Arid Agriculture Research Articles

Influence of Organic Amendment on Soil Respiration and Maize Productivity in a Semi-Arid Environment

Soil degradation and C emissions are a threat to sustainable agriculture in many arid and semi-arid areas. For sustainable agriculture, the influence of soil amendments on crop production and soil respiration has been a key focus of research. A three-year field study to assess how soil amendments influence soil properties, soil respiration (Rs), and yield of maize (Zea mays L.) was conducted. Treatments were: no amendment (NA), chemical fertilizer (CF), swine (Sus scrofa L.) manure (SM), maize stover (MS), and swine manure + chemical fertilizer (SC). Soil amendment (CF, SM, MS, and SC) consistently produced greatest grain yield and aboveground biomass, which averaged 38 and 34% greater than NA, respectively. No amendment reduced Rs by an average of 12% compared to amendment treatments. Enhanced grain yield with soil amendment resulted in increased carbon emission efficiency (CEE) with SC > MS > CF > SM > NA. Across years, SC decreased soil bulk density by 13% and increased CEE, soil total C, and soil hydraulic conductivity by 52, 19, and 21%, respectively, compared to NA. These results demonstrate the viability of swine manure + chemical fertilizer at 200 kg N ha−1 as a soil amendment for improved CEE and advancing sustainable maize production in semi-arid rainfed environments.

Assessment of the Effect of Mulch Film on Crops in the Arid Agricultural Region of China under Future Climate Scenarios

Plastic mulch film is widely used in agricultural production. However, there are very few studies on degradable mulch film. In order to investigate the effects of using degradable mulch film in arid regions on crop yield and water use efficiency, we used fully biodegradable mulch films on both maize and bare land cultivation experimental areas. The DeNitrification-DeComposition (DNDC) model was used to analyze changes in maize biomass in the future under different climate scenario models. We found that using fully biodegradable mulch film in an arid region had a positive effect on biomass yields. In 2015–2017, the annual maize biomass yield increased by 24.5%, 28.9%, and 32.9%, respectively. Hence, this method has expansion and promotion value. A comparison of the DNDC model simulated biomass yields and actual measured values found that the ranges of R2, root mean square error (RMSE), and model efficiency (ME) were 0.98–0.99, 0.38–0.86 mg C ha−1, and 0.80–0.98. This result shows that the DNDC model can accurately simulate changes in maize biomass in this region. Under the premise of a good model fit, future climate scenario model data were used to drive the DNDC model. The results showed that the possible range of maize biomass yields in the future is −6.5% to 10.3%, with the most probable range being 0.2–1.5%. Using future climatic conditions, our work suggests that degradable mulch films can increase water use efficiency by an average of 9.5%. The results of this study can be used to promote the use of degradable mulch films in arid regions, significantly improving sustainable agricultural development.

Kuru Üretim Zeytin Bahçelerinde Yağmur Suyu Hasadı Malç Uygulamasıyla Toprak ve Su Muhafazasının İncelenmesi

Su hasadı teknikleri kurak alanlarda yağmur sularını biriktirerek su sıkıntısının ve kuraklığın etkilerini azaltmanın yanı sıra, toprak ve su koruma açısından da yarar sağlamaktadır. Bu çalışmada, yağışların yetersiz olduğu yarı kurak iklime sahip Güneydoğu Anadolu bölgesinde, sulama olanağı bulunmayan genellikle eğimli arazilere tesis edilmiş zeytin bahçelerinde toprak ve su erozyonu kontrolünü sağlamak amacıyla, Negarim mikro havza yağmur suyu hasadı tekniği uygulanmıştır. Bu çalışmada; yağmur suyunun bitkinin kök bölgesinde birikimini sağlamak amacıyla Negarim adı verilen mikro havzalar içerisine yerleştirilen plastik örtü, taş örtü, mikro-havza yüzeyinin sıkıştırılması ve kontrol konularından oluşan 36 adet mikro-havzanın toprak ve su erozyonuna olan etkisi değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırmada 2009-2010 yılları boyunca yüzey akış ve sediment kayıpları ile bitki gelişimi ölçülmüştür. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre yıllık ortalama yağışı 250 ile 400 mm arasında değişen deneme alanında, 2 su yılı boyunca meydana gelen ortalama maksimum yüzey akış 6201 L/parsel ile plastik örtü konusunda, ortalama minimum yüzey akış 810 L/parsel ile taş örtü konusunda belirlenmiştir. Ortalama maksimum sediment kaybı 1163 g/parsel ile yüzey sıkıştırma konusunda, ortalama minimum sediment kaybı ise 673,5 g/parsel ile taş örtü konusunda ölçülmüştür. Mikro-havza yüzeyi plastik örtü ile kaplı olduğundan erozyon kontrolünü en iyi şekilde sağlayan uygulama plastik örtü olarak saptanmıştır. Plastik örtü konusu en iyi yüzey akışı gerçekleştirdiğinden bitki boyu gelişimi yönünden ortalama 107,5cm uzunluk ile en iyi uygulama olmuştur. Sonuç olarak kuru koşullarda ve eğimli arazilerde üretimi yapılan zeytin bahçelerinde Negarim mikro havza su hasadı tekniğinin ağaçların büyüme ve gelişimi arttırmanın yanı sıra toprak ve su muhafazası açısından da yararlı ve uygulanabilir bir teknik olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.

Growth Rate of Eggplant Under Nitrogen and Phosphate Fertilization and Irrigated With Wastewater

Wastewater use has become an alternative for agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas due to water scarcity besides providing nutrient for plants. This work aimed to evaluate the effects of the interaction of nitrogen and phosphorus doses associated with wastewater on the growth rate of eggplants in the stages of vegetative growth and beginning of fruiting in the semi-arid of Brazil. The wastewater was previously treated using sand filter with intermittent flow. The experiment consisted of a randomized block design in a 4 × 4 + 1 factorial scheme, with four replications. The factors consisted of four nitrogen doses (N1 = 0.22, N2 = 0.39, N3 = 0.56 and N4 = 0.72 g dm-3 of soil), four doses of phosphorus (P1 = 0, P2 = 1.68, P3 = 2.40 and P4 = 3.12 g dm-3 of soil), both using wastewater, and a control treatment (100% nitrogen and phosphorus using drinking water). The interaction of wastewater with nitrogen and phosphorus doses influenced all growth rates at the vegetative stage, except for the relative number of leaves. We found interaction for the relative rates of stem diameter and number and area of leaves at the beginning of the fruiting stage. Nitrogen and phosphorus doses associated with wastewater were excessive even below the recommendation for eggplant cultivation, however, in the absence of wastewater the plants reduce the growth rates of stem diameter and leaf area in the initial period of the fruiting.

Growth potential of primed Moringa oleifera varieties under nursery and field conditions of Potohar region-Pakistan

Abstract Moringa oleifera is a fast emergent multiuse tree. It is protein rich and is used as human food, cattle fodder and medicine. Present research study was carried out to know growth and germination potential of untreated, tap water and hot water treated seeds of four varieties of Moringa oleifera in nursery and field conditions in field area of Koont research farm, Peer Mehar Ali Shah (PMAS), Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi. After treatment seeds were sown in polythene bags in nursery. Germination of seed was recorded for three weeks in laboratory as well as in nursery conditions and statistically analyzed using ANOVA techniques. Simple water, hot water and control enhanced 60%, 71.5% and 41.75% germination in this experiment. Hot water treatment has shown maximum germination percentage in all varieties i.e 80 % in Kumasi Middle Ghana, 85 % in Sunyam Middle Ghana, 62 % in Northern Ghana and 59 % in Tehiman Middle Ghana. Maximum plant height 17.12 cm was recorded in T2 followed by 14.9 cm and 10.8 in T1 and T3, respectively. In nursery conditions, T2 treated plants had maximum stem diameter which was 2.52 mm followed by T1 and T3 that was 2.1 mm and 1.8 mm, respectively. Moringa plants of T1 in field condition had maximum 4.71 mm diameter significantly greater than 3.87 mm (T2) and 3.79 mm (T1) respectively. Keywords: Growth; Moringa; Nursery; Priming http://dx.doi.org/10.19045/bspab.2019.80023

Gender differences in the attribution of responsibility for sexual harassment: A students' perspective.

Sexual harassment is largely experienced by working women and students and it is common especially in educational institutes. This research aimed to find out the gender differences and prevalence of students' attribution of responsibility for sexual harassment. It was a survey based quantitative research with purposive and convenient sample of 500 university students enrolled in two public (Quaid-i-Azam university and Arid Agriculture university) and two private universities (Foundation and Bahria university), Time period of study was from September to October 2018. Of total 500 participants, 204 (40.8%) were males and 296 (59.2%) were females. In all 390 (78%, d=.47) participants gave responsibility to women for sexual harassment while only 110 (22%) reported that men are responsible for sexual harassment. High prevalence of attribution of sexual harassment towards women were found. Men blamed women for sexual harassment as indicated by high mean score achieved on t-test analysis. Prevalence of such phenomenon was not explored previously for student population and also, this study can serve as a very strong basis for planning relevant intervention programmes that focus more on perpetrator instead of victims of sexual harassment.

Impact of foliar fertilization on apple and pear trees in reconciling productivity and alleviation of environmental concerns under arid conditions

ABSTRACTDrought and heat stress are significant factors limiting fruit crop yield in arid conditions. Foliar fertilization is a common practice of supplying fruit crop production with mineral nutrients, especially under limited soil nutrient availability conditions. To evaluate potential effectiveness of the foliar application of macro-, micronutrient and growth regulators on dynamics of physiological parameters of the pear and apple cultivars under abiotic stresses, three–year experiments were carried out under arid conditions at the Russian Research Institute of Arid Agriculture during the 2015–2017 growing seasons. It has been revealed that foliar nutrition reduces the negative influence of heat stress, stabilizes the functional state of plants, thereby enhancing resistance to drought. During the most severe drought periods of vegetation, under the influence of foliar nutrition, there was a significant increase in the total water content (TWC), relative leaf turgidity (RLT) and water retention capacity (WRC); and also index of leaf water deficiency (LWD) was improved as compared to the non-treated control. All foliar treatments involving the macro-, micronutrient and growth regulators significantly enhanced fruit crop yield of pear and apple varieties over the control, yield enhancement was obtained 2.7–22.0 t ha−1 for the Talgar beauty (pear variety), 2.2–19.3 t ha−1 for the Renet Symirenko (apple variety), and 1.6–10.5 t ha−1 for the Starkrimson (apple variety). The most effective treatments for water consumption coefficient (WCC) were plantafol and speedphol. The results suggest that foliar plantafol and speedfol could be used as part of an efficient, sustainable fertilizer program for apple and pear trees for maintaining or improving fruit quality, productivity, and avoiding negative efficacy of abiotic stresses.

Soil parameters drive the diversity of Citrus sinensis rhizosphere microbiota which exhibits a potential in plant drought stress alleviation

Plant associated microorganisms, particularly those exhibiting a plant growth promoting (PGP) effect, play an important role in plant nutrition and health and the adaptation to unfavorable climatic conditions, such as drought which threatens the productivity of agricultural crops. The selection of specific microbial populations in the soil habitats associated to plants depends upon the soil physico-chemical parameters besides the ‘rhizosphere effect’ played by each plant species through rhizodepositions. In this study, we investigated the community structure and PGP potential of the microbiota associated to Citrus sinensis plants located in different geographical regions of Tunisia. The bacteria community structure was correlated to soil physiochemical parameters and we identified potassium, carbon and organic matter content as drivers of the C. sinensis microbiota composition. The evaluation of the potential of selected bacteria as biofertilizer and bio-stimulator under drought stress was achieved through the phylogenetic and functional characterization of a large collection of bacterial strains isolated from the rhizosphere of C. sinensis. The strains were screened in vitro for putative plant growth promoting traits, and the six most promising isolates were tested in vivo on Solanum lycopersicum and Capsicum annuum model plants. The bacterized plants were cultivated under drought stress and compared with not bacterized and fully irrigated control plants. All the tested bacteria induced a significant increase in the number of leaves and in root biomass of both plant species compared to not inoculated plants. Our results highlighted that the strains Ensifer adhaerens S1B1.5 and Pseudomonas resinovorans S4R2.6 were, in particular, effective in promoting plant growth under water shortage, indicating them as promising strains for the development of sustainable biofertilizers suited for agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions characterized by water scarcity.

ОСОБЕННОСТИ СТРУКТУРЫ КОРРЕЛЯЦИЙ У ЛИНИЙ ПРИЗНАКОВОЙ КОЛЛЕКЦИИ ХЛОПЧАТНИКА С ЕСТЕСТВЕННОЙ ОКРАСКОЙ ВОЛОКНА

Background . The overwhelming majority of commercial cotton cultivars have white fiber. Production of fabrics from such fiber has some disadvantages, therefore an increasing number of genotypes of cotton with the naturally colored fiber is being created around the world in the last decades. An investigation of correlations between different traits makes it possible to reveal the degree of influence of fiber color on structural and agronomic characters, and determine the possibility of creating varieties with naturally colored fiber for profitable cultivation in the north of the Astrakhan Province. Material and methods . Fourteen early lines of upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) from the trait-specific collection, which have naturally colored fiber, were studied in the north of the Astrakhan Province at the Caspian Research Institute of Arid Agriculture (CRIAA). The study employed the techniques developed at VIR and took into account productivity elements and agronomic traits. The lines were created at the Prikumskaya Experiment and Breeding Station of the Stavropol Agricultural Research Institute (Budennovsk) and CRIAA on the basis of hybrids between Turkmen varieties with brown and green fiber and accessions of early white fiber cotton from Albania and Italy. Two lines had beige fiber, 6 light brown, and 6 green. Microsoft Excel 10 was used in the work. Results and Discussion . The analysis of genotypic correlations showed that due to the insufficiency of the total effective temperatures in 2013, no significant links of colored fiber with other signs were discovered. All the correlations were typical for cotton plants. In the more favorable conditions of 2014, the variability of quantitative traits increased and the correlations that were absent in the previous year were revealed. The negative correlation of fiber color with the first generative branch height (r = -0.53), and positive with the fiber yield (r = 0.57) indicate that the lines with brown fiber have a lower height of fruiting branches development (and potentially a shorter growing season) and a larger yield of fiber. By their characteristics, they approach the industrial white fiber cultivars. These results show that the creation of a cultivar with brown fiber in the near future in Russia is quite possible.

Conflicts and water governance challenge in irrigated areas of semi-arid regions

Agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions faces two of the principal global challenges: sustainability and water scarcity in the context of climate changes. To overcome the water scarcity constraint, Tunisia adopted different strategies and policies. Since 1989, it has embarked on a policy of decentralization and participatory water management in irrigated areas “IA.” This policy has led to the state disengagement in favor of collective water management. Since then, water management becomes a task of irrigator associations. These associations have experienced a series of transformations ranging from “collective interest associations: CIA” to the current form “Development Agricultural Groups: GDAs.” In spite of these institutional changes, GDAs are suffering from several problems impeding their functioning such as budgetary deficit, conflicts between stakeholders, leaving of irrigated activity by some farmers, and inequality. The current situation of GDA and most IA hypothesizes the existence of local governance problems; these governance problems are causing a performance decrease in IA. The analysis of the interdependence between governance and performance of irrigation water management, in Nadhour IA, is the main aim of this paper. To conduct this analysis, the strategic analysis approach was adopted. Assuming that IA forms a concrete action system, the analysis of structured games between actors allowed assessing their power, convergence, divergence, and ambivalence. Results confirm the hypothesis of a significant effect of governance problems, including political source, on the performance of water management in IA.

Does biochar mitigate the adverse effects of drought on the agronomic traits and yield components of soybean?

Drought and low amounts of organic matter are two main constraints when considering agriculture in arid and semiarid regions. The two constraints and their adverse effects on soils and plants may be alleviated by biochar (B). Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the influence of 0 (0B), 1.25 (1.25B), 2.5 (2.5B) and 5% wt (5B) cattle-manure biochar on the agronomic and physiological traits of soybean under field capacity (FC), 0.7FC and 0.55FC conditions. Drought was observed to reduce water use efficiency (WUE), leaf area, stomatal conductance (SC), harvest index (only for 0.55FC), straw fresh matter yield (SFMY), straw dry matter yield (SDMY), pod yield, grain yield, pod lenght, and plant height by nearly 15–16%, 23–36%, 23–47%, 11–12%, 42–64%, 36–52%, 44–65%, 41–64%, 5–11%, and 33–60%, respectively as compared with those of control (FC conditions), whereas drought increased the greenness index (GI) of soybean leaves by 11–20% compared with control. In general, drought decreased all traits of studied soybean variety. However, pod yield, grain number, SFMY and plant height were more negatively influenced. The most unfavorable effect of drought on SC was observed at the late reproductive stage (90 days after planting, DAP); whereas, drought effects on leaf area were similar at different growth stages. Harvest index (HI) and WUE was the lowest at severe drought (0.55FC) and there was no significant difference between these traits at non-drought (FC) and moderate drought (0.7FC) conditions. Therefore, keeping soil moisture to near 0.7FC not only did not change the WUE and HI, but also reduces water consumption. All B treatments increased the leaf area (at the beginning, 60 DAP and middle reproductive stages, 75 DAP), GI and SC by 6–36%, 11–20%, and 46–80%, respectively. The application of 1.25B increased WUE, SFMY, SDMY, the pod length and plant height by 26%, 35%, 27%, 5%, and 16%, respectively, whereas higher percentages of B were ineffective, i.e. 2.5B did not significantly affect the WUE, SDMY and pod length and 5B reduced the values of the grain and pod yield and 1000-grain weight. Low level of biochar (1.25B) had positive influences on almost all traits; whereas, higher levels (2.5B and 5B) due to the excessive salinity not only had no positive effects but also adversely influenced almost all traits. Furthermore, positive effects of the effective biochar treatment (1.25B) on almost all traits were most pronounced at the moderate or severe drought conditions compared with non-drought conditions. In conclusion, high levels of B due to salinity related negative influences on plant cannot be suggested. While, application of 1.25B due to mitigating the adverse effects of drought and consequently increasing WUE, the growth and yield components of soybean may be recommended.

Characterization of mineral phosphate solubilizing and plant growth promoting bacteria from termite soil of arid region.

Five highly efficient phosphate solubilizing bacteria, viz., Pantoea sp. A3, Pantoea sp. A34, Kosakonia sp. A37, Kosakonia sp. B7 and Bacillus sp. AH9 were isolated from termitorial soils of Sanjivani island of southern Maharashtra, India. These isolates were characterized and explored for phosphate solubilization and plant growth promotion. Among these, Bacillus sp. AH9 showed highest phosphate solubilization index (3.5) and solubilization efficiency (250%) on Pikovskaya agar. Interestingly, Pantoea sp. A34 displayed maximum mineral phosphate solubilization (1072.35mg/L) in liquid medium and during this period the pH dropped to 3.13. All five isolates had highest P solubilization at 48h after inoculation. During mineral phosphate solubilization, both gluconic acid and 2-keto gluconic acid were produced by Kosakonia and Bacillus isolates, while only 2-keto gluconic acid was detected in Pantoea isolates. Highest organic acid (39.07 ± 0.04g/L) production was envisaged in Bacillus sp. AH9, while Pantoea sp. A34 produced the least amount (13.00 ± 0.01g/L) of organic acid. Seed bacterization with Pantoea sp. A3 and Kosakonia sp. A37 resulted in ~ 37% and ~ 53% increase in root length of tomato seedlings, respectively, while Pantoea sp. A34 and Kosakonia sp. B7 had deleterious effects on root length as well as overall growth of the seedlings. To our knowledge, this is the first report of plant growth promoting potential of microorganisms isolated from termitorial soil of Sanjivani island, which is a drought-prone area. Therefore, such efficient growth promoting P solubilizers can offer an effective solution for sustainable agriculture in arid, dryland farming and drought-prone regions.

Agricultural tractors of the fifth generation

The article deals with the problem of substantiation of mobile power units (MPU) – tractors for agriculture of the fifth generation. This issue is quite relevant. The main purpose of the work is to analyze agricultural tractors of the fifth generation. The authors formulated the main requirements for the ecological balance of the technogenic interaction of MPUs with production processes in agro-ecosystems of grain production in the zonal conditions of South-Russian arid agriculture. Proposals for the creation of new MPUs have been developed; the technological structures of machine aggregates based on the MPU of the fifth generation of classes 3, 5-6 and 8 that determined the technical schemes of the named MPU were determined. Analytical models for calculating the power characteristics of MPU of the named classes in deterministic and stochastic modes in relation to the most energy-intensive operations with definitions of the mathematical expectations of MTA’s power and performance. Also, an analysis of the MTAs effectiveness based on new MPUs upon criterion of the time spent on cultivating crop rotations on the examples of peasant farms and agricultural organizations (APC, CAE, etc.)

Ethnomedicinal flora of Frontier Region Tank, Fata, Pakistan

Main objective of the study was to record the ethnobotanical uses of indigenous plants of the federally administered tribal area (FATA), Bhittani (Local Tribe). Total interviewed local informants of different ages through questionnaire were 212 (196 male and 16 female). Well-known statistical indices, Use Value (UVi) formula and Fidelity Level (FL%) were used for quantification of the recorded data. After identification, the collected specimens were deposited in the Herbarium of Botany Department, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Present findings reveal that 38 plants species belonging to 26 families were being used in the treatment of 31 different diseases. Regarding plant habit, herbs were the leading growth form (63%), followed by trees (24%) and shrubs (13%) respectively. Solanaceae (13.16%) was leading family used in curing various diseases, followed by Asteraceae and Moraceae (7.89% each). Most cited families by the informants were Solanaceae (5 species, 137 citations), Asteraceae (3 species, 81 citations), Moraceae (3 species, 69 citations) and Amaryllidaceae (2 species, 57 citations). Most of taxa were used in curing constipation and stomach problem (9.88% each), followed by pain and cough (7.41% each), digestive and fever (4.96% each). Most frequently used plant part for curing different diseases was leaves (33.33%), followed by fruits (21.67%) and roots (13.33%). Medicinal plants with most use values and high ranks were Withania coagulans (0.88) ranked 1st and Cichorium intybus 2nd (0.81) while Cichorium intybus also showed 100% FL value. Plants of study area provide most of the basic requirements for the survival of local communities. There is huge pressure exerted on the natural vegetation due to their overuse by the inhabitants of the area. If proper remedial measures are not taken soon, this process may lead to decline of the valuable plant species from the study area.

Impact of agricultural water-saving practices on regional evapotranspiration: The role of groundwater in sustainable agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas

Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important component of the water budget process and is characterized by complex spatiotemporal changes, especially in irrigated agricultural areas. The impact of various hydrological processes and human activities on ET is still a meaty theme to study and investigate. A typical agricultural irrigation district with shallow groundwater and arid climate conditions was selected as the case study area in this work. The impact of the supplied irrigation water, shallow groundwater, crop planting pattern, and weather conditions on regional ET was determined after the regional ET was estimated by a Surface Energy Balance Algorithm of Land (SEBAL) model with Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroratiometer (MODIS) data. The results show that the regional ET in Hetao kept declining in the past 15 years. The positive correlation between the water input (water diversion and precipitation) and ET indicated that reduced water diversion controls the declining ET, also causing the drop of groundwater level. Due to capillary forces and root uptake, the shallow groundwater tended to move upward to support the crop water consumption because the soil suffered from a water deficit. Furthermore, we quantified the contribution of shallow groundwater to regional ET and found that the water supplied from shallow groundwater increased from 5% to 15% during the period of water–saving irrigation. However, the long–term decrease of irrigation water supply and groundwater level caused a soil water deficit over the crop growth period, and the variation of crop planting pattern reduced ET as well. Therefore, groundwater plays an important role in sustainable agricultural development in arid and semiarid areas and the contribution of shallow groundwater to regional water consumption cannot be neglected.

Irrigation canals are newly created streams of semi-arid agricultural regions

The natural hydrologic processes that create and maintain the diversity of aquatic and riparian habitats along the World's streams and rivers have been profoundly altered by humans. Diversion of surface water to support production agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions has degraded ecosystems but also created potential habitat along and in canals specifically designed to transport water. The prevalence of canals and the immense amount of water used for agriculture have created these new artificial stream systems. This study demonstrates the potential for irrigation canals to support riparian and aquatic communities similar to natural streams in urban/residential and agricultural landscapes. We examined the hydrological and ecological characteristics of streams and irrigation canals in urban and agricultural landscapes in northeastern Colorado, typical of regions dominated by irrigation-supported agriculture. Flow patterns in canals depended on their size and had a range of patterns with potential ecological consequences such as rapidly rising and falling water stage, intermittent dry periods, and delayed peak and base flows compared to natural streams. Despite these hydrologic differences, the taxonomic and functional composition of riparian plant and aquatic macroinvertebrate communities indicated that ecological similarities exist between streams and canals, but are dependent, in part, on their landscape setting with stronger similarities in agricultural areas. We also tested the influence of characterizing taxa by functional groups using physiology, ecology and life history traits to explore attributes of habitats including woody canopy structure and water quality. We used a Habitat Quality Index (HQI) that combined physical and biological measures into a single index. Streams scored higher on average within agriculture and urban/residential settings compared to canals; however, one third of urban canals scored above the average of agricultural streams. This multidisciplinary study shows that irrigation canals can be valuable riparian and aquatic habitat, especially in regions with severely degraded streams.

EFFECTS OF MULTI-GRADE TEACHING AND LEARNING AT PRIMARY LEVEL SCHOOLS.

08Jun 2018 EFFECTS OF MULTI-GRADE TEACHING AND LEARNING AT PRIMARY LEVEL SCHOOLS. Muhammad Shahzad Ashfaq , M. Imran Yousuf and M. Arshad Dahar. Faculty of Social Sciences, Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi - Pakistan. Chairman, Department of Education, Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi ? Pakistan Assistant Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi - Pakistan

English

Scarcity of water is the most severe constraint for development of agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas. Under this condition, the need to use the available water economically and efficiently is unquestionable. Based on the actual crop need, irrigation management has to be improved so that the water supply to the crop can be reduced while still achieving high yield. A field experiment was carried out at Mehoni Agricultural Research Center, Raya Valley of Ethiopia, during 2016/17 season with objectives of determining the effect of deficit irrigation on Onion yield component and crop water productivity and the effect of Conventional, Alternate and Fixed furrow irrigation on yield and crop water productivity of onion. The treatment were five deficit irrigation levels (40, 55, 70, 85 and 100% ETc), and three furrow irrigation techniques (conventional, alternate and fixed furrow) were laid out in a random complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The highest bulb yield was obtained at 100% ETc with conventional furrow method. In terms of irrigation and water use efficiency, 40% ETc deficit irrigation level application gave the highest irrigation water use efficiency and crop water use efficiency which was significantly superior to all other treatment. Among the irrigation water application methods, the highest water use efficiency was obtained with alternate furrow application method. On the other hand, the minimum water use efficiency was recorded with conventional furrow method. Alternative furrow irrigation (AFI) gave the highest crop water use efficiency and irrigation water use efficiency whereas conventional furrow irrigation (CFI) recorded the lowest. Better crop water use efficiency and irrigation water use efficiency were obtained in the AFI and fixed furrow irrigation (FFI), while the applied water in AFI was reduced by 50% of the CFI. Therefore, it can be concluded that increased water saving and associated water productivity can be achieved without significant reduction of yield in AFI with 100% ETc of irrigation level. AFI system appears to be a promising alternative. Key words: Alternate furrow, conventional furrow, deficit irrigation, fixed furrow, onion.

Saha Koşullarında Ayçiçeği Böcek Tozlaştırıcılarının Çeşitliliği ve Yayılma Davranışı

To discover the pollinator community of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and different aspects of
 behavior, activity and pollination effect of Apis and non Apis bees, an experiment was performed at
 the research farm of Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The insect pollinator
 community was composed of eighteen species belonging to seven families and three insect orders.
 Apis mellifera and Xylocopa fenestrata were the most frequent visitors comprising 44% and 14%
 with maximum activity observed during early day hours.Visitation frequency of these two
 pollinators significantly varied at early and late observation times with no significant differences
 observed during the mid-day. The study also covered other aspects including visitation rate and
 duration of a single visit on flower heads. These also contributed significantly in increase of head
 diameter, total number of seeds per head, filled seeds, seed filling percentage and seed weight
 when compared with self-pollination.Presence of wild pollinators with commercial bee keepers can
 help in increase of crop yields and their good seed potential due to improvement of crossing of
 gene pool. 

Substrate Influences Temperature Sensitivity of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) and Nitrogen (DON) Mineralization in Arid Agricultural Soils

The bioavailability of nitrogen (N) in soil relies on the progressive breakdown of necromass protein to peptide and amino acid components and conversion to inorganic N forms. We understand the fluxes and pathways of the N cycle downstream from amino acids, but our understanding of the factors controlling peptide and amino acid mineralization, particularly in arid soils, is lacking. We investigated the influence of temperature on the rate of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and nitrogen (DON) cycling in three agricultural soils from Saudi Arabia. Although the physical and chemical properties of the soils differed markedly, phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis revealed they had similar topsoil and subsoil microbial communities. Soils behaved similarly in terms of the rate of substrate use, microbial C-use efficiency, and response to temperature. Substrate mineralization rate increased with temperature with more C being allocated to microbial catabolic rather than anabolic processes. Our results show that climate change is likely to lead to changes in soil organic matter turnover and shift C allocation patterns within the soil microbial community. This is expected to reduce soil quality and exacerbate nutrient losses. Management strategies are required to promote the retention of organic matter in these soils.