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Anand Agricultural University, Anand
Anand Agricultural University (AAU) was established in 2004 at Anand with the support of the Government of Gujarat, Act No.(Guj 5 of 2004) dated April 29, 2004. Caved out of the erstwhile Gujarat Agricultural University (GAU), the dream institution of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Dr. K. M. Munshi, the AAU was set up to provide support to the farming community in three facets namely education, research and extension activities in Agriculture, Horticulture Engineering, product Processing and Home Science. At present there seven Colleges, seventeen Research Centers and six Extension Education Institute working in nine districts of Gujarat namely Ahmedabad, Anand, Dahod, Kheda, Panchmahal, Vadodara, Mahisagar, Botad and Chhotaudepur
AAU's activities have expanded to span newer commodity sectors such as soil health card, bio-diesel, medicinal plants apart from the mandatory ones like rice, maize, tobacco, vegetable crops, fruit crops, forage crops, animal breeding, nutrition and dairy products etc. the core of AAU's operating philosophy however, continues to create the partnership between the rural people and committed academic as the basic for sustainable rural development. In pursuing its various programmes AAU's overall mission is to promote sustainable growth and economic independence in rural society. AAU aims to do this through education, research and extension education. Thus, AAU works towards the empowerment of the farmers.
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ThesisItem Open Access EPIDEMIOLOGICAL SURVEILLANCE, CLINICO PATHOLOGY. DIAGNOSTIC AND TECHNOECONOMIC ASPECTS OF FASCIOLIASIS IN BUFFALOES(AAU, Anand, 1997) RAVAL, SUNANT KANTILAL; Patel, P. R.The epidemiological surveillance is a urgent need of today. The study was carried out from 1st January to 31st December, 1996 in the five villages of Anand district by visiting rural herd on a regular basis. In the present study the efforts were made to generate and analyse epidemiological data for fascioliasis from rural buffaloes. The epidemiological data on disease incidence in relation to season, meteorological factors. Physiological status, nutritional status, body condition score, housing and hygienic condition were analysed. The visit of the slaughter house was also made. The incidence of fascioliasis was 11.71 per cent in survey group and 22.26 per cent in slaughter group. The higher incidence was observed in August and September in both the group of buffaloes. A significant correlation was observed between the monthly incidence of fascioliasis in slaughtered and survey group. The lymnea species of snails was present in the nearby area of canals and ponds. Higher incidence was recorded in aged buffaloes (15.52 per cent) than young-esters below one year (3.10 per cent )whereas non-lactating buffaloes have more incidence of fascioliasis than lactating buffaloes. A positive significnat correlation of disease incidence with morning and evening relative humidity, minimum temperature has been noticed. A negative correlation of disease incidence with maximum temperature, pan evaporation and bright sunshine has been recorded. Clinically buffaloes suffering from fascioliasis were found to be weak, anorexic debilated, emaciated and having submandibular edema. On clinical observation respiration rate was increased and ruminal movements decreased in infected animals in compared to healthy animals. The respiration rate was higher in infected animals (26.90/minute) as compared to healthy one ( 16.30/minute) . Ruminal movements were also significantly decreased in infected animals (1.20/5 minutes) as compared to healthy one (3.08/5 minutes). The overall accuracy observed by faecal sample examination was 78.07 per cent. The egg count per gram of faeces was found to be in between 275 to 410. The haematobiochemical changes in blood and serum of infected buffaloes were investigated in comparison to healthy control, in both the groups. Infected buffaloes had low haemoglobin and erythrocyte count. The blood haemoglobin content in control group was 11.42±0.14 g/dl while in infected group it was 9.43±0.07 g/dl in survey group of animals.ThesisItem Open Access PHYSIOPATHOLOGICAL STUDIES ON SUMMER STRESS IN BROILERS(AAU, Anand, 1997) Ghodasara, D. J.; Prajapati, K. S.The present study was under taken to know the effects of summer temperature on physiology, viability and performance of broilers. The study was made on commercial broiler birds at Anand Poultry Farm, Palana, District Kheda. Broiler birds of 46 to 49 days of age were used for the study. The study was conducted during extreme hot period of summer. For comparison, base level data were obtained by conducting similar study during comfortable environmental temperature of the winter season. Samples like blood, serum, plasma and tissues were collected at morning and afternoon hours. Pathological study was also made on the natural cases of heat stroke. Concentration of thyroid hormones were decreased during high temperature of summer, indicating reduced activity of thyroid gland during summer stress. The plasma concentration of Cortisol and relative weight of adrenal gland increased during high environmental temperature of summer, suggesting increased activity and hypertrophy of adrenal gland. The serum cholesterol level decreased in summer as well as during afternoon hours in summer. The level of blood glucose was found to be decreased in the birds exposed to summer temperature. The activity of AKP and ALT increased during summer. The ALT activity in the afternoon serum samples also increased during high cyclic temperature of summer. The level of total serum protein was found to be decreased in the summer season. A significant decrease in total serum protein was also noticed at afternoon hours during the cyclic temperature of summer. High environmental temperature of summer caused a decrease in the levels of serum electrolytes. During the cyclic temperature of summer, the levels of K and Ca were also found to be decreased at afternoon hours. The values of Hb, PCV and RBC count decreased during the summer stress. The total leucocytic count as well as absolute count of heterophil, lymphocyte and eosinophil were found to be decreased in summer. The TLC as well as absolute count of heterophil and lymphocyte also decreased at afternoon hours during the summer season. A significant increase was observed in H : L ratio in the summer season. The increase in body temperature directly correlated with the increase in the environmental temperature. A non-significant difference of FCR was observed between the high environmental temperature of summer and comfortable temperature of winter. Birds sacrificed in the afternoon during summer showed mild congestion of trachea and lung. Severity of these , lesions increased in the birds died due to heat stroke. The microscopic lesions in the form of congestion and haemorrhages were observed in lung, trachea, liver and kidney along with lymphoid aggregations in liver and kidney. A variable degree of hyperplasia and vacuolization was noticed in the cortical cells of adrenal gland. The thyroid acini were lined by flattened epithelium. Similar microscopic lesions with more severity were also observed in the birds died due to heat stroke. The autopsy incidence of heat stroke was found to be 3.76 % with maximum mortality during sixth, seventh and eighth weeks of age.ThesisItem Open Access BIOECOLOGY, BIOEFFICACY AND RESIDUAL STATUS OF SOME READY MIX INSECTICIDES IN RELATION TO PEST COMPLEX OF OKRA [ABELMOSCHUS ESCULENTUS (LINNAEUS) MOENCH](AAU, Anand, 1997) Shah, Bharat R.; Vyas, H. N.Investigations were carried out on the bioecology, bioefficacy and residual status of ready to use insecticides on okra at B.A. College of Agriculture, Gujarat Agricultural University, Anand, during 1995 and 1996. The population dynamics of insect pests viz., aphids, jassids, shoot arid fruit borer as well as the coccinellid predator were studied in relation to abiotic and biotic factors. The aphid count ranged from 0.48 to 63.51 and 0.91 to 49.28 per leaf during 1995 and 1996, respectively. The correlation and regression studies revealed nonsignificant correlations of abiotic factors with aphid population, however the latter showed highly positive correlation with the biotic factor viz., coccinellid predator, M.sexmaculatus during 1995. The activity of the predator increased with the increase in aphid population.The population of coccinellid predators was absent during 1996.The correlation coefficient analysis revealed that the predator population was negatively correlated with morning and evening vapour pressure as well as with mean vapour pressure.ThesisItem Open Access ASSESSMENT OF IRRIGATION REQUIREMENT OF NARMADA COMMAND USING SOIL-CROP-CLIMATE DATA(AAU, Anand, 1997) GIRI, JAYANT DATTATRAYA; PATEL, G. R.The assessment of irrigation requirement of Narmada Command covering an area of 18 lakh hectares (1.8m ha) has been carried out using data on soil available water capacity and evapotranspiration data on crops viz., pearl millet, groundnut, pigeonpea, cotton, castor, mustard and wheat. The crop evapotranspiration (ETc) is computed using crop coefficient values (Kc). While ETc has been found to be mainly dependent on the climatic component, the Net Irrigation Requirement (NIR) has been found to depend on climate mainly effective rainfall and the soil available water capacity (AWC). Differences between the Crop Water Requirement (CWR) and NIR were wide for the monsoon season, but narrowed down considerably in the winter and summer seasons. The AWC and the length of growing period of crop have also contributed to the NIR values. Soils with higher AWC had lower NIR while crops with longer growing season showed higher NIR. The AWC of soils has been found to be mainly governed by the soil texture more so by the clay + silt or clay contents. In general, medium textured soils had higher AWC than either coarse or fine textured soils. The 60 per cent level of depletion of AWC has been used to initiate irrigation. The number of irrigations required and the quantity of water applied depends on the overall evaporative demand of climate, the length of growing season of the crop and the AWC of soils. Seasonal evaluation of the scheme water supply efficiency revealed that in general the values were below 1.0 and tended to be around 0.5. The values were around 0.5 during the months of high evaporative demand and considerably less during the monsoon and cooler months when the evaporative demand is lower. However, these values are expected to be higher once all the crops grown will be considered. Scheme efficiency (relation between supply required and actual supply) can be improved by growing perennial crops like sugarcane and banana and such other crops having a high requirement for water. Such crops are recommended to be grown on as soils with no root zone limitations or other limitations imposed by the physical and chemical properties of soils. During months of low water requirement use of exploitable ground water is also recommended. Such conjunctive use will help in saving water which otherwise will go as wasteful flow and also help to keep the ground water level well below problematic levels. Use of data on soil-crop-climate to achedule irrigations for the various crops revealed it to have substantially leas NIR values as compared to the IW/CPE ratio for monsoon season crops and compared well for the winter crops. In the summer, it predicted a less NIR than IW/CPE for groundnut but gave higher values than IW/CPE for pearl millet. The redeeming feature of the model is that it takes into consideration the effective rainfall (Total rainfall less that lost through run-off or deep percolation). The soil-crop-climate model compared well with the other methods of irrigation tried, for the yield of grain in all the crops studied. It gave less WUE than the critical stages approach for all the crops except wheat, where Ife gave higher WUE values. In case of pearl millet and mustard it gave less WUE than the IW/CPE ratio. This may be attributed to the fact that these crops have basically less requirement for water and hence, gave no significant response to any increase in water supplies beyond a certain level. Studies on the behaviour of the model as compared to the other schedules for the nutrient depletion pattern Indicate that no definite pattern with respect to nutrient uptake has emerged and the results had a fair measure of inconsistency. The inherent variability of the crops studied for their capacity of derive nutrition, the natural relationships among the nutrients and the inherent difference in the soil's capacity to supply nutrients can be attributed to the observed inconsistency. Since the model gives moderate dry matter production, it causes moderate depletion of nutrient and hence with proper management and monitoring of the soil fertility, it is expected to give sustained agricultural production. Study on evolving alternative irrigation management practices in areas suffering from problems of rising water table were carried out. Results revealed that for groundnut use of sprinkler system of irrigation with an application depth corresponding to 2.5 cm per irrigation at two stages of crop growth viz. pegging (55 DAS) and pod development (85 DAS) with two irrigation of 5 cm each as pre-sowing and pre-harvest proved to the most beneficial (5.7 t/ha kernel yield). Growing groundnuts without Irrigation (4.6 t/ha) except a pre-sowing irrigation was the next best alternative. Irrigating groundnut at pre-sowing, 55 DAS, 85 DAS and pre-harvest stages with 5 cm depth of application each time had serious negative effects on yield (2.6 t/ha). Under such situations use of sprinklers appears to be a promising alternative as besides giving higher yield it may also help in keeping the ground water level within manageable limits. Growing groundnut without irrigation appear to be the next best alternative. From the study conducted It can be concluded that the soil-crop-climate model, can be used as an effective tool for predicting regional estimates of irrigation requirement inspite of the wide diversity of climate, soil and crops grown In any region, because it takes into consideration these very variables. It is also easy to compute the requirement and has the added advantage of using minimum data sets. The data collected once can be applied without the need for recurrent data collection for a reasonably long time. However, before final conclusions can be drawn, the model needs to be validated for larger number of crops, wider variety of soils and different climatic situations. Because of its requirement of minimum data sets, however it appears to be an attractive alternative tool for making regional estimates of water requirement and merits scientific attention.ThesisItem Open Access STUNT NEMATODE, Tylenchorhynchus vulgaris, UPADHYAY et al., 1972, ON MAIZE(AAU, Anand, 1997) Singh, Uma Shankar; PATEL, D. J.The experiments on stunt nematode, Tylenchorhynchus vulgaris, affecting maize were conducted to study i, pathogenicity of stunt nematode, T. vulgaris, on maize cv. Farm Sameri to determine threshold level in terms of plant growth characters, nematode reproduction and uptake of N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S nutrients by plant; ii, biochemical changes induced by nematode infection in crop; iii, histopathological studies to know host-parasite relationship in crop; iv, effect of meteorological parameters viz. leaf temperature, diffusion resistance and transpiration rate due to stunt nematode, T.vulgaris, infection in maize cv. Farm Sameri; v, effect of stunt nematode, T.vulgaris, infection on seed germination, seedling emergence, plant growth development and nematode reproduction on maize cv. Farm Sameri in pots; vi, estimation of avoidable yield losses due to stunt nematode, T.vulgaris, in maize in pots as well as field; vii, interaction between stunt nematode, T. vulgaris and stalk rot fungus, Fusarium moniliforme, on maize cv. Farm Sameri and viii, evaluation of different maize varieties / hybrids for source (s) of resistance against stunt nematode, T. vulgaris, during 1994-95 and 1995-96. The salient findings are as under : i. An inoculum level of 1000 nematodes and above / plant proved detrimental to the growth and development of maize cv. Farm Sameri (FS). The nematode population / plant significantly increased progressively with an increase in nematode inoculum from 10 to 10,000 nematodes / plant. Nematode reproduction rate was maximum (61.7 times) in the level of 10 nematodes / plant and minimum (7.2 times) in 10,000 nematodes / plant. Uptake of various nutrients viz. N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S by maize cv. FS significantly reduced with an increase in inoculum levels from 100 to 10,000 nematodes / plant. Control plants had significantly more uptake of all the nutrients over other treatments. ii. Biochemical changes induced by stunt nematode feeding on maize roots indicated that roots inoculated with 10, 100, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000 and 10,000 nematodes / plant had progressively more peroxidase and total phenol contents, whereas polyphenol oxidase proportionately decreased with an increase in nematode inoculum levels over control (uninoculated) roots, Histopathological studies revealed that after root invasion, nematodes penetrated epidermal root cells. Due to migratory ectoparasitic feeding habit, the only apparent damage to roots due to nematode feeding was disarrangement of organisation of root cap cells. A collapse of some epidermal cells was also noticed. Roots attacked by nematodes generally appeared darken than roots from sterilized soil. No nematodes were observed inside root tissues. Observations recorded on meteorological parameters revealed that infection of T.vulgaris caused significant increase in leaf temperature and diffusion resistance with proportionately decrease in transpiration rate with an increase in nematode inoculum levels in maize cv. FS, Study on effect of stunt nematodes on seed germination, overall plant growth development, leaf chlorophyll contents and nematode reproduction on maize cv. FS indicated that there was no significant difference in seed germination at 15th day of seeding but sprouting of seeds was delayed in nematode infested soils over uninfested steam sterilized soils even after 7 days of seeding.ThesisItem Open Access ON COMPARISON OF PLANT BREEDING DESIGNS FOR GENETIC ANALYSIS(AAU, Anand, 1997) Patel, Jayantibhai Sankabhai; Patel, N. M.The progenies developed through North Carolina designs I, II and III in two F2 populations of crosses GT 5 X A 119 and GT 7 x A 145 of bidi tobacco alongwith the progenies developed through a 5 x 5 diallel mating design in all possible ways were used to study the genetic variances. The mean performance of the progenies of all NC designs and their selfed progenies of parent plants (F3s) were also studied. Among the progenies developed through North Carolina designs I, II and III, the progenies of NCD II recorded higher mean performance for cured leaf yield and leaf length in both the crosses, while they were superior in plant height and leaf breadth in cross 2. They also showed early flowering in both the crosses. In cross 1 progenies of NCD I showed higher mean performance for plant height and number of leaves. Higher mean performance for cured leaf yield and leaf length with early flower initiation in both the crosses and for plant height in cross 2 was observed in NCD II and III than their selfed progenies (F3). NCD I progenies were superior for plant height and number of leaves/plant in cross 1 than their F3s. Mean performance of leaf breadth was higher in all NC designs than their respective Fas in both the crosses. Additive variances for all the characters were found nonsignificant in NCD I (both the crosses) and in NCD II in cross 2. Number of leaves/plant in NCD II and days to flower in NCD III in cross 1 and cured leaf yield and plant height in both the crosses exhibited significant additive variances. Barring leaf breadth all the additive variances in diallel were significant. In cross 1 none of the dominance variances in NCD II and III was significant. In NCD I dominance variances for cured leaf yield and leaf length in both the crosses, number of leaves and leaf breadth in cross 1 and days to flower and plant height in cross 2 were significant. In cross 2 cured leaf yield in NCD II and plant height in NCD III exhibited significant dominance variance. Dominance variances for plant height, leaf length and leaf breadth were significant in diallel design. Dominance ratio were inconsistent in different NC designs within crosses barring the plant height which showed partial dominance in all NC designs. Barring the plant height in cross 1 all characters in NCD III and diallel design expressed partial dominance of genes. The highest percentage of significant additive and dominance variances were observed in diallel design and NCD I, respectively. All the additive variances were positive in NCD II and diallel design. The highest percentage of variances with SE lower than their estimates was observed in diallel and NCD I for additive and dominance variances, respectively. Significance and standard errors of both the variances and signs of additive variance were found to be dependent on the type of mating design. Considering significance, signs and SE of the estimated variances and practical application in field diallel design was found to be most suitable design for the study of genetic variances in quantitative traits.ThesisItem Open Access PREPARATION OF CHEESE WHEY BEVERAGE CONTAINING SELECTED PROBIOTIC CULTURES(AAU, Anand, 1997) Dhole, Parshuram Tukaram; Sannabhadti, S. S.Whey is produced during manufacturing of cheese, paneer, chhana, casein and related products. More and more dairy plants are engaged in production of cheese. The whey contains half of milk solids, which are wasted into sewage. Lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacteria are known to provide several nutritional and therapeutic benefits to the host. Considering the importance of whey utilization and nutritional and therapeutic benefits of Lb. acidophilus and bifidobacteria in human health, the present study was planned to develop a value added and organoleptically acceptable whey beverage containing probiotic cultures. The four cultures of Lb. acidophilus (V3 = C1 , I4 = C2, H3 = C3 and C2 = C4 ) and two cultures of Bifid, adolescentis (NUB = Bl and TUB = B2) were used to develop cheese whey beverage from mixed whey (with 1:1 proportion of sweet and salted Cheddar cheese whey). The sweet Cheddar cheese whey contained on an average lactose 4.75 per cent, protein 0.75 per cent, salt 0.22 per cent, ash 0.41 per cent, fat 0.15 per cent and total solids 6.50 per cent, while salted Cheddar cheese whey contained on an average lactose 4.50 per cent, protein 0.80 per cent, salt 1.35 per cent, ash 1.50 per cent, fat 0.30 per cent and total solids 8.50 per cent. In growth pattern studies, all the cultures showed similar trend in sweet, salted and mixed whey. The growth increased at faster rate between 0 to 8 h, reaching log10 value above 8.5 from the initial values of around 6.5 and then reaching to 9.0 at around 16 h of incubation at 37°C. However, among the three wheys, the mixed whey showed better growth of cultures. The maximum cell population, considerable acidity and end of log periods in the Cheddar cheese whey with Lb. acidophilus and Bifid, adolescentis is achieved in 8 h of incubation at 37°C. Incorporation of 20 per cent tomato juice in mixed whey promoted growth of all the cultures tested. The cultures showed the end of log phases in about 8 h. Apart from this, the incorporation also enhanced the survival, acid production and stability of cultures and helped to mask the odd flavour of whey beverage. The Lb. acidophilus and Bifid. adolescentis individually and in combination showed faster rate of increase in cell population upto 8 h and then entered in stationary phase in cheese whey beverage. All Lb. acidophilus showed marginal increase in cell population upto 16 h and then declined slightly till 24 h, while Bifid, adolescentis showed rise in count even upto 24 h of incubation. Lb. acidophilus CI, C2 or C4 when combined with Bifid, adolescentis Bl or B2 showed increase in cell population in the range of 50 x 10 power 7 to 134.9 x 10 power 7 c.f.u./ml as compared to their individual cell population, which was in the range of 42 x 10 power 7 to 57.5 x 10 power 7 c.f.u./ml at 8 h. But in the subsequent hours of incubation the cell population in combined cultures showed greater degree of reduction as compared to their individual cell population. So looking to the considerably high population achieved in 8 h, this period is recommended for beverage production. The pH of freshly prepared whey beverage considerably reduced on fermentation with various cultures. The drop in pH was maximum with Lb. acidophilus culture C4 (4.65) as compared to other cultures. The Bifid, adolescentis showed pH in range of 5.0 to 5.1. In fresh beverage, the maximum acid production was shown by Lb. acidophilus culture C4 (0.54 per cent lactic acid) which was at par with cultures C4B1, C4B2 and C3B1 but was significantly higher than other cultures. The minimum acidity was produced by C1 and B2 (0.373 per cent L.A.). The drink base which was used for beverage production contained on an average 4.26 per cent lactose. This lactose was degraded by cultures in fresh product in the range of 8 per cent (e.g. B2 fermented beverage had 3.93 per cent lactose) to 18 per cent (e.g. C4B2 fermented beverage had 3.50 per cent lactose). Among the Lb. acidophilus the lactose degrading ability was at par but significantly different in two Bifid, adolescentis. The combinations tried were all at par except C4B2 which showed significantly higher lactose degradation than either individual cultures or all other combinations. In study of total lactic acid content of fresh product, the combination C4B1 showed more (0.69 per cent L.A.) as compared to other cultures and the lowest quantity was produced by culture Bl (0.51 per cent L.A.). The individual Lb. acidophilus produced 0.59 to 0.68 per cent L.A., while Bifid, adolescentis produced total lactic acid in range of 0,512 to 0.546 per cent L.A. In fresh product, Bifid. adolescentis showed more acetic acid (0.12 to 0.16 mg/ml) as compared to Lb. acidophilus (0.039 to 0.056 mg/ml) and culture grown in combination with Lb, acidophilus were unable to produce same amount of acetic acid indicating inhibitory influence on acetic acid production of bifidobacteria when grown in combination. In the fresh product, Lb. acidophilus strains produced volatile acidity in range of 1.1 to 1.4 ml of 0.1 N NaOH/100 ml of distillate, while Bifid. adolescentis produced volatile acidity in the range of 0.90 to 1.47 ml of 0.1 N NaOH/100 ml of distillate. Lb. acidophilus in combination with Bifid, adolescentis Bl produced more volatile acidity as compared to their individual strains. There was no change in protein content in whey beverage fermented with probiotic cultures. The whey beverage fermented with probiotic cultures showed minor variation in chemical composition after eight days of refrigerated storage. In freshly prepared whey beverages, Lb. acidophilus C4 , showed maximum cell population ((125.8 x 10 power 7 c.f.u./ml) as compared to others. Among Bifid, adolescentis, it was at par (57.5 X 10 power 7 c.f.u./ml). In combinations, C3B1 produced maximum cell population (141.2 x 10 power 7 c.f.u./ml) as compared to other cultures. While in refrigerated stored product, a significant reduction in cell population was observed. Lb. acidophilus C3 showed minimum reduction in cell count during storage (13 per cent) while Bifid, adolescentis showed maximum reduction (98 per cent). In combination, C3B1 showed 50 per cent reduction in cell population followed by C4B1 and C2B1. The coliform counts and yeast and mould counts of fresh and stored product were in the limits prescribed by BIS. The study of antibacterial activity of the whey beverage showed that there were no antibacterial influences on E. coli, B. cereus, Ps. aeruginosa, Staph, aureus and Sal. typhi upto 60 h incubation, though the acidity was in range of 0.59 to 1.21 per cent L.A. The antibacterial activity was observed at 72 h of incubation. The average inhibitory influence of culture C3B1 was significantly higher as compared to other cultures except C4B1 and C3. The inhibitory effect was more on E. coli, B. cereus, Sal. typhi compared to Ps. aeruginosa and Staph, aureus. In the sensory evaluation of fresh product, CI showed maximum score of flavour which was at par with C1, C3, C4, ClBl, C3B1, C4B1, C1B2 and C3B2 and Bl showed minimum score of flavour, while in refrigerated product, C3 showed maximum flavour score and was statistically at par with C1, C2, C4, ClBl , C3B1, C1B2, C2B2 and C3B2. Lactobacillus acidophilus CI showed maximum score of colour and appearance as compared to other cultures and it was at par with culture C2. Culture C1B1 scored minimum in fresh product. In stored product, C4B1 scored maximum as compared to other cultures. However, it was at par with other cultures except C4, C3B2 and C4B2. Lactobacillus acidophilus C3 showed maximum overall acceptability which was at par with C1, C2, C4, C1B1, C3B1, C1B2, C2B2 and C3B2. Bifid, adolescentis Bl showed minimum score in fresh product. In refrigerated product stored for 8 days. Lb. acidophilus CI showed maximum score of acceptability among all other cultures. Culture C4B2 scored the lowest. The results of the present investigation revealed that the cheese whey (with 1:1 proportion of sweet and salted Cheddar cheese whey), which has problem of disposal can be converted into value added beverage containing probiotic cultures of Lb. acidophilus and Bifid, adolescentis. The product can be prepared within 8 h and can be stored for 8 days at 5°C.ThesisItem Open Access NORTH CAROLINA DESIGNS IN ANALYSING GENETIC VARIATION(AAU, Anand, 1997) SUNDAR, R. M.; PATEL, N. M.Information involving various experimental designs on the estimates of genetic variance on a number of populations is available in literature. Practically, no information is available on relative efficiency of various genetic experimental designs. Therefore, the present study was undertaken to study the genetic variance obtained in North Carolina designs I and II for yield and yield attributes of bidi tobacco and also to compare relative efficiency of both the designs. The present investigation was conducted at the Bidi Tobacco Research Station (BTRS), Gujarat Agricultural University, Anand during the years 1994-95 and 1995-96. Crosses using North Carolina designs I and II were made in F2 populations of GT5xA119 (cross 1) and GT7xA145 (cross 2). The field experiment was conducted in the Compact family block design with two replications. Each experimental plot had two row of ten plants each, the inter and intra row spacing being 90cm and 75cm, respectively. The characters studied were days to flower, plant height, number of leaves per plant, leaf length, leaf width, leaf thickness and cured leaf yield. On the basis of resuhs obtained through statistical analysis of North Carolina designs I and 11 on bidi tobacco, it can be generalized that gene actions differed with different characters in cross 1 of NCD I and II barring cured leaf yield which was solely governed by non-additive gene action. In case of cross 2 under both the designs, cured leaf yield was governed by additive and dominant gene actions, number of leaves by additive gene action and average leaf length by non-additive gene action. Other characters showed differential response. The comparison of designs showed preference to NCD 11 for estimating genetic variances. The present study is based on two crosses under two designs. Therefore, there is a need to confirm the results by taking large number of crosses in various crops under different environmental conditions.ThesisItem Open Access PERSISTENCE OF PENDIMETHALIN, FLUCHLORALIN AND OXADIAZON IN SOIL AND THEIR RESIDUES IN ONION (Allluin cepa L. )(AAU, Anand, 1997) Raj, Mahendrasinh Fulabhai; Patel, B. K.Pendimethalin, fluchloralin and oxadiazon were applied @ 1.0, 1.0 and 0.5 kg ha-1, respectively as preemergence herbicides in an experiment conducted at College Agronomy Farm on onion in rabi 1995 to study their persistence in sandy loam soil and residues in onion. Adsorption-desorption of the herbicides and their downward movement in the soil columns were also carried out in the laboratory to work out the risk of groundwater pollution. The herbicides were mainly retained within 0-15 cm soil layer. Pendimethalin, fluchloralin and oxadiazon showed first-order dissipation with half-life values of 21.9, 19.1 and 32.4 days, respectively. FYM application(0, 10 and 20 t ha-1) reduced the degradation of all the herbicides. The dinitroaniline herbicides showed biphasic mode of dissipation, whereas it was monophasic in case of oxadiazon. The herbicides did not show marked effect on the soil microbial biomass carbon as well as nitrate nitrogen. The levels of pendimethalin, fluchloralin and oxadiazon residues in onion ranged from 0.003 to 0,021, 0.004 to 0.036 and 0.080 to 0.104 µg g-1, respectively. The residues in onion were marginally higher on the 60th day than at harvest. Adsorption-desorption of pendimethalin, fluchloralin and oxadiazon was studied on sandy loam and clayey soils. Pendimethalin showed maximum adsorption on both the soils, however, oxadiazon was the least adsorbed. Organic matter content of the soil was predominantly responsible for adsorption of the herbicides which was evident by low Koc values of the herbicides for clayey soil. In sandy loam soil, fluchloralin recorded maximum desorption followed by oxadiazon and pendimethalin. Soil column study carried out for one month period revealed little movement of pendimethalin and fluchloralin beyond 12 cm depth, however, oxadiazon reached upto 30 cm soil depth. With increase in soil depth, the soil microbial biomass carbon increased in case of fluchloralin and oxadiazon, while, the increase was marginal for pendimethalin. Among the three herbicides, oxadiazon showed better negative correlation(r=-0.81) between the residues and biomass carbon. None of the herbicides were detected in the leachates.