Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology
Volume:19 Issue: 5, Sep 2017

The overall objective of the present paper is demonstrating the utility of price forecasting of farm prices and validating the same for major crops namely, Paddy, Ragi and Maize in Karnataka state for the year 2016 using the time series data from 2002 to 2016. The results were obtained from the application of univariate ARIMA techniques to produce price forecasts for cereal and precision of the forecasts were evaluated using the standard criteria of MSE, MAPE and Theils U coefficient criteria. The results of ARIMA price forecasts amply demonstrated the power of the ARIMA model as a tool for price forecasting as revealed by pragmatic models of forecasted prices for 2020. The values of MSE, MAPE and Theils U were relatively lower, indicating validity of the forecasted prices of the three crops.

In today’s competitive world, employing marketing concepts and methods while prioritizing the marketing mix approach for products can play an important role in increasing sales and ensuring greater success in the marketplace. The main objective of this study is to prioritize the marketing mix in each stage of the product life cycle using the ANP approach. For this purpose, a questionnaire was designed, and a survey of food industry marketing managers in Mashhad was conducted in 2015. The results show that between 7P’s of marketing mix, in the introductory stage of the product life cycle, “promotion,” and in other stages “price” have the highest priority. According to the fact that each marketing mix has some sub-indices, the results show that among all sub-indices, “advertising” in the introductory stage, “high price” in the growth stage, “kind of payment” in the maturity stage, and in the decline stage, “rebate” possess the highest weights. Therefore, prioritization of the marketing mix can be used at different stages of the product life cycle to help managers for better allocation of their resources and increase profitability.

The types and varieties of peppers grown in Mediterranean areas are a response to the demand of European markets, although in each Autonomous Community local varieties are grown to satisfy the national demand. Nowadays, the range of shapes, colours, tastes and uses is wider than ever as a result of greenhouse cultivation, national and international tendencies and increased demand. In Murcia, the growing cycle runs from December to July or August, depending on the market and the growth of the crop. Sweet pepper is normally grown in greenhouses, using a variety of technologies: from simple shaded greenhouses, to the most-advanced multitunnels (large, in the form of a round arch or Gothic arch and with sophisticated ventilation). Due to the high cost of fuel, it is impossible to use heating during winter after transplanting, so alternative techniques are used to raise the temperature a few degrees and improve crop production. The aim of this work was to increase the precocity and productivity of sweet pepper grown in greenhouses. The effect of a Polypropylene Spunbonded Nonwoven Microtunnel (PSNM) was studied. The results show that, although the increase in production was not great (lower than 5% in both years of the study), precocity increased by 16% in both years. Since the increased cost of using this technology is not excessive, crop profitability increases if precocity is taken into account, as all our indicators show. The study suggests that the use of a PSNM raises the marketable production and brings forward the first harvests.

One of the major obstacles to agricultural development in Jordan is the weakness of extension programming which is still traditional and based on personal judgement. The aim of this study was to examine the attitudes, adoption barriers and in-service training needs of Public Extension Agents (PEAs) towards the adoption of Needs-Based Extension (NBE). An instrument to assess attitudes, barriers and training needs was designed and used to collect data from 73 PEAs in Jordan. Face and content validity were confirmed by a panel of experts, and internal consistency of the study scales were demonstrated by alpha coefficients ranging from 0.75 to 0.90. Parametric and nonparametric methods were used to analyze the data. The results showed that most PEAs had positive attitudes towards adopting NBE services, but adoption was constrained by internal and external barriers; supporting culture to NBE, finance and skills to undertake surveys and need analysis. The involvement of public extension staff in the survey contributed to in-service training and the application of NBE programs. Priority areas for training were determined using weighted discrepancy scores, with the most important being information technologies, agribusiness management and conducting needs assessment respectively. Study tours and professional training were perceived as the most important training methods. There were few significant differences among the PEAs with respect to the attitude and competence scales. These results indicate the need to undertake needs assessments of PEAs to improve extension programming in Jordan.

Nondestructive physical tests can be considered as recent trends for quality evaluation of agricultural products. Required information on postharvest quality of fruits and vegetables makes it possible to use their electrical properties as a novel method for nondestructive quality evaluation purposes. In this study, the electrical resistance of harvested apple fruits (Golden Delicious variety) was nondestructively measured by developing and employing special plate electrodes using a load cell to adjust the force holding the samples between two electrodes. Electrical resistance measurements were performed at two frequencies; 120 Hz and 1 kHz. Precise fruit weight was also measured along with electrical resistance measurements. The relationship between the electrical resistance and the weight loss was investigated during the storage period. The experiment ran for a total of 24 days. Results showed that in the 15 initial days of experiment, the electrical resistance decreased by increasing the storage period. But with further increase in the storage period, the electrical resistance also increased. The loss of the fruit moisture content, during the early stage of storage, may be attributed to the decrease of the fruit electrical resistance. However, as the stored apples lost more moisture, the concentration of ions, in soft tissues of samples, highly increased and this could be responsible for the increase of apple electrical resistance during the final days of the experiment.

Sexing is a difficult task for most birds (especially ornamental birds) involving expensive, state-of-the-art equipment and experiments. An intelligent fowl sexing system was developed based on data mining methods to distinguish hen from cock hatchlings. The vocalization of one-day-old hatchlings was captured by a microphone and a sound card. To obtain more accurate information from the recordings, time-domain sound signals were converted into the frequency domain and the time-frequency domain using Fourier transform and discrete wavelet transform, respectively. During data-mining from signals of these three domains, 25 statistical features were extracted. The Improved Distance Evaluation (IDE) method was used to select the best features and also to reduce the classifier's input dimensions. Fowls’ sound signals were classified by Support Vector Machine (SVM) with a Gaussian Radial Basis Function (GRBF). This classifier identified and classified cocks and hens based on the selected features from time, frequency and time-frequency domains. The highest accuracy of the SVM at time, frequency and time-frequency domains was 68.51, 70.37 and 90.74 percent, respectively. Results showed that the proposed system can successfully distinguish between Hen and Cock hatchlings. The results further suggest that signal processing and feature selection methods can maximize the classification accuracy.

This paper had as main objective the comparison of new technological solutions for degraded grassland using a grasslands regeneration machine and a trailed vindrover, with the conventional technologies. The grasslands regeneration machine performs several operations in one pass, as follows: soil tillage in narrow strips, direct seeding of an herb seed mixture into the vegetal cover and light compaction of the soil over the seeds for a proper contact, in order to obtain a good germination. The trailed vindrover is designed to the harvest and conditioning forage technology, running in a single pass operation of mowing, crushing and left on the ground to dry naturally. Experimental researches were carried out in two locations, namely National Institute of Research-Development for Machines and Installations designed for Agriculture and Food Industry- INMA Bucharest and Grasslands Research-Development Station- SCDP Vaslui, in the agricultural year 2014. For each technological link the following parameters were determined: fuel consumption per hour, fuel consumption per surface unit, hourly working capacity and labor consumption. Analyzing the comparative diagrams, it was observed that total average values of parameters obtained in the two locations in spring and late summer by applying the new technological variants were smaller than the ones obtained by applying conventional technologies. The new technological solutions for regeneration of degraded grasslands involve less fuel and labor consumption, being more environmentally friendly than conventional technologies used so far.

The inhibitory effect of Ulva lactuca (Chlorophyta), Dilophus spiralis (Phaeophyta) and Janiarubens (Rhodophyta) marine algae species has been evaluated against 2 Gram-positive bacterial (Streptococcus pyogenes and Micrococcus luteus); 2 Gram-negative bacterial (Shigella flexneri and Vibrio cholerae) and 2 fungal (Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger) isolates using aqueous and six organic extracts (methanol, ethanol, chloroform, acetone, ethyl acetate and hexane). Data revealed that the M. luteusbacteria was the most sensitive pathogen by showing the highest zone of inhibitions (ZIs) of 17 mm with the lowest Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of 26.7 µgmL-1 and the lowest Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) of 53.3 µg mL-1 with chloroform D. spiralis extract. Whereas, aqueous extracts were not active against all selected pathogens regardless of the examined algae species. Based upon data presented herein, chloroform D. spiralis extract was the most active against examined pathogens. Thereby, future performance research in D. spiralisis requested due to their high effectiveness as a cheap antimicrobial agent.

Irreversible changes in the physicochemical properties of bakery products after baking is called staling. One of the most important issues of nutritional and economic importance in the bakery industry is to delay staling. One way to postpone staling is to apply native plant and seed hydrocolloids, especially mucilages, which have high medicinal and nutritional value and low price. Therefore, in this study, the effects of different concentrations of psyllium seed mucilage (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1), marve mucilage (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1) and the combination of both kinds of mucilage (up to 1%) on the physical, sensory and staling properties of sponge cake were investigated. In general, except when 1% of mucilage was used, the overall properties of sponge cake were always improved by hydrocolloid addition. The results showed that the addition of 0.25% marve combined with 0.25% psyllium significantly (P

The aim of this study was an investigation on chemical composition including phenolic profile, mineral and carbohydrate content of the Terfezia claveryi (black truffle) and Tirmania nivea (white truffle). The identification of carbohydrates and individual phenolic compounds was performed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Total protein was determined by Kjeldahl method. Our research showed that Tirmania nivea had higher contents of protein than Terfezia claveryi. Among studied carbohydrates, glucose was detected at higher levels in both truffles. The mineral analysis showed that potassium and iron concentrations were found at high levels compared with other minerals. Higher contents of the examined phenolic compounds were determined in extracts of Terfezia claveryi compared to those of Tirmania nivea. Overall, these results support further examination of biochemical characteristics and verification of nutritional value of both the truffles.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of ten different sugar beet genotypes on nutritional indices of the beet army worm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lep.: Noctuidae) at 25±1°C, 60±5% RH and a photoperiod of 16:8 (L: D) hour. The sugar beets evaluated in this study included two sugar beet cultivars (HM 1339 RZ and SBSI006), five populations (SB26, SB27, SB29, SB33, SB34), one hybrid (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5 and two lines (FC 301 and FC 220). Fourth instar larvae reared on (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5 showed the highest Relative Growth Rate (RGR) of 0.31 mg mg-1 day-1, Relative Consumption Rate (RCR) of 4.79 mg mg-1 day-1 and Approximate Digestibility (AD) value of 94.35% compared with the other host plants. The lowest value of RCR (0.81 mg mg-1 day-1) was on SBSI006. The Efficiency of Conversion of Ingested food (ECI) was varied from 1.80% on FC 220 to 9.14% on SB34. The highest AD value of fifth instar (92.63%) wason (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5 and the lowest value of this index was recorded on SB27 (83.71%). The highest AD value of whole larval instars was noted in (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5 (93.73%). The lowest value of RCR (1.78 mg mg-1 day-1) was found on SB27. The heaviest pre-pupa (81.01 mg), pupa (72.55 mg) and wet adults (19.14 mg) of beet armyworm were recorded on (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5. The results indicated that (7112*SB36)*Sh-1-HSF-5 was the most suitable host for S. exigua that should be considered in cultivation or breeding programs.

Low temperature is a limiting factor of seed germination and plant growth. In this study, two independent experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of low temperature on germination, early seedling growth and antioxidant systems in two provenances of Elymus nutans Griseb. (Damxung, DX and Gannan, GN). The seeds and early seedlings of DX were more tolerant to low temperture than those of GN. Low temperature (5oC) negatively affected seed Germination Percentage (GP), Germination Energy (GE) and the First Germination Time (FGT) in both provenances of E. nutans. Low temperature also increased Mortality Percentage (MP) when compared with control plants grown at 25oC. Low temperature treatments significantly reduced length and fresh/dry weight of shoots and roots in the two accessions after 29 days of exposure to 5oC. In the second experiment, after 5 days of low temperature treatment, DX exhibited significantly higher Chlorophyll (Chl) and Carotenoid (Car) content as well as increased activities of Peroxidase (POD), SuperOxide Dismutase (SOD), Catalase (CAT). In contrast we observed lower Electrolyte Leakage (EL) and reduction of the amounts of MalonDiAldehyde (MDA), Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and superoxide radical (). We conclude that GN is more susceptible to low temperature than DX due to more severe oxidative damage resulting from Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and lower antioxidant enzyme activities.

The effect of Methyl Jasmonate (MJ, jasmonic acid methyl ether) at 10-6-10-3M concentrations on triticale kernels germination, seedling growth, changes in soluble carbohydrates content and composition, and activity of α-amylase was studied. MJ inhibited the germination of triticale kernels, possibly due to decreasing activity of α-amylase, leading to the depletion of soluble carbohydrates in both embryonic and endosperm tissues. In this way, MJ reduced starch degradation. A lower amount of soluble carbohydrates in germinating seeds decreased water uptake (between 24 and 72 hours of germination) and delayed seedling development. The above effect can be attributed to high concentrations of MJ in the incubation mixture (10-3M, 10-4M). MJ reduced the number of embryonic roots in 5-days-old seedlings in all examined concentration ranges.

The objectives of the study were to investigate the genetic relationships of sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] genotypes, acquired from different origins and to evaluate the genetic relations among them,using eight SSR markers. A high level of polymorphism was found, with an average of 7.5 alleles per SSR locus. High average values of Shannon’s information index (0.864) and expected heterozygosity (0.739) revealed high level of genetic diversity of the Sweetpotato genotypes. Favorable applicability and informativity of selected set of SSR markers was confirmed by high global polymorphic information content (0.690) and low probability of genotype identity (1.4×10-8). The overall fixation index was negative (-0.562), reflecting excess of heterozygosity, due to negative assortative selection as a consequence of vegetative propagation of sweetpotato. Estimation of Rst based on AMOVA shows 23% of molecular variance; the first two coordinates of PCoA cumulatively explaining 62.33% of genetic variability. The assignment of individual genotypes into three genetic groups is highly concordant with the PCoA and Bayesian approach in Structure analysis. Our results suggest that selection and breeding can also improve genetic potential and increase genetic uniformity in sweetpotato. Evaluation of genetic background and relationships among and within genotypes provided baseline data for introduction, management, production and conservation of sweetpotato germplasm, regarding its favorable consumer acceptance in Central Europe.

The study was conducted to assess the effect of different wax coating materials and Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) on storage life and quality of ‘Kaghzi lime’ (Citrus aurantifolia Swing.) fruits. The fruits were harvested at light yellow skin color stage and treated with different wax coating materials: T1= Citrus Wax (wood resins18%, Imazalil 0.3%, Thiabendazloe 0.5%), T2= PHRC SCM Wax [9% total solids (castor and shellac based wax)]; T3=Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), and T0= The fruit without any treatment were used as control. The fruits were stored at 10°C for 45 days and relative humidity was maintained at 90%. Physiochemical, sensory, organoleptic, and quality parameters were measured after 30 and 45 days of harvesting. The coating treatments significantly (P≤ 0.05) reduced physiological weight loss, increased shelf life and maintained the quality of fruits. Among all treatments, Citrus Wax proved best because it maintained relatively higher levels of acidity, flavor, vitamin C content and fruit firmness; prevented disease attack; and improved juice recovery of lime fruits compared with control. Thus this treatment can be used to enhance the shelf life and maintain quality of the lime fruits.

Pureline selection was applied in Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat populations (SHW), obtained from irradiated seeds with 150 Gy gamma rays and compared with their corresponding controls. The selection was performed in progenies of 20 initial plants from three amphiploids (8 from SHW32, 4 - SHW106 and 8 - SHW107) generating 19 M1-3 and 19 C2-5 lines. Two families did not survive winter in the first year. All selected lines expressed high germination, intermediate type of growth in winter and good seed set in the field conditions. The irradiation of seeds did not influence the germination and winter survival of the SHW plants. The response to direct selection was based on the mean performance of progenies for grain number and kernel weight per main spike and the selected elite plants in M3 and C4-5 generations. The coefficient of heritability and genetic advance for these traits were highest in SHW106, followed by SHW32. SHW107 displayed the largest morphological variability and sterility during the investigated period. All synthetics formed long, but sparse ears with seed fertility being lower than their tetraploid parents, but elite plants of SHW32 and 106 were equaled to tetraploid parent No 45432 on grain weight per major spike in 2013. Seed irradiation with 150 Gy gamma rays did not cause any effects on the two investigated traits. The selected subset of 10 lines from the three amphiploids represents a source of spike productivity for use in wheat breeding programs to enhance yield potential.

Root and crown rot of wheat is caused by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici. "Take-all" is an important disease affecting wheat, and its incidence has been reported in several provinces of Iran. To identify resistant cultivars, bread wheat germplasm should be evaluated. To evaluate bread wheat germplasm in response to Iranian isolate fungus (T-41) of Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici, 333 genotype of bread wheat, collected from different locations of Iran and other countries were evaluated to take-all in greenhouse conditions. Two experiments were conducted, the first with 89 and the second with 244 genotypes. The measured traits were amount of root and crown infection, disease intensity, wet and dry biomass, and height of shoots. Analysis of variance and means comparison for the parameters indicated that in the first experiment, two genotypes were resistant to the disease, and the rates of disease intensity in these genotypes were 0.13 and 0.06. In the second experiment, five completely resistant genotypes were identified with disease intensity ratings of '0'. The identified resistant genotypes screened from both experiments were re-evaluated, and the results were the same. Mean comparison between winter and spring types for dry weight and disease intensity showed that winter wheat is more resistant than spring type. The results of this research showed that there is resistance resource to take-all (T-41 isolate), in this germplasm.Since the experiment was conducted in greenhouse conditions, these genotypes should be tested against this disease in infected conditions at field.

To identify the Cereal Cyst Nematodes (CCN) and their distribution and population density in wheat fields in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province based on interpolation by geographic information system, a total of 212 composite soil and root samples were randomly collected from different wheat fields of nine districts of the province during 2013-2014. The soil samples were explored for number of cysts, second-stage Juveniles (J2) and eggs. The species were identified based on morphological, morphometric and molecular characteristics. Analysis was performed by Arc GIS software using interpolation technique for determination of raster map. The results showed that 42% of soil samples were infested with Heterodera filipjevi containing an average of 994 eggs and J2 per 200 g of soil. The maximum infestation was observed in Dehsahra region in Lordegan district with an average of 4720 eggs and J2 per 200 g soil. Wheat fields of Kohrang, Kiyar and Farsan districts showed low population density while moderate infestation was observed in Ardal, Ben, Saman and Borujen districts. Instead high population density of H. filipjevi was found in Shahrekord and Lordegan. Based on interpolation of population density and interpolation maps, the eastern part of Shahrekord and southern and western parts of Lordegan districts were predicted as regions with high infestation to H. filipjevi and considered as hotspots for this disease.

Irrigated agriculture plays a vital and important role in economic development of many countries around the world. In this research, performance assessment of Water User Associations (WUAs) was undertaken over canal water management in irrigation command area. WUAs in canal irrigation network were characterised and evaluation of irrigation performance was evaluated using different performance indicators. The water delivery indicator in tail-end supply ratio was 0.67, area uniformity ratio was 0.79 and delivery timeliness ratio was 1 in Govindgarh WUA. Satisfactory performance was observed in Govindgarh WUA in the comparison of Bijori WUA and Bauchhar WUA. The carrying capacity ratio was 0.96, and poor structure ratio was 0.5 in Govindgarh WUA. This indicator was also satisfactory in Govindgarh WUA as compared to Bijori WUA and Bauchhar WUA. In financials, fee collection performance (0.75), personnel cost ratio (0.56) and manpower number ratio (0.009) in Govindgarh WUA make it satisfactory. Sustainability of irrigated area was 0.88 which was satisfactory in Bijori WUA. Area/infrastructure ratio was 139.27 in Govindgarh WUA.