Attitudes, Behaviours and Motivations for Mechanization in Small Scale Portuguese Agriculture

Knowing that the purchase of agricultural machinery largely dominates the investment made at farm level in many programs to support the development of the agricultural sector, we sought to evaluate the reasons and rationale for that choice by farmers. The study was conducted in Beira Interior region at the request of the Regional Agricultural Services under the EC measure AGRIS and regarding the period between 2000 and 2004. The methodology includes the analysis of documentary sources, interviews with machinery agents and technicians, and a questionnaire survey of farmers benefiting from the AGRIS measure in the region. The analysis identified relatively homogeneous groups of farmers regarding the behaviour, attitudes and motivations in the use and purchase of tractors. As a consequence the demand was characterized. It was also possible to identify the factors that influenced the supply, either of the machinery and equipment or the funds to purchase them. The findings measured the opportunity of farmer’s technology choices, aiming at the increasing productivity and welfare that the funds available helped to achieve.

Rizobactérias no controle da mancha angular do algodoeiro Rhizobacteria to control cotton bacterial blight

Avaliou-se o potencial de rizobactérias na indução de resistência do algodoeiro à Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. malvacearum. Após o isolamento das rizobactérias, foram selecionados os isolados capazes de reduzir os sintomas da mancha angular bacteriana em casa de vegetação, os quais foram aplicados espacialmente separados do patógeno desafiador. Os melhores isolados foram testados quanto à capacidade de reduzir os sintomas da ramulose e da murcha de Verticillium e de inibir diretamente os patógenos in vitro. Do total de 123 isolados de rizobactérias foram selecionados cinco, L2-1 (Bacillus cereus), MT5-6 (Bacillus cereus), L2-2 (Achromobacter xylosoxidans), MT5-5 (Bacillus cereus) e MT5-11 (Brevibacterium sp.), os quais apresentaram controle da mancha angular acima de 40%, em relação à testemunha. Nenhum isolado reduziu a severidade da ramulose e da murcha de Verticillium em relação à testemunha, nem apresentou efeito inibitório direto in vitro a X. axonopodis pv. malvacearum e Colletotrichum gossypii var. cephalosporioides. Para V. dahliae, apenas o isolado L2-1 apresentou efeito inibitório.<br>The potential of rhizobacteria was evaluated for resistance induction against Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. malvacearum. After isolation, the rhizobacteria were screened for the reduction of angular leaf spot severity under greenhouse conditions. They were spatially separated from the challenging pathogen. The best isolates were tested for the capacity to reduce ramulose and Verticillium wilt severity and directly inhibit pathogens in vitro. From a total of 123 rhizobacterial isolates, five were selected, L2-1 (Bacillus cereus), MT5-6 (Bacillus cereus), L2-2 (Achromobacter xylosoxidans), MT5-5 (Bacillus cereus) and MT5-11 (Brevibacterium sp.), which showed angular leaf spot control above 40% as compared to the control. The tested isolates neither reduced the severity of ramulose and verticillium wilt compared to the control nor showed in vitro direct inhibition to X. axonopodis pv. malvacearum and Colletotrichum gossypii var. cephalosporioides. For V. dahliae, only isolate L2-1 showed direct inhibition

Fungal diversity notes 1151-1276: taxonomic and phylogenetic contributions on genera and species of fungal taxa

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