PROMOTING PROFITABILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY IN THE BACKGROUNDING OF BEEF CALVES: THE ROLE OF AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION.

Published ArticleThere are indications that the backgrounding of beef calves will become more important in future as heavier beef carcasses are required. To increase the profitability of beef systems, backgrounding prepare weaned calves for finishing on high energy rations to promote rapid weight gain in a feedlot. Backgrounding operations may be pasture or dry-lot based or some combination thereof. The primary objective of this study was to investigate factors leading to poor average daily gain (ADG), high morbidity and mortality rate and the increased costs of gain. The secondary objective was to study the management practices followed in the backgrounding of beef calves concerning purchasing, adaptation, processing, raising, health management and marketing strategies. Forty questionnaires were administered to farmers, small and large feedlots doing backgrounding of beef calves. Data was generated by using the SUM equation and the means, minimum and maximum were generated by using PROC MEANS in SAS (2004). On-farm observations were employed in collecting data and discussions with other farmers and experts doing backgrounding of beef calves. According to this study, the ADG for summer differed significantly (P<0.05) from that of winter as the ADG during summer was 22.2% higher than that of winter. However, the study also showed that the feed intake in summer differed significantly (P<0.05) from that of winter with summer feed intake being 13% higher than winter feed intake. The production costs per calf in this study were R300.50±158.60 for feeding costs, R138.10±90.80 for remedies, R56.40±22.10 for processing and R37.50±24.30 for transport costs. It was also evident that parainflueza 3 known as flu was the infectious disease that mostly led to morbidity and mortality. With protozoal diseases, gall-sickness and red-water was the major cause of mortality. Mortality as a result of nutritional disorder including bloat and acidosis was reported by 37.5% of the respondents. The paper stresses the role of agricultural extension in the optimization of backgrounding systems

Improving Management Practices of Emerging Cattle Farmers in Selected Areas of the Eastern Cape Province: The Role of Agricultural Extension

Published ArticleThe study was conducted to determine cattle production and management practices of developing cattle farmers in two selected districts (Amathole and Chris Hani) in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study mainly focused on beef cattle farmers that are farming on leased or private land. From both districts, 60 respondents (30 per district) were interviewed using structured questionnaires. Results showed that 33% of the study sample had low levels of education while only 15% (n=10) had tertiary education qualifications. Cattle management activities were performed by almost all the respondents except deworming which was done by only 33%. The respondents were mostly vaccinating for diseases such as Black quarter (42%), Redwater (40%), and Anthrax (30%). The assessed farmers were controlling parasites with many different methods, however, pour on was found to be the most frequently used method (52%), followed by plunge dipping (33%) and hand spray (32%). There were farmers that planted cultivated pastures (35%) and some that were also using supplements (licks) for their herds (77%). As bush encroachments were not a problem in some farms, most farmers were not taking any actions, but 24% were using fires when reducing moribund. Breeding monitoring activities (birth observation, pregnant test and bull futility testing) were conducted by the respondents (78%, 15% and 12% respectively). It is recommended that agricultural extension play an imperative role in linking possible role players and farmers

A decision-making framework for restoring riparian zones degraded by invasive alien plants in South Africa

Riparian habitats in many parts of South Africa are severely degraded by invasive alien plants, especially trees. These invasions reduce water yields from catchments and affect riverine functioning and biodiversity. Initiatives are under way countrywide to clear alien plants from watercourses and surrounding catchments. Current understanding of key processes that regulate riparian functioning and define options for restoration is rudimentary. We review the impacts of riparian invasions and identify factors limiting the recovery of natural vegetation following alien clearance. We propose a framework of strategic interventions for optimizing restoration success. The framework identifies abiotic and biotic barriers to restoration at the scales of catchments and local reaches. In highly transformed catchments, interventions at the reach scale may fail if important barriers at the catchment scale are not addressed. The extent to which propagule supply and microsite conditions inhibit vegetation recovery is unknown. We also know little of the relative importance of dispersing vegetative propagules, dispersing seeds and soil-stored seed banks in vegetation dynamics, particularly after severe disturbances such as dense invasion by alien plants. The importance of geomorphological and hydrological factors in mediating recovery of riparian vegetation has not been adequately explored for all climatic areas in South Africa. More research is needed to determine the influence of different alien species and clearing treatments on the recovery of riparian vegetation. The literature strongly suggests that in highly alien-transformed catchments, the re-introduction of riparian species is required to promote recovery and suppress re-invasion. However, such interventions are unlikely to be widely implemented unless the cost: benefit ratios are favourable

A decision-making framework for restoring riparian zones degraded by invasive alien plants in South Africa

The original publication is available at http://www.sabinet.co.za/?page=open-access-journalsRiparian habitats in many parts of South Africa are severely degraded by invasive alien plants, especially trees. These invasions reduce water yields from catchments and affect riverine functioning and biodiversity. Initiatives are under way countrywide to clear alien plants from watercourses and surrounding catchments. Current understanding of key processes that regulate riparian functioning and define options for restoration is rudimentary. We review the impacts of riparian invasions and identify factors limiting the recovery of natural vegetation following alien clearance. We propose a framework of strategic interventions for optimizing restoration success. The framework identifies abiotic and biotic barriers to restoration at the scales of catchments and local reaches. In highly transformed catchments, interventions at the reach scale may fail if important barriers at the catchment scale are not addressed. The extent to which propagule supply and microsite conditions inhibit vegetation recovery is unknown. We also know little of the relative importance of dispersing vegetative propagules, dispersing seeds and soil-stored seed banks in vegetation dynamics, particularly after severe disturbances such as dense invasion by alien plants. The importance of geomorphological and hydrological factors in mediating recovery of riparian vegetation has not been adequately explored for all climatic areas in South Africa. More research is needed to determine the influence of different alien species and clearing treatments on the recovery of riparian vegetation. The literature strongly suggests that in highly alien-transformed catchments, the re-introduction of riparian species is required to promote recovery and suppress re-invasion. However, such interventions are unlikely to be widely implemented unless the cost:benefit ratios are favourable.Publishers' Versio

A decision-making framework for restoring riparian zones degraded by invasive alien plants in South Africa

Riparian habitats in many parts of South Africa are severely degraded by invasive alien plants, especially trees. These invasions reduce water yields from catchments and affect riverine functioning and biodiversity. Initiatives are under way countrywide to clear alien plants from watercourses and surrounding catchments. Current understanding of key processes that regulate riparian functioning and define options for restoration is rudimentary. We review the impacts of riparian invasions and identify factors limiting the recovery of natural vegetation following alien clearance. We propose a framework of strategic interventions for optimizing restoration success. The framework identifies abiotic and biotic barriers to restoration at the scales of catchments and local reaches. In highly transformed catchments, interventions at the reach scale may fail if important barriers at the catchment scale are not addressed. The extent to which propagule supply and microsite conditions inhibit vegetation recovery is unknown. We also know little of the relative importance of dispersing vegetative propagules, dispersing seeds and soil-stored seed banks in vegetation dynamics, particularly after severe disturbances such as dense invasion by alien plants. The importance of geomorphological and hydrological factors in mediating recovery of riparian vegetation has not been adequately explored for all climatic areas in South Africa. More research is needed to determine the influence of different alien species and clearing treatments on the recovery of riparian vegetation. The literature strongly suggests that in highly alien-transformed catchments, the re-introduction of riparian species is required to promote recovery and suppress re-invasion. However, such interventions are unlikely to be widely implemented unless the cost: benefit ratios are favourable

Evaluation of a Water Channel-Based Platform for Characterizing Aerostat Flight Dynamics: A Case Study on a Lighter-Than-Air Wind Energy System

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/140442/1/6.2014-2711.pd

Awareness of Porcine Helminthiasis and the Prevalent Farm Management Operations Among Smallholder Pig Farmers in the Free State

Published ArticlePorcine helminthiasis and its zoonotic tendencies can lead to considerable loss of productivity and food security, especially in subsistence farming systems. Using open- and closed-ended questionnaires, this study was designed to ascertain the level of awareness of smallholder pig farmers in the selected districts of the Free State Province of South Africa to porcine helminthiasis and to gather information on the various pre- and post-slaughter practices prevalent in these areas. Results show that intestinal helminths emerged as the most common herd health problem (65.2%). There was a high rate of ignorance towards anthelmintic resistance and zoonoses among farmers. Similarly, 53.3% of respondents described the cost of anthelmintics as “expensive”. A high positive correlation (P<0.01) between some farming practices exist. Furthermore, 73.9% of respondents do not slaughter their pigs in an abattoir due to the high cost of slaughter and transportation, long distances to the abattoir, and small scale of production. Moreover, 50.0% of the farmers reported that their pig production enterprise was not profitable or viable. The information from this study may be used as baseline knowledge to help formulate the development of extension programmes for sustainable pig rearing and pork production, especially among smallholder farmers

The Development and Validation of a Mental Toughness Scale for Adolescents

The present study examined the validity of a newly developed instrument, the Mental Toughness Scale for Adolescents (MTS-A), which examines the attributes of challenge, commitment, confidence (abilities and interpersonal) and control (life and emotion). The six factor model was supporting using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA, n = 373) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA, n = 372). In addition, the mental toughness attributes correlated with adolescents’ academic motivation and engagement (n = 439), well-being (depression and anxiety) (n = 279) and test anxiety (n = 279), indicating relations with a number of affective, cognitive and behavioural dispositions, and demonstrating relevance in education and potentially mental health contexts