Burros as Guard Dogs on the Farm Download Audio

Experts say small donkeys can make good protectors of sheep and goats. Just don't let them get fat. Transcript of radio broadcast. 22 September 2008
Show/hide transcript

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. A burro is a small donkey. Donkeys are related to horses; both are part of the equine family. Another way people say it is BOOR-oh. The name comes from Spanish and, before that, from a Latin term for small horse. Burros reach an average height of over a meter and can weigh more than two hundred twenty-five kilograms. The long-eared animals are often gray with white noses, jaws and undersides. But they can also have coats of red or blue. Burros are known for their sure footing on mountains while carrying heavy loads. In the United States, they are best known for their history as pack animals in the desert Southwest. In fact, burros in the wild are related to pack animals that ran away or were freed by gold miners and others. But burros are not only good pack animals. They can also help calm and control nervous horses and guard sheep and goats on farms. Robin Rivello works with the New Jersey chapter of the American Mustang and Burro Association. She says burros have protected farm animals even against bears. People may have the idea that burros and donkeys do not like being told what to do. But experts say the animals are not being stubborn; they just like to take their time considering what they will do. In the United States, there are breeders who raise and sell burros. Or Americans can buy a burro taken from the wild by a federal agency, the Bureau of Land Management. People who get a wild burro need to "gentle" the animal. "Gentling" means training it to accept the human attention needed for care and grooming. Burros like to clean each other. But these desert animals groom themselves with dust instead of water. So it is normal for a burro to have some dirt in its coat. A brush can remove hardened mud. Experts like Robin Rivello advise owners not to let their burros eat too much. Being fat can ruin their health. Overweight burros can also develop a condition that threatens their well-known walking ability. Robin Rivello says a burro's feet should be cleaned and cared for every six to eight weeks. But she warns owners not to raise the feet as high as with a horse. A burro's legs differ from a horse's legs. The pain could make the burro kick.

And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Jim Tedder.
Ngun: VOA News

Finding the Biological Roots of a Virus That Ruins Maize Crops Download Audio

A severe form of maize streak virus in Africa and Asia may have formed from two mostly harmless viruses in grass. Scientists hope knowing this will help point to a cure. Transcript of radio broadcast. 15 September 2008
Show/hide transcript

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. The maize streak virus causes one of the most destructive crop diseases in Africa. Not only is it economically damaging, it can also threaten food security. Maize crop failures lead to hunger in some areas. Maize streak disease also strikes parts of Asia. Small insects known as leafhoppers carry the virus from field to field. Not much food can come from a field badly infected with the virus. The maize plants cannot produce a healthy cob. The disease gets its name from the streaks of yellow and white that discolor the leaves.

A farmer in his maize field near Arusha, Tanzania

There are many less harmful kinds of maize streak virus. These cause minor infections in crops like sugarcane and wheat. But only one kind causes the most severe form of maize streak disease. Researchers have been working to understand how this form of the virus got started and spread. They studied eighty versions of maize streak virus. They found that the severe kind may have formed from a recombination of less harmful grass viruses. In the process of recombination, the parent viruses exchanged a gene. The study compared the genome of the maize streak virus with those of ten related but less harmful viruses. A genome contains all the information about an organism, including information carried from its parent organisms. The most severe virus may have formed more than a century ago, when two mostly harmless viruses that infect wild grass combined. Darren Martin of the University of Cape Town in South Africa led the research. He says the researchers found that every maize streak virus that severely affects maize came from an ancestral virus. That ancestral virus was the recombinant result of the two comparatively harmless viruses. But the virus they formed was stronger. It could infect more plants than its parents.

It could live through winters in wild grasses better than its relations. The researchers believe that this quality also made the severe form of maize streak virus spread faster. Scientists from several parts of the world took part in the study, which appeared in the Journal of General Virology. The research continues. The goal is to find more biological information that could help lead to a cure. And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. For more reports -- with transcripts, MP3s and podcasts -- go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
Ngun: VOA News Poultry Farms With Unhappy Neighbors? Plant Some Trees Download Audio

Scientists say just three rows of trees around chicken houses can reduce dust, ammonia and smells. Transcript of radio broadcast: 08 September 2008
Show/hide transcript

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. Planting trees around poultry farms can improve air and water quality -- and please the noses of neighbors. Scientists have shown that just three rows of trees near poultry houses can reduce the release of dust and ammonia. Trees can also reduce the strong odor of ammonia gas.
University of Delaware scientists say trees can reduce emissions of dust, ammonia and odor from poultry farms

The trees capture dust, ammonia and odors in their leaves. They can also reduce energy use. They provide shade from the sun, reducing cooling costs in summer. And they act as a windbreak, reducing heating costs in winter. Scientists say the trees can also improve water quality around farms by removing pollutants from soil and groundwater. Several years ago, in the eastern United States, people were objecting to the odor of poultry farms on the Delmarva Peninsula. Delmarva is where the states of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia come together. Each of the two thousand farms there can house an average of seventy-five thousand chickens. Traditionally the farms used windows to provide fresh air in the chicken houses. Farmers rarely planted trees or tall crops around the buildings, so there would be no barrier to the airflow. But then farms began to use new ventilation systems. Instead of windows, the new systems used tunnel fans to circulate air. The fans directed airflow from the poultry

houses toward the homes of neighbors. A team led by George Malone at the University of Delaware began dealing with the problem in the year two thousand. The team recently presented a report at the national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Washington, D.C. Over a period of six years, the scientists found that planting three rows of trees reduced total dust and ammonia by more than half. And they say the trees reduced odors by eighteen percent. For the first row nearest the fans, they generally suggest using trees that lose their leaves in the fall or trees with waxy leaf surfaces. They suggest evergreen trees for the other two rows. Some trees work better than others. And what works in one area of the country may not work as well in other places. Farmers may think trees will take too long to grow to be effective. But some trees can grow as fast as three meters a year. Today, one-third of the Delmarva farms have planted trees, technically known as vegetative environmental buffers. These buffers can offer a way to cut pollution, save money and make the neighbors happy. And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Jim Tedder.
Ngun: VOA News Seeking a New Future for 'Lost' Fruits of Africa Download Audio

Experts see a way to help fight malnutrition and support rural development. Transcript of radio broadcast: 01 September 2008
Show/hide transcript

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. We have a question from a health worker -- and longtime listener -- in Nigeria. James Uwaifoh says there are many food crops that were grown in the past but not any longer. He wants to know if it would be possible for communities to grow these foods again. He says it could provide a way to reduce food shortages, hunger and nutrition disorders. Well, a committee of scientists appointed by the United States National Research Council had the same thought. Earlier this year, they called attention to twenty-four African fruits that today are largely unused. The experts said these fruits are a resource that could help fight malnutrition and support rural development in Africa. Their study was the last in a series of reports on "lost crops of Africa." Earlier reports dealt with grains and vegetables. In Africa, the main tropical fruits now are bananas, pineapples and papayas. Colonial

rulers imported these crops already improved from the Americas and Asia centuries ago. Over time, these displaced traditional fruits that had fed Africans for thousands of years. Today Africa's traditional fruits are mostly raised in villages and home gardens. There are few large operations for cultivating them. The scientists suggest that horticultural science could improve the crops. In terms of nutritional value, the report says fruits like carissa, marula and kei apple contain more vitamin C than the average orange. The fruit of the tamarind tree is high in B vitamins and calcium. And the fruit can stay good for months without cold storage. Fruit from the baobab tree contains a sticky material that can be dried into a powder high in protein, vitamins and minerals. The powder can be mixed into a drink with warm water or milk. Or it can be beaten and dried into thin pancakes that can be stored for months or even years. Most African fruits grow wild. Scientists know very little about them. The fruits have names like aizen, gumvine, sweet detar and ebony. Ebony trees are valued for their black hardwood. But they also produce a sweet fruit that can be eaten fresh or dried.

Baobab tree

Researcher Mark Dafforn directed the study. He says the traditional fruits of Africa have proven their ability to survive droughts and floods. He believes farming them can succeed. And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. Transcripts and MP3 archives of our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
Ngun: VOA News Locavores Like Their Food Close to Home Download Audio

The local food movement gains ground. Transcript of radio broadcast: 25 August 2008
Show/hide transcript

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report. A locavore is someone who eats foods produced locally. Locavores usually define local as within one hundred sixty kilometers. This new term grew out of a reaction to the long distances that food now commonly travels from farm to table. Local is a popular word these days in food advertising. Some American stores, when they buy locally, however they define it, may even identify the farm.

Farmers markets are also popular. These are often held once a week, usually in a big outdoor space. And some people grow their own food at home or in community gardens. Locally grown food can cost more but locavores find it more satisfying. Not just the taste, but the fact that they are supporting local producers.
Ron Samascott organizes apples at a farmers market in New York

And some believe eating local is healthier. This may be true in terms of freshness, but it also depends on how the food was produced.

Restaurants are also joining the local food movement. Last year the National Restaurant Association reported big demand for locally grown produce. And local food is involved in another movement -- "slow food." The group Slow Food USA is part of the movement that started in Italy in answer to fast food. The aim is to honor the tradition of foods prepared and enjoyed with time and care, like a fine wine. The city of Sonoma, California, is getting in the spirit of the local food movement. The city is located in the wine-making Sonoma Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area. Next week, the City Council is expected to approve changes to make it easier to raise chickens and rabbits on smaller properties. No one is sure how many people want to. But anyone with a single family house and a fenced backyard could keep as many as sixteen chickens and eight rabbits. Larger properties could have more. Either way, a permit and inspection would be required. Residents could sell eggs but not meat -- that is, if the animals are used for meat. City officials did research about other places with similar rules. They learned that people often end up giving their chickens names and treating them like pets. If that happens, Sonoma residents will have no trouble finding boy names for roosters. Under the proposed new rules, the city will not permit any roosters other than those now living there. City officials want to avoid early morning wake-up calls for the neighbors. As one Sonoma official explained: "You don't need a rooster to have eggs." And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Jim Tedder.
Ngun: VOA News