Abstract Forty-five cowpea accessions, randomly selected from cowpea germplasm from four cowpea-growing regions of Ghana, namely, Upper East, Upper West, Northern and Eastern Regions, were characterized and evaluated at the Plant Genetic Resources Unit of the Crops Research Institute at Bunso with the objective to determine the range of variability in the samples with respect to vegetative, inflorescence and fruit characters. The variability in the samples was used to initiate hybridization...
ABSTRACT Sorghum panicle architecture is a complex trait involving growth, elongation and branching pattern. The main objective of this research was to determine the genetic control of sorghum panicle architecture and its involvement in grain yield. Molecular markers associated with statistical analyses were used to identify the genomic regions or QTLs controlling quantitative traits. A population composed of 401 F4 families was derived from a cross between two contrasted parents for panic...
ABSTRACT Three experiments were conducted during the dry season from October 2001 to April 2002 at the University of Ghana Farms and the Food Research Institute, to evaluate two methods of conservation of sweet potato planting material and one method of multiplication of vines was evaluated in this study using two cultivars - Sauti and Okumkom released to farmers by the Crops Research Institute. The study was aimed at developing technology to ensure the availability of adequate quantities o...
ABSTRACT Continuous tillage of soils results in nutrient mining. It leaves the soils in very fragile conditions and therefore nutrient augmentation through the application of fertilizers has become imperative to maintain crop yields to feed the ever-growing population of Ghana. The use of organic fertilizers has its pros and cons. This study sought to determine the factors that influence the adoption of organic fertilizers, in vegetable production in Accra. Vegetable growing areas were purpo...
ABSTRACT Studies were undertaken to identify the pathogens associated with rotting of white yam (.Dioscorea rotundata var. Araba, Asana and Puna) in Ghana, to identify exportable white yam varieties with superior shelf life and to evaluate the effectiveness of lime and neem wood-ash in controlling rots in wounded yam tubers. A field survey was conducted among yam retailers and exporters in Accra. The results revealed that: a major constraint to yam production and marketing in Ghana is the hig...
ABSTRACT The mycoflora of two recently-developed maize (Zea mays L) varieties Abeleehi and Obaatanpa have been studied under varying ambient equilibrium relative humidities E R H ’s (55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90 and 95%) representative of the Ghanaian ambient conditions. The potential pathogenicity of selected contaminating fungal species (A. alutaceus, = A. ochraceus, Fusarium, moniliforme, Penicillium digitatum, Peacilomyces carneus, P. puntoni and P. varioti) was also tested under labo...
ABSTRACT Soils of the semi-deciduous forest zone of Ghana are known to be moderately acid and very low in plant available phosphorus (P). These soils need to be fertilised to improve their potential for crop production. However high cost of commercial, water soluble fertilizers makes them beyond the reach of local farmers. Instead of expensive superphosphates, the use of less expensive phosphate rocks such as Togo rock phosphate (TRP), Gafsa rock phosphate (GRP) and 50% partially acidulated r...
ABSTRACT Feeding trials were conducted to evaluate the effect of graded levels of raw and cooked turmeric rhizome meal on the performance of broiler birds. Turmeric rhizome was washed with water and divided into two batches of 40kg each. The first batch was crushed, sundried for 3 days, ground to produce raw turmeric rhizome meal and bagged. The second batch was cooked for an hour, crushed with a roller and sun-dried for 3 days. Both the raw and cooked sundried turmeric rhizomes were then gr...
ABSTRACT Nodulation, dry matter yield, nitrogen accumulation and the potential for weed control of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), mucuna (Mucuna pruriens var utilis ) and pueraria(Pueraria phaseoloides ) cover crops were assessed in pot and field experiments at the University of Ghana, Legon and the Oil Palm Research Institute, Kade respectively. The response of these cover crops to bradyrhizobial inoculation in two soil series, Kokofu and Nzima, was also studied. Rhizobial inoculation on the av...
ABSTRACT The study looked at the economic potential of black pepper production in the Western Region of Ghana. The objectives of the study were: to determine whether there is comparative advantage or disadvantage of producing black pepper; to determine the competitiveness of black pepper production; to determine whether the prices paid by local and international markets give any incentives for black pepper production; and to identify constraints that militate against the production of black p...
ABSTRACT Chickpea is an important legume crop in the arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs). It is commonly grown during the post-rainy season under receding soil moisture conditions. This exposes the crop to drought especially terminal drought which occurs towards the end of the cropping period, causing high yield losses. Developing drought tolerant and high yielding chickpea genotypes, incorporating farmer prefer traits, is an important goal for plant breeders in the ASALs for increased productiv...
ABSTRACT This study identified the types of soil ameliorant that exist in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. It also determined farmer's willingness to pay for composted urban waste as well as the amounts they were willing to pay for a 50kg bag of compost should it result in a 25% and 50% increments in output, respectively. The study further investigated the socio-economic factors that affect farmer's willingness to pay for compost. The results obtained further revealed that different types o...
ABSTRACT To improve agricultural development and to empower farmers to make sound, practical decisions, access to reliable agricultural information and knowledge is required. Farmers who are unable to access agricultural information from formal sources frequently turn to information transmitted through their informal information networks. The study examined existing informal agricultural information networks by using network characteristics, i.e., Network density, Centralization Measures (Deg...
Abstract Schistosomiasis is an economically important disease of man and livestock caused by trematode parasites of the genus Schistosoma. The disease is wide-spread and endemic throughout many parts of the world infested by the intermediate freshwater snail hosts belonging to the family Planorbidae. The affected areas include; Africa, Madagascar, S. America, India, Sri Lanka, South East Asia, China, Japan, Philipines, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Caribbean (Rollinson and Southgate, 1987), 75 co...
ABSTRACT Analysis of genetic relationships among accessions is a prerequisite to any viable genetic improvement. The main objective of the study was to determine the genetic variation among 20 garden egg accessions in Ghana based on morphological traits as well as calcium and iron content of fruits. Twenty garden eggs accessions were studied in a Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications. There was large variability between and among accessions. The fruit length: diameter ratio...