This is a study that will focus on the possibility to learn information about a town and its inhabitants of the 18th century by analyzing individual titles in the church records. The records that are used in this study are marriage registration administrated by the local church of the town of Uddevalla. The records are very detailed and each individual registered have a title, such as ?tradesman? or ?maiden?. Since the source are a registration of all the weddings that took place during the period of 1700 to 1749, the source gives very broad and valid information about the inhabitants of the town.

The wild boar (Sus scrofa) is since its recent establishment and increasing density a controversial species in Sweden. But the attitudes towards the wild boar are poorly documented so far. To improve this knowledge, a questionnaire was sent out to chosen people (n=400) connected to the management and/or land use activities. The study got 162 replies (reply frequency 40,5%) and the results show varying attitude trends among organizations and individuals, with some aspects coherent within groups and some not. Farmers and their organization showed the most negative attitudes towards wild boars, which was expected due to the practical and economic problems they suffer from this species. People involved with forestry were more positive to wild boars, probably because the species does not affect forest growth etc severely, and may even promote plant establishment by the rooting.

With a shifting world market and periodically profitability issues, Swedish Farmers seekalternative ways to enhance their profitability. One interesting alternative to get a highervalue and enhance products is biodiesel, a way to improve the profitability on a farmscale.The diesel that is produced and sold, already have a mixture of 5% biodiesel, andthere is a possibility to add more biodiesel to it. By developing new engines severalengine-manufacturers now allow a mixture up to 100% biodiesel in their engines. Hencethere is a market for an increased production of biodiesel. The aim of this study were toinvestigate the possibilities and the problems related to farm-scale production ofbiodiesel, and to study the profit margin in the production.

To create multifunctional buffer strips along a watercourse in an economically sustainable way requires consideration of many different factors. In this plan we have selected pollutant reduction as the main purpose of the buffer strip. We have also strived to achieve minimal income loss due to reduced production, increased biological diversity, good game preservation that leads to higher income from hunting, aesthetical satisfaction and possibility to profit from available subsidies. This is done mainly to make landowners/Farmers more interested in creating buffer strips along water courses.As sand is the dominant type of soil in the area, the water course is less affected by surface runoff compared to if the soil would be clay or some other finer texture. Game preservation and subsidies have therefore been the main factors when establishing the width of the strip, because these require wider buffer strips in some cases.

This work is about silage contaminated with slugs (Arion lusitanicus). The hypothesis was: Do slugs affect the nutritional value and hygiene quality of silage? During the winter season 2007/2008 silages were discarded in big amounts due to the contamination of slugs. Both the Swedish Farmer Association (LRF) and the National Veterinary Institute (SVA) received phone calls from Farmers and animal owners about contaminated silage. The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and SVA decided to initiate this project as a master thesis.

To create multifunctional buffer strips along a watercourse in an economically sustainable way requires consideration of many different factors. In this plan we have selected pollutant reduction as the main purpose of the buffer strip. We have also strived to achieve minimal income loss due to reduced production, increased biological diversity, good game preservation that leads to higher income from hunting, aesthetical satisfaction and possibility to profit from available subsidies. This is done mainly to make landowners/Farmers more interested in creating buffer strips along water courses. As sand is the dominant type of soil in the area, the water course is less affected by surface runoff compared to if the soil would be clay or some other finer texture. Game preservation and subsidies have therefore been the main factors when establishing the width of the strip, because these require wider buffer strips in some cases.

There are two species of potato cyst nematode (PCN), the yellow, Globodera rostochiensis, and the white, Globodera pallida. Each of them can appear in different pathotypes. These are separated by testing the nematode ability to multiply on a number of potato cultivars with different resistance properties. The aim of this project was to examine the virulence of Swedish and foreign PCN populations and to compare two test methods. Biotests are today the only available tests used to study virulence.

The economic prerequisite to many Farmers in Sweden after the EU membership and the new agriculture policy has generated large demands on the farm management. Until year 2004 you got a grant based on what you had produced and not on consumer demand. In 2005 a new economic aid (Mid Term Revue) was introduced and the conditions has changed again. Due to this I have chosen to do a cost-benefit analysis on a case, to investigate if the present production is sustainable in the future. My conclusion is that the profitability is acceptable even if the farm has a high debt. But to make the production more profitable the products produced should be refined as much as possible at the farm, to get maximum economic return.

Yesterdays common fertilizing strategy was to apply phosphor (P) and potassium (K) in thefall a few times in the crop rotation. In the spring only nitrogen (N) was applied. Recent trialsand studies has shown that this strategy, N+P/PK, is ineffective compared with the systemwhere NPK is spread every year in the spring. The strategy with annual NPK-fertilizer in thespring has proven to be better for the crop, the environment and the Farmers economy.In the NPK-system the crop responds with higher yields and better quality, especially in thespring cereals. This is mainly because of an interaction between the different nutrients in thefertilizer.

Climate change is a global and slow process that affects humans all over the world. Climate adaption within agriculture is important to reduce the risks that agricultures are exposed to because of climate change.  Through climate adaption you can improve the positive effects and take advantage of them optimally. How the climate change affects agricultures varies depending on regions and societies. The purposes of the study are to examine how different actors experience the impacts of climate change on the agriculture in Värmland.

Trade is the driving force for economic development. A greater equity in international trade can improve the livelihoods and the well being of producers in developing countries. The small-scale Farmers have limited resources and have difficulties to get access to the international market. As a result of this, the Fair Trade movement has been developed and has now formed a trading partnership between the producer and the consumer. This study analyses if the Fair Trade movement can be a way for the workers in developing countries to achieve more justice in their production manner in the international trade of cut flowers and continue to be an important competitor of these products, but with better livelihood conditions. My method has been to do a comprehensive literature study of the Fair Trade movement, in which I describe the certification process, and the market of Fair Trade in Sweden.

Farmers are required to make sure that cattles basic needs are met, but still every year cases of neglect occur where the farmer has not complied within the animal welfare law and regulations. The aim of this study was to investigate how cattle are affected physically and behaviourally by neglect in the form of underfeeding, starvation and lack of sanitation, which animals are most vulnerable to the impact and what prospects they have to recover. The study was conducted as a literature study and the results show that these types of neglect have a large impact on the cattle welfare. Underfeeding and starvation causes physical changes leading to reduced milk production, reduced muscle mass, impaired immune function, poor reproductive performance and changes in rumen microflora leading to decreased number of microbes and pH change. Physical changes due to the lack of sanitation consist of increased vulnerability to hoof diseases and mastitis, burns, and increased sensitivity to temperature.

Protecting the environment has with time grown to take a more central role in the society. Agriculture plays an important role in the society since this sector produces our food. More thorough research on how agriculture affects the environment is therefore motivated. This research can be used to improve the agricultural practice from an environmental point of view. This is something that both the Farmers and the consumers can profit from. This study aims to form the basis for creating environmental indicators for use of nitrogen and energy on dairy farms. Twenty-three Farmers in western Sweden have been interviewed about their farms, both organic and conventional. They produce milk with different intensity, defined as the amount of milk delivered (sold) per hectare of arable land.

In this study we try to focus on the costs for wear parts on different type of soil tillage machines and at Väderstad Rapid drilling machine. We have studied some of the leading types of cultivators and disk harrows. Among the cultivators we have investigated Väderstad Cultus, Dalbo Dinkomax, Horsch Tiger and Terrano. At disk harrow we have looked at Amazone Catros and Väderstad Carrier. We have made more detailed study on costs for wear parts, working depth, driving speed and diesel consumption.

Allanblackia is a tree genus native to humid forests in West, Central and East Africa. Its fruits contain large seeds from which edible high-quality fat can be extracted. In order to create a sustainable supply chain of Allanblackia seeds, a domestication program has been initiated with the purpose to enable smallholder Farmers to grow the tree as an agroforestry component and cash crop. More knowledge is required to understand the tree?s biology and possible symbioses involving soil microorganisms with plant growth enhancing poten-tial.