scholarly journals The Use of Freshwater Sapropel in Agricultural Production: A New Frontier in Kenya

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Sylvia I. Murunga ◽  
Eliud N. Wafula ◽  
Joseph Sang
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Nutrient Management ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
Soil Microbial Diversity ◽  
Sustainable Food

Opportunities for sustainable agriculture development in Kenya which heavily depends on healthy soil and soil microbial diversity can be found in the promotion of organic farming. The increasing populations, higher demands for animal and plant products, climate change impacts, and weather conditions necessitate novel ideas and technologies to try reverse the adverse effects of excessive use of inorganic fertilizers and to maximize the potential of the land. Sapropel, a promising biological deposit from freshwater lakes, has found its limelight in its use in agricultural crop production as a soil conditioner and biofertilizer. This could be an ultimate practice for sustainable food and energy production in Kenya. This review aims at presenting information in the literature about the potential use of the organic fertilizer based on sapropels in intensified crop production and their main effects on plant growth. It discusses soil fertility, the composition of sapropels, and their application and advantages in agricultural production. It is evident from the review that sapropel can be considered as a resource that is valuable with wide application possibilities in agriculture. Sapropel can present an important contribution to the solution of the conservation of the fertility of the soil for integrated nutrient management systems to maintain agricultural productivity and help in environmental conservation.

scholarly journals Optimizing Rotavator Design Towards Enhancing Agricultural Crop Productivity

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 48-52
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Pigeon Pea ◽  
Chemical Fertilizer ◽  
Cost Ratio ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
Seedbed Preparation

By continuous and rapid growth in industrialization as well as population, the agricultural lands are also becoming less and less continuously day by day which results in increase in the population of small land holders. In addition to this, because of continuous decreasing production the youth of the villages are also migrating in big cities for the employment, resulting decreasing manpower essential to perform various seedbed operations in the villages. Hence, it is the need of time for small farmers having small agricultural land and having less crop production to introduce the cost-effective farm mechanization so that they can improve production rate. Rotavator is the best option available to achieve this landmark as it is already proved that seedbed prepared by using rotavator gives highest benefit to cost ratio. For this experimental study the whole land of 9 acre area is divided into 18 plots of equal size in area. The combination of method of seedbed preparation and use of fertilizers were the preliminary criteria. The categories of fertilizer according to quantity are discussed earlier which are 50kg, 35kg and 65kg per acre respectively. The quantities of organic fertilizer used are 45kg and 60kg per acre of agricultural land for both seedbeds which are prepared manually and by using rotavator. The highest production of Pigeon Pea was obtained of 814kg was from the plot whose seedbed is prepared by using agricultural machine called rotavator and organic fertilizer; next highest production is obtained of 802 kg from the plot whose seedbed is prepared by using rotavator and the fertilizer used was chemical fertilizer. The minimum production of Pigeon Pea which is 690 kg was obtained in the plot whose seedbed was prepared manually and chemical fertilizer was used.

scholarly journals Climate change impacts on agriculture sector: A case study of Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Uzair Ali ◽  
Wang Jing ◽  
Jialin Zhu ◽  
Zhibek Omarkhanova ◽  
Shah Fahad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Development ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Influence Factors ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Agriculture Sector ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Vulnerability To Climate Change

ABSTRACT: The current article looks at the effects of climate change on agriculture, especially crop production, and influence factors of agricultural development in terms of their rational use in Pakistan. Due to the dependence of economic development, and agriculture in the South Asian region on access to renewable national resources and the associated vulnerability to climate change, the limited financial and professional resources of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan require a clear definition of national priorities in this area. In the preparation of this article, general scientific cognition methods, in particular, empirical-theoretical methods were used. Grouping and classification methods have been used to process and systematize the data. The ability to change productivity, depending on the variation of the average annual air temperature and the average annual precipitation rate, was considered using a two-factor regression model. The main finding of the study is that temperature and precipitation have a negative impact on agricultural production. This study can provide a scientific justification for the specialization of agricultural production in the regions of Pakistan as well as the execution of the necessary agricultural activities.

scholarly journals The Determinants of Agricultural Crop Productivity among Smallholder Households in Haramaya Distinct, Eastern Ethiopia

2021 ◽  
Vol 04 (04) ◽  
pp. 146-153
Author(s):  
Desta Bati Nuno ◽  
◽  
Murad Mohammed Baker ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Household Head ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Eastern Ethiopia ◽  
Soil Fertility Status

The agricultural crop is a backbone in Ethiopia since the country's economy is mainly dependent on agriculture, which is dominated by subsistence smallholder farmers who are partially integrated into the market. The objective of this study was to identify the determinants of crop productivity among smallholder farmers in Haramaya distinct, Eastern Ethiopia. A two-stage random sampling procedure was employed to detect a sample containing 260 smallholder households in the study area. Data was collected through semi-structured questionnaire schedules administered to the selected household farmers. The features of smallholder farmers were analyzed through descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression models. The results indicated that the length of farming experience of the household head, number of economically active members in family, amount of organic fertilizer applied, irrigated land area, and soil fertility status of farmland were the significant determinants of agricultural crop productivity. To increase the production and productivity of smallholder farms, the farmers were provided with land irrigation. Based on these findings, the study recommends the provision of organic fertilizer to farmers. Policies should also target supplying improved technology and improved seed to enhance agricultural crop production in Ethiopia.

scholarly journals Smallholder Farmers Vulnerability Level to Climate Change Impacts and Implications to Agricultural Production in Tigray Regional State, Northern Ethiopia

2019 ◽  
pp. 237-250
Author(s):  
Alemu Addisu ◽  
Daniel Olago ◽  
Shem Wandiga ◽  
Silas Oriaso ◽  
Dorothy A. Amwata
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Single Unit ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Sampling Techniques ◽  
Total Income ◽  
Vulnerability To Climate Change ◽  
Unit Increase ◽  
Change Impact

Vulnerability to climate change impact is the most pressing issues for less developed countries whose economy mainly depends on the agricultural sector. The demand for food is growing swiftly whereas impacts of climate change on the global food production are increasing. More area specific research outputs and evidences-based policy directions are needed to tackle the ever changing climate and to reduce its impacts on the agricultural production. The aim of this study was to investigate subsistence farmer household’s vulnerability level to climate change impacts and its associations with household’s agricultural production. Then primary data was collected from 400 households from Kolla Temben District, Tigray Regional State, North Ethiopia. Multistage sampling techniques were applied to select households for interview from the district. In the first stage, 4 Kebelles (Kebelle - administration unit) were selected randomly out of 27 Kebelles and then400 households were selected for interview through systematic random sampling techniques (Figure 1). Multiple regressions were used to examine the associations between household’s vulnerability to climate change impacts and agricultural production. Grounded theory and content analysis techniques were use to analyze data from key informant interviews and focus group discussions. For every single unit increase in household vulnerability to climate change impacts, there was an average agricultural production decrease between 16.99 and 25.83 (Table 4). For single unit increase in household’s vulnerability to climate change impact, there was a decrease of total crop production, Total income, total livestock, total food consumption and food consumption per adult equivalent. Rainfall decrease, small farmland ownership, steep topography, frequent flood occurrences and large family size are among the major factors that negatively affect household’s agricultural production and total income. The more the vulnerable the households, the less in total annual crop production, total livestock size, total income from agricultural production and the more dependent on food aid). There is a negative association between household’s vulnerability level to climate change impacts and agricultural production (crop production, total livestock ownerships and total income from crop production). More access to irrigation and agricultural fertilizers, improved varieties of crops, small family size, improve farmland ownership size, more access to education and Agricultural Extension services are an effective areas of intervention to improve household’s resilient, reduce households vulnerability level to climate change impacts and increase household’s total agricultural production.

Research Progress of Biochar, Pyroligneous Acid and Organic Fertilizer Mixture and its Components in Agricultural Production

2013 ◽  
Vol 448-453 ◽  
pp. 680-687
Author(s):  
Xue Jun Yang ◽  
Zhen Kun Lin ◽  
Jie Chen ◽  
Jun Hui Wu ◽  
Hui Ping Si ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Soil Amendment ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Organic Fertilizer ◽  
Chemical Fertilizer ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Research Progress ◽  
Pyroligneous Acid ◽  
Point Pollution

With the growing amount of the chemical fertilizer consumption and agricultural wastes, non-point pollution of agriculture has been one of the problems threatening world crop production, especially considering the urgency of climate change. In this paper, a review of the research of biochar, pyroligneous acid and organic fertilizer mixture is given. And agronomic and environmental benefits that can potentially be derived from the application of this soil amendment in soils are discussed.

SUSTAINABLE RYE PRODUCTION IN THE WESTSIK CROP ROTATION EXPERIMENT

2000 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Lazányi
Keyword(s):  
Crop Rotation ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Nutrient Management ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Continuous Production ◽  
Farmyard Manure ◽  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Ecological Requirements

The best-known and most remarkable example of continuous production in Hungary is the Westsik crop rotation experiment established in 1929. It is still in use to study the effects of organic manure treatment, to develop models and to predict the likely effects of different cropping systems on soil properties and crop yields. In this respect, the Westsik crop rotation experiment provides data of immediate value to farmers concerning the application of green manure, straw and farmyard manure. The increased demand for food and changes in the ecological requirements of agricultural production have urged scientists to revise the widely used traditional principles and to develop alternative crop production practices. In this respect, they must strive for the adoption of technologies which serve for the simultaneous maintenance of production levels, soil fertility and environmental goals. The Westsik crop rotation experiment provides useful help and a thorough scientific basis for the solution of this problem. It models various possible methods of nutrient management and assists in answering questions on the sustainability of agricultural production. Since 1929, only minor changes have been introduced in some treatments. These changes have made the classical experiment more relevant to current research needs and farming practices.

Regional climate change impacts on agricultural crop production in Central and Eastern Europe – hotspots, regional differences and common trends

2012 ◽  
Vol 151 (6) ◽  
pp. 787-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. EITZINGER ◽  
M. TRNKA ◽  
D. SEMERÁDOVÁ ◽  
S. THALER ◽  
E. SVOBODOVÁ ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Availability ◽  
Regional Differences ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Central And Eastern Europe ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Regional Climate Change ◽  
Limiting Factors ◽  
Agricultural Crop

SUMMARYThe present study investigates regional climate change impacts on agricultural crop production in Central and Eastern Europe, including local case studies with different focuses in Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The area studied experiences a continental European climate and is characterized by strong climatic gradients, which may foster regional differences or trends in the impacts of climate change on agriculture. To study the regional aspects and variabilities of climate change impacts on agriculture, the effect of climate change on selected future agroclimatic conditions, crop yield and variability (including the effect of higher ambient CO2 concentrations) and the most important yield limiting factors, such as water availability, nitrogen balance and the infestation risks posed by selected pests were studied. In general, the results predicted significant agroclimatic changes over the entire area during the 21st century, affecting agricultural crop production through various pathways. Simulated crop yield trends confirmed past regional studies but also revealed that yield-limiting factors may change from region to region. For example, pest pressures, as demonstrated by examining two pests, are likely to increase due to warmer conditions. In general, higher potentials for cereal yield increase are seen for wetter and cooler regions (i.e. uplands) than for the drier and warmer lowlands, where yield potentials will be increasingly limited by decreasing crop water availability and heat under most scenarios. In addition, yield variability will increase during the coming decades, but this may decrease towards the end of the 21st century. The present study contributes to the interpretation of previously conducted climate change impact and adaptation studies for agriculture and may prove useful in proposing future research in this field.

Nitrogen balance as an indicator of environmental impact: Toward sustainable agricultural production

2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 276-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.F. Sassenrath ◽  
J.M. Schneider ◽  
R. Gaj ◽  
W. Grzebisz ◽  
J.M. Halloran
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Nutrient Management ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
N Balance ◽  
Nutrient Budgets ◽  
Department Of Agriculture ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Impact

AbstractEfficient nutrient use is critical to ensure economical crop production while minimizing the impact of excessive nutrient applications on the environment. Nitrogen (N) is a key component of agricultural production, both as an input to support crop production and as a waste product of livestock production. Increasing concern for future sustainability of agricultural production and preservation of the natural resource base has led to the development of nutrient budgets as indicators and policy instruments for nutrient management. Nutrient budgets for N have been developed by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as agri-environmental indicators to compare the evolving conditions in member states, and are also used by the US Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS) to develop nutrient management plans. Here, we examine the crop and animal production systems, drivers impacting management choices, and the outcome of those choices to assess the utility of gross annual N balances in tracking the progress of management decisions in minimizing the environmental impact of agricultural production systems. We use as case studies two very different agronomic production systems: Mississippi, USA and Poland. State and country level data from the US Department of Agriculture and OECD databases are used to develop data for the years 1998–2008, and gross annual N balances are computed. Examination of agricultural production practices reveals that the gross annual N balance is a useful tool in identifying differences in the magnitude and trends in N within agricultural systems over large areas. Significant differences in the magnitude of the N budget were observed between the highly diversified, small-scale agriculture common to Poland, and the large-scale, intensive agriculture of Mississippi. It is noted that use of N balance indices can be problematic if the primary intent is to reveal the impact of economic drivers, such as crop prices, or management choices, such as tillage or crop rotation. Changes in cropping systems in response to commodity prices that improve N balance can be masked by detrimental growing conditions, including edaphic, biotic and weather conditions, that are outside of the producers’ control. Moreover, use of large area-scale indices such as country or state-wide balances may mask the severity of localized nutrient imbalances that result from regionalized production systems that overwhelm the nutrient balance, such as confinement livestock production. Development of a policy to address environmental impact and establish sustainable production systems must consider the year-to-year variability of drivers impacting agricultural production, and the spatial heterogeneity of nutrient imbalance.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of microbial preparations in growing Cicer arietinum L. in the steppe zone of the Crimea

2020 ◽  
Vol 224 ◽  
pp. 04005
Author(s):  
S V Didovich ◽  
O P Ptashnik ◽  
V S Pashtetskiy
Keyword(s):  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Mineral Fertilizer ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Steppe Zone ◽  
Mineral Fertilizers ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
Seed Productivity ◽  
Safe Production ◽  
The Crimea ◽  
Southern Chernozem

Currently, the main priorities in agricultural production are ecologization, rational use of natural resources, resource-conservation and economic practicability. Therefore, biotechnologies for growing agricultural crop develop. The article presents the results of effectiveness of pre-sowing treatment with polyfunctional microbial preparations compared to the use of mineral fertilizer Ammophos in growing Cіcer arіetіnum L. in the steppe zone of the Crimea on non-irrigated southern Chernozem in 2015-2017. Weather conditions during the growing season and treatment with microbial preparations, as well as the use of mineral fertilizers, affected seed productivity of chickpeas in the time of research. On average, for three years, bacterization with Rhizobofit, Cyano-rhizobial consortium and complex Rhizobofit + Phosfoenterin + Biopolicyd significantly increased 1000 seeds weight and seed yield by 16.67 g (6.7%) and 0.15 t/ha (10.8%); 27.27 g (9.8%) and 0.1 t/ha (7.2%); 14.14 g (5.5%) and 0.22 n/ha (15.1%), respectively, compared to the Ammophos application in dose N30P30 (Duncan’s test p < 0,000121). These preparations are recommended for biologised agrotechnology for growing chickpea in the steppe zone of the Crimea and obtaining ecologically safe production.

scholarly journals Effects of climate variability and insurance adoption on crop production in select provinces of South Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 500-511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zelda Anne Elum ◽  
Godwell Nhamo ◽  
Michael Akwasi Antwi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Climate Variability ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Agricultural Insurance ◽  
Instrumental Variable Regression

AbstractIncreasing climate variability increases the risks in production and prices of agricultural products. Inarguably, Africa's susceptibility to climate change is high because it hosts the majority of the world's poor who cannot afford the costs of coping mechanisms. Agricultural insurance is being largely put forward as a coping measure of adapting to climate change to sustain farm production and farmers' livelihood. The study critically reviewed numerous publications on climate change impacts and the role of insurance in the adaptation process. It examined the effects of varying weather conditions and insurance on net crop revenue using the instrumental variable regression approach on a Ricardian model. The study further identified factors influencing the purchase of insurance among the farmers with a probit model. The study data were collected from a cross section of farmers in three selected provinces of South Africa. Results of data analysis indicated that owning insurance, number of labourers employed, size of irrigated farmland and rainfall have significant effects on net revenue. It was also revealed that experience, indicated by years of farming and revenue, influenced farmers' adoption of insurance. Consequently, the paper advocates for the provision of efficient irrigation facilities and promotion of insurance among farmers.

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