Assessing the suitability of soils for agricultural production is critical in promoting sustainable agriculture. Knowledge gained from soil suitability analysis provides the sound basis for making informed decisions about soil management and crop selection in a given area. In view of this, this study was carried out to assess the physical suitability of soils in the Libga Irrigation Scheme for the sustainable cultivation of jute mallow (Corchorus olitorius), tomato (Solanum lycoperscum L.) and cabbage (Brassica oleracea var capitata). Soil samples were collected at 0–30 cm and 30–60 cm depths from 50 geo-referenced points located at the nodes of a 100 m × 100 m regular grid. Particle size distribution, bulk density, total porosity, field capacity, permanent wilting point, available water capacity, saturated hydraulic conductivity, electrical conductivity and pH were determined following standard laboratory protocols at the AGSSIP Laboratory of the University for Development Studies, Nyankpala campus, Ghana. Weighting of soil properties was achieved through the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Soil suitability maps for the selected crops were produced using weighted overlay analysis in ArcGIS (10.5). The results showed that generally about 44.3 ha (76.4 %), 44.7 ha (82.2 %) and 55.7 ha (96.0 %) of the irrigation field are moderately suitable for jute mallow, tomato and cabbage production respectively. The major limiting factors for the crops were high BD and acidity levels. The AHP proved to be a very useful tool for the incorporation of farmers’ views into decision making about the suitability of soils for crop production.

This research was conducted to compare single and twin-row planting patterns and to determine optimum plant density for hybrid maize varieties (DKC5364, P0573), grown in Western Blacksee conditions of Türkiye, in the main crop growing season in 2020. The experimental design was a randomized complete block in a split-split plot arrangement with three replications. Hybrid maize varieties were in the main plots, planting patterns (single row (70 cm) and twin row (70-20cm) were in the split plots and plant densities of 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 plants/m2 were in the split- split plots. In the current study, plant height, first ear height, stem diameter, ears number per plant, ear length, ear diameter, and ear weigth were examined. Effects of varieties, planting patterns and plant densities on plant heights, first ear heights, ears numbers per plants and ear weigths were statistically significant. Higher values were observed at DKC5364 maize variety than P0573 variety for examined characteristics. The most suitable plant densities were determined as 11 plants/m2 for grain production and 12 plants/m2 for silage production in twin row plantig in Western Blacksee conditions of Türkiye

Bu araştırma, süt sığırcılığı işletmelerinde yem tüketimi ve yem dönüşüm oranının belirlenmesi amacıyla yapılmıştır. Araştırmada kullanılan veriler Hatay ilinde 141 adet süt sığırcılığı işletmesinden derlenmiştir. İşletmelerde ortalama yem bitkileri üretim alanı 18,13 da olup, yem bitkileri ekim alanlarının bitkisel üretim deseni içindeki payı %31,07 olarak belirlenmiştir. İncelenen işletmelerde ortalama büyükbaş hayvan varlığı 11,02 baş, sağmal inek sayısı ise 4,87 baş olup, sağmal inek başına süt verim değeri 5.619 lt/baş, süt geliri ise 2.811 ABD$/baş olarak hesaplanmıştır. İşletmelerinde bir süt ineğinin bir laktasyon döneminde kaba yem tüketimi 3.139,67 kg, tüketilen yemin parasal değeri ise 371,61 ABD$, kesif yem ve kırma yem tüketimi 2.958,90 kg, tüketilen yemin parasal değeri ise 1.118,57 ABD$ olarak tespit edilmiştir. İncelenen işletmeler genelinde toplam masraf tutarı yaklaşık olarak 1,9 milyon ABD$ olarak gerçekleşmiştir. Toplam masraf içinde değişen masrafların payı %64,26 olup, sabit masrafların payı %35,74 olarak hesaplanmıştır. Yem masraflarının değişen masraflar içindeki payı ise %80,56’dır. Yapılan araştırma bir laktasyon döneminde sağmal ineklere verilen 1 kg kesif ve kırma yem tüketimine karşılık elde edilen süt miktarının 1,90 lt olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. İşletmeler ortalaması dikkate alındığında; 100 ABD$ yem tüketimi karşılığında süt sığırcılığının brüt üretim değeri için 236,02 ABD$, süt geliri için de 195,72 ABD$ olarak tespit edilmiştir. Yapılan araştırmada işletme büyüklük grupları arasında süt verimi ile kaba yem ve dane yem tüketim miktarı bakımından istatistiki yönden bir farklılıklar bulunduğu tespit edilmiştir. Yürütülen araştırma; incelenen işletmelerde hayvan başına daha yüksek süt verimi ve gelirine ulaşabilmek için özellikle işletmelerin yem ihtiyacını kendi işletmelerinden sağlamaları gerektiğini ortaya koymuştur.

Structures of agricultural holdings have been changing rapidly in rural areas. While smallholders have been decreasing in number, the number of large farms has been increasing. Youth has been rapidly moving away from agriculture. The agricultural sector has faced an aging problem. The involvement of youth and smallholders in agricultural production is extremely important for food supply security. This study aimed to observe the structural change of agricultural holdings based on the Farmer Registration System (FRS) data. The answers to the following questions were sought. Has the numerical and proportional distribution of enterprises changed according to their size? Has youth been moving away from agriculture? FRS records between 2003-2020 were used in the study. Agricultural holdings were grouped according to their size and the age of farmers. Results were summarized in tables and graphics. There was a decrease in the number and rate of farmers under the age of 40, and a proportional increase in the number of farmers over 65. While the number of agricultural holdings larger than 500 increased 2.5 times, the number and rate of small farms decreased. Migration from the districts and villages in the study area has been observed at rates ranging from 22% to 59% in 20 years. Special measures should be taken for youth and small farms to survive in the agricultural sector. Tools such as tax exemption and social security support can be used. Integrated rural development approaches, including basic services such as education and health, are indispensable for the population to be permanent in rural areas.

This study aims to reveal the quality properties of yogurt enriched with walnut during cold storage (4°C) for 28 days. Five sets of yogurt types were produced by using walnut at varying rates (A: 0% (control), B: 1%, C: 2.5%, D: 3.5%, E: 5%). Physicochemical, sensory, phenolic contents and antioxidant properties of yogurt samples was investigated during the 1st, 7th, 14th, and 28th days of storage. The study was conducted to optimize the walnut addition level to obtain better quality yogurt as a functional food. It was determined that the walnut enrichment affects the gross chemical component of yogurt samples. Yogurt sample with %5 walnuts (E) had the highest total phenolic and antioxidant activity content (respectively 1027.50 mg GAE/kg, 19.95 mM TE) among the samples. The yogurt sample with the highest sensory attribute score was the one containing 1% walnuts. Therefore, it was concluded that yogurt added with walnut could serve as functional yogurt beneficial for human health.

This study was aimed to determine the effect of hatching system (house and machine) and egg weight (heavy and light) on growth performance and meat quality traits in geese. The study was carried out for 12 weeks with a total of 220 Turkish native geese. The geese were individually weighed every 2 weeks during the study, on these same weeks feed conversion ratio (FCR) was measured. Hot and cold dressed, blood, head, foot, edible internal organs (heart, liver, gizzard), abdominal fat, neck, back, breast, thigh and wing percentages were determined. Also cooking loss, drip loss, color and pH were determined as meat quality traits. There was no significant difference between the egg weight groups in terms of BW. However, the geese produced in the house hatching system showed more BW from 6 to 12 weeks of age onwards compared to the machine system. There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of FCR by 8 weeks. Both 10 and 12 weeks FCR were determined as the worst house heavy, while the best house light groups. Hot and cold carcass percentages in geese hatched from heavy were higher rates than light eggs. The percentage of wings differed significantly among geese produced from different egg weight groups. Breast meat cooking loss was found higher rates in heavy eggs than light eggs, while thigh meat cooking loss was found higher rates in the house than machine system. The results of this study show that geese hatched in the house system had more BW at the slaughter age compared to machine system geese. In addition, geese produced from heavy eggs showed a higher hot and cold dressed percentages than geese produced from light eggs.

Bu çalışma; Erzincan Altınada Sulama Birliği şebekesinin 2014-2018 yıllarındaki performansının izlenip değerlendirilmesi amacıyla yürütülmüştür. Çalışmada daha önceki çalışmalarda kullanılan ve önerilen performans ölçüm parametreleri kullanılmıştır. Bu parametreler; şebekedeki sulama alanı oranları ile bu alanlar için gerekli net ve toplam su sağlanma oranları, üretim değeri oranı ile bunun mali getirisi, şebekenin mali yeterlilik ve mali etkinlik oranları, su ücretlerinin tahsilat oranı, sürdürülebilir sulama alanı oranı ile karlılık oranlarıdır. Sulu tarıma açılmış toplam alan 3600 hektar iken araştırma yıllarında 2254,93 ha ile 2751,56 ha arasında değişen alanlarda bitkisel üretim yapıldığı belirlenmiştir. Araştırma yıllarında sürdürülebilir sulama alanı oranları %130,83ile %159,65 arasında iken sulama alanı oranları değerleri %62,64 ile %76,43 arasında kalmıştır. Şebekede aylık net su temin oranlarının 0,78 ile 3,44 arasında iken toplam su temin oranlarının 1,53 ile 6,70 arasında değiştiği, yani çiftçinin aşırı su kullanma eğiliminin olduğu belirlenmiştir. Altınada sulama birliği sahasında üretim değeri oranı %33,05 ile %44,79; karlılık oranı ise 0,95 ile 2,59 arasındadır. Mali etkinlik oranı %22,70 ile %53,30 mali yeterlilik oranı %45,24 ile %101,64, yıllık tahsilât oranı %13,0 ile %96,0, toplam tahsilat oranı da %89 ile %169 arasında gerçekleşmiştir. Ekonomik parametreler bakımından planlama beklentilerine yaklaşılamadığı belirlenmiştir. Şebekede gerçekleşen üretimin planlama öngörülerine yaklaşabilmesi için sulama alanı oranının artırılması, mali getirileri yüksek olan üretim deseninin seçilmesi ve mali kaynakların daha etkin kullanılması gerektiği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.

This study was carried out to determine the effects of different doses (10, 20 and 30%) of sumac shrub leaf substitution instead of corn silage in sheep rations on in vitro gas and methane production, metabolic energy (ME), net energy lactation (NEL) and organic matter digestion degree. Sheep ration consisting of corn silage (20%), alfalfa straw (22.5%), dry meadow grass (20%), and commercial feed (37.5%) constituted the control group. The experimental groups were formed by substituting 10 (S1), 20 (S2) and 30 (S3) percent sumac shrub leaves for corn silage in the control (C) group formed the experimental groups. The effect of sumac shrub leaf substitution on in vitro gas and methane production, metabolic energy, net energy lactation, and organic matter digestion degree was found to be significant. The 24-hour in vitro gas production values of rations ranged between 43.11- 46.77 ml/200 mg DM, methane production values 6.8-7.48 ml, metabolic energy values 8.91-9.41 MJ/kg DM, net energy lactation, 5.59-5.95 MJ/kg DM and organic matter digestion degree values found between 64.25 and 67.61%. As a result, it was determined that increasing doses of sumac shrub leaf substitute reduced gas and methane production. In addition, it was concluded that the data obtained should be supported by determining the microorganism counts, feed consumption amounts, and feed efficiency coefficients with in vivo studies.

Ehrlichia canis is the primary etiologic agent of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis, a tick-transmitted disease of dogs. The aim of this study is to molecularly investigate the presence of E. canis and to reveal its prevalence in dogs in Siirt province. The animal material of the study is consisted of a total of 82 dogs. A region of the 16S ribosomal RNA gene of E. canis was targeted for PCR amplification. As a result of the conducted Nested-PCR, positivity was detected at the rate of 10.53% (4/38) in male dogs and 13.64% (6/44) in females, and Ehrlichia canis specific bands of size 389 bp were obtained in 10 (12.20%) dogs in total. The phylogenetic tree was constructed with the Maximum Likelihood (MCL) method, The nucleotide sequence was registered in the NCBI GenBank database with access numbers OK331365.1-OK331366. Early detection of the disease by means of hematological, serological, or molecular tests is very important in terms of prognosis. More studies should be performed to determine vector-disease relationships in this region about ticks that vector the disease.

Labneh is one of the most consumed dairy products in the Lebanese community, on breakfast, as a snack or on dinner, plane or mixed with herbs. Its various health benefits plus its acceptability among people makes it an important part of the Lebanese diet. In both its synthetic and homemade forms, several additives are usually incorporated to enhance its flavor and offer a variety of tastes. The problem with Labneh is its short shelf life, as well as its sensitive sensory profile. That is why most industries mix chemical additives with Labneh to prolong its shelf life and conserve its taste. The aim of this research is to preserve Labneh naturally by adding Moringa Oleifera dried leaves to extend its shelf life and inhibit rapid spoilage. Working on a natural preservation of Labneh instead of chemical preservation will be assessed by the survey’s results and prepare for studying the overall acceptability of the product by making a sensory analysis. The results of the questionnaire showed that the Lebanese community which is not totally aware of Moringa Oleifera benefits and availability, is willing to try fortified Labneh with Moringa as a new product with extended shelf life and more health benefits. The results of the sensory analysis showed that the sensory attributes of the samples with Moringa after 21 days of storage, where not significantly different than normal plane Labneh, which indicate that adding Moringa did not affect the sensory attributes of Labneh giving it more acceptability to consumers.