Groundnut is the most important legume in Ghana. The crop is grown in all the agroecologies in the country; from the dry savannah regions to the moist forest areas. Several food preparations incorporate groundnut to improve the protein level, taste and flavour. Despite the importance of the crop, the chemical compositions of the varieties grown by farmers have not been analyzed according to their nutritional quality. Oil, fatty acids, protein, oleic/linoleic (O/L) acid ratio, iodine value and free soluble sugars were studied in 20 groundnut varieties grown in Ghana to determine their nutritional quality and to inform endusers which variety to choose for maximum benefit. Results indicated a significant difference (p<0.05) in oil content among the varieties. Oil content ranged from 33.60 to 54.95%. Mean oil content of the subspecies hypogaea (49.7%) was higher than in subspecies fastigiata (47.3%). The major fatty acids were oleic and linoleic which accounted for 77.89% of the total fatty acids. The subspecies hypogaea had significantly higher (p<0.01) content of oleic acid (55.9%) than the subspecies fastigiata (43.3%). The sum of three fatty acids oleic, linoleic and palmitic acid constitute 89.35% of the total fatty acids of the seeds. The mean O/L ratio ranged from 1.14 to 3.66; the mean for subspecies hypogaea was 2.59 as compared to 1.28 for subspecies fastigiata. There was high correlation between oleic and O/L acid ratio (r 2 =0.983) and negative correlation between oleic acid and linoleic acid (r 2 =-0.996). The iodine value ranged from 85.77 to 98.43% and total soluble sugars from 9.20 to 13.30%. Protein of defatted portion ranged from 39.65 to 53.45%. Subspecies fastigiata had higher mean protein content than subspecies hypogaea. Generally, there were significant variations in the parameters measured in the groundnut varieties. Five varieties with O/L ratio more than 2.0 were identified and their oils would be further tested for their stability.

Thirteen cassava (Manihor esculenla L Crantz) varieties from three successive annual harvests were screened for the mealiness of the cooked tuber, and the elasticity and smoothness of the pounded paste. Six were selected for further studies based on their mealiness and the starch and dry matter contents were determined. The diameter of the starch granules of the selected varieties and those of an irradiated M, V, population were measured. Microscopic examinations of the raw and cooked cells of the irradiated M,V, population were made. Correlations among all the parameters were studied. Varietal and seasonal differences in cooking quality were observed. There was no consistent relationship between mealiness of the boiled tuber and the elasticity and smoothness of the pounded paste. Varieties that were mealy were high in dry matter and starch content. The starch granules of mealy varieties were larger than those of nonmealy ones. There were no differences between mealy and non-mealy varieties in the arrangement of the cells or 'cell condition', of the raw tubers. However, the cells of the cooked tubers were held less cohesively, ie there was more 'cell disorganisation ', in mealy varieties than in non-mealy ones.

Two short-season soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) cultivars, Altona and Clay, were tested in narrow rows (10, 15, 20 and 30 cm), and at four rectangularities (1:1, 1:2, 1:3, and 1:4) giving plant densities that ranged from 11 000 to 4 000 000 plants per hectare. Significant yield differences were demonstrated by narrowing row width, but not by changing rectangularity. In a second experiment, the same cultivars were grown in rows 15, 30, 45, and 60 cm apart, but with the density held constant at 670 000 plants/ha. This resulted in respective rectangularities of 1:1.5, 1:6, 1:13.6 and 1:24. Neither seed yield nor its components showed any significant response to row spacing in the second experiment.

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