Agricultural Crop Production Research Articles

Research on Eco-Friendly Disinfection Technologies of Vegetable Seeds for Safe Production of Agricultural Crops

Research on Eco-Friendly Disinfection Technologies of Vegetable Seeds for Safe Production of Agricultural Crops

THE IMPACT OF SOME AGRICULTURAL LEGISLATION AND WHEAT FARMERS' COMMITMENT TO IT IN WASIT GOVERNORATE

The research aimed to analyze the results of the application of some agricultural legislation and laws and the degree of commitment of wheat farmers, in addition to knowing the role of agricultural legislation in supporting agricultural policy in Iraq and knowing the degree of its success. A questionnaire was used for a sample of 247 farmers in Wasit Governorate, and they were asked with a set of 26 questions. The results showed that a Likert scale was used. The results showed that with regard to the question of not providing agricultural loans, 80.3% of farmers considered it an important issue. As for the questions of weak support for production inputs prices and weak support for final output prices, their answers were largely similar with the word “agree” with 88.79 and 87.72% of the sample answers. The research concluded double the amount of government support provided to production requirements for the cultivation of the wheat crop, in addition to that it does not achieve the farmer's goal in reducing production costs, The contribution of this support is weak in relation to the total costs of production requirements. The research also concluded that despite the state setting the purchase price of the crop at prices that exceed international prices for it, it was not sufficiently remunerative compared to the high production costs in Iraq. The research recommended the need to tighten control for the purpose of preventing farmers from violating the imposed government legislation in order to regulate production and develop the agricultural sector, as well as work to improve the reality of agricultural crop production, especially the wheat crop, by providing government support for the use of modern technologies to raise the level of production and then achieve greater returns for farmers.

INFLATION AND PRODUCTION COSTS OF SELECTED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS IN POLAND IN 2022

The aim of the paper is to present measures taken in recent years by state public authorities that affect inflation in Poland. An assessment was made of the growth in prices for purchased agricultural inputs, which was correlated with cost structures, and on this basis an increase in the production costs of basic agricultural products in 2022 was estimated. This projected increase in production costs was then related to estimated income. This made it possible to determine their growth, which would allow the current level of agricultural income to be maintained. The government rescue measures triggered by COVID-19 had three main sources of funding: expenditure of the state budget and the budget of European funds - PLN 23.2 billion, COVID-19 Counteracting Fund - PLN 92.7 billion, and financial shields of the Polish Development Fund - PLN 63.5 billion, While the government's intervention activities, under the conditions of the crisis, should be assessed positively, their methods of implementation should be assessed critically. Financial support under the shields was given to companies that showed a decline in turnover caused by the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, those companies that may have deliberately created the conditions to receive support were supported. In all analyzed types of agricultural crop production activities in 2022, there will be an increase in the cost of their production by about 50-60%. The exception will be the production of rye, where the cost increase will be even higher.

A glimpse of the Nitrogen Fixing Wheat possibility

As the world's population grows at an exponential rate, greater food production becomes a requirement. Intensive agricultural methods, which are now used to produce the bulk of food, are unsustainable and will be unable to supply demand when natural resources become scarce. The industry faces a significant nitrogen demand, which must be met in order to combat hunger in emerging countries. This study used a literature review technique to investigate the potential for improved wheat crop yield through nitrogen fixation. It has been demonstrated that utilizing microorganisms such as cyanobacteria as biofertilizers or phytopathogen antagonists can boost the development and productivity of non-leguminous agricultural crops. Finally, the possible end result outweighs the costs. It's impossible to argue against the development of nitrogen-fixing wheat at this point in the technology's development. Whether it is possible to develop crops that rely solely on dinitrogen as a nitrogen source, or if the result is only a slight boost in wheat yields, the need to improve global food production needs research like the one described in this article.©2022 JNSMR UIN Walisongo. All rights reserved.

Design Consideration of Charging Station with Hybrid Energy Sources

In current research a hybrid autonomous supplying system for electric vehicles applications is presented. The hybrid system is consisted of fuel cell, micro gas turbine and supercapacitor. There are realized with averaged models in MATLAB/Simulink environment. The supplying elements are connected to a DC bus for charging a different type of EVs. In this case as a load is use two EVs: BMW-i3 and Nissan Leaf. This system can operate autonomously in hard-to-reach places where there is no supplying from the distributed grid and other sources. These places could be remote holiday villages, research centers positioned at hard-to-reach places and also for production of agricultural crops with the aids of electric vehicles. This requires the necessity for searching of different structural and conceptual solutions for production and storage of electric energy. An optimization problem is resolved in order to reduce the value of the capacitance of the supercapacitor with which it will decrease his price. Thus, it also decreases the price for construction of the entire charging station. Recently, the usage of natural gas and his transportation is well organized which can contribute for assuring of the reserved energy for the autonomous charging station.

Metagenomics: A Tool for Exploring Key Microbiome With the Potentials for Improving Sustainable Agriculture

Microorganisms are immense in nature and exist in every imaginable ecological niche, performing a wide range of metabolic processes. Unfortunately, using traditional microbiological methods, most microorganisms remain unculturable. The emergence of metagenomics has resolved the challenge of capturing the entire microbial community in an environmental sample by enabling the analysis of whole genomes without requiring culturing. Metagenomics as a non-culture approach encompasses a greater amount of genetic information than traditional approaches. The plant root-associated microbial community is essential for plant growth and development, hence the interactions between microorganisms, soil, and plants is essential to understand and improve crop yields in rural and urban agriculture. Although some of these microorganisms are currently unculturable in the laboratory, metagenomic techniques may nevertheless be used to identify the microorganisms and their functional traits. A detailed understanding of these organisms and their interactions should facilitate an improvement of plant growth and sustainable crop production in soil and soilless agriculture. Therefore, the objective of this review is to provide insights into metagenomic techniques to study plant root-associated microbiota and microbial ecology. In addition, the different DNA-based techniques and their role in elaborating plant microbiomes are discussed. As an understanding of these microorganisms and their biotechnological potentials are unlocked through metagenomics, they can be used to develop new, useful and unique bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides that are not harmful to the environment.

Role of Cover Crop, Irrigation Systems and Different Tillage on Soil Physical Properties

The central and southern regions of Iraq are located within the arid and semi-arid regions. The deterioration of the physical properties of the soil due to the low content of organic matter that is less than 1%. The high temperatures, low rainfall and the absence of vegetation cover, as well as the poor use of land and the absence of proper management of irrigation and tillage operations have negative effects on the physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil, which in turn will negatively affect the growth and production of agricultural crops. The experiment was conducted in the Nile district, located within the Babil Governorate, 86 km south of the capital, Baghdad, in a silty clay loam in the fall season 2020, aimed to examine the role of cover crop, irrigation systems and different tillage systems in some physical properties of soil (bulk density, porosity, mean weight diameter, soil resistance to penetration, and saturated soil hydraulic conductivity). The experiment was designed according to the strip-split plot arrangement according to a complete randomized block design. The experiment included three factors, the first that occupied the main plots is the cover crop (C) and included on two levels: without cover crop (C ), and the presence of cover crop (C ), and the second factor was the tillage systems (T) and included on four levels: Zero tillage (T ), 0 1 0minimum tillage (T ), medium tillage (T ) and deep tillage (T ), and the third factor is irrigation systems (I) with three levels: surface drip irrigation 1 2 3 (I ), subsurface drip irrigation (I ) and surface irrigation in basins. (I ) The results showed the superiority of treatment C T I in obtaining the 1 2 3 1 1 2lowest value of bulk density, soil resistance to penetration, highest porosity, mean weight diameter rate, and soil hydraulic conductivity saturated while treatment C T I gave the highest bulk density, soil resistance to penetration, less porosity, mean weight diameter and soil 0 3 3 hydraulic conductivity saturated.

TRACE ELEMENT COMPOSITION OF AGRICULTURAL CROPS GROWING ON THE TERRITORY OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS

As a result of generalization of field experiments and analysis of data obtained during route surveys in the regions of the Republic of Belarus, the average content of trace elements in the main and by production of agricultural crops in various places of growth was determined, the limits of variation depending on their species composition were established.

INFLUENCE OF FERTILIZERS APPLICATION ON MOBILITY OF METALS

Metals play an important role in the life of plants and animals, and in small quantities, most of them are necessary for the normal functioning of living organism. However, increased concentrations can also harm the same functions of a living organism. In the soil cover, metals can be contained in various species, which determine their mobility and toxicity. Metals are transferred from soil to plants and then to animal and human organisms only if they are mobile. The mobile fractions include the water-soluble, exchangeable, carbonate, reducible and oxidizable forms and they can migrate from one environment to another and cause a negative cumulative effect. An increase in anthropogenic load leads to an increase in the mobility of metals. A special place is occupied by agricultural activity, which, using various fertilizers, increases the proportion of geochemically mobile species of metals. This work is aimed at studying the effect of fertilization on the mobility of some metals. As part of the work, the soils of the Almaty region (Baiterek village) of the Republic of Kazakhstan were studied by applying various fertilizers (ammonium nitrate and monopotassium phosphate), followed by studying the species of metals and the most toxic radionuclides (polonium-210 and lead-210) according to the method of A. Tessier. Using the fertilizers under investigation insignificantly affects the species of alkali metals, polonium-210, and lead-210. While application of monopotassium phosphate increases the geochemical mobility of sodium and alkaline earth elements due to the transition to the water-soluble and exchangeable fractions, and heavy metals due to the transition to the exchangeable fraction. The obtained data are useful as the basis for the development of recommendations for the application of certain types of fertilizers to reduce the risk of impact on the life and health of the local population without reducing the productivity of agricultural crops.

PHYTOPHAGES IN THE AGROCENOSIS OF SPRING WHEAT IN THE PAVLODAR REGION

To prevent losses of wheat yield from pests, it is necessary to update information on the patterns of formation of the phytosanitary situation in agrobiocenoses, according to which protective measures are planned and organized. In order to assess the phytosanitary situation of spring wheat crops, studies were carried out in the Pavlodar region, as one of the main regions of the republic for the production of grain of this crop. The paper reflects monitoring data on the phytophages population of spring wheat crops in the main grain-sowing areas of the Pavlodar region. The species composition of cereal crop pests that have a direct effect on productivity, qualitative and quantitative indicators of agricultural crops has been established. The obtained results showed that starting from the germination and up to the stem elongation phase, cereal crops were colonized by latent-stem pests and Phyllotreta vittula. Haplothrips tritici, Psammotettix striatus and Trigonotylus ruficornis dominated in the stem elongation and heading phases. Schizaphis graminum, Haplothrips tritici in two forms (larvae and adults) and Laodelphax striatella dominated in the phase of grain formation-filling and milk development phase. The study showed that during the initial phases of wheat development, the majority of pests develop and feed on wild weed plants, subsequently migrating to the cereals.

Development of a real-time wireless sensor network-based information system for efficient irrigation of upland and lowland crop production systems

This study developed a real-time web-and WSN-based information system for efficient irrigation water management and automation of drip-irrigated upland crop and intermittently-irrigated lowland crop production systems. The web-based system uses Flutter and DART to accommodate multiple end user platforms, while the WSN-based system uses state-of-the-art hardware and sensors for real-time monitoring of soil moisture, water level and weather conditions. The sensors are wirelessly connected in a low-power mesh network that sends data to a central server. The sensor readings are uploaded to the web application via MQTT, which generates charts and graphs for data analysis. The sensor readings compared well with measurements from conventional instruments. The system in this study provides a sustainable solution for improving irrigation efficiencies under both upland and lowland crop production systems, in minimizing water losses and in improving the overall agricultural crop productivity.

UTILIZATION OF MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS TO ASCERTAIN SELECTION CRITERIA FOR ENHANCED NUTRITIOUS FODDER YIELD AND CONTRIBUTING ATTRIBUTES IN SORGHUM (Sorghum bicolor L.)

To get desired level of agricultural crop production, researchers are working hard to achieve appropriate plant genetics which should counterpart with management practices and prevalent environmental conditions. Plant breeders can be more effective in the development of stress tolerant crop cultivars and hybrids when the genetic mechanisms of key traits are understood. The scope of this study was to investigate the genetic potential for divergence and association analysis of fodder yield and quality contributing attributes in sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench]. Twenty genotypes of sorghum from USDA and Pakistan were assessed for 10 quantitative traits to recognize the supreme genotypes with balanced fodder quality as well as nutritional aspects. Phenotypic measurements indicated significant variation in plant height (45.33cm to 104.67cm), number of leaves per plant (10.00 to 17.67), leaf area (158.20 cm2 to 356.52 cm2), inter-nodal distance (5.86 cm to 12.10 cm), stem girth (7.36 mm/inch to 11.547 mm/inch), green forage yield (259.62 g to 584.90 g), crude fibre (13.42 % to 31.64 %), crude protein (3.77 % to 6.68 %), total ash contents (8.87 % to 20.65 %) and total digestible nutrients (52.89 % to 72.47 %). Among all the genotypes under investigation U-58 and P-19 performed the best for forage yield and quality related parameters. Green forage yield, crude protein and total digestible nutrient were the traits which were positively correlated with each other in cluster 3, so can be used as selection criteria. This study provided the baseline for future breeding program to maximize the forage yield and quality attributes.

Assessment of Crop Production Dynamics in Mizoram

Background: Mizo have been agriculturists from the beginning of the 18th century. They know only the form of farming known as shifting cultivation which forms the major activity of the Mizo economic life even today. Jhuming locally known as ‘Tlangramloneih’ is the only occupation and has a close link to their culture and tradition. It is the way of life and almost all the activities of the Mizo’s revolve around it. Methods: The data in Mizoram with respect to area, production and yield of major agricultural crops, fruits and vegetables were based on secondary data. Decade wise analysis of growth rate, instability index and decomposition analysis were done to study the crop production dynamics in the state. Result: Results revealed that during overall period, the growth rate in area, production and yield was negative for field crops except for sugarcane which was positive. For fruits and vegetables, the growth rate in area and production were positive for cabbage, birdeye chilli and banana whereas yield showed negative growth in all the studied fruits and vegetables. In general, the area effect was higher than the yield and interaction effect for all food grains and fruits and vegetables leading to the suggestion that steps should be taken to improve their productivity.

Salinity Stress Effects on Some Morpho-Physiological and Biochemical Traits of Basak

Soil salinity has long been regarded as one of the most serious environmental constraints limiting agricultural crop growth and productivity. The goal of this study was to analyze the morpho-physiological and biochemical alterations of basak plants at varying salinity levels by a pot experiment. The experiment was set up in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with five replications. The three different salinity levels (4 dS/m, 8 dS/m and 12 dS/m) and control (tap water) comprised the four different treatments in this investigation. The study showed that all parameters viz growth, physiological and biochemical were influenced significantly by different seawater induced saline treatments over time. Different morpho-physiological features, such as plant height, number of leaves, number of branches, and total dry matter (TDM) were shown to be decreased with increasing salinity as compared to control. However, chlorophyll (Chl) a, Chl-b, total Chl and carbohydrate content of basak plants were also negatively associated with increasing different seawater induced salinity levels. In response to seawater stress plants accumulate several biochemical compounds. In that case, the accumulation of proline (Pro), total phenol, MDA content and total antioxidant activities were found to be highest when plants were exposed to the uppermost salinity level i.e. 12 dS/m. Collectively, the findings reveal that, while seawater-induced salinity had a substantial impact on basak growth and biochemical parameters, all plants were able to endure a wide range of salinity levels, demonstrating the basak plant's ability to cope with salt-induced membrane damage.

JULGI-mediated increment in phloem transport capacity relates to fruit yield in tomato.

SummaryThe continuous growth of the global population and the increase in the amount of arid land has severely constrained agricultural crop production. To solve this problem, many researchers have attempted to increase productivity through the efficient distribution of energy; however, the direct relationship between the plant vasculature, specifically phloem development, and crop yield is not well established. Here, we demonstrate that an optimum increase in phloem‐transportation capacity by reducing SIJUL expression leads to improved sink strength in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.). SIJUL, a negative regulator of phloem development, suppresses the translation of a positive regulator of phloem development, SlSMXL5. The suppression of SlJUL increases the number of phloem cells and sucrose transport, but only an optimal reduction of SlJUL function greatly enhances sink strength in tomato, improving fruit setting, and yield contents by 37% and 60%, respectively. We show that the increment in phloem cell number confers spare transport capacity. Our results suggest that the control of phloem‐transport capacity within the threshold could enhance the commitment of photosynthates to instigate yield improvement.

The Effects of Brief Heat During Early Booting on Reproductive, Developmental, and Chlorophyll Physiological Performance in Common Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).

Rising temperatures due to climate change threaten agricultural crop productivity. As a cool-season crop, wheat is heat-sensitive, but often exposed to high temperatures during the cultivation period. In the current study, a bread wheat panel of spring wheat genotypes, including putatively heat-tolerant Australian and CIMMYT genotypes, was exposed to a 5-day mild (34°C/28°C, day/night) or extreme (37°C/27°C) heat stress during the sensitive pollen developmental stage. Worsening effects on anther morphology were observed, as heat stress increased from mild to extreme. Even under mild heat, a significant decrease in pollen viability and number of grains per spike from primary spike was observed compared with the control (21°C/15°C), with Sunstar and two CIMMYT breeding lines performing well. A heat-specific positive correlation between the two traits indicates the important role of pollen fertility for grain setting. Interestingly, both mild and extreme heat induced development of new tillers after the heat stress, providing an alternative sink for accumulated photosynthates and significantly contributing to the final yield. Measurements of flag leaf maximum potential quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) showed an initial inhibition after the heat treatment, followed by a full recovery within a few days. Despite this, model fitting using chlorophyll soil plant analysis development (SPAD) measurements showed an earlier onset or faster senescence rate under heat stress. The data presented here provide interesting entry points for further research into pollen fertility, tillering dynamics, and leaf senescence under heat. The identified heat-tolerant wheat genotypes can be used to dissect the underlying mechanisms and breed climate-resilient wheat.

Sprinkler Drip Infiltration Quality Prediction for Moisture Space Distribution Using RSAE-NPSO

Considering the high quality requirements related to agricultural production, the intelligent prediction of sprinkler drip infiltration quality (SDIQ) of the moisture space distribution in soil fields is an important issue in precision irrigation. The objective of this research is to adaptively predict an optimal data set of SDIQ indices using a robust prediction algorithm called the regulated sparse autoencoder–niche particle swarm optimization (RSAE-NPSO) system, so that the SDIQ indices of various irrigated layers of loam, sandy, chernozem, saline–alkali, and clay soils can be predicted and analyzed. This prediction procedure involves the following steps. First, the drip infiltration effectiveness of the moisture on specific irrigated soil layers is measured. Second, a complete set of SDIQ indices used for assessing the moisture space distribution is introduced. Third, an analytical framework based on the RSAE-NPSO algorithm is established. Fourth, the intelligent prediction of SDIQ indices using RSAE-NPSO computation is achieved. This research indicates that when the irrigation parameters include the sprinkling pressure (Pw) at 224.8 KPa, irrigation duration time (Id) at 2.68 h, flow discharge amount (Fq) at 1682.5 L/h, solar radiation (Sr) at 17.2 MJ/m2, average wind speed (Aw) at 1.18 m/s, average air temperature (At) at 22.8 °C, and average air relative humidity (Ah) at 72.8%, as well as the key variables of the irrigation environment, including the soil bulk density (Sb) at 1.68 g/cm3, soil porosity (Sp) at 68.7%, organic carbon ratio (Oc) at 63.5%, solute transportation coefficient (St) at 4.86 × 10−6, evapotranspiration rate (Ev) at 33.8 mm/h, soil saturated hydraulic conductivity rate (Ss) at 4.82 cm/s, soil salinity concentration (Sc) at 0.46%, saturated water content (Sw) at 0.36%, and wind direction Wd in the north–northwest direction (error tolerance = ±5%, the same as follows), an optimal data set of SDIQ indices can be ensured, as shown by the exponential entropy of the soil infiltration pressure (ESIP) at 566.58, probability of moisture diffusivity (PMD) at 96.258, probabilistic density of infiltration effectiveness (PDIE) at 98.224, modulus of surface radial runoff (MSRR) at 411.25, infiltration gradient vector (IGV) at [422.5,654.12], and normalized infiltration probabilistic coefficient (NIPC) at 95.442. The quality inspection of the SDIQ prediction process shows that a high agreement between the predicted and actual measured SDIQ indices is achieved. RSAE-NPSO has extraordinary predictive capability and enables much better performance than the other prediction methods in terms of accuracy, stability, and efficiency. This novel prediction method can be used to ensure the infiltration uniformity of the moisture space distribution in sprinkler drip irrigation. It facilitates productive SDIQ management for precision soil irrigation and agricultural crop production.

Role of Ozone in Food Industry and Agriculture- A Review

Food contamination is a critical problem that necessitates ongoing food pathogen control at every stage of the manufacturing process. In the food industry, it is critical to maintain product quality and safety. They can be accomplished in a variety of ways, some of which are more technologically advanced than others. The role, contribution, importance, and influence of ozone as a disinfectant used to regulate and eliminate the presence of unfavourable bacteria in food products, as well as to extend their shelf life and remove unwanted odours, are discussed in the study. Several researchers have studied the qualities and applications of ozone, demonstrating that ozone treatment technology may be used on a wide range of foods, including fruits, vegetables, spices, meat and seafood, and beverages. Besides food industry, ozone is also used in agriculture crop production in the way of soil application, foliar spraying and irrigation. A combination of such papers, as described in this review, can be helpful in determining acceptable ozone treatment parameters as well as factors affecting improved food quality and safety. It also includes a critical assessment of the benefits and drawbacks of ozone’s use in the food industry.

The combined impact of LLINs, house screening, and pull-push technology for improved malaria control and livelihoods in rural Ethiopia: study protocol for household randomised controlled trial

BackgroundThe combined application of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS) are commonly used malaria interventions that target indoor Anopheles vectors. Recent studies on the effects of house screening (HS) and LLINs have demonstrated a reduction in indoor vector densities and malaria when the interventions are combined. In addition, complementary interventions are needed to curb co-occurring pest populations which pose menace to agricultural crop productivity and food security. However, interventions that impact malaria mainly centre on public health strategies, overlooking subtle but important component of agricultural measures. Addressing the coexisting risks of malaria and crop pests could contribute to improved livelihood of communities.MethodsA four-armed household, cluster-randomized, controlled study will be conducted to assess the combined impact of HS, LLINs and push-pull agricultural technology (PPT) against clinical malaria in children in Ethiopia. The unit of randomization will be the household, which includes a house and its occupants. A total of 838 households will be enrolled in this study. In this trial 246 households will receive LLINs and HS, 250 will receive LLINs, HS and PPT, 175 households will receive LLINs and PPT. The remaining 167 houses which receive LLINs only will be used as control. One child aged ≤14 years will be enrolled per household in each treatment and followed for clinical malaria using active case detection to estimate malaria incidence for two malaria transmission seasons.DiscussionEpisodes of clinical malaria, density of indoor biting malaria vectors, sporozoite infection rate, improved crop infestation rate, crop yield gain, livestock productivity and cost effectiveness analysis will be the end points of this study. Socio-economic, social demographic, cost-effectiveness analysis will be conducted using qualitative and participatory methods to explore the acceptability of HS and PPT. Documenting the combined impact of LLINs, HS and PPT on the prevalence of clinical malaria and crop pest damage will be the first of its kind.Trial registrationPan African Clinical Trials Registry, PACTR202006878245287. 24/06/2020. https://pactr.samrc.ac.za/TrialDisplay.aspx?TrialID=11101.

The Synopsis of Environmental Heavy Metal Pollution

Heavy metal pollution continues to be a serious problem in the environment due to uncontrolled pesticide use, mining, foundry operations, smelting, fossil fuel burning and sewage sludge dumping. Mercury, lead, chromium, cadmium, copper and other heavy metals are non-biodegradable and remain in the environment in regions where human activity is prevalent. Heavy metal contamination is a serious hazard to all biota in the ecosystem because of its devastating consequences and their accumulation in soil and water has significant implications for food safety and security, the growth of plants and the survival of soil microorganisms that play significant roles in sustaining agricultural crop production. Even at low doses, these metals are toxic and can affect the food chain, posing serious public health risks. Hence, the purpose of this study is to present a concise but detailed potential source and impacts of heavy metals on the biotic segment of the ecosystems with a view to understanding and building long-term strategies for reducing their pollution and protecting public health.