020131   Kushwah S;Mahesh Kumar;Singh P K (NO, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Banka (Bihar)-813 102, Email: sunita17kk@rediffmail.com) : On farm trial - a technology tool to assess the suitable spacing in onion to increase the seed yield at the farmers field. Int J Sci Nat 2016, 7(4), 775-7.

A trial was conducted with onion in Nalanda district of for seed production. Farmers were not getting adequate seed yield as well as healthy seeds. Nalanda is the 2nd largest onion seed producing district after Patna with high production and productivity. It is observed after trial, that farmers were planting onion for seed yield as per the recommended practices recorded the higher seed yield in comparison to farmer's practices. The results of the on-farm trial brings out the recommended practice 1(treatment no. 1) is feasible and economic for the farmers and viable over the farmer's practices. Percentage increase in the average seed yield was recorded quite high (34.88%) in the low input cost, so the recommended practices-1 is suitable practice for the onion seed grower of the Nalanda district of Bihar.

3 tables, 7 ref

020130   Kushwah S;Dharmendra Kumar ((Horticulture) Dep, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Banka, Bihar, Email: sunita17kk@rediffmail.com ) : Impact evaluation of training programme on scientific backyard poultry rearing practices in Bihar (India). Int J Sci Nat 2017, 8(1), 48-53.

A study was conducted on level of adoption of backyard poultry rearing practices in district Katihar. The data were collected from 130 respondents on the basis of interview schedule with the help of questionnaire. From the present study, it was found that before the training 32.19 percent farmers were aware about the improved health practices while majority (67.80%) of the rural poultry farmers were unaware about the improved management practices like brooding, cleaning and use of disinfectant for unit, feeding readymade feeds, postmortem of dead birds by vet doctors, segregation of diseased birds, provide mineral mixture, timely treatment of sick birds and consulting vet doctors. However after training (83.89%) farmers were aware about the health practices and majority (79.02%) of the respondents adopted these management practices. Timely treatment of sick birds (t=20.29), Segregation of diseased birds and consulting vet doctors (t=19.10) were found highly significant and positively related to the adoption of management practices. Age of the farmers showed negative correlation (-0.163), while gender, education level and land holding were recorded positive significant correlation with adoption level of - 339 - respondents. All the management practices were recorded significant values for t test except provide readymade feeds (0.57). Constraints identified were low egg price in summer (92.3%), high cost of inputs (91.53%) and difficulty in finance (80.76%). It indicates government should design a module to provide soft loan, training facilities and proper marketing facilities to the backyard poultry farmers for their betterment.

5 tables, 14 ref

020129   Kundu D;Khanam R;Saha S;Thingujam U;Hazra G C (Agricultural Chemistry and Soil Science Dep, Bidhar Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Mohanpur, Nadia-741 252, Email: kundudipa10@gmail.com) : Boron availability in relation to some important soil chemical properties in acid soils of Cooch Behar district, West Bengal. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2400-3.

In the present study, we investigated the distribution of soil available boron and its relationship with some soil properties in the samples collected from different locations in acidic alluvial soils of Cooch Behar district in West Bengal during 2013-2014. For the study about two hundred fifty (250) georeferenced surface soil samples covering 11 blocks of the districts were collected with the help of a global positioning system (GPS). The soil results revealed that pH of the analyzed samples varied from 4.91-7.28 (mean value 5.68) which indicated that soils of the district were in the acidic to slightly acidic in reaction. Organic carbon content of the soils varied from 0.42 to 1.62% with a mean value of 0.96% and about 93.7% of the samples were high whereas about 5.2 and 1.2% of the samples analyzed were in medium and low category, respectively. Results also indicated that the available B content in the soils of the districts ranged from 0.04 to 3.87 mg kg^-1 with a mean value of 0.51 mg kg^-1 and about 38.26% soil samples were classified under low, whereas, 3.58 and 0.35% samples were categorized as medium and high in available B content. It was further indicated that the content of available B in soil was positively correlated with organic carbon (r = 0.170**) and negatively correlated with pH (r = -0.021). Organic carbon status was also found to be positively and non significantly correlated with soil pH (r = 0.062). The results of the study would be immensely helpful for the extension workers to recommended B application considering pH and organic carbon status in acidic soils of the district for a profitable crop production.

3 illus, 1 table, 16 ref

020128   Kumawat N;Rakesh Kumar;Morya J;Tomar I S; Meena R S (NO, Zonal Agricultural Research Station, Jhabua-457 661, Email: kumawatandy@gmail.com) : Integrated nutrition management in pigeon pea intercropping systems for enhancing production and productivity in sustainable manner. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2143-51.

India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world accounting for about 29 per cent of the world area and 19 per cent of the world's production. In order to achieve self-sufficiency in pulses, the projected requirement by the year 2025 is estimated at 27.5 MT. To meet this requirement, the productivity needs to be enhanced to 1000 kg/ha, and an additional area of about 3-4 Mha has to be brought under pulses besides reducing post-harvest losses. This uphill task has to be accomplished under more severe production constraints, especially abiotic stresses, abrupt climatic changes, emergence of new species/ strains of insect-pests and diseases, and in-creasing deficiency of secondary and micronutrients in the soil. This requires a two-pronged proactive strategy, i.e. improving per unit productivity and reducing cost of production. The yield levels of pulses have remained low and stagnant, also area and total production. Among the pulses pigeon pea is second most important grain-legumes and major constraints in pigeon pea production is mostly grown in grown on marginal lands under rainfed agriculture and without nutrient management, hence are prone to abiotic stresses. Therefore, it is essential for higher production and productivity of pigeon pea, use of high yielding varieties which suitable for intercrop as well as sole cropping system with best nutrient management practices.

^iia69 ref

020127   Kirimi J K;Isutsa D K;Nyende A B (NO, Chuka Univ, P. O. Box 109-60400, Chuka, Kenya, Email: dorcaski@yahoo.com) : Participatory germplasm conservation and seed production of naturalized pumpkin landraces in Kenya. Int J Sci Nat 2016, 7(4), 756-64.

Although seeds come first in the food chain, local and international companies find it unprofitable to invest in provision of African indigenous vegetable seeds to growers. The present study trained farmers in on-farm multiplication of seeds for preferred local pumpkin landraces previously collected from Kakamega and Nyeri counties in Kenya. Nine naturalized accessions of Cucurbita moschata (Lam.) Poir were selected for use based on their earlier superior performance in - 337 - evaluation trials. They were planted at 2 m x 2m in a completely randomized design, replicated three times in Butere- Mumias, and managed by farmers in Shinyalu and Othaya. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected and subjected to Chi-square and variance analyses, respectively. The three sites significantly (P<60>0.05) affected quantitative characters, except germination percentage. Butere-Mumias had highest yields, except average fruit and 100-seed weight. Germination was 99% in Shinyalu and rotten fruits were 88 in Othaya. Accessions significantly (P<60>0.05) differed quantitatively, except in rotten fruits and germination percentage. Highest performance was for KK-30 and included 17 total fruits/accession, 7 average fruits/plant, 48.7 kg fruit weight/accession, 5.8 kg average fruit weight/accession, 5,981 total seeds/accession, 2,786 average seeds/plant, 554 total seeds/fruit, and 18 g of 100-seed weight/accession. Accessions NY-142 and NY-154 performed poorly in most characters. Germination was 100% in KK-40 and 91% in NY-142 and NY-154. Accession KK- 35 and KK-45 had no rotten fruits. Germination percentage was 99% in Shinyalu and 97.7% in Othaya. The male and female farmers trained were 100 and 114, and not significantly (P<62>0.05) different. The farmers trained in three years were 132 in Kakamega and 82 in Nyeri. The present study has found sufficient seed yield variation in naturalized pumpkin accessions in Kenya that could be exploited. Consequently, KK-30, KK-35, KK-40 and KK-45 are recommended for adoption and development into commercial pumpkin seed and fruit production cultivars. Regional farmers should be mobilized and empowered to commercially produce and conserve the preferred, but endangered pumpkin produce and germplasm.

4 illus, 4 tables, 39 ref

020126   Khilari M K;Jain S K;Singh H (Plant Pathology Dep, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Univ. of Agric, & Tech., Modipuram, Meerut-250 110, Email: khilari_2008@rediffmail.com) : Screening of basmati rice and wheat cultivars against root knot nematode, Meloidogyne graminicola in sick pot condition. Int J agric statist Sci 2017, 13(2), 589-93.

The response of selected 25 basmati rice and 30 wheat cultivars to infestation by a root knot nematode Meloidogyne graminicola was examined under sick pot condition. Resistance screening of the cultivars was done based on the reproducibility of M. graminicola to susceptible check and disease intensity grade was classified on the basis of root knot index. In rice 1 cultivar was resistant at 60 days after seed sowing then other varieties. In wheat, 7 cultivars were resistant than other cultivars. The growth pattern of susceptible varieties was observed to be negatively correlated to the nematode infection expressed in terms of galls as shown in less number of tillers, low weight of roots and shoots of the infected varieties compared to the uninfected.

1 illus, 3 tables, 17 ref

020125   Khichi P;Pant R;Upadhayay S (NO, Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali College of Horticulture (Uttarakhand Univ, Natural Resource Management Dep, Email: mistersandeep@gmail.com) : Performance of garden pea varieties for their growth and yield characteristics in Vidharbha region of Maharashtra, India. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2300-4.

An experiment was conducted in 2013 to study the performance of different varieties of garden pea under Akola condition at Department of Horticulture Dr.Punjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidhyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra. Eight varieties were evaluated on black soil in replicated randomized block design and Results were found significant for all characters among these varieties. All varieties exhibited considerable variation in their performance for most of the parameters. Better growth and yield parameters in terms of plant height (cm), number of branches/plant, days to first flowering, number of green pod/plant, green pod weight, green pod length, pod yield/plant, green pod yield per plot and green pod yield per ha were noticed in all varieties. Maximum plant height was observed in Jawahar Matar-2 (72.26 cm) and minimum was in Palam Priya (28.46 cm). In case of number of pods plant-1 was maximum in PB-89 (16.43) followed by Palam Triloki (13.9) and minimum in Jawahar Matar-2 (9.83). Similarly for pod characters, average pod weight, maximum pod weight was recorded in PB-89 (6.12 g) and minimum was recorded in Arka Kartik (3.27g). Green pod yield/plant was highest in PB-89 (87.93 g), Palam Triloki (75.45 g) and Ankur (68.42 g). Whereas, maximum green pod/yield. was recorded in PB-89 (93.12q/ha) followed by Palam Triloki (76.97q/ha). Among all these varieties highest protein and Total Soluble Solid contents was recorded in Palam Triloki variety (23.06% and 17.67% respectively). PB-89, Palam Triloki and Ankur had the highest yields over the others, hence, they are recommended to farmers in semi-arid condition of Vidharba region for cultivation.

- 336 - 3 tables

020124   Khatoon U;Dubey R K;Singh V;Upadhyay G;Singh S;Pandey A K;Pandey S (College of Horticulture & Forestry, Central Agricultural Univ, Pasighat-791 102, Email: rksdubey@gmail.com) : Assessment of genetic diversity of indigenous ridge gourd [Luffa acutangula (Roxb.) L.] genotypes of north east India as revealed by SDS-PAGE. Int J agric statist Sci 2017, 13(2), 607-13.

Protein content was estimated in seeds of fourty genotypes of ridge gourd. Total seed storage proteins of ridge gourd genotypes analyzed by SDS-PAGE and showed substantial variation in banding pattern of total protein, which varied from 8-24 numbers of bands. The similarity index was calculated on the basis of presence (+) or absence (-) of bands and the dendrogram constructed grouped the 40 genotypes in two major clusters which were further sub divided in four sub clusters. The clustering pattern reflected that the genotype CHFRG35 was most distantly related to CHFRG36 and identified as potential genotypes for crossing programme and to develop new improved cultivars of desired traits. Assessment of genetic diversity of ridge gourd genotypes from various regions of India could be utilised for augmenting the database that would contribute towards systematic breeding programmes and minimizing genetic erosion.

2 illus, 3 tables, 13 ref

020123   Khan M R;Singh A;Sarkar P;Patel A D (Nematology Div, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi-110 012, Email: mrkhan@iari.res.in) : Observations on Radopholus similis (Cobb) thorne, 1949 and Helicotylenchus multicinctus (cobb) golden, 1956 infesting banana in Gujarat, India. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 204-8.

^ssc1 table, 18 ref

020122   Kedarnath;Rangaswamy K T;Prakash N B;Nagaraju N;Lakshminarayana Reddy C N;Narasegowda N C (Plant Pathology Dep, UAS, GKVK, Bengaluru-560 065, Email: kedarnath.govin@gmail.com) : In vitro evaluation of silicon sources against late blight (Phytophthora infestans) of tomato. Int J Sci Nat 2016, 7(4), 881-4.

The antifungal activity of different concentration of silicon sources viz., OSAB, Silixol plus, Greensil plus, Greensil, Silicon power and Pro-sil in inhibiting the mycelial growth of P. infestans was investigated by using poison food technique. The results from in vitro study revealed that, all the silicon sources tested at different concentrations showed a wide range of inhibitory effect (1.11 to 90.37%) over untreated control. However, OSAB recorded highest mean mycelial growth inhibition (51.58%) and it was followed by Greensil plus (49.84%), Silixol plus (47.75%), Greensil (29.87%), Pro-sil (21.39%) and Silicon power (21.35%). However, different sources of silicon were inhibited mycelial growth of P. infestans with increasing concentration in the medium. The silicon sources used at 4.0 ml or g L^-1 of medium were found to be significantly superior over other lower concentrations in inhibiting the mycelia growth of P. infestans.

1 illus, 1 table, 14 ref

020121   Karpagam V;Kalaiyarasi R (Plant Breeding and Genetics Dep, Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Pollachi-642 103, Email: priyatnau2007@yahoo.co.in) : Choice of parents for developing two line hybrids in rice (Oryza sativa L.). J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2047-54.

An investigation was carried out to evaluate two line hybrids in rice for yield traits. Four TGMS lines and eleven testers were crossed in line x Tester design. Greater proportion of sca variance was observed for all the characters which revealed that preponderance of non- additive gene action governing traits concerned and selection procedures based on the accumulation of additive effects would be successful in improving these traits. The line TS09 24 and testers viz., T 2006, KDML 105, Improved white ponni and BPT 5204 were found to be good combiners for the yield and yield components. The best hybrids based on sca value, TNAU 27S x Improved white ponni was derived from low x low combiners for thousand grain weight and TS 29 X ADT 38 for the number of filled grains per panicle spikelet fertility. The best performing hybrid TS 29 x KDML 105 produced 54.25g of grain yield per plant in 128 days which was 92.89 and 85.47 per cent increase over the standard checks CORH 3 and Improved white ponni respectively. This hybrid also recorded 27.32 and 64.30 per cent increase CORH 3 and Improved white ponni for thousand grain weight. Hence, the two line hybrid breeding system, utilizing thermo sensitive genic male sterility is economically feasible as well as viable alternative to cytoplasmic male sterile (CMS) based three line breeding due to much simplified hybrid seed production.

4 tables, 22 ref

020120   Kamalakanth C K;Joshy C G;Varkey J; Ravishankar C N;Srinivasa Gopal T K (NO, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, P.O. Matsyapuri, Cochin-682 029, Email: tksgopal@gmail.com) : Optimization of fish based extruded product by twin screw extrusion using response surface methodology and shelf life evaluation. Fish Technol 2016, 53(3), 197-204.

Effect of extrusion conditions like temperature, screw speed, and moisture content of the fish incorporated extruded snack on specific mechanical energy (SME) and texture were evaluated and optimized by using response surface methodology. A central composite design with 20 runs was formulated for the experiment and the quadratic model was most suitable for explaining the changes of dependent variables with respect to independent variables. It was found that as the temperature increased, SME and texture decreased; whereas, SME was directly proportional with screw speed. There was a decrease in the SME and increase in texture as the moisture content increased. Maximum desirability value of 0.873 revealed that the screw speed of 380 rpm at a temperature of 140°C and 17% moisture content were optimum for the development of fish incorporated extruded snack and values for SME and texture were 251.26 KJ kg^-1 and 9.86 N, respectively. Storage study of fish-incorporated extruded snack developed at optimized conditions revealed that thiobarbituric acid and texture were increased with storage period. Similarly, redness of the sample increased while whiteness and yellowness of the sample were decreased with storage. At ambient temperature (28±1°C), the product had a shelf life of 4 months.

7 illus, 5 tables, 26 ref

020119   Jyothi T V;Hebsur N S (Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry Dep, UAS, Dharwad-580 005, Email: veeranna.jyothi@gmail.com) : Nutrient uptake and soil fertility status after harvest of Bt cotton as influenced by graded levels of NPK fertilizers in alfisol. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2315-26.

Field studies were conducted at farmer's fields in Jodalli (Kalghatgi taluk) and Pale (Hubballi taluk) villages in 2012-13 and 2013-14, respectively to investigate the effect of NPK fertilizers on uptake of nutrients by Bt cotton and soil fertility status at harvest in Alfisol. Among the different treatment combinations, the application of 150:50:75 kg N:P₂O₅:K₂O ha^-1 (N₃P₁K₂) recorded significantly (P=0.05) higher nitrogen (132.63 kg ha^-1), phosphorus (31.26 kg ha^-1) and potassium (128.94 kg ha^-1) uptake by cotton. The interaction effect with respect to total micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Mn and Cu) uptake remained non significant at all the growth stages. Graded levels of fertilizers failed to exert significant impact on pH and electrical conductivity, soil organic carbon and available micronutrients during both the years of experimentation. The application of 100:50:50 kgN:P₂O₅:K₂O ha^-1 (N₁P₁K₁) recorded significantly (P=0.05) highest available nitrogen (150.39 kg ha^-1), available phosphorus (37.98 kg ha^-1) and available potassium (230.99 kg ha^-1) compared to rest of the treatments. The lowest available nitrogen (134.92 kg ha^-1), available phosphorus (31.65 kg ha^-1) and available potassium (217.63 kg h a^-1) were recorded in treatment receiving 150:50:75 kg N:P₂O₅:K₂O ha^-1 (N₃P₁K₂).

9 tables, 15 ref

020118   Jose P A;Kuruvila S T;Binoy N M (NO, Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi-680 653, Email: pajosekfri@gmail.com) : New record of seed pest, Alcidodes sp. indet. (Coleoptera : Curculionidae) in Cynometra beddomei Prain. A endemic, endangered legume tree of the southern western ghats. Indian J For 2016, 39(2), 133-5.

The weevil. Alcidodes sp. indet (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) was found infest the seeds of Cynometra beddomei, an endemic and endangered legume tree of the Southern Western Ghats. The biology of Alcidodes sp. was studied. The larvae were 'C' shaped, measuring 9-10 mm in length, white in colour and found feeding inside the seed for a period of 20-25 days, while the pupal period lasted for 10-15 days. The adults were stout, elongate, oval and black in colour with light brown stripes. The seed infestation estimated to 80% in a fruit year of the tree later severely affected the seed output, germination, seedling emergence followed by the population reduction of species in situ. The incidence of Alcidodes sp. indet on Cynometra beddomei was found to be a new record to the species.

6 illus, 7 ref

020117   John M P;Renganathan P S;Selvaraj V;Gnanaraj G A;Rose G L (Physical Science Dep, Udaya College of Education, Ammandivilai-629 204) : Effect of fluoride and fertilizers on protein and amino acid content of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea Var. TMV-7). Indian J envir Prot 2016, 36(7), 600-5.

Effects of different levels of fluoride ion (F) concentration on the protein and amino acid content in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea-Var. TMV-7) was studied. Plants were grown in pots and watered with different F concentrations (0, 2.5, 5.0, 10.0, 20.0, 40.0 and 80.0 ppm) and fertilized with potash, NPK complex, urea and - 333 - superphosphate. Cow dung was used as control. Application of F affected the protein and amino acid content with increasing or decreasing F concentration. Protein content was found increased maximum at 2.5 ppm with IMPK complex and minimum with urea at 40.0 ppm F concentration. Similarly amino acid content was found increased at 5.0 ppm with superphosphate and minimum with potash at 40.0 ppm F concentration.

2 tables, 12 ref

020116   Jeetendra Kumar;Yadav A K;Bhattacharjya B K (NO, ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Regional Centre, Allahabad-700 120, Email: jeetendrak142@gmail.com) : Comparative analysis of phytoplankton diversity and abundance during monsoon season in selected beels (wetlands) of Assam, India. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2285-90.

Water collected from 8 selected floodplain wetlands (beels) of Brahmaputra valley basin were examined using both filtered method (FM) and sedimentation method (SM) for the assessment of phytoplankton diversity and abundance. A total 22 and 41 species were recorded by employing FM and SM, respectively. There was a significance difference (p<60>0.05) between FM and SM. Species and abundance of phytoplankton were lesser in FM than SM and it was due to exclusion of minute size (<60>25μ) from net and maximum retention of species in sedimentation method. Chlorophyta, Bacillariophyta, Cyanophyta, Euglenophyta, Chrysophyta and Dinophyta were recorded during study period. Chlorophyta, Bacillariophyta and Cyanophyta were dominant groups. Bacillariophyta was dominant group followed by Chlorophyta and Cyanophyta in FM while Chlorophyta was dominant group followed by Bacillariophyta and Cyanophyta SM. Total phytoplankton densities were recorded from 35 cells L^-1 to 3808 cells L^-1 in FM while 1.55x10⁴ cells L^-1 to 12.33x10⁵ cells L^-1 to in SM. Diversity indices of phytoplankton were varied widely in FM and SM. Siligurijan beel and Bildora beels were considered more stable environment than other beels based on diversity indices.

4 illus, 5 tables, 19 ref

020115   Jayaraman R;Infantina J A;Debroy P (NO, Fisheries College and Research Institute, Thoothukudi-628 008, Email: ramanrj@gmail.com) : Fisherwomen's perception on the constraints hampering their empowerment and development: a case study of the self help groups of Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu. Fish Technol 2016, 53(3), 257-62.

Marine fisheries constitute a valuable source of food and employment, and a net contributor to the nation's balance of payment. The fisherwomen have been facing several constraints of technical, financial, organizational and policy realms, which affects their social and economic empowerment. In this regard, around 40 fisherwomen from Self Help Groups (SHGs) of Tharuvaikulam fishing village in Thoothukudi district (Tamil Nadu) was selected randomly for data collection. The - 332 - fisherwomen were asked to rank the constraints according to their perception of importance. Garrett Ranking Technique was used to analyze the constraints in order to find out the most significant factor which influences the respondent. This technique helps to precisely rank the preference of the respondents on different factors. Of the seven production con-straints, high cost of inputs including finfish and shellfish was ranked foremost. Of the five financial constraints, lack of funds for starting and running the business activities was the major constraint. Among the five constraints that influenced cohesion of the SHGs, the respondents opined that lack of leadership and guidance affected the performance of the SHGs. Lack of marketing skills was the single most important marketing constraint. With regard to performance constraints, lesser profits brought down their performance. Further, lack of contact between producer and consumer was identified as the most important constraint, among six extension constraints, that affected market access. Among the seven entrepreneurship constraints, lack of lateral thinking and innovation denied them success in their business.

7 tables, 28 ref

020114   Jayalakshmi K;Adivappar;Nagarajappa;Raju J; Narasimhamurthy H B;Narayanaswamy P;Shivanna S;Ravindra H (Zonal Agricultural and Horticultural Research Station, Univ of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Shivamogga-577 225, Email: jayalakshmipat@gmail.com) : Occurrence and distribution of black pod rot of cocoa (Theobromae cocoa L.) in southern transition zone of Karnataka. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 1901-4.

Straminipile genus Phytophthora cause significant disease losses to global cocoa production. Phytopthtora palmivora is one of the major constraints in cocoa production causes significant pod losses. P. palmivora has a complex disease cycle involving several sources of primary inoculum and several modes of dissemination of secondary inoculum. This results in explosive epidemics during favorable environmental conditions. Highest severity of Seedling blight was observed in raised bed nurseries as compared to poly bag nurseries in Shivamogga district (59.26%) followed by Chikkamagluru (53.85%) of the state Karnataka, respectively. Further, the highest incidence of 72.00, 70.83 and 70.00% of black pod rot disease was recorded in Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Shivamogga district followed by Chikkamagaluru (65.22%), Kodagu (64.00%) and Davanagere (55.56%) district respectively. Due to continuous rain fall or high moisture conditions and the crop was grown as intercrop with arecanut is vulnerable for the attack of pathogen due to the presence of pathogenic variability.

2 tables, 11 ref

020113   Jain S K;Patel P R (Sorgham Research Station, S.D. Agricultural Univ, Deesa-385 535) : Genetic parameters and character associations for yield and yield contributing traits in dual sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench). Gujarat Agric Univ Res J 2017, 42(2), 66-72.

Thirty two advanced dual sorghum genotypes were evaluated at Sorghum Research Station, S. D. Agricultural Univeristy, Deesa during Kharif 2015 to study the genetic variability and genetic association for grain yield, fodder yield and their component characters. Both genotypic and phenotypic variances were highly significant in all the traits with little higher phenotypic variations as usual. Similarly, the low differences between the phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variations - 331 - indicated low environmental influences on the expression of these characters. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance in % of mean was obtained with panicle length, leaf length, leaf width, plant height, grain yield and fodder yield. Genotypic correlation coefficients were higher than the corresponding phenotypic correlation coefficients in most of the traits. Plant height, number of leaves/plant, leaf length, leaf width and days to maturity were the most important characters which possessed positive association with fodder yield. While panicle length was positively and significantly associated with grain yield. Path coefficient analysis revealed that among the different yield contributing characters fodder yield, panicle length and leaf length influenced grain yield directly while leaf width, number of leaves/plant, plant height, days to maturity and grain yield influenced fodder yield directly. The direct effects of these characters on grain yield and fodder yield were positive and considerably high. Thus the plant selection based on these traits will be most effective in the development of dual sorghum varieties.

6 tables, 24 ref

020112   Jaffer M R (Veterinary Public Health Dep, College of Veterinary Medicine, Baghdad Univ, Iraq) : Effect of grape seed oil on the plasma levels of triglyceride, cholesterol and total protein in pigeons. Int J Sci Nat 2017, 8(1), 108-11.

Addition of 75% concentration of grape seed oil to pigeons ration will enhance its health status. An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of grape seed oil on the levels of triglyceride, cholesterol and total protein in pigeon. Twenty five pigeons were divided into 5 groups each group contains 5 pigeons. The first group was considered as control group. The second group was given 10% concentration of grape seed oil. The third group was given 25% concentration of grape seed oil. The fourth group was given 50% concentration of grape seed oil. The fifth group was given 75% concentration of grape seed oil. The different concentrations of grape seed oil were given to the pigeons in water by dropping. The blood samples were collected after one month from each group and transported to a private laboratory. Addition of grape seed oil to pigeons ration (10%, 25%, and 50%) showed no significant effect on the levels of total protein (TP), triglyceride (TG) and cholesterol (Ch) as compared with control group. While there was a significant (P<60>0.05) decreasing in the level of total protein, triglyceride and cholesterol in the pigeon blood in the fifth group which was given 75% concentration as compared with control group. The results suggest that the addition of high levels of grape seed oil (75%) to pigeons ration will enhance its health status through the decreasing of the total protein, triglyceride, and cholesterol in blood serum pigeons.

3 illus, 24 ref

020111   Islam M A;Quli S M S;Mushtaq T (Faculty of Forestry, Sher-e-Kashmir Univ of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Benhama, Ganderbal-191 201, Email: ajaztata@gmail.com) : Wasteland reclamation strategy for household timber security of tribes in Jharkhand, India. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2264-71.

The study sought to examine the timber dependency on forests and evolve wasteland reclamation strategy to eliminate the forest dependency in Bundu block of Ranchi District in Jharkhand, India. Multi-stage random sampling technique was applied to select 164 tribal households from 9 sample villages. Data were collected using structured interviews and non-participant observations which were analyzed using descriptive statistics viz., frequency, percentage, mean and range. Results revealed that forests contributed maximum timber (136.36 m³ annum^-1) followed by traditional agroforestry (69.09 m³ annum^-1), community forestry (41.33 m³ annum^-1) and homestead forestry (35.71 m³ annum^-1). Timber extracted is mostly consumed in housing (124.66 m³ annum^-1) followed by agricultural implements (82.71 m³ annum^-1), furniture (35.25 m³ annum^-1), carts/ - 330 - carriages (17.60 m³ annum^-1), fencing (10.23 m³ annum^-1), cattle shed/ store house (9.10 m³ annum^-1) and others (2.94 m³ annum^-1). Forests were exposed to timber pressure of 136.36 m³ annum^-1 (48.27%) posing ample deforestation and degradation. The strategy consisted of timber and bamboo plantations is designed which would secure 1065.60 m³ annum^-1 of timber, 0.455 lakh annum^-1 of bamboo culms, 568.26 tons annum^-1 of bamboo leaf and agricultural products. The strategy would yield income of Rs. 34210.78 household^-1 annum^-1 and employment of 67.15 person-days household^-1 annum^-1. Financial viability of proposed interventions has been worked out by meticulous economic calculations of Net Present Value, Benefit Cost Ratio and Internal Rate of Return. The execution of strategy would eliminate the current unsustainable timber extraction, safeguard the future timber predicament and ensure environmental security.

2 illus, 4 tables, 41 ref

020110   Islam A U;Chhabra A K;Dhanda S S;Munjal R (Genetics and Plant Breeding Dep, CCS Haryana Agricultural Univ, Hisar-125 004, Email: anzer.gene@gmail.com) : Cell membrane stability- an important criterion for selection of heat tolerant genotypes in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 1894-900.

Cell membrane stability, grain filling rate, grain filling duration, canopy temperature and grain yield were used to evaluate performance of 100 diverse bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) genotypes under timely sown and late sown heat stress conditions for two cropping season. The genotypes differed significantly for all the traits show-ing considerable variation for improvement of characters. The genotypes WH1165 had significant high grain yield (14.6* g and 11.4g) and (11.3* g and 11.4* g) followed by cell membrane stability under timely sown and heat stress conditions, respectively indicating potential tolerance against heat stress. Correlation coefficients revealed that cell membrane stability (0.451**) and (0.639**) in timely sown and in late sown conditions, respectively were the most important trait followed by grain filling rate (0.882** and 0.744**) under timely sown and late sown conditions respec-tively. Results revealed that bread wheat genotypes which had high value of cell membrane stability had high grain yield showed potential photorespiration and high grain filling rate under heat stress condition. Twenty two genotypes WH1021, WH1155, VL803, WH787, NW1014, Raj3765, HD1869, 2042, WH1124, HD2285, WH1133, HUW234, 4066, Sonak, UP2425, UP2473, PBW503, PBW373, PBW533, SGP13, HD2643 and WH789 were identified as heat tolerant genotypes based on their relative performance in yield components, grain yield and heat susceptibility indi-ces. These genotypes were found to be ideal candidates to be used in developing heat tolerant wheat varieties. Canopy temperature, membrane thermostability and grain filling rate have also shown strong correlation with grain yield. Because of this association, these traits constitute the best available 'tool' for genetic improvement of wheat suitable for cultivation under heat stressed environments. Thus, these could be used as indirect selection criteria for developing heat tolerant wheat genotypes that would provide sufficient yields to meet the ever increasing wheat demand.

2 illus, 4 tables, 35 ref

020109   Hussain M;Gupta S P (Soil and Water Engineering Dep, Rajendra Agricultural Univ, Bihar Pusa, Samastipur-848 125, Email: mairajhussain321@gmail.com) : Field study on hydraulic performance of drip irrigation system for optimization of operating pressure. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2261-3.

Drip irrigation technology will undoubtedly plays an important role in the future of the agriculture. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the performance of drip system with five operating pressure viz. I₁ (0.4 kg/ cm²), I₂ (0.6 kg/cm²), I₃ (0.8 kg/cm²), I₄ (1.0 kg/cm²), I₅ (1.2 kg/cm²). It was observed that the average discharge of drippers was 1.08 lph, 1.24 lph, 1.50 lph, 1.62 lph and 1.74 lph and emission uniformity was 80.55%, 84.89%, 86.30%, 88.88% and 90.80 in each treatment respectively and coefficient of variation was observed 0.12, 0.13, 0.12, 0.11, and 0.09. Flow component was found 0.450 and the value of k was 0.572 while R² was observed 0.986.Based on the result it can be concluded that the operation of drip irrigation system at 1.2 kg/cm² pressure head, gives the maximum efficiency in respect of discharge, emission uniformity and coefficient of variation.

1 illus, 1 table, 11 ref

020108   Holajjer P;Chakraborty K;Nataraja M V;Harish G;Deepak E;Savaliya S D (NO, ICAR-Directorate of Groundnut Research, Junagadh-362 001, Email: prasannaiari@gmail.com) : Differential reactive oxygen species modulation in leaves of groundnut due to root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne arenaria and M. incognita. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 102-6.

The damage effects and reproductive potential of the root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne arenaria and M. incognita and their ability in the modulation of reactive oxygen species (super oxide radicals, hydrogen peroxide and lipid peroxidation) and membrane stability index in the leaves of groundnut were studied. The infection of root-knot nematode, M. areneria at high level (1000 J2/100 cm³ of soil) resulted in significantly higher number of gall and egg-mass compared to treatment with M. incognita at both low (100 J2/100 cm³ of soil) and high (1000 J2/100 cm³ of soil) level and un-inoculated control. Significant difference in plant growth characters was also observed due to root-knot nematode, M. incognita and M. areneria infection. Observation on reactive oxygen species revealed that significantly higher level of superoxide redical and H₂O₂ content in the leaves of groundnut in the treatment with high (1000 J2/100 cm³ of soil) level of M. incognita compared to treatment with M. areneria at high (1000 J2/100 cm³ of soil) level after 80DAS. There is also a significantly less invasion of M. incognita in the roots of groundnut compared to M. areneria at the time of first attack. Increased level of reactive oxygen species in response M. incognita infection in groundnut may contributed to the resistance/or incompatible reaction in groundnut and differences in genetic makeup of the two species of nematodes may be responsible for differential behavior in groundnut.

3 illus, 13 ref

020107   Haq Z;Rastogi A;Sharma R K;Khan N (Animal Nutrition Div, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, R.S. Pura, Jammu-181 102, Email: zulfy11@gmail.com) : Advances in role of organic acids in poultry nutrition. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2152-7.

Anti microbial drug resistance concerns scientists all around the world epically one used as livestock feed additives. Feed grade antibiotics are given in non therapeutic doses which lead to survival of pathogenic microbes which in turn develop drug resistance, thus necessitating researchers to search for alternative ways to feed grade antibiotics besides doing least compromise on growth parameters. Organic acids are used in poultry to lower the pH of intestinal tract which favours good microbes which in turn suppress pathogenic microbes thus evicting the use of antibiotics. They are used in poultry diets and drinking water to elicit a positive growth response, improving nutrient digestibility, performance and immunity in poultry. Literature shows that organic acids have more or less pronounced antimicrobial activity, depending on both the concentration of the acid and the bacterial species that is exposed to the acid. The variability in response of organic acids and its possible mechanisms are discussed. Scope of this paper is to provide a view of the use of organic acids in the prevention of enteric disease in poultry, the effect on the gastrointestinal tract - 328 - (GIT), immunity and performance of broiler or laying hens. In the current review beneficial as-pects of organic acids along with different dose combinations are discussed to promote its optimum utilization in poultry nutrition and production.

^iia3 tables, 41 ref

020106   Gunarathna M H J P;Bandara A M K R;Kumari M K N;Jayasinghe G Y (Agricultural Engineering & Soil Science Dep, Faculty of Agriculture, Rajarata Univ of Sri Lanka, Puliyankulama, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, Email: janaka78@gmail.com) : Principal component analysis (PCA) for the assessment of hydrological and physicochemical parameters of river water. Int J Sci Nat 2017, 8(1), 19-25.

Physicochemical and hydrological parameters of Yan River and land use pattern of Yan River basin were assessed by principal component analysis (PCA). Water samples were collected from seven locations along the Yan River once a month during 2014/15, representing pre monsoonal, monsoonal and post monsoonal periods to estimate thirteen physicochemical parameters. Seven parameters related to land use and five hydrological parameters representing rainfall and discharge were also used for this study. The PCA produced four main components (viz. mineral dissolution, miscellaneous factors, land use related factors and factors related to nitrogen concentration) and explained more than 72.37% of the variance in water quality. The first two verymax factors (VFs) explained 43.46% of the total variance. Minerals showed negative loading, in contrast to positive loading of total discharge and monthly rainfall of the upper catchment area. The monthly scores suggested separating the months into two clusters, as monsoonal and post monsoonal periods. Third and fourth VFs explained 28.91% of the total variance. Agricultural lands and homesteads showed positive loading, in contrast to the water bodies in sub-watershed land use. Percentage of agricultural lands and homesteads in subwatershed shows positive loading on to VF4 with NH₄-N and NO₃-N, alarming that substantial amounts of nitrogen fertilizer applied to agricultural lands tend to wash off and cause the water pollution. Percentage of marshy lands negatively loaded on to VF4, indicating that high uptake and assimilation of dissolved nitrogen in water by the vegetation in marshy lands.

4 illus, 4 tables, 18 ref

020105   Gowda R C;Veeranagappa P;Gayathri B; Hanumanthappa D C;Singh M (Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry Dep, Agricultural Sciences Univ, Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra, Bangalore (Karnataka), Email: veera346@gmail.com) : Long-term application of fertilizers on chemical and biological properties of an alfisol. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 1970-4.

A long term fertilizer experiment (30 years) at Bengaluru had been started during 1986 with eleven treat-ments and four replications in an Alfisol on finger millet (Elusine coracana) maize (Zea mays) cropping sequence. The results of the ongoing experiment after 27 cycles of finger millet and maize on changes in soil chemical proper-ties revealed that application of inorganics alone resulted in impaired soil fertility status (soil pH, organic carbon con-tent and available nutrients in soil were decreased) over balanced fertilizer application. There was a decline in soil reaction over the initial status and the maximum decrease was observed in 100% NP (-1.46), 100% N (-1.20) and other treatments. Application of 100% NPK+FYM+lime maintained the soil pH (6.2) compared to all the other treat-ments. Organic carbon content of soil in all the treatments was higher (6.46 g kg^-1) compared to the initial status; however, maximum increase in organic carbon content was registered on application of NPK+FYM. Application of 10 t ha^-1 along with recommended dose of fertilizers and lime was found promising in term of sustaining crop and soil productivity.

1 illus, 2 tables, 23 ref

020104   Gitanjali Devi;Phukan R G;Hazarika K;Das P; Bhuyan P (Nematology Dep, Assam Agricultural Univ, Jorhat-786 013, Email: gitanjali_devi@yahoo.in) : Screening of king chilli (Capsicum chinense) cultivars against root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 160-1.

^ssc1 table, 4 ref

020103   Giribabu P;Patel D J (NO, Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research (ICAR), Hyderabad, Telangana, Email: giribabunrcb@gmail.com) : Susceptibility of castor (Ricinus communis) to field population of root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita in Rajasthan. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 177-8.

^ssc1 table, 8 ref

020102   Giribabu P;Anita Shree (NO, ICAR - National Research Centre for Banana, Tiruchirapalli-620 102, Email: giribabunrcb@gmail.com) : Screening of banana cultivars for resistance against Pratylenchus coffeae. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 175.

^ssc4 ref

020101   Ginson J;Kamalakanth C K;Bindu J;Gopal T K S (NO, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, P.O. Mastyapuri, Cochin-682 029, Email: jinsonjosephif@gmail.co) : Shelf life of high pressure treated indian white prawn (Fenneropenaeus indicus) during chilled storage. Fish Technol 2016, 53(1), 37-47.

Indian white prawn (Fenneropenaeus indicus) was vacuum packed in ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) pouches and subjected to high pressure (HP) treatment of 250 MPa for 6 min at a ramp rate of 400 MPa min^-1. Treated sample was stored in ice (2±1°C) along with untreated (control) sample to evaluate the changes in physicochemical parameters, mesophilic count and shelf life. Lightness (L* value) and yellowness (b*) value increased; whereas, redness decreased after pressure treatment. Significant increase of pH, hardness, FFA and TBA - 326 - of prawn was noticed immediately after HP-treatment; however, TMA, TVB-N, K-value, relative activity of PPO and mesophilic count were reduced (p<60>0.05). During storage, hardness, pH, TMA, TVB-N, FFA, TBA values and mesophilic count increased; whereas, K-value and PPO were reduced in HP-treated sample (p<60>0.05). Tensile strength, elongation at break, oxygen transmission rate (OTR), carbon dioxide transmission rate (CO₂-TR), water vapour transmission rate (WVTR), water extractives, n-heptane of EVOH packing material have showed marginal changes after HP-treatment. Based on overall acceptability, control sample and HP-treated sample revealed a shelf life of 9 and 21 days, respectively during chilled storage.

8 tables, 68 ref

020100   Ghosh A;Dey K;Bauri F K;Dey A N (Forestry Dep, Faculty of Horticulture, Uttar Banga Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Pundibari, Cooch Behar-736 165, Email: koyelfruits@gmail.com) : Physico-chemical changes during fruit growth and developmental stages in yellow type passion fruit (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa degener) accessions. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2026-32.

Physiological and biochemical changes during fruit growth, development and maturity of six yellow type passion fruit (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa Degener) accessions were studied at weekly interval after fruit set from 21 days to 91 days after fruit set and after dropping from vine also. Fruit growth of passion fruit followed a single sigmoid growth curve. Fruit length (cm), diameter (cm) and weight (g) increased continuously (25.24%, 33.13% and 75.08% respectively) (from the initial stage till maturity up to 84 days), which slightly declined at ripening stage. Fruits developed acceptable physico-chemical qualities with good colour, when harvested at 84 to 91 days after fruit set (DAF). The study further revealed that the days taken from fruit set to maturity and ripening, colour change, total soluble solids and acidity may be considered as the most reliable maturity indices for taking harvest decision in pas-sion fruit.

1 illus, 11 tables, 21 ref

020099   Gawade B;Sirohi A (Plant Quarantine Div, ICAR-National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi-110 012, Email: bharat.iari@gmail.com) : Management of Meloidogyne incognita infecting Solanum melongena by using synthetic elicitor molecules. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 83-7.

Foliar spray and root dip treatments with rose bengal (RB) and DL-amino-n-butyric acid (BABA) @ 25, 50, 100 and 200 g/ml were given to eggplants and the plants were challenged with root-knot nematode (RKN) juveniles. The elicitors reduced the number of root galls, final population of RKN and increased the growth parameters of eggplant. Both the elicitors were most effective at 200 mg/ml followed by 100 mg/ml concentration in foliar spray as well as root dip treatment. The root dip treatment proved more effective than foliar spray at each concentration. The RB proved more effective in reducing nematode infection than BABA in both the methods.

4 tables, 16 ref

020098   Gawa S;Kumar N R;Prakash S;Yadav V K;Hatte V M;Mahida N (NO, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai-400 061, Email: gawa107@gmail.com) : Economic analysis of trout feed production in Jammu and Kashmir, India. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2385-90.

The Present study is an attempt to understand the economics of trout feed production in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Trout feed production is capital intensive business which requires high initial capital investment. The results revealed that major fixed investment required in trout feed production was feed mill itself which accounted about 71.44 percent of the total investment. The cost and return analysis showed that the variable cost accounts 59.16 percent whereas fixed cost accounted 40.84 percent of the total cost respectively. Among the variable cost raw material was found out to be single most important factor which accounted about 56.37 percent of the total cost which was about 95.28 percent of the total variable cost. The average cost of production of trout feed was Rs.84.33/kg which ranged from Rs.78.45/kg in Kokarnag trout feed mill to Rs.90.2/kg in Manasbal trout feed mill but government has fixed selling price at Rs.73/Kg for the feed to maintain reasonable price level for private trout farmers. The availability and high price of raw material were found to be major constraints faced by feed producers. Economics analysis revealed that both the feed mills are operating at suboptimal level and there is need to utilize the feed mill to its full potential and export the surplus production to neighbouring state of Himachal - 325 - Pradesh and other Himalayan states like Sikkim and Arunachal which will help the state fisheries department to generate extra income which can be used in other developmental activities.

7 tables, 14 ref

020097   Gadhiya V C;Board P K (Entomology Dep, B.A. College of Agriculture, Anand Agricultural Univ, Anand-388 110) : Susceptibility of wheat cultivars against termite. Gujarat Agric Univ Res J 2017, 42(2), 87-9.

To know the susceptibility of wheat cultivars against termite, an experiment was carried out at Anand Agricultural University, Anand during rabi season of 2010-11. Of the 14 cultivars of wheat screened for their relative susceptibility against termite, cultivars GW 411, Lok-1 and VA-07-13 were found superior to suppressing the termite damage and produced higher yield of grain and straw of wheat. The wheat cultivars GW 407, GW 391, GW 410, GW 273, GW 400 and GW 406 were less susceptible to termite incidence, whereas cultivars Raj-1555, GW 496, GW 396, GW 366 and GW 322 gave poor performance against termite. The evaluated cultivars did not affect the population of termite but prevented them from feeding on root/stem. Less termite population was observed in Raj-1555, whereas it was higher in the Lok-1. There was no detrimental effect of screened wheat cultivars on the number of tillers per plant in wheat.

1 tables, 7 ref

020096   Fawole O B;Affinnih K O;Ahamefule H E; Eifediyi E K;Abayomi Y A;Olaoye G;Soremekun J A (Agronomy Dep, Faculty of Agriculture, Ilorin Univ, P.M.B. 1515, Ilorin-Nigeria, Email: yemisifawole@yahoo.com) : Characterization and suitability evaluation of dredged Asa river sediment for sustainable reuse. Int J Sci Nat 2017, 8(1), 85-90.

Sediments typify one of the ultimate sinks for heavy metals discharged into the environment. Consequently, sustainable reuse of these environmental wastes which is on the increase owing to climate change requires a holistic approach. A characterization study was embarked upon on dredged Asa River sediments from four strategic locations. Physical properties- particle size, moisture and total solids- ; chemical parameters such as total nitrogen, organic matter, heavy metals (Fe, - 324 - Mn, Zn, Pb, Cd, Ni, Co, Cu) as well as microbial characteristics were conducted using standard procedures. It was observed that the sediments were mainly sand with pH in the slightly acidic range (5.4 - 6.3). Total N and organic matter contents were high (4.1 - 5.2 g kg^-1 and 10.9 - 15.9 g kg^-1, respectively), indicating low biological activity due to level of pollution and soil type. Aspergillus species were the most abundant isolated fungi with six different species while Botryodiplodia theobromae had the lowest percent occurrence of 2.8. It could thus be inferred from this study that Asa River sediment is a rich organic whose heavy metals mobility and toxicity could be modified by processes that could lead to their biotechnological potential in bioremediation using indigenous fungi.

1 illus, 1 table, 19 ref

020095   Durani A;Tripathi S;Singh N;Rajkishor;Naik J R (Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry Dep, NMCA, Agricultural Univ, Navsari, Gujarat) : Characterization of enriched rock phosphate, bio-compost and partitioning study of micronutrient in maize crop under south Gujarat. Int J multidiscipl Res Dev 2017, 4(12), 3-8.

An investigate was carried out with different rate of rock phosphate enriched compost and single supper phosphate fertilizer alone or combined with vascular arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) applied to rabi maize in the year 2015-16 and 2016-17. Concentration of iron Fe (674.8 mg kg^-1) significantly increased the in maize straw in pooled analysis. Manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn) in maize cover, silk and Zinc content and maize cover and grain significantly higher in 75% P as RP+ AM (T₈) treated plots and also Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu content in the different part of maize numerically increased over control plots which was statistically non-significant. Rock phosphate and SSP alone or combined with AM increased the micronutrients concentration, in the different part of maize.

6 tables, 22 ref

020094   Duggal P;Anil Kumar;Sewak Ram (Nematology Dep, CCS HAU Hisar, Haryana-125 004, Email: duggalpriyanka65@gmail.com) : Life cycle and pathogenicity of root-knot nematode under polyhouse conditions over net house conditions. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 140-4.

Life cycle and pathogenicity of root-knot nematode was studied on gerbera in polyhouse as well as under net house conditions. Nematode completed life cycle in 45 day under net house conditions. Development was faster in polyhouse as compared to net house and life cycle was completed in 40 days. Pathogenicity of root-knot nematode was studied at the different inoculum levels viz., 0, 10, 100, 1,000 and 10,000 J₂ of Meloidogyne incognita/cm3 soil. Significant reduction in plant growth parameters at all the initial inoculum level of 100 J2/kg soil, but the pathogenic level of root-knot nematode in Gerbera was recorded at and above 1,000 J₂ inoculum level under both the conditions but plant growth parameters like shoot length (26.9 cm), fresh shoot weight (12.8g), dry shoot weight (3.3g), fresh root weight (22.8g), dry root weight (6.5g), number of galls per root system (14), no. of egg masses per root system (8) and final nematodes population (110 J₂) was recorded higher under polyhouse condition.

1 illus, 2 tables, 15 ref

020093   Dhyani K;Shukla A;Verma R S (Agronomy Plant Physiology Dep, G.B. Pant Univ of Agricultural Science and Technology, Pantnagar (Uttarakhand), Email: dhyani.k@rediffmail.com) : Comparative analysis of changes in leaf area index in different wheat genotypes exposed to high temperature stress by late sown condition. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2410-13.

High temperature stress during grain-filling period is one of the major environmental constraints limiting the grain yield of wheat in India. Crop growth response and relative performance of yield components of 12 wheat (Triticum aestivum) genotypes were studied in two date of sowing in crop research center (Pantnagar) to identify the causes of yield reduction in wheat particularly Leaf Area Index and its impact in yield loss and other tolerance mech-anism and comparative study of LAI and yield attributes to identify the genotype for high temperature tolerance in late sown condition. The higher temperature enhanced plant growth, flowering, and maturation which ultimately effects the crop performance in case of yield (Leaf Area Index, grain weight/spike and test weight were drastically reduced in time under high temperature. Out of 12 diverse genotypes namely HI 1539, DBW 14, HW 5021, HS 240, PBW-574, Raj 4101, Lok 54, Raj 3765, WH 1021, K-0-307, HW 2045 and HI1544,four were (Lok54, Raj3765, HI1539 and HI1544 ) were characterized as high temperature tolerant based on their relative performance in leaf area index, grain yield and heat susceptibility index. Leaf area Index studies in context to heat stress in wheat is least studied area in - 323 - heat tolerance research in wheat (Triticum aestivum), in the present study LAI is used as a screening tool for heat tolerance and effect of LAI in wheat yield.

1 illus, 3 tables, 11 ref

020092   Devi T S;Gogoi B B;Borgohain N;Das D N (Nematology Dep, Assam Agricultural Univ, Jorhat, Assam, Email: jaan_gohain@yahoo.com) : Population dynamics of plant parasitic nematodes in rice based cropping system. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 155-7.

^ssc2 illus, 2 tables, 5 ref

020091   Datta S;Jana J C;Bhaisare P T;Nimbalkar K H (NO, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Pundibari, Cooch Behar-736 165, Email: suchanddatta@rediffmail.com) : Effect of organic source of nutrients and biofertilizers on growth, yield and quality of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.). J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 1981-6.

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) being a long crop duration, rhizomatous nature and high productivity it re-quires heavy input of fertilizers. Keeping this in view, an experiment was conducted at the Instructional farm of Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Pundibari, Cooch Behar, West Bengal during 2009-10 and 2010-11 to study the effect of organic source of nutrients and biofertilizers on growth, yield and quality of Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.). The results revealed that application of green leaf manure - 322 - (from Glyricidia maculata) @ 12tonnes/ha along with rock phosphate @ 0.2 tonnes/ha, wood ash @ 1 tonnes/ha, Azospirillum @ 5kg/ha + PSB @ 5kg/ha (T₅) gave the sig-nificantly highest fresh (29.27 tonnes/ha) and dry yield (7.81 tonnes/ha) followed by vermicompost 5 tonnes/ha along with Azospirillum @ 5kg/ha + PSB @ 5kg/ha (T₄) (26.30 tonnes/ha and 6.99 tonnes/ha, respectively) which was statistically at par with sole application of 30 tonnes/ha farm yard manure (T₂) ( 26.00 tonnes/ha and 6.77 tonnes/ha, respectively). Next highest dry yield (6.40 tonnes/ha) was recorded in control plots (T₆) of recommended dose of fertilizers at the rate of 80:80:120 kg N, P₂O₅ and K₂O/ ha along farm yard manure @ 15 tonnes/ha. The lowest fresh yield of 19.31 tonnes/ha and dry yield (5.26 tonnes/ha) was recorded in the treatment of sole application of FYM @ 15 tonnes/ha (T₁). Somewhat higher dry recovery percentage was recorded in case of all the organic treatments compared to control treatment (T₆). Maximum dry recovery (27.22%) and curcumin content (5.24%) was recorded in the treatment of sole application of FYM @ 15 tonnes/ha (T₁). It may be concluded that the application of green leaf manure (from Glyricidia maculata) @ 12tonnes/ha along with rock phosphate @ 0.2 tonnes/ha, wood ash @ 1 tonnes/ha, Azospirillum @ 5kg/ha and PSB @ 5kg/ha was the best treatment followed by application of Vermicompost @ 5 tonnes/ha + Azospirillium @5 kg/ha + PSB @ 5 kg/ha and application of farm yard manure @ 30 tonnes/ha treatments for dry yield and quality of turmeric.

4 tables, 19 ref

020090   Das M (Agricultural and Food Engineering Dep, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur-721 302, Email: madhu@agfe.iitkgp.ernet.in) : Empirical modeling on the effect of sdium chloride, temperature and pH on solubility of myosin extracted from Labeo rohita. Fish Technol 2016, 53(1), 48-54.

The present study describes the modeling of the effect of sodium chloride concentration, temperature and pH on dissolution of myosin isolated from fresh waters fish, Labeo rohita. The goodness of fit was assessed by coefficient of determination, root mean square error and residual plot. The trend observed in the dissolution behavior could be well described by mathematical equations, the nature being case specific. At pH 6.2, with sodium chloride concentration as independent variable, solubility followed a four degree polynomial for temperatures ranging from 10-33°C and a three degree for 45-65°C. Maximum solubility obtainable increased linearly with decrease of temperature from 65 to 10°C, however, for the whole temperature range, dissolution attained peak at around 0.85 M sodium chloride. Solubility was also a function of pH and exhibited three degree dependency in absence of salt and a two degree dependency in presence of salt. The isoelectric pH of myosin shifted towards acidic side in presence of salt.

3 illus, 2 tables, 41 ref

020089   Das D;Baruah K;Das P (AICRP on Fruits, Assam Agricultural Univ, Jorhat, Assam-785 013, Email: debanand2009@rediffmail.com) : Reaction of banana cultivars to root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 201-3.

^ssc1 table, 4 ref

020088   Chrisolite B;Shanmugam S A;Vijayarahavan V; Sathish Kumar K;Kaliyamurthi V (Fisheries College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Fisheries Univ, Thoothukudi-628 008, Email: chrisolite.b@gmail.com) : Nutritional profiling and seasonal variation in the proximate composition of emperor fish (Lethrinus lentjan) from Thoothukudi coast of Tamil Nadu, India. Fish Technol 2016, 53(3), 238-44.

Seasonal variation in the - 321 - proximate composition (moisture, protein, fat, carbohydrate and ash) was analysed in emperor fish (Lethrinus lentjan). Mineral composition (iron, phosphorus, sodium, potassium and calcium) was also analysed. Moisture, protein, fat, carbohydrate and ash contents were found to range from 74.93-78.20, 14.53-24,40, 0.21-2.76, 0.49-1.07 and 1.24-2.70% respectively. Iron, phosphorus, sodium, calcium and potassium was 4.20, 13.50, 7.20, 156.20 and 17.90 mg% respectively. Fatty acid profile of emperor fish revealed palmitic acid (C16), stearic acid (C18) and myristic acid (C14) to be the major saturated fatty acid and elaidic acid (C18:ln9T) and oleic acid (C18: ln9C) were the dominant monounsaturated fatty acids. Investigations also revealed that fat content was higher during the monsoon season (October and November).

4 tables, 44 ref

020087   Chetariya C P;Vaddoria M A (Pulses Research Station, Junagadh Agricultural Univ, Junagadh (Gujarat), Email: chetariyachana89@gmail.com) : Genetic divergence analysis in bottle gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl.]. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 1949-53.

The study was conducted during summer 2014-15 at the Instructional Farm, College of Agriculture, Junagadh Agricultural University, Junagadh to assess the genetic diversity among 50 genotypes of bottle gourd (Ligenaria siceraria L.). The genetic diversity analysis revealed the formation of 13 clusters suggesting the presence of wide genetic diversity. The clustering pattern indicated that geographic diversity was not associated with genetic diversity. The analysis of per cent contribution of various characters towards the expression of total genetic divergence indicated that number of fruits per vine (22.45%) followed by number of primary branches per vine (13.80%), average fruit weight (11.51%), vine length (11.18%), fruit yield per vine (10.61%), number of male flowers (7.84%), fruit length (6.45%), ratio of male to female flowers (4.82%), days to first picking (4.49%) and days to opening of first male flower (3.84%) contributed maximum towards total genetic divergence. Based on the maximum genetic distance. It is advisable to attempt crossing of the genotypes from cluster XII(GP-14) with the genotypes of cluster IV (GP-25) and XI (GP-53), which may lead to the generation of broad spectrum of favourable genetic variability for yield improvement in bottle gourd.

3 tables, 20 ref

020086   Chawla S;Madan S;Reena Devi;Munjal R (Biochemistry Dep, CCS Haryana Agricultural Univ, Hisar-125 004, Email: sunsshine2009@gmail.com) : Evaluation of physiological parameters and zinc content in bread and durum wheat genotypes under different zinc doses. Int J Sci Nat 2016, 7(4), 765-71.

Zinc is an essential micronutrient involved in a wide variety of physiological processes. Zinc deficiency in soils and plants is a global micronutrient deficiency problem reported in many countries. The present investigation was conducted to study the effect of zinc deficiency on zinc content and physiological traits. Two Triticum aestivum genotypes viz. WH-147 and WH-1061 and two Triticum durum genotypes viz. WH-896 and WH-912 were grown in varying levels of zinc i.e. 100% Zn, 50% Zn and 25% Zn. Zinc deficiency induced the reduction in relative water content, chlorophyll stability index, chlorophyll fluorescence. Less reduction was observed in WH-1061. Photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance and water use efficiency were low in zinc- deficient conditions. WH-1061 showed better performance in terms of transpiration rate and stomatal conductance at different levels of zinc as compared to other genotypes. The level of electrolyte leakage increased with the decrease of zinc level. Among all the genotypes the maximum level of electrolyte leakage was noted in WH-912 at 25% Zn level. Results indicated that with the decreasing level of zinc, zinc content decreased in grains and leaves at both stages i.e. vegetative and maturity. However, with decreasing level of zinc, zinc content increased in roots. Bread wheat genotype (WH-1061) was found to be more tolerant under Zn deficit conditions than durum wheat genotypes.

8 illus, 4 - 320 -

020085   Chawla G;Sharma H K (Nematology Div, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi-110 012, Email: gchawla@iari.res.in) : In vitro effect of hydrogen peroxide on soil nematodes. Indian J Nematol 2016, 46(2), 181-2.

^ssc1 illus, 12 ref

020084   Chaudhary H K;Thumar R K;Chaudhary M G; Chaudhari R J (Entomology Dep, B. A. College of Agriculture Anand Agricultural Univ, Anand-388 110) : Bionomics of chiku moth, Nephopteryx eugraphella Ragonot (Lepidoptera : Pyralidae) on sapota. Gujarat Agric Univ Res J 2017, 42(2), 79-86.

Studies on bionomics of chiku moth, Nephopteryx eugraphella Ragonot - 319 - (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) were carried out at Department of Entomology, B. A. College of Agriculture, Anand Agricultural University, Anand during July to September, 2015. The female laid eggs along the midrib on under surface of tender leaves scattered or in batches. The freshly laid eggs were flat, oval in shape having one end broad and other slightly narrow and yellowish white in colour. The average length and breadth of eggs were 0.96 ± 0.02 and 0.46 ± 0.02 mm, respectively. The average incubation period was 3.60 ± 0.49 days. The average hatching percentage was 84.83 ± 6.33. The larva was passed through six instars. The length of first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth instar larva was 2.72 ± 0.22, 4.84 ± 0.25, 7.65 ± 0.26, 11.70 ± 0.36, 15.61 ± 0.28 and 20.71 ± 0.52 mm, whereas breadth was 0.47 ± 0.04,0.80 ± 0.13,1.46 ± 0.05,1.73 ± 0.07,2.09 ± 0.14 and 2.37 ± 0.11 mm, respectively. The width of the head capsule of respective instars was 0.38 ± 0.01, 0.52 ± 0.03, 0.79 ± 0.03, 1.08 ±0.10,1.42 ±0.04 and 1.71 ±0.04 mm, respectively. The duration of first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth instar larva was 3.40 ± 0.78, 5.10 ± 0.84, 4.44 ± 0.64, 3.28 ± 0.46, 3.46 ± 0.50 and 2.80 ± 0.61 days, respectively. The total larval period was 22.48 ± 1.35 days. Fully developed larva suspended feeding, looked sluggish, wrinkled and gradually contract in length and turned into pre-pupal stage. The length and breadth of pre-pupa were 17.33 ± 0.40 and 2.18 + 0.04 mm, respectively. The duration of pre-pupal stage was 1.72 ± 0.45 days. The larvae pupated between webbed leaves. The pupa was light green in colour. The length and breadth of pupal stage were 10.69 ± 0.44 and 2.78± 0.15 mm, respectively. The length and breadth of male moth were 17.13 ±0.75 and 18.81 ± 1.59 mm, respectively. The length and breadth of female moth were 20.25 ± 1.03 and 23.20 ± 1.07 mm, respectively. The pre-oviposition, oviposition and post oviposition periods were 1.57 ± 0.49, 4.05 ± 0.92 and 1.14 ± 0.69 days, respectively. The fecundity of the female was 95.90 ± 14.40 eggs. The sex ratio (male : female) was 1: 1.24 ± 0.36. The total life span for male and female was 34.24 ± 2.20 and 44.18 ± 4.20 days, respectively.

2 tables, 17 ref

020083   Chaudhary G K;Chaudhari M K;Prajapati B H (Agril Statistics Dep, C.P. College of Agriculture, S.D. Agricultural Univ, Sardarkrushinagar-385 506) : Plot size study from uniformity trial data of mothbean (Vigna aconitifolia). Gujarat Agric Univ Res J 2017, 42(2), 98-101.

An uniformity trial on Mothbean crop was carried out at Main Pulses Research Station, S. D. Agricultural University Sardarkrushinagar to find out optimum plot size and number of replications. Maximum curvature method and Fair field Smith variance method were used for this purpose. Based on coefficient of variation (CV) values, a plot of 16 basic units size with shape of 8 rows each of 4.00 meter length (4.00 m. x 3.60 m. = 14.40 m²) was considered optimum plot size (net plot) with 4 minimum replications for field experiments on mothbean crop at Sardarkrushinagar location (Gujarat).

1 illus, 3 tables, 9 ref

020082   Chaudhary B;Sanjeev Kumar;Kushwaha S K (Plant Pathology Dep, College of Agriculture, Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalay, Jabalpur-482 004, Email: chaudharybalkishan480@gmail.com ) : Bio-efficacy of trichoderma species against pigeonpea wilt pathogen. J appl nat Sci 2017, 9(4), 2327-31.

Three biocontrol agent viz., Trichoderma viride, Trichoderma virens and Trichoderma harzianum were evaluated to test the antagonism against Fusarium udum under in vitro conditions. All the three biocontrol agents have the potential of parasitizing the growth of Fusarium udum in vitro. The rate of parasitism was found fastest in T. viride (61.12% over growth in 96 hrs) than T. virens and T. harzianum. The volatile compounds from Trichoderma viride suppressed the mycelial growth of Fusarium udum by 43.13% and found effective when compared to Tricho-derma virens and Trichoderma harzianum. Non-volatile compounds or culture filtrate from Trichoderma virens at 15% concentration shows complete mycelial inhibition of the test fungi. The antagonist T. virens was chosen to be the most promising bio-control agent for F. udum.

4 illus, 2 tables, 26 ref