Farmers participatory research were conducted melon based cropping system with water melon and muskmelon in 20 hectare area during 2011-12 with an objective to study the water productivity and profitability of growing three melon crops under drip fertigation with polyethylene mulching. Field experiments were conducted at farmers field in Nolambur (Olakkur block and Vadanerkunam (Marakkanam block) Villupuram district of TamilNadu state. The results indicated that yield and quality characters of melons were significantly higher under drip fertigation coupled with mulching practice as compared to drip fertigation alone and or conventional irrigation method. In the first crop (watermelon) recorded highest fruit yield of 38.6 t ha-1 under drip fertigation coupled with polyethylene mulching (T3) as compared to either drip fertigation alone (T2) (31.1 t ha-1) and or farmer practice of furrow irrigation (T1) (21.8t ha-1). Similar trend was followed in second crop (Muskmelon) and third crop (Watermelon Ice box).In three-crop sequence, recorded highest cumulative fruit yield of 136t ha-1, which was 56 per cent yield advantage over the drip fertigation alone. In comparison with the conventional irrigation the yield advantage is more that 247per cent. The cumulative annual crop field analysis indicated that among the treatments drip fertigation combined with polyethylene mulching has increased the annual cost of production that increased the net profit to the maximum level of Rs. 7.59 lakhs ha-1.For the three crops 401 mm of water used under drip fertigation coupled with mulching, the saving was around 88.5 per cent over control and 34.8 per cent over drip fertigation alone.
An experiment to know the effect of fertigation on growth, yield and quality of okra. Var COBhH 1 was carried out during the year 2011 to 2013 at the Department of Vegetable Crops, Horticultural College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with six treatments and replicated four times. The treatment combination includes raised bed cultivation, drip irrigation, fertigation, plastic mulch, foliar spray of WSF and micronutrients. The results revealed that okra raised bed + drip irrigation + plastic mulch + fertigation + foliar spray of WSF (19:19:19 @ 10 g/lit. 5 times) + Mixture of all micronutrients (T1) recorded the days to 50% early flowering (43.7days), highest plant height (175.4cm), fruit length(13.8cm), fruit girth (6.48 cm), No. of fruits/plant (25.0), fruit yield/plant (0.466 kg), fruit yield/hectare (201.2.0 q) and economic returns (1.89) when compared to farmers practice (T6) which recorded 155.4 q/ha. Therefore (T1) raised bed + drip irrigation + plastic mulch + fertigation + foliar spray of WSF (19:19:19 @ 10 g/lit. 5 times) + mixture of all micronutrients can be recommended for getting increased growth, flowering and the highest yield for okra under kharif cultivation.
A field experiment was conducted in farmer owned land located in Varaghanathi river basin to demonstrate the yield performance of sugarcane varieties grown with chip bud method of propagation in combination with drip fertigation system. The study revealed that sugarcane propagated using chip bud method expressed significant growth performance in sugarcane. The plant height and number of tillers did not express any significant results invariable to method of propagation and varieties. The chip bud method of propagation recorded significantly higher millable cane (74.0), cane girth (3.04cm), cane weight (2.47 kg) and cane yield (135.9 t ha-1) at the time of harvest as compared to sett method. However, average cane yield was significantly higher under variety Co86032 (159.0 t ha-1) as compared to other ruling varieties in the study region. The lowest cane yield was recorded in variety PI 1401. However, there was no interaction observed between the method of propagation and sugarcane varieties. It can be concluded that chip bud method of propagation in sugarcane would increase significant cane yield as influenced sub surface drip fertigation that lower the mortality of canes.
There is a dearth of information on the effect of price distortion on the welfare of cocoa farmers. This study therefore investigated the impact of price changes on cocoa farmers’ welfare. The study was carried out in the Southern Nigeria specifically Ondo, Oyo and Cross River States. Multi-stage random sampling technique was used to select 250 cocoa farmers from the study area and the data collected from the selected respondents were analysed using descriptive statistics and Partial Equilibrium Model (PEM). The result indicated that the mean age of the farmers was 48 years while 80.8% of them had formal education. Furthermore, the result showed that the Net Social Loss in Production (NSLp) was ₦308,411.24 per tonne while Welfare Loss in Production (WLp) was ₦429,432.36 per tonne. The study concluded that the existing policies on agriculture in the study area did not favour cocoa producers.
Integrated weed management is a system approach where by whole land use planning is done in advance to minimise the very invasion of weeds in aggressive forms and give crop plants a strongly competitive advantage over the weeds. Further, importance is given to involve more than one method of weed control in tackling the weeds so those broad spectrums of weeds are kept under check for longer period. A pre emergence herbicide take care of weeds only for a limited period and do not give long term weed control in a long duration crop like cotton where the problem of late emerging weeds arises and escape killing. So to attain a season long weed control, integration of chemical, mechanical and cultural methods holds a great promise in crop production. Hence, integrated weed management in cotton play important role in increasing crop production. Field experiments were conducted during 2013 and 2014, at Agricultural College and Research Institute, Madurai (Tamil Nadu Agricultural University) to study the effect of integrated weed management in rainfed cotton. The weed management practices consisted of pendimethalin (1.0 kg.ha-1) and (Calotropis gigantea leaf extract spray at three concentrations (10%, 20%, and 30%) in combination with power weeder operation twice and manual weeding twice. From the results of the experiments, it could be recommended that the integrated weed management practices like, application of PE pendimethalin at 1.0 kg ha-1 + power weeding on 40 DAS (T11) recorded higher seed cotton yield and economic return.
Climate change, mostly indicated by Global Warming is resultant of increasing greenhouse gases like CO2, Methane, N2O, Ozone, CFC etc. Atmospheric CO2 has already risen from 285 ppm to 380 ppm during the 20th century with observed increase from 1950s. Scientists agree that the planet’s temperature has risen by 0.5 degree Celsius since 1900 and will continue to increase at an increasing rate. The sea level has been rising at the rate of 2mm a year since the beginning of 20th century. Droughts and floods have become more common. Changes in climatic factors would alter the nature of vegetation and agriculture and it is true especially with the increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration. Most of the earth’s plants respond positively to the atmospheric CO2 enrichment by increasing their photosynthetic rates and biomass production. It is the point of contention, however, that weeds may be more responsive to the ongoing rise in atmospheric CO2 than non-weeds, and therefore they may increase their dominance in agro-ecosystems. In this situation, weeds compete with crops for nutrient, water and light and can considerably reduce yields and quality of crops. In some cases, weeds can pose a human health problem or cause disturbance to the harvest. Hence, the impacts of climate change on weeds and weed management practices are more important aspects in future as that of crop cultivation.
