Cereal pre-harvest sprouting: a global agricultural disaster regulated by complex genetic and biochemical mechanisms

Abstract With the growth of the global population and uncontrollable natural disasters, crop yields must be steadily increased to enhance human adaptability to risks. Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) is a global disaster for agricultural production, which is mainly used to describe the phenomenon in which grains germinate on the mother plant directly before harvest. After domestication, the dormancy level of cultivated crops was generally lower than that of wild ancestors. Although the shortened dormancy period likely improved the industrial performance of cereals such as wheat, barley, rice, and maize, the excessively high germination rate has caused frequent PHS in areas with higher rainfall, causing great economic losses. Here, we systematically reviewed the causes and harms of PHS, the major indicators and methods for PHS assessment, emphasising the biological significance of PHS in crop production. Wheat quantitative trait loci (QTLs) functioning in PHS controls were also comprehensively summarised for a meta-analysis. Finally, we used Arabidopsis as a model plant to develop more complete PHS regulatory networks for wheat. The integration of this information is conducive to cultivating custom-made cultivated lines suitable for different demands and different regions and is of great significance for improving crop yield and economic benefits.

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Fertiliser evenness - losses and costs: A study on the economic benefits of uniform applications of fertiliser

Proceedings of the New Zealand Grassland Association ◽

10.33584/jnzg.1999.61.2337 ◽

1999 ◽

pp. 215-220 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

R. Horrell ◽

A.K. Metherell ◽

S. Ford ◽

C. Doscher

Keyword(s):

Crop Yields ◽

Cumulative Effect ◽

Economic Loss ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Significant Loss ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Financial Return ◽

Spread Pattern ◽

Fertiliser Application ◽

Seed Crops

Over two million tonnes of fertiliser are applied to New Zealand pastures and crops annually and there is an increasing desire by farmers to ensure that the best possible economic return is gained from this investment. Spreading distribution measurements undertaken by Lincoln Ventures Ltd (LVL) have identified large variations in the evenness of fertiliser application by spreading machines which could lead to a failure to achieve optimum potential in some crop yields and to significant associated economic losses. To quantify these losses, a study was undertaken to calculate the effect of uneven fertiliser application on crop yield. From LVL's spreader database, spread patterns from many machines were categorised by spread pattern type and by coefficient of variation (CV). These patterns were then used to calculate yield losses when they were combined with the response data from five representative cropping and pastoral situations. Nitrogen fertiliser on ryegrass seed crops shows significant production losses at a spread pattern CV between 30% and 40%. For P and S on pasture, the cumulative effect of uneven spreading accrues, until there is significant economic loss occurring by year 3 for both the Waikato dairy and Southland sheep and beef systems at CV values between 30% and 40%. For nitrogen on pasture, significant loss in a dairy system occurs at a CV of approximately 40% whereas for a sheep and beef system it is at a CV of 50%, where the financial return from nitrogen application has been calculated at the average gross revenue of the farming system. The conclusion of this study is that the current Spreadmark standards are a satisfactory basis for defining the evenness requirements of fertiliser applications in most circumstances. On the basis of Spreadmark testing to date, more than 50% of the national commercial spreading fleet fails to meet the standard for nitrogenous fertilisers and 40% fails to meet the standard for phosphatic fertilisers.Keywords: aerial spreading, crop response, economic loss, fertiliser, ground spreading, striping, uneven application, uneven spreading, yield loss

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Weighted Gene Correlation Network Meta-Analysis Reveals Functional Candidate Genes Associated with High- and Sub-Fertile Reproductive Performance in Beef Cattle

Genes ◽

10.3390/genes11050543 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 543 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Pablo A. S. Fonseca ◽

Aroa Suárez-Vega ◽

Angela Cánovas

Keyword(s):

Candidate Genes ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Correlation Network ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Hormone Regulation ◽

Sequencing Data ◽

Hub Genes ◽

Gene Correlation ◽

Upstream Regulators

Improved reproductive efficiency could lead to economic benefits for the beef industry, once the intensive selection pressure has led to a decreased fertility. However, several factors limit our understanding of fertility traits, including genetic differences between populations and statistical limitations. In the present study, the RNA-sequencing data from uterine samples of high-fertile (HF) and sub-fertile (SF) animals was integrated using co-expression network meta-analysis, weighted gene correlation network analysis, identification of upstream regulators, variant calling, and network topology approaches. Using this pipeline, top hub-genes harboring fixed variants (HF × SF) were identified in differentially co-expressed gene modules (DcoExp). The functional prioritization analysis identified the genes with highest potential to be key-regulators of the DcoExp modules between HF and SF animals. Consequently, 32 functional candidate genes (10 upstream regulators and 22 top hub-genes of DcoExp modules) were identified. These genes were associated with the regulation of relevant biological processes for fertility, such as embryonic development, germ cell proliferation, and ovarian hormone regulation. Additionally, 100 candidate variants (single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and insertions and deletions (INDELs)) were identified within those genes. In the long-term, the results obtained here may help to reduce the frequency of subfertility in beef herds, reducing the associated economic losses caused by this condition.

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Benefits and Trade-Offs of Tillage Management in China: A Meta-Analysis

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy11081495 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 1495

Author(s):

Yingcheng Wang ◽

Hao Ying ◽

Yulong Yin ◽

Hongye Wang ◽

Zhenling Cui

Keyword(s):

Crop Yields ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Ghg Emissions ◽

Cropping System ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Yield Reduction ◽

Trade Offs ◽

Net Profit

In China, deep tillage (DT; to >20 cm soil depth) has increased crop yields by improving soil properties, while no-tillage (NT) has been recommended to reduce the labor and machinery costs. Local farmers are willing to adopted rotary tillage (RT; harrowing to 10–15 cm depth) for easy management. However, the effects of these tillage management methods on agronomic productivity, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration, and economic return have not been quantified systematically, and their effectiveness remains in question. Here, we present a meta-analysis of the effects of these methods using 665 paired measurements from 144 peer-reviewed studies. The results indicated that DT significantly increased crop yields by 7.5% relative to RT, and even greater increases were observed in regions with low temperatures and with a wheat cropping system. In contrast, NT resulted in a yield reduction of 3.7% relative to RT, however, controlling for the appropriate temperature and long extension duration (>15 yr) could reduce yield losses and even increase the yield. Both DT and NT significantly enhanced SOC sequestration relative to RT. Adoption of DT would lead to both higher total GHG emissions (N2O and CH4) and increased energy costs, while NT reduced GHG emissions. DT management exhibited a positive net profit for all cropping systems; NT decreased the net profit for rice and wheat but increased the profit for maize. Our study highlighted the agronomic, environmental, and economic benefits and trade-offs for the different tillage methods and should enable investors and policymakers to ensure the best tillage management decisions are made depending on the location-specific conditions.

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A Review of Soil-Improving Cropping Systems for Soil Salinization

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy9060295 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 295 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Julián Cuevas ◽

Ioannis N. Daliakopoulos ◽

Fernando del Moral ◽

Juan J. Hueso ◽

Ioannis K. Tsanis

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Conservation Agriculture ◽

Crop Productivity ◽

Soil Salinization ◽

Review Literature ◽

Residue Management ◽

Negative Effect

A major challenge of the Sustainable Development Goals linked to Agriculture, Food Security, and Nutrition, under the current global crop production paradigm, is that increasing crop yields often have negative environmental impacts. It is therefore urgent to develop and adopt optimal soil-improving cropping systems (SICS) that can allow us to decouple these system parameters. Soil salinization is a major environmental hazard that limits agricultural potential and is closely linked to agricultural mismanagement and water resources overexploitation, especially in arid climates. Here we review literature seeking to ameliorate the negative effect of soil salinization on crop productivity and conduct a global meta-analysis of 128 paired soil quality and yield observations from 30 studies. In this regard, we compared the effectivity of different SICS that aim to cope with soil salinization across 11 countries, in order to reveal those that are the most promising. The analysis shows that besides case-specific optimization of irrigation and drainage management, combinations of soil amendments, conditioners, and residue management can contribute to significant reductions of soil salinity while significantly increasing crop yields. These results highlight that conservation agriculture can also achieve the higher yields required for upscaling and sustaining crop production.

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Farmers’ Perceptions of Tree Shelterbelts on Agricultural Land in Rural Kyrgyzstan

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12031093 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 1093 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Daniel Ruppert ◽

Martin Welp ◽

Michael Spies ◽

Niels Thevs

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Farming Systems ◽

Agroforestry Systems ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Sustainable Land Use ◽

Main Concern ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Trade Offs

The reestablishment of agroforestry systems in Central Asia, combining crop production with protective tree shelterbelts, provides significant potential to improve farming systems. This includes increasing crop yields, additional income from timber, as well as reducing soil degradation and wind erosion. Thus, adopting shelterbelts as a form of pro-environmental behavior provides a number of socio-economic benefits, although some trade-offs need to be considered as well. This paper investigates factors that shape the perception of—and attitude towards—the establishment of tree shelterbelts by farmers in two case study regions in Kyrgyzstan. Applying a conceptual framework distinguishing between extrinsic and intrinsic factors, research methods included semi-structured interviews with farmers and local policy makers. The results show spatial differences in the perception of shelterbelts, both on the regional and on the village scale. In general, shelterbelts were negatively perceived by more than half of the farmers. The main concern raised by farmers was the shading of crops by shelterbelts, resulting in a decrease of yield. In addition, small field sizes and potential conflicts with neighbors were key concerns. Furthermore, rules set by local self-government bodies were inconsistent with the legislative framework, posing significant restrictions to the adoption of sustainable land use practices.

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Global Patterns of Crop Production Losses Associated with Droughts from 1983 to 2009

Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology ◽

10.1175/jamc-d-18-0174.1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 58 (6) ◽

pp. 1233-1244 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Wonsik Kim ◽

Toshichika Iizumi ◽

Motoki Nishimori

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Crop Production ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Drought Event ◽

Climate Extreme ◽

Domestic Production ◽

Gross Domestic Production ◽

Per Capita ◽

Production Losses

AbstractDroughts represent an important type of climate extreme that reduces crop production and food security. Although this fact is well known, the global geographic pattern of drought-driven reductions in crop production is poorly characterized. As the incidence of relatively more severe droughts is expected to increase under climate change, understanding the vulnerability of crop production to droughts is a key research priority. Here, we estimate the production losses of maize, rice, soy, and wheat from 1983 to 2009 using empirical relationships among crop yields, a drought index, and annual precipitation. We find that approximately three-fourths of the global harvested areas—454 million hectares—experienced drought-induced yield losses over this period, and the cumulative production losses correspond to 166 billion U.S. dollars. Globally averaged, one drought event decreases agricultural gross domestic production by 0.8%, with varying magnitudes of impacts by country. Crop production systems display decreased vulnerability or increased resilience to drought according to increases in per capita gross domestic production (GDP) in the countries with extensive semiarid agricultural areas. These changes in vulnerability accompany technological improvements represented by per capita GDP increases. Our estimates of drought-induced economic losses in agricultural systems offer a sound basis for subsequent assessments of the costs of adaptation to droughts under climate change.

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Mathematical models of agricultural production management in high risk environments

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/202022201018 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 222 ◽

pp. 01018

Author(s):

Yaroslav Ivanyo ◽

Nina Fedurina ◽

Zhanna Varanitsa-Gorodovskaya

Keyword(s):

Stochastic Models ◽

Agricultural Production ◽

Crop Production ◽

Production Management ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Agricultural Products ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Risk Environments ◽

Snow Fall ◽

Agricultural Organization

The paper presents an algorithm for modeling the production of agricultural products in the formation of agrometeorological events. Stochastic models of variability of downpours, early snow-fall and crop yields are constructed to assess the likelihood of extreme events. Based on a probabilistic assessment of crop bio-productivity by a normative method, economic losses from agrometeorological events are determined. A model for optimizing crop production taking into account natural risks was built and implemented for an agricultural organization. The results were obtained according to data of the Irkutsk district.

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Crop Yields in European Agroforestry Systems: A Meta-Analysis

Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems ◽

10.3389/fsufs.2021.606631 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 ◽

Author(s):

Vladimir Ivezić ◽

Yang Yu ◽

Wopke van der Werf

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Crop Production ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Alley Cropping ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Quantitative Information ◽

Negative Influence ◽

Agroforestry Systems ◽

Tree Planting ◽

Agricultural System

Agroforestry is the practice of integrating woody vegetation with crops and/or livestock production in order to strengthen ecological services on farmland and achieve a more multi-functional agricultural system. Crop yields determine economic outcomes when trees are young, but information on yields is scattered in the literature and a quantitative overview of crop yields in European agroforestry systems is lacking. We therefore synthesized published information on crop yields in European agroforestry systems, using meta-analysis. A systematic review of the literature was conducted, highlighting quantitative information on yields is available only for traditional Dehesa systems in Spain and Portugal and for modern alley cropping experiments, mostly in northern Europe. Relative cereal crop yields in alley cropping systems (systems with tree rows with interspersed crop strips) were 96% of sole crop yield at tree planting. Crop yields in alley cropping decreased on average with 2.6% per year over the first 21 years of the tree stand, indicating increasing competitive effects of the trees with their age. On the other hand, studies in traditional Dehesa and Montado systems in Southern Europe showed no negative influence of the trees on crop production, indicating that competition between crops and trees plays a less important role in those systems than in alley cropping. Overall, the systematic review showed a need for more experimental data to further substantiate the benefits of agroforestry and elucidate optimal agroforestry practices under European conditions.

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Application of Remote Sensing in Agriculture

Geoinformatica Polonica ◽

10.2478/gein-2014-0007 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Jan Piekarczyk

Keyword(s):

Remote Sensing ◽

Precision Agriculture ◽

Crop Production ◽

Satellite Images ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Spatial Scales ◽

Strong Relationship ◽

Physical Parameters ◽

Agricultural Crop ◽

Remote Sensing Methods

AbstractWith increasing intensity of agricultural crop production increases the need to obtain information about environmental conditions in which this production takes place. Remote sensing methods, including satellite images, airborne photographs and ground-based spectral measurements can greatly simplify the monitoring of crop development and decision-making to optimize inputs on agricultural production and reduce its harmful effects on the environment. One of the earliest uses of remote sensing in agriculture is crop identification and their acreage estimation. Satellite data acquired for this purpose are necessary to ensure food security and the proper functioning of agricultural markets at national and global scales. Due to strong relationship between plant bio-physical parameters and the amount of electromagnetic radiation reflected (in certain ranges of the spectrum) from plants and then registered by sensors it is possible to predict crop yields. Other applications of remote sensing are intensively developed in the framework of so-called precision agriculture, in small spatial scales including individual fields. Data from ground-based measurements as well as from airborne or satellite images are used to develop yield and soil maps which can be used to determine the doses of irrigation and fertilization and to take decisions on the use of pesticides.

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Disentangling transcriptional responses in plant defense against arthropod herbivores

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-92468-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Alejandro Garcia ◽

M. Estrella Santamaria ◽

Isabel Diaz ◽

Manuel Martinez

Keyword(s):

Regulatory Networks ◽

Pieris Rapae ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Plant Response ◽

Plant Responses ◽

Transcriptional Responses ◽

Crop Species ◽

Physiological Processes ◽

Meta Analyses ◽

Plant Herbivore

AbstractThe success in the response of a plant to a pest depends on the regulatory networks that connect plant perception and plant response. Meta-analyses of transcriptomic responses are valuable tools to discover novel mechanisms in the plant/herbivore interplay. Considering the quantity and quality of available transcriptomic analyses, Arabidopsis thaliana was selected to test the ability of comprehensive meta-analyses to disentangle plant responses. The analysis of the transcriptomic data showed a general induction of biological processes commonly associated with the response to herbivory, like jasmonate signaling or glucosinolate biosynthesis. However, an uneven induction of many genes belonging to these biological categories was found, which was likely associated with the particularities of each specific Arabidopsis-herbivore interaction. A thorough analysis of the responses to the lepidopteran Pieris rapae and the spider mite Tetranychus urticae highlighted specificities in the perception and signaling pathways associated with the expression of receptors and transcription factors. This information was translated to a variable alteration of secondary metabolic pathways. In conclusion, transcriptomic meta-analysis has been revealed as a potent way to sort out relevant physiological processes in the plant response to herbivores. Translation of these transcriptomic-based analyses to crop species will permit a more appropriate design of biotechnological programs.

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