Inbreeding, the mating of related individuals, has been the one dominating breeding strategy for dog breeders during the last 200 years. However, its negative effects on fer-tility and other fitness traits, a phenomenon called inbreeding depression, have been ignored in the quest of perfect unity in conformation or performance. The purpose of this study was to test the hypotheses that litter size is reduced as a consequence of in-breeding, affected by both the inbreeding coefficient of the dam and the litter and that a rapid increase in the inbreeding coefficient affects litter size more than a slower rate. Data were collected from the Swedish Kennel Club registry of origin. Breeds included in the study were the Bernese Mountain Dog, the Cocker Spaniel, the Golden Retriever, the Rottweiler and the West Highland White Terrier.

This report will point out the income for a scania plant production farm, this has been estimated through a case study. The outcome of this report will later be used to calculate a reasonable leasehold charge. This case study is solitary based upon this particular studied farm, at this very point, and can therefore not be used as a general guide. The reason why this particular scania plant production farm has been selected, is because the author is born and raised at the farm and has the intention to run the farm in the future. The chosen farm for this report is based in the southwest of scania and cover 300 hectare of plant production. The crop rotation consists of autumn wheat, sugar beats, spring wheat, spring barely, winter rape and fallow. The farm owns all machinery required.

Using the Introductory Carbon Balance Model, ICBM, five different crop rotations with rye 1. Rye-Ley-Ley-Rye-Beans-Rye 2. Rye-Rye-Rapeseed-Rapeseed 3. Rye-Ley-Ley-Rye-Potatoes-Rye 4. Rye-Rye-Potatoes-Wheat 5. Rye-Rye-Potatoes-Beans-Wheat-Rye-Potatoes-Rapeseed were tested theoretically in four different cultivation scenarios ? Straw left on the field, biogas digestate added as fertilizer. Labelled ?+straw+BD?. ? Straw left on the field, only synthetic fertilizer. Labelled ?+straw-BD?. ? Straw harvested, biogas digestate added as fertilizer.

To understand the motives, and perhaps more importantly the barriers, for farmers to convert from conventional to organic farming is of great interest for policy makers as well as for academics. In Sweden and in other EU countries, proposed targets of the area in organic farmland have failed to be reached in spite of different kinds of policy measures. Most studies agree that the average profitability seems to be comparable to or better in organic than in conventional farming. This would indicate that there must be other factors of importance which can explain the low particiapation rate. A higher perceived risk in organic farming with respect to yield and price is frequently brought up as a potential explanation within a qualitative framework.

This study was carried out as a commission from Holmen Skog, district ?Egen skog? in Norrköping. During October 2006 several stands were inventoried by aerial photos from helicopter. The stands were those for which the next action proposed was plant inventory or plant check. The photos were interpreted and the number of stems was calculated.

In Sweden, reduced tillage usually means non-inversion tillage, where primary tillage is carried out using chisel ploughs or disc implements. Primary tillage method is mainly determined by the desired soil loosening and the handling of soil residues. The effect of tillage depth was studied in field experiments in Skåne, Väderstad, Uppsala, Örebro och Västerås in different crops; spring oilseed rape, spring wheat, winter wheat and spring barley.The experiments generally had a randomized block design with the treatments mouldboard ploughing, deep chisel ploughing and shallow chisel ploughing, in some cases also shallow discing and no-tillage. In the experiments the following parameters were determined: seedbed properties, saturated hydraulic conductivity, penetration resistance, number of emerged plants and crop yield (all parameters were not determined in all experiments. Root growth and draught requirement were determined in two separate studies. There were no significant differences between tillage depths in non-inversion tillage in seedbed properties, plant emergence or root development.

Nematodes are perhaps the most common animals in the world. Nematode populations can reach densities up to several millions per square meter in the soil. There are many factors which affect nematode communities in arable soil with respect to diversity and population size. Factors like tillage, crop, fertilization, nutrient status and moisture in the soil all have an impact on soil biology and in this way also have effects on the nematode community. This study is based on three different parts, soil samples taken in March 2012 and March 2013, soil samples taken monthly during the growth season of 2013 in bare fallow plots and a pot experiment.

Green manuring is a way of creating an organic fertilizer by growing a crop that is mowed down. Besides the fertilizing effect this method has been shown to have a positive influ-ence on soil organic matter as well as weed flora, and green manure is an important me-thod of weed control in organic farming in parts of Sweden. However, the release of nu-trients from the green manure varies and can therefore be difficult to control. Risks for losses of nutrients are also present. Although the area of organic farmland is increasing in Sweden, the use of green manure is decreasing.This report contains a literature study which compiles research on the functions of green manure in a cropping system and also how the crop can be used if harvested, for example to produce biogas.

Green manuring is a way of creating an organic fertilizer by growing a crop that is mowed down. Besides the fertilizing effect this method has been shown to have a positive influ-ence on soil organic matter as well as weed flora, and green manure is an important me-thod of weed control in organic farming in parts of Sweden. However, the release of nu-trients from the green manure varies and can therefore be difficult to control. Risks for losses of nutrients are also present. Although the area of organic farmland is increasing in Sweden, the use of green manure is decreasing.This report contains a literature study which compiles research on the functions of green manure in a cropping system and also how the crop can be used if harvested, for example to produce biogas.

If a building is heated by a heat pump, it is of high importance that the heat pump has a high coefficient of performance. An exhaust air heat pump extracts heat from the building?s exhaust air. The air has a relatively high and constant temperature all year around, leading to a high seasonal coefficient of performance. This thesis examines whether it is profitable to complement an exhaust ventilation system with an exhaust air heat pump in an apartment block that already has geothermal heat pump, district heating, oil- or biofuel heated system.

This study investigates the role of yeast in green crop and its impact on the aerobic stability of silage. Fresh crop was collected from 15 farms in southern and middle parts of Sweden during the summer 2014; samples from the primary harvest was collected from eight farms and samples from the first regrowth harvest was collected from seven farms. The grass was ensiled in 1.7 l glass silos. After three months of ensiling, silos were opened and silages were stored aerobically for 10 days. Samples from both harvests were ensiled in completely airtight silos, but samples from the second harvest were also ensiled in slightly ventilated silos. Chemical analyses and yeast counts were performed for fresh crop and silage.

Hemp is an annual energy crop that fits very well in Swedish crop rotations. It is an interesting crop with many benefits, for example its ability to establish a large quantity of biomass in one year. Hemp is easy to grow and out-competes unwanted weeds through its aggressive growth pattern without the need for pesticides. Interest in growing hemp and other energy crops is currently decreasing, apparently because of high grain prices. These high prices give a higher net profit that we believe could partly cover the cost of hemp cultivation, while the hemp in turn would improve the crop rotation and thus repay its debts in the form of increased yields of other crops. The great disadvantage of hemp is the lack of knowledge about spring harvest of the crop.

This thesis aims to investigate if there are any differences in the value relevance of yearly earnings announcements before (2000-2004) and after (2005-2009) IFRS were implemented for listed companies in the European Union. To assess the value relevance of earnings, an earnings response coefficient (ERC) is estimated using a linear OLS-regression model. The regression model uses accounting earnings per share as the explaining variable, with the corresponding return starting from (but not including) the previous year's earnings announcement date, ending at (and including) the current earnings announcement date, as the dependent variable. This study finds that there is no statistically significant difference between the estimated ERCs for the two periods. Although no statistically significant difference is found, data shows that the R2-values, which measure the explanatory power of the regressions, are higher for the period before IFRS.

This report is the product of the course AF101X, a bachelors degree in Samhällsbyggnad atKTH. The task of the course is to design a small house at a given location and also implement adeepening study. The house in this report is located in Kiruna in the north of Sweden, where theclimate is much colder than in the rest of the country.The deepening study of this report is to evaluates how realistic passive housing north of thePolar Circle is based on those facts. The house will to some extent be designed to fit the passivehousing standard.

A common perception is that fungicide treatments increases yield, but that the nitrogen of the particular grain is diluted so that the overall removal of grain nitrogen from the field remains unchanged. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate that a healthy crop reduces the risk of nutrient loss from agricultural land. The results from genotype and plant protection trials often show constant nitrogen content in the grain, although the yield has been increased. Results from such experiments are therefore processed in order to confirm this and show that it is no statistically significant difference between the protein content (and also nitrogen content) in crops which have undergone fungicide treatment compared to crops which remained untreated. The trials processed have been carried out in the southernmost part of Sweden and are distinguished to concern winter wheat production.The explanation to the results is that a healthy crop is able to maintain the biological functions of the plant in a more efficient way than a crop damaged by a fungal infection.