bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of Crop Maturity, Weather Conditions and Cutting Height on Yield, Harvesting Losses and Nutritive Value of Cereal–Legume Mixtures Grown for Hay Production
Authors: Rihawi S. , Capper B. S. , Osman A. E. , Thomson E. F. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYThe introduction of forage or hay crops into fallow land represents a means of increasing feed supplies for small ruminants in north Africa and west Asia. Such fallows lie between zones planted with food crops and traditional grazing areas. Mixtures of vetch with barley, oats or triticale, and peas with barley, were cut at the 10% flowering, 100% flowering (100F) and full pod (FP) stages of the legume component. Effects of crop maturity, weather conditions and cutting height on yield, the chemical composition of the standing crop and re-growth were measured. Barley–vetch mixtures yielded 8147 kg dry matter ha−1 of standing crop at the FP stage in 1983 but only 2283 kg dry matter ha−1 in 1984 under drought conditions. Hay yields were 4377 and 1640 kg dry matter ha−1, respectively. The highest yielding mixture, grown in 1983, was oat–vetch which yielded 8670 kg dry matter ha−1 of standing crop and 4285 kg dry matter ha−1 of hay at the FP stage. Cutting at the 100F or FP stage maximized dry matter yield and minimized the risk of rainfall prolonging hay making. Rain caused slight damage to some hays cut at early stages of maturity. Voluntary intakes and digestibilities of field-cured hays were determined. The voluntary intakes of triticale–vetch hay at the FP stage and all barley–pea hays were low compared with other hays. Hays contained sufficient estimated metabolizable energy (ME) for use in sheep diets during pregnancy and middle or late lactation. ME values averaged 9.2 megajoules per kg dry matter in both 1983 and 1984.
Controlled environments as an Adjunct to Field Research on Lentils (Lens culinaris). III. Photoperiodic Lighting and Consequences for Flowering
Authors: Summerfield R. J. , Muehlbauer F. J. , Roberts E. H. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYSix genotypes of lentil (Lens culinaris) were grown in pots in a glasshouse under natural photo-periods of 10–12 h, extended to an inductive photoperiod of 16 h by supplementary illumination from incandescent lamps. The illuminance of the supplementary light was varied by placing replicate pots at different distances from the lamps; it decreased geometrically with distance (i.e. down an illuminance gradient) from about 2000 lux directly beneath the lamps to about 40 lux at a distance of 6 m from them. All genotypes came into flower progressively later as illuminance decreased; those selected in northern temperate regions were especially sensitive, taking about twice as long to flower at an illuminance of 40 compared with 2000 lux. We suggest, however, that these quantitative responses do not reflect differences in sensitivity to illuminance per se, but are the consequences of genotypic differences in sensitivity to photoperiod. The implications of these data are discussed in terms of adaptation to the aerial environment and strategies for screening germplasm and plant breeding in lentils and other grain legumes.
Analysis of Intercrop Experiments in Dryland Agriculture
Authors: Chetty C. K. Ramanatha , Reddy M. Narayana 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYObjectives of different intercrop experiments need to be kept in view while analysing the data from them. There is no single straightforward way of analysing the data and certain situations require innovative approaches. Types of situations that are encountered in dryland agricultural research are exemplified and methods of meaningful analysis and interpretation of data from them are indicated here. Agronomically-sound meanings are imputed for different ways of calculating LER. Use of the concept ‘Staple Land Equivalent Ratio’ for assessing intercrop systems in particular situations is illustrated.
Performance of Triticale in Comparison with Barley and Wheat in a Semi-Arid Mediterranean Region
Authors: Hadjichristodoulou A. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYEight triticale lines were evaluated in Cyprus during the period 1977–82 and compared with the best other cereal varieties grown locally. One triticale line was selected which outyielded Athenais barley by 8.3% and Pitic 62 aestivum wheat by 11.4% in drylands, and durum and aestivum wheat by 20% in irrigated areas. Regression analysis showed that Athenais was the best yielding crop in the least productive environments while under medium or favourable conditions triticale gave maximum yields. Number of grains per spike, harvest index and the N content of grain were larger but ear number, 1000-grain weight and N content of straw were smaller in triticale than in barley. The yield component most sensitive to drought was 1000-grain weight.
Effect of Damage by Stalk-Eyed Fly (Diopsis Thoracica) on Yield Components of Rice
Authors: Alghali A. M. , Osisanya E. O. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYRice varieties were compared for their response to infestation by the stalk-eyed fly, Diopsis thoracica (West), both when a choice of varieties was available to the pest and when there was no choice. The fly significantly decreased the number of panicles produced (both total and mature), the percentage of tillers with panicles, grain weight and total yield of unprotected plants, and increased the number of immature panicles and time to 50% flowering. Reductions in grain yield of between 2 and 97% were recorded but these losses were unrelated to the percentage of damaged tillers. Production of new tillers did not fully compensate for damaged ones in most varieties. However, photoperiod-sensitive rice varieties were better able to compen- sate for pest damage than most.
Evolution of Grain Legumes. I. Mediterranean Pulses
Authors: Smartt J. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYThe evolution of the Mediterranean pulses, the common pea (Pisum sativumL.), the faba bean (Vicia fabaL.), the grass pea (Lathyrus sativusL.), the lentil (Lens culinarisMedik.) and the chickpea (Cicer arietinumL.), is considered from the points of view of geographic origin and subsequent dissemination. All appear to have originated in the Fertile Crescent, the most significant subsequent spread being to the north of the Mediterranean basin in the case of the common pea and the faba bean and to the east of it in the case of the other three species. The wild progenitor type is known for all species except the faba bean. In the grass pea the extent of divergence between wild and cultivated populations is small, possibly due to its use predominantly for forage and less as a pulse. Considerable divergence has occurred in other species, where use as a pulse is more important.
Studies on the Potential of Winged Bean as a Multipurpose Legume Cover Crop in Tropical Regions
Authors: Banerjee Anjana , Bagchi D. K. , Si L. K. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYThe potential of winged bean as a multipurpose legume cover crop was shown in field trials by its abundant vegetative growth throughout the growing period of two years. Protein contents of the dry matter of the whole plant, vegetable pods, seeds and tubers were in the range 22–34, 25–30, 32–38 and 16–19%, respectively. In a comparison of two cultivation methods, significantly higher yields were obtained from staked plants than from those grown without supports; protein contents, however, remained constant.
Self-Regenerating Annual Forage Legumes for Double Cropping with Irrigated Wheat or Sorghum
Authors: Muldoon D. K. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYTwo relay intercropping systems were investigated on an irrigated clay soil: first, wheat with a self-regenerating summer legume and, secondly, grain sorghum with a winter growing legume. A range of summer and winter legumes were evaluated. Phasey bean (Macroptilium lathyroides), a free seeding annual, regenerated vigorously as the wheat matured in early summer; cut twice after the wheat harvest it yielded (including the wheat stubble) 7.5 t ha−1 dry matter. Low seed production jeopardized the regeneration of other summer legumes. Subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) regenerated under the maturing grain sorghum crop as did snail medic (Medicago scutellata) and woolly, pod vetch (Vicia dasycarpa). Together with the sorghum stubble they yielded 5–6 t ha−1 between sorghum crops. The benefits of including self-regenerating forage legumes in irrigated grain cropping systems is discussed.
A Field Technique to Screen Seedling Emergence of Pearl Millet and Sorghum through Soil Crusts
Authors: Soman P. , Peacock J. M. , Bidinger F. R. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYA field technique to screen large numbers of pearl millet and sorghum lines for seedling emergence through soil crusts is described. Seeds were sown on raised broad beds in an Alfisol field. The beds were smoothed after sowing with a bed shaper. Thirty five mm of water was applied from two parallel lines of sprinklers at a rate of 14 mm per hour. A crust of relatively constant strength in different tests developed as the surface dried out. The crust was broken in the control treatment with a crust breaker. The ratio of emergence under crust to that under control (c/u ratio) was used to classify the test materials.
Criteria for Clonal Selection in Tea (Camellia sinensis). I. The Relation Between Mother Bushes and their Clonal Derivatives for Bush Area, Shoot Number and Yield
Authors: Nyirenda H. E. , Ridpath V. E. T. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYBush area, shoot number and yield were all strongly and positively correlated in 100 young seedling tea bushes. Clones derived from the bushes exhibited characteristics which were correlated with those of the mother bushes, indicating the usefulness of these observations in the selection of clones for improved performance.
Agricultural Production in the Third World - a Challenge for Natural Pest Control
Authors: Hussey N. W. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYPrevention of the enormous losses of crop production in the Third World, both before and after harvest, would make a substantial contribution to the survival and well-being of countless small fanners. Many attempts to reduce the scale of pest attacks by facilitating the purchase of pesticides and fertilizers have failed in the face of maladministration, mistrust, primitive conditions and ignorance. Yet, despite the difficulties, these fanners have evolved a pattern and practice of production which incorporates many positive attributes which have only recently been appreciated by western scientists. Attention is drawn to some of these methods and also to the benefits and limitations of both classical and manipulated biological control. It is concluded that further improvements depend on the ability of entomologists to adapt some of the concepts widely used in China to utilize scientific techniques within a socio-economic structure where even the plastic bag must be regarded as high technology.
Investigations of Source-Sink Relations in Cassava Using Reciprocal Grafting
Authors: Ramanujam T. , Ghosh S. P. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYSource-sink relations in cassava were investigated following reciprocal grafting among three cultivars of different yield groups. Both rootstock and scion had significant effects on net assimilation rate and tuber yield, demonstrating that both sink capacity and source activity are important in achieving maximum tuber yield. The scion had no effect on tuber dry matter percentage and starch content of the grafts but the hydrocyanic acid content of the tuber was significantly influenced by both rootstock and scion.
Pattern of Tea Shoot Growth
Authors: Smith R. I. , Harvey F. J. , Cannell M. G. R. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYTea shoot development was measured by sequentially sampling shoots from seven clones growing at Nsuwadzi Research Station, Mulanje, Malawi. A Gompertz growth curve best described the increase in shoot length with time, an exponential curve described the relation between dry weight and shoot length, and a quadratic curve related dry weight to fresh weight. The parameters of these curves differed among clones and provide a basis for exploring genetic influences on tea yield. The most rapid elongation of shoots of all clones occurred about 42 days after plucking, considered the optimum age for harvest at Mulanje. Clones selected at Mulanje produced longer shoots with greater dry weight but slightly lower dry matter content per unit stem length than clones selected at Kericho, Kenya. The dry:fresh weight ratio of 0.22 used at Mulanje to calculate dry matter yields was too high for most clones.
Confidence Intervals for Staple and Effective LER Values
Authors: Oyejola B. A. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYWhen an intercrop fails to produce a required proportion of the sole crop yield, but produces a yield advantage over the sole crop, the method of sole crop supplementation has been suggested by many authors including Mead and Willey (1980) and Riley (1985). Modifications to the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER), used for assessing yield advantages, have been suggested and referred to as staple LERs (SLERs) and Effective LERs (ELERs). In this paper, a graphical method of estimating the SLER and ELER values (and consequently their yield advantages) is presented. The graphical estimation of the confidence interval for the SLER and ELER values is also shown.
Effect of Five Years of No-tillage and Mulch on Soil Properties and Tuber Yield of Cassava on an Acid Ultisol in South-eastern Nigeria
Authors: Hulugalle N. R. , Lal R. , Gichuru M. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYThe effect of no-tillage and mulch on soil properties and tuber yield of cassava was studied over a five year period on an infertile, acid Ultisol in south-eastern Nigeria. Mulch was applied at a rate of 12 t ha−1as a split application once at planting and once six months after planting. No chemical fertilizers were used during the trial. Bulk density and proportion of micropores (pore radius, r, <1.4 µm) were greater, and proportion of macropores (r>14.4 µm) lower, with no-tillage. Water infiltration was increased by mulching, being greatest in tilled, mulched plots. Soil chemical properties were not significantly affected by tillage system, although levels of exchangeable calcium, magnesium and potassium were higher and acid saturation lower with mulching. Soil physical and chemical properties were best with tillage and mulching, and poorest when neither tillage nor mulch was used. Cassava tuber yield was unaffected by tillage system but increased by mulching.
Training in Farming Systems Research: Review and Prospects
Authors: Tripp Robert , Woolley Jonathan 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYA wide variety of training activites has been carried out related to farming systems research (FSR). The majority have had one or more of the following objectives: to introduce the farming systems perspective, to teach new research methods, and to promote the institutionalization of FSR. Many of these objectives are important, but FSR training is not usefully seen as a separate field of endeavour. The goals of FSR training will be better served by reconsidering the roles of universities, national research institutions, and international institutions.
Studies on Maize (Zea mays) at Bunda, Malawi. III. Yield in Rotations with Pasture Legumes
Authors: MacColl D. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYYields of maize were increased when they followed successfully established pasture legumes in two rotation experiments. The largest increases were obtained after silverleaf and were equivalent in one experiment to the effects of about 30 kg N ha−1a−1over four years and in the other experiment to those of 40 kg N ha−1a−1over three years. The largest beneficial effect of some of the legumes was on the first crop of maize but in others did not occur until the third or fourth crop. The possible reasons for the different patterns of residual effect are discussed in relation to the nature of the legume residues, the quality of the seedbed following the legumes, and rainfall
Studies on Maize (Zea mays) at Bunda, Malawi. IV. Further Investigations into the Effects of Planting Date
Authors: MacColl D. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYLate planting of a 136-day variety of maize led to reduced yields only when planting was later than about four weeks after the start of the main rains. The reductions were caused by drought at the end of the season and by high rainfall in the first 35 days after planting. Drought beginning 80–100 days after planting (DAP) reduced weight per seed but drought beginning earlier than 80 DAP reduced seed number per cob and increased the number of barren plants. Late showers alleviated the reduction in weight per seed but not the other symptoms of drought. High rainfall after planting was associated with reduced plant size at flowering and reduced seed number per cob at harvest.
Stages of Development in Lentil
Authors: Erskine W. , Muehlbauer F. J. , Short R. W. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYUniform descriptions of developmental stages in crops improve communication among producers, researchers and others. This paper gives a uniform system for the description of the developmental stages of lentil that we believe is not only universally applicable to all growing environments (field or greenhouse) and to divergent cultivars, but also useful for single plants or communities of plants. Vegetative and reproductive development are described separately. Vegetative growth stages are described by counting nodes on the main stem and continuing the count up the basal primary branch to include the highest fully developed leaf. Reproductive stages Rl and R2 are based on flowering, R3 to R6 on pod and seed development, and R7 and R8 on maturation.
The Critical Zinc Deficiency Level and Response to Zinc Application of Wheat on Typic Ustochrepts
Authors: Bansal R. L. , Singh S. P. , Nayyar V. K. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYField experiments at 26 sites, selected on the basis of their varying degrees of zinc deficiency, showed that the critical deficiency levels of zinc for wheat were 0.60 mg kg−1 in the soil and 19 μg g−1 dry matter in 45-day-old plants. Further field trials at nine locations with varying levels of zinc deficiency showed successive increases in the grain yield of wheat with increases in zinc application, emphasizing the need for zinc fertilization when wheat is grown on zinc-deficient soils.
Time to Flowering of Mung Bean (Vigna radiata) Genotypes and their Hybrids in Response to Photoperiod and Temperature
Authors: Imrie B. C. , Lawn R. J. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYTime to flowering of mung bean crops varies appreciably depending on the genotype, and the daylengths and temperatures prevailing during the period after sowing. Relatively little is known about the precise nature and inheritance of flowering responses to photoperiod and temperature. The combined effects of variations in these two factors on time to flowering were therefore evaluated in controlled environment studies on six genotypes and four F1hybrids. The responses were examined for conformity with hypothesized linear models from which inferences might be made of the genetic control of flowering. The analyses suggest that all the genotypes and F1s tested were quantitative short day plants, with the possible exception of one line which may be day neutral. The analyses further suggest that time to flowering was influenced by four genotype-specific attributes: minimum time to flowering, critical photoperiod (Pc), responsiveness to photoperiod longer than Pc, and responsiveness to temperature. Among the genotypes tested, different values were observed for each attribute. In most instances, the values for the F1s were closer to one or other parent, indicating dominance rather than additive genetic effects. We conclude that, with several levels each, the four attributes provide the potential for a diversity of flowering response types within mung bean. Further, it should prove possible to manipulate the mung bean germplasm to obtain novel combinations of attributes, and thus to breed genotypes adapted to photothermal regimes not previously considered suitable for the crop.
Plants, Genes and People: Improving the Relevance of Plant Breeding in Africa
Authors: Haugerud Angelique , Collinson Michael P. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYPlant breeders cannot respond to every quirk of farmers' circumstances but the relevance of breeding research in poor nations can be improved. Recent innovations in germplasm screening programmes for developing nations highlight important differences in selection criteria between farmers and scientists, and among farmers themselves. Drawing on the authors' African experience with International Agricultural Research Centres working on maize and potatoes, the paper explores how breeding programmes benefit from an understanding of farmers' own detailed knowledge about the crop varieties they already cultivate. Issues considered include farmers' use of cultivar diversity, the trade-off between yield and maturity class as selection criteria, defining appropriate experimental conditions, and innovative techniques to increase farmer participation in germplasm screening.
A Cheap Weighable Container for Measuring Evaporation from Alfalfa in the Sudan
Authors: A/Hafeez A. T. , Hudson J. P. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYTen weighable containers, the same size as 4-gallon petrol tins, were located in a plot 80 metres from the leading edge of a 2-acre field of irrigated alfalfa growing under advective conditions in the Sudan. Evapo-transpiration from alfalfa growing in these containers was compared with evaporation from a series of small evaporimeters level with the top of the plants and from a standard U.S. Class A evaporation pan, and also with estimates of evaporation calculated by the Penman formula. Evaporation from the free water surfaces in evaporimeters or pan was always greater than from alfalfa in the containers when the crop was 25 cm. high or less, but lower when the crop was more than that height, whilst the figures calculated by the Penman formula were much lower than either. Cumulative water losses were also recorded from containers where the soil was kept wet or allowed to dry out, and these were compared with evaporimeter losses up to the stage where no further water was being lost from the dry containers.
The Interaction of Nitrogen and Water on Yield, Protein and Mottling in Wheat Grown on Black Earth in Queensland
Authors: Wood H. L. , Fox W. E. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYThe effect of available water on yield (e.g. Waring, Fox and Teakle, 1958) and of nitrogen on yield and quality (e.g. Waring and Teakle, 1960) have been examined for wheat grown on black earths of the Darling Downs in Queensland. However, the joint effect and individual contributions of nitrogen and water to this effect in the field appear to have been neglected. Further, the condition known as mottled wheat, described by Wood (1960), is an important problem in the wheat industry, and it was felt by the authors that this condition was the result of a water-protein yield complex. It was therefore decided to examine the effects on yield, total protein and mottling of applications of nitrogen and water in a soil where these were deficient.
The Effect of Organic Matter in Soil on Legume Nodulation
Authors: Masefield G. B. 
Published: October 2008

SUMMARYPot experiments were used to test the effect of incorporating various organic materials in the soil on the nodulation of peas (Pisum sativum). Only farmyard manure gave a consistent increase in the number and weight of nodules, and also in plant growth, increases which were also produced by the aqueous extract of farmyard manure, although none of these increases were as large as those obtained by the addition of a combination of P and K fertilizers or activated vermiculite. Field beans (Vicia faba) and French beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) in general reacted in the same way as peas.