School of Biosciences
 

Image of Ajit Singh

Ajit Singh

Associate Professor in Agronomy,

Contact

Biography

  • Dr. Singh is as an Associate Professor in field of Crop Production and Physiology. He obtained his Ph.D. (1999) from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. He served Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria as a Senior Lecture and then Associate Professor from 2000 to 2011.
  • During this period, he taught Field and Horticultural Crop Production, Crop Physiology and Nutrition, Field Experimentation, Seed technology and Biostatistics at undergraduate and postgraduate level.
  • In addition, Dr. Singh has experience in data handling and analysis using Genstat, SPSS and SAS.
  • Authored 50 publications in major scientific Journals, 42 in Conference Proceedings and supervised 41 postgraduate and 40 undergraduate students
  • Dr. Singh research interest includes utilization of the natural resources and manipulation of the traditional cropping practices to increase food production. Particularly, incorporation of legumes and legume residues into cereal-based cropping systems and assessment of nitrogen fixation.
  • Other areas include physical manipulation of plant processes to increase crop production and seed biology.

Expertise Summary

  • Scientist/Teacher with progressive experience as Crop Agronomist/Plant Nutritionist/Cropping Systems Specialist and Biometrician.
  • Attained Doctorate in Agronomy with focus on Cropping Systems (Legume-cereal Rotations) Soil Fertility Management using residue management techniques, Masters in Agronomy and Bachelors in Agriculture.
  • Professional background encompasses teaching, supervision and research, with primary concentration on crop management.
  • Skills include field-based and laboratory research studies in Agronomy, Soil Science, Forage Crops, Nutrition, Plant and Soil analysis techniques (particular reference to nitrogen) and
  • Data analysis using Statistical Analysis System (SAS), SPSS, Genstat and Statplus.

Teaching Summary

Postgraduate Lectures

  • Statistics and Experimental Design for Biosciences
  • Crop Research Techniques

Undergraduate lectures

  • Biosciences and the Global Food Security
  • Professional Skills for Bioscientists
  • Research Techniques in Plant Sciences
  • Data Transfer, Analysis and Presentation
  • Resource Capture by Plants: from cell to community (Plant Nutrition)
  • Research in Nutrition and Biochemistry (Statistics)
  • Plant Responses to Environmental Stress (Plant Nutrition)
  • Plant Science (Nutrition and Seed Biology)
  • Global Issues in Nutrition
  • Postharvest and preservation technology (Composition of fruits and vegetables)
  • Applied Plant Physiology from Cell to Crop
  • Current issues in Biotechnology
  • Plants and their Environments

Research Summary

Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Malaysian Oil Palm Assessing biological nitrogen fixation in legumes (particularly underutilized legumes like Bambara Groundnut (Vigna subterranea) Simulation… read more

Selected Publications

Current Research

  • Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Malaysian Oil Palm
  • Assessing biological nitrogen fixation in legumes (particularly underutilized legumes like Bambara Groundnut (Vigna subterranea)
  • Simulation modeling for nitrogen use efficiency in oil palm intercropping system
  • "SOIL HEALTH IN OIL PALM PLANTATION SYSTEMS". Intercropping Oil Palm with Underutilized Crop to Improve Soil Organic Matter Content, Earthworm Diversity, and Soil Infiltration
  • Sustainable Urban Agriculture: ensuring resource use efficiency in vertically integrated farming
  • Climate change and crop production: Physiological growth and yield response of underutilized leafy vegetables to a projected climate change.
  • Precision Agriculture using Remote sensing: Predicting growth and yield in underutilized Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea) landraces using Multi-Spectral Imaging from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.
  • Developing LED light recipes (red & blue) for increased growth, yield, and phytochemical content of some vegetables in vertical hydroponic farming systems
  • Microbes enrichment in planting media for quality organic vegetable produce
  • propagation, cultivation practices and harvest frequency on growth and mineral composition of moringa (Moringa oleifera L.)

Past Research

Research experience at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, Nigeria (2000-2011)

  • Principal Scientist-Sokoto Location, Nationally Coordinated Research Trial on Multi-Locational Heat Tolerant Wheat Varietal Evaluation in collaboration with Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri, Nigeria. (ARCN project)
  • Principal Scientist-Sokoto Location, Nationally Coordinated Research Trial on Durum wheat multilocation yield trial in collaboration with Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri, Nigeria (ARCN project)
  • Conducting field experimentation on arid crops like Millet, cowpea, sorghum, bambara groundnut, groundnut, kenaf, roselle and horticultural crops like tomato, onion, garlic, pepper in the field of crop production and water management

Research Experience at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria (1994-1999)

  • Conducting multilocational trials on farmers' field and research center across Northern and Southern Guinea savanna of Nigeria utilizing legume duration and residue management technologies in a legume-cereal based cropping systems.
  • Conducting pot experiment in a greenhouse to study on N uptake in Maize from soils collected from various locations in Northern and Southern Guinea Savanna.
  • Estimating N2 fixation in legume using difference method and Ureide technique and calculated N-balance in legume-cereal rotation systems under various soil fertility regimes and environments.
  • Analysing soil and the plant parts of legume and cereal for N content and carried out ureide analysis for estimating N2 fixation

Future Research

  • Vertical and rooftop farming
  • LED light effects on Nutrient content of vegetables
  • Precision Agriculture using IOT and remote sensing

School of Biosciences

University of Nottingham
Sutton Bonington Campus
Nr Loughborough
LE12 5RD, UK

For all enquiries please visit:
www.nottingham.ac.uk/enquire

Find us
Campus map
Room Locations on Campus [pdf file]