Chapter Three: The Agricultural Field

Lesson 1: Forests

Q. What are the renewable natural resources that Sudan depends on in its economy?
Forests – Pastures – soil – Wildlife and fish resources

Q. What does these resources depend on?

Depends on the stability of the suitable environmental conditions

Q. What does these suitable environmental conditions depend on?

Depend on the presence of forests

Q. What do forests provide to the necessary conditions for these resources?

1. Conserve the amount of the rainwater level in the water cycle

2. It fixes the soil and fertilizes it

3. Blocking the wind and providing moisture for the agricultural crops

4. Providing fodder and suitable habitats for wildlife and livestock

5. Providing forest products (fuel – wood – fruits – tanning materials (Garad) – dyes – Gum Arabic from
the trees of Hashab and Talih)

Q. Where does the most of land of Sudan lies in? In the dry and semi-dry belt

Q. What are the disadvantages of this location (dry and semi-dry land)?
It exposes most of the land of Sudan to multiple waves of drought

Q. What are the disadvantages of these waves (multiple waves of drought)?

It exposes these areas or lands to desertification and deterioration of the soil

Q. Explain: There are vast areas of land that are not suitable for agriculture and do not have production
Due to the expose of these areas to desertification because of the absence of forests and natural
pastures in those regions

Division of the Forest Products

Q. What are the divisions or classifications of forest products?

It is mainly divided into two divisions: 1/ Primary forest products 2/ Secondary forest products

Q. What are some examples of primary forest products?

1/ Timber 2/ Building poles 3/ Firewood 4/ Types of compressed wood and paper

Q. What are some examples of secondary forest products?

1/ Fruits 2/ Oil seeds 3/ Gum (Gum Arabic) 4/ fiber products
5/ medical materials 6/ Tanning materials (Garad) 7/ Dyes and others
Benefits of Forests

1. Gum / Gum Arabic

2. Timber (Building material)
3. Firewood and charcoal
4. Medical substances/ materials that are produced from various trees and shrubs
5. Fiber (Leaves (Saaf) of Doum and Daleb and others)
6. Fruits
7. Tanning materials or substances (Garad)
8. Dyes
9. Fodder
10. Contribution to the national revenue
11. Fixing the soil and decreasing the dangers of flood and soil erosion

Reasons or Causes of Overcutting of Forests (Deforestation)

Q. What are the causes that led to the decrease in forests in the recent times?
a- Expansion in mechanical agriculture and cutting trees
b- Over grazing c- Fires, firewood and charcoal trade

Q. What are the negative uses of firewood?

1- Used in making bricks (Alkamaen/kilns) 2- Used in making bread (Ovens)

Q. What is the suitable solution to conserve the human’s health and the environment to avoid using
firewood in burning kilns (Alkamaen)?
Using of gas instead of firewood in the manufacture of bricks or bread

Ways of conservation of forests

1/ Reserving land to establish forests 2/ Putting
Lesson 2: Desertification

Q. What does half of the regions of Sudan lie? In the desert and semi-desert region

Q. What is the danger that these desert and semi-desert region face?
1/ Moving sand 2/ Lack or absence of tree belts

Q. What is the danger that threatens agricultural lands and houses and pastoral lands?
The continuous invasion of sand (considered one of the dangerous environmental problems)

Q. What are the most effected states in Sudan with the continuous invasion of sand?
Alshamalia state (northern state) and more than two thirds if the states of Kordofan, Darfur and
Khartoum

Q. Define desertification
It is the deterioration in the production of land because of erosion resulting from cutting trees for
various reasons

Q. Define desert crawling?

It is the late stage of desertification, sand dunes crawl which threatening agricultural lands, houses and
pastures, and also the Nile and its tributaries.

Q. What causes desertification?

Humans are the main cause of desertification

Q. How are humans the main cause of desertification?

1/ Deterioration of forests and pastures 2/ Deterioration of the soil properties and its fertility
3/ Deterioration of crop production 4/ Extinction of wildlife
5/ Drying of underground and surface water 6/ Crawling of sand dunes
7/ Migration and displacement

Q. What are the methods used in combating desertification?

1/ Putting plans to replanting natural pastures
2/ Establishing protective tree belts like Carrefour (Al ban), Sonot trees and Hashab and Talih and others
to conserve the environment
3/ Putting an extensive informative programs to spread environmental awareness between the
population

Lesson 3: Poultry Industry in Sudan and it Importance

Q. Mention the wealth of Sudan. Agricultural wealth, livestock (camel – cows – goats – sheep),
poultry

Q. What are the types of poultry in Sudan? Chicken – Al Wadi chicken – Goose – pigeons – ostriches
Chicken Breeds

Q. What are the chicken breeds found in the Sudanese household?

Mix of traditional (Baladi) chicken and other various breeds that gained special properties over time

Q. What were the special properties that the non-traditional chicken breeds gained?
Difference in color, size, and the amount of eggs produced

Q. What is the original or native home of the foreign breeds? Asia and the Mediterranean Sea

Q. What are the breeds that snuck from the Asian breeds? The European breeds

Q. What are the European breeds known for? Production of meat

Q. What are the ways that chickens are bred in Sudan?

1/ The open traditional system/way 2/ Closed system to produce Bayad and Lahem chickens

1/ The open traditional system

Q. What does Sudan depend on the traditional chicken to produce meat and eggs?
1/ Because it needs little care, and can get food for itself
2/ Resist different climatic conditions
3/ It gives financial returns without spending on its care, though it has low production of meat and eggs

Q. What are the disadvantages of breeding the traditional chicken? It has low production

2/ The closed system for Albayad and Lahem chicken

Q. What is the meaning of the closed system?

It is the system where the dominant climatic conditions are controlled, to produce a large quantity of
chickens in large farms to produce eggs and meat

Q. How is the change in climatic conditions done?

1/ Changing of temperature using air conditioners and providing light at night
2/ Providing a specific type of nutrition, vaccination and health care

Q. What are the types of chickens according to their use?

1/ Al bayad chicken (Laying hens) 2/ Al lahem chicken (broiler chicken)
3/ Dual-purpose chicken 4/ Ornamental chicken

1/ Al bayad chicken (Laying hen)

Q. Why is albayad chicken raised? And what is its average weight?

To produce eggs - Average weight of 2-3 kilograms (Longhorn)
Q. What is Longhorn chicken characterized by?
1/ Does not tend to lay on eggs
2/ Average egg production about (180 – 200) eggs annually like the Mediterranean breeds

Q. What is AlFayomi chicken characterized by?

1/ Average egg production of (180 – 200) eggs annually 2/ The egg is small and has a dark color

2/ Al Lahem chicken (Broiler chicken)

Q. Why is Allahem chicken raised? To produce meat

Q. From which breed is Al Lahem chicken? Asian breeds

Q. Give an example of Al Lahem chicken. Brahma - Cochin

Q. What is the average weight of Al Lahem chicken? 4 – 5 kilograms

3/ Dual purpose chicken

Q. Define the dual purpose chicken.

It is a modified sample of the American breed bayad chicken and lahem chicken

Q. Mention examples of dual purpose chicken (American breed)?

1/ New Hampshire 2/ Red Rhode Island

Q. What is the average weight and production of New Hampshire chicken?

Weight of 2 – 3 kilograms, and average production of (130 – 160) eggs annually

Q. What is the average weight and production of Red Rhode Island chicken?
Weight of 2 -3 kilograms, and average production of (100 – 120) eggs per year

4/ Ornamental chicken

Q. What is ornamental chicken characterized by?

Beauty aspects from shape and color of feathers

Q. What are the important ornamental chicken breeds/races?

1/ Japanese breeds 2/ Some African breeds (Zambian)

Hatching

Q. Define hatching
It is keeping the fertilized eggs in special conditions in terms of temperature, ventilation and humidity
for 21 days until the chicks hatch
Q. What is meant by a fertilized egg?
Fertilized egg is an egg produced from chickens known as mothers, which could have resulted from the
fertilizing of roosters

Q. What are the types/sectors of hatching?

1/ Natural hatching 2/ Artificial hatching

Q. Who performs natural hatching? The mother itself

Q. What are the characteristics that should be available in natural hatching chickens?
1. A wide chest, to cover all the eggs 2. Thick (a lot of) feathers, to cover all the eggs
3. Ability to lay, so the eggs can have their suitable conditions and the longest time possible of chest
heat

Q. Define artificial hatching.

It means putting or keeping the fertilized eggs in specific devices, that have all the suitable conditions
(Ventilation – Humidity – Suitable temperature for hatching eggs)

Q. What are the artificial hatching devices known as? Hatchers (‫الفراخات او الفقاسات‬

Q. What are the types of hatchers?

They are of different sizes and their capacities vary from 25 eggs to 10 thousand eggs according to use
and need

Lesson 4: Chicks Nursery

Q. What is meant by nursery? It is the process after hatching immediately

Q. What are the types of nursery? 1/ Natural nursery 2/ Artificial nursery

Q. What is natural nursery?

It is performed by the mother itself to help its chicks obtain food and protect them from enemies and
weather fluctuations until they could depend on themselves

Q. What is the disadvantage of natural nursery?

It prevents the mother from producing eggs for a long time

Q. What is the other solution for natural nursery? Artificial nursery

Q. How is artificial nursery done or preformed?

In barns or nursery cages (batteries) put on top of each other in form of stacks / levels/floors

Q. What are the advantages of artificial nursery?

1/ Easy to assemble and disassemble 2/ Easy to clean and monitor and economical
Q. Where are the batteries placed?
In a floor free from cracks and has (ventilation – Lighting – Food and water)

Q. For how long does the artificial nursery take? From the age of one day to two months

Q. What are the characteristics that should be available for artificial nursery?
1. There must be enough space for the chicks (meter square for every 35 chicks)
2. The barn must be easy to clean and free from cracks and the floor is smooth
3. Good ventilation and lighting
4. Enough trays for food and drinking
5. The corners of the barn must be circular to avoid crowding or cramping of the chicks
6. Required safety or security from rain, wind and the sun heat
7. Covering the floor with sand and sawdust

Nutrition

Q. What is the most important thing in chicken production and growth? Nutrition

Q. What is the benefit of nutrition for chicken? Growth, movement and production

Q. What are the nutritional elements?

They are important elements for the nutrition of chicks where minerals are a key component such as
phosphor, calcium, proteins, carbohydrates, water and vitamins

Q. Where do we get proteins for the fodder of lahem chicks?

1/ In blood, fish powder and meats 2/ In vegan protein such as legumes

Q. Example of legumes
Beans, peas, Egyptian beans

Q. What are the types of chicks that should decrease the percentage of proteins and increase the
calcium in their fodder?
Bayad chicks (Egg chicks), to increase the percent of calcium that enters in the composition of eggs

Q. What are the sources of calcium?

1/ Dairy products, like cheese, milk, yoghurt
2/ Dark leafy green vegetables, like broccoli, cabbage - fish - soya
Chicken Fodder Components

Components Egg chicks Meat chicks Bayad / Egg chicken

Sorghum / Dura/ Fatrita 52 50 55
Peanut/bean meal 13 10 7
(Imbaz)
Sesame meal (Imbaz) 15 10 8
Powder meat 5 10 7
Powder bones 1 1 5
Bran 11 15 10
Shells 1 1 5
Vitamin 0.5 0.5 0.5
Barseem 1 2 2
Table salt 0.5 0.5 0.5
Total 100 pounds 100 pounds 100 pounds

Lesson 5: Chicken Diseases

Q. Chickens are affected by different types of diseases, mention them.

1/ Viral diseases 2/ Bacterial diseases 3/ Malnutrition diseases

Q. What are some viral / virus diseases that affect chicken?

1/ Newcastle (Sameer) 2/ Bird flu / influenza

Q. How does bird influenza infect humans?

1/ Through the respiratory system directly through the waste of infected birds or their respirotary
system discharge

2/ Indirectly through places and tools contaminated with discharge or wastes of infected birds and their
eggs

Q. Mention an example of bacterial diseases that affect chicken?

Coccidiosis / Coccidia / Infectious diarrhea

Q. Mention examples of malnutrition diseases? 1/ Rickets 2/ Cannibalism

Prevention means from diseases

1/ Periodical vaccination 2/ Total cleanliness 3/ Isolation of infected birds

4/ Balanced diet 5/ Avoid crowdedness 6/ Decreasing lighting
7/ Cutting beaks