{"title":"Phytochemical Screening and Allelopathic Potential of Important Medicinal Plants Used by Dhimal Community in Urlabari Municipality","authors":"Sonika Poudel, Subodh Khanal","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58192","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58192","url":null,"abstract":"A study was conducted to document the major ethnobotanicals used against different ailments from Dhimal community of Urlabari Municipality. Deductive research approach employed through household survey using semi-structured questionnaire with 115 respondents for research work. Out of 23 documented plants, Cuscuta reflexa Roxb., Mimosa pudica L. , Azadirachta indica A. Juss, Achyranthes aspera L. and Acorus calamus L. were screened for further phytochemical analysis based on fidelity level. Five treatments maintained as 3 different concentrations (5, 10, and 15% of stock solution), and control were arranged in a completely randomized design with three replications for evaluating allelopathic potential where selected botanical extracts on germination, radical, and plumule growth of wheat seedlings were examined under invitro condition. Mimosa pudica L. had the highest alkaloid (15.39%), Cuscuta reflexa Roxb. had the highest terpenoid (9.17%) and Acorus calamus L. had the highest saponin (5.49%) when calculated via gravimetric method. Germination, radical and plumule growth found under control treatment were 3.24ab±0.09, 2.94a ±0.09cm and 2.70a ±0.17cm respectively. The stock solution of Acorus calamus L. with 15% concentration extract resulted in the maximum reduction of radicle length (1.14e ±0.22cm) and plumule length (1.04h ±0.17cm), along with heavily controlled germination (1.05f ±0.17) of wheat seedlings. Thus, Acorus calamus L. proved the highest allelopathic potential on wheat seedling growth indicating further investigation on other crops.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74817025","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
B. Pant, P. B. Magar, C. Manandhar, S. Manandhar, Ram Bahadur Khadka, Pratiksha Sharma, Ganga G.C., Suraj Baidya
{"title":"Screenhouse Evaluation of the Fungicides and Bio-Control Agents for the Management of Fusarium Wilt (Foc Race 1) of Banana in Nepal","authors":"B. Pant, P. B. Magar, C. Manandhar, S. Manandhar, Ram Bahadur Khadka, Pratiksha Sharma, Ganga G.C., Suraj Baidya","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58195","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58195","url":null,"abstract":"Banana is affected by a wide number of diseases, of which, Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense has played a major role in devastating Malbhog (Silk) banana plantations in Nepal. The objective of this study was to evaluate the commonly available fungicides (Carbendazim 50%, Fenamidone 10%+ Mancozeb 50%, Chlorothalonil and biocontrol agents (Trichoderma sps., Bacillus thuringiensis and Pseudomonas species) for their efficacy against Foc. The effectiveness of fungicides and biocontrol agents to Foc was examined in screenhouse. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized design with three replications and eight treatments. Among the chemicals, the most effective fungicide to reduce Fusarium wilt severity (root disease) was Bavistin with an efficacy of 55.33% followed by Sectin 46.33% and Chlorothalonil 35%. Similarly, maximum efficacy over control was recorded in Trichoderma harzianum with 41% and lowest was 32% in Pseudomonas sp. In the case of leaf disease, the lowest severity was 21.33% recorded in Bavistin and highest was 40.33% in Chlorothalonil. Similarly, among biocontrol agents, the lowest severity was found in Bacillus thuringiensis whereas highest was found in Trichoderma viride. A Suppression of disease by biocontrol agents might be due to their fungicidal activity, which means they produce a variety of antifungal compounds. These compounds induce plant defense mechanisms. Further field evaluations of the fungicides and biocontrol agents are required to determine if the effect observed in the screenhouse can be integrated into field management of Fusarium wilt.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90985004","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sustainable Rice Industry in Nepal: Comparative Analysis with South Asia","authors":"P. Pandey, H. Pandey, Aashish Shrestha","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58199","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58199","url":null,"abstract":"Rice, a prime crop in Nepal and other South Asian nations, plays a crucial role in ensuring food security and socio-economic development. In Nepal’s agricultural sector, rice accounts for the largest share of the Agricultural Gross Domestic Product (AGDP), comprising approximately 20%. However, the absence of appropriate policies poses a significant challenge to the sustainable production of rice in Nepal. This study aims to assess the various policy dimensions of the sustainable rice industry in Nepal and compare them with the policy implications in neighboring South Asian countries such as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The study draws on secondary sources of information for its analysis. The findings reveal that Nepal lacks a comprehensive rice policy, while its existing agriculture policy is characterized by confusion and contradictions. To attain self-sufficiency in food production, it is imperative to establish a comprehensive rice policy in Nepal and implement price subsidies on diverse inputs, as observed in neighboring countries which will ultimately contribute to enhancing the sustainability of the rice industry and promote the goal of food self-sufficiency in Nepal.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90275664","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
S. Lohani, Saroj Adhikari, L. Aryal, Y. Bhusal, Manahar Kadariya, Sunil Aryal
{"title":"Evaluation of Different Growing Media for Tomato and Sweet Pepper Seedlings Raising in Pokhara, Nepal","authors":"S. Lohani, Saroj Adhikari, L. Aryal, Y. Bhusal, Manahar Kadariya, Sunil Aryal","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58176","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58176","url":null,"abstract":"Nine different compositions of growing media were evaluated for growing tomato and capsicum in two consecutive years (2020 and 2021). Experiments were conducted in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) under rain shelter (poly house) with three replications. The growing media were Cocopeat, FYM+Cocopit+Perlite, FYM+ Cocopit+Vermiculite, FYM+Perlite, FYM+Soil, FYM+Vermiculite, Vermicompost+Perlite, Vermicompost +Soil and Vermicompost+Vermiculite. There were significant (P<0.05) differences in the observed parameters like number of seedlings emergence, number of seedling establishment, number of leaves, seedling height and diameter of seedling stem among the tested growing media. The highest seedling emergence of tomato and sweet pepper were recorded in cocopeat as a growing media. After 30 days after seed sowing (DAS) in tomato, the highest number of seedling (103.5) were found in Cocopeat and the tallest seedling height (19.92 cm) was found in Vermicompost+ perlite. Similarly, in Capsicum (40DAS), the highest number of seedling (83.5) were found for the growing media Cocopeat only, followed by Vermicompost + Perlite (78) and the tallest seedling height (13.89 cm) was found in Vermicompost+Vermiculite grown seedlings. The good root plug formation was found for the use of cocopeat. Therefore, use of vermicompost or FYM in the mixed form with cocopeat or the soil as a growing media would be sustainable technology for commercial seedling production of vegetables.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77138539","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
G. Pandey, Shreejana Pokharel, Samsher Basnet, Anish Basnet, A. Mainali, Sadikshya Rijal, Asmita Shrestha, Bignya Chandra Khanal
{"title":"Molecular Identification of Coffea Arabica Varieties in Nepal: Insights from Phylogenetic Analysis","authors":"G. Pandey, Shreejana Pokharel, Samsher Basnet, Anish Basnet, A. Mainali, Sadikshya Rijal, Asmita Shrestha, Bignya Chandra Khanal","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58187","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58187","url":null,"abstract":"This study aimed to identify and characterize the coffee varieties cultivated in Nepal using molecular phylogenetic analysis. The molecular identification and genetic relationship of twenty five coffee varieties were collected from the Nepal Coffee Development Center, Gulmi, Nepal. DNA was isolated from leaf tissue, and Internal Transcribed Spacers Region (ITS)-specific PCR was performed, followed by sequencing and phylogenetic tree construction. BLASTN was performed to identify the similarities with the sequences of the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) Database. Evolutionary divergence between the sequences was computed using Maximum Composite Likelihood Model. Sequences were analyzed using Maximum Likelihood Model and Tamura-Nei model to construct molecular phylogeny. BLASTN and molecular phylogeny confirm all the samples to be Coffea arabica. Evolutionary divergence in pairwise comparison was found to be 0% to 4.3%. Divergence of 4.3% was detected between CDC-S21 and CDC-S73. With this, we identified the coffee samples to be C. arabica and we also computed relatedness among our varieties.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81526702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Satellite Remote Sensing of Rice Crops in Nepal : A Review","authors":"Keshav Thapa Magar","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58193","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58193","url":null,"abstract":"Remote sensing, based on satellite data, is useful in studying rice crops for their several parameters such as cropped area, crop-coverage, growth stages, production, yield estimation and other statistics useful in scientific investigations. Despite some satellite-remote-sensing based researches have been reported in the country, such appliance in agricultural studies is very sparse in Nepal. In the current situation, Nepal could benefit from remote sensing technology for betterment of its agricultural planning and development specifically in the rice sub-sector for its national economic and food security importance. This review article is an attempt to highlight the importance of rice remote sensing in Nepal and list research articles in the field as bookmarks to benefit future rice researchers and interested readership.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83649893","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Min Bahadur Pun, Ram Hari Timilsina, Narayan Raj Joshi, Udit Prasad Sigdel
{"title":"Job Satisfaction of Government Agriculture Officers Working in the Extension Service of Nepal","authors":"Min Bahadur Pun, Ram Hari Timilsina, Narayan Raj Joshi, Udit Prasad Sigdel","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58184","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58184","url":null,"abstract":"A study was conducted to assess the job satisfaction status of government agriculture officers working in the extension service of Nepal and to find out the significant satisfaction determining factors as perceived by them. Semi-structured questionnaire was applied via online Google forms and findings were drawn from 112 responses. 64.29% respondents perceived their overall job satisfaction to be neutral. Regarding the individual factors, they were found to be satisfied with four factors, namely; Physical facilities at the office, Guidance of/and relationship with supervisors/office chief, Cooperation of/and relationship with co-workers and welfare/retirement facility, but dissatisfied with capacity building and job promotion opportunity while neutral to pay factor. Regarding the most preferred attribute of job satisfaction, capacity building and job promotion opportunity ranked first. Guidance of/and relationship with supervisors/office chief and Pay factor ranked second and third respectively. 52.63% of the respondents working in central or policy level offices were found to be with less workload than they expect. 54.5% of respondents expressed having unfair practices in case of various opportunities within the organization. There should be enough and effective capacity enhancement opportunities and the concerned organization should foster a fair system to make them happy and productive manpower of the country.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77323427","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Nepalese Fine and Aromatic Rice Landraces: A Review","authors":"K. Rayamajhi, Bishwas Malla Thakuri","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58190","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58190","url":null,"abstract":"With the recent issue of Geographical Indication (GI) tag claim by India on Basmati rice, Nepalese rice sector got an urgent call to conserve and promote fine and aromatic rice landraces. Fine, medium, coarse landraces were further classified into aromatic and non-aromatic. Some of the aromatic landraces popularized by their local dialect names as Basmati anadi, Basmati anpjhutte, Choti basmati, etc. were cultivated in diverse environment by local farmers but utilization in national rice improvement program is insufficient. Just handful of landraces were used as parental lines to develop improved varieties viz. Jarneli in Khumal-2, Pokhreli masino in Khumal 4, Khumal -5 and Palung 2, pureline of Jethobudho as Pokhreli jethobudho, pureline of Lalkabasmati as Lalkabasmati. With the prevailing trend of fast-track registration of the exotic improved lines, our grassroots level efforts to study the genetic makeup and unique attributes of our landraces are overshadowed. However, Jarneli, Kalo marshi, Kalo nuniya, Mansara, etc. were found to be popular for traits nutritious, medicinal, abiotic stress tolerance and resilience to low fertility soil. Furthermore, the modern tools of molecular characterization are yet to be utilized prominently to identify such valuable genes and understand their phylogenetic diversity rewarding for future rice breeding program.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81070327","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Morphological Characterization of Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) Genotypes at Dailekh","authors":"B. Luitel, Asmita Khanal","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58188","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58188","url":null,"abstract":"Pomegranate is an emerging potential fruit crop of Nepal and it can be cultivated successfully from tropical to warm temperate climatic condition of terai to mid- hills. This research was conducted to study the morphological traits and identify the superior pomegranate genotypes at Horticulture Research Station (HRS), Dailekh in 2019. Three pomegranate genotypes (HRDPOM001, HRDPOM004 and HRDPOM004M) were studied for their growth, flowers and pomological characters. Variation in plants, flower and pomological characters was observed in pomegranate genotypes. The highest marketable fruit weight (1.4 kg/plant) produced in HRDPOM001, followed by HRDPOM004 (1.2 kg/plant). The highest aril weight (60.5%) was measured in HRDPOM004. Highest TSS (12.8°Brix) and good taste preferences were recorded in the fruits of HRDPOM004. Pomological attributes for HRDPOM004 was found better than other studied genotypes. Individual fruit weight, fruit length, and fruit diameter showed the significant positive association with total fruit weight, and selection of these traits could improve the fruit yield. Based on the major pomological attributes, HRDPOM004 was found promising and selected to cultivate at the similar agro-climatic regions of Nepal.","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79109142","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Economics of Potato Production in Mustang District of Nepal","authors":"Aashish Karki, N. Bhusal, Nabin Bhandari, Bipin Bastakoti, Kritim Shrestha, Biraj Sharma","doi":"10.3126/aej.v24i01.58128","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3126/aej.v24i01.58128","url":null,"abstract":"Potato possesses a huge potential for production in Nepal and is a major source to ensure food and nutritional security among people of mountainous region. The study was carried out in four rural municipalities of Mustang district to assess the economics of potato production. A pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was administered randomly to 90 different farmers. The collected data was tabulated and analysed using STATA. Potato production was identified as a profitable farming business with an average productivity of 18.95 t/ha with benefit-cost ratio of 1.59. The average per hectare total cost of production of potato was found to be Rs 660774.8 on mustang district. The study reveals that expenditure on labour wage and organic manure contributed more than three-quarters of total production cost of potato. There were no any significant differences between the different rural municipalities in terms of the total cost of production but a significant difference (1% level of significance) was observed over the production of potato per hectare. An increment in 1% cost of seeds was found to result in increase in 0.27% of income from potato production, however a diminishing return to scale (0.232) was revealed in the study. Incidence of disease and pest and price fluctuation were identified as a major constraint for potato production and marketing respectively. Timely availability of inputs, mechanization to reduce labour cost, training on advanced technology, wide coverage of agriculture extension service, and adoption of climate smart farming technologies","PeriodicalId":43365,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85324841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}