; half bloom; full bloom; senescence) were...

Author(s): Abdoalla Hatamzadeh, Mehrnaz Hatami and Mahmood Ghasemnezhad

January 2012

Physiological and ecological investigation on adoption of some groundcover plants as turfgrass alternatives in arid landscape region of Kish Island during cool season

        Kish Island located in the south of Iran with 90 square kilometers, having limited expansion, sustainable ecology, erotology characteristics including low soil depth and low sweet water, does not allow the variability in plant coverage in the Island’s landscape. Investigation should be conducted on groundcover species having some abilities in adapting to such environment,...

Author(s): Salman Shooshtarian, and Hassan Salehi

January 2012

Toxicological effects of neem (Azadirachta indica), Kanair (Nerium oleander) and spinosad (Tracer 240 SC) on the red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) (Herbst.)

  The persistence and insecticidal activity of a commercial biological insecticide Spinosad, based on fermentation product of Actinomycetales bacterium, Saccharopolyspora spinosa (Actinomycetales: Actinomycetaceae) and two plant extracts, namely Neem (Azadirchta indica) and Kanair (Nerium oleander) were evaluated against Tribolium castaneum (Hbst) on stored wheat grains. Five concentrations, namely  0.5,...

Author(s): Asifa Hameed, Shoaib Freed, Altaf Hussain, Muhammad Iqbal, Mussurat Hussain, Muhammad Naeem, Asif Sajjad , Hammad Hussnain, Muhammad Attiq Sadiq and Abdul Latif Tipu

January 2012

Malathion toxicity in Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus - A haemotological and biochemical study

  Deliberate or accidental contamination of ponds by widely utilized organophophorous (OP) insecticides, such as malathion is a potential problem for aquaculture in tropical countries. The aim of the study was to investigate the toxic effects of malathion (0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.50 and 2 mg L−1) toxicity in the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus; 15.0  cm length and 50.0 g weight) by correlation...

Author(s): Khalid Abdullah Al-Ghanim

January 2012

Effect of converter sludge, and its mixtures with organic matter, elemental sulfur and sulfuric acid on availability of iron, phosphorus and manganese of 3 calcareous soils from central Iran

  Application of industrial wastes as soil amendment and fertilizers is now a common practice in agriculture. The effect of application of converter sludge, along with organic matter (alfalfa powder), elemental sulfur and sulfuric acid to 3 calcareous soils from central Iran was investigated in an incubation study. Converter sludge used contained 64% iron oxides. Treatments included 0, 2 and 4% pure converter...

Author(s): N. Karimian, M. Kalbasi and S. Hajrasuliha

January 2012

Potential decline in soil quality attributes as a result of land use change in a hillslope in Lordegan, Western Iran

  The aim of the study was to investigate the potential decline in soil quality attributes as a result of land use change in Lordegan area in the Chaharmahal Va Bakhtiari Province, Western Iran. Two of the most important factors associated with soil quality concept are: (1) soil has both inherent and dynamic properties and (2) soil quality assessment must reflect biological, chemical and physical properties....

Author(s): Amin Mojiri, Hamidi Abdul Aziz and Amin Ramaji

January 2012

Genetic diversity among crown and root rot isolates of Rhizoctonia solani isolated from cucurbits using PCR-based techniques

  Twenty three (n=23) isolates of Rhizoctonia solani were obtained from root, crown and rhizosphere of cucumber, pumpkin, watermelon and melon plants. Investigation of the anastomosis groups (AGs) showed that all of the isolates belonged to AG4. Twenty three of R. solani AG4 were measured for disease severity according to their geographical origins and host plants. The pathogenicity test revealed that the...

Author(s): Seyed Mahyar Mirmajlessi, Naser Safaie, Hossein Ahari Mostafavi, Seyed Mojtaba Mansouripour and Seyed Bagher Mahmoudy

January 2012

Bioaccumulation of Cr, Hg, As, Pb, Cu and Ni with the ability for hyperaccumulation by Amaranthus dubius

  Amaranthus dubius is a nutritious leafy vegetable that is widely distributed in Africa, Asia and South America. The rapid growth and biomass makes them one of the highest yielding leafy crops, which may be valuable for phytoremediation. Thus, this study investigates the potential of A. dubius for the hyperaccumulation and distribution of chromium (Cr), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), lead (Pb), copper (Cu) and...

Author(s): John J. Mellem, Himansu Baijnath and Bharti Odhav

January 2012

Characterization and expression of β -1, 3 glucanase gene cloned from Malus hupehensis

  MhGlu, a β-1, 3-glucanase cDNA, was cloned from Malus hupehensis (Pamp.) Rehd by in silico cloning and validated with RT-PCR. MhGlu has an intron and possess 84, 83, and 77% nucleotide identity and 84, 74, and 76% amino acid identity with Prunus persica, Prunus avium, and Vitis riparia, respectively. MhGlu genomic DNA sequence and promoter sequence including the salicylic acid (SA) motif, methyl...

Author(s):   Zhang Ji-Yu, Gao Zhi-Hong, Guo Zhong-Ren, Zhou Jun, Qiao Yu-Shan, Qu Shen-Chun, and Zhen Zhang

January 2012

Sericulture extension structural equation modeling to revitalizing silkworm cocoon production in Iranian sericulturists’ view

Sericulture as an agrarian small-scale industry suits both marginal and small land holders because of its high returns, and it creates opportunity for family employment. Iran has long history in cocoon and silk production, but the demand for rearing silkworm during recent years has had a significant reduction. This study examines sericulture extension as a strategy for revitalizing silkworm cocoon production from...

Author(s): Mehdi Charmchian Langerodi, Iraj Malakmohammadi, Mohammad Chizari and  Alireza Seidavi

January 2012

Strengthening agriculture-tourism linkages in the developing World: Opportunities, barriers and current initiatives

  Building linkages between agriculture and tourism is critical for maximising tourism’s economic impacts in developing countries. The objective in this article is to provide a critical review of existing scholarship relating to linkages between tourism and agriculture as a whole, to explanations concerning the barriers to strengthened linkages, and of initiatives for encouraging closer...

Author(s): Christian M. Rogerso

January 2012

Comparing energy flow of greenhouse and open-field cucumber production systems in Iran

  The aim of this study was to compare the energy flow in greenhouse and open-field cucumber production systems in Iran. For this purpose, data were collected by using a face-to-face questionnaire performed with 100 cucumber farmers (50 farmers for greenhouse systems and 50 farmers for open-field cucumber systems) in summer 2010. Farmers were selected by random sampling method in Tehran and Kermanshah province...

Author(s):  Mohammad Yousefi, Fatemeh Darijani and Ali Alipour Jahangiri

January 2012

Urban vascular flora and ecologic characteristics of the Pendik District (Istanbul-Turkey)

  In this study, the results of unplanned urbanization and possible preventive measures, which could be taken to the Pendik district, Istanbul-Turkey, are presented. In addition, different kinds of urban habitats and some ecologic characteristics within the frontiers of Pendik are described. Native, exotic, and cultivated plant taxa were realized and all the greenery in the area was explored during different...

Author(s): Bülent ESKÄ°N, Volkan ALTAY, Ä°brahim Ä°lker ÖZYİĞİT and Memduh SERÄ°N

January 2012

Changes of groundwater conditions on Jeju volcanic island, Korea: implications for sustainable agriculture

  Groundwater is the sole source of fresh water in the volcanic Jeju Island due to the absence of any perennial streams. Groundwater exploitation has been extensive and intensive for agricultural, domestic consumption, including drinking, and industrial purposes. In addition, ground source heat pumps (GSHPs; open, closed and underground air types) are now gaining popularity. The conservation of groundwater...

Author(s): Hyun-Mi Choi and Jin-Yong Lee

January 2012

Effects of mulberry (Morus alba L) silage supplementation on the haematological traits and meat compositions of Hanwoo (Bos taurus coreanae) steer

  This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with mulberry silage on hematologic traits and meat compositions in Hanwoo (Bos taurus coreanae) steer fed total mixed rations and to determine application possibility of mulberry silage as a functional feed source in the beef industry. Twenty steer (622.5±12.7 kg) of the late fattening stage were assigned to either a group...

Author(s): Byong Tae Jeon, Kyoung Hoon Kim#, Sung Jin Kim, Dong Hyun Kim, Eun Tae Kim, Won Mo Cho, In Ho Hwang, Nak Jin Choi and Sang Ho Moon