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Land degradation, deforestation and accelerated soil erosion through anthropogenic actions have r... more Land degradation, deforestation and accelerated soil erosion through anthropogenic actions have restricted numerous watersheds and river basins to contribute to agricultural productivity, food security and economic growth. The study examined morphometric characteristics and land use change and their implications for soil and water conservation practices in Denkyira Watershed, Ghana. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data and Landsat images of Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) were used in generating morphometric and land use data. ERDAS imagine (10.1) and ArcGIS (10.6) software were employed to analyze Landsat and ASTER data. Results revealed that Denkyira Watershed exhibited dendritic drainage pattern, elongated in shape and with high number of first-order streams, an indication of homogenous soil and rock formation, low infiltration rate and high surface runoff. Morphometric analysis further indicated tha...
An experiment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of different watering application rate... more An experiment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of different watering application rates on leaf minerals and physical growth parameters of cocoa seedlings in the nursery. The treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Results showed that watering regime I (0.06 l/pot) recorded low values in both macronutrients and micronutrients and also in physical growth parameters as compared to watering regimes II (0.18 l/pot) and watering regime III (0.36 l/pot) and were below the recommended values. The study showed that water application rate, watering regimes II (0.18 l/pot) and watering regime III (0.36 l/pot) were the most effective treatments in improving cocoa seedlings height, leaf area, plant stem girth, leaf number and tap root length than watering regime I (0.06 l/pot). The study also revealed that application of 0.18 l/pot and 0.36 l/pot on hybrid cocoa seedlings gave a higher calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous, nitro...
The study was carried out to identify major production constraints confronting establishment and ... more The study was carried out to identify major production constraints confronting establishment and rehabilitation of smallholder cocoa farms and its impacts on cocoa production. It was carried out by administering questionnaire and taking soil samples from five cocoa stations (Buako, Bunso, Kwadaso, Poano and Fumso) and six cocoa farming communities (Obuasi Nkwanta, Nyinahini, Akroso, Sefwi-Wiawso and Wassa-Akropong). Altogether one hundred and twenty farmers and five cocoa station officers were interviewed. The results revealed that the main constraints militating against the establishment and rehabilitation cocoa farms are poor soil nutrients, scarcity of early bearing and high yielding cocoa seeds and seedlings. Others are nonavailability of appropriate cocoa nursing poly bags, inappropriate watering application rate at the nursery period and poor agro-chemical application technology. The study showed that about 68 % of cocoa farmers raised cocoa seedlings using drinking water sach...
The study examined land use and land cover change and its implication on crop production resource... more The study examined land use and land cover change and its implication on crop production resources in the Offin River basin. Landsat images of Multi-spectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) together with farm survey and crop production data were utilized for the study. Handheld GPS (Garmin eTrex) and farming household questionnaire were used to map 398 farmlands. Integrated applications of ERDAS imagine (10.1) and ArcGIS (10.1) software coupled with Microsoft office tools were used to analyze landsat images, farming household and crop production data. The land use and land cover change analysis revealed that natural forest and secondary forest reduced by 54.03 % and 10.05 % while degraded land and deterioration of water resources sharply increased by 95.71 % and 78.60 % respectively. The study showed that 53.27 % and 70.10 % of smallholder farmers had cropland size less than 1 hectare and farmlands less than 2 hectares respectively. Final...
International Journal of Engineering Research and
JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
The study assesses the effects of climate variability on food crop yield of the smallholder farme... more The study assesses the effects of climate variability on food crop yield of the smallholder farmers in the Lower Offin River Basin, Ghana. Spline Interpolation and Spearman rank correlation coefficient were employed to examine the spatial and seasonal distribution of climate variables. Yield anomaly index and multiple linear regression models were used to assess the effect of climate variability on food crop yield. The results showed that the higher values of seasonality and replicability indices of rainfall indicate that rainfall is concentrated within few months causing prolonged dry spells and frequent droughts during the cropping period. The regression analysis revealed that climate variability has had differential impacts on the yield of maize, rice, cassava, yam, cocoyam and plantain ranging from 18.4 % in the case of plantain to 80.0 % in the case of cocoyam. Also, cocoyam, yam and rice were much more affected by climatic conditions in contrast with maize, cassava and plantain. Therefore, there is the need to adopt drought-resistant high-yielding crop varieties to sustain high crop yield. Again, cassava and plantain have the potential to withstand climate variability which is very significant in the Lower Offin River Basin.
Land degradation, deforestation and accelerated soil erosion through anthropogenic actions have r... more Land degradation, deforestation and accelerated soil erosion through anthropogenic actions have restricted numerous watersheds and river basins to contribute to agricultural productivity, food security and economic growth. The study examined morphometric characteristics and land use change and their implications for soil and water conservation practices in Denkyira Watershed, Ghana. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data and Landsat images of Multi-Spectral Scanner (MSS) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) were used in generating morphometric and land use data. ERDAS imagine (10.1) and ArcGIS (10.6) software were employed to analyze Landsat and ASTER data. Results revealed that Denkyira Watershed exhibited dendritic drainage pattern, elongated in shape and with high number of first-order streams, an indication of homogenous soil and rock formation, low infiltration rate and high surface runoff. Morphometric analysis further indicated tha...
An experiment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of different watering application rate... more An experiment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of different watering application rates on leaf minerals and physical growth parameters of cocoa seedlings in the nursery. The treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Results showed that watering regime I (0.06 l/pot) recorded low values in both macronutrients and micronutrients and also in physical growth parameters as compared to watering regimes II (0.18 l/pot) and watering regime III (0.36 l/pot) and were below the recommended values. The study showed that water application rate, watering regimes II (0.18 l/pot) and watering regime III (0.36 l/pot) were the most effective treatments in improving cocoa seedlings height, leaf area, plant stem girth, leaf number and tap root length than watering regime I (0.06 l/pot). The study also revealed that application of 0.18 l/pot and 0.36 l/pot on hybrid cocoa seedlings gave a higher calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous, nitro...
The study was carried out to identify major production constraints confronting establishment and ... more The study was carried out to identify major production constraints confronting establishment and rehabilitation of smallholder cocoa farms and its impacts on cocoa production. It was carried out by administering questionnaire and taking soil samples from five cocoa stations (Buako, Bunso, Kwadaso, Poano and Fumso) and six cocoa farming communities (Obuasi Nkwanta, Nyinahini, Akroso, Sefwi-Wiawso and Wassa-Akropong). Altogether one hundred and twenty farmers and five cocoa station officers were interviewed. The results revealed that the main constraints militating against the establishment and rehabilitation cocoa farms are poor soil nutrients, scarcity of early bearing and high yielding cocoa seeds and seedlings. Others are nonavailability of appropriate cocoa nursing poly bags, inappropriate watering application rate at the nursery period and poor agro-chemical application technology. The study showed that about 68 % of cocoa farmers raised cocoa seedlings using drinking water sach...
The study examined land use and land cover change and its implication on crop production resource... more The study examined land use and land cover change and its implication on crop production resources in the Offin River basin. Landsat images of Multi-spectral Scanner (MSS), Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) together with farm survey and crop production data were utilized for the study. Handheld GPS (Garmin eTrex) and farming household questionnaire were used to map 398 farmlands. Integrated applications of ERDAS imagine (10.1) and ArcGIS (10.1) software coupled with Microsoft office tools were used to analyze landsat images, farming household and crop production data. The land use and land cover change analysis revealed that natural forest and secondary forest reduced by 54.03 % and 10.05 % while degraded land and deterioration of water resources sharply increased by 95.71 % and 78.60 % respectively. The study showed that 53.27 % and 70.10 % of smallholder farmers had cropland size less than 1 hectare and farmlands less than 2 hectares respectively. Final...
International Journal of Engineering Research and
JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
The study assesses the effects of climate variability on food crop yield of the smallholder farme... more The study assesses the effects of climate variability on food crop yield of the smallholder farmers in the Lower Offin River Basin, Ghana. Spline Interpolation and Spearman rank correlation coefficient were employed to examine the spatial and seasonal distribution of climate variables. Yield anomaly index and multiple linear regression models were used to assess the effect of climate variability on food crop yield. The results showed that the higher values of seasonality and replicability indices of rainfall indicate that rainfall is concentrated within few months causing prolonged dry spells and frequent droughts during the cropping period. The regression analysis revealed that climate variability has had differential impacts on the yield of maize, rice, cassava, yam, cocoyam and plantain ranging from 18.4 % in the case of plantain to 80.0 % in the case of cocoyam. Also, cocoyam, yam and rice were much more affected by climatic conditions in contrast with maize, cassava and plantain. Therefore, there is the need to adopt drought-resistant high-yielding crop varieties to sustain high crop yield. Again, cassava and plantain have the potential to withstand climate variability which is very significant in the Lower Offin River Basin.