Crop Production In Areas Research Articles

Empirical modeling of the impact of climate change on altitudinal shift of major cereal crops in South Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

ABSTRACT Climate change is expected to alter the growing conditions of agricultural crops. With increasing surface temperature, future suitable areas for crop production will see an altitude shift. Such shift is an adaptation response of crops to climate change. However, in the study area there are a limited number of studies that have dealt with geographical shifts of crops caused by climate change. This study was conducted with the aim of assessing impacts of climate change on altitudinal migration of crops and length of growing period (LGP). The climate and crop modeling study were carried out using ArcGIS, Diva GIS and MaxEnt using 30 years of climate data for the period 1980 to 2009. Results showed that wheat (Triticum aestivum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) would migrate upward along the altitudinal gradients in the coming 80 years. However, areas under these crops are expected to drop by 16–100%. Highly impacted areas are expected to increase, whereas low impacted and new suitable areas are expected to decline significantly. Suitable areas for sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and teff (Eragrostis tef Zucc.) production are expected to increase. While wheat and barley are projected to be highly affected by future climate change, sorghum and teff should be relatively stable. No significant difference was observed in LGP between the considered RCP 2.6 and RCP 8.5 climate scenarios. Therefore, this study concluded that upward movement of crops was one mechanism to adapt to climate change, and new varieties resilient to future climate change needs to be developed.

Enhanced Reproductive Thermotolerance of the Tomato high pigment 2 Mutant Is Associated With Increased Accumulation of Flavonols in Pollen.

Climate change has created an environment where heat stress conditions are becoming more frequent as temperatures continue to raise in crop production areas around the world. This situation leads to decreased crop production due to plant sensitivity to heat stress. Reproductive success is critically dependent on plants’ ability to produce functional pollen grains, which are the most thermo-sensitive tissue. Flavonols are plant secondary metabolites known for their potent antioxidative activity, essential for male fertility in several species including tomato, and implicated in heat stress tolerance. Since flavonols are highly abundant in fruits of the tomato high pigment 2 (hp2) mutant, we tested the level of flavonols in pollen of this mutant, under the hypothesis that increased accumulation of flavonols would render pollen more tolerant to heat stress. Indeed, pollen from two alleles of the hp2 mutant was found to have flavonols levels increased by 18 and 280% compared with wild-type (WT) under moderate chronic heat stress (MCHS) conditions. This mutant produced on average 7.8-fold higher levels of viable pollen and displayed better germination competence under heat stress conditions. The percentage of fully seeded fruits and the number of seeds per fruit were maintained in the mutant under heat stress conditions while decreased in wild-type plants. Our results strongly suggest that increased concentrations of pollen flavonols enhance pollen thermotolerance and reproductive success under heat stress conditions. Thus, the high flavonols trait may help frame the model for improving crop resilience to heat stress.

Examining the Characteristics of the Cropland Data Layer in the Context of Estimating Land Cover Change

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Cropland Data Layer (CDL) provides spatially explicit information about crop production area and has served as a prevalent data source for characterizing cropland change in the U.S. in the last decade. Understanding the accuracy of the CDL is paramount because of the reliance on it for management and policy making. This study examined the characteristics of the CDL from 2007 to 2017 using comparisons to other USDA datasets. The results showed when examining the cropland area for the same year, the CDL produced comparable trends with other datasets (R2 > 0.95), but absolute area differed. The estimated area of cropland changes from 2007 to 2012, 2008 to 2012 and 2012 to 2017 varied from weak to moderate correlation between the CDL and the tabular data (R2 = 0.005~0.63). Differences in area of cropland change varied widely between data sources with the CDL estimating much larger change area. A series of image processing techniques designed to improve the confidence in cropland change estimated using the CDL reduced the area of estimated cropland change. The techniques also, unexpectedly, lowered the correlation in change estimated between the CDL and the tabular datasets. Estimated land cover change area varied widely based on analyses applied and could reverse from increasing to declining area in cropland. Further analyses showed unlikely change scenarios when comparing different year combinations. The authors recommend the CDL only be used for land cover change analysis if the error can be estimated and is within change estimates.

Seed Priming and Its Role in Mitigating Heat Stress Responses in Crop Plants

Rise in temperature beyond threshold level that causes irreversible damage in plants is heat stress while heat stress during reproductive or grain filling period is regarded as terminal heat stress. Heat stress significantly alters plant growth and metabolic activities and makes them struggle for survival. Terminal heat stress obstructs growth and development of crops by disturbing their physiological and biochemical progressions of reproductive stages like grain/pod filling, their development, maturation, ripening and ultimately conferring yield loss. However, one of the easiest and low-priced advanced techniques to diminish this loss is seed priming. In this technique, seeds are soaked in different nutrient-enriched solutions to improve their quality for establishing uniform and rapid seed germination, resulting in healthy and vigorous seedlings. This method of seed soaking elicits pre-germinative metabolic responses inside seed that leads to early germination and fastens crop establishment process. Various priming techniques have been adapted that include hydropriming, halopriming, osmopriming, sand matric priming and nutripriming (priming with water, salt, osmoticum, moist sand and nutrient). Seed priming has an important role to alleviate terminal heat stress by inducing the activity of many enzymes during pre-soaking period as various enzymes require hydration energy for activation. Seed priming also sometimes increases production and activity of heat shock proteins (HSPs) and molecular chaperones to ensure proper protein folding and prevent protein denaturation during heat stress condition. Despite positive responses of various seed priming techniques, these have been less applied in the area of crop production in the field condition. Considering these facts, this review depicts responses of the plants under heat stress and its management through seed priming techniques, especially under field condition, and to associate the same with enhanced crop production under the stressful situations.

Soil zinc, serum zinc, and the potential for agronomic biofortification to reduce human zinc deficiency in Ethiopia

Human zinc deficiency is a global public health problem. Many African soils are zinc deficient (ZnD), indicating fertilizers could increase crop yields and grain Zn levels, thereby increasing Zn in the food supply and alleviating human Zn deficiency. To analyze associations among soil Zn, human Zn deficiency, and child nutritional status, we combined the Ethiopian soil Zn map and the Ethiopian National Micronutrient Survey (ENMS). ENMS provides representative, georeferenced data on child nutritional status using anthropometry of children under five years old (CU5) and on human Zn deficiency among CU5 and women of reproductive age (WRA) using the recommended biomarker, serum Zn. ZnD soils mostly occur in lower altitudes, which are less populated and outside the main crop-producing areas. Serum Zn deficiencies were high, and correlated to soil Zn for children, but not for WRA. About 4 million Ethiopian CU5 are ZnD, and, of these, about 1.5 million live on low-Zn soils (< 2.5 mg/kg), while 0.3 million live on ZnD soils (< 1.5 mg/kg). Therefore, if Zn fertilizers are only applied on ZnD soils, their impact on child Zn deficiency may be limited. Greater impact is possible if Zn fertilizers are applied to soils with sufficient Zn for plant growth and if this results in increased grain Zn. Optimal soil Zn levels for plant and human nutrition may be different, and context-specific optimal levels for the latter must be determined to develop nutrition-sensitive fertilizer policies and recommendations.

Population responses of pest birds across a forest cover gradient in the Chaco ecosystem

Industrial agriculture can trigger an increase in abundance of some bird species, promoting the emergence of pests, causing damage to crops and economic loss for farmers. Even though there are different strategies to control pest birds (chemicals, hunting, repellents, etc), in general they are inefficient. Moreover, these strategies can threaten non-target species, and toxic substances can be bioaccumulated in the food chain of wildlife animals. An alternative strategy (or at least complementary) could be the design of agricultural landscapes that balance natural habitats and crop production areas in a way that would not trigger the abundance increases of potential pest birds. We assessed population trends of four bird species (potentially agricultural pests) across a forest cover gradient, and consequently, a gradient of agricultural cover expansion, at a landscape level. The study was conducted in the Chaco forest, one of the most threatened ecosystems worldwide due to agricultural expansion. Studied species were Eared Dove (Zenaida auriculata), Spot-winged Pigeon (Patagioenas maculosa), Picazuro Pigeon (Patagioenas picazuro) and Monk Parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus), and their populations are often considered as the major pest birds for agriculture in several areas of Argentina and in other countries of South America. Abundances of birds species were measured in focal sites (forest patches) and the percentage of forest cover was estimated within buffers of 2000 m radius surrounding each site. A total of 12 local landscapes were surveyed. Results show that population responses (i.e. changes in abundance) to the gradient of forest cover were idiosyncratic. The main result shows that relative abundance of Eared Dove, the most abundant species, was triggered when landscapes had less than 16% of forest cover: landscapes with low forest cover (less than 10%) contained six times the relative abundance of Eared Dove than landscapes with a high percentage of forest cover (close to 100%). We propose that as pest birds in agroecosystems are a problem at the landscape or regional scale, solutions should be thought at such scale. In this context, landscapes in the region should conserve more than 16% of forest cover to attempt to control one of the most abundant pest bird species of South America.

Assessing pesticide, trace metal, and arsenic contamination in soils and dam sediments in a rapidly expanding horticultural area in Australia.

Industrial horticulture can release pesticides and trace metals/metalloids to terrestrial and aquatic environments. To assess long-term and more recent land contamination from an expanding horticultural region, we sampled soils from chemical mixing, crop production, and drainage areas, as well as retention reservoirs (dam) sediments, from 3 blueberry farms with varying land-use history in subtropical Australia. Soils were analysed for 97 different pesticides and trace metal/metalloid contents. The most recent farm had fungicides propiconazole and cyprodinil contents that may compromise soil invertebrate survival and/or nutrient recycling (5-125mgkg-1). A site previously used to cultivate bananas had 6 dam sediment subsamples with arsenic contents over sediment quality guidelines (SQG); however, the soil content values were just below Australian health investigation levels (100mgkg-1). Arsenic is suspected to originate from pesticide application during previous banana cultivation in the region. Dam sediment cores at all sites had mercury contents over the SQG likely due to fungicides or fertiliser impurities. Mean contents of mercury from dam sediments (141 ± 15.5µgkg-1) were greater than terrestrial soils (78 ± 6.5µgkg-1), and sediment profiles suggest mercury retention in anoxic sediments. Soils in chemical mixing areas at two sites were contaminated with copper and zinc which were above the national soil ecological investigation levels. Based on toxicity data, distribution, persistence, and mobility, we identified the fungicide cyprodinil, mercury, and phosphorus as contaminants of the greatest concern in this intensive horticulture area of Australia. Additional sampling (spatial, chemical speciation, biotic) is required to support mitigation efforts of the emerging contamination in the rapidly expanding blueberry farms of this region of Australia.

First assessment of persistent organic pollutants in the Greater rhea (Rhea americana), a near-threatened flightless herbivorous bird of the Pampas grasslands.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are still globally distributed and can exert different effects on ecosystems. Little is known about the occurrence of these contaminants in terrestrial birds from South America. In this study, POPs were assessed for the first time in a flightless herbivorous species from the Pampas grasslands, the Greater rhea (Rhea americana). Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were determined in 18 samples of feathers from free-ranging and captive individuals inhabiting four sites with different land uses in central Argentina. Among the 16 POPs tested in those feathers, 6 PCBs (28, 52, 101, 138, 153, and 180) and 8 OCPs (α-HCH, β-HCH, γ-HCH, p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDD, o,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDT, and HCB) were quantified. No PBDEs were detected. The total concentration of POPs was higher in populations living in an intensive crop production area (agriculture 159 ng g -1 and farm: 97.53 ng g-1) compared with the population in an urban area (zoo 45.86 ng g-1) and an agroecosystem with extensive rearing of livestock (cattle rearing 36.77 ng g-1). PCBs were the most abundant pollutants in all the populations studied. Lower chlorinated CB 52 and CB 101 were the principal PCB congeners detected, representing at least 70% of the total quantified. All populations studied showed a DDE + DDD/DDT ratio > 1, indicating a historical application of this insecticide. This study provides a new contribution to the scarce data on POP concentrations in South American bird species. Further investigations are needed to evaluate their potential effects on the health of individuals and populations.

Spatio-temporal monitoring of soil and plant indicators under forage cactus cultivation by geoprocessing in Brazilian semi-arid region

The objective of this work was to characterize the spectral responses of soil and plant indicators utilizing the Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI) and Leaf Area Index (LAI) in areas under the cultivation of ‘Orelha de Elefante Mexicana’ forage cactus (Opuntia stricta (Haw.) Haw.) and ‘Miúda’ (Nopalea cochenillifera (L.) Salm-Dyck) in Brazilian semi-arid region and to establish a model for characterizing vegetation cover in crop production areas. The research was conducted in Brazilian semi-arid region, which had two areas under the cultivation of forage cactus in the period from 2017 to 2020. Soil physical attributes and plant morphometric variables were recorded, concomitantly the determination of SAVI and LAI, from images from the Sentinel-2 satellite. The recorded data were submitted to principal component analysis. The cumulative total variance of the principal components showed satisfactory results for both areas. There was a correlation between plant height, the number of cladodes, and vegetation indices, selected to compose the predictive variables of the multiple regression model. It is recommended to use images from the Sentinel-2 satellite in small areas, given its lower spatial resolution in capturing different spectral responses.

Metabolomic and Biochemical Analysis of Two Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivars Exposed to In Vitro Osmotic and Salt Stresses.

Globally, many crop production areas are threatened by drought and salinity. Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is susceptible to these challenging environmental conditions. In this study, an in vitro approach was employed to compare the tolerance of potato cultivars ‘BARI-401’ (red skin) and ‘Spunta’ (yellow skin). To simulate ionic and osmotic stress, MS media was supplemented with lithium chloride (LiCl 20 mM) and mannitol (150 mM). GC-MS and spectrophotometry techniques were used to determine metabolite accumulation. Other biochemical properties, such as total phenols concentration (TPC), total flavonoids concentration (TFC), antioxidant capacity (DPPH free radical scavenging capacity), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), and peroxidase (POD) activities, were also measured. The two cultivars respond differently to ionic and osmotic stress treatments, with Spunta accumulating more defensive metabolites in response, indicating a higher level of tolerance. While further investigation of the physiological and biochemical responses of these varieties to drought and salinity is required, the approach taken in this paper provides useful information prior to open field evaluation.

Fertilizer effect on some basil bioactive compounds and yield

ABSTRACT Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) is an annual plant that belongs to the Lamiaceae family. It is used as an aromatic and medicinal plant. Basil is grown in different regions with varying climates; the productivity and quality are influenced by both abiotic and biotic factors. This study was aimed to determine the impact of the application of different types of fertilizers on the yield and contents of some bioactive components in basil. The treatments consisted of three different types of fertilizers (mineral, organomineral, and organic) and control (without fertilization). The yield per plant and the essential oil content with fertilizer treatment were better than that in control. The highest fresh yield (450.9 g per plant) and oil content (0.94 mL 100 g-1) were recorded in basil cultivated using mineral fertilizers. Furthermore, the fresh yield (333.9 and 327.8 g per plant) and oil content (0.87 and 0.85 mL 100 g-1) were higher after the application of organic and organomineral fertilizers compared to that in the control treatment. There was no significant effect of fertilizer application on the total phenolics, total flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity. This study demonstrated a suitable practical application of organomineral fertilizers as a nutrient source in basil crop production in areas where the use of mineral and organic fertilizers is limited.

Assessment of phytocenoses ecological potential in south of Western Siberia based on hydrological and climatic calculations to increase agricultural production

The development of the agricultural sector, which provides the population with basic types of food products, is of great importance for the country’s economy. The main branches of agriculture include plant growing and animal husbandry, the effective development of which is of economic but also of significant economic and social importance. The main areas of crop production are represented by grain, vegetable farms and the cultivation of fodder crops. Of great importance for the effective cultivation of crops with sustainable crops is the farming system that is maximally adapted to local climatic and landscape conditions. In work, the ecological potential of phytocenoses was estimated, taking into account the peculiarities of the territorial distribution of heat and water resources in the south of Western Siberia. The necessity of comparing the specific ecological potential of phytocenoses with a possible technogenic load in order to ensure the stability of its functioning is shown.

Crop-specific technology extrapolation domains for Brazil

ABSTRACT Climate and soil databases can be used for delineating homogenous environmental zones over large areas of agricultural land to support agricultural research planning and spatial extrapolation of the results of field experiments. In other countries, such framework has proven useful to improve the efficiency and impact of investments in agricultural research. Furthermore, this approach can also contribute to identify key locations with the greatest potential for spatial extrapolation in terms of crop production area with similar climate and soils. In this paper, soil and weather databases covering the main agricultural land in Brazil were developed, and crop-specific technology extrapolation domains (TEDs) were identified for maize, soybean, and sugarcane crops. These databases were useful and viable option for the generation of homogeneous zones maps for different crops and regions. Given the spatial scale of the database applied, it was possible to represent a large area in few TEDs, without losing information regarding climate and soil variability, facilitating the spatial extrapolation of technologies throughout Brazil. Few TEDs are needed to represent a large part of the area of sugarcane (32 TEDs to cover 51% of the area), maize (21 TEDs for 51% of the area), and soybean (17 TEDs for 50% of the total area). Such information may help several areas of the agricultural sector, such as supporting new research that works on areas with large scales, or areas not explored yet.

Mikroalgák előnyős tulajdonságainak kiaknázása élelmiszeripari és takarmányozási felhasználásra

By 2050, 9.8 billion people are projected to live on Earth, which means that we need to double our current food production to keep pace with such a large population increase. In addition, rising greenhouse gas emissions and the associated climate change are placing a significant strain on the planet’s ability to sustain itself. However, in order to increase the quantity of proteins of plant origin, it is necessary to increase crop production areas, harvesting frequencies and the quantity of crops produced. Unfortunately, the optimization of these factors is already very close to the available maximum in the current situation. The developed cultivation systems and maximum utilization of the soil power leads to very serious environmental problems, soil destruction, loss of biodiversity and serious environmental pollution through the transport of the produced plant raw materials. This poses a serious challenge to food security and further increases the risk of hunger. There is therefore a need for agricultural practices that can lead to the cultivation of food and feed crops that have better sustainability indicators and are more resilient to climate change, which can be used to safely produce health-promoting feeds, as well as novel and value-added foods. Within this group, a particular problem is presented by the protein supply of the population, as currently about one billion people do not have adequate protein intake. However, conventional protein sources are not sufficient to meet growing protein needs. As mentioned above, food and feed proteins are based on plant proteins. In recent years, a prominent role has been played by the research into alternative proteins and the mapping of their positive and negative properties. Among alternative proteins, special attention has been paid to various yeasts, fungi, bacteria, algae, singe cell proteins (SCPs) and insects. In this paper, we focus on the presentation of algae, particularly microalgae, which are of paramount importance not only because of their significant protein content and favorable amino acid composition, but also because they are also sources of many valuable molecules, such as polyunsaturated fatty acids, pigments, antioxidants, drugs and other biologically active compounds. It is important to learn about microalgae biomass in order to be able to develop innovative health food products.

Peculiarities of accumulation of heavy metals and arsenic in medicinal plant raw materials of plain thousand, collected in urban and agribiocenoses of the Voronezh region

The Voronezh region is traditionally the most important area of crop production and farming. The purpose of the study was to study contamination by heavy metals and arsenic of medicinal vegetable raw materials of the Voronezh region on the example of plain thousand-year-old grass collected in urban and agro-ecological systems with different anthropogenic effects. The study was carried out by atomic absorption spectrometry on the basis of atomic absorption spectrometer MGA-915MD pharmacopoeia methods, accumulation of heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, cobalt, chromium) and arsenic was studied in 51 samples of large planter leaves. Comparing the data on heavy metal content in the upper soil layers of the region and the content of these elements in the grass of the common thousand, it can be argued that there are significant physiological barriers to the accumulation of ecotoxicants in the plant, which is particularly noticeable for elements such as lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, cobalt and chromium. The thousand-year-old is able to selectively concentrate some heavy metals entering the active centers of enzyme systems (such as copper and zinc, for example) if their environmental content is below some vital level; With significant content of these elements in soils, the plant also physiologically blocked their entry into the above-ground part of the plant. The results of studies have shown that plain thousand grass is able to accumulate toxic elements from soils in a significant amount, which is important in planning the places of production of medicinal vegetable raw materials and assessing its quality.

Накопление тяжелых металлов и мышьяка лекарственным растительным сырьем полыни горькой

The Voronezh region is traditionally the most important area of crop production and farming. The purpose of the study was to study the contamination by heavy metals of medicinal vegetable raw materials of the Voronezh region using the example of grass of the bitter emery collected in urban and agro-ecological systems, which experience various anthropogenic effects. The accumulations of heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, nickel, copper, zinc, cobalt, chromium) and arsenic were studied, in 51 samples of pooch grass bitter. Comparing the data on heavy metal content in the upper soil layers of the region and the content of these elements in the grass of the pollen bitter, it can be assumed that there are significant physiological barriers to the accumulation of ecotoxicants in the generative organs of the plant, which is particularly noticeable for elements such as lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, cobalt and chromium. Pollen bitter is able to selectively concentrate some heavy metals entering the active centers of enzyme systems (such as copper and zinc). Thus, for a moon bitter under anthropogenic load conditions, an edaphotype is formed, which is formed as a result of the action of selection in conditions of man-made pollution of the external environment and is a manifestation of adaptation to these conditions. The results of the studies showed that the grass of the bitter emery is able to accumulate toxic elements from the soil, which is important in planning the places of production of medicinal vegetable raw materials and assessing their quality.

Tissue specific colonization of Phytophthora capsici in Capsicum spp.: molecular insights over plant-pathogen interaction

Root and crown rot (RCR) caused by Phytophthora capsici is present in all crop production areas of pepper and chili worldwide. This pathogen was recently reported at the Pacific coast of Ecuador (province of Manabi), as an etiological agent of wilt and root and crown rot in commercial fields of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum). This study aimed to evaluate the resistance of ten Capsicum spp. genotypes artificially infected with P. capsici and to compare the tissue-specific colonization of P. capsici under greenhouse conditions. Disease intensity, mycelial growth incidence and pathogen DNA content in root and hypocotyl tissues of P. capsici infected Capsicum germplasm was evaluated at 17 days after infection (dai). Results indicated that genotypes Nathalie, ECU-12831, ECU-9129, Codigo 5, and ECU-1296 were found to be resistant, and ECU-11995, ECU-2254 B, California Wonder, Quetzal and Marcato showed susceptibility to the disease. The amount of pathogen DNA in roots was the only variable that did not correlate with the resistance or susceptibility of the genotypes. In fact, in resistant genotypes the pattern of pathogen DNA content was higher in roots than hypocotyls (but also in the susceptible ECU-11995), while in the susceptible genotypes (e.g. ECU-2254 B, C. Wonder, Quetzal and Marcato) showed the opposite pattern. The present work provides new insights of host-pathogen interaction, which might be used in breeding programs aiming to develop Capsicum cultivars with resistance to RCR.

Intercropping Garlic (Allium Sativum) With Chilli (Capsicum Annuum L.) in the Haor Area of Kishoreganj

Haor is one of the uncertain areas for crop production and productivity in Bangladesh. Traditionally, single cropping practice in a short cropping season is the key obstacle to increase crop productivity. A study was carried out at Multi Location Testing site (MLT), Nikly under the On-Farm Research Division (OFRD), Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Kishoreganj at haor area during the two consecutive Rabi seasons of 2015-16 and 2016-17 to evaluate the performance of garlic with chilli intercropping system, its productivity and economic viability. Four treatments were consisted viz., sole chilli, one row garlic in between chilli rows, double rows garlic in between chilli rows and garlic with broadcasting chilli. The highest chilli equivalent yield (28 t ha-1) was obtained from one row garlic in between chilli rows and the minimum chilli equivalent yield was (15 t ha-1) obtained in sole chilli. These intercropping practices yield increased 25-89% over the sole chilli. The highest gross return (Tk.559400 ha-1), gross margin (Tk. 428240 ha-1) and BCR (4.26) were found in one row garlic in between chilli rows and the lowest gross return (Tk. 297800 ha-1) and gross margin (Tk.188080 ha-1) were obtained from sole chilli but the lowest BCR (1.74) in double rows garlic in between chilli rows. Considering the experimental findings of two years, one row garlic in between chilli rows would be a suitable intercropping system for higher productivity and economic return.&#x0D; Bangladesh Agron. J. 2020, 23(1): 75-81

Organic farming practices utilizing spent microbial biomass from an industrial fermentation facility promote transition to copiotrophic soil communities.

Organic farming has become more prevalent in recent years as consumer demand for organic food and fiber has rapidly grown. Until recently, organic fertilizers and soil amendments have largely been based on the practices of returning crop residues, manures and related agricultural wastes back to crop production areas. One rapidly growing segment in commercial organic fertilizer development is the use of spent microbial biomass (SMB) from industrial fermentation processes. While SMB is widely accepted in many organic farming systems (OFS), little is known concerning the effectiveness, environmental impact, and influence on prokaryotic communities in soils receiving this treatment. In this study, a comparative analysis of bacterial communities associated with OFS and conventional farming systems was performed over a growing season for a field containing yellow dent corn (Zea mays). A statistically significant increase in microbial population α-diversity, along with a strong recruitment of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria populations, was observed in soils treated with SMB when compared to areas in the field that utilized conventional farmer practices. These phyla are members of the copiotrophic subgroup, and considered a signature for the use of traditional organic fertilizers. These results provide valuable new information that SMB functions similarly to traditional organic fertilizers in promoting a high level of functional prokaryotic diversity and plant growth-promoting bacteria, but in contrast do not contribute directly to viable microorganisms in the soil due to the sterilization of SMB prior to land application.

Understanding photothermal interactions will help expand production range and increase genetic diversity of lentil (Lens culinarisMedik.)

Societal Impact StatementLentil is a staple in many diets around the world and growing in popularity as a quick‐cooking, nutritious, plant‐based source of protein in the human diet. Lentil varieties are usually grown close to where they were bred. Future climate change scenarios will result in increased temperatures and shifts in lentil crop production areas, necessitating expanded breeding efforts. We show how we can use a daylength and temperature model to identify varieties most likely to succeed in these new environments, expand genetic diversity, and give plant breeders additional knowledge and tools to help mitigate these changes for lentil producers.SummaryLentil (Lens culinarisMedik.) is cultivated under a wide range of environmental conditions, which has led to diverse phenological adaptations and resulted in a decrease in genetic variability within breeding programs due to reluctance in using genotypes from other environments.We phenotyped 324 genotypes across nine locations over three years to assess their phenological response to the environment of major lentil production regions and to predict days from sowing to flowering (DTF) using a photothermal model.DTF was highly influenced by the environment and is sufficient to explain adaptation. We were able to predict DTF reliably in most environments using a simple photothermal model, however, in certain site‐years, results suggest there may be additional environmental factors at play. Hierarchical clustering of principal components revealed the presence of eight groups based on the responses of DTF to contrasting environments. These groups are associated with the coefficients of the photothermal model and revealed differences in temperature and photoperiod sensitivity.Future climate change scenarios will result in increased temperature and/or shifts in production areas. The ability to use the photothermal model to identify genotypes most likely to succeed in these new environments has important social impacts with respect to traditional cropping systems.