Plant Tiller Research Articles

Control of blast disease caused by Pyricularia oryzae with Epicoccum nigrum and microscopic studies of their interaction with rice plants under greenhouse conditions

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) feeds around half of humanity mainly in Asia, South America, and Africa. The filamentous, ascomycete fungus Pyricularia oryzae Cavara (syn: Magnaporthe oryzae B. Couch) hemibiotrophic phytopathogen is the causal agent of the most devastating disease, blast on rice. The fungus E. nigrum is ubiquitous resistant in adverse conditions and used as a biological control agent (BCA) against numerous phytopathogenic fungi in the function of its ability to produce many secondary metabolites. This study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of an isolate of E. nigrum on rice blast disease suppression, as well as rice growth promotion and productivity of the cultivar BRS.MG Caçula, in pot assay under greenhouse conditions, and evaluate the interaction between plants and microorganisms, using microscopic approaching. Rice leaf blast disease incidence and severity were evaluated on seeds and plants, which were treated with E. nigrum and P. oryzae isolate IA25, and compared with the control treatment. Foliar spraying and coating of the rice seed with E. nigrum significantly reduced the incidence rate of rice blast from 31.25% to 41.76%, respectively, compared to the control treatment. Likewise, the severity rate was reduced from 34.92% to 54.51%. In-plant growth, it was found that seed-soaking with Epicoccum provided plant fitness and increases the number of tillers to 8.34 against 5.95 for the control situation. The Epifluorescence Microscopy (EFM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed the colonization of rice root by endophytic fungus E. nigrum. The greenhouse experiments confirmed that E. nigrum significantly decreased rice leaf blast disease incidence and severity rate while improving plant tillering.

Wheat nitrogen utilization efficiency and yield as affected by nitrogen management and environmental conditions

Nitrogen (N) is the main nutrient for plant nutrition, however, its fertilization management is still very complex. To evaluate wheat N utilization efficiency (NUtE) and yield in response to N fertilization management considering the influence of environmental conditions, an experiment was carried out in three field conditions in Southern Brazil: Londrina in rainfed and irrigation conditions, and Ponta Grossa in rainfed. A complete (2 × 2 × 2) + 1 factorial arrangement evaluated two N rates (40 and 80 kg ha-1), two N sources (ammonium nitrate and urea), two N timings of fertilization (at sowing or at the beginning of plant tillering), and additional treatment without N fertilization. Agronomic characteristics related to wheat productivity and N plant nutrition were evaluated. Irrigation increased the density of fertile spikes and the N accumulated in the shoot dry matter at anthesis, which partially explained the better grain yield in the irrigated condition. The higher N accumulation in the shoot dry matter was essential for grain yield increase in the environments with lower water deficit, based on their higher NUtE for grain yield. Nitrogen fertilization reduced NUtE for grain yield in Londrina (in rainfed and irrigation conditions), and increased NUtE for shoot dry matter production in all environments. In a colder condition (i.e. Ponta Grossa), the use of a higher N rate at sowing provided greater grain yield, thousand-grain weight, and density of fertile spikes. Nitrogen rate can be reduced in warmer and wetter environmental conditions that favor the mineralization of soil organic matter and the decomposition of soybean straw. The choice for urea or ammonium nitrate can be based on economic criteria in environments with low water deficit and low potential for NH3 volatilization. Nitrogen fertilization carried out exclusively at wheat sowing may be suitable to supply spring wheat N requirements.

Genetic Variability of Yield and its Components in Little Millet [Panicum sumatrense L.]. Local Germplasm

The fifty little millet genotypes were used to study Genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance. The highest estimates of GCV and PCV values were recorded seed yield plant-1 and iron content. Moderate estimates of GCV and PCV values were recorded panicle weight plant-1, total number of tillers plant-1, days to 50 per cent flowering and productive tillers plant-1. Almost all the characters showed high percentage of heritability except productive tillers plant-1 and panicle length showed medium heritability, while number of branches panicle-1 showed low heritability. It indicates that charactersis least influenced by the environmental effect, suggesting scope for improvement of respective characters. The characters iron content, seed yield plant-1, panicle weight plant-1, total number of tillers plant-1 and productive tillers plant-1 showed high heritability accompanied with high genetic advance, it indicates that selection is effective for this characters.

Estimation of Genetic Variability, Heritability, Genetic Advance and Character Association in Oat (Avena sativa L.) Genotypes for Fodder and Seed Yield Attributing Traits

With increasing population and health-related problems, more emphasis is given to substitutes for generally grown cereal crops. It is widely cultivated for forage purposes because of its high regenerating capability. Oat grain has tremendous health benefits. Therefore the study of variability and correlation among yield contributing traits becomes important. Keeping this in view, in the present research sixteen morphological traits were studied for fifty six diverse oat genotypes. The experiment was conducted in RCBD design during Rabi 2017-2018. Significant variation was seen for all the traits under study. High GCV and PCV were seen for most of the most of traits except plant height, days to 50% flowering, days to maturity. High heritability coupled with high genetic advance was observed for most of the characters viz., flag leaf length, leaf length, leaf width, leaf stem ratio, internode length, number of tillers plant-1, peduncle length, axis length, number of spikelets plant-1, seed yield plant-1, 100-seed weight, green fodder plant-1 and dry fodder plant-1. Genotypes namely HFO878, HFO-614, HFO-879 and HFO-707 showed good performance for both seed yield as well as green fodder yield. A study of variability, genetic advance, heritability and correlation will provide an opportunity for fruitful selection of the genotypes based on traits with high genetic advance and heritability and showing positive significant correlation with economic yield. Among the different traits which showed positive significant correlation with seed yield and green fodder yield, interestingly tillers plant-1 showed positive significant correlation both.

EFFECT OF FYM AND ZINC ON GROWTH, YIELD ATTRIBUTES AND PRODUCTIVITY PARAMETERS OF WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.)

The present field experiment was conducted at pot house of the Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry of C.S.A.U.A & T Kanpur (campus) under the Central Plain zone of Uttar Pradesh, during Rabi season of 2019-20. The experiment comprised of 9 treatment combinations in randomized block design with three replications consisted of T1: Control, T2: RDF + FYM (50%), T3: RDF + FYM (100%), T4: RDF + Zn (50%), T5: 2 RDF + Zn (100%), T6: RDF + FYM (50%) + Zn (50%), T7: RDF + FYM (100%) + Zn (50%), T8: RDF + FYM (50%) + Zn (100%), T9: RDF + FYM (100%) + Zn (100%). On the basis of the results emanated from the present investigation, it could be concluded that application of RDF + FYM (100%) + Zn (100%) applied in wheat to significantly increases growth parameter, i.e. plant height and yield attributes, i.e. no. of tiller plant-1, no. of ear plant-1, no. of seeds ear-1, weight of ear (g), grain weight ear-1 (g), 1000 seed weight (g), spike length (cm) and no. of spikelets spike-1. Results showed that among the different fertility levels, application of RDF + FYM (100%) + Zn (100%) significantly enhanced productivity parameters, i.e. grain yield, straw yield, biomass yield and harvest index over the control.

Study of the Varietal Behavior of Eight Durum Wheat Genotypes Under Conditions in Haut Chéllif (Ain Defla, Algeria)

This study was conducted on five varieties of durum wheat of which 03 are native to the region of Ain Defla (Waha, Vitron, and Siméto), and 05 others introduced were studied during this test (NV25, NV26, NV27, NV28, NV29), to study their varietal behavior under natural climatic conditions in the semi-arid zone of Ain Defla, during the 2008/2009 campaign. The chosen experimental device is complete random blocks with 04 repetitions. The study focused on the phenological characteristics of the plant, such as plant height at maturity (cm), the number of tillers.m-2, the length of cob, the length of the pedoncule cob, as well as the development of the yield (biological and actual yield) and their components (number of fertile tillers plant-1, number of grains cob-1, 1000-grain weight (g), grain yield m-2). With phenological characteristics, the results show that some introduced varieties have a clear superiority compared to local varieties. Regarding the yield components, the results show that they are influenced by the variety factors and pedoclimatic adaptation conditions of the new varieties compared with the control varieties. Additionally, a difference between the biological and real yields was recorded to estimate the yield around 5% to 28% in the form of loss.

Influence of humic acid on morpho-physiology and yield of rice

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of soil organic amendments-cow dung and humic acid on morphology and yield of rice under drought stress at the net-house, Agricultural Botany Department at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, during the period from July 2018 to November 2018. This single factorial experiment pots where arranged in a randomized complete block design with four replications. Four different levels of soil organic amendments viz. SM1 = Soil + inorganic fertilizer (control), SM2 = Soil + cow dung + inorganic fertilizer, SM3 = Soil + inorganic fertilizer + humic acid and SM4 = Soil + inorganic fertilizer + cow dung + humic acid. The results showed that morphological characters and yield of rice significantly increased with addition of cow dung and humic acid into the soil. In terms of morpho-physiology, the highest plant height 112.90 cm and number of tillers plant-1 11.25 were achieved from the treatment SM4 (Soil + inorganic fertilizer + cow dung + humic acid). In terms of the variables that contribute to the yield, the highest days to 1st flowering (72.75) and days to 1st maturity (122.05 days) were found from control treatment SM4 (Soil + inorganic fertilizer + humic acid + cow dung). Similarly, the highest panicle length (24.94 cm), number of filled grain panicle-1 (221.40), number of unfilled grain panicle-1 (42.25), root length (17.93 cm), number of grains panicle-1 (247.40), grain weight hill-1 (25.17 g), straw weight hill-1 (33.26 g) and harvest index (42.93%) were achieved from SM4 (Soil + inorganic fertilizer + cow dung + humic acid) . The highest soil moisture content (17.23 and 16.17% at 55 and 70 DAT, respectively) was also achieved from SM4 (Soil + inorganic fertilizer + cow dung + humic acid). This experimental results highlighted that together use of cow dung and humic acid increased the grain weight plants-1 more than 150% compared to controlled condition. Finally, it concluded that application of cow dung and humic acid as soil organic amendments increases the yield of aman rice.

Association Analysis for Yield and its Attributing Components in Rice (Oriza sativa L) under Two Environments

To enhance the yield potential of existing varieties along with creation of new varieties with stable and high yield potential is the basic aim of plant breeders. Keeping these points in view, his experiment was carried out to study the comparative performance and association of yield attributing characters with grain yield including path analysis in seventy three diverse rice genotypes at two research farms with different sodicity levels. The correlation coefficient analysis revealed the positively and significantly associated with productive tillers plant-1, fertile spikelet panicle-1, spikelet fertility %, biological yield plant-1 and 1000 grain weight while Path analysis showed biological yield plant-1, harvest index, chlorophyll content and 1000- grains weight had positive and high direct effect on grain yield respectively at both sodicity levels. Hence direct selection of any traits namely biological yield plant-1, harvest index, chlorophyll content and 1000 grain weight can be effective for future breeding programs to improve yield trait. Improvement in these traits will result in simultaneous improvement of yield.

Sugarcane pre-sprouted seedlings: A novel method for sugarcane establishment

A new method of sugarcane establishment using pre-sprouted seedlings (PSS) is under development in Brazil, requiring lower amounts of vegetative material as compared to the conventional method using billets (1–2 versus 12–20 Mg ha−1). The hypotheses set up herein were: i) the sugarcane fields established with PSS achieve similar yields as compared to fields established conventionally and ii) since PSS has lower nutrition reserve as compared to the nutrients reserve within the billets, the nutritional demand of sugarcane may change according to the method of crop establishment. To test the hypothesis, three field trials were carried out within the main periods of sugarcane establishment in Southeast Brazil (fall, winter and spring), varying in fertilization practices. Treatments included conventional planting method with standard fertilization, New method without and under standard fertilization, named from here on as Conv., New method 1 and New method 2, respectively. In both systems, furrows were opened 1.5 m apart m. between rows. Conv. planting method was done with 12–15 buds m−1, while both New methods were done with pre-sprouted seedlings spaced 0.5 m apart within the line. Measurements included tillering, plant nutritional status, stalk yield and stalk quality parameters over three crop cycles (cane-plant, first and second ratoon). Whereas Conv. method improved plant tillering in specific evaluation periods, both New methods lead to similar milleable plants at harvest time in the three crop seasons. Within all crop cycles, plant nutritional status was similar under all planting methods, even without fertilization for the new method 1. More interestingly, regardless of the crop cycle and season in which the trial was set up, under the New method the stalk yields and total recoverable sugars content were similar to the same parameters evaluated for crop established trough Conv. planting method. Based on this long-term study, crop establishment though pre-sprouted seedlings (New method adoption) can be highlighted as a promising opportunity to increase feedstock for ethanol production to attend the increased ethanol demand forecasted for the upcoming years.

ЕКОНОМІЧНА ЕФЕКТИВНІСТЬ АЗОТНИХ ПІДЖИВЛЕНЬ ЗА ВИРОЩУВАННЯ ПШЕНИЦІ ОЗИМОЇ В ПІВНІЧНОМУ СТЕПУ УКРАЇНИ

In the northern Steppe of Ukraine at the State Institution Institute of Grain Crops of NAAS for 2016–2019, we studied the influence of plant feeding with different types of nitrogen fertilizers (ammonium nitrate, urea ammonium nitrate mixture (UAN-32), ammonium sulfate) on the economic efficiency of winter wheat cultivation after black fallow and after sunflower. It was established that the lowest cost of one grain ton, the highest net income per hectare and profitability level were in the trial variant where after both predecessors against the background of pre-sowing fertilization (N30P60K30 – after black fallow and N60P60K60 – after sunflower) feeding crops with nitrogen fertilizers was locally applied on two dates: N30 on freeze-thawed soil + N30 at the end of plant tillering stage. The above indicators among the studied varieties of winter wheat, such as Kokhanka (valuable variety), Nyva odeska and Uzhynok (strong varieties), were the best in the Nyva odeska variety, and they achieved at cultivation after black fallow depending on the type of nitrogen fertilizers 2055– 2222 UAH, 28470–30089 UAH per hectare and 200.2–224.6 %, respectively. When growing the same variety after sunflower with nitrogen feedings on two dates, the indicators ranged depending on the fertilizer type: the cost of one grain ton – 2813–2953 UAH, net income – 16802–17821 UAH/ha and profitability level – 125.9–137.1 %. The Uzhynok winter wheat variety after the non-fallow predecessor had the lowest economic indicators and produced lower yield compared to Nyva odeska and Kohanka varieties. It was found that Urea Ammonium Nitrate mixture (UAN-32) fertilizer for nitrogen feedings provided the higher economic cultivation efficiency of all winter wheat varieties, and the more expensive ammonium sulfate had the lower efficiency after both predecessors. Keywords: winter wheat, variety, predecessor, mineral fertilizers, nitrogen feedings, yield, economic efficiency.

Estimation of Gene Action and Interaction for Some Quantitative Characters in Rice (Oryza sativa L.) by Generation Mean Analysis

The present investigation was conducted to understand the genetic action for controlling the inheritance of some quantitative characters. The experimental materials consisted of three rice varieties, i.e., Mahsuri, Bhutmuri, IR36 and F1, F2, and F3 populations of Mahsuri×Bhutmuri (Cross I) and IR36×Bhutmuri (Cross II). To conduct the generation mean analysis, the parents and their F1, F2, and F3 populations were evaluated during June to October month of Kharif 2016 and Kharif 2017. Generation mean analysis was done for eighteen quantitative characters following the five parameter model. The Analysis of Variance revealed significant differences among the five generations for all the characters studied. The results of the scaling tests and joint scaling test revealed that the Simple additive-dominance model was inadequate for days to 50% flowering, days to maturity, number of panicles plant-1, number of primary branches panicle-1, number of secondary branches panicle-1 in Cross I, while it was for plant height, number of tillers plant-1, number of panicles plant-1, number of grains panicle-1, number of filled grains panicle–1 and fertility % in Cross II. Hence, the present studies have revealed that epistasis as a basic mechanism that cannot be ignored. Thus, formulating breeding policies on only main gene effects i.e. additive and dominance could be misleading.

IMPACT OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF BULK DENSITIES COMBINATION ON YIELD AND YIELD COMPONENT OF WHEAT (TRITICUM AESTIVUM L.)

An experiment was conducted on the impact of different levels of bulk densities combination on yield and yield components of wheat. Three bulk density levels 1.00-1.30 (A) g cm-3, 1.30-1.60 (B) g cm-3 and 1.60-1.90 (C) g cm-3 with three different depths (0-15, 16-30 and 31-45 cm) were used in the experiment using silt loam soil (Pedocals). The total treatments were 27 in the experiment with three replications. The experimental design was completely randomized design (CRD). The treatment means were checked at the confidence level of 95% of probability. The soil 0-45 cm deep was shifted from the field (no-till) to the net house and was act as control. The results showed that the number of tillers plant-1, number of leaves plant-1 and thousand grain yield were non-significantly affected by all the treatments while number of seed emerged, root length, dry root weight, plant height, grain yield , biological yield and harvest index were significantly influenced by various treatments. The highest number of seed germinated (8.00) was found in the treatment BBB (1.30-1.60 g cm-3 in 0-15 cm, 15-30 cm, 30-45 cm soil depth), BAB (1.30-1.60 g cm-3 in 0-15 cm, 1.00-1.30 g cm-3 in 15-30 cm and 1.30-1.60 g cm-3 in 30-45 cm soil depth) and BCB (1.30-1.60 g cm-3 in 0-15 cm, 1.60-1.90 g cm-3 in 15-30 cm and 1.30-1.60 g cm-3 in 30-45 cm) while the lowest number of seed emerged (3.6) was found in AAA (1.00-1.30 g cm-3 in 0-15 cm, 15-30 cm and 30-45 cm soil depth), ACA (1.00-1.30 g cm-3 in 0-15 cm, 1.60-1.90 g cm-3 in 15-30 cm and 1.00-1.30 g cm-3 in 30-45 cm soil depth) and CAC (1.60-1.90 g cm -3 in 0-15 cm, 1.00-1.30 g cm-3 in 15-30 cm and 1.60-1.90 g cm-3 in 30-45 cm soil depth). The highest root length (13.12 cm) was found in the treatment AAA while the lowest root length (10.05 cm) was found in CAC. The highest dry root weight (5.67g) was found in the treatment ABA while the lowest dry root weight (4.79g) was found in control treatment. The highest plant height (42.67 cm) was found in the treatment of BBA while the lowest plant height (29.67 cm) was found in control. The highest biological yield (12.1 metric ton ha-1) was found in the treatment ABA while the lowest biological yield (6.8 metric ton ha-1) was found in control. The highest grain yield (4.4 metric ton ha-1) was found by ABB while the lowest (2.7 metric ton ha-1) was found in the control. The highest harvest index (39.79%) was found in the control while the lowest harvest index (34.54%) was found in CCA. The experiment showed that increasing bulk density above 1.60 g cm-3 resulted in decreasing the yield and yield component of the winter wheat. The number of seed emerged, root length, dry root weight, plant height, grain yield, biological yield and harvest index of wheat were significantly affected by soil bulk density in various depths.

Water Stress Affects the Some Morpho-Physiological Traits of Twenty Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Genotypes under Field Condition

Water stress has become one of the foremost constraints to agricultural development, mostly in areas that are deficient in water. A field trial has been conducted to evaluate the performance of different twenty wheat genotypes under three stress treatments viz., control (T0) = normal watering, stress-1 (T1) = water stress from tillering up to maturity, and stress-2 (T2) = water stress from anthesis to maturity were used as treatments. The results revealed that a highly significant (p < 0.01) difference was observed among twenty wheat cultivars for morpho-physiological traits except for several tillers plant−1, spikeletspike−1, and relative water content. In the early days, 50% flowering was noted in Anmole-91 (64.33 days) under (T0), while Anmol-91 showed a relative decrease (RD-1) (−2.34 days) at days 50% flowering in (T1). The TJ-83 genotype showed an early response (−8.34 day) at days to 50% flowering under stress-2 (T2), but TD-I (−3.34) was observed to be relatively tolerant. Underwater stress from tillering to maturity (T1) SKD-1 was found more susceptible (−36.7 days) than other cultivars. Wheat cultivar Soghat-90 showed maximum RD-1 (−24.7) for grain yield plant−1 in stress-1 (T1) from tillering to maturity. Anmole-91, NIA-Sarang, and TD-I observed minimum was (−6) in the same water stress for various traits. Therefore, the findings of present work revealed that the best performing genotypes can be recommended for effective cultivation in future breeding programs.

Morphological evaluation of wheat genotypes for grain yield under arid environment of Balochistan

Wheat is the most famous cereal crop in the world mainly used as a staple food for mankind. Drought is a leading environmental stress that restricts the productivity of wheat in water-scare regions. In this study, we evaluated the performance of 10 advanced lines and two commercial varieties for grain yield during 2018-19, at Balochistan Agriculture College, Quetta. Results revealed the highly significant differences between genotypes for number of days to heading, days to maturity, plant height at maturity (cm), number of fertile tillers plant-1, number of grains spike-1, 1000-grain weight (g), grain yield plant-1 and grain yield (kg/ha), while significant (P > 0.05) for days to grain filling period. In addition, the principal component analysis indicated that first two principal components (PC1 and PC2) accounted for 83.77% of the total variation. The genotype BAC-51 performed superior for grain yield and other morphological traits, suggesting that BAC-51 should be tested at different locations in the upland of Balochistan and may be released as a drought-tolerant variety after the certification process. Keywords: Drought; Genetic diversity; Grain yield; Wheat http://dx.doi.org/10.19045/bspab.2021.100150

Estimation of Combining Ability in F2 Hybrids of Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Genotypes

The seed of 6 parental cultivars along with 15 F2 Hybrids of hexaploid wheat was planted in randomized complete block design with three replications 6 x 6 half diallel during 2016-2017 sat Southern Wheat Research Station, ARI, Tandojam, Sindh, Pakistan. Mean squares due to General Combining Ability (GCA) and Specific Combining Ability (SCA) variances were highly significant and significant for all morphological traits. It was noticed that additive, as well as nonadditive genes, were there for GCA and SCA. SCA variances were observed greater than those of GCA variances for five traits (PH, TPP, SL, SPS, GYPP) displaying the predominance of nonadditive genes, for some of the characters, nonetheless, GCA variances were more for the rest of the characters (GPS, TGW). Parental cultivars such as Khirman displayed maximum positive and desirable GCA effects for spike length and grains spike-1, Hamal for tillers plant-1 and spikelets spike-1 and Benazir and NIA-Sarang for grain yield plant-1 and seed index. On the other hand, Hamal and NIA-Sarang equally distributed negative, but desirable GCA effects for plant height. The SCA estimates revealed that Sindhu x Hamal manifested maximum positive estimates for spike length and grain yield plant-1, whereas Benazir x Sindhu was found as the best specific combiner for spikelets spike-1 and seed index, Benazir x Khirman and Benazir x NIA-Sarang for tillers plant-1 and grains spike-1. These F2 hybrids may be the best choice as a breeding material for hybrid crop development to improve yield characters. Therefore, it may be possible to take advantage of better general and specific combiners to further selection for the development of a hybrid variety of wheat which can assist to enhance the total production in Pakistan.

Mixed Cropping of Dwarf Napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum cv. Mott) with Indigofera (Indigofera zollingeriana) using an Alley Cropping System

Background: Mixed cropping of forage grasses and legumes can potentially improve the performance of herbivores. However, the feasibility of grasses mixed-cropped with legumes should be examined at different plant densities. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the growth characters and forage chemical composition in dwarf napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum cv. Mott) with Indigofera (Indigofera zollingeriana) grown using alley cropping. Methods: Three densities of dwarf napiergrass with Indigofera, i.e., high density (2 and 1 plants m-2, respectively); medium density (1.33 and 1 plants m-2, respectively); and low density (1 and 1 plants m-2, respectively) were applied under rainfed conditions in Makassar. Results: Plant density significantly affected growth characteristics, such as plant height and tiller density in dwarf napiergrass (p<0.05), and non-significantly affected plant height and branch density (p>0.05) in Indigofera. Plant density did not affect the yielding ability at the first defoliation and annual total of yields (p>0.05), except at the second defoliation when the dry matter production of dwarf napiergrass peaked in the low plant density treatment (p<0.05). In terms of chemical composition, plant density significantly affected fiber concentrations of acid detergent fiber and neutral detergent fiber, which were lowest at low plant densities (p<0.05). The acid detergent lignin and cellulose concentrations tended to be lower at low plant densities, but the differences were not significant (p>0.05). Conclusion: We consider that alley cropping systems for dwarf napiergrass and Indigofera are suitable if low plant densities are employed in the region.

Effects of Sowing Dates on Yield and Yield Components of Different Varieties of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in Western Uttar Pradesh

An experiment was conducted during Rabi season (November-December) of 2018–19 to study the effect of three dates of sowing (26th November, 11th December and 25th December) on growth, yield attributes and yield of fivewheat varieties (HD-2967, HD-3086, WH-1105, PBW-343 and PBW-226) at Agricultural Research Farm of IFTM University, Moradabad (UP) India. The experiment was laid out in Factorial Randomized Design with two replications. Sowing was done at spacing of 22.5 cm in sandy loam soil. The observations were recorded on growth, flowering, maturity, yield and yield components. Analysis of variance showed the significant variations were observed for the characters viz. plant height, days to flowering, spikes per plant, days to maturity, grain yield, test weight, straw yield, biological yield and harvest index due to changing dates of sowing. However, varietal variations were recorded for plant height, days to flowering, spikes per plant, days to maturity and test weight. Wheat sown on 26th November recorded significant increase in plant height, tillers plant-1, spikes-1 plant, grain yield and straw yield over late sowing on 11th December and 25th December. There was no significant variation among varieties for yield and yield contributing traits such as grains spike-1, grain and straw yield. Significant interaction effects between dates of sowing and varieties were found for days to flowering which showed that the variety HD-2967 is as best wheat variety for early sown and PBW-226 for late sown conditions in order to obtain better returns.

Raising Climate-Resilient Embolden Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Seedlings during the Cool Season through Various Types of Nursery Bed Management

Facing cold stress is amajor constraint in seedling production during the winter season as, most particularly in recent times due to uncertain climatic conditions, no sustainable technology has been reported that could be easily adopted by farmers withlimited resources. Therefore, field experiments were carried out during winter 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 at the Central Research Farm of Bidhan Chandra KrishiViswavidyalaya, West Bengal, India to study the growth, survival potential, yield and nutritional and biochemical properties of boro rice seedlings as influenced by two seedbed management practices viz. conventional seedbed (farmers’ practice) and improved seedbed (polythene protected with micronutrient supplementation). The major objective was to lower the nurserybed duration without compromising seedlings’ health and to studythe economic viability during the winter season. The experiment was laid out in ten experimental units and deployed anindependent-sample t-test to compare the performance of the seedlings. The microclimatic changes were also itemized from both seedbeds. The seeds sownunder improved nursery conditions resulted in better seedling emergence (~90%) and survival percentage (~85%) as compared to the conventional seedbed (~70% and 65%). Growth attributes in terms of plant height, biomass accumulation, root characteristics, tiller count, and growth rate were observed to be better from the polythene-protected nursery bed. Theimproved nursery bed accounted for 20% higher seedling count at the time of transplantation over the conventional bed. The microclimatic situation under a polythene covering was also favorable for germination and seedling growth. Maximum nutrient (N, P, and K) concentrations, as well as chlorophyll content, wererecorded from improved seedlings. Results suggested that the improved seedbed management was apotential alternative toearly embolden seedling production during the winter to avoid climatic abnormalities. Most importantly, improved seedbeds ensured a comprehensive route from germination to healthy seedling production without any failure in thesmalltime window, which involvedless input as well as cost involvement. This technique could diffusethe problem oflate sowing conditions in the rice–rice cropping system.

Interactions Between Environment and Genetic Diversity in Perennial Grass Phenology: A Review of Processes at Plant Scale and Modeling.

In perennial grasses, the reproductive development consists of major phenological stages which highly determine the seasonal variations of grassland biomass production in terms of quantity and quality. The reproductive development is regulated by climatic conditions through complex interactions subjected to high genetic diversity. Understanding these interactions and their impact on plant development and growth is essential to optimize grassland management and identify the potential consequences of climate change. Here, we review the main stages of reproductive development, from floral induction to heading, i.e., spike emergence, considering the effect of the environmental conditions and the genetic diversity observed in perennial grasses. We first describe the determinants and consequences of reproductive development at individual tiller scale before examining the interactions between plant tillers and their impact on grassland perenniality. Then, we review the available grassland models through their ability to account for the complexity of reproductive development and genetic × environmental interactions. This review shows that (1) The reproductive development of perennial grasses is characterized by a large intraspecific diversity which has the same order of magnitude as the diversity observed between species or environmental conditions. (2) The reproductive development is determined by complex interactions between the processes of floral induction and morphogenesis of the tiller. (3) The perenniality of a plant is dependent on the reproductive behavior of each tiller. (4) Published models only partly explain the complex interactions between morphogenesis and climate on reproductive development. (5) Introducing more explicitly the underlying processes involved in reproductive development in models would improve our ability to anticipate grassland behavior in future growth conditions.

Effect of Tillage Systems on the Growth and Productivity of Eight Wheat Cultivars

A field experiment was carried out in one of the agricultural fields in Abu Ghraib region during the winter season of 2018-2019 in order to study the effect of plowing systems on the growth and productivity of eight cultivars of wheat crop in a silty clay loam, field land which was not sown in the previous season. Two tillage systems were used (no-tillage and tillage) to grow the wheat crop, moldboard plows and harrow (local made). The cultivars were (Wafia, Adena, Araz, Erratum, Pura, Spelta, Doru, and Cymto). Randomized complete blocks design (RCBD) was used in a split plot arrangement with three replications. Results revealed that Adena predominated in plant height (87.77 cm), spike length (10.68 cm) tillers (4.695 tiller plant-1), whereas Cymto was superior in plant dry weight (80.00 g), thousand grains weight (54.80 g), grains yield per unit (5.535 Kg). Genetic material of Azar, Adena and Cymto cultivars was the best, as it was clearly manifested in the phenotypic components of wheat.