An Assessment of Morphological Characteristics of Kenaf in Response to Some Organic Cultural Interventions

Field trials were conducted during the rainy season of 2011 and 2012. The main objective of the study was to investigate the possibility of increasing the productivity of Kenaf under organic conditions. Organic manure (Mucuna pruriens, compost manure, and control), sowing distances (15 and 30cm) and number of seed per stand (2 and 4 plant per hill) were factorially combined (3×2×2) to obtain twelve factorial treatment combinations.

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Physicochemical, Aromatic Hydrocarbon and Bacteriological Profiles of Human Urine-Impacted-Soils Obtained From Iyaro Motor Park, Benin City, Nigeria

Urine-impacted-soils were collected from different sampling points located within the vicinity of Iyaro Motor Park and analysed for physicochemical, aromatic hydrocarbon and bacteriological profiles. Standard analytical procedures which included serial dilution and pour plating, usage of appropriate meters, atomic absorption spectrophotometry and gas chromatography were employed in the evaluation of the bacteriological, physicochemical, heavy metal and poly aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) profiles of the soils.

An Assessment of the Effect of Automobile Emmission on Selected Roadside Vegetation

Comparative phytoassessment of some selected vegetation exposed to automobile emission along Sapele road, Benin City, Nigeria at different distances from the road was carried out. Three plots (100 cm2 in area) were mapped out at intervals of 10 m away from the road to serve as treatment plots. The plots were designated as A (0 m – 10 m), B (10 m – 20 m) and C (20 m – 30 m) and a fourth plot was the control (100 m – 110 m) plot. Three plants, Sida acuta, Sida garckeana and Mariscus alternifolius; were selected for physiological studies as they were common to all the plots.

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Toxicity Bio-Indices as Indicators of Water Portability

Genotoxicity testing represents a powerful line of evidence for assessing impacts from chemical contaminants in drinking water. In this study, fifteen brands of sachet water, five of which do not have the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) registration numbers, were collected in the Benin metropolitan city square in Edo State of Nigeria and subjected to cytological evaluation using the macroscopic and microscopic parameters in Allium cepa L.

An ecological survey of Acridoid grasshoppers (Orthoptera) in the Niger-Delta region of Nigeria

An ecological survey of acridoid grasshoppers was conducted in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria from January to November 2001. A total of 34 taxa distributed in 3 families, 12 sub-families and 27 genera were encountered. The family Acrididae had the highest number of species (28), followed by pygomorphidae with 5 species. The family Tetrigidae was represented by only one species. Several species showed ecological plasticity and were found in all the locations while many others showed ecological restriction.

Seasonal fluctuations in the population of Aleurodicus dispersus Russell (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) on cassava plants in Benin City, Nigeria

Populations of the spiraling whitefly, Aleurodicus dispersus Russell (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae), were monitored on cassava plants in five sites in Benin City, Nigeria from February, 1999 to January, 2001 (24 months). The study revealed higher abundance of the whitefly on the mature and old leaves than the young ones. Since the distribution followed the same trend on all the sites, analysis of variance test on the data showed that the spatial distribution of whiteflies was not significantly different (P<0.05) from each other at P = 0.05 level. Periods of high population of A.

Farm size and resource use efficiency of selected farms in Kwara State of Nigeria

This paper examines resource use efficiency on small and large farms in Kwara State of Nigeria. Primary data were collected from 120 farmers who were selected using multistage random sampling method. The data were analyzed using descriptive and regression techniques. Results of the analysis revealed that farm size and fertilizer play major role in explaining variations in farm output. The marginal value product (MVP) of land, labour, purchased inputs, durable capital and fertilizer were positive and higher on large farms than on small farms.

Thread blight disease of tea [Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze] caused by Marasmius pulcher (Berk & Br.) Petch in South Western Nigeria

The causal organism(s), and percentage infection of thread blight disease observed on some tea stands established in 1985 at the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Ibadan, experimental plot was investigated for a period of one year (12 months). For the first months, the percentage infection ranges between 41.4% and 47.9%. Out of three fungi isolates (Botryodiplodia theobromae, Fusarium sp. and Marasmius pulcher) only M. pulcher produced the characteristic symptom observed in the field.

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Wastewater aquaculture as a form of environmental pollution control in Nigerian cities

In most cities in Nigeria, Industrial and Domestic effluents are discharged indiscriminately into the environment. In city slums, the usual practice is for people to live side by side with the waste they produce (both liquid and soilid waste) thereby leaving them at the mercy of diseases. In highbrow areas of cities, wastes may be properly drained but channeled into streams, rivers and lakes with the resultant damage to aquatic flora and fauna. Industrial effluents are usually of channeled into water bodies and the cost in terms of fish kills is enormous.

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Modulatory influence of certain dietary supplements on the toxic effects of arsenite in rabbits

The modulatory effects of three dietary supplements, honey, garlic (Allium sativum L.) and bitter kola (Garcinia kola seed) on sodium arsenite-induced toxicity were evaluated in rabbits. The experimental animals were fed 100 mg/kg body weight each of honey (Ho) and aqueous extracts of garlic (Ga) and bitter kola (Bi) either alone or in combination for five weeks. Sodium arsenite (2.5 mg/kg body weight) was fed at the beginning of the third week while feeding with the dietary supplements continued throughout the period of the experiment. Control rabbits were given distilled water.

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