Bell pepper is one of the main vegetables produced in the world and are among the most commercialized and consumed in Brazil due to their ease of cultivation in small areas and their high economic value. Given the need for vegetable producers to use lower-quality water for irrigation, it is necessary to study inputs that can mitigate the harmful effects of salinity on plants, such as the biostimulant rutin. A study was therefore carried out to assess whether the application of the biostimulant rutin mitigates the harmful effects of salinity when growing yellow peppers in a protected environment. The experimental design used was randomized blocks in subdivided plots with four replications. The plots consisted of four levels of electrical conductivity of the irrigation water (0.3, 1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 dS m-1), and the subplots were four doses of the biostimulant rutin (0.0, 6.0, 12.0, and 18.0 g L-1) applied via foliar. Growth variables such as plant height and stem diameter, production, fruit quality, leaf water potential, gas exchange, brix level, fruit weight, and shoot dry weight were assessed. The data was submitted to analysis of variance and Tukey test at 5%. The doses of the biostimulant rutin did not mitigate the effects of the salts on the plants, and further tests with higher doses of the biostimulant are needed to verify its efficiency. The salts caused a reduction in plant growth, stem diameter, and the dry weight of the aerial part of the yellow bell pepper plants.

The study was conducted on 384 smallholder dairy farms located in five Provinces of the Imbo Plain of Burundi. It assessed the status of livestock feeding and identified potential dry season feed interventions by smallholder dairy farmers. A survey using a structured questionnaire was used to collect information on fodder production, fodder conservation, feeding management, feed resources, and marketing. The Kobo collect tool was used to facilitate the activity. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20 software. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics while qualitative data were analyzed using the association of some variables by using cross-tabulations. Results from the study showed a high level of availability of natural fodder (96.9%) and established fodder (94.5%) during the wet season with scarcity during the dry season (87.2% and 85.7% respectively). It was observed that there was a low level of adoption of fodder conservation and marketing. The study concluded that the low adoption level of fodder production, conservation, and marketing practices may be a result of the low education level and consequently increased poverty among smallholder dairy farmers. To prevent dry season feed scarcity, smallholder dairy farmers, were encouraged to adopt new technologies of conservation of surplus fodder available in the wet Season. They were also inducted to new technologies of treating crop residues for use as animal feed during the dry season period.

Latitude was tested for correlation with longitude in red millipedes Centrobolus.  Latitude correlated with longitude in Centrobolus (r=0.73, Z score=5.68, n=40, p=0.00000001). Latitude correlated with species richness (r=-0.97, Z score=-12.54, n=40, p=0). Longitude correlated with species richness (r=0.49, Z score=3.27, n=40, p=0.00054590). Latitudinal species richness correlated with longitudinal species richness in Centrobolus (r=0.3794, r2=0.1439, n=40, p=0.01576).

A field experiment was conducted at Research Farm of National Root Crops Research Institute Sub-Station, Igbariam to study the effect of NPK 15:15:15 fertilizer application rates on the growth and yield of three varieties of sweet potato (Umuspol, Ex-Igbariam and Tis87/0087) during 2023 cropping season. The experiment was set up as 4 x 3 factorial laid in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The main factor comprises combination of four levels of fertilizer rates (0, 200, 400 and 600 NPK 15:15:15 kg/ha) while the sub-factor consisted of three varieties of sweet potato (Umuspol, Ex-Igbariam and Tis87/0087). Data collected on the growth and yield of the crop were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using Genstat 4th edition statistical software. The significant mean were separated using the Fisher’s least significant difference (F-LSD) at 5% probability level. The result obtained indicated that Umuspol variety vine length, number of leaves and branches significantly had the highest values as 151.3cm, 160.9, and 14.9 respectively. While, Tis87/0087 had the lowest values of vine length, number of leaves and number of branches as 32.5cm, 46.3, 6.5 respectively. Fertilizer application rate at 200 kg/ha significantly influenced the length of tuber, width of tuber and tuber weight with highest values recorded in as 18.3cm, 10.1cm and 2.8kg/ha.

Researchers are becoming more interested in the eco-friendly bio-synthesis of vanadium oxide nanoparticles because they could be used in many areas of science and technology. The Punica granatum peel extract was used to prepare vanadium oxide nanoparticles (V2O5-NPs) by treating VOSO4.H2O with it. The synthesized particles was characterized using SEM, FTIR, and UV visible spectroscopy. The synthesized particles and extract were then tested for their ability to kill bacteria and fungi by testing them against species like Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas florescens, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseduomonousaliginoza, Candida albicans, Rhizopus oryzae, Aspergillus Niger, Aspergillus Parasiticus, and Aspergillus flavus. The comparison of antibacterial and antifungal activity against microbes was carried out and it was found from the growth curves of bacteria and fungi that the vanadium oxide nanoparticles showed more zone of inhibition than the Punica granatum peel extract.