Journal of Kerbala for Agricultural Sciences

This study examined the economic aspects of small ruminant pro-duction among rural households in Iwo Agricultural Zone, Osun State, Nigeria. Using a multistage sampling technique, data were collected from 120 respondents through structured interviews. The majority of participants were middle-aged, married males with an average household size of five, and 63% had between one and thir-teen years of formal education. Small ruminant farming was the most common livelihood activity (30.83%), with 90% of respond-ents earning ₦10,000–₦100,000 monthly from secondary occupa-tions. On average, respondents had 15.2 years of experience in small ruminant production, generating ₦49,555.25 in revenue, ₦109,806.32 in total costs, and a gross margin of ₦26,524.79, with half of them achieving a medium gross margin. Regression analysis showed that gross margin was positively influenced by factors such as education level, flock size, production experience, and start-up cost. Conversely, feeding costs negatively impacted profitability. The study concluded that small-scale ruminant farming is a viable and profitable enterprise that contributes to income generation, pov-erty reduction, and food security in the area. It recommends the promotion and support of small ruminant farming as a sustainable income source for rural communities.

The study evaluated the effect of adding different concentrations of vitamin C (2,4,8,16) mg on certain life aspects of honeybee workers, including consumption and survival rates. Additionally, it impacts immune indicators, such as encapsulation and melanization. The la-boratory experiment results indicate that bees preferred adding vita-min C at a concentration of 2% to the nutritional feed in terms of con-sumption and survival rate. However, the concentration of 16% showed significantly lower consumption rates, but no differences were observed in the survival rate. The consumption rates were rec-orded as 108.81 and 9.48 mg/bee/day, respectively, while the surviv-al rates were 98.57 and 93.72 %, respectively on concentrations 2and 16 mg . The bees\' immune system was tested as a response to the regulation of protein and fat in the diet and vitamin C concentrations. The results showed a positive correlation between the encapsulation index and melanization activity, fat-to-protein ratio, and vitamin C concentrations. The maximum percentage of encapsulation index was (63.63 and 64.54) % in P: F and 8mg VC, respectively. Omit the minimum rate (54.07) % in 16mg VC.

In response to environmental concerns and human health, the global demand is focused on decreasing the use of synthetic herbicides and increasing the application of allelopathic plant extracts. This study aims to investigate the effects of various concentrations of synthetic herbicides (HC) (0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 mL/L) and laurel leaf extract (LLE) (0, 2.5, 5, 10, and 15%) on annual ryegrass (ARG) and celery plants. The results revealed that manipulating these concentrations significantly impacts the seed growth characteristics of both plants. Results indicated that applying HC significantly influenced all attributes in this study, recording the minimum value for ARG plants among all treatments. Moreover, the germination index (12.72 days), germination speed (12.64 days), and germination energy (52.67%) of celery seeds were stimulated by LLE. LLE allelopathic applications enhanced the coefficient of velocity for ARG seeds. Comparing HC and LLE, HC has a greater effect, decreasing seed germination across all seed parameters. Additionally, when comparing doses between HC and LLE, all doses of HC inhibited seed ARG to zero for all characteristics. Untreated celery seeds improved and significantly influenced priority attributes. This approach demonstrates the potential for reducing the environmental footprint of traditional herbicides, offering a more sustainable alternative for weed management and crop protection. It provides a foundation for researchers and farmers to explore alternative doses and methods for allelopathic extraction and plant applications.

A field experiment was carried out during the spring season of 2024 in the experimental fields of district Al-Husseiniya, Kerbala, Iraq, with the aim of studying the effect of soil fertilization with seaweed and spraying with the nutrient solution Tecamin Max on some growth and quality indicators of corn variety of 5018. The complete randomized block design was used according to the arrangement of factorial experiments with three replicates and two factors. The first factor included four concentrations of soil fertilization with seaweed, which are 0, 4, 8, and 12 kg ha-1, while the second factor included four different concentrations of foliar spraying with Tecamin Max, which are 0, 1, 2, 3 ml L-1. The results showed that the treatment of adding seaweed 12 kg h-1 was superior in giving the highest rate of the characteristics of nitrogen percentage, phosphorus percentage, potassium percentage, protein percentage, oil percentage, which reached (1.4533%, 0.555%, 0.4250%, 9.083%, 4.212%) respectively, compared to the comparison treatment which gave the lowest values. The results of foliar spraying with Tecamin Max compound showed that the level of 3 ml L-1 was superior in giving the highest rate for the same characteristics above which reached (1.4242%, 0.512%, 4.158%, 8.901%, 3.687%) respectively. Regarding the interaction between the study factors, the results showed no significant interactions, which means that the study factors behaved separately.

The study was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station of the College of Agriculture, University of Basrah, in Karma Ali area during the agricultural season 2022-2023 to study the effect of foli-ar spraying with different concentrations of ascorbic acid (0,50,100) mg L-1 and different concentrations of nano silicon (0,37.5,75) mg L-1 and the interaction between them on the quanti-tative and qualitative yield of the Burren potato cultivar. The results showed that spraying with ascorbic acid at a concentration of 100 mg L-1 was significantly excelled in increasing the total yield and marketable yield, reducing the non-marketable yield, increasing the percentage of dry matter, starch, and specific gravity of tubers, and both concentrations were significantly excelled in increasing the tu-bers\' vitamin C content. Also, plants sprayed with nano-silicon were significantly excelled at a concentration of 75 mg L-1 in increasing the total yield and marketable yield, the percentage of dry matter, starch, and specific gravity, and the tubers\' vitamin C content, and both concentrations were significantly excelled in the percentage of total soluble solids. The interaction between the two study factors showed a significant effect on all quantitative and qualitative yield traits studied.

The study was conducted at the Agricultural Research Station of the College of Agriculture, University of Basrah, in the Karmat Ali area during the spring of 2023. To study the effect of foliar spraying with Roselle extract (0, 10 and 20 g L-1) and with different concentrations of proline acid (0, 100 and 200 mg L-1)and the interaction between them on the growth and specific yield of okra plants, Al-Khanisriya variety. The results showed that spraying with 10 g L-1 of Roselle ex-tract caused a significant increase in plant height, number of branch-es, number of leaves, leaf area and fresh and dry weights of the plant. Spraying with 100 mg L-1 of proline acid caused a significant in-crease in weight, number of branches, number of leaves, leaf area, fresh and dry weights of the plant, carotene content of the leaves, and fruit length. The interaction between the two factors showed a signifi-cant effect on most of the studied traits, as plants sprayed with 10 g L-1 of Roselle extract and 100 mg L-1 of proline acid gave the highest values of plant height, number of branches, number of leaves, leaf area and fresh and dry weights of the plant, which reached (48.0 cm, 9.0 branches, 51.0 leaves, 76.9 dm 233.0 gm,45.70 g) respectively.

This study evaluated the effects of plant density, a biostimulant (Equilibrium: a blend of amino acids and seaweed extract), and different spraying stages on maize growth and nutrient uptake using a split-split plot design with three replications. Conducted in Karbala Province during the 2023 autumn season, the experiment tested three Equilibrium levels (0, 2, and 4 L·ha⁻¹), three spraying regimes (5–6 leaf stage; 5–6 leaf + tasseling; and 5–6 leaf + tasseling + grain filling), and three plant densities (38,095; 53,333; and 88,888 plants·ha⁻¹). The 2 L·ha⁻¹ level significantly improved traits like leaf area (4971 cm²), leaf area index (2.89), and nutrient absorption (N, P, and K) without differing from the higher 4 L·ha⁻¹ rate. Spraying at two stages enhanced potassium absorption and oil con-tent (4.32%) and was as effective as three-stage spraying. Higher density (88,888 plants·ha⁻¹) yielded superior vegetative traits and nitrogen uptake, while the medium density (53,333 plants·ha⁻¹) maximized phosphorus and potassium absorption. Most interactions among treatments were not statistically significant, except specific combinations (e.g., 2 L·ha⁻¹ + 53333 plants·ha⁻¹) that enhanced P and K uptake. Overall, the 2 L·ha⁻¹ application combined with optimal density and timing provided effective maize performance enhancement.

This research aims to evaluate the effectiveness of green nano zinc oxide in inhibiting some fungi producing aflatoxin, Mycotoxin producing fungi were detected using coconut media and TLC plates, Zinc oxide nano showed inhibitory efficacy against the fungi studied. The nanomaterial was diagnosed using XRD, UV, SEM, FT-IR and AFM, The fungicidal activity of green nano was tested against aflatoxin producing fungi, A.flavus ,A.niger, A.oryzae , A.fumigatus with excellent antifungal action

This study aims to investigate the multienzymes use , in broiler chicken under heat stress with low energy to estimate the Productive performance ( body weight, feed intake, feed conversation ratio and body weight gain), The experiment was conducted from December 27, 2023 to February 1, 2024. In a private field the AlIbrahimiyah area of Karbala, where the conditions were suitable for standard poultry farming, a total of 250 one-day-old broiler chickens of Rose 308 breed, with unsexed, were taken and divided into five groups. The first group consisted of 50 birds that Negative - control were (NCON) fed a basic diet without any additives and were kept away from heat stress, the second group consisted of 50 birds that were Positive control (PCON) fed a basic diet without any additives under heat stress. The third group consisted of 50 birds that were fed a basic diet with the addition of multienzymes under heat stress (MHS), the fourth group consisted of 50 birds that were fed a basic diet with the addition of multienzymes and reduced energy under heat stress) MLHS), the fifth group consisted of 50 birds that were fed a basic diet without additives under heat stress with reduced energy (LHS), After completing the experiment and collecting samples from chickens, a total of 20 samples from all replicates, the analysis results were as follows.

This study examined the effectiveness of quaternary ammonium compound (QAC) as a sanitizer for controlling microbial activity on fertile eggshells and its impact on hatchability. A total of 660 fertile eggs from 60-week-old Lohmann White breeder hens were treated with QAC at concentrations of 1/100, 1/200, and 1/300 ml/L or left unsensitized. Results showed that QAC significantly reduced total aerobic bacteria on eggshells before incubation and at day 18, com-pared to non-sanitized eggs. Hatchability was higher, and embryo mortality was lower in eggs treated with QAC, particularly at the 1/300 ml/L concentration, compared to the non-sanitized group. Egg weight decreased across all treatments during incubation, with the highest weight loss observed at the 1/100 ml/L concentration. Overall, QAC demonstrated efficacy in reducing microbial contamination and enhancing hatchability, though its effects on egg weight loss varied.

A field experiment was carried out to study the effect of marine algae, nitrogen and iron on some medically active compounds of fenugreek plant seeds. In the field of experiments of Ibn Al-Bitar Vocational Preparatory School of the Directorate of Education in Holy Karbala, Department of Vocational Education during the winter season 2024-2023, The design of RCBD was used in the order of splinter plates, three repeaters and two factors. The first factor included six nitrogen concentrations, ground + iron addition sprayed on the plant (T1 0-0, T2 0-50 mg L-1, T3 75 kg E-1 - 0, T4 75 kg E-1 - 50 mg L-1, 150 T5 kg E-1 - 0 and 150 T6 kg E-1-50 mg L-1) Fac-tor II Three levels represent concentrations of Acadian marine algae extract (A0 spraying with distilled water only and A1 Spraying with marine algae at level 1 ml L-1 and A2 level 2 ml l-1 spraying). The results showed that the T4 combination treatment was significantly superior to 75 kg E-1-50 mg L-1 and gave the highest average protein concentration in seeds (18.33). The T6 combination treatment was significantly superior and gave the highest average total alkaloid content in seeds (3.52 mg 100 mg-1) and total glycosides con-tent in seeds(825.4 mg 100 g-1) compared to the comparison treatment that gave the lowest averages. A1 marine algae spraying at 1 mL-1 level was significantly superior and gave the highest average protein concentration in seeds and total alkaloid and glycosides con-tent in seeds (17.89%, 3.15 mg 100mg-1 and 823.9 mg 100 g-1 respectively compared to the comparison treatment that gave the lowest averages. A2 marine algae spraying at 2 ml-1 significantly out-performed and gave the highest average carbohydrate content in seeds (84.1 mg g-1) compared to the comparison treatment. As for the intervention, it did not show any significant effect on the studied qualities.

This research aimed to measure the expression levels of the genes LC3 and NF-ĸB in Hamdani sheep blood that were fed with Apis mellifera propolis. Propolis, a bee product, has been utilized for centuries due to its numerous biological advantages. It was incorpo-rated into their daily diet for six weeks. Propolis is well-known for its antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and immune-modulating ef-fects in both animals and humans. The propolis was introduced to the diet every two weeks in quantities of 2, 3, and 4 grams. Following this, blood samples were collected from these 10 sheep biweeklies, and on the same day, RNA was extracted in the lab and con-verted into cDNA. The expression levels of the genes LC3 and NF-ĸB were assessed using a Real-Time PCR machine, and the ΔΔCt values were calculated based on reference gene expression. The gathered data were analyzed using the GraphPad software, revealing that the expression of the target genes increased when compared to the control data, with the optimal amount of bee propolis additive being 4 grams per day.

The study aimed to isolate and diagnose the fungi associated with tissue palm growing media and their resistance to the method of poisoning the growing media of medicinal plants (cloves , ginger , currants , black seed) , compared with the effect of the chemical pesticide Beltanol . The results of isolation and diagnosis showed the dominance of the Aspergillus fungus in most of the samples under study and in a percentage appearance of 80% , while the rates of appearance of the rest of the species ranged between 40-60% . The outcomes of the test for pathogenicity in infecting the seeds of the four fungi that were chosen in this study showed that the seed germination rate was 0.0% and the seed inhibition rate was 100%, compared to the comparison treatment, which had a germination rate of 100% and an inhibition rate of 0.0% . The PCR analysis proved that the isolates belong to the fungi. Aspergillus niger , Penicillium chrysogenum, , Aspergillus flavus and Meyerozyma guilliermondii, as the isolates were recorded Fungi in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and under the special symbols (PQ895505.1 , PQ895508.1 , PQ895505.1 and PQ895494.1) respectively. The effectiveness of the pesticide Beltanol against the tested fungal isolates was studied, and showed that it was most effective on the two Fungi P. chrysogenum and A. flavus by 100% and 88% % respectively . the alcoholic clove extract at a concentration of 20% was superior in inhibiting fungi by 98.15% over the fungi A. niger, A. flavus, and P. chrysogenum, and 96.2% against the fungi. M. guilliermondii, and the aqueous extract of cloves at a concentration of 20% gave the highest antioxidant activity against the fungus A. flavus, at a rate of 88.88%, compared to the comparison treatment, which had an inhibition rate of 0.00%. The alcoholic extract inhibited the growth of the fungus at higher rates than the aqueous extract. The inhibition rates of the pathogens increase with increasing concentration of aqueous and alcoholic extracts.