The Ogongo Agricultural College is a college in Ogongo in the Omusati Region of northern Namibia. The college was founded in 1973 to train locals in agriculture. The college was closed between 1988 and 1992 due to civil disorder. The Ogongo Agricultural College is part of the University of Namibia and it has led to job creation for the local population and attracts visitors from across the country as well as abroad. Apart from employment, the college, which is at the moment known as the University of Namibia Ogongo Campus offers the inhabitants a variety of agricultural products such as milk, vegetables as well as meat. The Campus is on a 4,350 ha farm of which 1000 ha serves as a game park.
Pyrilla perpusilla Walker (Hemiptera: Lophopidae) commonly referred to as the sugarcane leaf hopper/ plant hopper, is widespread in Asia and is a severe threat to sugarcane farming, particularly under waterlogged conditions in Andhra Pradesh. In February 2023, natural mycosis was observed on adults and nymphs of the sugarcane leaf hopper in China Ogirala village of Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh. An entomopathogenic fungus was isolated from infected adults and nymphs on Sabouraud’s Dextrose Yeast extract agar in the laboratory following standard protocol. It was then identified by morphological and molecular analysis. Natural infection of P. perpusilla by Metarhizium koreanum under field conditions was noticed in the form of whitish mycelial growth on soft body parts turning into green with sporulation. Stereomicroscopic analysis showed extensive colonization of thorax and abdomen, but sparse growth on the snout, legs, and wings. The fungus was cultured on SDAY medium with the formation of septate hyaline mycelium, branched conidiophores, and ellipsoid conidia. In laboratory bioassays, the M. koreanum PCO1 isolate resulted in the mortality of 81.67
The pod borer, Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner), is a highly destructive pest of leguminous crops, particularly pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.). This crop suffers significant damage from H. armigera, with estimated yield losses ranging from 30 to 40
Improving food grain production by enhancing plant nutrient availability is critical for meeting future production. In this line, degraded soils may have the potential to meet the food demand of future population. However, the key challenge is excessive concentration of salts. It adversely mediates the soil fertility parameters, physical properties and soil enzymatic activities. Addition of organic substances, such as farm yard manure (FYM) and pressmud (PM), may improve soil health parameters. An incubation experiment was conducted with graded application of FYM (0, 2.5, 5 and 10 t/ha) and PM (0, 2.5, 5 and 10 t/ha) to monitor the nutrient release pattern of FYM and PM; and its effect on soil physico-chemical properties and soil enzymatic activities. The results showed that soil pH and EC were reduced after the one year incubation period. It was also observed that available plant nutrients like N, P, K, S and soil enzymatic activities reported highest in treatment FYM and PM (each applied 10 t/ha) over control. The findings of this study suggested that organic amendments can improve soil fertility, mitigate salt ion toxicity, and enhance food production potential, particularly in arid and semi-arid soils.
Rice husk (RHNC) and rice husk biochar (RHBNC) nano-carriers were evaluated for enhancing the bio-efficacy of 2,4-D herbicide. Nano-carriers were synthesized by planetary ball milling and loaded with 2,4-D at two weight ratios (1:0.25 and 1:0.10). Structural characterization was carried out using SEM, FT-IR, XRD, BET surface area, and BJH pore volume analysis. SEM images of ball-milled rice husk biochar revealed a porous structure with cracks and shrinkage, while FT-IR confirmed the presence of aromatic, carbonyl, and siloxane groups. XRD spectra of RHBNC displayed a broadened peak at 45 degrees (2 theta). BET analysis indicated reduced surface area (9.85 m2 g-1) and pore volume (0.043 cm3 g-1) after herbicide loading. Bio-efficacy was assessed against Limnocharis flava and Cyperus rotundus in pots, followed by a field trial in upland rice. RHBNC (1:0.25) at 0.8 kg ha-1 exhibited the highest weed control efficiency (95.33 % in purple nutsedge and 98.74 % in water cabbage) and significantly improved rice yield (2840 kg ha-1), representing a 21 % increase over conventional 2,4-D. Enhanced soil biological activity was also observed, with higher dehydrogenase activity (31.70 mu g TPF g-1 soil d-1) and bacterial counts (52.00 x 106 CFU g-1 wet soil) compared to conventional treatments. These results prove the efficacy of rice husk biochar as a good and ecofriendly nano-carrier of 2,4-D, providing enhanced weed control, crop yields, and soil microbial well-being.
Rice production has been a primary concern in crop quality breeding. In this study, India japonica variety M494 and indica variety Z9B were used as parents. Hybridization and selfing were conducted to obtain recombinant inbred lines (RILs) as the experimental material. The F3 and F7 populations were analyzed to determine six yield-related traits, including panicle length, effective panicle number, number of grains per panicle, seed setting rate, yield per plant, and grain density. QTL mapping of rice yield-related traits and tillering angle was performed using the SSR molecular marker linkage map, resulting in the identification of 19 QTLs controlling panicle length, grain number per panicle, effective panicle number, seed setting rate, grain density. Additionally, multiple regression analysis and path analysis were employed to investigate the relationship between different agronomic traits and rice yield in the F7 population. An optimal regression equation, YYPP = -24.515 + 0.694XPL + 1.273XPN + 0.007XPPG + 18.981XSSR was derived, and it was concluded that SSR was the trait with the greatest impact on YPP, followed by PL.
