ABSTRACT Traditional/backyard pig production systems are found in the larger Western Kenya while commercial systems are predominant in Eastern and Central Kenya including Nairobi. The pig holdings in Coast and few in North-Eastern are commercial systems. The expansion and improvement of the market for pigs and pig products generally in Kenya may explain why pig- keeping is beginning to be found outside traditional pig-keeping areas. The objectives of the study were: 1) To characterize pig pro...
Abstract Chemelil Sugar Company is located along the Awasi nyando road.It started in the year 1965 as a private company. The original shareholding was 57%, private and 43% government ownership. Low cane yields and low cane quality due to low performance of most agricultural activities in land preparation, planting, cane husbandry and harvesting and transport. Cane shortage has been a major limiting factor in the performance of the company crushing capacity The general objective is to analys...
ABSTRACT Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea Linn) is an important legume in western Kenya, but yields are low and declining. Pests and diseases are ranked high among the yield reducing factors. Groundnut rosette disease (GRD) is the main disease and can cause up to 100% yield loss. Rosette is transmitted mainly by the groundnut aphid, Aphis craccivora Koch and to a lesser extent by Aphis gosypii Glover and Myzus persicae Sulzer. Rosette is caused by two synergistic viruses; groundnut rosette assisto...
ABSTRACT A cross sectional study was conducted to compare the welfare of working donkeys in the rural and urban/peri-urban areas of Mwingi Central Sub-County of Kitui county in Kenya. The assessment of welfare was based on physical welfare indicators, pathological and external parasite infestation, and physiological welfare indicators including the determination of free fecal cortisol concentration. From a total population of 35,361 donkeys in the study area, a sample size of 396 donkeys was ...
ABSTRACT Regional projects hereby refer to projects implemented in more than one country. The countries of focus are Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. The purpose of the study was to build the thesis that regional projects generated more impacts and significantly contributed to: increased agricultural production and productivity; enhanced stakeholders’ access to financial services; increased incomes; profitable land uses; and up-scaling of technologies, innovations, and manageme...
ABSTRACT The Mara River is the lifeline of the Trans boundary Mara basin across Kenya and Tanzania. The basin is considered one of the more serene sub-catchments of the Lake Victoria Basin and ultimately the Nile Basin. The basin traverses the famous Maasai Mara and Serengeti National Parks in Kenya and Tanzania respectively. The basin also contains forests, largescale farms, smallholder farms, pastoral grazing lands, as well as hunter gatherers and fishers. There is growing concern however, ...
ABSTRACT This study investigated the evaluation of rural credit markets in Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State. The study focused on the financial lending institutions (formal and informal) that lend money to farmers, the differences in the lending conditions and amount of loan granted between the identified sources. Also, the impact Of the loan on the beneficiaries level of production and income. Data relevant to the study were collected through the use of both structured qu...
Standard methods of analysis were used to determine the mineral and nutrient content of the molluscan shells. The mean and variance of each nutrient were determined. The shells contained high percentage of calcium of 12.35 to 15.07% (13.90±0,26) sodium 0.10 to 1.55% (0.705±0,16) magnesium 0.10 to 1.02% (0.44±0.009) phosphorus 0.18 to 0.63 (0.35±0.005) potassium 0.003 to 0.021% (0.012±0.002). The molluscan shells also has large proportions of crude protein with values of 1.49-3.76% (2.32...
ABSTRACT This study was undertaken to assess the potential for including mucuna meal as a partial replacement for locally available fish meal in diets for Oreochromis niloticus (L.). Seven groups o± fish were fed prescribe diets at 4% body weight once a day for 56 days. The water temperature and p remained essentially the same during the experiment at 29°C and 6.8 respectively. Fish meal was the only source of supplemental protein in the control rati(i.e diet 1). Diets 2, 3 and 4 had part ...
TABLE. CF COiTENTS Pages Title page Dedication Certification Acknowledgement Table of Contents List of Symbols and Abbreviations List of Tables and Plates Abstract CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.1. Background of Study 1,2 Statement of Problem 1.3 Objectives of Study 1.4 JustIfication CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Ecology and Value of Vegetation C 2.2 The Role oF Inorganic Fertiliser and poultry manure on plant yield 2.3 Tillage, Organic Matter and Crop Residues Importance in Fer...
ABSTRACT Access to high quality certified soybeans seeds by most small scale commercial farmers is a major constraint and this result in most farmers to retain their seed obtained from the previous harvests. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of retention period on field emergence, vigor and genetic purity of soybean seeds under the smallholder farmers in semi arid regions of Zimbabwe. A survey was first conducted to assess the agronomic and storage practices done by smallholder...
ABSTRACT Vegetable amaranths are highly valued for being rich in proteins and micronutrients such as iron, calcium, zinc, vitamin C and vitamin A. In spite of the crop’s exceptional nutritional qualities, very little effort has been put in to improve the foliage yield potential in Kenya. Reports on morphological phenotypic variation analysis in Amaranthus are rare and detailed agronomic recommendations for leaf and seed yields and quality enhancement are scanty. Research on the extent of th...
ABSTRACT Human-related activities are known to have deleterious effects on the water quality of aquatic ecosystems globally. However, there is limited information on the impact of similar perturbations in tropical regions, especially the River Chania in Kiambu County, Kenya, which is an important source of water for humans and animals and also provides habitat for a variety of flora and fauna along its length. The aim of this study was to determine the spatial and temporal variations of sele...
ABSTRACT African horned melon (Cucumis metuliferus) is an indigenous crop belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae. The crop has been neglected despite its high potential. Therefore, to conserve the biodiversity of this crop, there is need to promote its domestication and production. However, this can only be realized if its morphology, agronomic and nutritional value is understood. The objective of this study was to determine the agro-morphological performance and nutritional composition of hor...
ABSTRACT Aphids are the major pests of vegetables leading to a significant yield loss in African indigenous vegetables including amaranth and nightshades. Information on the types of aphids that infest these vegetables and their genetic diversity in Kenya and Tanzania is scanty. This is an important diagnostic component in developing management strategies such as integrated pest management and early detection and control of invasive species. This study used a fragment of the mitochondrial cyt...