Jiban Shrestha

Nepal Agricultural Research Council | NARC

Global food shortages are caused mainly by drought, the primary driver of yield loss in agriculture worldwide. Drought stress negatively impacts the physiological and morphological characteristics of rice, limiting the plant production capacity and hence the global rice production economy. Physiological changes due to drought stress in rice include...

Nitrogen and carbon sources are important for the growth and yield of chili. A combination of nitrogen and charcoal shows the potential to increase the availability of nutrients and stimulate plant performance. Therefore, an experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of different levels of nitrogen and charcoal on the growth and yield of...

From June to August 2021, a field experiment was carried out at the College of Natural Resource Management, Puranchaur-19, Kaski to examine the effects of pinching on the vegetative growth and yield characteristics of African marigold (Tagetes erecta L.). Two major varieties, Karma-666 and Karma-555, were evaluated in the experiment with three diff...

Rice is a major food, contributing 67% of cereal consumption in Nepal. It is playing a substantial role in food and nutritional security. Rice production is not sufficient to meet domestic consumption, so its import has been increasing. This study aims to explore whether Nepal can be self-sufficient in rice production in the current context of incr...

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the first staple crop in terms of area coverage for cultivation and production in Nepal. In rice breeding programs, developing superior genotypes depends on the evaluation of growth and yield parameters. Thus, to detect some of the primary superior genotypes, we evaluated the growth and yield parameters of 24 genotypes of...

Soil is a fundamental part of successful agriculture, and its quality has to be improved to maximize crop yield and soil fertility. To increase crop productivity and soil fertility, biochar can be applied to the soil. Biochar is a solid carbon-rich product produced from biomass of agricultural crop residues, wastes, and wood, through pyrolysis in a...

Red ant (Dorylus orientalis Westwood) is the most destructive insect pest of potato tubers in the field in Nepal. A field experiment was conducted at Bhatkada, Dadeldhura district, Nepal in 2020 to determine the efficacy of various biopesticides and chemical insecticide on red ants. The plot size in this experiment was 106.7 m2. Five treatments viz...

A total 37 garlic landraces collection from Nepal Genebank were characterized using phenotypic trait maps or agro morphological markers at National Agriculture Genetic Resources Centre (Genebank), Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal during 2017 using quantitative and qualitative traits. Shannon and Weaver diversity index (H’) analysis revealed significant i...

Rhizoctonia solani and Alternaria citri are major plant pathogens of citrus, causing considerable production losses. Chemical fungicides are widely used for disease control. Using the food poisoning technique under in vitro conditions, an experiment was undertaken to investigate the efficacy of several fungicides against those pathogens. To evaluat...

The present study was carried out to study the variation, broad-sense heritability, and genetic advance, correlation among traits for growth, yield, and its attributing traits in lentil genotypes. Sixty lentil genotypes were evaluated in augmented design in 2020 at Khajura, Banke. The results indicated that the genotypes were significantly differen...

Lack of understanding regarding the choice of chemical fungicides or botanicals with their optimal doze and spraying schedule is one of the major problems concerning mid-hill farmers to control finger millet diseases in Nepal. In order to assess the effectiveness of the four fungicides, namely Bavistin 50 WP (Carbendazim 50%), SAAF (Carbendazim 12%...

Eighteen genotypes of soybean were evaluated in coordinated varietal trial in 2018 and eight genotypes in pre-released varietal trial in 2019 at National Plant Breeding and Genetics Research Centre, Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal. The experimental design was randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The results showed that the ma...

An experiment was carried out to determine the effects of organic sources of fertilizers on yield and yield parameters of five coffee (Coffea arabica) genotypes at Gulmi district in 2015 to 2021. Five different source of organic manures (mustard cake @ 2 kg/plant, poultry manure @ 2.5 kg/plant, vermi compost @ 3 kg/plant, goat manure @ 4 kg/plant a...

Experiments on maize (Zea mays L.) were carried out aiming to control banded leaf and sheath blight (BLSB) caused by fungus, Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn with six treatments represented by different fungicides, antagonists and phytoextracts against control receiving no spray with three replicates of each under field conditions during two consecutive yea...

A field experiment was conducted at Grain Legumes Research Program (GLRP), Khajura, Banke, Nepal during spring and summer season 2019 to elucidate the effect of date of sowing and blackgram varieties on mungbean yellow mosaic disease severity and yield. The experiment was conducted in 2 factorial randomized complete block design with 3 replications...

The purpose of this review is to provide information on the nutritional value of mushrooms and how to preserve that quality after harvest. Mushrooms contain a variety of vitamins and minerals, including B, C, and D, and are low in calories and high in fiber (iron, phosphorus, copper, potassium and selenium). Consuming mushrooms may help prevent or...

Las plagas de varias especies causan estragos en los granos almacenados, lo que resulta en pérdidas de granos tanto cualitativas como cuantitativas. Las plagas de insectos alimentan los granos almacenados y reducen el peso, el contenido nutricional y la germinación de estos granos. La contaminación, el olor, el moho y el daño por calor también son...

Twelve amaranth accessions were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with three replications in the research field of the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Lamjung, Sundarbazar, Lamjung, Nepal from March to July 2021 to assess the phenotypic diversity. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed that only two principal component...

From April to July 2019, an experiment was conducted in Khumaltar, Lalitpur (27°39.312′N, 85° 19.586′E, and 1322 m above sea level) to assess the effectiveness of plant materials on maize weevil (Sitophilus zeamais Motsch.) control under laboratory conditions (maintained room temperature of 28.5 ± 2°C, and relative humidity of 72 ± 5%) treatments w...

The objective of this study was to find out the existing vegetable production and marketing practices in the Kailali district of Nepal. A total of 100 vegetable growers were selected using a simple random sampling technique. Data collection was done by using a semi-structured interview. Secondary data was collected from the reports and journal arti...

Biopesticides are an important component of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs for insect pest control since they are more natural, environmentally friendly, safer than chemical pesticides and have relatively no or little effect on non-target organisms. They aid in improving crop health and yields while lowering production costs and eliminat...

The effect of sole application of farm yard manure (FYM) and combined application of chemical fertilizers and FYM on soil properties and growth and yield traits of rice (Variety: Ramdhan) was studied on sandy loam soil at Rambagh, Chitwan, Nepal from June to November 2019. The seven treatments were studied in a randomized complete block design with...

Agricultural production is due to the exploitation of soil, water and energy. The objective of this review work was to identify the yield gap of major crops viz. rice, maize, wheat, and finger millet and their causes. An attempt has been made to suggest the potential agronomical interventions that reduce the yield gaps. Rice, wheat, and finger mill...

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.) is a wild herbaceous perennial blooming plant that is commonly known as stinging nettle. It’s a common, multi-purpose crop that’s sometimes overlooked. Europe, Asia, North Africa, and North America are all home to stinging nettle. It is a plant that’s edible and has nutritional and medicinal properties. Young leav...

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.) is a wild herbaceous perennial blooming plant that is commonly known as stinging nettle. It’s a common, multi-purpose crop that’s sometimes overlooked. Europe, Asia, North Africa, and North America are all home to stinging nettle. It is a plant that’s edible and has nutritional and medicinal properties. Young leav...

Nutritious foods are needed for the continuously growing population together with the nutrient for plant growth and production. Inorganic chemical-based fertilizers have been base and are used heavily in today’s soil management procedures, posing serious health and environmental concern. Biofertilizer has been recognized as a reasonable solution fo...

Naked barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a major winter crop grown in Nepal’s higher altitude hilly region. Yellow rust (Puccinia striiformis f.sp. hordei) is the most damaging fungal disease of naked barley in Nepal; it causes great losses when the environment is favorable. Evaluation of naked barley landraces for yield and diseases should be carri...

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the world's most important cereal crops. Nitrogen is one of the most important plant nutrients for rice. Different forms of nitrogenous fertilizer are the major sources of nutrients in rice production. Nitrogen affects various physiological and biochemical processes in plant cells that ultimately affect the growth a...

A total of 14 proso millet genotypes, including the farmers' variety, which was the most commonly cultivated landrace in the Karnali region and most susceptible to blast disease as a susceptible check, were evaluated for resistance to leaf blast at the Hill Crops Research Program, Kabre, Dolakha, Nepal during the summer seasons of 2020 and 2021. Th...

Naked barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a major winter crop grown in Nepal's higher altitude hilly region. Yellow rust (Puccinia striiformis f.sp. hordei) is the most damaging fungal disease of naked barley in Nepal; it causes great losses when the environment is favorable. Evaluation of naked barley landraces for yield and diseases should be carried...

Blackgram (Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper) is an important legume crop extensively grown in Asia. It is one of the most abundant sources of protein, minerals, and vitamins. Studying genetic variability is an important task for genetic improvement of this crop. Ten blackgram genotypes were experimented on a randomized complete block design with three repli...

Drought is one of the major constraints to wheat production, and it is becoming a more serious problem in many wheat-growing regions of the world. It causes a severe reduction in wheat crop growth and productivity. Water stress at critical growth stages namely tillering, grain filling and flowering stages causes serious yield loss. Morphological, p...

Plant spacing and genotype have an impact on rice productivity. From June to November 2019, a field experiment was conducted at Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal, to assess the effects of plant spacing and genotype on growth and yield traits of rice. Twelve treatments were laid out in a split-plot design with three replications, consisting of four rice genoty...

Dragon fruit is an emerging fruit in Nepal. The covered area of this fruit has been expanding during the last few years. Vegetative propagation through stem cutting is the easiest and cheapest method for large-scale propagation to produce genetically identical plants. Synthetic rooting hormones have proven to be effective, but their high cost limit...

Charcoal is a carbon-rich organic matter, which serves as a soil conditioner when applied to agricultural fields. When used in combination with nitrogen fertilizers, it has a synergistic effect that boosts plant growth. However, charcoal application alone or in combination with nitrogen fertilizer on vegetable crops is not fully understood. Therefo...

Horti-tourism is one of the newest forms of agro-tourism in Nepal which precisely relates horticultural development with tourism. Different works of literature were thoroughly studied and SWOC analysis was done to reveal the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges of horti-tourism in Nepal. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, horticulture an...

Twelve genotypes of common bean were evaluated against anthracnose under natural epiphytotic conditions. This study was carried out in a randomized complete block design with three replications at the research field of Agriculture Research Station (ARS), Vijaynagar, Jumla, Nepal from June to September 2018. The area under the disease progress curve...

Naked barley (Hordeum vulgare var. nudum L.), is an important winter crop grown in the mountain region of Nepal. Stripe rust (Puccinia striiformis f.sp. hordei), is the most destructive fungal disease of barley in the hills of Nepal causes heavy losses, if environment is favorable. Evaluation of the naked barely accessions for yield and disease is...

Six maize hybrids; Khumal Hybrid-2, KML-5(A) × KYM-33, KML-8(A) × KYM-33, KWM-91 × KWM-93, KWM-92 × KWM-93, Super-951 were evaluated in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications at Bhotechaur (Sindhupalchowk), Mandan Deupur (Kavrepalachowk), and Khumaltar (Lalitpur), Nepal to identify stable and superior hybrids. Hybrids wer...

Genotype and nitrogen application are important determinants of grain yield in maize. This experiment was carried out in split-plot design with two factors (maize hybrids as the main factor and nitrogen rates as the sub factor) arranged in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The maize hybrids including Rampur Hybrid-2,...

Root rot in brinjal is one of the most important problems. In the present research, five different fungicides; Mancozeb, Copper oxychloride, Hexaconazole, Metalaxyl+Mancozeb, and Carbendazim, at 100 ppm were evaluated for their efficacy against the causative agent of this disease, Fusarium solani, In-vitro. The experiment was carried out in Complet...

The amount and pattern of genetic divergence are important factors in selecting desirable genotypes for use in breeding programmes. This research was conducted in Kabre, Dolakha, Nepal in 2020. Twelve rice genotypes were planted in a randomized complete block design with three replications to determine the genetic diversity among rice genotypes. Th...

Sixteen single-cross hybrids of maize were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with three replications to investigate genetic variability and correlation among growth and yield traits at Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal from March 13 to September 05, 2021. The hybrids were grouped into four clusters using Euclidean Average Linkage method. The...

Triacontanol (TRIA), an endogenous plant growth regulator, promotes various metabolic activities in plants, resulting in improved growth and development in kohlrabi. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of different doses of triacontanol on the growth and yield of kohlrabi. This study was carried out in a randomized complete block d...

Artificial fruit ripening agents have become increasingly popular in recent years. During the off-seasons, various ripening agents are used for the ripening of banana fruits. The effects of various ripening agents of banana fruits (variety: Malbhog) were studied. Seven treatments consisting of distilled water, Gibberellic acid (GA3) @ 100 ppm, GA3...

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an increasing number of confirmed cases and death cases in Nepal. In this study, we review the current situation of COVID-19 and its management strategies in Nepal, commutative and death cases, and challenges to contain the spread of COVID-19 so far executed. Besides, this review outlines the effect of the coro...

The objective of the present study was to estimate the correlation coefficients and assess agro-morphological variability of single cross hybrids of maize. This study was conducted at research field of National Maize Research Program, Rampur, Chitwan, Nepal during the winter season from October 6, 2015 to March 5, 2016. Fourteen single cross maize...

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the first staple crop in terms of production and area of cultivation in Nepal. The amount of genetic variability is important factor in identifying suitable genotypes in rice breeding programs. This study was conducted in Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal during rainy seasons of 2018 and 2019. Forty rice genotypes were planted in...

The application of nitrogen (N) and farmyard manure (FYM) greatly affects the growth and production of spinach. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of various levels of nitrogen and farmyard manure on the growth and yield of spinach. This study was conducted in the research field of the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science...

Diversified crop rotation (DCR) improves the efficiency of farming systems all over the world. It has the potentiality to improve soil condition and boost system productivity. Improved soil attributes such as increased soil water uptake and storage, and a greater number of beneficial soil organisms, may improve yield tolerance to drought and other...

Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum L.) is an excellent source of many nutrients and secondary metabolites that are important for human health. Its fruits are rich in antioxidant compounds, which are important for human metabolism. Lycopene is one of the abundantly occurring antioxidants found in tomato. Lycopen is beneficial in preventing various chro...

Global food production needs to be increased in order to feed the world’s growing population and at the same time, the reliance on inorganic fertilizers and pesticides should be minimized. To accomplish this goal, the various beneficial associations between plants and soil microorganisms should be explored. The soil microbes are bacteria, actinom...

The desert locust [Schistocerca gregaria (Forskal)] (Orthoptera: Acrididae) is one of the world's most dangerous and destructive migratory pests. It is a highly voracious and polyphagous insect. Its swarms can travel hundreds of kilometers per day and infest areas covering millions of square kilometers, resulting in substantial crop losses. We synt...

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is one of the major high-value cash crops in Nepal. Low yield, conventional farming, and limited access to production resources such as improved cultivars, production technologies, and extension services are the existing problems of Nepali ginger farmers. In this study, we conducted community based-participatory researc...

Phenological study of a fruit tree is important for timely and proper orchard management. This study was carried out in orchard located at Warm Temperate Horticulture Centre (WTHC), Kathmandu, Nepal from January to August, 2020 with the objective to identify the different timing of phenological stages in 18 different varieties of pear. Data on days...

This study analyses the gaps and issues in the production and distribution system of maize seed in Nepal. A total of 682 households were surveyed in 2017 by employing multistage random sampling with probability proportionate to size by representing different (tarai and hill) agro-ecological zones. Twelve focus group discussions (FGDs) and four key...

Proper sterilization of substrates is an indispensable step in oyster mushroom cultivation. Oyster mushroom growers in Nepal usually follow three different substrate sterilization methods; however, their comparative effectiveness is vastly unexplored. Thus, these experiments were carried out at the Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS)...

A set of three types of light traps namely black light at rooftop, black light above ground, and normal light above ground were installed at five places of the open grain legumes cropping area of Grain Legumes Research Program, Khajura, Banke, Nepal from January to December, 2017 for evaluating comparative efficacy of light trap on monitoring the a...

The present research work has been performed to evaluate the phenolic content, flavonoids content, and cytotoxicity of a multidimensional medicinal plant; Tinospora cordifolia and as well as to determine nutritive value by proximate analysis. The total phenolic and flavonoids contents of Tinospora cordifolia were found to be significantly greater i...