The analysis of prices and market arrivals over time is important for formulating a sound agricultural price policy. Fluctuations in market arrivals largely contribute to price instability. In order to devise the appropriate ways and means for reducing the price fluctuations of agricultural commodities, there is a need to have a thorough understanding of the price behavior over time.Forecasting the price of agricultural commodities, presents some unique challenges such as data quality issues, weather aberrations, high fluctuations, price variations across neighboring marketplaces, etc. On the demand side, the instability in the prices of agricultural commodities is influenced by a number of factors such as annual variation in production, low price elasticity of demand and seasonality of agricultural production.The study relied upon the secondary time series data on monthly market prices and arrivals of Okra collected from the Agricultural Produce Market Committee, Surat. Analysis was performed on the monthly and annual time series data on wholesale price to develop reliable forecast for 2022. Month wise Seasonal indices of Okra in the Surat market showed that the seasonal price indices were above average from November to March while below average from May to October when market arrivals are more. The seasonal pattern showed that prices declined from April to October and reached the lowest point in May and reached peak in December. Seasonal fluctuations were observed both in market arrivals as well as prices of Okra. In the present investigation, various Seasonal, Non-seasonal, and Seasonal ARIMA (Box-Jenkins) models were developed to measure the forecast accuracy. The best model was chosen on the basis of the least values of Schwarz Bayesian criteria (SBC) and Mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). After performing a series of diagnostic tests, it was observed that N-BIC (12.417) and MAPE (22.88) were the least for SARIMA (0,0,2) (0,1,1)12 model. It came out to be the most representative model for the price of Okra in the Surat market. The model can be used for reaching dependable price forecasts. The quantification of these aspects in the vegetables is an immediate need to formulate effective policies to make prices stable thereby safeguard the interest of the farmers as well as the consumer

Entomopathogenic Nematodes (EPNs) found in a variety of soil types, geographical regions, and hosts, which belong to the genera Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae, have the potential to act as biocontrol agents. In comparison to chemical and microbial pesticides, they performed better. A total of 87 soil samples were taken from regions where maize was grown in Tuticorin district, Tamil Nadu, India and they were examined for the presence of EPN in 2022–2023. By using the Corcyra baiting approach, a total of 9 samples (10.33%) showed EPN-positive sites. A total of 8 Steinernema sp. (13.33%) and 1 Heterorhabditis sp. (5.00%) were isolated from that population. EPN is identified at a generic level using the cadaver’s colour. Heterorhabditis displays brick red, while Steinernema exhibits creamy white. At a dose of 100–600 IJs/larva for the third and fifth instar, the isolated efficient native EPN strain (Kayathar strain) demonstrated mortality of 95.00–100.00% and 94.50–99.80%. According to the study, EPN showed considerable potent against Spodoptera frugiperda. So, EPNs may be used as a promising bio-control agent to battle pests of the maize crop.

Rice straw poses a significant challenge for rice-wheat cropping systems owing to its high silica content, often leading farmers to burn or remove it for seedbed preparation. However, these practices harm the environment. A study spanning the Rabi seasons of 2019–20 and 2020–21 aimed to address this issue, evaluating diverse rice straw management techniques. The investigation featured seven treatments, including the removal and incorporation of rice straw, to assess their impact on wheat yield and their economics. The experiment followed a randomized block design, ensuring each treatment appeared in every block, maintaining block uniformity. The treatments encompassed variations in recommended Nitrogen doses, straw incorporation, top dressing with nitrogen, and decomposer application. The wheat variety PBW-373 was utilized as the test crop, and various growth and yield attributes were analyzed. Treatment T6 consistently outperformed other approaches over both years. It entailed incorporating 5 t ha-1 of rice straw alongside 125% of recommended nitrogen, 60 kg ha-1 of phosphorus, and 40 kg ha-1 of potassium, with the application of additional top dressing nitrogen. T6 exhibited substantial improvements in wheat yield attributes, including plant height, dry matter accumulation, leaf characteristics, tiller count, spike length, grains per spike, and grain weights, and generated superior economic outcomes compared to alternative methods. Incorporating rice straw into the soil emerged as a promising strategy to enhance soil quality and productivity while addressing environmental concerns. This research underscores the potential of sustainable rice straw management, with maximum benefits demonstrated through the integrated application of Crop residues with a decomposer consortium and additional nitrogen fortification (at 125%). This approach provided a proof of concept to bolster the rice-wheat cropping system’s viability and promote both agricultural and ecological benefits. This work offers a valuable roadmap for farmers to adopt ecologically sound practices while optimizing wheat production within the context of the intricate rice-wheat cropping system.

The pseudostem borer, Odoiporus longicollis is a serious pest causing heavy losses to the banana growers. To manage the pest farmers rely on chemical insecticides even after bunch formation. Since the whole banana plant is edible in one way or the other for consumption, the usage of persistent insecticides will lead to residues. Therefore, studies were undertaken to assess the level of infestation by pseudostem borer in banana and to evaluate the botanical, neem formulation against banana pseudostem borer. Among the ten banana varieties screened for the infestation of pseudostem borer, the severity was maximum in Nendran (31.69%) followed by Red banana (19.07%). The pseudostem borer was recorded as a major pest in the banana varieties viz., Nendran, Red banana, Matti, and Palayamkottan (>10%) and a minor pest in the banana varieties viz., Robusta, Rasakathali, and Ney poovan (1-5%). The occurrence of O. longicollis was not observed in Karpooravalli, Monthan, and Peyan. According to the level of infestation, the banana varieties viz., Nendran and Red banana were found to be highly susceptible to O. longicollis and among them, nendran is best for trapping banana pseudostem borer and can be used as pseudostem traps. Application of azadirachtin 10000 ppm at 4 ml/l thrice at 5th, 6th, and 7th months after planting showed 55.57 and 59.35 per cent reduction of pseudostem borer over untreated check in nendran and red banana, respectively, and can be used for safe management of banana pseudostem borer.

Climate change has increased environmental risks globally having an adverse effect on agriculture productivity. Among the abiotic stresses, anaerobic germination stress has been identified as a major stress for seed emergence, plant growth and food production. By understanding the manipulation of germination, antioxidant and fermentation enzymes, adaptations to anaerobic conditions can be improved. The ability of rice to emerge under oxygen deprivation is a determinant of anaerobic germination tolerance, critical for successful direct seeding. There is an urge to identify novel rice genotypes associated with better germination and higher enzymatic activities under anaerobic conditions in order to improve seedling establishment. In the present study, twenty-two rice genotypes were characterized for their anaerobic germination potential by assessing the activities of α- amylase, antioxidant enzymes viz., catalase and peroxidase, and fermentative enzyme viz., alcohol dehydrogenase and pyruvate decarboxylase under anoxic stress. α- amylase, catalase, peroxidase, alcohol dehydrogenase and pyruvate decarboxylase activities showed a significant positive association with seed germination under anaerobic conditions. Higher expression of five enzymatic activities confirms anaerobic germination stress tolerance in rice genotypes. This study identified four tolerant genotypes namely Karuppukavuni, Kalanamak, CBMAS 14065, and Kodavilayan, and two moderately tolerant genotypes namely TKM13 and Anna R4 based on principal component analysis and correlation analysis.

Mung bean is an important pulse crop because of its high protein content. But it is very much susceptible to in-situ germination. An attempt was made to develop such lines which are resistant to in-situ germination by crossing a wild form of mung bean with a cultivated variety and a total seed protein profiling for such lines along with parents was done. The SDS-PAGE of 20 mung bean dormant lines was done. It includes one derivative of the four-way cross, thirteen derivatives of three-way crosses, five cultivated varieties and one wild form of mung bean i.e. BWM-29 (progenitor of cultivated mung bean). The study revealed 10-11 detectable peptides whose molecular weight was found to be in the range of 19 kDa to 117 kDa. The total seed protein was isolated using TCA-Acetone buffer and separated on 10% SDS-PAGE gel. The scoring of resolved proteins was done and a zygogram was generated. The zygogram revealed three genetic clusters. The first cluster contains nine genotypes and the second and third clusters group four and six genotypes respectively. Cluster I consist of 13 breeding lines and Cluster II consists of five breeding lines. Cluster III and Cluster IV are solitarily consisting of one genotype each. The wild form (BWM-29) was clearly isolated into a single cluster. The derivative of the four way cross SPS-10 was also separated into a single cluster. Further, it was also revealed that breeding lines in the same cluster based on total seed protein profiling have common agronomic characteristics and such clusters with unique morphological and yield-associated traits could be identified for genetic improvement.

Garlic commonly known as ‘Lasan’ is the 2nd important crop grown and used as a condiment, next to onion in India. Among the different fungal diseases of garlic, stemphylium blight has currently become one of the most important diseases of all garlic varieties. Diseases in the garlic is becoming the major limiting factor for its production and storage losses due to disease has been varying on different factors. Therefore, the present investigation is undertaken for the management of stemphylium blight disease in garlic. Combined fungicides were evaluated for their effectiveness under in vivo conditions. Field trial was conducted for two consecutive years during rabi season 2020-21 and 2021-22 on garlic variety Agrifound White. The experiment was conducted at Regional Research Station, National Horticultural Research and Development Foundation, Nashik, Maharashtra. The data were evident that treatment T4 (Azoxystrobin + Cyproconazole @ 1.0ml/L at 45, 60 and 75DAP) performed superior with the lowest incidence (32.50 %) and intensity (5.05 %) of stemphylium blight as well as 58.77% disease control of stemphylium blight over untreated control at 75 DAP. The significantly highest gross yield (65.27q/ha) as well as marketable yield (62.82 q/ha) was also recorded in T4.

Rice plays a crucial role in sustaining half of the global population by providing essential carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. Over generations, farmers have cultivated rice landraces tailored to their specific needs, resulting in the development of unique traits. These landraces exhibit diverse durations, resilience against biotic and abiotic stresses, and desirable grain quality. The wide range of duration enables farmers to select appropriate varieties for different agro-ecological regions and cropping systems. The significance of landraces lies in their innate ability to withstand stress through evolutionary adaptations, reducing the reliance on chemical inputs and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Historically, landraces have been favored not only for their nutritional value but also for their distinct aroma and secondary metabolites. Therefore, breeders can overcome these challenges by leveraging modern technologies such as Marker Assisted Selection and Genome Wide Association Studies. By employing these tools, breeders can transfer vital traits like biotic and abiotic resistant genes and improve nutritional aspects in modern-day varieties, ultimately enhancing the overall well-being of human beings. This review examines the distinct characteristics of landraces, including variations in duration, resistance to pests and diseases and grain quality.

Millets are amazing in their nutrition content. Each of the millets is three to five times nutritionally superior to the widely promoted rice and wheat in terms of proteins, minerals and vitamins. Most millet farmers use farmyard manures and in recent times, household produced waste as nutrient source. Therefore, they couldn’t increase the crop productivity. Combined application of organic manures and chemical fertilizers could provide higher benefit towards crop yield and soil health sustainability as compared to only application of chemical fertilizers for millets under rainfed conditions. In future, where water and food crisis stares us in the face, millets can become the food of security. By focusing of above challenges the field experiments were carried out to study on application of organic manures and chemical fertilizers in the samai-horsegram cropping system as rainfed in the non-calcareous sandy loam soils of Lithic Haplustept for two consecutive years of 2015–2016 and 2016–2017 at Regional Research Station, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Paiyur of Krishnagiri district. The experiment consisted of four treatments: T1 (Control), T2 (Organic Manuring), T3 (Inorganic Fertilization; (RDF) Recommended Dose of N, P2O5, and K2O @ 44:22:0 kg ha-1), and T4 (Integrated Nutrient Management; FYM 12.5 t ha-1 + Recommended Dose of N, P2O5, and K2O of 44:22:0 kg ha-1 + Seed Treatment with Bio-Fertilizer). The samai (Little millet- Panicum sumatrense) results showed that adopting integrated nutrient management practices resulted in higher grain yields of 783 kg ha-1 with yield increases of 20 percent over inorganic fertilization and 25 percent over organic manure, as well as a higher B: C ratio of 2.01. Additionally, a higher total nutrient intake of 18.7, 5.3, and 21.9 kg N, P, and K ha-1 was observed. However, there was a considerable difference from the control plot, but there was no difference between organic manure and chemical fertilization. Similar to residual horse gram results, integrated nutrient management produced higher seed yield (498 kg ha-1) with a B:C ratio of 1.85, as well as maximum plant height, number of branches, pods per plant, and seed yield per pod.

With the ever-growing demand for protein, that is produced sustainably and economically maintaining environmental equilibrium, new concepts of food production where waste is efficiently utilized and transformed into value-added products are drawing the attention of many researchers. Hence a study was designed to utilize defatted groundnut oilseed cake – a byproduct of oil industry to produce protein isolates. The research investigated the impact of pH on the properties of protein isolates derived from defatted groundnut cake. Cold-pressed defatted groundnut cake was used to generate groundnut protein isolates using alkaline extraction (pH 7.0, 8.0, 9.0, 10.0, 11.0, and 12.0) and acid precipitation at pH 4.5. The protein content of defatted flour was 50.75±0.03% which significantly increased in all protein isolates, with highest protein content (88.76±0.50%) observed in isolates extracted at pH 7. The highest isolate recovery and protein yield were observed at pH 12 (61.22±0.01g/100g), (94.44±0.13%). The highest WHC and OAC concentrations were found in protein isolates extracted at pH 12 (1.44±0.0 g/g, 1.28±0.01 ml/g) respectively. The highest emulsion activity was reported at pH 8 (50.10±0.1%), but ES was higher in GPIs extracted at pH 7 and 9 (48.61±0.04% and47.34±0.02%). Bulk density and tapped density were higher in defatted flours than in protein isolates. Tapped density decreased in all protein isolates, as pH increased. Protein isolates from defatted peanut flour had low foaming and gelation capacities. The protein isolates extracted at various pH levels, had potential functional properties which are suitable for various product formulations. Hence, depending on the desirable functional property needed, the extraction of protein isolates can be taken up to develop various protein rich products. The alkaline extraction of protein isolates from plant sources presents a range of challenges, including quality control, pH optimization, denaturation risks, co-extraction of undesired compounds, and management of various process complexities. Addressing these challenges through meticulous control, conducted extensive experimentation within the pH range and innovative techniques contributes significantly to the food industry by advancing sustainable protein sources, improving food quality, and enhancing nutritional value. This optimization of extraction processes not only positions plant-based protein isolates as valuable alternatives to animal-derived counterparts but also promotes resource efficiency and reduced environmental impact. Together, these efforts pave the way for the development of nutritious, environmentally sustainable, and economically viable protein-rich food products to meet the ever-growing global demand.