<div>Background: Onion (Allium cepa L.) is an important and indispensable item of every kitchen. It is used as a vegetable, spice and condiment and commands an extensive internal market. Even though onion is one of the major crops in India, its cultivation is not yet popular in Kerala. Successful onion production depends on the selection of varieties that are adapted to different conditions imposed by specific environment and best planting time. In this background, the current study aimed to evaluate five onion varieties in the tropical planes of Kerala and also to study the effect of different planting time and varieties on the performance of onion in Kerala. 
 
Methods: Five onion varieties were evaluated in four different dates of planting with an interval of fifteen days. Planting commenced from 10th November to 25th December 2017 in a split plot design with four replications. Yield attributing characters such as number of leaves per plant, leaf length, bolting percentage, neck thickness, bulb weight and yield were noted. 
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Result: All the parameters showed a significant variation over different dates of planting. There was a significant variation in number of leaves per plant, leaf length, bolting percentage, total bulb yield and neck thickness among the varieties. Interaction effect of varieties and dates of planting was significant only for leaf length and total bulb yield. Highest bulb weight was recorded in 25th Nov. planting. Highest yield was recorded in 25th Nov. which was on par with 10th Dec. and 10th Nov. plantings. Arka Kalyan recorded a highest yield, which was statistically on par with Agrifound Dark Red and Arka Pragati. Varieties when planted on 25th Dec. recorded a lowest neck thickness. Agrifound White exhibited a non-bolting behavior in all the dates of planting. Overall performance and yield of onion was found to be better when planting was done on 25th November.</div>

<div>Effect of Varieties and Planting Time on the Performance of Onion under Tropical Planes of Kerala</div>

Background: For better water resources management in the areas of water shortage for crop production, deficit irrigation is very important. The understanding of the yield response factor to water deficit is crucial for efficient irrigation water management. Deficit irrigation for studying yield response factors is always practiced in the way of stressing the demand of the crops. The present study was done for the determination of the seasonal yield response factor of red Bombay onion variety under Arba Minch agro climate condition. Furthermore, it also examined the effect of furrow irrigation systems on the seasonal yield response factor.&nbsp; 
 
Methods: The experiment was conducted from August to November 2019. The experiment had six treatments, which were the combination of two furrow irrigation systems and three irrigation levels. Data were collected for soil moisture before and after each irrigation and bulb yield. The seasonal yield response factors were determined through simple linear regressions using SPSS software.&nbsp; 
 
Result: When considering the furrow irrigation system as a factor, the seasonal yield response factor for alternate furrow irrigation system was 1.18 while for paired row furrow irrigation system was 1.07. This red Bombay variety of onion clearly shows more sensitive to water stress for alternative furrow irrigation systems than paired row furrow irrigation systems. Therefore, in the area of water shortage paired row furrow irrigation system is better than alternate furrow irrigation system. The seasonal yield response factor as a wall for red Bombay onion variety in Arba Minch agro-ecological condition was 1.12. Therefore, the red Bombay onion variety in Arba Minch agroclimate condition was sensitive to water stress.

Seasonal Yield Response Factor for Red Bombay Onion (Allium cepa L.) Variety in Arba Minch, Ethiopia

<div>Background: Maize (Zea mays L.) is the most important staple food in the lowland of North Shewa, Ethiopia. However, the crop is less researched in this area. Thus, the objective of this study was to assess the performance of improved open pollinated variety maize with the participation of farmers&rsquo; using their selection criteria for cultivation in the lowland areas of North Shewa. 
 
Methods: Fourteen open pollinated maize varieties including local were evaluated in the lowland of Eastern Amhara at Eferatana Gedim district, Yimlo research station in 2016 and 2017 main cropping season. The experiment was conducted in randomized complete block design (RCBD) in three replications. Five agronomic and yield traits were collected in both cropping years. In addition, maize small holder farmers were participated to evaluate and score varieties using the matrix ranking method based on the farmers&rsquo; selection attributes. 
 
Result: The combined analysis of variance across years showed that highly significant (p&lt;0.01) difference for days to anthesis, grain yield. The highest grain yield was obtained from Melkassa-4 (5243 kg/ha) and Melkasa-2 (5115 kg/ha) while the lowest yield was recorded from Rare-1 (3294 kg/ha). The overall yielding ability of Melkasa-4 was higher as compared with the tested varieties. In addition, this variety was highly appreciated by maize farmers in both cropping years. Based on farmer&rsquo;s selection and yield potential, therefore, Melkassa-4 has recommended for the lowlands of North Shewa and similar agro ecologies in Ethiopia. Support is needed to scale-up and deliver such improved variety through involving farmers in the selection and dissemination of varieties that are adapted to their needs, as it incurred income, good in crop rotation and animal feed.</div>

Participatory Variety Selection of Maize (Zea mays L.) Varieties in the Low Lands of Eastern Amhara, Ethiopia

Background: Varieties identification is essential for protecting seeds sold to farmers from counterfeiting. Currently, the grow-out test (GOT) is used for varieties identification. This test is constrained by its long assessment, environmental dependency and subjective nature. Alternative test/tests are needed. This study aimed to determine the utility of microsatellite markers as a complement to GOT in varieties identification. 
&nbsp; 
Methods: In this study, six varieties of commercial maize hybrids released in Tanzania, herein coded as H1, H2, H3, H5, H6 and H9, were selected as candidates. For morphological evaluation, a field experiment was laid out in a complete randomized block design, followed by the collection of phenotypic data. The qualitative data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA in SPSS v.20 software, while qualitative data were summarized in a frequency distribution table. On the other hand, by conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR), seven microsatellite markers were used to fingerprint the varieties. The PCR results were manually scored and transferred to GenAIEX v.6.5 and DARwin v.6. software for genetic distance and clustering analysis, respectively. 
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Result: Quantitative data showed significant variation in all the tested varieties at p&lt;0.05, whereas 15 qualitative traits out of 21 showed phenotypic variations among the tested varieties. Furthermore, two microsatellite markers, namely phi080 and umc1071, out of the seven markers used in this study, proved useful in the fast and timely identification of two varieties (H1 and H2) out of six varieties. Nei&rsquo;s genetic distance ranged from zero to four; the highest measure of genetic distance was observed in H1, followed by H2 and the least measure was observed in both of the four varieties. Neighbor Joining clustered the varieties into three different populations that distinguished each of H1 and H2 from the rest of the four varieties. This study shows that microsatellite markers are a promising complement to GOT in varietal identification.

Assessment of Microsatellite Markers for Varieties Identification: A Case of Six Varieties of Maize Hybrids Sold in Tanzania

<div style="text-align: justify;">Background: Onion is an economically important bulbous vegetable crop widely cultivated in India. Onion produced in West Bengal can only partially meet up its domestic need and thus extremely depends upon supply from other Indian States during lean period. Bringing more area under cultivation with improved varieties can boost the production and productivity of onion in West Bengal. The present situation leads to explore the scope of onion cultivation in non-traditional area. The objective of the study was to know the production and storage performance of onion varieties under Coastal Saline Zone of West Bengal, with the greater aim to explore this non-traditional onion growing area in future. Methods: Sixteen short day onion varieties were evaluated in Rabi 2014-15 and 2015-16 in Ramkrishna Ashram KVK, Nimpith following Randomized Block Design with three replications. Eight field parameters, three laboratory parameters and four storage parameters were studied. &nbsp; Result: Enough variation was noticed for different growth, yield, quality and storage attributes among the onion cultivars. The bulb yield, bulb weight, bulb equatorial and polar diameter was ranged from 62.8 to 124.5q/ha, 38.9 to 78.5 g, 32.5 to 47.6 cm and 34.7 to 47.3 cm respectively. The average TSS and pyruvic acid content was noted 12.7 &ordm;Brix and 11.2 &micro;mol/g respectively. After six month of storage in ambient condition, average PLW, rotting, sprouting and total losses was found 33.6%, 24.8%, 1.3% and 59.7% respectively. Among the varieties, Sukhsagar followed by Arka Niketan registered minimum storage losses of 20% and 35.1% at the end of storage period. Onion variety, Sukhsagar, Agrifound Light Red, Bhima Shakti, NHRDF Red-2, Pusa white Flat and NHRDF Red-3 were identified as top performers.</div>

<div style="text-align: justify;">Varietal Screening of Short Day Onions (Allium cepa L.) under Coastal Saline Area</div>

<div style="text-align: justify;">Onion (Allium cepa L.) is one of the most important bulb crops in India, which plays a major role in supplementing the income of small and marginal farmers of Sikar District in Rajasthan. In the district one of the major constraints in onion cultivation is poor keeping quality of local variety. Most of the farmers in the district are still using the locally self produced seeds of unknown source. The cultivation of recommended /released varieties is very limited. To replace this anomaly Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Fatehpur-Shekhawati, Sikar has introduced improved variety of onion through front line demonstration in selected villages of Sikar district with the objective of getting higher production with good storage potentials under real farm situation. The result showed that maximum TSS (13.1%) and average keeping quality (5-6 months) was recorded in demonstration variety whereas, it was very less in farmers practices. On an average the bulb yield achieved by adopting improved production technology was 347.62q/ha, whereas, the corresponding yield ranges under farmers practices was to 343.20q/ha. The economics of data indicated that an average of Rs. 160834/ha was recorded net profit under recommended practices, while it was Rs 62030/ha under farmer practices. Cost benefit ratio was 2.34 under demonstration, while it was 1.90 under farmer practices. The study suggests that front line demonstration is one of the key extension tools for transfer of technology at grass root level that directly impact the horizontal spread of technology. This can be also a good option for enhancing farmers&rsquo; income.</div>

<div style="text-align: justify;">Impact of front line demonstration on yield and economics of onion</div>

<div>Background: Mechanizing small-scale farming enhances productivity and reduces labor dependency for resource-limited farmers. To address these needs, an animal-operated onion digger was developed at IIHR, Bangalore, for rose onion varieties Arka Bindu and Arka Kalyan. Designed for digging, soil separation and windrowing in one pass, it offers a cost-effective, sustainable solution to reduce labor costs and worker fatigue in onion harvesting. 
 
Methods: The onion digger features a robust design with two digging blades, a 430 mm diameter main beam, hitch rods for yoke attachment, depth control wheels, lift rods and windrows. It was evaluated using two blade designs (flat and V-shaped) at rake angles of 16o, 23o&nbsp;and 30o, across twelve experimental plots. The key performance indicators assessed included harvesting efficiency, draft requirements, power consumption and field capacity. 
 
Result: The V-shaped blade at a 23&deg; rake angle achieved the highest harvesting efficiency (93.82%), closely followed by the flat blade (93.65%) at the same angle. The draft requirements ranged from 510 to 550 N, with power requirements of 0.21 to 0.25 hp. Field capacities were 0.10 ha/h and 0.11 ha/h for flat and V-shaped blades, respectively. Statistical analysis confirmed that the V-shaped blade at a 23o&nbsp;rake angle provided optimal draft values and maximum digging efficiency. The total cost of the digger is ₹ 6240, offering a practical and affordable solution for small-scale farmers. The animal-operated onion digger represents a transformative advancement in onion harvesting technology by significantly reducing labor costs, improving harvesting efficiency and alleviating worker fatigue.</div>

Design, Development and Performance Evaluation of Animal-Drawn Onion Digger

The bulbous vegetable onion Allium cepa Var. aggregatum L. (2n=16) is the most important species of Allium group and is regarded as the single most important vegetable spices as it forms an indispensable part of many diets, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Onion is valued for its bulbs having characteristic odour, flavor and pungency. Onion is regarded as a highly export oriented crop and earns a valuable foreign exchange for the country. Weeds are of great menace as they interfere with production of crop and add to the cost of cultivation. The reduction in crop yield has direct correlation with weed competition. Onion exhibits greater susceptibility to weed competition as compared to other crops due to its inherent characteristics such as their slow growth, small stature, shallow roots and lack of dense foliage. The effective weed control involves identification of weed flora, method of weed control and judicious combination of effective weed control methods. Hand weeding in onion is a common practice in India, but it is a tedious, expensive and time consuming task due to closer spacing and shallow root system. Non-availability of labourers during critical period of crop makes hand weeding difficult leading to heavy yield losses. Spraying of pre-emergence herbicides keeps the crop in weed free conditions during the early stages. At later stage, second flush of weeds will affect the bulb formation. Hand weeding helps to keep the weed population below economic threshold level throughout the crop growth period. Pre-emergence combined with hand weeding may be costly because of the reduced labour availability and higher labour cost. After bulb formation manual or mechanical methods of weed control will damage the bulb. Application of early post emergence may be helpful to reduce damage to the bulb, weed competition and cost of weeding. Hence a brief review was presented to find out the effect of different weed management method in onion.

Weed management in onion: A review

<div>Background:&nbsp;Onion is a widely accepted as vegetable as well as spice crop, sharing a 14.31 lakh ha area with 267.3 lakh MT production in 2020. Improved management structure and healthy seedling are important factors in overcoming the cause and even developing effective transplanter. The information of morphological properties is essential before designing modern farming equipment. 
 
Methods: Present study focuses on the properties and age of seedlings for automated transplanting, five majorly cultivated varieties of onion Light red gavran, N-53 Nasik red, AFDR, KSP-117 and Nafed were selected. The morphological (height, weight, diameter) and mechanical (compressive strength and static coefficient of friction) properties were measured under 10 days intervals to compare 30-70 days seedling. 
 
Result: Bulb and stem diameter were in the range from 2.82 to 3.82 mm and 0.86 to 2.12 mm, respectively. The model was found significantly different with concerning days. Plywood and aluminium had less influence on the seedling&rsquo;s outer surface moisture content. The morphological parameters and compressive strength increased while a static coefficient of friction reduced with an increase in the age of the seedling. Regression and ANN (using FFBP method) models were developed for the prediction of compressive strength of seedling stem as well as a bulb with respect to the age and diameter. The ANN model was found best with the coefficient of determination of 0.76. It is concluded that 60 and 70 days, seedling is best suited for mechanical or automated transplanting.</div>

Morphological and Mechanical Characteristics of Onion Seedlings Insight to Mechanized Transplantation

<div style="text-align: justify;">Onion (Allium cepa) is one of the most important crop grown throughout the world. Onion suffers from many diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses, nematodes and abiotic factors. Among them fungal diseases stemphylium blight is the most serious and devastating disease of onion limiting the quality and quantity of both bulb and seed. The present review is mainly focused on variability associated with Stemphylium vesicarium and its integrated management. Variability studies are important to document the changes occurring in the population and individuals with variability in morphological, cultural and pathogenic characteristics so as to breed the varieties with durable resistance to the stemphylium blight of onion andidentification of source of resistance against the range of virulence present in the pathogen population. Further, management of stemphylium blight of onion through fungicide application is feasible, however, long term usage of fungicides has led to the resistance development in pathogens besides hazardous environmental consequences associated with their use. The most efficient and economical method to mitigate the menace of this disease is therefore, integrated disease management (IDM) approach where other non-chemical ecofriendly management strategies are integrated with chemical methods in order to manage the diseases more efficiently with reduced use of chemicals. Among non-chemical ecofriendly management strategies biological control is gaining interest as an alternative or complement to chemical treatment of the disease. The present review paper deals with distribution, symptomatology, pathogenicity, variability and integrated management.&nbsp;</div>