Zambia Agribusiness Society

Aquaculture is the rearing of aquatic organisms in an enclosed water body under controlled conditions. Aquatic organisms may be plant life such as phytoplankton, lilies, and other forms of algae or animal life such as fish, crocodiles , oysters etc. Controlled conditions include physio-chemical water parameters (dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, phosphorus, etc.), water level, as well as feed. The basic idea here is to imitate what is prevailing in the natural waters so as to achieve optimum yields. African aquaculture is growing in terms of intensity and pr oductivity. The main types of investors are commercial and non-commercial. Within these domains, there exists a wide range of investment strategies from small to large-scale. Two main groups dominate; large-scale commercial producers and small-scale artisanal producers. For small-scale artisanal producers, aquaculture increases revenues, crop diversity and ecological sustainability, while lowering risk and improv...

Introduction The transplanting process can be a shock to rapidly growing seedlings especially when set out into the cold windy garden in the spring. This is especially true for transplants started in the greenhouse, cold frame, hotbed or home. These young seedlings can be made somewhat resistant to heat, cold temperatures, drying and whipping winds, certain types of insect injury, injury from blowing sand and soil particles and low soil moisture by a process termed “ hardening .” The term “ hardening ” refers to any treatment that results in a firming or hardening of plant tissue. Such a treatment reduces the growth rate, thickens the cuticle and waxy layers, reduces the percentage of freezable water in the plant and often results in a pink colour in stems, leaf veins and petioles. Such plants often have smaller and darker green leaves than non-hardened plants. Hardening results in an increased level of carbohydrates in the plant permitting a more rapid root development than occurs...

Crop rotation is “the practice of alternating the annual crops grown in a specific field in a planned pattern or sequence so that the crops of the same species or family are not grown repeatedly without interruption on the same field.” US National Organic Program definition. Or, leaving soil in the best position it can be for continuing/next crops – that includes cover crops, rotations, green manures, catch crops etc. Six Benefits of Crop Rotation in Agriculture 1. Preventive Pest Management: Crop rotation may limit the growth of populations of agricultural pests including insects, nematodes, and diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi through regular interruption and replacing crop host species with different plant species that do not serve as hosts. The use of specific crop and cover crop rotations may also be used to control pests through allelopathy, an interference interaction in which a plant releases into the environment a compound that inhibits or stimulat...

 Forking in carrots Introduction A disease in plants can be defined as any disturbance brought about by an agency/factor which interferes with manufacture, translocation or utilization of food, mineral nutrients and water in such a way that the affected plant changes in appearance and or yields less than a normal, healthy plant of the same variety . Causes of Plant Diseases Plant diseases are of two types viz., infectious and non-infectious . The infectious type are caused by fungi, bacteria and viruses. Nutritional deficiencies, mineral toxicities, lack or excess of soil moisture and light, low or too high temperatures, soil acidity or alkalinity constitute the non-infectious type. Usually, a disease causes a progressive and continuous disturbance of cellular activities that eventually become manifest as symptoms. A symptom is a visible or otherwise detectable abnormality arising from disease. Disease symptoms should be closely observed, as they often give indications ab...

Zambian farmer with e-voucher and crops. Zambia's farming sector is getting a digital makeover with the e-voucher system. It's all about making it easier for farmers to get the stuff they need to grow crops, like fertilizer and seeds. This system is a big change from how things used to be done, aiming to help farmers get more out of their land and contribute to the country's food supply. Let's break down what this means for farmers and the wider agricultural scene in Zambia. Key Takeaways Zambia's e-voucher system is a modern approach to the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), aiming to improve how farmers access subsidized agricultural inputs. The system has seen a high redemption rate, with over a million farmers verified and a 99% success rate in recent seasons, showing its effectiveness. Beyond just input access, the e-voucher encourages farmers to diversify their crops and adopt climate-smart farming methods, responding ...