Agriculture

Roman Agriculture and Food Production

by Paul Roberts

Rise of 'New Landlords' - A Rejoinder

by Abhishek Shaw

Disagreeing with R Vijay’s “Structural Retrogression and Rise of ‘New Landlords’ in Indian Agriculture: An Empirical... more Disagreeing with R Vijay’s “Structural Retrogression and Rise of ‘New Landlords’ in Indian Agriculture: An Empirical Exercise” (EPW, 4 February 2012), the authors argue that the explanation for declining tenancy may not hold and that the hypothesis on the emergence of “new landlords” and the importance of tenancy can be explained by the changing terms of tenancy in the country.

India's Second Green Revolution? The Sociopoltiical Implications of Corporate-driven Agricultural Growth

by Jeffrey Witsoe

Evolution of systems approaches to agricultural innovation: Concepts, analysis and interventions

by Laurens Klerkx

Book chapter, to be cited as:

Klerkx, L., van Mierlo, B., Leeuwis, C., 2012. Evolution of systems approaches to agricultural innovation: Concepts, analysis and interventions. In:  Darnhofer, I., Gibbon, D., Dedieu, B. (Eds). Farming Systems Research into the 21st century: the new dynamic. Dordrecht: Springer, pp. 457-483.

Over the years, there has been an evolution of systemic thinking in agricultural innovation studies, culminating in... more Over the years, there has been an evolution of systemic thinking in agricultural innovation studies, culminating in the agricultural innovation systems perspective. In an attempt to synthesize and organize the existing literature, this chapter reviews the literature on agricultural innovation, with the threefold goal of 1) sketching the evolution of systemic approaches to agricultural innovation and unravelling the different interpretations; 2) assessing key factors for innovation system performance and demonstrating the use of system thinking in the facilitation of processes of agricultural innovation by means of innovation brokers and reflexive process monitoring; and 3) formulating an agenda for future research. The main conclusion is that the agricultural innovation systems perspective provides a comprehensive view on actors and factors that co-determine innovation, and in this sense allows understanding the complexity of agricultural innovation. However, its holism is also a pitfall as it allows for many interpretations, which complicates a clear focus of this research field and the building of cumulative evidence. Hence, more work needs to be done conceptually and empirically.

Measurement of the efficiency of management on stud farms using the DEA method

by Robert Rusielik

Folia Universitatis Agriculturae Stetinensis, Oeconomica 2000 No. 38 pp. 85-98; ISSN1230-770X Polish language.

DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) was applied to 29 Polish horse-breeding establishments, with reference to data from... more DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) was applied to 29 Polish horse-breeding establishments, with reference to data from 1996 and 1997 covering income from sales and subsidies, land area, fixed assets, remuneration, and use of materials and energy. Average sales income rose from 4,250,000 to 4,307,000 złotys during the study period, while land area contracted by an average of 5.4%. The average value of fixed assets rose from 4,569,000 to 4,826,000 zł., while average remuneration costs were respectively 1,447,000 and 1,559,000 zł. Energy and material costs also rose. Efficiency indices dropped somewhat from 1996 to 1997, 15 establishments being rated as efficient in the first year and 13 in the next. Economy of scale enabled average reduction of costs of 2.6% in 1996 and 4.1% in 1997. In general it was found that there was potential for raising efficiency through optimal outlay combinations. This applied particularly to land area and the value of fixed assets, and to a lesser but still important degree to costs. This type of analysis is recommended for use in the development strategy of the State Agency administering stud farms as well as within the enterprises themselves.

Drainage network detection and assessment of network storage capacity in agrarian landscape

by Paolo Tarolli

Published in Hydrological Processes, 2012. Co-authored with Federico Cazorzi, Giancarlo Dalla Fontana, Alberto De Luca, Giulia Sofia

Drainage networks in agrarian landscape within floodplains constitute surface's discontinuities that are expected to... more Drainage networks in agrarian landscape within floodplains constitute surface's discontinuities that are expected to affect hydrological response during floods. Drainage network recognition and quantification of water storage capacity within channels are, therefore, crucial for watershed planning and management. These evaluations require accurate spatial information for the area of interest and in most cases, when studying large catchments, broad datasets of ditches locations and descriptions are not available. In order to characterize drainage networks for large areas, the availability of high resolution topography derived by airborne laser scanner (LiDAR) represents a new and effective tool. Nowadays LiDAR DTMs covering large areas are readily available for public authorities, and there is a greater and more widespread interest in the application of such information for the development of automated methods aimed at solving geomorphological and hydrological problems. While LiDAR DTMs reliability in steep landscape has been proven by several recent studies, only few researches have been conducted to take into account the effectiveness of these data in agrarian low relief landscapes. The goal of this research is to propose a semi-automatic approach based on a LiDAR DTM to (1) detect drainage networks in agrarian/floodplain contexts, and (2) to estimate some of the network summary statistics (network length, width, drainage density and storage capacity). The procedure is applied in two typical alluvial-plain areas in the North East of Italy, and tested comparing automatically derived network with surveyed ones. The results underline the capability of high resolution DTMs for drainage network detection and characterization in the context of agrarian landscapes within floodplains, opening at the same time new challenges to evaluate some hydrological processes in these areas

Stakeholder participation in the design of environmental policy mixes

by Gualter Barbas Baptista

Understanding Biodiversity with Socio-Cultural & Environmental Aspects. 30 April 2011

by M.T. Abdullah, PhD

This paper discusses on some concepts and new ideas related to the high biological diversity in Malaysia. This may be... more This paper discusses on some concepts and new ideas related to the high biological diversity in Malaysia. This may be known as integrative biological diversity.

Las" villae" romanas en la Andalucía mediterránea y del estrecho

by Ildefonso Ruiz López

Ackergeräte, in: Wissensdatenbank (Geisteswissenschaftliches Zentrum Leipzig: online publication), Leipzig 2012, 10 pp.

by Joachim Henning

(Zugriff 29.04.2012)
The artice was once written for the planned "Enzyklopädie zur Frühgeschichte Europas" and has now been published in the internet by Geisteswissenschaftliches Zentrum Leipzig (GWZO)

Did the “agricultural revolution” go east with Carolingian conquest? Some reflections on early medieval rural economics of the Baiuvarii and Thuringi

by Joachim Henning

to be published, in: J. Fries-Knoblach & H. Steuer (eds.), The Bavarians and Thuringians in the Migration Period. An Ethnographic Perspective, Studies in Historical Archaoethnology. International conference in San Marino, Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Social Stress (Giorgio Aussenda), September 2004 (The Boydell Press, Woodbridge 2012) forthcoming

Comentarios al informe 2008 del Banco Mundial: "Agricultura para el desarrollo"

by J. Fernando Galindo

Comentarios vertidos en ocasión de la presentación del Informe Anual 2008 del Banco Mundial “Agricultura para el Desarrollo” realizado el 22 de abril 2008 en el Hotel Europa de la ciudad de La Paz, Bolivia.

Comments stated on ocassion of the presentation of World Bank's 2008 Development Report "Agriculture for Development" on April 22, 2008 at Hotel Europa in La Paz, Bolivia.

Este documento de trabajo esboza un comentario general del informe 2008 del Banco Mundial "Agricultura para el... more Este documento de trabajo esboza un comentario general del informe 2008 del Banco Mundial "Agricultura para el desarrollo". Se Inicia con un resumen y valoración general del documento, continua con algunas precisiones respecto a la agricultura latinoamericana, posteriormente se plantean interrogantes sobre la intencionalidad y contenido del mismo, se identifican algunas recurrencias y se finaliza con unas apostillas respecto al informe y el desarrollo rural en Bolivia.

This paper outlines general comments on World Bank's 2008 Development Report "Agriculture for Development". It begins with a summary and a general assessment of the document, then states a few comments with respect to Latin American agriculture, raises some questions about the content and intention of the document, outlines some recurrent topics and ends with a few apostilles about the links of this report and rural development in Bolivia.

2010 Review of W. Röllig, Land und Viehwirtschaft am unteren Habur in mittelassyrischer Zeit. Wiesbaden, 2008.

by Jaume Llop-Raduà

BiOr 67 (2010) 124-132

Ecological pest management for emerging pest problems

by Bikramjit Sinha

Formalizing Informal Innovations in the Agriculture: A Case Study of Traditional Pest Management

by Bikramjit Sinha

Expert systems for agricultural production [crop damage in agricultural crops]

by Peter Mellalieu

Mellalieu, P. J., & Turner, K. D. (1985). Expert Systems for Agricultural Production [crop damage in agricultural crops]. Proceedings of the Operational Research Society of New Zealand.

The paper describes the development of the first application of Expert Systems (artificial intelligence) technology to... more The paper describes the development of the first application of Expert Systems (artificial intelligence) technology to agriculture in New Zealand. Specifically, a prototype expert system is described that was designed with the ultimate intention to provide lay people, such as farmers, to identify the cause of crop damage in agricultural crops and indicate possible treatments. The specific expert system was 'taught' to identify 22 diseases in 16 types of wheat and 13 diseases in 23 types of barley. The advantages of using the expert system approach are outlined. The history of how the new technology was introduced to New Zealand's agricultural research and advisory services agencies is detailed.

Ovary abscisic acid concentration does not induce kernel abortion in field-grown maize subjected to drought

by Folkard Asch

Asch, F. Andersen, M. N., Jensen, C. R., Mogensen, V. O., 2001.
Ovary Abscisic Acid Concentration does not Induce Kernel Abortion in Field-grown Maize Subjected to Drought. European Journal of Agriculture 15, 119-129.

This study investigated the effects of drought of different duration and severity on ovary ABA concentration and yield... more This study investigated the effects of drought of different duration and severity on ovary ABA concentration and yield components in field-grown maize (Zea mays L. cv. Loft). The study was conducted in a field lysimeter of the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University (KVL) in Højbakkegaard (55°40' N; 12°18' E; 28 masl), Denmark in 1997. Irrigation was withheld at four different dates to induce drought of different duration and severity at the reproductive stage of the plants. Plots were re-watered shortly after silking and kept at field capacity for the remainder of the season. Soil water status, plant height, and early morning leaf water potential were monitored during the treatment. Ovary abscisic acid concentration was determined at four dates before and after fertilization. Final grain yield, total dry matter, harvest index, mean kernel weight, kernel weight distribution, and kernel number per cob were determined at maturity. Plant height was significantly (p < 0.05) reduced by 40% and 25% respectively in the two most severe drought treatments. In the two shorter drought treatments no effect of drought stress on plant height or biomass was observed. Leaf water potential decreased slowly as a function of relative available soil water content and resulted in -0.4 MPa at the end of the longest and -0.12 MPa at the end of the shortest stress period. Under fully watered conditions, plot yields averaged 1400 g·m-2 for total dry matter (DM) and 700 g·m-2 for grain yield, with a harvest index of about 0.5. Initiation of a drying cycle close to flowering did not change yields. Long drying cycles resulted in significant ( p< 0.05) yield reductions up to 70 % of the fully watered controls. Kernel number per cob was reduced up to 60% under long drought conditions and not affected under short term drought. Drought imposed about two weeks prior to fertilization resulted in 30% reduction in kernel number per cob, but this effect was balanced by an increase of 25 % in mean kernel weight. Long and severe drought increased ovary ABA concentration prior to fertilization, whereas short term drought did not. At fertilization no increase of ovary ABA as compared to fully watered controls was found in any treatment. It is concluded that drought induced grain yield losses in field grown maize cannot be attributed to kernel size reduction or kernel abortion due to ovary ABA concentrations as reported by some authors for studies on maize and wheat under controlled conditions, as ovary ABA concentrations peaked before zygote formation and endosperm development.

Transmission de valeurs entre les agricultrices et leurs filles pour la production du genre féminin : le cas de familles rurales en Bourgogne.

by Justine MARILLONNET

Decomposition of organic substrates and their effect on Mungbean growth in two soils of the Mekong Delta

by Folkard Asch

Becker, M., Asch, F., Chiem, N. H., Ni, D. V., Saleh, E., Tanh, K. V., Tinh, T. K. 2008.
Decomposition of organic substrates and their effect on mungbean growth in two soils of the Mekong Delta. J. Agric. Rural Dev. Trop. Subtr. 109, 95-107.

Agricultural land use in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam is dominated by intensive irrigated rice cropping systems on both... more Agricultural land use in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam is dominated by intensive irrigated rice cropping systems on both alluvial and acid sulfate soils. A generally observed decline in productivity is linked on the alluvial soils to low N use efficiency and low soil organic matter content while on acid sulfate soils to acidity, Al toxicity and P deficiency. Faced with productivity declines, farmers increasingly diversify their cropping system by replacing the dry season rice by high-value horticultural crops grown under upland conditions. However, upland cropping is likely to further exacerbate the soil-related problems. Organic substrates from decentralized waste/water management are widely available and may help alleviate the reported soil problems. During the dry season of 2003/2004, the effect of the application of various types and rates of locally available waste products on crop performance was evaluated at both an alluvial and an acid sulfate soil site. The C and N mineralization dynamics of nine organic substrates from waste and wastewater treatment were determined by anaerobic (N) and aerobic (C) incubation in the laboratory. The response of diverse 12 week-old field-grown upland crops (dry matter accumulation) to substrate application (1.5 – 6.0 Mg ha-1) was evaluated on in a degraded alluvial and an acid sulfate soil. In the alluvial soil, largest mineralization rates were observed from anaerobic sludge. Biomass increases in 12 week-old upland crops ranged from 25-98% above the unfertilized control and were generally highest with legumes and lowest with vegetables. In the acid sulfate soil, highest net-N release rates were observed from aerobic composts with high P content. Crop biomass was related to soil pH and exchangeable Al3+ and was highest with the application of aerobic composts, with vegetables responding more than tubers or legumes. We conclude that the use of organic substrates in the rice-based systems of the Mekong Delta needs to be soil specific.

Mechanisation Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa

by Anthony Egeru