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Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur

The history of agricultural education in Kerala can be traced back to the year 1896 when a scheme was evolved in the erstwhile Travancore State to train a few young men in scientific agriculture at the Demonstration Farm, Karamana, Thiruvananthapuram, presently, the Cropping Systems Research Centre under Kerala Agricultural University. Agriculture was introduced as an optional subject in the middle school classes in the State in 1922 when an Agricultural Middle School was started at Aluva, Ernakulam District. The popularity and usefulness of this school led to the starting of similar institutions at Kottarakkara and Konni in 1928 and 1931 respectively. Agriculture was later introduced as an optional subject for Intermediate Course in 1953. In 1955, the erstwhile Government of Travancore-Cochin started the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, Thiruvananthapuram and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Mannuthy, Thrissur for imparting higher education in agricultural and veterinary sciences, respectively. These institutions were brought under the direct administrative control of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Animal Husbandry, respectively. With the formation of Kerala State in 1956, these two colleges were affiliated to the University of Kerala. The post-graduate programmes leading to M.Sc. (Ag), M.V.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees were started in 1961, 1962 and 1965 respectively. On the recommendation of the Second National Education Commission (1964-66) headed by Dr. D.S. Kothari, the then Chairman of the University Grants Commission, one Agricultural University in each State was established. The State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) were established in India as an integral part of the National Agricultural Research System to give the much needed impetus to Agriculture Education and Research in the Country. As a result the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) was established on 24th February 1971 by virtue of the Act 33 of 1971 and started functioning on 1st February 1972. The Kerala Agricultural University is the 15th in the series of the SAUs. In accordance with the provisions of KAU Act of 1971, the Agricultural College and Research Institute at Vellayani, and the College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy, were brought under the Kerala Agricultural University. In addition, twenty one agricultural and animal husbandry research stations were also transferred to the KAU for taking up research and extension programmes on various crops, animals, birds, etc. During 2011, Kerala Agricultural University was trifurcated into Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU), Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) and Kerala Agricultural University (KAU). Now the University has seven colleges (four Agriculture, one Agricultural Engineering, one Forestry, one Co-operation Banking & Management), six RARSs, seven KVKs, 15 Research Stations and 16 Research and Extension Units under the faculties of Agriculture, Agricultural Engineering and Forestry. In addition, one Academy on Climate Change Adaptation and one Institute of Agricultural Technology offering M.Sc. (Integrated) Climate Change Adaptation and Diploma in Agricultural Sciences respectively are also functioning in Kerala Agricultural University.

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20152
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Subject: Agronomy × Author: KAU × End date: 2015 × Start date: 2015 × Thesis Type: Ph.D ×
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    ThesisItemOpen Access
    Biology and management of weedy rice (Oryza sativa f. spontanea)
    (College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2015) Nimmy, Jose; KAU; Abraham, C T
    Weedy rice is the complex of morphotypes of Oryza species widely distributed in the commercial rice fields in more than 50 countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America, especially in areas where farmers have switched to direct seeding due to labour shortage and high cost. Taxonomically, Indian weedy rice is identified as Oryza sativa f. spontanea which belongs to the indica group. Invasion and spread of weedy rice in the cultivated rice fields have forced the farming community to abandon rice farming, leading to socio economic and ecological impacts in the rice bowls of Kerala. Management of weedy rice infestation is complex mainly because of its morphological similarities to cultivated rice and lack of herbicides for selective control of weedy rice in cropped fields. Hence, the present research programme was undertaken to estimate the extent of infestation of weedy rice in rice bowls of Kerala, to study the biology and ecology, and to chalk out strategies for integrated management of weedy rice. Survey conducted in the major rice belts of Kerala, viz., Kole, Kuttanad and Palakkad, revealed that more than 65 percent of the area has low to severe weedy rice infestation. In the major rice bowls of Kerala there was severe, moderate and low infestation of weedy rice in 26, 36 and 49 panchayaths, respectively,. The extent of infestation was more in Kuttanad in Alleppey, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta districts and Kole lands of Thrissur district. In Palakkad region, the infestation was more in panchayaths of Alathoor and Nemmara blocks. Survey revealed the presence of weedy rice variants with respect to morphological characters like number of tillers per plant, height of plant, length of ligule, panicle characters, colour of grains, and length and colour of awns. Studies conducted on the germination of weedy rice seeds revealed that there was no significant difference between the germination of weedy rice in the presence and absence of rice seeds in the soil. It was noticed that seed germination was higher at the surface and 2 cm depth of the soil and there was drastic reduction in the germination from deeper layers of 4-8 cm. Investigations on dormancy revealed that hull induced dormancy in weedy rice could be broken by exposing seeds to 20ºC for 48 hours, treating with 0.6% nitric acid for six hours, rupturing seed coat, or maintaining electrical conductivity of 5 dS m-1 for six hours in the growing media. Scanning electron microscope studies confirmed that lesser overlapping of lemma and palea contributed to quicker germination of half mature straw coloured weedy rice grains whereas, slow germination in black coloured mature seeds is due to the clear overlapping of lemma and palea. Presence of more number of stomata both on adaxial and abaxial surface, silica deposits and hairy out-growths on leaf, and high root volume in weedy rice contributed to its early vigour, growth and competitiveness. Management options found effective for the control of weedy rice in direct seeded puddled rice include (1) pre sowing surface application of oxyfluorfen @ 0.2 kg ha-1 three days before sowing in thin film of water (2) selective drying of weedy rice panicles with nonselective broadspectrum herbicides glufosinate ammonium or glyphosate @ 15 % - 20 % concentration at 60-65 DAS using specially designed wick applicator/wiper device (3) stale seed bed technique with (wet tillage in between two stales under heavy infestation) application of broad spectrum herbicide followed by flooding for exhausting soil seed bank (4) straw burning after harvest of infested fields followed by zero tillage in succeeding crop and (5) soil solarisation for more than 30 days during summer months using 100 micron transparent polythene sheets. A novel hand held wiper device was developed for the direct contact application of nonselective broadspectrum herbicides for selective drying of weedy rice panicles at 60-65 days after sowing, when rice and weedy rice plants maintain height difference of 20 cm. The device was filed for Indian Patent at Patent Office, Chennai (Application No. 1763/CHE/2014 dated 01.04.2014). Effective and economical management of weedy rice is possible by the integrated use of different options for management depending on the intensity of infestation. Various weedy rice management options standardized in the present study were demonstrated in farmers’ fields in a participatory mode. The demonstrations have given good results and many farmers have already adopted the package for the integrated management of weedy rice.
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    ThesisItemOpen Access
    Weed management in Ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.)
    (College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara, 2015) Asha, V Pillai; KAU; Joseph, P A
    The present investigation entitled “Weed management in ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.) was carried out at the Agronomy Farm, College of Horticulture, Vellanikkara during March 2013 to January 2015 using the variety Karthika. The main objective of the investigation was to study the weed flora of ginger in the major ginger growing districts of Kerala and to find out efficient, economic and eco-friendly weed management practices in ginger. The investigation was carried out in two parts. 1) Survey of weed flora of ginger in the major ginger growing districts of Kerala 2) field experiment on management of weeds in ginger. Stratified survey was done in major ginger growing districts of Kerala namely Waynad, Palakkad, Idikki and Thrissur districts during 2013 and 2014. The average number of dicots, monocots and sedges found growing in ginger plots in these districts were in the order of 69.1, 22.0 and 8.8 per cent respectively. Based on the SDR values, the most dominant broad leaved weed species observed in the Palakkad district were Scoparia dulcis, Ageratum conyzoides, Mollugo pentaphylla and Ludwigia parviflora. Leptochloa chinensis was the most dominant grass weed. Fimbristylis miliacea and Cyperus iria were the dominant sedge species. In the Thrissur district Cyperus difformis was the most dominant sedge. Among broad leaved weeds, Alternanthera bettzickiana had the highest SDR value. Among the grasses, Brachiaria mutica, Eragrostis japonica and Setaria sphacelata dominated in Thrissur district. In the Wayanad district Spilanthes radicans and Ageratum conyzoides emerged as the most dominant broad leaved weed species. The most dominant grass weed was Digitaria ciliaris. Among the sedges, Cyperus iria was the dominant species. In Idukki district Ageratum conyzoides and Spilanthes radicans were the most dominating broad leaved weed species. Among grasses, Eragrostis sp. recorded the maximum population followed by Ischaemum indicum. The field experiments were laid out in RBD with three replications during 2013-2015. The treatments included were pendimethalin @ 1.5 kg /ha after planting but before mulching, oxyfluorfen @ 0.20 kg /ha after planting but before mulching, metribuzin @ 0.525 kg /ha after planting but before mulching, glyphosate @ 0.80 kg /ha just before the emergence of sprouts of ginger, glufosinate ammonium @ 0.45 kg /ha just before the emergence of sprouts of ginger, pendimethalin @ 1.5 kg/ha + one hand weeding at first mulching, oxyfluorfen @ 0.20 kg/ha + one hand weeding at first mulching, metribuzin @0.525 kg/ha + one hand weeding at first mulching, soil solarization for 45 days before planting ginger, POP recommendations (KAU) and unweeded control In the second crop season (March 2014 to January 2015) two additional treatments namely, combinations of glyphosate with pendimethalin (T12) or oxyfluorfen (T13) were additionally included. The combinations of these herbicides were applied at twenty five days after planting, just before the emergence of sprouts of ginger. Major weeds found in experimental field in both the years were broad leaved weeds comprising of Ageratum conyzoides, Alternanthera bettzickiana, Borreria hispida, etc. Pennisetum pedicellatum and Brachiaria sp. were the dominant grass species. Cyperus iria was the only sedge. Significantly the lower weed population, weed dry weight and nutrient removal by weeds were observed in PoP (T10) followed by pre emergence herbicides + hand weeding (T6, T7 and T8), at 45, 90 and 180 DAP. Among the additional treatments, oxyflourfen+glyphosate (T13) registered the lowest dry matter production, weed population and nutrient removal by weeds at 45, 90 and 180 DAP and was on par with POP. The plant growth parameters like number of tillers per plant, number of leaves per tiller and plant height were maximum in POP (T10) followed by pendimethalin + hand weeding and Oxyfluorfen + hand weeding which were significantly superior to all other treatments. The additional treatment tried in 2014-2015, glyphosate + oxyfluorfen (T13) also produced higher tiller count, number of leaves per tiller and height of plant. The treatment T13 was at par with T10 and significantly superior to all other treatments. The highest fresh yield and dry yield were recorded in POP (T10) followed by oxyflorfen + hand weeding (T7). The third best treatment was pendimethalin + hand weeding (T6) followed by soil solarisation (T9). The newly added treatment glyphosate + oxyfluorfen (T13) also gave the highest fresh (13.53t/ha) and dry yield (4.59 t/ha) which was on par with POP. Pendimethalin, metribuzin, glyphosate and glufosinate ammonium were far inferior to produce a reasonable yield of rhizomes. The highest net return was recorded by POP recommendation (T10) followed by oxyflorfen + hand weeding (T7). The highest B:C ratio was recorded by oxyfluorfen + hand weeding (4.7) followed by pendimethalin + hand weeding (4.4) and PoP (3.95). When laborers are available in plenty, PoP practice of weed removal by hand at 45 and 90 DAP is the best as this is environment friendly. If labour shortage is experienced oxyflorfen + hand weeding or pendimethalin + hand weeding can be adopted. The additional treatment glyphosate + oxyfluorfen (T13) tried during 2014-2015 only was also effective in controlling weeds and giving a good yield. But the treatment needs further verification by field trials. The total fungal and bacterial count two months after spraying of herbicides also showed the maximum count in the treatment PoP (T10) which was on par with unweeded control (T11). Herbicide residue analysis in ginger showed that all the promising herbicides to control weeds in ginger recorded below detectable level of residue in rhizomes.