Issue 03

Identifying high-performing seedling teas in Passara, sri lanka

2024-10-09T05:12:56Z

Identifying high-performing seedling teas in Passara, sri lanka Hettiarachchi, H.A.I.L.; Alwis, L.M.H.R.; Dharmarathna, T.T.D. Tea is a shade-loving plant and is propagated either by seeds or cuttings. The seedling teas exhibit the ability to endure prolonged droughts while still achieving vigorous shoot growth. This study aimed to identify high performing seedling teas in Passara where drought is a key determinant of tea yield. Twenty-one high-performing seedlings and six extensively-used vegetatively propagated tea cultivars from three randomly selected tea estates in Passara were compared morphologically based on shoot density, banji shoots, shoot weight, internodal length, length, and width of the mature leaf. Data were analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA) using Minitab (version 17) software. The findings demonstrated a significant difference among tea bushes considering selected morphological traits at a 5% significance level. Clustering analysis of Gonakele estate grouped GS4 with TRI 2025, GS2, and GS3 with TRI 2043. VS1 and VS3 seedlings from Varellapathna estate were clustered with TRI 2023 and CY9, respectively. Hopton estate seedlings did not cluster with vegetatively propagated cultivars. Therefore, GS2, GS3, GS4 from Gonakale, and VS1, and VS3 from Varellapathna were selected as mother bushes. Thus, the findings unveil distinct clusters of high-performing seedling teas from various estates, providing insights into potential candidates for maintaining genetic diversity in tea plantations

Assessment of thermal comfort of broiler birds in warm - humid climate

2024-10-21T09:00:15Z

Assessment of thermal comfort of broiler birds in warm - humid climate Munonye, J.O.; Munonye, C.C.; Esiegwu, A.C. An experiment was conducted in a poultry house located at the Faculty of Agriculture, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu Alike, Nigeria to assess the thermal comfort of broiler birds of 0-8 weeks old. ASHRAE standard instruments were used to measure environmental parameters within two years (May to July 2020: rainy season; Dec. to Feb. 2021: dry season and May to July 2021: rainy season; Dec. to Feb. 2022: dry season). During the survey, the birds were exposed to environmental variables such as air temperature, relative humidity, and airflow. A strong correlation was found between the ambient temperature and the mortality of the birds. The highest mortality was recorded when the ambient temperature hovered around 30oC. There was an increase in mortality rate at an indoor temperature range of 32 -34oC, while the lowest mortality was recorded at the indoor temperature of 28oC. The feed conversion ratio was low when the indoor temperatures were high. The researchers found that the first experiment was consistent with the second experiment. The study recommended good air flow and the planting of trees around broiler birds houses to enhance the thermal comfort of the birds, leading to less mortality and efficient feed conversion ratio.

The nexus between covid-19 and finfish export from Sri Lanka to its main trading partners; the United States and the European union

2024-10-14T04:56:55Z

The nexus between covid-19 and finfish export from Sri Lanka to its main trading partners; the United States and the European union De Silva, D.W.L.U.; Bandara, W.A.A.M.; Dilhani, E.V.D.; Sadaruwan, K.P.G.L. The Sri Lankan seafood sector has been seriously disturbed during the Covid 19 pandemic due to a bleak demand outlook as well as an array of supply challenges. Identification of the effects of this new challenge to the global fish trade is critical to take actions to sustain the market and manage resilience in such uncertain periods. Study aims to assess the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on Sri Lanka's finfish exports to its key trading partners, the United States of America (USA) and the European Union (EU). The time series data were gathered from the United Nations commodity trade database between January 2017 and December 2022. Study used structural break point analysis of time series data, followed by time series regression with the Covid-19 impact as a dummy variable using EVIEWS statistical software. Compared to 2019, total finfish exports to the United States dropped by 56.5% in 2020 and 72.5% in 2021 while finfish exports to European market increased by 7% and 28% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. The Covid-19 dummy was statistically significant in the time series regression, with a coefficient value of -71.93 in USA trade flow which implies that Covid-19 has a negative impact on finfish trade to the USA. In contrast, statistically significant impact was not found in finfish trade to the EU during the pandemic and this mainly because European seafood market impacted due to Covid-19 yet imports from developing countries fell slightly and overall demand for seafood has remained largely stable throughout 2020. However, study suggested that future research should focus on the country-specific product sensitivity at the individual product level.

Bioconversion performances of black soldier fly larvae (hermetia illucens l. diptera: stratiomyidae) on selected organic substrates

2024-10-21T10:16:19Z

Bioconversion performances of black soldier fly larvae (hermetia illucens l. diptera: stratiomyidae) on selected organic substrates Nallakumar, G.; Fernando, K.M.C. Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL; Hermetia illucens L.) is a bioconversion agent of organic substrates and its proven ability to degrade and biotransform of waste strengthens organic waste management and waste recycling strategies. BSFL have the advantages of rapid development and very efficient conversion of various organic wastes into body biomass. This process reduces the disposal costs of organic waste as well as the use of energy providing a sustainable solution to the treatment of organic waste. In addition, it provides valuable products and fertilizers for agriculture, potentially reducing crop production costs for farmers. The current study investigated the potential live biomass production of BSFL using different organic substrates available locally while understanding their decomposition ability. Seven treatments were compared (T1- equal proportion of poultry manure and rice bran, T2- equal proportion of goat manure and rice bran, T3- rabbit droppings, T4- soybean meal, T5- coconut scrapings, T6- equal proportion of vegetable and fruit waste and T7- cow dung) and the experiment was set up as completely randomized design with three replicates. The study results examined the ability of BSFL to reduce the weight of the end-substrate and promote the degradation of organic waste materials. The live biomass production of larvae, changes in live biomass production, substrate consumption rate, the weight of the end-substrate and substrate conversion efficiency were significantly different among treatments. The greatest live biomass production of BSFL was recorded in coconut scrapings and vegetables & fruit waste mixture while the lowest value was observed in cow dung. Coconut scrapings reduced most of their weight at the end of the study indicating the highest substrate consumption rate and the total weight of the end-substrate consisted of < 2mm particle in size. However, the highest substrate conversion rate was observed in cow dung. Aqueous solutions prepared from the end-substrates varied widely in pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, and salinity. In addition, significant differences were found among treatments for the colour and texture of the end-substrate. However, the appearance and odour did not differ significantly. According to the results of the present study, it can be concluded that the most efficient media for BSFL was coconut scraping though; it cannot be used as organic fertilizer as it exceeded the pH value of the SLS recommendation for compost. Overall, BSFL can be recognized as an effective and environmentally friendly tool to use in the biotransformation process of locally available organic waste materials