4 pp. / Okra is a popular vegetable frequently found in Southern dishes. Outside of the South, okra can be hard to find. Usually okra appears during the summer at farmers markets and specialty health stores. Okra is a rich source of many nutrients, including fiber. This article outlines the nutritional benefits of okra and provides tips for how to select, store, and cook okra as well as how to grow okra in your home garden. Two of our favorite cooking methods – roasting and sautéing okra are introduced.

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1985 T68 / Master of Science

Thesis (M.A. Agricultural Management (Plant Production)) -- University of Limpopo, 2023 / Okra is an indigenous vegetable consumed in Southern Africa. Its growth and yield are negatively affected by water and nutrient deficit. There is insufficient scientific information on the growth and yield attributes of underutilised indigenous vegetables such as okra. The information on enhancement and evaluation of growth, yield, nutrients, and phytochemical compositions of okra using the climate-smart OMET growing technique has not been documented. The Organic Medium Enclosed Trough (OMET) system was developed as a non-drainable growing technique which improves crop yield by reducing water and nutrient seepage. The aim of this study was to develop scientific information on the effects of the OMET growing technique and growing environment on growth and yield, nutritional composition and phytochemical composition in okra. The objectives of this study were to (1) investigate the effect of the OMET growing technique and growing environment on growth and yield attributes, (2) nutritional composition and (3) the phytochemical composition of okra grown under greenhouse and micro-plots conditions. To achieve the objectives, four-week-old okra seedlings were transplanted on the established OMET and non-OMET growing technique concurrently in both the growing environment (greenhouse and micro-plot) following a randomised complete block design (RCBD) for a period of 110 days, with three replications and twelve plants per replicate. The amount of irrigation water used in both experiments was recorded until harvest and computed as cumulative irrigation water. The mean separation was done using a parametric T-test at the significance level of 5% using the Genstat version 18.0 statistical package. The growth attributes which included plant height and stem diameter (n=9) were taken on a weekly basis. At harvest, yield components including the number of branches per plant, plant biomass, fresh pod weight, number of pods per plant, fresh pod length and fresh pod diameter width were recorded. The harvested leaves and pods were then used for nutritional and phytochemical composition analysis. The OMET growing technique significantly (p≤0.05) affected the growth and yield attributes of okra regardless of the growing condition. At termination (110 days after transplanting), the OMET growing technique had significantly increased the stem diameter by 40 and 37%, while the plant height was increased by 68 and 48% under greenhouse and micro-plot experiments respectively. When evaluating the yield attributes, a similar trend was observed where the OMET system significantly increased the yield attributes of okra as follows: biomass by 64 and 50%, number of branches by 67 and 50%, number of pods per plant by 60 and 49%, fresh pod weight by 75 and 53%, pod length by 64 and 51% in both the growing environment, while the pod diameter width was increased by 68% in the greenhouse environment and there was no significant difference on the micro-plot trial. The OMET growing technique significantly affected the nutritional composition of okra leaves and pods (p≤0.05). Both the essential and non-essential amino acids were determined and quantified in the leaves and pods of okra grown under OMET and Non-OMET growing techniques. The OMET growing technique significantly improved the essential amino acid composition of okra leaves with Thr (0.57 mg/kg), Val (0.70 mg/kg) Leu (0.90 mg/kg) and Phe (1.03 mg/kg) being higher than the non-OMET grown okra leaves. The pods showed that the OMET growing technique also significantly improved the accumulation of all the tested non-essential amino acids with Lys being the highest (p≤0.05). It was observed that the micro-plot experiment resulted in the OMET growing technique significantly enhancing the accumulation of all the tested essential amino acids in both the leaves and pods with Phe and Lys (1.53 and 0.70 mg/kg) being the highest in the leaves and pods respectively. The non-essential amino acid composition was also significantly improved using the OMET growing technique in both the leaves and pod with Glu.. The non-essential amino acid composition was also significantly improved using the OMET growing technique in both the leaves and pod of okra grown under micro-plot with Glu (2.73 mg/kg and 4.05 mg/kg) being the highest respectively. The OMET growing technique showed the ability to maintain a daily recommended amino acids ratio coefficient equal to 1 by consuming 100g of the tested okra. The nutritional composition which includes proteins, mineral elements and amino acids of the tested okra leaves and pods grown using the OMET system regardless of the growing condition has resulted in an increase in the % protein content compared to the non-OMET grown okra. Nutritional elements Ca, K, P, Mg and Na were predominant in okra leaves and pods irrespective of the growing environment and growing technique (OMET). The results generated showed that the OMET system significantly (p≤0.05) improved the nutritional composition in okra leaves and pods regardless of the growing condition, though the micro-plot experiment resulted in higher nutritional composition as compared to the greenhouse experiment. Untargeted metabolites, phenolic acids and antioxidant activity were also determined and compared for both the okra leaves and pods extract grown using the OMET and non-OMET growing techniques in both the growing conditions. For untargeted metabolites, methanol extracts were analysed using UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS. The UPLC-MS untargeted metabolites profile detected 161 polar analytes classified within the glucuronic acid, tricarboxylic acids, O-glycosyl derivatives, flavonoid-O-glycosides, iridoid o-glycosides and terpene glycosides. Explorative principle component analysis demonstrated three main clusters according to metabolites heterogeneity in plant tissue (pods and leaves) and growing conditions (greenhouse or mirco-plot). There was major heterogeneity in the metabolome profile of leaves tissue along the vertical PC1 suggesting their metabolic moiety. Okra leaves grown under micro-plot were highly predominated by the 2-O-caffeoylglucaric acid (286.13 mg/kg) and 2-(E)-O-feruloyl-D-galactaric acid (111.69 mg/kg). Leaves samples grown in non-OMET were predominated by citroside A (412.04 mg/kg). Okra pods grown under OMET micro-plot enhanced the accumulation of quercetin 3-galactoside (87.83 mg/kg) and quercetin 3-galactoside-7-glucoside (150.00 mg/kg). The OMET under greenhouse conditions encouraged the accumulation of icariside F2 and benzyl beta-D-apiofuranosy (49.21 mg/kg). The results generated showed that flavonoids were the major contributors to the total antioxidant activity and OMET enhanced the accumulation of the majority of the metabolites. Phytochemical analysis showed that the OMET growing technique significantly increased the concentration of total phenolics and flavonoids in both the growing environment (p≤0.05). The OMET growing technique significantly affected the antioxidant activity in both growing conditions. / Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and National Research Foundation (NRF)

Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) is a traditional crop commercially cultivated in many parts of the world. Fresh okra has a high nutritional value and grows very quickly with high temperatures, which lends its production to more tropical areas. This study was implemented to evaluate different varieties of okra and determine the optimum density for production in Massachusetts. Two experiments were carried out between May and September of 2009 and 2010 at the UMass Research Farm in South Deerfield, MA. For the variety trial in 2009: Annie Oakley, Baby Bubba, Cajun Delight, Chifre de Veado, Clemson Spineless, Millionaire, North & South and Santa Cruz 47. The immature pods were harvested when reached 70 mm in length (size desired by the market in the USA) and in another plot for Chifre de Veado and Santa Cruz 47 the pods were harvested when reached 100 mm (market in Brazil). The density trial was set in a randomized complete block design with seven different plant spacings (7.5, 15.0, 22.5, 30.0, 38.5, 45.0 and 52.5 cm) in double row of plants of Cajun Delight. The pods were harvested three times a week, counted and weighted. Analyses of variance were performed by SAS, and means were compared using Duncan’s new multiple range test (P = 0.05) and orthogonal polynomial comparisons. In 2010, Santa Cruz 47 harvested based on Brazilian market size had the best performance over the season with the yield of 17.86 ton.ha-1 and similar statistic results comparing to North and South (15.99 ton.ha-1) and Annie Oakley (15.24 ton.ha-1). The differences among the plant spacings in 2010, were represented by a quadratic relationship, where the greater plant spacing for yield was ‘52.5 cm’ with the total yield of 14.91 ton.ha-1. Both trials in 2009 were negatively affected by the soil-borne fungus Verticillium spp., which, combined with the cold and wet weather, became very aggressive, especially in the end of the season. The results show that the varieties: North and South, Annie Oakley, Cajun Delight, Millionaire, Clemson Spineless, Santa Cruz 47 can be commercially grown in Massachusetts and the recommended plant spacing of okra is 52.5 cm.

No description available.

Thesis(M.S.)--Auburn University, 2006. / Abstract. Includes bibliographic references (p.61-74).

79 f. / Submitted by Ana Hilda Fonseca (anahilda@ufba.br) on 2013-10-02T12:34:51Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_Ivanice 2013.pdf: 888736 bytes, checksum: 65d8d1a5776f0ae0d2be6610a170b0b2 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Ana Hilda Fonseca(anahilda@ufba.br) on 2013-10-02T12:36:24Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_Ivanice 2013.pdf: 888736 bytes, checksum: 65d8d1a5776f0ae0d2be6610a170b0b2 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-10-02T12:36:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_Ivanice 2013.pdf: 888736 bytes, checksum: 65d8d1a5776f0ae0d2be6610a170b0b2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / CNPq / O presente trabalho visou a determinação e avaliação quimiométrica dos minerais Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P e Zn em quiabos (Abelmoschus esculentus L) de cultivos convencionais e orgânicos, comercializados na cidade de Salvador, coletados nos períodos de maio de 2011 a abril de 2012. Também foram avaliados os efeitos na composição mineral após processo de cocção em água. A metodologia empregada consistiu na digestão ácida das amostras in natura na mistura HNO3/H2O2 3:1 em bloco digestor, seguida pela determinação dos macro e microelementos por espectrometria de emissão óptica com plasma indutivamente acoplado (ICP OES). O procedimento de cocção foi realizado em tubos digestores aquecidos em chapa metálica por 10 min, após ebulição da água. A água de cozimento foi desprezada e o vegetal foi submetido à digestão. A validação do método foi realizada através de material de referência (SRM) folhas de tomate, NIST 1573 a, avaliando-se os coeficientes de variação (em %), os limites de detecção (LD) e quantificação (LQ). A análise exploratória realizada com uso das ferramentas quimiométricas: Análise por Componentes Principais (PCA) e Análise por Agrupamento Hierárquico (HCA), permitiu obter informações relevantes quanto á variação sazonal das amostras e para avaliação do efeito de cozimento nos minerais presentes no quiabo. Pode-se constatar que, os elementos Na, Mg, P, Mn e Cu apresentaram uma baixa variação nos períodos de dezembro de 2011 á abril de 2012. Enquanto Fe e Zn apresentaram maiores concentrações no período de mai/jun 2011 e dez/jan 2012. Ca e K apresentaram maiores concentrações no período de mar/abr 2011. Não foi possível discriminar as amostras quanto ás variações nas formas de cultivo (orgânico ou convencional) e regionais (cidades), pois nenhum agrupamento entre os dados foram observados nas PC’s. Quanto aos efeitos de cozimento, as amostras cruas apresentaram as maiores concentrações para os nove elementos analisados, indicando a perda de nutrientes durante o processo de cocção, lixiviados para a água de cozimento. As reduções médias percentuais após o cozimento variaram de 60 a 23% para os micronutrientes (Cu, Fe, Mn e Zn), e de 63 a 11% para os macronutrientes (Ca, K, Mg, Na, P), sendo o K o elemento que apresentou maior redução / Salvador

Vegetables play a major role in the livelihoods of the rural poor in Africa. Among major constraints to vegetable production worldwide are diseases caused by a group of viruses belonging to the genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae. Begomoviruses are plant-infecting viruses, which are transmitted by the whitefly vector Bemisia tabaci and have been known to cause extreme yield reduction in a number of economically important vegetables around the world. Several begomoviruses have been detected infecting vegetable crops in West and Central Africa (WCA). Small single stranded circular molecules, alphasatellites and betasatellites, which are about half the size of their helper begomovirus genome, have also been detected in plants infected by begomoviruses. In WCA, B. tabaci has been associated with suspected begomovirus infections in many vegetable crops and weed species. Sequencing of viral genomes from crops such as okra resulted in the identification of two previously known begomovirus species (Cotton leaf curl Gezira virus and Okra yellow crinkle virus) as well as a new recombinant begomovirus species (Okra leaf curl Cameroon virus), a betasatellite (Cotton leaf curl Gezira betasatellite) and new alphasatellites. Tomato and pepper plants with leaf curling were shown to contain isolates of new begomoviruses, collectively referred to as West African tomato-infecting begomoviruses (WATIBs), new alphasatellites and betasatellites. To study the potential of weeds serving as begomovirus reservoirs, begomoviruses and satellites in the weed Ageratum conyzoides were characterized. Sequence analyses showed that they were infected by isolates of a new begomovirus (Ageratum leaf curl Cameroon virus) that belong to the WATIBs group, a new betasatellite (Ageratum leaf curl Cameroon betasatellite), an alphasatellite and two types of defective recombinants between a begomovirus and an alphasatellite. Putative recombinations were detected in begomovirus genomes for all four plant species studied, indicating that recombination is an important mechanism for their evolution. A close relationship between the begomoviruses infecting pepper and tomato and A. conyzoides and the detection of the same alphasatellite in them support the idea that weeds are important reservoirs for begomoviruses and their satellites. With this high diversity, recombination potential and transmission by B. tabaci, begomoviruses and ssDNA satellites pose a serious threat to crop production in West and Central Africa.

The Judeo-Christian belief, based on the bible, is that “God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (Gen. 1: 27). This dissertation explores the Akan understanding of the human person to shed further light on creation of human beings in the image of God and to understand and demonstrate the corresponding uniqueness of the human being among God's creatures. With the help of the Akan context, we note that every human being possesses a spark of God. God, who is relational, shares relationality with human beings.<br> Through the use of Akan anthropology, we identify creation “in the image of God” to mean that every human being is created through the agency of parents, who also share in the image of God through their birth. Our interpretation is that the okra is the soul and is considered the “spark of God” in the human being. The honhom, which refers to the breath of life, is treated as the breath that God breathed into human beings to make a human a living being (Gen 2:7). We equated the breath of God with the Holy Spirit who gives life. We propose to demonstrate the possibility of human relationships through the Holy Spirit.<br> At the moment of conception, every human being derives some elements from his/her father and mother and elements from God. These elements from the three sources (God, mother, and father) combine to make a person a human being. Though humanity derives certain elements from the three sources, it is the holistic person that reflects God's image in the sense that through the various elements humanity is able to relate and communicate with God, neighbor, and the world. The holistic human person enables us to clarify that humanity is both physical and spiritual. <br> With the help of the Akan anthropology, we successfully show that knowledge of the human being starts with the relationship between God and human beings, which extends to other humans and the universe, thus offering a further insight into the meaning of being created in the image of God. <br> Our conclusion is that when a Christian is asked the question, “What exactly in the human being points to the image of God?” he/she will be able to respond that there is a “spark” of God in every human being. We therefore renew Christian anthropology through the method of contextualization with the Akan culture to disclose the hidden presence of God in the human being. We demonstrate that theology functions exactly as the manner in which religion makes sense within a given culture. As the people in the culture understand their world and make meaning of it, they can also share their insight with others. Human beings have become a source of theology in addition to scripture and tradition. Human beings are created in God’s image and are relational and unique within God's creation. / McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts; / Theology / PhD; / Dissertation;

Resumo: O presente trabalho foi conduzido com o objetivo de se determinar os períodos de interferência das plantas daninhas na cultura do quiabo cv. "Santa Cruz 47" e seus efeitos no acúmulo de macronutrientes da cultura. Os tratamentos consistiram em períodos crescentes de convivência e controle das plantas daninhas: aos 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, 49, 63, 77, 91 e 105 dias após a emergência (DAE), totalizando vinte e dois tratamentos, dispostos em blocos casualizados, com três repetições cada. As principais espécies de plantas daninhas responsáveis pela interferência na cultura foram Portulaca oleracea, Eleusine indica e Nicandra physaloide. A convivência do quiabeiro com as plantas daninhas por todo o ciclo de cultivo reduziu a produtividade da cultura em 95%. O período anterior à interferência foi de 57 DAE, enquanto o período total de prevenção à interferência foi de 14 DAE. Não houve período crítico de prevenção à interferência, sendo que um único controle das plantas daninhas entre 14 e 57 DAE é suficiente para prevenir a interferência na cultura do quiabo. A competição com plantas daninhas reduziu drasticamente o acúmulo de matéria seca pela cultura, assim como o acúmulo de macronutrientes / Abstract: The experiment was carried out to determine the critical periods of interference of the weeds on the okra crop cv. "Santa Cruz 47" and the effects on macronutrients uptake. The treatments were weedy and weed-free increased weekly periods: at 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42, 49, 63, 77, 91 and 105 days after emergence (DAE), totaling twenty two treatments, arranged in a randomized block design, with three replications. The main weed species responsible for interference in culture were Portulaca oleracea, Eleusine indica and Nicandra physaloides. Coexistence of okra crop and weeds throughout the season reduced crop yield by 95%. Period before interference was 57 DAE, while total period of interference prevention was 14 DAE. There was no critical period of interference prevention, so that a single weed control between 14 and 57 DAE is sufficient for interference prevention in okra crop. The competition with weeds reduced the dry matter accumulation in culture, as well as the accumulation of nutrients / Orientador: Silvano Bianco / Coorientador: Arthur Bernardes Cecílio Filho / Banca: Pedro Luís da Costa Aguiar Alves / Banca: Sally Ferreira Blat / Mestre