An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of different plant extracts on sprouting, storability and post-harvest loss of potato at ambient condition in Baglung district, Nepal. The parameters observed were sprouting percentage, sprout number, sprout length, sprout mass, weight loss percentage and damage score. The experiment consists of ten different treatments namely; Zingiber officinale rhizome, Azadirachta indica leaves, Atimisia spp. leaves, Utica dioica leaves, Control, Acorus calamus rhizome, Brassica campestris oil, Cymbopogon spp. oil, Azadirachta indica oil and Mentha spp. oil. The experiment was conducted in a Completely Randomized Design with four replications. Cympopogan oil, Mentha oil and Acorus powder completely suppressed the sprouting until 60 days with Cympopogan oil being the most effective to suppress sprouting throughout the experiment. The highest sprout number was recorded from Mentha oil (1.92) and control (1.79) after 90 days. The lowest sprout number was recorded from Cymbopogon oil (0.38). The average sprout length of Mentha spp. oil (13.47 mm) and control (13.19 mm) was maximum with minimum being that of Cymbopogon oil (2.5 mm) and Acorus (5.63 mm). The sprout mass measured at the end was maximum in control (2 gm) and minimum in Cymbopogon oil (0.25 gm). The weight loss percentage was maximum in control (10.66 %) with minimum in Cymbopogon oil (6.8 %). The tubers treated with Brassica campestris oil were damage to least (1.46) and highest damage score was recorded from control (1.88). A strong correlation was obtained between weight loss and sprout length (r=0.85), sprout number (r=0.78) and sprout mass (r=0.70).

Co-composting is an effective and environment friendly method of solid waste management to make valuable organic soil amendment which helps to maintain soil fertility in a sustainable way. An experiment was conducted to make co-compost using cattle manure (CM) and sawdust (SD) in different ratios (w/w) for the correct mixing proportion of raw materials to investigate the nutrient status of co-compost, and to evaluate the potential value of co-compost after incorporation into soil to form a nutrient rich growth media for Abelmoschus esculentus L. The experiment was laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with five treatments and three replications comprising of only SD, only CM, sawdust-cattle manure mixture in the ratio of 1:1 (SD: CM=1:1), 1:2 (SD: CM= 1:2) and 2:1 (SD: CM= 2:1) by weight. Compost samples were collected for nutrient analysis after 75 days of composting. The highest value of total N, P and S were obtained in CM compost. Organic carbon (OC) and C:N ratio were found higher in SD compost. Higher growth and yield of okra were recorded under SD:CM= 1:2 treatment. On the basis of the experimental results, combined application of SD and CM at 1:2 ratio was the right mixing proportion. So, the organic fertilizer mixed with SD and CM at 1:2 ratio would be an efficient soil amendment that would improve soil quality, promote plant growth and increase yield.

Poultry production is a growing industry that accounts about 3.5% of total GDP. The number of commercial farm is concentrated to districts like Chitwan, Kathmandu and Kaski but major of the poultry farming is followed by rural people which is under the free range system and low input production system. This review was written to summarize and study the present status, challenges and potential of poultry farming. In order to meet the demand of the poultry, the commercial poultry population has increased about more than two times than the last decade. Similarly, there has been marked increase in the number of laying birds, meat production and egg production in these recent years. But it has not been able to surpass the demand in the market. To meet the demand through commercialization, people have suffered different challenges like increase cost of production, lack of maintenance of bio-security, improper maintenance of housing ,lack of proper knowledge about poultry production ,irregular supply of qualifiable chicks ,religious and cultural restrictions ,outbreak of different diseases , lack of slaughter house and processing plant etc which has threatened the poultry business which can be uplifted through certain management strategies along with policies, programs and awareness campaign.

The study was conducted to know the soil fertility status and maize productivity along with soil management practices being adopted in Lamahi municipality and Rapti rural municipality of Dang district to have a basis for the understanding of possible management options for better soil fertility and productivity. 333 soil samples from different maize farmers’ field were tested for soil fertility parameters during the program in which 60 soil samples were also collected from maize fields. Next, crop and soil management survey was carried out through a household interview in the sampled field. These data were used to identify the range of critical soil-test concentrations of nutrients and to assess the production status of maize and the soil management practices in farmers filed and evaluate the current fertilizer practices of farmers. The result showed that there was a dominance of neutral-alkaline soils with low organic matter & nitrogen levels with high P and medium K. Similarly, maize productivity of the district was found to be 3.3 ton per hectare. It is found that most farmers were adopting traditional crop management practices for maize cultivation with a high dependency on chemical fertilizers for fertilization.

This study was conducted in the Northern Region of Ghana to assess the growth performance of two different Hevea brasiliensis clones namely IRCA 41 and GT 1 in the Guinea Savanna soil. The fresh rubber stumps which were used for the experiment were collected from Ghana Rubber Estate Limited (GREL) which is located in the Western Region. The research design employed the use of completely randomized design with thirty replicates each of the two Hevea brasiliensis species. Data was collected during the dry and rainy seasons. The results at the end of the project for the two Hevea brasiliensis clones showed an average germination rate of 86.66% and 73.30% during the rainy and dry seasons respectively. A mean height of 25.30cm, mean girth of 6.34mm and mean leaf number of 28 were recorded during the rainy season whiles a mean height of 22.56cm, mean girth of 3.41mm and mean leaf number of 42 were recorded in the dry season for the two Hevea brasiliensis clones. When T-test was performed on the two Hevea brasiliensis clones, it was revealed that, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in height, girth and number of leaves between the two different rubber clones during the rainy season and the dry season. Hevea brasiliensis therefore has a greater potential for cultivation in Guinea Savanna soil.

This paper focuses on the impact of climate change on the lives of rural farmers in the Pwalugu and Balungu communities of the Upper East Region of Ghana since farmers all over the country have been exposed to various adaptation strategies to climate change. From the study which was conducted in 2017, it was revealed that climate change affected respondents negatively resulting in reduced income level, inability to afford three square meals daily, inability to meet their health needs, inability to meet the educational needs of their children as well as inability to save at bank. Also, lack of finance, land tenure, norms/customs, lack of storage facilities, lack of ready markets, damage to crops by Fulani cattle and difficulty in obtaining seeds for farming were some challenges militating against the adoption of other adaptive strategies to climate change. The farmers therefore practiced crop diversification, adjustment in planting date of their crops, irrigation, change method of pr oduction, migration to the southern part of the country during the dry season to work, trading, fishing, among others as their specific adaptive strategies to climate change. The study recommends that, education should be one of the areas for policy intervention by government/stakeholders since access to education is vital in developing specific strategies of rural farmers to the diverse drivers and impacts of climate change on their lives.

This research investigated the allelopathic effects, the yields and qualitative phytochemical screening of the water extract of root exudates of five weed species i.e. Cyperus rotundus L. (T1), Marselia quadrifolia L. (T2), Ludwigia hyssopifolia (G. Don) Exell, (T3) Pistia stratiotes L. (T4) and Colocasia esculenta L. (T5). The allelopathic tests of root exudates on five weed species showed that all the extracts had the pronounced inhibitory effect on cowpea and mungbean (tested crops). The yields of root exudates of the selected weed species varied. Root exudate of T3 showed the highest yield whereby T1 contained the lowest one. A preliminary phytochemical test showed the positive result of alkaloids, flavonoids, phenols and carbohydrates whereas proteins, amino acids, tannins, saponins, have been found to be absent in the root exudates of tested weeds. The results evidenced that these mentioned weeds contain compounds in their root exudates which may cause allelopathic effects on both tested crops.

In ecological terms, modern cities consume 75% of world resources with 2% of global land area and have become a parasite and a resource sink. Unmanaged planning and rapid development often result in the destruction of natural resources and loss of greenery. Pokhara is rapidly urbanizing into a megacity in Nepal and climate change caused by global warming is a great menace here. To support the rising requirement of quality food for the skyrocketing population, the main consumption centre should be mobilized for food production. Rooftop gardens are gaining relevance as they have the potential to meet the growing demand for food in cities and enhance the ecosystem along with the conservation of biodiversity. Thus, the addition of greenery element such as a green roof is becoming a trend to solve this problem in Pokhara. Establishment of green roofs in Pokhara city is arousing the interest of the government and public due to their demonstrated environmental benefits. The objective of this research is to inspect the existing practice and obstacles in rooftop farming that is faced by pr actitioners. Nagdhungha and Birauta are the areas of research here. Two practitioners are interviewed and sixty nonpractitioners are surveyed. The result shows that rooftop farming can benefit the environment by greatly reducing carbon in the atmosphere and can assist urban areas by reducing stormwater management cost. Furthermore, the paper demonstrates that the willingness to practice rooftop farming is high among urban dwellers and for future scope, some recommendations are provided in this research.

A sixty days laboratory incubation study was conducted to investigate the effect of heavy metals on soil carbon, nitrogen and iron mineralization under aerobic condition. Sulphate salts of cadmium, zinc and copper were added individually and in combinations to soil samples and incubated in different plastic pots. Soil organic carbon did not change significantly throughout the incubation period. Soil microbial biomass carbon declined from 0.38mgkg-1to 0.19 mgkg-1 in Cd treated soil and 0.39 mgkg-1 to 0.28 mgkg-1 in Cu treated soil which account for about 50% and 28% reduction (p ≤0.05) in biomass carbon respectively. Cd:Zn and Cu:Cd treated soil had reduced 36.84% while Zn:Cu had 42.11% reduction in biomass carbon.CO2-C effluxes peaked by day 15 for all the single metal amended soil indicating that priming effects might have occurred. But in combination, metal showed some interaction for what the respiration rates were declined for the first 15 days. Rapid ammonification with presumed immobilization to ok place up to day 30. The result indicated a significant (p ≤0.05) net mineralization of nitrogen for Cd:Zn (63.72%) and Cu:Cd (66.66%) treatments at the end of the experiment. Available iron content showed significant changes in combined metal treatment than a single metal.

The study was conducted to evaluate the effect of photoperiod on the growth performance and behavioral pattern of Achatina achatina. Ninety snails of uniform weights were used for the study which lasted for 56 days. The snails were randomly assigned to three treatments and each treatment was replicated three times with 10 snails per replicate. The snails were exposed to different light duration. Treatment 1 had 12 hours light and 12 hours darkness, Treatment 2 was subjected to 18 hours light and 6 hours darkness, Treatment 3 was subjected to 24 hours light. The data collected was analysed using one-way analysis of variance and Duncan multiple range test for significant mean separation. Data were collected on feed intake, weight gain, time of feeding and reproductive behaviors. The results of the experiment showed that there were no significant differences (P>0.05) in final weight gain, average daily weight gain, total feed intake, average daily feed intake, feed conversion ratio, duration of courtship, duration of feeding and cost of feed per kg weight gain between tre atments. The results also showed that there were significant differences in number of eggs laid and mating duration between treatments. From the result, it was concluded that the best photoperiod for Achatina achatina is 24 hours light as it produced the lowest feed conversion ratio and cost of feed per kg weight gain and that was recommended for effective growth of Achatina achatina.