3. Alterations in yield, physicochemical components and mineral composition of
onion following organic manure and inorganic nitrogen application
Mbulelo Ncayiyanaa,b, Martin M. Mabokoa and Isa Bertlingb
aAgricultural Research Council–Vegetable and Ornamental Plants (ARC-VOP), Pretoria, South Africa; bHorticultural Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
ABSTRACT
Onion is the one of the most important vegetable crops grown extensively throughout the world; hence, understanding the response of the crop to the form and amount of N provided is of immense importance. In a field experiment, poultry and cattle manure (at 10 t/ha) were compared with four inorganic nitrogen (N) application levels (0, 60, 90 and 120 kg N/ha), and six
combinations of manure and N applications were investigated. Plant growth and total yield (kg/ha) significantly increased, when N application increased from 0 to 120 kg/ha, with or without added poultry manure. Plant height, leaf number and neck thickness were significantly reduced at 0 kg/ha N plus cattle manure. The bulb ascorbic acid concentration significantly increased
with the use of poultry manure (15.94 mg/100 g) and cattle manure (15.94 mg/100 g), compared with 120 kg/ha inorganic N (11.42 mg/100 g). No significant effects were observed on total phenolics and total soluble solids of onion bulbs following the different fertiliser treatments. Cattle manure increased P and K concentrations, whilst poultry manure significantly increased Zn
and Fe concentrations in onion bulbs. Onion bulb Ca and Mg concentrations were lower when cattle manure (0.19% and 0.12%) was used than when other organic or inorganic fertilisers were used. Therefore, organic manure increases the concentrations of certain minerals in onions, compared with inorganic N application, without negatively affecting bulb size.
KEYWORD S
Allium cepa L. Poultry manure; cattle manure; nitrogen
Changes in yield and gas exchange parameters in Festulolium and alfalfa grown in
pure sowing and in mixture under drought stress
Mariola Staniak, Jolanta Bojarszczuk and Jerzy Księż ak
Department of Forage Crop Production, Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation – State Research Institute Puławy, Poland
ABSTRACT
Crop performance and yield are the results of genotypic expression as modulated by continuous interaction with the environment. Among environmental factors, water is globally one of the most limiting for crop production. Water resources in the world are steadily diminishing and in many areas, including Poland, more frequent periods of drought are being observed. The aim of
the study was to compare the yields and gas exchange parameters of Festulolium hybrid ( Festulolium braunii (K. Richt) A. Camus) and alfalfa ( Medicago × varia T. Martyn) under different levels of soil moisture (well-watered conditions and drought stress) and cultivation method (pure stand and mixture). The study has shown that all the measured parameters were affected by
drought stress. Net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance and dry mass yield were significantly lower under drought stress than under well-watered conditions in all treatment types. Alfalfa grown in a pure sowing showed the strongest reaction to stress, while hybrid Festulolium grown in mixture showed the weakest. It was also found that under stress, grass assimilated CO2 and evaporated water much more intensively in mixture cultivation than in pure sowing. Higher water use efficiency (WUE) was observed in alfalfa and Festulolium growing in mixture only in the first year of the study.
KEYWORD S
Alfalfa; Festulolium; physiological plant parameters; productivity; water stress
Concentration of trace and major elements in natural grasslands of Bosnia and
Herzegovina in relation to soil properties and plant species
Jasmina Vejnovica, Branko Djuricb, Peder Lombnæsc and Bal Ram Singha
aFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Ås, Norway; bInstitute of Field Crops, University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Banja Luka, Republic of Srpska; cThe Division of Food Production and Society, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Ås Norway
ABSTRACT
Deficient trace elements concentration in soils, forages, and animals have been reported in several areas of Balkan region. Main challenge in overcoming low productivity of forage and animal production in this region is the lack of data on the nutritional status of the pastures and soils. This study examined the nutrient and pseudo total concentration of trace elements in soil and herbage plants, and the potential deficiency or excess with regards to crop and livestock production. Soil and plant samples from 100 sampling points were collected in the mountainous grasslands of Manjača (between longitudes 16°56 ′ and 17°8 ′ east; and latitudes 44°33 ′ and 44° 42 ′ north) and Vlašić (between longitudes 17°14 ′ and 17°29 ′ east; and latitudes 44°25 ′ and 44°37 ′
north). Soil samples were analysed for soil texture, pseudo total concentration (5 ml HNO3) of trace elements (TE), pH, soil organic carbon (SOC), while plant samples were analysed for TE. The soil pH varied from strongly acidic to moderately alkaline. The concentration of SOC varied from 0.5% to 12.3%. Most of the soil samples were finer-textured soils high in silt content. The
average concentrations of Na, P, Zn, Se, Cu, Co, and B were low in both soil and herbage plants. Plant K, Ca, Mg, Mo, and Mn concentrations were sufficiently high to meet the requirements of grazing animals, while Fe concentrations was elevated in certain areas. High levels of Mo were in both soil and plants. The results suggest that imbalances observed in natural pastures
of Manjača and Vlašić area, caused by low soil TE concentration and other soil and plant properties, could contribute to poor animal nutrition.
KEYWORD S
Micronutrients; natural grasslands; nutrient deficiency; soil properties; trace elements
Ecosystem C and N dynamics affected by a modified spring barley trait with
increased nitrogen use - a simulation case study
Henrik Eckerstena, Håkan Marstorpb, Dennis Collentineb,c, Holger Johnssonb and Thomas Kättererd
aDepartment of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden; bDepartment of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden; cDepartment of Business and Economics Studies, University of Gävle, Gävle, Sweden; dDepartment of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
ABSTRACT
To what extent might a crop with increased plant N uptake efficiency and/or N demand increase plant biomass and soil carbon storage, decrease N leaching, and reduce the need for N fertilisation? This was assessed for a fertilised sandy loam site in central Sweden cultivated with spring barley for a four year period using a process based crop and soil simulation model (SOILN) calibrated to fit observations of field experiments with non-modified crops. Crop properties were changed in accordance with previous model applications to other crops with higher N uptake and utilisation efficiencies, to resemble potential effects of breeding. For the modified crops a doubling of daily uptake efficiency of soil mineral N and/or increase of radiation use efficiency by 30%, increased plant biomass by 3%–30%, decreased N leaching by 1%–30% and increased soil organic carbon (SOC) content by 1 –12 g C m −2 year −1 . The larger changes were mainly due to increased uptake efficiency. Fertilisation of the modified spring barley crop could be reduced while still producing the same plant biomass as the non-modified crop. The plant biomass to N leaching ratio of the modified crops increased. The simulated changes in plant biomass and SOC were sensitive to weather conditions suggesting that in situ experiments would need to cover a large range of weather conditions to evaluate the
performance of new crop traits under climatic variability. The study suggests a strong need that field experiments are accompanied with model applications, when exploring the potential of the modified crops under variable conditions.
KEYWORD S
Plant breeding; N uptake; N utilisation; N leaching; SOC; sandy loam; Sweden
Exploring optimal soil mulching to enhance maize yield and water use efficiency
in dryland areas in China
Liang Gaimeia,b, Wang Yuguoa, Chi Baoliangb, Li Nanab, Chen Wenliangc and Qin Weid
aCollege of Agriculture, Shanxi Agriculture University, Taigu, People’s Republic of China; bDryland Agriculture Research Center, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China; cInstitute of Crop Genetics, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China; dDepartment of Soil Quality, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
ABSTRACT
Water and nutrient availability significantly limits global crop production, especially for dryland agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions. To explore the optimal soil mulching options for the Loess Plateau in China, a 3-year field study was conducted to investigate the effects of various soil mulching practices on soil temperature and the water use and grain yield of spring maize.
The treatments included traditional flat farming (CK), narrow plastic film mulch (NM), wide plastic film mulch (WM) and narrow plastic film mulch + maize straw mulch between rows (MS). The results showed that MS treatment increased consistently soil temperature during the initial stages of maize growth, and more importantly, it reduced diurnal temperature variation. MS also increased in soil water storage by 10.1%, leading to the highest water use efficiency (WUE = 30.9 kg ha −1 mm −1 ) over CK on 3 year average. MS significantly increased maize yield and net income of farmers by up to 20%, compared to CK. In conclusion, optimisation of soil mulching strategies significantly enhanced crop yield and water productivity in dryland agriculture in China. Our study provides important guidance for exploring better soil management practice for dryland agriculture in the other regions of the world.
KEYWORD S
Soil water; dryland; mulch; maize yield; precipitation
Inoculation treatments affect the migration and colonisation of rhizobia in alfalfa
( Medicago sativa L .) plants
Yang-yang Miaoa, Shang-li Shi a, Zhong-nan Nie b, Wen-juan Kanga and Taylor P Frazierc
aCollege of Grassland Science, Key Laboratory for Grassland Ecosystem of Ministry of Education, Pratacultural Engineering Laboratory of Gansu Province, Sino-U.S. Centers for Grazing Land Ecosystem Sustainability, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, People’s Republic of China; b Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources, Private Bag 105, Hamilton, VIC, Australia; cDepartment of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The purposes of this study were to characterise the migration and the colonisation dynamics of two different fluorescent-tagged rhizobia in various alfalfa tissues (especially in seeds); and also to develop efficient inoculation treatments to promote colonisation ability of target rhizobia in elite seed varieties.
Materials and methods: Four treatments (root drench, root damaging and drench, root drench with matrine, and flower spray) were applied to inoculate alfalfa with two fluorescent-tagged rhizobia, Ensifer meliloti LZgn5f (gn5f) and Ensifer meliloti 12531f (12531f), at three different growth stages; bud, flower and pod stages. The migration and colonisation dynamics of the two fluorescent tagged rhizobia strains were monitored using UV lamp detection and a stereo fluorescence microscopy.
Results: The results showed that both rhizobia strains mainly colonised the roots and could migrate to aerial tissues. In aerial tissues, when alfalfa plants were inoculated during the bud stage, both rhizobia strains mainly colonised the leaves and stems; during the flower stage, a spray inoculation treatment resulted in more 12531f colonising reproductive tissues, while during the pod stage, more rhizobial strains gn5f colonised seeds using the root drench with matrine treatment.
Conclusions: These results indicate that endophytic rhizobia are natural inhabitants of internal regions of roots, stems, leaves and that the endophytes may arise from reproductive tissues, such as seeds. Understanding the population dynamics of endophytic rhizobia in alfalfa would considerably improve the survival of target rhizobia during seed transfer. Combining target endogenous rhizobial species with good alfalfa seed varieties may lead to the development of a novel breeding method.
KEYWORD S
Alfalfa; colonisation dynamics; fluorescent tagged rhizobia; inoculation treatments; reproductive stage
Long-term impact of no-till conservation agriculture on abundance and order
diversity of soil macrofauna in continuous maize monocropping system
Nkanyiso J. Sitholea, Lembe S. Magwazaa,b, Paramu L. Mafongoyaa,c and Guy R. Thibaudd
aDiscipline of Crop Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa; bDiscipline of Horticultural Science, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa; cSouth African Chair in Agronomy and Rural Development, School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa; dSoil and Analytical Services Division, Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Rural Development, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
ABSTRACT
Unsuitable soil management in agriculture is known to results in the deterioration of soil health and the decline of biodiversity. The experiment tested whether no-tillage with mulch (NT), could boost biological activity of soil macrofauna population in continuous maize monocropping system compared with rotational tillage with mulch (RT) and conventional tillage (CT). Soil macrofauna was sampled at the end of the 2014/2015 growing season using 25 × 25 × 25 cm steel monoliths. The mean density of individual orders was higher ( p < 0.001) under NT (46%) and RT (38%) compared with CT (16%). However, the Shannon-Weaver index revealed that the diversity and evenness of orders were similar for all treatments. Macrofauna patterns revealed that NT and RT contained higher ( p < 0.001) population of Isoptera and Diplopoda. Isoptera was 51% and 17% higher in NT than CT and RT, while in Diplopoda, NT was 39% and 2% higher than CT and RT, respectively. It was concluded that NT and RT systems favoured the development of macrofauna communities in the studied maize continuous monoculture cropping system but did not favour order diversity of macrofauna. This suggests the importance of crop rotation for the development of the more diverse macrofaunal population.
KEYWORD S
Conservation agriculture; macrofauna diversity; Shannon-Weaver index; soil invertebrates
Preparations of plant origin enhance carbohydrate content in plant tissues of
rooted cuttings of rambler roses: Rosa beggeriana ‘ Polstjärnan’ and Rosa helenae
‘ Semiplena’
Marta Joanna Mondera and Andrzej Pacholczakb
aPolish Academy of Sciences Botanical Garden - Center for Biological Diversity Conservation in Powsin Warsaw, Poland; bDepartment of Ornamental Plants, Warsaw University of Life Science Warsaw, Poland
ABSTRACT
During rhizogenesis, carbohydrates are an important source of energy for the plant tissues. It has been hypothesised that phenological phase of the shoot plays a major role in plant’s response to rooting stimulants and affects the cuttings’ carbohydrate content. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of phenological phase of the shoots and the use of rooting stimulants of plant origin on the relationship between rooting abilities and the carbohydrate content in leaves and stems of cuttings. Single-node stem cuttings of Rosa beggeriana ‘Polstjärnan’ and Rosa helenae ‘Semiplena’ were harvested from shoots in four phenological stages: flower buds closed (P1), flowers open (P2), immediately after petal shedding (P3), and 7–14 days after petal fall (P4). The following rooting enhancers were used: 0.4% indole butyric acid (IBA) (Ukorzeniacz Aaqua); 0.2% naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) (Ukorzeniacz Baqua); Bio Rhizotonic; and Root Juice™; Bio Roots. Controls included untreated
cuttings. The contents of reducing and total soluble carbohydrates in leaves and shoots were estimated before and after rooting. The rooting percentage and rooting degree were determined. A relatively high or moderate natural rooting ability without any treatment were shown by R. beggeriana ‘Polstjärnan’ in 63.8%–87.5% and by R. helenae ‘Semiplena’ in 41.3%– 72.5% cuttings. IBA and NAA decreased the mean rooting percentage in ‘Polstjärnan’, but increased it for P4 cuttings in ‘Semiplena’. None of the preparations had any impact on the degree of rooting. The mean level of total soluble and reducing sugars in leaves and stems of cuttings before rooting was lower than that of after root formation. The preparations of plant origin positively affected rhizogenesis and sugar contents in plant tissues, but their effect depended on shoot’s phenological phase and cultivar. Plant origin preparations may successfully replace those containing IBA or NAA.
KEYWORD S
Biostimulant; IBA; NAA; propagation; shoot maturity
Presence of war related elements in dandelion ( Taraxacum officinale) as a possible
consequence of military activities in east Croatia
Bijelić Lidijaa,c, Puntarić Dinkob, Gvozdić Vlatkad, Vidosavljević Domagojc, Jurić Draganac, Lončarić Zdenkoe, Puntarić Adaf, Puntarić Edag, Vidosavljević Marinah, Puntarić Idai, Muller Andrijanac and Šijanović Sinišac
aInstitute for Medical Assessment, Professional Rehabilitation and Disabled Persons Varaždin, Croatia; bCroatian Catholic University Zagreb, Croatia; cFaculty of Medicine, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University Osijek Osijek, Croatia; dDepartment of Chemistry, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University Osijek Osijek, Croatia; eFaculty of Agriculture, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University Osijek Osijek, Croatia; fFaculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology Zagreb, Croatia; gCroatian Agency for the Environment and Nature Zagreb, Croatia; hVinkovci County General Hospital Vinkovci, Croatia; iZagreb County Community Health Center Samobor, Croatia
ABSTRACT
This is the first study on concentrations of war related elements in dandelion from war effected areas of Croatia. Previous research done on human subjects, soil and water has shown abnormalities in distribution of war associated metals and metalloids in war affected areas compared with peacetime locations. Dandelion, as wide spread perennial herb, is considered as very useful plant in determination of trace elements pollution in various ecosystems. Aim of the research was to try to determine whether concentrations of war related elements (Al, As, B, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Li, Mg, Ni, P, Pb, Sb, Si, Sr, U, V and Zn) concentrations in dandelion (Taraxacum officinalle) samples in areas of high intensity of combat activities differ from areas of
low intensity of combat activities, and to clarify possible contamination in dandelion as an indicator (and edible) plant with it’s role in food chain. Leaves of the dandelion were taken at locations (28 locations at 11 settlements) were divided into two major subgroups: high and low intensity of combat activities, at the locations of major explosions, former minefields, army trenches … Analysis was done using ICP-MS and data was interpreted using Mann Whitney test and PCA. Results have shown that there is difference in concentration of war related elements among different locations, with generally, higher concentrations of war elements in war areas compared with control group. Maximum concentrations of As, B, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Li, Mg, Ni, P,
Pb, Sb, Si, Sr, U, V and Zn were higher in areas of high intensity of combat activities. When results are compared with similar researches, overall presence of metals and metalloids is legally acceptable, however, there are differences in concentrations between war and peacetime locations.
KEYWORD S
Dandelion; selected elements; ICP-MS; war
