Yield performances of tomatoes (Lycopersicum esculentum) on organic manure buffered lateritic soils

Lateritic soils are found in many farms even though they have not been known to be encouragingly productive to farmers because of their non-supportive of agricultural products. This experiment was to help farmers whose lands are lateritic to produce more crops/ha when buffered with organic manure. There were six treatments namely: laterite soil, laterite soil buffered with organic manure, laterite soil buffered with NPK 15-15-15, sandy loam soil, sandy loam soil buffered with organic manure (OM) and sandy loam soil buffered with NPK 15-15-15. There were three replicates for each treatments, the arrangement was 2 × 6 × 3 factorial design of 36 pots, parameters measured during the experiment were days to emergency, days to flowering, days to fruiting, number of branches, number of fruits per plant, nodes and internodes, stem girth length, leaf length of plant, plant height (from the surface of the soil to the apex (tip) of the plant) at twice a week and number of leaves per plant counted and recorded each week. The whole arrangements were subjected to the same environmental and climatic conditions. Chemical and physical characteristics of the soil in different treatments were done in the laboratory before and after. The data collected were subjected to two-way ANOVA. The results revealed that seed germination percentage was higher in sandy-loam buffered soil, 92.5%, followed by lateritic buffered soil 87.5%. Statistical analysis showed statistical differences among the yield and yield parameters for types of soil. However, the growth parameters taken as height, number of leaves, fresh and dry weight were found to be higher in sandy-loam soil followed by laterite soil and finally alluvium soil. Statistical analysis of these also showed significant differences between the types of soil used. Laterite buffered soil could yield as high as sandy loam soil in the production of tomatoes.Keywords: buffered laterite, number of leaves, sandy-loam, soil factor

The influence of culture on entrepreneurial intentions: a Nigerian university graduates’ perspective

Culture influences entrepreneurship and it is becoming essential to determine its role in entrepreneurship development in different countries especially in those with cultural diversities like Nigeria where there are less studies. Nigeria included a compulsory variant of entrepreneurship education in the curriculum of universities to nurture entrepreneurial mind-sets. Despite the general recognition of the instrumentality and significance of entrepreneurship, there are no studies evaluating the programme or the role of culture in entrepreneurial intention development. This study applied an extended version of the theory of planned behaviour to examine the interaction between culture and entrepreneurship how this impact on the entrepreneurial intentions of graduates. This article analysed and reported results of the survey of 409 graduates from six universities using structural equation modelling-AMOS, analysis of moment structures. Findings indicate that culture has both direct and indirect effect on graduates’ entrepreneurial intentions. The study has implications for policy and practice

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A Cross Sectional Analysis of Farm-Size Productivity Relationship in African Agriculture Evidence from Maize Farming Households in Nigeria

This paper examines the farm size and productivity relationship using data from Nigeria. The household data used has been drawn from a baseline survey conducted in Nigeria and financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundations (BMGF).The relationship between farm size and productivity has long been a topic of debate in development economics. Using a cross sectional baseline data, we aimed at examining the relationship between maize yield and farm size across the selected agro-ecological zones. Specifically, it aimed at investigating the farm size–productivity relationship and its underlying determinants for maize producers in Nigeria. Findings from this study indicate that productivity measures are consistently highest among farms small farms, next highest among medium, and lowest among large farms. Gross profit per hectare and net profit per hectare on small farms are over 15% higher and 40% respectively higher than medium and large farms. The study further reveal a strong negative relationship between the value of output per hectare and own cultivated area with a doubling in cultivated area associated with a 35% or 98% decrease in the value of crop output per unit of cultivated land at the holding- or plot-level, respectively. We therefore recommended that farm size– productivity relationship and its determinants in developing countries like Nigeria should continue to be of interest to policy makers seeking to resolve the small-sized farm issue