Orchard Area Research Articles

Enhancing tomato growth and soil fertility under salinity stress using halotolerant plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria

Soil salinization is a critical issue that not only hampers the efficiency and sustainability of global agricultural production but also poses significant challenges to the achievement of sustainable development goals across environmental, economic, and social dimensions. Halotolerant plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (HPGPR) have the potential to mitigate abiotic stress, foster plant growth, and bolster the stress resistance capabilities of crops. This study conducted the isolation, identification, and characterization of HPGPR originating from a saline-alkali orchard area in northwest China. The efficacy of the isolated bacterial strains was evaluated through potted plant experiments, assessing the growth of tomato plants under in vitro conditions and under varying salinity stress. Ultimately, the study investigated the influence of these HPGPR on soil physicochemical properties, enzymatic activities, and the structure and composition of the microbial community. Upon isolating 12 bacterial strains, we conducted an in vitro assessment of their salt tolerance, ultimately singling out three robust isolates, which exhibited exceptional salt tolerance. Detailed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and meticulous taxonomic evaluation systematically assigned these isolates to Priestia endophyticus GSCK1 (accession number: OR569048), Bacillus atrophaeus GSCK2 (accession number: OR569061), and Serratia fonticola GSCK6 (accession number: OR569062), respectively. These strains exhibited notable biochemical and plant growth-promoting traits, including enzymatic activities and the production of indole-3-acetic acid. They significantly enhanced plant growth metrics and soil fertilities, particularly strain GSCK6, which also reshaped the soil microbial community, augmenting beneficial microbe abundance. The HPGPR treatment notably improved soil pH, nutrient availability, enzymatic activities, and reduced soil electrical conductivity, underscoring their potential in agricultural resilience against salinity. The eco-friendly salt stress mitigation strategy of HPGPR not only enhances soil quality and promotes plant growth by regulating the composition and function of microbial communities, but also provides a novel solution for global agricultural production. This approach is conducive to increasing crop yield and quality, reducing the limitations of saline-alkali land on agricultural production, and promoting food security and sustainable agricultural development.

Once Common, Long in Decline: Dynamics of Traditional Orchards in a Central European Landscape

Traditional orchards are distinctive features of cultural landscapes in Central Europe. Despite their high level of ecological importance, they are in decline, and comprehensive spatial data over broad extents, which could enable a trend analysis, are lacking. We analysed traditional orchard maps from 1952 to 1967 and a map from 2010, generated via aerial image interpretation, for the state of Hesse (ca. 21,115 km2), which has the second largest share of traditional orchards in Germany. We aimed to (1) quantify long-term orchard dynamics, (2) compare orchard characteristics in terms of topographical, ecological, and socioeconomic factors, and (3) identify key drivers of orchard loss. We found that the number and area of orchards have clearly decreased across Hesse, with varying local and regional patterns. Further, historically old orchards tended to have a larger area, higher shape complexity, and were located closer to settlements, highways, and neighbouring orchards. In contrast, newly established orchards were often found at higher elevations and on steeper slopes. Finally, the three historical orchard hotspots also experienced the most notable losses driven by different factors, namely the expansion of Artificial Surfaces, Residential Buildings, and Agricultural Land. We highlight the importance of such multitemporal spatial data for a wide range of ecological applications, and we encourage the use of novel technologies to support geospatial analyses in the future.

An experimental study of acoustic bird repellents for reducing bird encroachment in pear orchards.

Bird invasion will reduce the yield of high-value crops, which threatens the healthy development of agricultural economy. Sonic bird repellent has the advantages of large range, no time and geographical restrictions, and low cost, which has attracted people's attention in the field of agriculture. At present, there are few studies on the application of sonic bird repellents in pear orchards to minimize economic losses and prolong the adaptive capacity of birds. In this paper, a sound wave bird repellent system based on computer vision is designed, which combines deep learning target recognition technology to accurately identify birds and drive them away. The neural network model that can recognize birds is first trained and deployed to the server. Live video is captured by an installed webcam, and the sonic bird repellent is powered by an ESP-8266 relay switch. In a pear orchard, two experimental areas were divided into two experimental areas to test the designed sonic bird repellent device, and the number of bad fruits pecked by birds was used as an indicator to evaluate the bird repelling effect. The results showed that the pear pecked fruit rate was 6.03% in the pear orchard area that used the acoustic bird repeller based on computer recognition, 7.29% in the pear orchard area of the control group that used the acoustic bird repeller with continuous operation, and 13.07% in the pear orchard area that did not use any bird repellent device. While acoustic bird repellers based on computer vision can be more effective at repelling birds, they can be used in combination with methods such as fruit bags to reduce the economic damage caused by birds.

Spatiotemporal changes of orchards in the ancient canal of the Yellow River using Landsat data

As an important part of the Yellow River Basin, the ancient canal of the Yellow River plays a great role in promoting ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin. There is a need to explore the distribution of the available resources to optimally manage and utilize them more effectively. By analyzing multi-temporal characteristic of the remote sensing images, the spatial temporal distribution characteristics of orchards in the ancient canal of Yellow River were investigated. Time series of orchards were derived from the Landsat images over a nearly 30-year period at approximately 5-year intervals since 1990. And the spatial distribution characteristics were qualified basing on the spatial overlay analysis methods. The results show that from 1990 to 2020, the orchard area in the ancient canal of the Yellow River increased rapidly in the early, then slowed down after 2000; the area of orchards in 2020 was about 1268.30 km2. Dangshan County, Feng County and Xiao County were the major areas planting orchards; 86.84 % of the orchards distributed in flat terrain with an elevation of 21–60 m, 88.50 % distributing on a slope of less than 4° and 91.12 % of the orchards distributed within the distance of more than 280 km from the coastline; Moran's I index of orchard planting density was greater than 0 for all four spatial scales and was increasing when downscaling, which showed significant spatial positive correlation. These findings provide helpful information for the research in promoting ecological protection and high-quality development of the ancient canal of the Yellow River Basin.

English

The district Toba Tek Singh is located in the center of Punjab province. It occupies 2nd important position in national citrus production after Sargodha, with citrus orchard area of 11412 hectares and annual production of 160758 tons. Citrus productivity in Pakistan, in general, and Toba Tek Singh, in particular, is far below its its potential which could be attributed to several factors but poor soil health and inadequate soil fertility may be considered an important reason. A comprehensive nutrient indexing survey of thirty citrus orchards grown in different parts of district Toba Tek Singh was conducted to evaluate the soil characteristics and plant nutrient status. GPS coordinates of selected sites were recorded prior to sampling. Soil samples were collected at 0-20 cm, 21-40 cm and 41-60 cm depth using standard procedure. Five soil samples were collected from each site to get a composite sample for each depth. The leaf samples were collected from the 7-month-old non-fruiting branches of plants around the tree canopy during the month of September, 2022. Five healthy and uniform citrus trees were sampled from each site to get a composite leaf sample. The soil samples were analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), soil organic matter (SOM) and calcium carbonate (CaCO3). The soil and leaf samples were analyzed for macro and micronutrients. It was found that most of orchard soils of district Toba Tek Singh were moderately alkaline (pH 7.52-8.90), slight to strong calcareous (2-15% CaCO3), non-saline (0.77-3.0 dS m-1 EC) and low in SOM (0.23-1.49%) with low to medium nitrogen (0.01-0.06%) and phosphorus (0.58-10.52 mg kg-1) while medium to high potassium (56.47-315.34 mg kg-1). The sampled soils were low to marginal in boron (0.09-0.72 mg kg-1), copper (0.05-0.59 mg kg-1), iron (0.23-10.75 mg kg-1) and zinc (0.03-1.83 mg kg-1) while adequate in manganese (1.35-26.20 mg kg-1). Leaf analysis revealed that almost 50% orchards were deficient in phosphorus (0.05-0.23%) and potassium (0.40-1.76%), while having low to marginal values of copper (1.96-20.99 mg kg-1), zinc (4.13-31.96 mg kg-1), boron (3.12-95.40 mg kg-1), manganese (42.62-96.46 mg kg-1) but adequate iron (171-552 mg kg-1). The surveyed orchard soils were mostly alkaline calcareous, deficient in organic matter and having low to moderate macro and micronutrients.

Research Progress on the Effects of Different Soil Methods in Orchards on Soil Nutrients and Fruit Trees

With the continuous expansion of the area of orchards, there are many ways of soil management among orchards. Orchard main line used at home and abroad are covered with grass cultivation, stubble cover, natural grass, fruit intercropping. Different management methods have a great influence on soil nutrient status, root distribution of fruit trees, leaf nutrient yield and fruit quality. In this paper, the main 4 management methods of orchards at home and abroad are summarized: different soil management methods have different effects on soil Nutrients, fruit trees have different effects. This paper analyzes some problems existing in these four kinds of soil management methods and puts forward the problems that need to be solved in the future so as to provide a theoretical basis for exploring suitable soil management methods in orchard of our country.

The Detection of Crown Gall Disease in Kahramanmaraş and Surrounding Provinces

Aims: The aim of the study is to isolate the bacterial agent causing crown gall disease in Kahramanmaraş and its surrounding provinces, determine its prevalence in the region, and conduct its identification. 
 Material and methods: Between June and September of 2017-2019, strains obtained from the shoots and galls of vines showing symptoms of galls in vineyards in Kahramanmaraş, Adıyaman, Kilis, Gaziantep, and Şanlıurfa provinces were subjected to pathogenicity tests, classical, molecular, and MALDI-TOF MS identification.
 Results and Discussion: In this study, the prevalence of crown gall disease in 46 vineyards showing disease symptoms was determined as follows: Kahramanmaraş 76.47%, Adıyaman 75%, Gaziantep 50%, Kilis 33.33%, and Şanlıurfa 20%. From the 46 contaminated vineyards in the study area, 24 pathogenic of R. vitis strains were obtained. In the pathogenicity test conducted with R. vitis strains on the Hatun Parmağı grape variety under greenhouse conditions, the most virulent strains were determined based on the weights of the galls formed, and they were identified as CU52-3/2, CU39-11/5, and CU39-8/1. According to classical tests, 13 strains showed 100% similarity to R. vitis, while molecular characterization with R. vitis-specific primers revealed that 17 strains had the virA gene, 13 strains had the pehA gene, 10 strsains had the virF gene, and 6 strains had the octopine-type plasmid. Ten strains, representing the sample, were identicated as R. vitis through MALDI-TOF MS analysis. This study revealed the impact of pathogenic strains with different virulences on the same grape variety. In line with this, of control methods against highly virulent bacterial agents in reducing losses in plants can be investigated for their applicability in field and orchard areas in subsequent studies.
 Conclusions: Research on different grape varieties is essential to develop varieties that are resistant or tolerant to R. vitis, the pathogen causing this prevalent disease in Turkish viticulture.

Effects of cultural practices on soil respiration in hazelnut orchards and a comparison with an adjacent natural oak forest.

Soil respiration (RS) is one of the largest terrestrial sources of CO2 causing global warming and may vary according to land use and vegetation type. Türkiye is in the first place in the world in terms of area of hazelnut orchards that are generally converted from natural forests. The aim of this study was the comparison of the effects of cultural practices (pruning, fertilizing, and pruning+fertilizing) on RS in hazelnut orchards and that of the adjacent natural oak forest. Every trial site had a statistically similar annual mean RS, which ranged from 0.15 to 1.55 g C m-2 day-1. The RS on the sites was different only in the spring season and was similar in the other seasons. The RS of the pruned and fertilized hazelnut orchard (Hpf) in the spring was 58% greater than the unmaintained hazelnut orchard (Hc) and oak forest and 28% greater than the only fertilized hazelnut orchard (Hf). The RS of Hpf was also greater than other sites in most monthly measurements. While the positive correlation between soil moisture and RS was on an annual basis (r = 0.44), it was higher in summer (r = 0.61) and autumn (r = 0.55) seasons. The negative correlation between soil temperature and RS in the summer and autumn seasons evolved positively in winter. The results of the study suggest that the maintenance practices applied in the hazelnut garden could increase RS in the spring when soil moisture and temperature are optimal but have no effect in other seasons or on an annual basis.

Apple pest and pathogen reduction in landscapes with large patch size and small area of orchards: a national-scale analysis

ContextThe composition and configuration of habitats in agricultural landscapes may determine crop damage resulting from pests or pathogens either by directly affecting their population dynamics or through indirect effects on their natural enemies.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess the impact of landscape composition and configuration on the occurrence and damage caused by the codling moth and apple scab in apple orchards.MethodsUsing monitoring data at the French national scale, we examined how the proportion of landscape area grown with orchards, the mean patch area of orchards, the share of organic orchards and the proportion of woodlands and grasslands affected the occurrence and damage of these two pests from 2015 to 2019 in approximately sixty apple orchards each year.ResultsLandscapes with a higher proportion of orchards supported a higher occurrence of apple scab and earlier colonisation of codling moths. In addition, we found that codling moth damage decreased with increasing orchard patch area in the landscape. The proportion of seminatural habitats or organic farming in the landscape never significantly explained pest occurrence or damage.ConclusionsOur results clearly highlight the importance of considering the amount and spatial arrangement of the pests’ and pathogens’ host crops to understand their infestation levels. Our study calls for the territorial management of orchard distribution to limit pesticide use in apple orchards.

Apple production: area, gross yield, productivity in the world and main countries

At present, the location of fruit and berry production in specific regions and countries of the world is determined by natural and climatic conditions and the biological characteristics of the crops concerned. Apples are one of the most important fruits in the world, both in terms of production volume and international trade parameters. For some countries, including Russia, they are the basis for the formation of the corresponding product balance for fruit and berry products. In this regard, the authors set the goal of analyzing the trends in the development of apple orchards for 2011‑2021 in the world as a whole and in the countries ranked in the top 20 by a number of indicators: harvested area of apple orchards, gross yield and productivity. Based on FAO statistics, it was found that over this period, the global harvested area of apple orchards decreased from 4.961 million ha to 4.822 million ha. However, it increased from 0.289 million ha to 0.313 million ha in India, which ranks second behind China, and from 0.188 million ha to 0.225 million ha in Russia (third in this ranking). These three countries will rank first, fifth and seventh in terms of gross apple yield in 2021. At the same time, the production of this seed fruit in Russia increased from 1.198 to 2.216 million tons between 2011 and 2021, i.e. by a factor of 1.85. In terms of productivity, none of these three countries was among the top 20 for this indicator. In order to strengthen Russia’s food security in fruit and berry products, it is necessary to further promote the development of domestic apple horticulture on the basis of intensive technologies.

Effects of land cover patterns on pond water nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in a small agricultural watershed in Central China

Seasonal variations in agricultural land cover patterns and their spatial scale effects on surface water nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations in watersheds have been major concerns. Understanding the relationships between land cover metrics and pond nutrients are of great significance to enhance water contamination prediction efficiencies and guide land use planning in agricultural watersheds. In this context, the present study aims to investigate the seasonal variations in the N and P concentrations in 28 ponds in a developed agricultural watershed in central China in 2019. Multivariate statistical analyses were applied to assess the relationships of the pond water N and P concentrations with multi-scale land cover patterns. Besides the pond water ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N) concentrations, the total nitrogen (TN), nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N), total phosphorus (TP), and dissolved phosphorus (DP) concentrations in the investigated ponds were higher in summer than those observed in other seasons. The hierarchical partitioning model results demonstrated a spatial consistency in scale effects of land cover metrics on the pond hydrochemical parameters in the different seasons. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that the land cover patterns better predicted the variations in the pond water N and P concentrations at the 100 m buffer zone scale in spring and summer, as well as at the 50 m buffer zone scale in fall and winter. Among the land cover metrics considered in this study, the orchard area proportion (POR), landscape shape index (LSI), and largest patch index (LPI) showed the highest significant correlations with the pond water N and P concentrations. The results of this study provide valuable information for effective land use management to control pond water pollution and promote sustainable development in agricultural watersheds.

Research on a UAV spray system combined with grid atomized droplets.

UAVs for crop protection hold significant potential for application in mountainous orchard areas in China. However, certain issues pertaining to UAV spraying need to be addressed for further technological advancement, aimed at enhancing crop protection efficiency and reducing pesticide usage. These challenges include the potential for droplet drift, limited capacity for pesticide solution. Consequently, efforts are required to overcome these limitations and optimize UAV spraying technology. In order to balance high deposition and low drift in plant protection UAV spraying, this study proposes a plant protection UAV spraying method. In order to study the operational effects of this spraying method, this study conducted a UAV spray and grid impact test to investigate the effects of different operational parameters on droplet deposition and drift. Meanwhile, a spray model was constructed using machine learning techniques to predict the spraying effect of this method. This study investigated the droplet deposition rate and downwind drift rate on three types of citrus trees: traditional densely planted trees, dwarf trees, and hedged trees, considering different particle sizes and UAV flight altitudes. Analyzing the effect of increasing the grid on droplet coverage and deposition density for different tree forms. The findings demonstrated a significantly improved droplet deposition rate on dwarf and hedged citrus trees compared to traditional densely planted trees and adopting a fixed-height grid increased droplet coverage and deposition density for both the densely planted and trellised citrus trees, but had the opposite effect on dwarfed citrus trees. When using the grid system. Among the factors examined, the height of the sampling point exhibited the greatest influence on the droplet deposition rate, whereas UAV flight height and droplet particle size had no significant impact. The distance in relation to wind direction had the most substantial effect on droplet drift rate. In terms of predicting droplet drift rate, the BP neural network performed inadequately with a coefficient of determination of 0.88. Conversely, REGRESS, ELM, and RBFNN yielded similar and notably superior results with a coefficient of determination greater than 0.95. Notably, ELM demonstrated the smallest root mean square error.

Impact of Huanglongbing on Citrus Orchards: A Spatiotemporal Study in Xunwu County, Jiangxi Province

Due to human activities and changes in land use, the spatiotemporal pattern of citrus has undergone significant changes after the outbreak of Huanglongbing (HLB). We selected time-series Sentinel-2 images to delineate citrus orchard areas following the onset of HLB. This was conducted to extract citrus orchards in Xunwu County between 2017 and 2022. The spatial and temporal patterns and their influencing factors were investigated by spatial analysis. Results show (1) a notable decline in total citrus orchard area by 216.70 km2, primarily witnessed in orchards without insect-proof screens (IPS), shifting towards cropland, bush, and IPS areas. Contrastingly, citrus orchards with IPS exhibited a modest increase from 7.82 km2 to 111.39 km2, predominantly converting from areas lacking IPS, cropland, and bare land. (2) Spatial distribution patterns revealing a “cold in the south and hot in the north” trend. Orchards without IPS are concentrated in central and northern regions, while those with IPS are clustered predominantly in the north, with a recent shift towards the northeast. (3) Landscape analysis indicating a trend of fragmentation of citrus orchards, while a gradual dispersion of orchards without IPS and those with IPS showcased enhanced concentration and aggregation. (4) Orchards with IPS predominantly occupy regions characterized by an elevation ranging between 300 m and 400 m, primarily in the southeast, southwest, and southern directions. These areas exhibit slopes averaging between 10° and 15°, with surface temperatures ranging from 18 °C to 26 °C. Additionally, these orchards tend to be situated in proximity to impervious surfaces and roads.

Modeling farmers’ willingness to engage in traceability systems: toward sustainable agricultural transformation

IntroductionThe primary objective of this study is to examine the factors that affect farmers’ willingness to engage in traceability systems. Traceability systems are widely promoted as technologies that ensure the quality and safety of agricultural products. However, the participation rate of farmers in developing countries remains low.MethodsTo empirically address this issue, the study analyzed structured interview data from 408 fruit farmers in Henan Province, Central China, using structural equation modeling and system dynamics.ResultsThe results indicate that attitude, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms, moral norms, and safety awareness are crucial factors influencing farmers’ willingness to engage. It is particularly noteworthy that system dynamics simulations revealed the significant role of improving attitude and subjective norms in promoting farmers’ willingness. Moreover, subjective norms have a positive influence on moral norms. We also found that gender, education, orchard area, income and access to credit have a significant positive impact on farmers’ willingness to engage.DiscussionBy uncovering the internal decision-making mechanisms behind farmers’ engagement in traceability systems, this study extends the research scope of agricultural technology adoption. These findings can serve as a basis for formulating traceability system policies and interventions in China and other developing countries.

Loss of Traditional Orchards and Its Impact on the Occurrence of Threatened Tree-Dwelling Bird Species

Horticulture is one of the land use types in agricultural landscapes, which is beneficial for nature if traditional ways of management are implemented. Orchards are affected by three negative transformations: abandonment that leads to afforestation; grubbing as a result of the cessation of fruit plantation; or intensification with the use of chemicals. In this study, changes in orchard management and structure were examined over a decade (2014–2023) in southern Poland (the Carpathians). Additionally, changes in the distribution of Syrian woodpeckers were assessed—a rare species of special concern in the European Union being a major nest hole excavator in orchards. Over a decade, trees in nearly one-fourth of orchards were removed, 15% of orchards were overgrown by forests due to abandonment, and only 40% remained unchanged. The changes were most pronounced in already abandoned orchards and many traditionally used ones. Fruit trees were grubbed in orchards in areas with a high density of people and roads, whereas succession prevailed in orchards in the vicinity of forests. During the same period, around 40% of woodpecker territories vanished, and this phenomenon was associated with tree grubbing or succession by forests. As the Syrian woodpecker requires protection in Europe, it is recommended to preserve traditional horticulture. Moreover, conservative cultivation of traditional varieties of fruit trees and agro-tourism in traditional orchards could be implemented in synergy with nature conservation.

Orchard monitoring based on unmanned aerial vehicles and image processing by artificial neural networks: a systematic review

Orchard monitoring is a vital direction of scientific research and practical application for increasing fruit production in ecological conditions. Recently, due to the development of technology and the decrease in equipment cost, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles and artificial intelligence algorithms for image acquisition and processing has achieved tremendous progress in orchards monitoring. This paper highlights the new research trends in orchard monitoring, emphasizing neural networks, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and various concrete applications. For this purpose, papers on complex topics obtained by combining keywords from the field addressed were selected and analyzed. In particular, the review considered papers on the interval 2017-2022 on the use of neural networks (as an important exponent of artificial intelligence in image processing and understanding) and UAVs in orchard monitoring and production evaluation applications. Due to their complexity, the characteristics of UAV trajectories and flights in the orchard area were highlighted. The structure and implementations of the latest neural network systems used in such applications, the databases, the software, and the obtained performances are systematically analyzed. To recommend some suggestions for researchers and end users, the use of the new concepts and their implementations were surveyed in concrete applications, such as a) identification and segmentation of orchards, trees, and crowns; b) detection of tree diseases, harmful insects, and pests; c) evaluation of fruit production, and d) evaluation of development conditions. To show the necessity of this review, in the end, a comparison is made with review articles with a related theme.

Cost–Benefit Evaluation of Walnut and Jujube Orchards under Fruit Tree–Crop Intercropping Conditions in Southern Xinjiang

Fruit planting plays an essential role in achieving zero hunger, ensuring food security, and increasing the income of local people. As one of China’s principal fruit-planting areas, southern Xinjiang possesses more than 80% of the total fruit-planting areas of Xinjiang. However, the spatial distribution, extent, and types of fruit trees remain unknown, generating uncertainty in calculating the economic benefits of orchards in this area. In this paper, we used walnut and jujube orchards under fruit tree–crop intercropping conditions in the Hotan Oasis in southern Xinjiang as the research object. Walnut and jujube orchards were precisely characterized using object-oriented and decision tree classification methods. Then, the economic benefits for farmers were estimated based on field surveys and statistical data. From 2003 to 2020, the area of jujube orchards rapidly increased from 1.91 × 103 ha to 33.59 × 103 ha, while that of walnut orchards steadily increased from 18.05 × 103 ha to 40.24 × 103 ha. The expansion areas of walnut orchards were mainly transformed from other orchards in the oasis, while the expansion areas of jujube orchards mainly originated from newly cultivated land in the desert. The increases in areas and yields largely offset the increase in planting costs and the decrease in purchase prices, resulting in an increasing trend in the total net income of the orchards. From 2003 to 2020, the total net income of walnut orchards increased by 68.96%, and the total net income of jujube orchards significantly increased by 23.37 times. However, the output/input ratios of walnut orchards under intercropping conditions were approximately two times higher than those of jujube orchards under monocropping conditions. The increase in investment slightly offset the decreases in yields and purchase prices, resulting in increases of 5.24% and 18.64% in the output/input ratios of walnuts and jujubes, respectively, in orchards exhibiting standardized cultivation. In the future, it is necessary to significantly expand the area of orchards involving standardized cultivation and improve the yield and quality of fruits, thereby increasing the yields and income levels of local farmers.

Geographical and climatic risk factors of cutaneous leishmaniasis in the hyper-endemic focus of Bam County in southeast Iran.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a prevalent debilitating disease in many countries, particularly in Iran, the Middle East, North Africa, and South America. Bam County is the most important highly endemic focus of anthropometric CL in Iran and has been under consideration by WHO. This study investigated the environmental and geographic factors affecting the occurrence and distribution of CL in this focus. Demographic data and the home addresses of CL patients diagnosed from 2015 to 2020 were retrieved from the Leishmaniasis Center of Bam in southeast Iran. The effects of mean annual rainfall (MAR), mean annual humidity (MAH), mean annual temperature (MAT), maximum annual temperature (MaxMAT), minimum annual temperature (MinMAT), mean annual humidity (MAH), mean annual evaporation (MAE), mean annual frosty days (MAFD), mean annual snowy hours (MASH), elevation, and land cover on the distribution of CL were analyzed using geographical information systems (GIS) and univariate and multivariate regression models. Of 847 patients studied, 50.9% (n = 431) were female and 49.1% (n = 416) were male. The age classes 0-10 (n = 246) and 11-20 (n = 145) showed the highest frequency of patients, respectively. Leishmaniasis patients were reported from 66 villages/cities (11.8%) out of 561 residential areas in Bam County. Univariate analysis showed that urban settings (OR = 21.66), agriculture (OR = 5.73), orchards (OR = 5), salty land (OR = 1.05), and temperatures (OR = 2.37, 2.79 and 3.47) had positive effects on CL occurrence (p < 0.05), while altitude, precipitation, humidity, evaporation, and the number of frozen days had negative effects. Multivariate analysis identified urban settings (OR = 13.6), orchards (OR = 6.29), agriculture (OR = 5.82), and minimum temperature (OR = 2.38) as the most significant determinants of CL occurrence in this region. Environmental and ecological factors play an important role in the distribution of CL in Bam County. The high-risk zones for CL are cities/large villages, agricultural and orchard areas in lower altitudes and with warmer climates and lower rainfall and humidity. This model can guide researchers and health managers to properly conduct CL control programs and allocate budgets.

Satellite-Based Monitoring of Growing Agricultural Water Consumption in Hyper-Arid Regions

Land-use change has a key role in hydrologic processes and biodiversity. Although many satellite-based studies have been conducted to reveal the interaction between land-use changes in hydrological processes worldwide, the land-use change impact on agricultural water consumption in hyper-arid regions is poorly understood. Here, we investigate increased agricultural water consumption in the Qom province, a hyper-arid region in Iran, using derived imageries from Landsat 5 Tm and Landsat 8 OLI during the last three decades. We used maximum likelihood classification (MLC) and decision tree classification (DTC) to analyze the satellite images. The MLC method showed that croplands have increased from 30,547 ha in 1989 to 39,255 ha in 2019 (i.e., a 29% increase). In this period, the total orchard area increased from 3904 ha to 6307 ha, revealing a growth of 61%. In the DTC method, the increases in the cropland and orchard areas were, respectively, 34% and 60%. Although both MLC and DTC satisfied the accuracy criteria, the former was more consistent than the latter concerning ground data and documented statistics. Satellite-based and MLC results showed an increase in agricultural water consumption from 152 million cubic meters (MCM) in 1989 to 209 MCM in 2019, showing a 38% increase (i.e., 1.27% annually). Our findings send an alarming message for policymakers to reduce the water demand through sustainable agricultural practices in the Qom province, where the agricultural sector uses approximately 90% of annual water demand.

Impact of Cover Cropping on Temporal Nutrient Distribution and Availability in the Soil

Cover cropping is a best management practice that can improve soil quality by reducing soil erosion, building soil organic matter (SOM), and improving soil nutrient availability. Southwest (SW) Florida citrus growers have the challenge of growing citrus in sandy soils characterized by low organic matter (&lt;2%), extremely low water and nutrient-holding capacities, and high sand content (&gt;90%), and therefore are looking for methods to improve SOM and nutrient retention and availability in sandy soils. A trial of two cover crop (CC) mixtures planted in the row middles (RM) of Huanglongbing-affected citrus ‘Valencia’ (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck) orchards in sandy soils in SW Florida was conducted. This study explored how incorporating CCs in the RM of the orchards could affect soil ammonium (NH4+), soil nitrate (NO3−), exchangeable macronutrients, and SOM temporal availability. These parameters were measured under the tree canopy (UC) and within RM of two orchards: South Grove (SG) and North Grove (NG), both located in SW Florida. The two seeded CC mixtures were legume + non-legume (LG+NL) and non-legume (NL) and were compared to a control no-CC grower standard (GSC). Phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and NH4+ were not statistically significantly different among treatments in either of the two sampling positions (UC and RM). Cover cropping significantly (p &lt; 0.05) increased NO3−-N concentrations in the RM area of the citrus orchards after seven consecutive seasons (brassicas, legumes, and grasses) by 31% in the LG + NL and 29% in the NL with reference to the GSC. In addition to the significant increase in NO3−N, SOM significantly (p &lt; 0.05) increased in the RM in the NG site only in both CCs treatments by 17% and 16% for LG + NL and NL treatments, respectively, compared with GSC.