Extensive areas of bare, compacted, and nutrient-poor soils hinder crop production in the Guinea Savannah Agro-ecological zone of Ghana. Resolving this challenge can be effected by developing sustainable land management strategies that can adequately improve soil nutrient status and enhance crop yield. Field studies were conducted to evaluate the productivity of cotton as affected by tillage practices, fertilizer rates and intercropping systems in the Guinea Savanna agroecology of Ghana, during the 2016 and 2017 cropping seasons. Treatments consisted of 2 tillage practices (ploughing and direct seeding [sole cotton]), 2 fertilizer application rates (54-30-30 kg/ha NPK and 0-0-0 kg/ha NPK) and 3 intercropping systems (sole cotton, cowpea intercrop and soybean intercrop) which were laid in split-split plot design with three replications. The tillage practices, fertilizer rates and the intercropping systems were respectively allocated as the main plot, sub-plot and sub-sub plot treatment respectively. Unlike the three-way interaction effect which did not significantly influence variation in growth, yield and yield components of cotton, the two-way interaction and the single factors were however influential. The combined impact of the NPK fertilizer application rate at 54-30-30 kg/ha and ploughing resulted in higher seed yield of cotton. Comparatively, seed yield of cotton was 35.78% higher when 54-30-30 kg/ha fertilizer rate (1.29 t/ha) was applied compared with 0-0-0 kg/ha fertilizer rate (0.61 t/ha). It is however recommended that resource-poor farmers in the Guinea Savannah agro-ecological zone of Ghana adopt to the use of 54-30-30 kg/ha fertilizer rate and ploughing for cotton seed yield maximization.
Under rain-fed conditions, perfumed rice production in Northern Ghana is associated with high paddy cracking during milling. In this study, 4 perfumed rice varieties, 6 staggered planting times, 6 staggered harvesting cycles, and staggered storage duration from harvest to six months of storage were used in a randomized complete block design to identify the best combination of factors that are associated with low cracking in rice production. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three geographically distinct locations serving as replicates. Grain moisture and paddy crackness were determined. The results indicated a mixed factorial interaction for all measured variables. Early planting, early harvesting, and short storage duration reduced paddy cracking compared to late treatments ( P < 0.05 ). For all treatment combinations, milling within two weeks after harvesting was associated with lower cracking as long as the harvesting cycle did not exceed the fourth cycle. After the second month of storage, percentage cracking was high, approaching 90% in most cases.
Genetic engineering or breeding entails deliberate modifications of the characteristics of an organism by manipulating its genetic makeup. This technique has been used to develop crops which are high yielding, resistance to pest and disease, high nutritional value, high oil content etc. Genetic engineering technique offers mankind the ability to develop crops with desirable characteristics within a very short period compared to conventional breeding methods. The use of this breeding method has resulted in producing some varieties of crops which requires farmers to invest low during production for higher income after harvest. The aim of this article is to summarise the known role genetically modified crops has played to reduce hunger and the provision of food with the required nutritional value in helping the world to become a food secured one.
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