Current Topics in Agricultural Sciences Vol. 7

Sesame is used in pharmaceutics, industry, and as a biofuel, in addition to being popular as a meal. For hundreds of years, sesame has been spread and farmed in numerous ecological locations, including India. Sesame's ancient origins were aided by its capacity to thrive in environments where other crops could not. It's also the type of crop that flourishes in droughts, high temperatures, and with leftover moisture in the soil after the monsoons have passed, or even when rains fail. The productivity of sesame in India is not constant. The highest productivity was achieved in 2003, but productivity has been ups and down in a manner. And in recent times, it has been declined, but again in 2014, the productivity has been increased to some extent.

Background and Orientation: The term “agroforestry” was coined in the mid-1970s to enhance the global recognition of the fundamental and multi-dimensional role of trees on farms. The definition currently used by ICRAF, agroforestry “refers to a dynamic, ecologically based, natural resources management system that, through the integration of trees in farms and in the agricultural landscape, diversifies and sustains production for increased social, economic and environmental benefits for land users at all levels”.

Aim and Methodology: The aim of this chapter was to review and syntheses of studies on existing agroforestry systems on the continent. Further, the review focusses on linking agroforestry systems to sustainable livelihoods, taking into consideration its social/cultural, economic/financial and environmental/ecological benefits while identifying and presenting issues on agroforestry in Africa. Study Objectives: The objective of this study was assess the potential for African countries to use agroforestry as a tool for spearheading sustainable livelihood.

Findings: Agroforestry systems for Africa were categorized into three. Category one: Agrisilvicultural systems (crops - including shrub/vine/tree crops - and trees with the following technologies: (i) Improved fallow/Shifting cultivation; (ii) Taungya; (iii) Alley cropping (hedgerow intercropping); (iv) Multilayer tree gardens; (v) Multipurpose trees on crop lands; (vi) Plantation crop combinations; (vii) Homegardens; (viii) Trees in soil conservation and reclamation; (ix) Shelterbelts and windbreaks, live hedges; and (x) Fuelwood production. Category two: Silvopastoral systems (trees + pasture and/or animals) which include: (i) Trees on rangeland or pastures; (ii) Protein banks/Fodder banks; and (iii) Plantation crops with pastures and animals. Category three: Agrosilvopastoral systems (trees + crops + pasture/animals) which entails: (i) Homegardens involving animals; (ii) Multipurpose woody hedgerows; (iii) Apiculture with trees/Bee keeping; (iv) Aquaforestry/Fisheries; (v) Multipurpose woodlots; and (vi) Rotational woodlots. Over and above the three categories there was another crucial aspect of Sustainable management of natural forests and woodlands, which is another dimension that could be linked to trees and shrubs. Research provides evidence that the adoption and development of agroforestry systems in Africa is too slow and this chapter raised factors that could directly or indirectly influence the adoption of agroforestry among smallholder farmers in Africa. An review of recent case studies point the poor adoption and scaling up of agroforestry to numerous factors that include: (i) Lack of understanding of the benefits of agroforestry/Ignorance of the advantages of agroforestry; (ii) Delayed return on investment and under-developed markets; (iii) Emphasis on commercial agriculture; (iv) Mass agricultures focus on using fertilizers and pesticides; (v) Lack of tree seed supplies; (vi) Lack of land tenure among smallholder farmers/Unclear status of land and tree resources; (vii) Limited land; (viii) Market constraints; (ix) Lack of sufficient extension work and inadequate research; (x) Lack of skill, knowledge and awareness; (xii) Lack of interest; (xiii) Gender and age; (xiv) Lack of coordination between sectors; and (xv) Policy constraints and Adverse regulations. Therefore, there is a strong and urgent need for advancing agroforestry on the policy agenda. The underlying facts for opting to promote and regulate agroforestry through policies are as follows: (i) To eliminate legal and institutional constraints on agroforestry; (ii) To support positive outcomes of agroforestry; and to compensate farmers for the delay in returns. Africa would benefit from lessons leant from agroforestry success stories from within Africa and beyond. These lessons are that for agroforestry to flourish four issues are critical, and these are: (i) Agroforestry exists only where it is beneficial to farmers; (ii) Security of tenure rights is important; (iii) Agroforestry links sectors; and (iv) A strict enforcing of forest management rules promote agroforestry.

Conclusion: in order to establish and develop packages of agroforestry systems Africa needs observe five imperatives and these include: (i) Transition from traditional to modern farming systems is imperative; (ii Pressing need to shift from sectoral to multi-sectoral to inter-sectoral approach to farming (Integrated farming); (iii) Great potential for small-scale forest enterprise development (agroforestry); (iv) Need for effective forest governance and robust strategies to promote tree planting; and (v) Incorporation of agroforestry/forestry activities in national agriculture extension programmes.

Recently in Egypt, Pentodon algerinum destroys the strawberry plant. This study aimed to evaluate Spodoptera littoralis Nuclear polyhedrosis virus (SpliNPV) and Pentodon algerinum Nuclear polyhedrosis virus (PNPV) for the first time against Pentodon third instar larvae in the field on Fortuna strawberry in Qalubia Governorate, and their impact on the strawberry yield for saving of the yield through controlling to find successful safe alternative control method against this pest. Before PNPV and SpliNPV treatments, the percent of plots infested by P. algerinum larvae ranged from (18.18 to 48.9%) and (18.0 to 22.73%), respectively. Statistical analysis confirmed that there were great significant differences between the %Infestation, %infestation reduction, and %healthy plants after PNPV & SpliNPV treatments compared to before treatments (the Probability (P) was 0.0 < 0.05). PNPV & SpliNPV have no significant difference in their effects (the Probability (P) was 1.0 > 0.05). Furthermore, there was a significant difference in weight and price between (NPV virus treated infested strawberry and untreated infested strawberry (P=0.005)) and (healthy strawberry and untreated infested strawberry (P=0.004). While there was no significant difference between NPV virus treated infested strawberry and healthy strawberry in weight and price (P=0.761). These findings revealed that PNPV and SpliNPV were effective against this insect, and that this success allowed the plant to regain its strength and productivity, indicating that PNPV and SpliNPV are safe for this plant. As a result, PNPV and SpliNPV can be suggested as pest ecofriendly bio-control agents.

Agricultural pests cause 20-40 per cent loss of global crop production every year as reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization [1,2]. Excessive usage of pesticides to manage pests leads to severe problems. Smart agriculture presents the best option for farmers to apply artificial intelligence (AI) techniques integrated with modern information and communication technology to manage these harmful insect pests. Artificial intelligence (AI) is a broad term encompassing Machine Learning (ML), deep learning, computer vision etc. The core part of AI is Machine Learning (ML). Applications of AI in agricultural entomology are helpful in taxonomic studies, ecological studies and pest management. In this chapter, main focus is on AI usage in pest management through pest detection, monitoring, prediction and identification thereby helping in timely pest management. Several applications such as Plantix, Leaf-Byte, Bioleaf, Cotton Ace, Apizoom etc have been developed to diagnose and identify insect pests to manage them. Some of the important usage of AI in pest management discussed in the chapter are as follows: Chen et al. [3] developed an AIoT Based Smart Agricultural System for Tessaratoma papillosa (lychee giant stink bug) detection with 90 per cent accuracy. Karar et al. [4] developed a mobile application for the detection of five groups of insect pests viz., aphids, leaf hoppers, flax budworm, flea beetles, and red spider mites with 99.0 per cent accuracy for all tested pest images. As monitoring the insect pests is a crucial component in pheromone-based pest management systems, Ding and Taylor [5] developed an automatic moth detection method using AI with images collected from pheromone traps for timely pest management unlike the conventional counting methods. Liu et al. [6] using artificial intelligence developed an autonomous robotic vehicle in natural farm scene for the recognition of pyralidae insects with 94.3 per cent recognition accuracy for effective management of pyralidae insects in the farm. Potamitis and Rigakis [7] developed a smart trap for automatic remote monitoring of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Red palm weevil) to take necessary steps for controlling it based on ETLs. Selvaraj et al. [8] developed a model based on AI for banana diseases and pests detection with significant high success rate which is useful for early disease and pest detection. Hence, integrating artificial intelligence with Entomology will help in effective & timely management and forecasting of pests and diseases.

The primary goal of this research is to look into the performance and productivity, as well as the genetic diversity, of 18 garlic selections in 3 garlic genotypes (i.e., Eggaseed-1 cv., Sids- 40 cv. and Egyptian cv.) commonly found in the Egyptian market. In both seasons of the study, varieties with fewer cloves produced greater yields. Eggaseed-1 cv. and Sids-40 cv. produced between 9.7-11.9 ton/fed, while Egyptian cv. produced between 8.8-9.1 ton/fed (fresh yield). The genetic diversity of garlic varieties  was demonstrated using simple sequence repeat markers (SSR), which were integrated with a post-labeling technique. For genetic characterization, 18 garlic selections and SSR markers with high polymorphism richness were studied. Ten markers amplified a total of 61 DNA fragments, with each marker amplifying an average of 6.1 fragments. With SSR data, genetic distances were calculated using the garlic selections, and the associations between selections were clearly illustrated using a dendrogram cluster analysis. The garlic varieties ' genetic similarity ratings ranged from 65.77 to 91.54 %. Eggaseed-1 and Sids-40 selections had the most genetic similarity (91.54 %), whereas Egyptian and Eggaseed-1 selections had the largest genetic dissimilarity. These findings enable the identification of two garlic-colored garlic selections in Eggaseed-1 cv. and Sids-40 cv., as well as their distinction from Egyptian cv. selections, which is classified as white garlic variety. Because garlic reproduces asexually, identifying the right genotype(s) is essential for obtaining high quality; in the meantime, the results can aid in selection in the breeding program and for commercial production.

This study aimed to determining the parasitic contaminants of lettuce, tomato and cucumber from some vegetable production sites in Mali, in order to assess the health risk related to their consumption. Fresh vegetables are an essential component of a balanced diet. When eaten uncooked, they have the potential to transmit intestinal parasites. The frequency and variability of parasite eggs were assessed on thirty-two lettuce, tomato and cucumber samples from irrigated vegetable farms in Bamako, Kati, Baguineda, Samanko, Sikasso, and Niono.  Counting parasite eggs and cysts in 100 g of vegetable was used to determine the parasite load. The overall prevalence of parasite contamination of vegetables was 20.83 percent, with lettuce accounting for 41.66 percent and tomato accounting for 16.66 percent. Cucumber had no parasite eggs on it. Parasites found on the vegetables were Entamoeba coli and Trichomonas intestinalis (24.19% each), Ascaris lumbricoides (13.25%), Giardia intestinalis (12.9%), Balantidium coli (11.29%), Entamoeba histolitica (7.26%), Fasciola hepatica (3.23%), Trichinella spiralis (1.61%), Ancylostoma duodenale and Schistosoma intercalatum (1.04% each). In Bamako and Niono, parasites on lettuce were found in 83.33 percent of cases, 50.00 percent in Kati, 16.66 percent in Baguineda and Samanko, and 0.00 percent in Sikasso. Consumption of parasite-infested vegetables poses a health risk to customers. Some agronomic practices undertaken by vegetables farmers in Mali could be a source of parasitic contaminations and potentially put the health of farmers and consumers. Undecomposed manure, open defecation in farms, run-off water from drains, contaminated soil and irrigation water and overhead irrigation are likely sources of lettuce, tomato and cucumber contamination in many vegetables’ farms. There was the need for scientific quantitative data to trace pathway by which parasites get to irrigated vegetables, to determine key points where health risk reduction interventions could be applied.

Introduction: The gerbera belong to the family Asteraceae is the chief cut flowers and ranks among the top ten cut flowers in the universe. For commercial propgation of this plant species, planting material is required on large-scale which requires the employment of plant tissue culture techniques for massive in vitro propagation.

Study Objectives: In this investigation, an effort was made to compute optimal concentration of plant growth regulators added in culture medium and optimize other physical factors exhibiting higher in vitro response by culturing mature embryo in vitro.

Results: Nutrient media MS3D.5B (MS + 3.0 mgl-1 2, 4 D + 0.5 mgl-1BA + 30.0 gl-1 sucrose + 7.5 gl-1 agar powder) evidenced more appropriate for callus initiation. Inoculation media MS2N.5iP/MS3N.5ip (MS + 2.0/3.0mg l-1 NAA + 0.5 mgl-12-ip + 30.0 gl-1 sucrose + 7.5 gl-1 agar) displayed higher in vitro response i.e., numbers of shoot proliferating explants and numbers of shoot (s) per explant. While, shoot of higher length was recovered on culture medium MSB/MS2B (MS + 2.0/3.0 mgl-1BA + 30.0 gl-1 sucrose + 7.5 gl-1 agar). Enhanced in vitro rooting response (root proliferating efficiency, numbers of roots and root of higher length) were documented on rooting medium MS.1IB (MS + 0.1 mgl-1IBA + 15.0gl-1 sucrose + 7.5 g l-1 agar). The regenerants were transferred to pots and hardened in Environmental Growth Cabinet and net House and subsequently shifted to field conditions efficaciously. Phenotypic normal plants were acquired.

This chapter examines the significance and impact of privatisation on the management and organisation of agricultural extension and advisory services in Cameroon. The researchers employed qualitative and quantitative research methods based on the Grounded Theory methodology. Purposively sampling 114 farmers, 26 extension agents, and 14 senior extension officers based on their participation in four agricultural extension programs in three regions that typify diverse ecological and socio-cultural features of farming in Cameroon. The results indicate that persistent economic constraints have increased the country's reliance on external funding for agricultural extension programs, with pressure to reduce government spending, a high level of awareness among farmers about new organizational changes in extension, and their willingness to accept innovations in their working methods with support services that provide appropriate solutions to their farm problems. The privatization of agricultural extension and advisory services has resulted in a growing involvement and collaboration of private enterprises and non-governmental organizations in providing extension and advisory services to farmer clients. This improves the efficiency and long-term viability of farmer-accessible information systems.

This research was aimed to determine the interactive effects of Rhizobium inoculation and phosphate rock on two different varieties namely KS20 and N26. Green gram is an important source of food security in Tharaka Nithi County. As a result, a low-cost and long-term agricultural production system is required to enhance productivity. In combination with phosphate rock, the legume/Rhizobium symbiosis provides a natural mechanism for enhancing green gram nitrogen fixation. As a result, the goal of this study was to see how Rhizobium and phosphate rock fertilizer affected the growth and yield characteristics of the N26 and KS20 varieties. The study was carried out at Chuka University Horticultural Research Farm for two seasons, November 2019 to January 2020 and February to April 2020. Factorial experiment of 2x2x2 was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD). There were three factors, variety (N26 and KS20), phosphate rock (0 and 30 kg P ha^-1) and Rhizobium MEA 716 (0 and 100 g ha^-1). Eight treatments were used in the experiment, each of which was reproduced three times. The data was collected fortnightly on four randomly selected plants on parameters such as plant height, number of leaves, branches, pods, total dry biomass, shoot and root dry weight and grain yield. Statistical Analysis Software(SAS) was used to analyze the data. At a probability level of 5%, significant means are separated using Least Significant Difference (LSD). Results for both seasons indicated that combined application of Rhizobium MEA 716 Rhizobium 100 g ha^-1 and phosphate rock 30 Kg ha^-1 phosphate under variety in treatment (R1P1V2) showed significantly (P<0.05) higher plant height (76.07 cm), number of branches (14.08 plant^-1), shoot dry biomass (52.01 g plant^-1), root dry biomass (7.60 g plant^-1), total dry biomass (146.4 g plant^-1), number of pods (84 plant^-1) and yield (2158 kg ha ^-1) compared to variety N26 in treatment (R1P1V1). As a result, combining Rhizobium MEA 716 100 g ha-1 with phosphate rock 30 Kg ha-1 under the variety KS20 resulted in increased growth qualities and yield components of the KS20 variety over the N26 variety. Based on these findings, 100 g ha-1 Rhizobium MEA716 and 30 Kg ha-1 phosphate rock under variety KS20 were advised for better and long-term green gram production in the research area.