Suitable Management Practices Research Articles

A game theory-based prioritization of drought affected demo vineyards using soil main properties in the northern apennines, italy

The selection of appropriate strategies is required to mitigate drought effects in farmlands. Prioritizing the severity of the water deficit in vineyards is further essential to take early remedial action in the most endangered areas to provide a starting point and sketch out a plan for choosing “the most suitable water resilient management practices” for various research sites. We selected six pilot/ demo sites viz., Santa Maria della Versa (SMV), Canevino (CNV), Borgo Priolo (BPR), Creta (CRT), Vicobarone (VCB), and Genepreto (GNP) in the Northern Apennines, Italy. As a result, the input data on soil profiles, pedological variables, and soil hydrological characteristics were gathered. After calculating and preprocessing the soil properties, the study demo vineyards were ranked for each prioritization criterion. Therefore, we used the Condorcet Game Theory method to identify high-priority vineyards. The findings demonstrated that, for most of the research criteria, the physicochemical characteristics of the soil at two depths (i.e., 0–30 and 30–90 cm) reacted differently. In this regard, BPR 2 and CRT 1 sites were the worst sites encountering drought stress at depths of 0–30 and 30–90 cm, respectively. While at both depths, the SMV1 site was identified as the least important site. The results, on the other hand, revealed that the factors that had the most significant influence on drought stress at the depth of 0–30 cm were the dry density (36.37 %), unit weight (13.74 %), void index (11.11 %), and silt content (9.35 %). However, in soil depths between 30 and 90 cm, dry density (23.96 %) was the most critical component, followed by porosity (12.88 %) and saturation degree (11.48 %). The current study's findings provide a solid foundation for choosing a practical management approach to reduce, cope with, or mitigate the impact of droughts on the Mediterranean region's vineyards.

Spatial Variability and Statistical Analysis of Soil Properties in the Rice Wheat-Based Systems of North-West India

ABSTRACT There are limited reports about the impacts of long-term rice wheat cropping system (RWCS) on soil properties and nutrient stocks under smallholder farmer’s conditions in developing counties. The study was carried out in RWCS in Haryana (10 districts) of North-West India in order to map out some soil properties and assess their variability within the area. From the study area, a total of 150 surface soil samples (15 samples each district) were collected using Global Positioning System (GPS) after harvest of wheat crop. Then, soil properties, that is, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), soil organic carbon (SOC), carbonate content, cation exchange capacity (CEC), salinity content (Na+, K+, Ca2+ + Mg2+) soil available nutrients (NPK, Fe & Zn), and micronutrient fractions were measured in the laboratory. All soil properties significantly changed under RWCS, except for bulk density, SOC, and SAR variables. The SOC stock varied significantly among the majority of RWCS in north-western India but was not significantly different in total nitrogen (TN) stocks. After log-transformation of data, classical statistics were used to describe the soil properties, and one-way analysis of variance. The PCA chosen soil properties explained 81.37% of the soil quality variability among the RWCS. Such soil properties and nutrient stock variability among the RWCS suggested the introduction of suitable management practices that sustain the soil system of the RWCS with poor properties and nutrients. On the basis of the linear function, soil chemical properties (44.65%) contributed more to soil quality index (SQI) than physical ones.

Assessment of Soil Fertility Status under the Barren Land Soil of the Central Plain Zone of Uttar Pradesh, India

Soil fertility evaluation of barren land is the most basic decision-making tool for an effective sustainable plan for a particular area. Thus, the present study was carried out to evaluate the soil fertility status in session variation of the two blocks of Kanpur Dehat (Akabrpur and Maitha). The soil samples were randomly collected based on the variability of land at a depth of 0-15 cm, 15-30 cm, and 30-60 cm in 5-5 sites in the both blocks. A GPS device was used to identify the location of the soil sampling points. Soil samples were analyzed for texture, pH, OC, EC, N, P, K, S, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, and exchangeable cations status following standard analytic methods in the laboratory of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, C.S.A. University of Agriculture and Technology, Kanpur, UP. The soil organic carbon ranged from 0.18 to 0.34% of both blocks. Available nitrogen ranged from 102.78 to 138.39 kg ha-1, available phosphorous ranged from 9.89 to 16.47 kg ha-1 and available potassium ranged from 230.65 to 276.38 kg ha-1 in the surface soil of Maitha, all of which showed a decrease in value with increase in depth. Exchangeable calcium ranged from 4.58 to 6.34 (cmol (p+) kg-1), exchangeable magnesium ranged from 2.20 to 4.40 (cmol (p+) kg-1), and the pH of the soil in both blocks was highly alkaline in nature, all of which varied significantly with site and depth. The results indicated that soils are not good for the cultivation of various crops. Farmers are required to maintain Soil Health Card which helps them to adopt suitable management practices and provide proper nutrition to soil.

First report of Nigrospora sphaerica associated with leaf spot disease of Crossandra infundibuliformis in India.

Crossandra (Crossandra infundubuliformis (L.) Nees.) is one of the main floriculture crops in Karnataka. In 2020 (March-June), a characteristic leaf spot disease of unknown etiology with an incidence ranging from 10-12% (~30 ha area evaluated) was observed in Southern Karnataka (Mysore, Mandya). Initially, the symptoms developed as small specks (3 to 8 mm), characterized by circular to irregular shapes in the beginning and coalesced to form larger lesions. Ten samples were collected in polybags followed by the isolation of associated fungal pathogen on potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium amended with Chloramphenicol (60 mg/L). Briefly, small pieces of infected leaves were cut into small pieces and surface sterilized with 2% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) solution, rinsed three times with sterile distilled water (SDW), blot dried, then inoculated onto PDA medium, and incubated at room temperature (27 ± 2°C) for 3 - 5 days. Fungal colonies developed from the segments and were subcultured through hyphal tipping to fresh PDA plates to get pure cultures. A total of 12 pure cultures were obtained. Mycelia were initially white and eventually turned gray. The conidia were black, single-celled, smooth, spherical to subspherical, 9 to 18 μm in diameter (n=50), and borne singly on a hyaline vesicle at the tip of each conidiophore. The identity was initially established based on the cultural features and conidial morphology as Nigrospora sp. (Deepika et al., 2021). To confirm the identity of fungal isolates based on molecular sequence analysis was performed for two representative isolates (CIT1 & CIT2). ITS-rDNA, tub2 & EF-1α gene were amplified using primers ITS1/ITS4, T1/T22 & EF1-728F/986R (White et al., 1990; O'Donnel and Cigelnik, 1997; Carbone and Kohn, 1999), then purified and sequenced. The BLASTn analysis of ITS, tub2 and EF-1α gene showed 99-100% similarity with reference sequences from the GenBank database to Nigrospora sphaerica (ITS: 520bp, KX985935 - LC7312; MH854878 - CBS:166.26; tub2: 357bp, MZ032030 - WYR007, 350bp, KY019606 - LC7298, KY019522 - LC4278, KY019520 - LC4274; EF-1α: 472bp, KY019397 - LC7294, KY019331 - LC4241; MN864137 - HN-BH-3) and the sequences were deposited in GenBank (ITS: OL672271 & OL672272; tub2: OL782120 & OL782121; EF-1α: ON051604 & ON051605) (Wang et al., 2017). The associated fungal pathogen was identified as N. sphaerica (Sacc.) Mason (Chen et al. 2018; Deepika et al., 2021) based on the cultural, morphological, microscopic, and molecular characteristics. Further, pathogenicity tests were conducted on healthy plants (Crossandra cv. Arka; n=30) grown under greenhouse conditions (28±2 °C; 80% RH). Inoculations were made with conidial suspension (18 days old N. sphaerica isolate CIT1, 106 conidia/ml) prepared in SDW, and healthy plants sprayed with SDW (n=10) served as controls. All the plants were covered with polyethylene bags for 24-48 hr and observations were made at regular intervals. Typical necrotic lesions developed on 16 plants after 12 days after inoculation but no symptoms were observed on the control plants. The associated pathogen was re-isolated from diseased leaves and confirmed their identity based on morphology and cultural characteristics. Earlier, N. sphaerica was associated with various tree species as an endophyte, and recently several reports have appeared to cause disease on various crop plants (Deepika et al., 2021). However, there are no previous reports on the association of N. sphaerica causing leaf spot disease on C. infundibuliformis from India. Early diagnosis of this leaf spot disease will help the floriculturist adopt suitable management practices to avoid significant economic loss.

Maize and groundnut crop production among rural households in Zambia: Implications in the management of aflatoxins

Maize and groundnut are important crops for both commercial and smallholder farming in Zambia, whose production is being threatened by their susceptibility to aflatoxin contamination. Despite this threat, there is limited knowledge of household growers' behaviour and applications related to suitable agricultural management practices, as well as growers’ perception and knowledge of aflatoxins and their effects. This limited knowledge has major implications for acute human health effects such as liver cirrhosis and death, cancer, stunting in children, immune system suppression, impaired food conversion, and reduced livestock productivity and/or increased livestock mortality.This cross-sectional survey of smallholder household growers in Zambia was conducted to identify the gaps in the knowledge and application of aflatoxin-associated agricultural management practices. A sample of 3865 maize- and groundnut-producing smallholder farm households were selected in 27 priority districts implementing the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN)/First 1000 Most Critical Days Programme (MCDP) Phase II. Among the five pre-harvest management practices for maize and groundnuts – namely, controlling weeds, timely planting, controlling pests, and applying basal and top-dressing fertilisers – few households (8%) reported practising all of them. Among the recommended techniques for harvesting and handling maize and groundnuts, the most common harvest-management practices under maize production were drying (95.2% of households) and sorting at harvest (72%). In contrast, very few households (2%) practised at least three of four maize harvest management practices. Similarly, very few households (10%) practised at least 4 of the 6 groundnut harvest-management measures. Comparatively, post-harvest and storage management practices were more commonly practised, although most households did not practise all six post-harvest and storage management measures.Overall, very few households (1% for maize and 4% for groundnuts) were observed to be practising at least 12 of the 14 recommended management practices, implying that there are considerable gaps in the implementation of aflatoxin-related management practices along all stages of maize and groundnut production, consequently posing a significant threat to health and contributing to malnutrition levels in Zambia.As such, there is a need to develop tailored interventions and trainings for farming households, extension officers, and frontline health workers to prevent and manage aflatoxin contamination at different stages of crop production. Furthermore, the elimination of policy constraints, practical barriers of affordability and consumer awareness, and the value attached to the commercial product of Aflasafe, noted to reduce aflatoxin contamination by 80–100%, are of utmost urgency.

First report of Athelia rolfsii (=Sclerotium rolfsii) associated with foot rot disease of Chrysanthemum morifolium in India.

Chrysanthemum morifolium L. is an important flower crop grown in different parts of Karnataka for its striking cut flowers and international market value. During a field survey (Mysore district, Karnataka, February, 2022), chrysanthemum fields were found infected with foot rot disease. The presence of white mycelial structures with sclerotia were recorded near the stem-soil interface. The disease incidence ranged 10-12% measured in an area of approximately 10 hectares. The infected plants showed quick wilt, yellowing and toppling of the entire plant. Infected plants from Doddamaragowdanahally and Rayanahally (n=15) were collected and associated fungal pathogen isolated after surface sterilization with NaOCl (1%) on potato dextrose agar (PDA) amended with chloramphenicol (50 mg/L). Fungal mycelia developed from the infected tissues were inoculated on to fresh PDA plates to obtained pure cultures for further identification. Fungal colonies with dense, aerial whitish-cottony mycelia with uniformly globoid sclerotia (0.284.2 mm) were observed after 15 days of incubation (28 ± 2°C). Sclerotia were white in the beginning and turned brown at maturity. The average number of sclerotia produced per plate ranged from 240 to >480 (n = 10). To further to confirm the identity of the isolates, two representative isolates (CmSr1 and CmSr2) was subjected to molecular identification based on ITS-rDNA sequences. Briefly, genomic DNA was isolated from 12 day old cultures using the CTAB method and ITS-rDNA was amplified using ITS1-ITS4 primers (White et al., 1990). An expected amplicon of >650 bp (ITS) was obtained and later sequenced from both the directions. The consensus sequences were analysed through nBLAST search which revealed that 100% sequence similarity with reference sequences of Athelia rolfsii (S. rolfsii) from GenBank database (MT127465, MN974137, KC292637; identity 656/656; 0 gaps). A phylogenetic tree obtained by the neighbor-joining method using MEGAX shared a common clade with the reference sequences retrieved and computed, thus confirming the identification based on sequence analysis and molecular phylogeny. The representative sequence of A. rolfsii isolates CmSr1 and CmSr2 isolates deposited in GenBank with Accession nos. ON456153 and ON456154, respectively. Based on etiology, morphological, cultural and molecular data the pathogen was identified as Athelia rolfsii (Curzi) Tu & Kimbrough (Syn: Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc.) (Mordue, 1974; Mahadevakumar et al., 2016, 2018). Plants (n=60) were inoculated with sclerotial bodies (2 sclerotia/plant) near stem soil interface under green house and covered with polythene bags (at 27 ± 2°C and 80% RH). Non-inoculated plants (n=20) served as controls. The development of foot rot disease was observed eight days after inoculation. A total of 48 plants showed the foot rot symptoms and 12 inoculated plants and control plants remained healthy. The identity of the fungus was confirmed by morphological and cultural characters after re-isolation. C. morifolium is an important flower crop in Karnataka. S. rolfsii is known to be associated with blight and collar rot of Chrysanthemum spp. from Kerala (Beena et al., 2002) but no species (host) identity provided. Therefore, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of foot rot disease caused by Athelia rolfsii on C. morifolium in India. Early diagnosis of this disease will help the farmers to adopt suitable management practices to avoid loss.

Improved agronomic practices and high yielding rice varieties maintain soil health and enhance yield and energy use efficiency under shifting cultivation landscapes of easternHimalayas

AbstractLow productivity, depletion of soil fertility, and inefficient energy use are the major challenges of fragile Jhum (shifting cultivation: 280 M ha worldwide) agro‐ecosystems in north eastern Himalaya. Farmers' participatory field trials were conducted in sloping lands of Meghalaya, India over 3 years to identify suitable agronomic management practices and input responsive rice genotypes for sustaining soil health and enhance carrying capacity of Jhum land. Eleven genotypes of rice (six high yielding varieties [HYVs] and five landraces) were tested under two management practices, namely, improved Jhum (line‐sowing in contour, 50% recommended dose of nutrients (RDN) + farm yard manure 5 Mg ha−1with two hand weeding operations) and traditional Jhum (broadcasting, no manure/fertilizer/pesticides, and single hand weeding) as reference. Improved Jhum practices significantly increased (p = 0.05) rice yield (103.8%–133.7%), improved soil health, farm profitability, net energy output, and energy intensity. The HYVs of rice, namely, RCM 5, Bhalum‐3, and IURON 514 (1.92–1. 96 Mg ha−1) significantly out yielded local landraces, namely, Mannar, Kbaslu, Kba Khasi, Pnahiong, and Pnahlaispah (1.44–1.65 Mg ha−1). The soils under improved Jhum practices had significantly higher SOC (16.9 g kg−1), available N (278.2 kg ha−1), P2O5% (12.8 kg ha−1), K (217.1 kg ha−1), and more water infiltration rate (74.1 mm h−1) over traditional practice after 3 years of our present study. The rice yield for second and third year of cropping were also significantly higher (p = 0.05) under improved Jhum practices (2.23 and 2.01 Mg ha−1, respectively) as compared to traditional Jhum.The net income enhanced by 53% and 85 to 104.6% owing to adoption of improved Jhum and HYVs over local practice and genotypes, respectively. Hence, growing HYVs of rice, namely, RCM 5, Bhalum‐3, and IURON 514 along with improved agronomic practices are recommended for achieving higher productivity, extending carrying capacity, and sustaining soil health in Jhum ecosystems of north eastern Himalaya.

Integrated Management of Purple Blotch Disease of Garlic (Allium Sativum L.)

Purple blotch (Alternaria porri) is one of the major diseases of garlic causing huge loss to the growers. An investigation was undertaken to formulate suitable management practices against purple blotch of garlic var. DWG1. Among the various treatments, seed treatment with Trichoderma harzianum @ 10 g/kg of cloves and two foliar applications of fluopyram 17.7% + tebuconazole 17.7% @ 0.1% on 50 and 65 days after sowing recorded the minimum disease severity (13.34 PDI) and higher bulb yield (5.77 t/ha), 10 bulbs weight (83.00 g), number of cloves (15.67) and 100 cloves weight (65.33 g) with C:B ratio of 1: 3.51. The combined application of cow urine, nimbecidine and Trichoderma harzianum also showed significant impact on disease reduction as well as on yield of garlic. However, fluopyram 17.7% + tebuconazole 17.7% showed a higher benefit with minimum production cost and this approach is proposed to garlic growing farmers to mitigate the purple blotch disease. Bangladesh J. Bot. 52(2): 291-295, 2023 (June)

Developing Genetic Coefficients of Sorghum Cultivars Using Gencalc and Glue Genetic Coefficient Estimators in DSSAT

DSSAT (Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer) is a software system used for crop growth and development, soil and water balance, nutrient cycling, climate change impact simulations and precision agriculture. The objective of this study was to calibrate and validate the sorghum cultivars TNAU sorghum CO 30 and K12 under various sowing windows and fertilizer applications. CERES-Sorghum model (DSSAT v 4.7.5) was calibrated and validated using experimental field data obtained from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore. The derived genotype co-efficients of sorghum cultivars simulated the phenology, growth and yield accurately well under various sowing windows and nitrogen levels. The nRMSE (Normalised Root Mean Square Error) values for simulations for grain yield were 2.4 per cent and 8.8 per cent for TNAU sorghum CO 30 and K12, respectively. The mean simulated grain yield was 3127 kg/ha against the observed grain yield of 3052 kg/ha in TNAU CO 30 sorghum. The mean observed grain yield was 3312 kg/ha against the observed grain yield of 3020 kg/ha K 12. The model satisfactorily simulated the phenology and yield of sorghum cultivars, and hence it can be used in undertaking suitable management practices and yield prediction under changing climatic conditions in the western region of Tamil Nadu.

Soil aggregates associated carbon and enzyme activities under long-term nitrogen and rice straw incorporation in Rice-Wheat system

ABSTRACT Intensive tillage and burning or removal of crop residues have led to a decline in soil organic carbon (SOC) content, posing a significant threat to soil quality and global food production. To mitigate this, adoption of conservation-agriculture practices, including residue retention/incorporation, is necessary to promote soil structural stability, increase SOC content, and enzyme activities, and restore carbon (C) sustainability in the rice-wheat system (RWS). Therefore, the long-term effects (10 years) of rice straw incorporation (RS) (0, 5, 7.5, and 10 Mg ha−1) and nitrogen (N) levels (0, 90, 120, and 150 kg N ha−1) in wheat on soil aggregate associated C pools and enzyme activities were studied. The results revealed that RS incorporation levels of RS7.5 and RS10 had 15.1% and 15.5% higher water-stable aggregates. Within the aggregate fractions, enzyme activities and C pools were significantly higher in the macro-aggregates fraction (Ma-A >0.25 mm) and least in micro-aggregates (Mi-A <0.25 mm). Under Ma-A fraction, treatments RS10 and N150 had higher enzyme activity compared to RS0 and N0. Under Ma-A, very labile C, labile C, less labile C, and recalcitrant C were increased by 34%, 25%, 33%, and 48% in RS10 over RS0 and by 20%, 28%, 23%, and 15% in N150 over the N0 level, respectively. Thus, the study concluded that the addition of crop residues (7.5 and 10 Mg ha−1) along with the N level of 150 kg ha−1 is a suitable management practice to promote soil structural stability and enzyme activities encouraging long-term SOC sustainability in the RWS.

Bartlett–Lewis Model Calibrated with Satellite-Derived Precipitation Data to Estimate Daily Peak 15 Min Rainfall Intensity

Temporal variability of rainfall is extreme in the rangelands of northern Australia and occurs at annual, decadal, and even longer timescales. To maintain long-term productivity of the rangelands of northern Australia under highly variable rainfall conditions, suitable land management practices are assessed using rangeland biophysical models, e.g., GRASP (GRASs Production). The daily maxima of the 15 min rainfall intensity (I15) are used to predict runoff and moisture retention in the model. The performance of rangeland biophysical models heavily relies on the I15 estimates. As the number of pluviograph stations is very limited in northern Australian rangelands, an empirical I15 model (Fraser) was developed using readily available daily climate variables, i.e., daily rainfall total, daily diurnal temperature range, and daily minimum temperature. The aim of this study is to estimate I15 from daily rainfall totals using a well-established disaggregation scheme coupled with the Bartlett–Lewis rectangular pulse (BLRP) model. In the absence of pluviograph data, the BLRP models (RBL-E and RBL-G) were calibrated with the precipitation statistics estimated using the Integrated Multi-satellitE Retrievals for GPM (global precipitation measurement) (IMERG; 30 min, 0.1° resolution) precipitation product. The Fraser, RBL-E, and RBL-G models were assessed using 1 min pluviograph data at a single test site in Darwin. The results indicated that all three models tended to underestimate the observed I15, while a serious underestimation was observed for RBL-E and RBL-G. The underestimation by the Fraser, RBL-E, and RBL-G models consisted of 23%, 38%, and 50% on average, respectively. Furthermore, the Fraser model represented 29% of the variation in observed I15, whereas RBL-E and RBL-G represented only 7% and 11% of the variation, respectively. A comparison of RBL-E and RBL-G suggested that the difference in the spatial scales of IMERG and pluviograph data needs to be addressed to improve the performance of RBL-E and RBL-G. Overall, the findings of this study demonstrate that the BLRP model calibrated with IMERG statistics has the potential for estimating I15 for the GRASP biophysical model once the scale difference between IMERG and point rainfall data is addressed.

Evaluation of Gamma Irradiation in Controlling Post-Harvest Rot of Ginger and Improvement of Shelf Life

Gamma irradiation has emerged as a promising method to enhance the shelf life and control of ginger rot after harvesting. By effectively reducing microbial contamination and inhibiting the growth of spoilage organisms, gamma irradiation offers significant potential in improving storage stability and prolonging the freshness of ginger. This study was carried out at the Division of Plant Pathology located at the Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) in Mymensingh, to explore the effectiveness of Gamma irradiation in controlling post-harvest storage rot caused by Fusarium oxysporum in ginger. The study was conducted using a design of complete randomization, and it was replicated three times, and six doses of Gamma irradiation (20, 40, 60, 300, 500, 700 Gy) were applied to ginger rhizomes, which were then stored in three types of containers: natural condition (on brown paper), gunny bag, and poly bag. The experiment also included chemical fungicide, bio-fungicide, and control (without radiation) treatments for comparison. The results showed that the highest suppression of mycelia growth (76.86%) was achieved with a dose of 700Gy. No sprouting was observed at doses of 60, 300, 500, and 700 Gy, even after three months of storage. The lowest incidence of rhizome rot (56.83%, 68.15%, and 87.89% after three months of storage) was recorded at 700Gy on brown paper, gunny bag, and poly bag, respectively. This resulted in a corresponding suppression of rhizome rot of 35.72%, 24.83%, and 12.11% over the control treatment. Overall, Gamma irradiation was found to be advantageous in increasing the shelf life of stored ginger by suppressing sprouting and in lowering the incidence and severity of post-harvest storage rot caused by Fusarium oxysporum. Therefore, Gamma irradiation may be considered as a suitable management practice for controlling post-harvest storage rot in ginger, without any adverse environmental effects.

Assessment of Physico-chemical Properties of Soil from Different Blocks of Purnea District, Bihar, India

The present study was carried out in the Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry lab at Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture Technology and Sciences. The sampling location was Purnea district of Bihar. The objective of the study was to analyze the Physico-chemical properties in soil of Purnea district of Bihar, India. Depth wise soil samples were collected from nine different village of 3 blocks of selected spots at 0-15, 15-30 and 30-45 cm. The total no. of 27 samples were collected from several farmer's fields, and composite sampling was carried out. The results revealed that the texture of the soil is sandy loam. The bulk density ranged from 0.95 to 1.29 (Avg. 1.12) Mg m-3, particle density from 2.22 to 2.34 (Avg. 2.28) Mg m-3, pore space from 43.19 to 48.71 (Avg. 45.95) %, water holding capacity from 38.56 to 46.58 (Avg. 42.57) %. The pH ranged from 6.52 to 6.82 (Avg. 6.68), E.C. ranged from 0.31 to 0.45 (Avg. 0.38) dS m-1. The soil organic carbon ranged from 0.15 to 0.33 (Avg. 0.24) %. Available nitrogen ranged from 162.02 to 255.64 (Avg. 208.83) kg ha-1, available phosphorous ranged from 8.84 to 20.21 (Avg. 14.525) kg ha-1, available potassium ranged from 76.30 to 170.70 (Avg. 123.50) kg ha-1, exchangeable calcium ranged from 3.2 to 4.8 (Avg. 4.00) Meq 100g-1, exchangeable magnesium ranged from 0.60 to 1.00 (Avg. 0.855) Meq 100g-1. The Soil has acceptable BD, PD, pore space, and water holding capacity. As a result of the beneficial electrical conductivity for plants, the pH of the soil is slightly acidic to neutral. Available Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, Exchangeable Calcium and Magnesium are low in macronutrients. The results indicated that overall soils were in moderate conditions and farmers required maintaining soil health card, adopting suitable management practices, and providing proper nutrition to the soil to overcome the pollution effect.

Multiple approach for assessing lagoon environmental status based on water bodies quality indices and microplastics accumulation

Lagoon environments, like all the marine-coastal areas, offer a wide variety of ecosystem services, but at the same time are affected by pressing human activities that lead to deterioration of the environmental quality, loss of biodiversity, habitat destruction and pollution. Since the well-being of population and local economy depend on the environmental status of these ecosystems, it is essential to adopt long-term management tools to achieve the Good Environmental Status sensu European Marine Strategy Framework Directive and Water Framework Directive. A Nature 2000 site (Lesina lagoon, south Italy) was assessed within a project aimed at protecting and restoring biodiversity and lagoon habitat through integrated monitoring, suitable management, and good practices. Here we provide an assessment of the lagoon integrity based on a multi-metrics approach, highlighting match/mismatch among environmental quality indicators and microplastics (MP) pollution. Some environmental quality indices based on ecosystem components as vegetation, macroinvertebrates and water trophic variables were applied together with an accurate evaluation of MPs abundance, distribution, and composition to assess the ecological status of Lesina lagoon before and after cleaning actions with litter removal. Overall, all the ecological descriptors outlined a clear lagoon spatial gradient, with a western saltier and organic-enriched area characterized by the absence of vegetation, macrozoobenthos with lower diversity and richness and high MPs occurrence. The focus on macrozoobenthos, considered as a key component of the lagoon ecosystem, identified much more sites in “poor” status than the other indicators here considered. Moreover, it was found a negative relationship between the Multivariate Marine Biotic Index and MPs items in sediment, suggesting that MP pollution has a negative impact on macrobenthic fauna, concurring to the deterioration of the benthic ecological status.

Effects of Different Irrigation and Fertilization Practices on Nitrogen Balance and Yield on Greenhouse Eggplant (Solanum melongen L.) in Mollisols

ABSTRACT Balancing the nitrogen (N) budgets of agricultural production is crucial to maintaining yield and reducing the environmental pollution, especially in vegetable systems. Here, a systematic study was conducted on eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) yield, N uptake, N leaching and N balance in response to regular fertilization and irrigation (WF), reducing 20% of chemical fertilizers (W + 80%F), reducing 20% of irrigation amount (80%W+F), and biochar addition (WF+B) in a greenhouse eggplant system in Northeastern China. The results showed that compared with WF, 80%W+F treatment decreased eggplant yield, N uptake and N leaching by 11%, 23% and 14%, respectively. However, it increased N surplus by 30%. W + 80%F not only decreased N surplus by 4% and improved N balance, but also maintained eggplant yield and N uptake. WF+B significantly increased eggplant yield and N uptake, however, it sharply increased N surplus by 141% and caused N imbalance. Therefore, these results demonstrated that reducing chemical fertilizers by 20% would be the most suitable management practice for maintaining eggplant yield and reducing N surplus in greenhouse vegetable systems.

Comparative Response Studies on Organic Amendments and Leguminous Intercropping on Maize (Zea mays L.) Agronomic Traits and Photosynthetic Activity

The present study aimed to optimize a suitable nutrient management practice with the co-application of organic amendments and leguminous intercropping for sustainable maize production. The experiment was conducted during the Kharif and Rabi seasons of 2022-’23 in randomized block design following ten treatments. Maize (hybrid COH (M) 6) seeds were sown in rows at a spacing of 60ⅹ25 cm following the treatments: T1 - Absolute control, T2 – Recommended Dose of Fertilizers (RDF) alone, T3 - RDF + Poultry Manure (4t ha-1), T4 - RDF + FYM (12.5 t ha-1), T5 - RDF + Poultry Manure (4 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping, T6 - RDF + FYM (12.5 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping, T7 - 75 % RDF + Poultry Manure (4 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping, T8 - 75% RDF + FYM (12.5 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping, T9 - 50% RDF + Poultry Manure (4 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping, T10 - 50% RDF + FYM (12.5 t ha-1) + Black gram intercropping. Observations for plant height, dry matter production (DMP), and Relative Chlorophyll Content (RCC) were recorded at different phenological stages on 30, 45, and 60 DAS. The results showed that the treatment T5 amended with poultry manure recorded the highest growth attributes and yield during the two consecutive seasons, followed by T6, T7, and T8, whereas the lowest was in T1. While comparing growth and yield attributes in in the second season (Rabi 2022-’23), the treatments T7 and T8 with 75 % RDF + FYM/poultry manure remarked substantial yield increase. The results suggest that co-application of organic manures like poultry manure or FYM with reduced dosages of mineral fertilizer, could be recommended as an optimal nutrient management strategy for sustainable maize production.

Evaluating remnant vegetation management practices adjacent to apple orchards to support native bee pollinators

SummaryMaintenance of a diverse pollinator community helps ensure resilience in pollination services. Fragments of woody and grassy vegetation in the vicinity of croplands have been shown to encourage the presence of crop‐pollinating bees. However, to date, little attention has been given to the management practices that may enhance the presence of bees in such fragments. We investigated how the maintenance of remnant forest fragments adjacent to apple orchards in South Australia affects floral resources and native bee communities. The fragments had been subject to either (a) fire (assessments three years post‐burn), (b) cattle grazing under trees and (c) low maintenance management (&gt;20 years not grazed or burnt). Plant communities were sampled along transects in plots. Bee communities were sampled using hand netting. We fitted generalised linear mixed models to investigate differences in plant and bee diversity between treatments and to elucidate the effect of plant diversity on bee diversity. We compared plant and bee community composition among treatments using non‐metric multidimensional scaling and conducted network analysis to measure the robustness of plant‐pollinator interactions to the removal of species. Both floral resource abundance and bee diversity were higher in burnt and low‐maintenance fragments than in grazed fragments. Bee species richness was positively associated with plant species richness. The species richness of bees that visit apple flowers was positively associated with flower abundance but not with floral species richness. Plant‐pollinator networks in grazed sites had fewer links per species and a higher proportion of realised links than those under other management practices. However, the resilience of pollinator networks did not differ significantly between management practices. Thus, controlled burns or low‐maintenance management of forest fragments appear to be the most suitable landscape management practices to support apple pollinating bees. Burning requires consideration of additional ecological consequences, such as the conservation of fire‐sensitive species and specialist woodland fauna. Cattle grazing adjacent to orchards results in simplified bee communities and pollination networks and is not recommended if pollination services are required for adjacent land uses. This information can benefit orchardist as well as managers of fragments of native vegetation adjacent to orchard crops.

Knowledge and Practices of Cypriot Bovine Farmers towards Effective and Safe Manure Management.

Manure from bovine farms is commonly used as an organic fertiliser. However, if not properly managed, it can spread significant biological and chemical hazards, threatening both human and animal health. The effectiveness of risk control hugely relies on farmers' knowledge regarding safe manure management and on the application of suitable management practices. This study aims to evaluate the knowledge and practices of Cypriot bovine farmers towards safer manure management, from its generation to its final use, in line with the One Health approach. Factors affecting farmers' knowledge and applied practices are also investigated through a questionnaire survey. The questionnaire was developed and sent to all eligible bovine farmers in Cyprus (n = 353), and 30% (n = 105) of them returned the completed questionnaire. Results revealed there are some gaps in farmers' knowledge. The use of manure for fertilising crops dominated. Only half of the farmers stored manure in appropriate facilities, with 28.5% of them using a dedicated area with cement floors and 21.5% utilising leakproof tanks. The majority (65.7%) stored manure for more than three months before its use as a fertiliser in a dried form. In multiple regression analysis, education level and farming purpose were significant determinants of farmer knowledge. In conclusion, Cypriot farmers' knowledge must be reinforced to ensure proper manure management. The results highlight the importance of providing relevant training to farmers. Although the current practices partially decrease manure pathogens, interventions to promote the use of more effective treatment methods, such as biogas transformation and composting, would be beneficial.

The effect of post-wildfire management practices on vegetation recovery: Insights from the Sapadere fire, Antalya, Türkiye

Post-wildfire management actions mainly targeting the removal of salvage logs and burned trees is a common but controversial practice. Although it aims to regain some of the natural and economic value of a forest, it also requires disturbing burned areas, which may have some negative consequences affecting, for instance, the carbon cycle, soil erosion, and vegetation cover. Observations from different geographic settings contribute to this scientific debate, and yet, the spatiotemporal evolution of the post-fire road network developed as part of fire management practices and its influence on vegetation recovery has been rarely examined. Specifically, we still lack observations from Türkiye, though wildfires are a common event. This research examined the evolution of the vegetation cover in relation to post-fire road constructions and the resultant debris materials in areas affected by the 2017 Sapadere fire in Antalya, Türkiye. We used multi-sensor, multi-temporal optical satellite data and monitored the variation in both vegetation cover and road network from the pre-to post-fire periods between 2014 and 2021. Our results showed that fire management practices almost doubled the road network in the post-fire period, from 487 km to 900 km. Overall, 7% of the burned area was affected by these practices. As a result, vegetation cover in those areas shows only ∼50% recovery, whereas undisturbed areas exhibit ∼100% recovery 5 years after the event. Notably, such spatiotemporal analysis carried out for different burned areas would provide a better insight into the most suitable post-fire management practices. Our findings, in particular, show that the current practices need to be revisited as they cause a delay in vegetation recovery.

Short-Term Effects of Anthropogenic Disturbances on Stand Structure, Soil Properties, and Vegetation Diversity in a Former Virgin Mixed Forest

Despite the sharply growing interest in the disturbances occurring in primary forests, little is known about the response of European virgin forests to anthropogenic disturbance. The present study investigated the effect of the first silvicultural interventions that took place nine years earlier in a former virgin forest (FVF). Changes in the stand structure, environmental characteristics, and diversity of ground vegetation were studied in comparison with a nearby virgin forest (VF), both consisting of a mixture of European beech and silver fir. While the tree density did not differ significantly between the two forests, the number of large trees, the basal area, and the stand volume were significantly reduced in the FVF. The deadwood volume was twice as great in the VF as in the FVF and was found in both forests, particularly from silver fir. Despite significantly better light conditions in the FVF, natural regeneration was not significantly higher than in the VF. However, a slight improvement in the proportion of silver fir and other tree species into total regeneration was reported. The soil temperature was significantly higher in the FVF, independent of the measurement season, while the soil moisture showed a higher value in the VF only in spring. The FVF is characterized by a greater soil CO2 emission, which is especially significant in summer and fall. The diversity of the ground vegetation did not yet react significantly to the silvicultural intervention. These preliminary findings are important in drawing suitable forest management practices that need to be applied in mixed beech–silver fir stands, especially in terms of maintaining species diversity. However, the short time frame since the intervention obliges further research on this VF–FVF pair over the next 10–20 years, at least regarding silver fir dynamics.