Partial Budget Research Articles

Reduced Tillage and Intercropping as a Means to Increase Yield and Financial Return in the Drylands of Tigray, northern Ethiopia: A Case Study under Rainfed and Irrigation Conditions

Intensive tillage is a major sustainability concern in cereal dominated cropping systems in the drylands of Tigray, Ethiopia. Hence, on-farm trials were conducted to investigate the yield and economic advantage of reduced tillage and intercropping for two seasons. A factorial experiment in a complete randomized block design was carried out at Adigudom located in Hintalo-Wajirat district in South-Eastern Tigray in 2014 (rain-fed) and 2015 (irrigated). The experiment consisted of four tillage frequencies (zero, one, two and four) and three types of cropping systems (sole maize, sole soybean and maize-soybean intercropping) in three/four replications. Maize, variety “Melkassa 2”, and soybean, variety “Awassa 91” were used. Grain and biomass yields, and harvest index of both crops were analysed. Yield advantage of intercropping was evaluated using land equivalent ratio (LER) and partial budget analysis was used for the financial evaluation. The grain and biomass yields of both crops were significantly increased (p<0.05) as the tillage frequencies increased from zero to four in both seasons but the frequent tillage with sole cropping was not economically viable as the two times tillage with maize-soybean intercropping gave 126% greater net benefit compared to the four times tillage sole maize, which is practiced by farmers in the study area. The net benefit was strongly influenced by the main effects of tillage and intercropping in both seasons (p<0.001) and by their interaction in 2014 (p<0.05). Significantly higher LER (1.87-2.12) was recorded from maize-soybean intercropping over sole cropping in all the tillages and both seasons. Hence, two alternative options are suggested that farmers could apply in the drylands of Tigray: (i) keeping the sole cropping culture of maize production, and reducing number of tillages from 4 to 2 that would give 374%and 705% Marginal Rate of Return (MRR), respectively, under the rainfed and irrigated conditions compared to zero tillage sole maize; or (ii) intercropping maize with soybean and reducing tillage frequency from 4to 2 that would give 608% and 585% MRR in the respective growing seasons, compared to zero tillage maize-soybean intercropping. Taking these results into account, two times tillage combined with maize-soybean intercropping can be a good option in dryland areas of Tigray to achieve higher total intercrop yield at a low cost and larger LER. Moreover, reduced tillage can minimize soil degradation and benefit farmers with poor access to draft power or female-headed households constrained with labour for ploughing. Keywords : Tillage; Intercropping; Maize; Soybean; Tigray; Ethiopia. Please find erratum for this article here: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/mejs.v11i1.10

Nutrient Intake, Digestibility and Growth Performance of Local Sheep in Western Tigray, Ethiopia

Twenty-five yearling intact male sheep with an average live weight of 19±1.7kg (mean ± Standard deviation) were used in the experiment. The study was to investigate the effect of feeding different levels of sesame seed cake supplementation on feed intake, live weight gain and carcass parameters of sheep fed wheat bran and teff straw, as well as to evaluate the appropriate economic levels to get optimum profit in feedlot growing rams. The experimental design was a complete randomized block design (CRBD) with five treatments and five replications. The treatment diets, namely, 0, 150, 200, 250 and 300g Dry matter (DM)/head/day sesame seed cake were assigned randomly to the sheep with a basal diet. There was significantly higher (P<0.05) total Dry matter intake (DMI) in the sesame supplemented group than the control treatment. Similarly, there was a significant difference (P<0.05) among all treatments in total Crude protein intake (CPI) due to the increased level of supplementation. Digestibility of Crude protein (CP), Dry matter (DM) and Organic matter (OM) were also significantly higher (P<0.05) for sheep supplemented with the different level of SSC (sesame seed cake) than the control treatment. Though daily live weight gain was significantly higher (P<0.05) for sesame supplemented treatment as compared to control, a positive average daily body weight gain was observed in all treatment groups. The feed conversion efficiency was significantly (P<0.05) higher for the sesame supplement as compared to control. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) in the final body weight between the sesame supplemented group and the control. The mean values of slaughter weight, empty body weight and rib-eye area were significantly (P<0.05) higher for supplemented treatments than the control. The highest hot carcass weight was recorded with the highest level (300g SSC) supplemented sheep. Considering the economic return (Marginal rate of return), the highest level sesame seed cake supplemented sheep could be recommended as the optimum level for feedlot growing. Generally the present study indicated that supplementation of sheep with different levels of SSC had an effect on feed intake, digestibility, and carcass parameters, and the effects were relatively more pronounced on sheep supplemented with the highest level of sesame seed cake. The partial budget analysis also indicated that the highest level of sesame seed cake supplemented sheep had returned a higher profit margin than the other levels of supplementation. Therefore, supplementation with 300g Dry matter (DM)/head/day sesame seed cake is biologically more efficient and economically more profitable and thus could be recommended. Keywords : Body weight gain, digestibility, carcass parameters and growing lambs DOI : 10.7176/JBAH/9-1-06

Response of Head Cabbage (Brassica Oleracea L.) to Different Rates of Inorganic Nitrogen Fertilizer and Farmyard Manure at Bore, Southern Oromia, Ethiopia

Cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.) is the second most important vegetable crop in Ethiopia in area coverage as well as level of production next to red pepper. However, yield of the crop is often constrained by low and imbalanced nutrient supply. This study was conducted at the Bore Agricultural Research Center (BoARC) during the main cropping season to assess the response of N and FYM on growth and yield of cabbage. The treatments consisted of factorial combinations of five levels of N (0, 59,119, 235 and 294 kg N ha -1 ) and four levels of FYM (0, 3, 6 and 10 t ha -1 ) and were laid out in RCBD with three replications. The ANOVA results showed that interaction effect of N and FYM significantly (P<0.001) difference on plant height, number of expanded leaves, days to head initiation, days to 90% maturity, head height, head diameter, untrimmed head weight, trimmed head weight, yield with and without wrapper and biomass of yield. There was a Significance differences between the mean plant heights (43.2cm) of head cabbage observed versus FYM of (10 t ha -1 ) with each level of N (235 kg ha -1 ) for plant height. However, the combined effect of highest N (294 kg ha -1 ) and highest FYM (10 t ha -1 ) recorded maximum number of leaves (16.66), shortest days to head initiation (63.33) and early days to maturity (112). And also the interaction effect of both N and FYM (235 kg + 6 t ha-1), respectively was highly significantly (P<0.001) recorded highest head height (18.14cm), highest head diameter (17.03cm), highest untrimmed head weight (2296.67g), highest trimmed head weight (1766.67g), maximum (107.47 t ha -1 ) yield with wrapper head cabbage, highest head yield without wrapper (72.36 t ha -1 ) and maximum biomass yield (107.47 t ha -1 ) of head cabbage. There was an increasing trend in the yield without wrapper or marketable head yield parameter with the increasing in the rate till combined application of 235 kg N ha -1 from UREA and 6 t FYM ha -1 , but the yield declined above these combinations. Based on partial budget analysis the highest net benefit was obtained from treatment combinations of 235 kg N ha -1 with 6 t ha -1 with a marginal rate of return 2535.31%. The most attractive rates for the producers with low cost of production and higher benefits in this case were treatment combination of 235 kg N ha -1 with 6 t ha -1 . Generally results of the study suggested that head cabbage responded well to the combined application of N and FYM and application of 235 kg N ha -1 + 6 t FYM ha -1 can give optimum cabbage head yield in the study area. Keywords : FYM, N, Thomas F1, Trimmed Head, Untrimmed Head, Yield with Wrapper, Yield without Wrapper DOI : 10.7176/JAAS/52-03

Precision irrigation and harvest management in orchards: an economic assessment

Precision management has become vital in agriculture with possibilities growing alongside developments in information and communication, robotics and sensor technologies. On the other side of expected benefits of precision management in terms of environmental friendliness, yield margin, input efficiency, etc., is the upfront expensiveness of such technologies. There is hence a need to quantitatively assess expected net benefits and provide useful information for farmers and stakeholders to enable informed choice on the potential adoption of precision technologies and management practices. This study presents economic assessment of precision irrigation and harvest management system with integrated use of sensor technologies and Farm Management Information System (FMIS) as compared to conventional practice applying partial budgeting as a tool. Relevant scenarios are defined based on data from an experimental apple orchard field situated in Prangins, Switzerland. The precision management system is found to be economically justifiable in situations of high demand for irrigation characterized by limited rainfall and considerable variabilities in weather conditions. Its economic feasibility is found to be sensitive to changes in fruit price and capital cost.

Economic Thresholds of Wheat Streak Mosaic in the Texas High Plains

Core Ideas Expected wheat yield declines exponentially with increasing wheat streak mosaic severity. For reflectance readings taken on 27 April, 4 May, and 10 May, economic threshold reflectance values are 8.3, 9.5, and 9.4, respectively. At the threshold infection severity expected grain yield is approximately 1910 kg ha−1. Wheat growers could potentially save resources by discontinuing input applications and introduce cattle for grazing. Wheat streak mosaic (WSM), caused by Wheat streak mosaic virus, is the most widespread and economically important virus disease affecting winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in the Great Plains of the United States. Using reflectance data from a hand‐held hyperspectral radiometer and yields from a field experiment, this study estimated economic thresholds of WSM beyond which it is uneconomical to continue with mid‐season input applications. Disease severity assessments based on reflectance measurements were taken from 99 plots across the field at three time points, namely 27 April, 4 May, and 10 May in the 2015–2016 wheat season. A log‐linear regression model of yield on reflectance indicates potential yield losses of up to 35% for every unit increase in infection severity (as measured by reflectance readings). Using regression and partial budget analysis, results show varying thresholds of WSM depending on the date of disease severity assessments. The 27 April assessment had the lowest threshold when compared with the other assessment dates. Threshold analysis indicates potential to save resources by discontinuing mid‐season input applications and introducing cattle for grazing, in about 14% of the sampled plots, but only 1% if grazing was not possible.

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A total of 300 day old Cobb and 500 broiler chicks distributed randomly to 20 pens with 15 chicks each were allocated to 5 different dietary treatments with 4 replicates per treatment in order to evaluate the growth performances of Cobb 500 broiler chickens. A complete randomized design (CRD) was used. Cowpea inclusion levels were 0% (T1), 5% (T2), 10% (T3), 15% (T4) and 20% (T5). A partial budget analysis was done for the treatments. The results of the study revealed that crude protein, dry matter (DM) and the metabolisable energy content of cowpea grain were 25.76%, 89.94% and 3307.37 kcal/kg DM, respectively. Feed intake did not differ significantly (P&gt;0.05) between treatments or inclusion levels. Starter phase ranged from 44 to 45.16 g/bird/day; finisher phase ranged from 113.9 to 117.20 g/bird/day; and the complete experimental period ranged from 83.78 to 85.88 g/bird/day. Daily body weight gains for the entire experimental period were 34.82, 34.27, 36.81, 35.74 and 33.08g (SEM=0.46) for T1, T2, T3, T4 and T5 respectively. There was no significant (P&gt;0.05) difference in growth performance for the complete experimental period. Mortality was at 5% for treatment T1 and T4, while for T2, T3, and T5, respectively, no mortality occurred. Partial budget analysis of the different treatments was calculated based on changes in total return. Change in total return was greater in T3 followed by T5, T4, T2 and marginal rate of return was greater in T3 (32.96) than in T2 (5.62), T5 (3.42) and T4 (2.4). This study indicate that inclusion of cowpea from 5 to 20% in the diet of broiler chickens have no adverse effect on growth performance and from the point of partial budget analysis, T3 (10% inclusion level) was the most profitable. Key words: Broiler, cowpea, inclusion level, performance, partial budget analysis. &nbsp

Tomato Yield and Economic Performance Under Vermicompost and Mineral Fertilizer Applications

Background:Optimum vermicompost and mineral fertilizer application is crucial for tomato production. However, farmers still use inadequate nutrient inputs and inefficient combinations. As a result, unbalanced soil nutrient compositions ultimately lead to a reduction in tomato fruit yield.Methods:An experiment was conducted to evaluate tomato yield and economic performance under vermicompost and mineral fertilizer applications using drip irrigation during 2016/2017. Shanti-PM variety of tomato was used as a test crop and eight vermicompost and mineral fertilizer combinations were laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Agronomic data were analyzed using analysis of variance procedure. Besides, an economic analysis was carried out using partial budget analysis, to indicate economically superior treatments over the control treatment by estimating the varying costs and benefits based on the current local market prices for 2017.Results and Conclusion:Tomato fruit yield was markedly influenced by vermicompost and mineral fertilizer combinations. The better marketable, unmarketable and total fruit yield were recorded when 8 ton ha-1vermicompost combined with 50% recommended a dose of mineral fertilizer was applied. Even though this treatment appeared to be superior in yield, the results of partial budget analysis suggested that tomato cultivated using 4 ton ha-1vermicompost with 50% recommended mineral fertilizer was economically feasible to be acceptable by farmers. Therefore, application of 4 ton ha-1vermicompost with 50% recommended mineral fertilizer appeared to be agronomically superior and economically affordable for farmers to adopt.

Impact Assessment of State Assistance Program to Agri-based Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Philippines

The Philippine business economy is largely fuelled by micro, small and medium enterprises. In order to cope with the competition with large firms in the industry, the government has poured investments in form of technology upgrading in the last 15 years. The research aimed to assess the impact on productivity and profitability of state assistance to agri-based micro, small enterprises. Partial Budget Analysis was used in assessing the profitability of the proponent after the intervention. The study showed an average increase in enterprises' production volume, sales level, and generated employment by 157.9%, 51.65%, and 191.82%, respectively. Further, the assistance generated a positive increase in income. However, the defective equipment, failure to meet the repayment schedule, and non-compliance to documentary requirements were among the major problems encountered by the proponent during program implementation. Nonetheless, the state assistance was able to spur innovations among the enterprises. Market potential, market knowledge, financial capability to repay the loan as well as the entrepreneur’s resiliency were some of the observed success factors of MSMEs. With its positive firm-level impact, the state assistance program has generally been able to improve its proponent’s competitiveness and thus worthy for continuous implementation.

Better Management Practices for sustainable small-scale shrimp farming

Better management practices (BMPs) for shrimp farming are a standardized set of farming practices to ensure the environmental and financial sustainability of shrimp farming systems. Uniform implementation of the BMPs poses a challenge if most of the shrimp farms in a given region are small (<2 ha). The adoption of BMPs and the associated economics were studied in two districts of Andhra Pradesh, the state that leads India's shrimp production. The overall rate of adoption was approximately 73%. Using factor analysis, all the partly adopted BMPs were categorized into six thematic factors: optimized input supply, improved management practices, routine maintenance, social responsibility, group approach, and culture-system-related and other practices. The ordinary least square regression model explained the factors that influenced the decision to adopt a given practice. These factors included key socio-economic variables such as age, education, and membership of farmers associations. Partial budget analysis revealed that adopting all the recommended BMPs in full would decrease the net returns from each crop by 16.6%. Although adopting the BMPs is voluntary, the practices crucial to the success of a crop were adopted by all the farmers (almost as if it were mandatory to adopt them), whereas those that involved significant costs were left out. Although small farmers can be persuaded to adopt the BMPs through awareness programmes, upgrading their holdings to a size at which a standardized farming system is feasible needs substantial investment. The governments of shrimp-exporting nations should improve their regulatory structure to embrace an inclusive governance model involving all the key actors in the value chain to make the small scale shrimp farming sustainable.

BLACK OAT (Avena strigosa) SILAGE FOR SMALL-SCALE DAIRY SYSTEMS IN THE HIGHLANDS OF CENTRAL MEXICO

&lt;p&gt;Black oat (&lt;em&gt;Avena strigosa&lt;/em&gt; cv. Saia) silage (BOS) as an alternative forage for the dry season in small-scale dairy systems was evaluated against maize silage (MSL) at 6.0 kg DM/cow/day. Treatments were evaluated through on farm participatory livestock research: T1=100 BOS, T2=66:34 BOS:MSL, T3=34:66 BOS:MSL, and T4=100 MSL fed to milking dairy cows that also received 4.5 kg DM/cow/day of a commercial compound dairy concentrate and 2.2 kg DM/cow/day of cut-and-carry pasture. Eight Holstein cows were allotted to a replicated 4X4 Latin Square design, with 14 day experimental periods. Daily milk yields and milk composition were measured during the last four days, and live weight and body condition score recorded on the last day of each period. Feeding costs were determined by partial budget analysis. There were no differences in milk yield (15.9±0.26 kg/cow/day), or milk composition with mean values for milkfat of 38.8±0.86 g/kg, milk protein 32.2±0.38 g/kg, and lactose 46.3±0.22 g/kg. There were also no differences in milk urea nitrogen (MUN) with a mean of 11.8±0.83 mg/dl, live weight 385.6±1.67 kg, or body condition score with a mean of 2.6±0.01. Feeding costs per kg milk were 33% higher in T1 and T2 than T4, with intermediate feeding costs in T3 (T1=0.88, T2= 0.85, T3= 0.74, T4= 0.66 R$/kg). Profit margins and income/feeding costs were all positive. Black oat silage may be an alternative forage in small-scale dairy systems in the dry season when maize silage cannot be cultivated or fails due to climate concerns.&lt;/p&gt;

An economic assessment of pseudorabies (Aujeszky’ disease) elimination on hog farms in China

Hog pseudorabies (Aujeszky’s disease) can incur serious losses for farm owners and even the entire hog industry by causing infertility, abortion, and stillbirth among sows, as well as diarrhoea, respiratory failure, and death among piglets. Pseudorabies virus could be prevented, controlled, and eliminated by clean-up at both farm and regional levels through a strict procedure of vaccination, quarantine, diagnosis, elimination of positive animals, and healthy animals nurturing. Using data from 63 large-scale hog farms from nine provinces (municipalities, autonomous regions) of China, we evaluated the economic consequences of hog pseudorabies clean-up in China’s hog farms based on a partial budgeting method. By comparing large-scale hog farms that have performed pseudorabies clean-up with similar farms that have not, we analysed how clean-up affected farm profit and whether there existed sufficient economic incentives for farm owners to adopt pseudorabies control measures. Further, we examined how the economic consequences varied with factors such as clean-up history and farm size. The findings showed that, on average, clean-up adopters outperformed non-adopters by 8.02 million yuan per farm per year within the four years post clean-up adoption. Also, we found that the net profit changes attributable to pseudorabies clean-up increased over time and with farm size. Although we cannot extrapolate to all Chinese hog farms, these findings suggest that the earlier a hog farm adopted pseudorabies clean-up, the larger the economic benefits would be, especially for large-scale farms.

Partial Budgeting Analysis of an Intervention of ‘Land Shaping Technology’ at South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India

Reported Impact Assessment of an intervention ‘Land Shaping Technology’ implemented at farmer’s field under NAIP project at different villages of south 24-Pargans district of West Bengal aiming for rainwater harvesting for irrigating crops. Farm data was collected from the randomly selected farmers of both Interevent and control groups.

Annual Net Returns to Cover Crops in Iowa

Despite the active promotion of cover crops as a key conservation practice, their adoption is very limited. We developed a series of partial budgets based on a statewide survey of Iowa farmers to evaluate the changes in net returns resulting from the incorporation of cover crops into a corn or soybean production system. The average net returns to cover crops use for farmers that did not use cover crops for grazing livestock or forage were consistently negative across different planting and termination methods, tillage practices, and experience levels. Only farmers that used cover crops for grazing livestock or forage, and received cost-share payments tended to derive net positive returns from cover crops use. Our results can be used as benchmarks for current or potential cover croppers, and for ground-truthing agricultural and conservation policy design.

Opportunities for short rotation coppice production on free-range chicken farms in Flanders: farmers’ perceptions and cost-benefit analysis

AbstractThis paper focuses on systems producing short rotation coppice willows (SRCW) in chickens’ free-range areas. We aim to map chicken farmers’ motivation to implement SRCW, and to assess the economic viability of these systems. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 free-range chicken farmers. Farmers agreed that chickens would prefer SRCW over grassland, which could benefit chicken welfare. They expected establishing an SRCW system would be labor intensive, and doubted if it would be a profitable investment. Some concerns of farmers might be taken away by exchanging information with farmers with SRCW experience. A partial budget analysis was performed to calculate the net present value (NPV) of six different scenarios, differing in the type of chickens, in whether the produced biomass was sold or valorized on-farm and in harvest pattern, all over a 23-yr period. The NPV was positive but low for all scenarios. A sensitivity analysis showed that changes in biomass yield, wood chip price, a price premium for poultry products and current fuel price were most likely to influence the NPV. A risk analysis revealed that NPVs were positive in the majority of the modeled cases. Scenarios in which biomass was used for on-farm heat production showed the highest risk of a negative NPV. A price premium for poultry products may be most effective at increasing profitability, but may only be feasible for farms selling directly to consumers. Establishing a solid market for biomass energy, including guaranteed demand and availability of appropriate machinery for cultivation, may mitigate farmers’ concerns.

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This study was initiated to investigate the effect of nitrogen fertilizer on agronomic efficiency, yield and yield components of barley after faba bean precursor crop. A field experiment was carried out in 2015 main cropping season at district at Ayba and Tek’a kebeles in Tigray Regional State, Ethiopia. The experiments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Treatments were six levels of nitrogen (0, 11.5, 23, 34.5, 46 and 69 kg N ha-1). Soil samples were collected before planting and analyzed for selected physicochemical properties. Pre-planting soil analysis results revealed that total N was low at Tek’a kebelle (0.09%) and medium at Ayba (0.186%). The organic carbon content of experimental fields was medium at Ayba and low at Tek'a. Application of nitrogen had significantly influenced yield and yield components of barley at Tek'a site but not at Ayba after fababean precursor crop. This is consistent with the initial soil nitrogen and contribution of the precursor crop for nitrogen fixation. The highest agronomic efficiency was recorded from the addition of 23 kg N ha-1 (31.52 kg kg-1) and 34.5 kg N ha-1 (31.44 kg kg-1) at Ayba kebelle and Tek’a, respectively. Both biological and partial budget analysis depicted that application of 34.5 kg N ha-1 was found to be economical. Therefore, application of nitrogen after legume crop should consider initial soil result.. Key words: Barley, Fababean, nitrogen, crop rotation, agronomic efficiency.

Ecological, economic, and environmental assessments of integrated pest management in potato: A case study from the Cañete Valley, Peru

AbstractIntegrated pest management (IPM) versus farmers’ pest management practices were evaluated in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) in the central coast of Peru. IPM technologies consisted of seed treatment, insect pest, and disease scouting using action thresholds for decision making to apply pesticides, and the use of trapping devices and selective insecticides versus chemical control by potato farmers. An ecological, environmental, and economic analysis of both approaches was carried out by using biodiversity indices, environmental impact indicators, and partial budget analysis. The leafminer fly Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard) and the bud midge Prodiplosis longifila (Gagne) were the most important pests during the cropping season. Larval infestation of both pests and leafminer foliar damage were less in IPM plots. Almost twice as many pesticide (insecticide and fungicide) applications per season were carried out on farmers’ practices plots with 16.7 sprayings compared to 9.7 sprayings in IPM plots. The total quantity of pesticides used per season was higher under farmers’ practices (4,614.3 g a.i./ha) than in IPM (2,042.6 g a.i./ha) plots. Likewise, farmers applied five times more insecticides (3,620.3 g a.i./ha) than IPM (722.55 g a.i./ha). Methamidophos and chlorpyrifos accounted for 65% of the environmental impact (EI) value of 137/ha in farmers’ fields. IPM strategies reduced the EI to 42.4/ha, which represents a reduction of 69.2%. Further, IPM achieved 35% higher marketable potato yield than farmers’ practices. Partial budget analysis showed a higher net profit in all IPM plots, with an average increase of US$1,410/ha. The field trials demonstrated the environmental and economic viability of IPM for potato in the central coast of Peru. However, while there are effective integrated components for leafminer fly management, there is a clear need to develop and integrate more sustainable and ecological pest management strategies for other economically important pests such as the bud midge.

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The experiment was carried out in Gemechis, Chiro and Tulo districts of West Hararghe Zone with the objectives of enhancing production and productivity of faba bean on farmers’ fields and to improve linkage among stakeholders and create awareness on improved faba bean varieties. Three kebeles were selected purposively based on faba bean production potential. Accordingly, Walenso Defo kebele from Gemechis, Arbarakate from Chiro district, and Terkanfata kebele from Tulo district were selected. Seven farmers and one Farmers Training Center were included participated depending on their interest to the technology, managing the experiment, have appropriate land for the experiment and taking the risk of experiment. Two improved varieties namely Hachalu and Tumsa with local variety were shown and evaluated. The experiment was demonstrated on 100 m2 demonstration plots and DAP 100 kg/ha at the time of sowing applied to each demonstration plot with recommended seed rate. Both quantitative and qualitative data was collected through observation, group discussion on field day and data recording sheet. Descriptive statistics like mean and tabulation were used to analyse the crop performance concerning yield of the experiment harvested from demonstration plot. Improved varieties along with local variety were also analysed through independent t-statistics. While qualitative data were analysed through simple ranking and summarization. Partial budget analysis was also used to analyse the economic benefit gained from the experiment. The result of the study indicated that Hachalu was ranked first in terms of yield, seed color and disease resistance. As discussed from partial budget analysis, Hachalu variety has more economic advantage than both Tumsa and local variety. Therefore, Hachalu variety was recommended for further popularization and scaling up in study area and similar agro ecology. Key words: Faba bean, demonstration, varieties, yield advantage.

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Onion is an important cultivated crop as a condiment as well as a source of income for many farmers in Ethiopia. However, the productivity of the crop is much lower due to different problems. A field experiment was conducted to determine the effect of seedling age and phosphorus rate on growth and yield performance of onion at Alage, Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia, during 2016/2017 season. The treatments comprised three seedling ages (6, 7 and 8 weeks of seedling age) and four phosphorus rates (0, 46, 92 and 138 kg P2O5ha-1). The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replications. The result showed that seedling age and phosphorus rate significantly affected plant height, leaf length, days to maturity, fresh bulb weight, bulb dry matter fraction, bulb length, marketable bulb yield, total bulb yield, and harvest index. Among these parameters, marketable bulb yield, total bulb yield and harvest index were also significantly affected by the interaction of seedling age and phosphorus rate. On the other hand, leaf number per plant, bulb diameter, total biomass yield and unmarketable bulb yield were only influenced by the effect of phosphorus rates. In this study, transplanting at 8 weeks of seedling age fertilized with 138 kg P2O5 ha-1 recorded the highest total bulb yield (50.6 t ha-1) and marketable bulb yield (48.33 t ha-1), but no significant difference was shown with that obtained at 92 kg P2O5 ha-1 with the same seedling age. Treatment combinations of seedling age at 6 weeks and no P (control) produced the lowest amounts of total bulb yield (24.27 t ha-1) and marketable bulb yield (21.63 t ha-1). The partial budget analysis revealed that the highest net benefit with low cost of production was obtained in response to the application of 92 kg P2O5 ha-1 and the transplanting age of 8 weeks. The marginal rate of return for this treatment was 5657% which is found to be economically feasible for producing onion in the study area. Key words: Onion, seedling age, phosphorus, bulb yield, partial budget analysis.

Cost of bovine respiratory disease in preweaned calves on US beef cow-calf operations (2011-2015).

OBJECTIVE To develop a partial budget analysis of direct costs associated with bovine respiratory disease (BRD) in preweaned calves on US beef cow-calf operations and identify factors that strongly influence those costs. DESIGN Risk analysis model. ANIMALS US preweaned beef calf inventory from 2011 through 2015. PROCEDURES A stochastic simulation model was developed by use of a computer spreadsheet and add-in software. Input data were obtained from the USDA, peer-reviewed literature, and a survey of beef cow-calf producers. A simulation consisting of 10,000 iterations was used to account for either uncertainty or variability in model inputs. The median (90% confidence interval) was reported for each output variable. Global and local sensitivity analyses were performed to identify the most influential factors and quantitatively evaluate the effects of inputs on the estimated costs. RESULTS From 2011 through 2015, BRD in preweaned calves cost the US beef cow-calf industry approximately $165 million annually, of which costs associated with the death, treatment, and decreased weaning weight of BRD-affected calves were approximately $126, $25, and $15 million, respectively. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Although BRD in preweaned calves may have a fairly small effect on the total gross income for the US beef cow-calf industry as a whole, it can have a substantial adverse effect on the net profit of BRD-affected herds. The model developed provided important information regarding the cost of BRD in preweaned calves on US beef cow-calf operations and identified factors that had an import effect on those costs.

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The study was conducted in four selected potential areas of North Shewa zone namely; Kewot, Efratana gidim, Ensaro and Merhabete district. The main objective of the study was to evaluate, select the best performing mungbean varieties and to assess farmer’s technology preference. The experiment was done using three improved varieties namely; Rasa (N-26), NLV-1, and Arkebe improved varieties and local variety as a check. The analytical result showed that Rasa (N-26) variety was preferred by the farmers followed by NLV-1. The result gotten from the analysis of variance indicated that the difference among the means of the mungbean varieties for grain yield, pod length and hundred seed weight are significant at 5% probability level for both locations. The highest yield (1541.3 kg/ha) was recorded from Rasa (N-26) variety at Jema valley followed by the local variety (1243.3 kg/ha), while the lowest yield (735.7 and 676.3 kg/ha) was obtained from the varieties NLV-1 and Arkebe, respectively. The partial budget analysis result also revealed that only Rasa (N-26) had the highest net benefit return compared to the local variety. The marginal rate of return for changing from using local variety to improved Rasa (N-26) variety was 1074%. Therefore pre-scaling up of Rasa (N-26) variety with its improved management practice should be done. Key words: Mungbean, farmer preference, participation, rasa variety.