Cm-2 Day-1 Research Articles

Influence of Foliar Application of Nitrogen through Urea and Nano Urea on Morphophysiological and Yield in Foxtail Millet (Setaria italica L.)

A field experiment was conducted at College of Agriculture Nagpur, during Kharif 2023 in randomized blocked design (RBD) with PDKV Yashshree (BFTM-82) variety, at Research Farm of Agricultural Botany Section, College of Agriculture Nagpur, with three replications and eight treatments. The results revealed that the best treatment 25 N kg ha-1 + two spray of nano urea @ 4 ml L-1 (T8) applied at tillering and pre-flowering stage was significantly superior as compared to other treatments which shows the highest value in morpho-physiological viz., Plant height (163.00 cm) at 80 DAS, days to 50% flowering (57.00), days to maturity (87.00), RGR (0.095 g-1 dm-2 day-1 ) at 60-80 DAS and CGR (0.82 g-1 cm-2 day-1) at 60-80 DAS and yield parameters viz., No. of panicle hill-1 (4.90), Panicle length (24.37 cm), No. of spikelet panicle-1 (66.07), Grain yield kg plot-1 (1.30),Grain yield kg ha-1 (1421.78),Harvest index (63.50%) of foxtail millet.

Anticorrosive properties of chitosan-derivatives coatings on Mg AZ31 alloy in Hank's Balanced Salt Solution

This study describes the preparation of chitosan-derivatives coatings on AZ31 Mg alloy for corrosion protection in Hank's Balanced Salt Solution (HBSS). The derivatives were prepared by reacting chitosan with natural aldehydes (vanillin, benzaldehyde and cinnamaldehyde) and the coatings were characterized by means of water contact angle, scanning electron microscopy and swelling essays. The corrosion behavior of the samples was investigated using potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and hydrogen evolution essays. All derivatives present superior corrosion protection than neat chitosan and the best performance is observed for the vanillin derivative with the highest modification degree, which present hydrogen evolution rate of 0.05 mL cm−2 day−1, below the tolerance limit for biomedical application, and |Z|max in the order of 104.6 Ω cm2 even after 14 days of exposure to the corrosive solution.

Studies on Influence of Lipo-chito Oligosaccharides, Nano and Water-Soluble Fertilizer on Growth and Growth Parameters of Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill

A field experiment was conducted at University of Agricultural Sciences, GKVK, Bengaluru during kharif 2022 to studies on influence of lipo-chito oligosaccharides, nano and water-soluble fertilizer on growth and growth parameters of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill]. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with ten treatments and replicated thrice. The results revealed that application of 75% recommended dose of NP + 100 % K along with soil application of lipo-chito oligosaccharide (LCO) fortified bio-fertilizer @ 10 kg ha-1 + foliar application of 19:19:19 @ 2 % spray at flowering and pod filling stages recorded significantly higher leaf area, leaf area index at 60 DAS (1772 cm2 plant-1 and 4.91 respectively), leaf area duration (57.59 and 81.07 cm2 day-1 at 30-60 DAS and 60 DAS-harvest, respectively), no. of nodules plant at 35 DAS (31.12), total dry matter accumulation (12.74 and 20.05 g plant-1 at 60 DAS and harvest, respectively), absolute growth rate (0.24 and 0.30 g day-1 at 30-60 DAS and 60 DAS-harvest, respectively), crop growth rate (8.15 and 9.21 g cm-2 day-1 at 30-60 DAS and 60 DAS-harvest, respectively) and relative growth rate (0.031 and 0.040 g g day-1 at 30-60 DAS and 60 DAS­­-at harvest, respectively).

Potentiality of Sustainable Maize Production under Rainfed Conditions in the Tropics by Triggering Agro-Physio-Biochemical Traits Ascertained from a Greenhouse.

A major portion of maize is produced under rainfed conditions in the tropics with relatively poor yield because of the unpredictable and irregular distribution of seasonal rainfall, as well as a decline in pre-rainy season rainfall due to climate change, so identification of sustainable production options is utmost needed. Thus, the present studies were conducted in a greenhouse (GH) to ascertain the water stress-tolerant traits of maize and at the field level in the tropical environment of Thailand to see the stimulating possibility of the ascertained traits in a locally popular cultivar using ethephon. Depending on tolerance level, three maize genotypes (Suwan 2301 > Suwan 4452 > S 7328) were tested under different water conditions-well-watered, short-term, and long-term water stress-in the GH. At the field level, the locally popular maize cultivar Suwan 5819 was examined with six ethephon levels (doses in g a.i. ha-1 of ethephon, i.e., T1, 281 at V6 stage; T2, 281 at V6 + 281 at V10 stage; T3, 281 at V10 stage; T4, 562 at V6 stage; T5, 562 at V6 + 562 at V10 stage; T6, 562 at V10 stage) against no ethephon application (T0) under rainfed conditions. Maize suffered from the scarcity of sufficient rainfall during 26-39 days after planting (DAP) and 43-63 DAP in the field. The yield index (YI) was identified from biplot analysis as one of the suitable standards for drought tolerance checks for maize at GH as well as at field level in the tropics. The YI value of observed agro-physio-biochemical traits of maize in GH showed that relative water content (RWC, 1.23), stem base diameter (SBD, 1.21), total soluble sugar (TSS, 1.15), proline (Pr, 1.13), aboveground plant biomass (APB, 1.13), root weight (RW, 1.13), relative growth rate (RGR, 1.15), specific leaf weight (SLW, 1.12), and net assimilation rate (NAR, 1.08) were the most desirable. Efforts were made to stimulate these traits under water stress at the field level. Ethephon application as T1 helped to gain higher kernel yield (KY) (5.26 t ha-1) with the support of higher RWC (90.38%), proline (24.79 µmol g-1 FW), TSS (1629 mg g-1 FW), SBD (24.49 mm), APB (271.34 g plant-1), SLW (51.71 g m-2), RGR (25.26 mg plant-1 day-1), and NAR (0.91 mg cm-2 day-1) compared to others, especially no ethephon application. Furthermore, the attributes SLW, SBD, Pr, heat utilization efficiency (HUE), 100-kernel weight, TSS, electrolyte leakage, and lodging percentage showed a substantial direct effect and significant correlation with KY. Aside from higher KY, ethephon application as T1 tactics resulted in higher values of energy efficiency (1.66), HUE (2.99 kg ha-1 °C days-1), gross margin (682.02 USD ha-1), MBCR (3.32), and C absorption (6.19 t C ha-1), indicating that this practice may be a good option for maize sustainable production under rainfed conditions.

Impact of Bacterial Inoculums, Organic Residues and Mineral Fertilization Levels on Growth Traits of Dry Direct Seeded Rice Grown under Aerobic Conditions

A field experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Station, Gangavathi, University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur, Karnataka during kharif seasons for two consecutive years (2019 and 2020) to study the influence of zinc and iron biofortification on physiological parameters of dry direct seeded rice under aerobic condition. The experiment was laid out in split plot design and comprised of two factors for the study viz., main plots and sub plot treatments. Perusal of pooled data of two years showed that, among the rice genotypes, G3: GNV-10-89 recorded significantly higher dry matter production accounted for 23.75, 69.92 and 82.73 g hill-1 at 60, 90 DAS and at harvest, respectively, leaf area 512.09, 543.92 and 376.57 cm2 hill-1, leaf area duration 45.60, 79.05 and 68.92 days and crop growth rate 34.78, 76.95 and 21.34 g cm-2 day-1 for the same sequences as compared to other genotype. With respect to micronutrient application, M6: Soil application of ZnSO4 @ 15 kg ha-1 and FeSO4 @ 10 kg ha-1 + foliar application of ZnSO4 @ 0.5 % and FeSO4 @ 0.5 % at 30 and 45 DAS recorded significantly higher dry matter production (27.26, 80.88 and 93.22 g hill-1 at 60, 90 DAS and at harvest, respectively), leaf area (514.21, 542.65 and 382.68 cm2 hill-1 at 60, 90 DAS and at harvest, respectively), leaf area duration (46.27, 79.20 and 69.22 days during 30-60 DAS, 61-90 DAS and 91 DAS-at harvest, respectively) and crop growth rate (39.10, 89.37 and 20.56 g cm-2 day-1 at 30-60 DAS, at 61-90 DAS and at 91 DAS-at harvest, respectively) as compared to other micronutrient application. The observed trends during 2019 and 2020 were nearly closed to each other.

Stability of modified technetium-containing magnesium potassium phosphate matrix under repository conditions with regard to biogeochemical effects

In this work, the biological stability of magnesium potassium phosphate (MPP) matrix was assessed for the first time under conditions modelling near-surface and deep repositories of radioactive waste (RW) containing technetium. It was found that MPP-matrix is potentially susceptible to microbial degradation, so it is necessary to introduce modifying additives. The efficiency of introduction of modifying additives - tetraphenylphosphonium chloride (TPP), thiourea (THIO), polyhexamethyleneguanidine hydrochloride (PHMG), polyethyleneimine (PEI), shungite (SHU), chalcopyrite (CP), orpiment (ORP) at immobilisation of pertechnetate ion in MPP-matrix has been estimated. The mechanical strength and water resistance of the obtained compounds were investigated. The maximum leaching rate of technetium was found to be 0.34 g cm-2 day-1 from the blank sample without additives. The addition of ORP and PHMG reduces the leaching rate of technetium by 90% and 62%, respectively, relative to the pure sample. The addition of other modifying additives reduced the leaching rate of pertechnetate ions by 15–25% on average. At the same time, the addition of PEI and THIO led to a decrease in compressive strength below the standard requirement of 4.9 MPa.a. Samples containing PHMG and ORP up to 0.5 wt% showed higher safety margin compared to the blank sample. ORP, PHMG and TPP can be proposed as modifying additives to reduce microbial activity during immobilisation of pertechnetate ion using MPP matrix.

Nature-Inspired Peptide Antifouling Biocide: Coating Compatibility, Field Validation, and Environmental Stability.

This study reports the development of a class of eco-friendly antifouling biocides based on a cyclic dipeptide scaffold, 2,5-diketopiperazine (2,5-DKP). The lead compound cyclo(N-Bip-l-Arg-N-Bip-l-Arg) (1) was synthesized in gram amounts and used to assess the compatibility with an ablation/hydration coating, efficacy against biofouling, and biodegradation. Leaching of 1 from the coating into seawater was assessed via a rotating drum method, revealing relatively stable and predictable leaching rates under dynamic shear stress conditions (36.1 ± 19.7 to 25.2 ± 9.1 ng-1 cm-2 day-1) but low or no leaching under static conditions. The coatings were further analyzed using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), with 1 seen to localize at the surface of the coating in a surfactant-like fashion. When coatings were deployed in the ocean, detectable reductions in biofouling development were measured for up to 11 weeks. After this time, biofouling overwhelmed the performance of the coating, consistent with leaching kinetics. Biodegradation of 1 in seawater was assessed using theoretical oxygen demand and analytical quantification. Masking effects were observed at higher concentrations of 1 due to antimicrobial properties, but half-lives were calculated ranging from 13.4 to 16.2 days. The results can rationally inform future development toward commercial antifouling products.

Influence of Planting Date and Kinetin Concentration on Thermal Accumulation and Some Growth Trails in Barley

A field experiment was carried out in Alsufia - Al-Ramadi city - Al-Anbar governorate Republic of Iraq at winter season 2020-2021 on sandy loam soil. The experiment included 12 treatment resulted from the combination of planting date Oct25, Nov10, Nov25 and Dec10 ( main plots) and kinetin concentration 0,30 and 60 mg L-1( sub plots ) using RCBD with split plot arrangement and three replications. The results revealed that the plants of first planting date recorded 91 days until booting stage and reduced gradually to 60 days at fourth date. First planting date score highest thermal accumulation at 1876 C and declined to lowest value at third date (1389) C. Fourth planting date gave the highest CGR (0.127) g day-1 and NAR (0.00028) g cm-2 day-1. The concentration of kinetin 30 mg L-1 surpass in CGR significantly, but kinetin concentration have on significant effect on NAR.

A Study of Growth Rate and Seed Yield in Ocimum basilicum Germplasms

The present field experiment was conducted at department of Plantation, Spices, Medicinal and Aromatic Crops, College of Horticulture, Mandsaur in simple Randomized Block Design during 2019-20. This investigation was carried out with twenty germplasms obtained from ICAR-AICRP on MAP, college of Horticulture, Mandsaur. The analysis of variance revealed significant difference in all the growth parameters among the germplasms. However, G19 IC-0622541 recorded maximum leaf area (244.50, 1297.09, 4977.09, 7492.67 and 11461.17 cm2 plant-1), leaf area index (0.321, 1.307, 3.425 and 3.949) and leaf area duration (25.69, 104.57, 273.97 and 315.90 cm2 day-1) during all the growth intervals. While, crop growth rate (0.060, 0.422 g cm-2 day-1) and relative growth rate (0.052, 0.117 g g-1 day-1) were higher till 120 days after transplanting in G19 IC-0622541 but in later stages to harvest G11 IC-0622533 was superior in crop growth rate (1.896, 0.340 g cm-2 day-1) and relative growth rate (0.152, 0.108 g g-1 day-1). G14 IC-0622536 had maximum seed yield (29.57 g plant-1) among the germplasms.

Effect of Multinutrients Loaded Electrospun PVA Nanofibre on Germination and its Growth Parameters of Green Gram [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek

Background: In the present study, redundant blanket applications of chemical fertilizer application to the soil set foot into the aquatic environment and cause eutrophication. Besides it cause low nutrient efficiencies, low organic matter, imbalanced fertilization and low fertilizer response influence to decrease crop yield. To solve this serious problem localized delivery of multi nutrients loaded with electrospun nanofibre through the seed coating approach. The nanofibre regulates the nutrient release at the targeted site (rhizospheric zone) in a sustained pattern of using e-spin technology. Methods: The electrospun carrier was developed from PVA at 10%, diameter of fibre ranges form (260 nm to 540 nm) was used as nanocarrier for encapsulate the multi nutrient at different concentration of 25, 50, 75, 100%. A field experiment was conducted during 2019-2020, to study the impact of crop response of MNC loaded nanofibre coated green gram seed. Result: It conclude that the novel nanofibre technology improve the higher plant height (47.38 cm) at maturity stage, total leaf area (1093.95), net assimilation rate (2.92 mg cm-2 day-1) at flowering stage, seed yield (883.41 kg ha-1) as compared to absolute control approaches. This nanofibre technology will give novel idea for the fertilizer industry owing to its unique larger surface area and controlled release kinetics.

Corrosion behavior and degradation mechanism of micro-extruded 3D printed ordered pore topological Fe scaffolds.

The fabrication of ordered pore topological structures (OPTS) with an improved biodegradation profile offers unique attributes required for bone reconstruction. These attributes consisted of fully interconnected porous structure, bone-mimicking mechanical properties, and the possibility of fully regenerating bony defects. Most of the biomaterials based on magnesium were associated with the problem of too fast degradation rate. Here, the present aim was based on the fabrication of ordered pore topological Fe structures (OPTFS) using micro-extrusion-based 3D printing followed by pressureless microwave sintering. Two different kinds of pore features namely randomly distributed interconnected micropores and designed interconnected macropores were investigated. Static in vitro degradation results inferred that the H-2 mm pore size of hexagonal based ordered pore topological Fe structures (H-OPTFS) exhibited the highest degradation rate of 6.45 mg cm-2 day-1 on the 28th day. Electrochemical results revealed that the corrosion current density of the T-1 Fe sample with 44% porosity increased nearly by a multiple of three times as compared to dense Fe (from 16.79 to 44.63 . Similarly, these results showed more significance in H-2 mm pores size (with highest 66% porosity) of H-OPTFS as compared to H-1.75 mm and H-1.5 mm pore size of H-OPTFS (≈2 times higher degradation rate than H-1.5 mm pore size). Moreover, the MG63 osteoblast cell line was adhered to and proliferated significantly throughout the surface and illustrated more than 80% cell viability of the prepared porous Fe scaffold. The analyzed results have shown the potential of fabricated OPTFS could be considered for biomedical applications.

Influence of Different Crop Establishment and Irrigation Methods on Growth and Growth Indices of Rice

The increasing global demand for water in many sectors has become a universal concern. Challenge is to develop advanced production systems that allow rice production to be sustained in the face of waning water availability. With the intention to find the efficient water saving technology and establishment method, a field experiment was conducted at Zonal Agricultural Research Station, V. C. Farm, Mandya, University of Agricultural Sciences, and Bangalore during Kharif 2018. The experiment was laid out in split plot design with three main plot irrigation treatments and five sub plot rice establishment treatments. The paddy variety used was ‘MTU 1001’. Objective was to study the irrigation and establishment methods on growth of rice. The results revealed that, continuous flooding recorded significantly higher plant height (80.67 cm) at harvest. Whereas, alternate wetting and drying (AWD) recorded higher leaf area index (5.06), CGR at 30 to 60 DAS, 60 to 90 DAS and 90 DAS to harvest (1.49, 3.50 and 2.47 g m-2 day-1, respectively), NAR at 30 to 60 DAS and 60 to 90 DAS (7.19 and 4.37 mg cm-2 day-1, respectively). Among establishment methods, manual transplanting recorded higher plant height (81.82 cm), LAI (5.70), DME (55.77), AGR at 30 DAS (0.36 g day-1), CGR at 30 to 60 DAS and 60 to 90 DAS (1.73 and 3.94 g m-2 day-1, respectively) and LAD at 30 to 60 DAS, 60 to 90 DAS and 90DAS to harvest (49.50, 128.70 and 272.80, respectively). However, mechanical transplanting recorded significantly more number of tillers m-2 (765.67), NAR at 30 to 60 DAS and 60 to 90 DAS (9.96 and 4.41 mg cm-2 day-1, respectively). AWD method of irrigation in mechanical transplanting and manual transplanting are found to be better among all other methods due to the higher growth and development.

EFFECT OF SEEDS SOAKING AND VEGETATIVE PARTS NUTRITION WITH ACIDS OF ASCORBIC, CITRIC AND HUMIC ON MAIZE GROWTH

A field experiment was carried out during two spring seasons in 2019 and 2020. This study was aimed to increase dry matter weight and crop growth rate of maize. First factor in main plots was nutrition vegetative parts with ascorbic and citric (100 mg l-1) for both of them and humic (1 ml l-1), in addition to the control treatment (spraying of vegetative parts with distilled water only). Second factor in sub-plots was seeds soaking with same acids above, as well as the control treatment (soaking the seeds with distilled water only). Randomize complete block design in split plot arrangement was used with three replications. The results showed a significant superiority of seeds soaking in humic acid for traits of number of days from planting to 75% anthesis and silking (66.4 and 66.3 day) and (72.3 and 72.3 day), plant height (194.0 and 230.8 cm), leaves area plant-1 (6969.5 and 6570.2 cm2), leaf area index (3.71 and 3.50), dry matter weight (11.6 and 12.2 ton ha-1), crop growth rate (3.0 and 3.2 g cm-2 day-1) and chlorophyll leaf content (60.2 and 69.5 SPAD) for both seasons, respectively. Effect of vegetative parts nutrition and interaction effect of both studied factors was non-significant for most traits. It can be concluded that seeds soaking in humic acid improved growth traits. It can be recommended to soak seeds of maize before planting in humic acid at concentration of 1 ml l-1.

Immobilization of NPP evaporator bottom high salt-bearing liquid radioactive waste into struvite-based phosphate matrices

The high salt-bearing liquid radioactive waste (evaporator bottoms, EB) makes up the most voluminous NPP waste and needs solidification. In the paper presented, we introduce a novel formation process study of the struvite-based phosphate matrices ((K, NH4)MgPO4·6H2O) and the developed phosphate matrix compositions for the solidification of high salt-bearing solutions. The solutions simulate the EB of nuclear power plants with pressurized water reactors (NPP PWR). The effect of the EB's composition and salt content on the matrices' mechanical strength was investigated. The cesium-selective nickel-potassium ferrocyanide sorbent or 10–20% of MgO over the reaction stoichiometry, introduced at the matrix synthesis stage, allowed the production of matrices with the average 137Сs leach rate of less than 10-3 g cm-2 day-1 and the mechanical strength over 5 MPa. The matrices obtained completely satisfied the cemented radioactive waste requirements and contained up to 17–17.5 wt% of salts, which was 1.7–2.5 times higher compared to the Portland cement-based matrices.

EFFECT OF FOLIAR APPLICATION OF POTASSIUM ON GROWTH CHARACTERS AND NPK CONTENT OF POPCORN Zea mays Var. everta

A field experiment was conducted in one of gypsum soil private farm in Al-Dour district during autumn season 2019. The study aims to show the effect spray potassium concentration of 0, 2000, 4000, 6000 mg l-1 on growth characters and NPK percentage in popcorn plants var Noor. The experiment was applied by using RCBD with three replicates. The results showed that corn plants which sprayed with 6000 mg l-1 gave the highest significant values in plant height 148.06 cm , leave area 4396.3 cm2, leave area index 4.47, leaves number 14.4, plant dry weight 134 g, NAR 0.001789 g cm-2 day-1, CGR 0.002275 gm day-1 and percentage of K, N, and P of 3.591, 1.9, and 0.424% respectively. There was no significant different between 4000 and 6000 mg l-1 treatments in all studied characters. Therefore the spraying of 4000 mg l-1 was useful to improve growth characters and popcorn plant content of NPK.

Methane emissions reduce the radiative cooling effect of a subtropical estuarine mangrove wetland by half.

The role of coastal mangrove wetlands in sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2 ) and mitigating climate change has received increasing attention in recent years. While recent studies have shown that methane (CH4 ) emissions can potentially offset the carbon burial rates in low-salinity coastal wetlands, there is hitherto a paucity of direct and year-round measurements of ecosystem-scale CH4 flux (FCH4 ) from mangrove ecosystems. In this study, we examined the temporal variations and biophysical drivers of ecosystem-scale FCH4 in a subtropical estuarine mangrove wetland based on 3years of eddy covariance measurements. Our results showed that daily mangrove FCH4 reached a peak of over 0.1gCH4 -Cm-2 day-1 during the summertime owing to a combination of high temperature and low salinity, while the wintertime FCH4 was negligible. In this mangrove, the mean annual CH4 emission was 11.7±0.4gCH4 -Cm-2 year-1 while the annual net ecosystem CO2 exchange ranged between -891 and -690gCO2 -Cm-2 year-1 , indicating a net cooling effect on climate over decadal to centurial timescales. Meanwhile, we showed that mangrove FCH4 could offset the negative radiative forcing caused by CO2 uptake by 52% and 24% over a time horizon of 20 and 100years, respectively, based on the corresponding sustained-flux global warming potentials. Moreover, we found that 87% and 69% of the total variance of daily FCH4 could be explained by the random forest machine learning algorithm and traditional linear regression model, respectively, with soil temperature and salinity being the most dominant controls. This study was the first of its kind to characterize ecosystem-scale FCH4 in a mangrove wetland with long-term eddy covariance measurements. Our findings implied that future environmental changes such as climate warming and increasing river discharge might increase CH4 emissions and hence reduce the net radiative cooling effect of estuarine mangrove forests.

Assessing the Effect of Laboratory Environment on Sample Contamination for I-129 Accelerator Mass Spectrometry.

Environmental contaminations of 129I were continuously monitored in various sample preparation rooms for accelerator mass spectrometry at the University of Tsukuba. Monitoring of 129I was performed in the rooms used for the treatment of samples in the past, in order to compare with the results obtained in the sample preparation rooms. Ambient levels of atmospheric 129I in each room were estimated from the measured concentrations in the alkali trap solutions. This article reports the results of one year of monitoring the temporal changes of stable iodine (127I) and 129I contamination rates in the alkali trap solutions. It was found that 129I contamination rates were lower than approximately 104 atoms cm-2 day-1 in the rooms where ether no samples or only samples with environmental background levels of 129I were handled. Values from 104 to 105 atoms cm-2 day-1 were recorded in another room where environmental samples, such as the samples derived from nuclear power plant accidents, were treated. Higher levels of 129I, ranging from 106 to 107 atoms cm-2 day-1, were recorded in rooms used for treating neutron-activated iodine. The experimental results show that the 129I level depended on the 129I sample-preparation histories for the respective rooms. It is possible to estimate the 129I contamination risk from the atmosphere to the samples by knowing the 129I level in the preparation room.

Response of plant bioregulators on growth parameters and plant growth analysis of onion (Allium cepa L.)

The experiment was carried out with a view to study the response of plant bioregulators on growth parameters and plant growth analysis of onion at Regional Horticultural Research Station of Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari (Gujarat) during Rabi 2018 and 2019. The number of leaves per plant at 45 DATP (7.92), 60 DATP (8.75) and 90 DATP (9.42) and days to maturity (129.17) were found significant on pooled analysis basis under the treatment T1 (GA3 25 mg l-1). Among physiological parameters, treatment T1 (GA3 25 mg l-1) found best for leaf area index at 60 DATP (2.85), as well as harvest index (93.72) in pooled analysis. Crop growth rate at 60-90 DATP (5.11 g m-2 day-1) with T3 (GA3 75 mg l-1), net assimilation rate at 60-90 DATP (0.107 g cm-2 day-1) with T8 (GA3 25 mg l-1 + NAA 50 mg l-1) and biomass duration (1287.50 g days) with T2 (GA3 50 mg l-1) were found significant on pooled analysis basis.

Lysimeteric Evaluation for Transpiration and Carbon Accumulation of Kimchi Cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis)

An accurate evaluation of transpiration is required for many applications in agricultural and environmental management because crop yields and plant growth are primarily water limited. This study was aimed to determine the transpiration of Kimchi cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis) using weighing lysimeter, to evaluate the relationship between transpiration of Kimchi cabbage and meteorological factors such as solar radiation, air temperature, etc., Transpiration was increased as the leaf area increased with the growth stage. Also daily transpiration per unit leaf area was 0.46 ± 0.13 g cm-2 day-1 and there was no significant difference during cultivation period. The maximum transpiration was 132.9 g hour-1 and diurnal changes of transpiration was highly correlated with solar radiation although the maximum transpiration was observed at 17 - 23°C air temperature. The ratio of dry matter production to transpiration was 0.33% and carbon accumulation was 0.13%. This result shows that transpiration of Kimchi cabbage seem to be mainly governed by solar radiation energy in clear days and 96% of the water is discharged through transpiration for the heat dissipation. Therefore, weighing lysimeter can be used to measure transpiration accurately and may be useful in interpreting the plant growth. The transpiration of Kimchi cabbage follows the change of solar radiation.

In Situ Measurements of Explosive Compound Dissolution Fluxes from Exposed Munition Material in the Baltic Sea

Underwater munitions containing millions of tons of toxic explosives are present worldwide in coastal marine waters as a result of unexploded ordnance and intentional dumping. The dissolution flux of solid explosives following corrosion of metal munition housings controls the exposure of biological receptors to toxic munition compounds (MC), including TNT: 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, RDX: 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazinane, and DNB: 1,3-dinitrobenzene. Very little is known about the dissolution behavior of MC in the marine environment. In this work, we exploit a unique marine study site in the Baltic Sea with exposed solid explosives to quantify in situ MC dissolution fluxes using dissolved MC gradients near the exposed explosive surface, as well as benthic chamber incubations. The gradient method gave dissolution fluxes that ranged between 0.001 and 3.2, between 0.0001 and 0.04, and between 0.003 and 1.7 mg cm-2 day-1 for TNT, RDX, and DNB, respectively. Benthic chamber incubations indicated dissolution fluxes of 0.0047-0.277, 0-0.11, and 0.00047-1.45 mg cm-2 day-1 for TNT, RDX, and DNB, respectively. In situ dissolution fluxes estimated in the current study were lower than most dissolution rates reported for laboratory experiments, but they clearly demonstrated that MC are released from underwater munitions to the water column in the Baltic Sea.