Ensuring health and food safety from rapidly expanding wastewater irrigation in South Asia: BMZ final report 2005-2008

Wastewater irrigation / Institutions / Public health / Health hazards / Diseases / Cropping systems / Vegetables / Fodder / Livestock / Risk assessment / Economic evaluation / Surveys / GIS / Research priorities / South Asia / India / Pakistan / Hyderabad / Faisalabad / Musi River

Determinants of ruminant nutritional quality of pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R.Br.] stover: I. Effects of management alternatives on stover quality and productivity

The paper investigates management and cultivar type effects on pearl millet stover yield and fodder quality. Sixteen pearl millet cultivars available to farmers in India were selected to represent three cultivar types: (1) traditional landrace germplasm from the arid/semi-arid millet production zones, (2) improved dual-purpose (grain and stover) open-pollinated varieties incorporating differing amounts of traditional landrace germplasm and (3) commercial, grain-type F1 hybrids, bred for use in the arid/semi-arid zone. The cultivars were grown for 2 years (2000 and 2001) at high fertility (HF: 65 kg N ha-1 and 18 kg P ha-1) and low fertility (LF: 21 kg N ha-1 and 9 kg P ha-1). Within each fertility level high (HP) and low (LP) plant population densities were established by varying sowing rate and then thinning to the target populations (HP: 11 plants m-2 and LP: 5 plants m-2). Stover fodder quality traits (nitrogen concentration, sugar content, in vitro digestibility and metabolizable energy content) were analyzed using a combination of conventional laboratory analysis and near infrared spectroscopy. In general, fertility level and cultivar type had strong effects on grain and stover yields, and on a range of stover nutritional quality traits, but with significant year interactions. In contrast, the effect of population density on these variables was largely insignificant. Higher fertilizer application significantly increased grain and stover yields and stover nitrogen concentration, in vitro digestibility and metabolizable energy content. As a result, fertilization resulted in significant increases in the yields of both digestible and metabolizable stover. Landrace cultivars as a group produced higher quality fodder than modern hybrids, but at a significant cost in grain yield. Dual-purpose, open-pollinated cultivars were generally intermediate between the landraces and hybrids, in terms of both stover quality and grain yield, but produced the highest yields of both digestible and metabolizable stover. The paper discusses the implications of these findings for Indian pearl millet farmers with various resource levels and farming objectives

Entry Points to Improve Livestock Water Productivity in Selected Forage Based Livestock Systems

Agricultural production is challenged by increasing water scarcity and simultaneously growing demands for food and feed. Globally livestock feed sourcing is seen as one of the major causes for water depletion, and therefore increasing livestock water productivity (LWP) is necessary. Feed sources in Forage Based Livestock Production Systems [FLPS (grazing, mixed-irrigated and mixed-rainfed)] largely consist of pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, and also plants cut for fodder and carried to the animals. In drylands (arid and semi-arid) eco-regions, FLPS are generally extensive and thus the scale of water depletion for feed production is a major concern. This paper synthesizes LWP-knowledge generated across different FLPS over time and systematically identifies entry points to enhance productive uses of fresh water resources. It draws on examples of grazing systems in Uganda (Nile basin), mixed-rainfed systems in Ethiopia (Nile basin), mixed-irrigated systems in Sudan (Nile basin), and mixed-irrigated systems in India (Indio-Gangana basin). Although these systems vary by their degree of intensification, scale of water related problems, and therefore in their values of LWP, a number of common entry points to increase LWP can be identified. Based on empirical evidence from these systems, we systematically clustered these entry points as: (1) improving the water productivity of feed; (2) improving livestock feed sourcing and feeding; (3) enhancing livestock feed use efficiencies; and (4) enabling institutions and market linkages to facilitate adoption of relevant technologies. The paper concludes by discussing a comprehensive framework for entry points to improve water productivity in FLPS

Cultivar-Dependent Variation in Food-Feed-Traits in Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.)

A total of 860 cultivars and breeding lines of groundnut grown in the off (Rabi) season of 2001/02 post rainy season at ICRISAT centre head quarter in India were investigated for haulm fodder quality traits and relationships between haulm traits and pod yields. Haulm fodder quality traits chosen were nitrogen (N x 6.25 equals crude protein), in vitro digestibility and in vitro metabolisable energy content. The haulm fodder quality traits were analyzed by a combination of conventional laboratory techniques and Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy (NIRS). Significant (P<0.0001) and livestock nutritionally important cultivars differences were found for all three traits. Thus haulm nitrogen content ranged from 1.2 to 2.3%, in vitro digestibility ranged from 51.7 to 61.1%, and in vitro metabolisable energy content ranged from 6.9 to 8.8 MJ/kg. No inverse relationships were observed between any of the haulm fodder quality traits and pod and haulm yields. Haulm fodder quality analysis was repeated for 12 check cultivars in 2002 and over the two years broad sense heritabilities (h2) for nitrogen, in vitro digestibility and in vitro metabolisable energy content were 0.72., 0.72 and 0.67, respectively. The findings of the present study suggest that pod yield, haulm yield and haulm fodder quality traits can be simultaneously improved to develop better dual purpose groundnut varietie

Economic value of sorghum stover traded as fodder for urban and peri-urban dairy production in Hyderabad, India

Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] stover is the major source of dry fodder for urban and peri-urban dairy production in Hyderabad, India (Tesfaye 1998). Chopped stover is transported to Hyderabad in lorries from sorghum-growing regions as far away as 400 km. This is in addition to nonchopped stover coming in carts from places 50–100 km from the city. The purchaser usually has a choice between at least two types of stover. Fodder traders often name stover types after the regions from where they come, or the cultivar that is grown there. Anecdotal evidence and discussions with fodder traders suggested that stover prices vary — often from shop to shop at the same time — because of the cultivars and the cropping season (rainy or postrainy). Stover selling, transporting, trading and its use in dairy production support the livelihood of many people from producers (farmers) to the end users. This study explored the economic value of sorghum stover in fodder trading and the relationship between stover price and quality

Maize Stripe Virus: A Disease of Sorghum Emerging in South India

During the growing season several foliar diseases of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) affect grain and stover yields, stover quality and digestibility of the residues. While It Is documented that foliar diseases of sorghum affect yields, no data were found In the literature on the effects of foliar diseases on crop residue yield and quality or the economic consequences for rural producers. Recently Rama Devi et al. (2000) Indicated that diseased residues command much lower prices In the fodder market. Preliminary studies conducted at ICRISAT, Patancheru, India Indicated that sorghum anthracnose (Colletotrichum graminicola) and maize stripe virus (MStV), a tenuivirus, reduce crop residue yield, quality and digestibility. Extensive on-farm surveys were conducted at various crop growth stages In India during 1999-2001 mainly to understand prevalence of foliar diseases, farmers' perceptions on sorghum diseases, feeding strategies and cropping pattern. In this article, we report the incidence and severity of MStV in farmers' fields and its likely effects on crop productivity based on the frequency of occurrence of MStV in Inoculated and control plots

Improving water productivity, reducing poverty and enhancing equity in mixed crop-livestock systems in the Indo-Gangetic Basin: CPWF project report 68

Farming systems / Mixed farming / Water productivity / Feed production / Livestock / Energy consumption / Gender / Poverty / River basins / Case studies / India / Indo-Gangetic Basin / West Bengal / Haryana / Uttar Pradesh