scholarly journals Effects of mixing two legume species at seedling stage under different environmental conditions

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e10615
Author(s):  
Heba Elsalahy ◽  
Sonoko Bellingrath-Kimura ◽  
Timo Kautz ◽  
Thomas Döring

While intercropping is known to have positive effects on crop productivity, it is unclear whether the effects of mixing species start at the early plant stage, that is, during germination. We tested whether the germination of two legume species, alsike clover and black medic, characterized by a contrasting response to water availability and temperature is affected by mixing. We set up four experiments in each of which we compared a 1:1 mixture against the two monocultures, and combined this with various other experimental factors. These additional factors were (i) varied seed densities (50%, 100% and 150% of a reference density) in two field trials in 2016 and 2017, (ii) varied seed densities (high and low) and water availability (six levels, between 25% and 100% of water holding capacity (WHC)) in a greenhouse pot trial, (iii) varied seed spacing in a climate chamber, and (iv) varied temperatures (12 °C, 20 °C and 28 °C) and water availability (four levels between 25% and 100% of WHC) in a climate chamber. Across all experiments, the absolute mixture effects (AME) on germination ranged between −9% and +11%, with a median of +1.3%. Within experiments, significant mixture effects were observed, but the direction of these effects was inconsistent. In the field, AME on germination was significantly negative at some of the tested seed densities. A positive AME was observed in the climate chamber at 12 °C, and the mean AME decreased with increasing temperature. Higher density was associated with decreased germination in the field, indicating negative interaction through competition or allelopathy, among seedlings. Our findings indicate that interaction among seeds in species mixtures may be ongoing during germination, but that the direction of the mixture effect is affected by complex interactions with abiotic and biotic factors.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2923
Author(s):  
Botir Khaitov ◽  
Munisa Urmonova ◽  
Aziz Karimov ◽  
Botirjon Sulaymonov ◽  
Kholik Allanov ◽  
...  

Water deficiency restricts plant productivity, while excessive soil moisture may also have an adverse impact. In light of this background, field trials were conducted in secondary saline soil (EC 6.5 dS m−1) at the experimental station of Tashkent State Agrarian University (TSAU), Uzbekistan to determine drought tolerance of licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) by exposure to four levels of water deficit, namely control (70–80%), moderate (50–60%), strong (30–40%) and intense (10–20%) relative water content (WC) in the soil. The moderate drought stress exhibited positive effects on the morphological and physiological parameters of licorice, and was considered to be the most suitable water regime for licorice cultivation. Plant growth under the 50–60% WC treatment was slightly higher as compared to 70–80% WC treatment, exhibiting weak water deficit promotes licorice growth, root yield and secondary metabolite production. In particular, secondary metabolites i.e., ash, glycyrrhizic acid, extractive compounds and flavonoids, tended to increase under moderate water deficit, however further drought intensification brought a sharp decline of these values. These results contribute to the development of licorice cultivation technologies in arid regions and the most important consideration is the restoration of ecological and economical functions of the dryland agricultural system.


Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fengjiao Wang ◽  
Zhenhua Wang ◽  
Jinzhu Zhang ◽  
Wenhao Li

Exploring the effect of irrigation on biodegradable film-covered drip-irrigated maize is essential for sustainable agricultural development in arid areas. These regions, like Xinjiang in China, are home to suitable irrigation and biodegradable films. Through field trials, four levels of irrigation, and two biodegradable films and one common polyethylene film were set up to study the effects of different treatments on the physiology, growth indicators, and yield of maize. The results showed that the effects of irrigation and biodegradable films on the photosynthetic index and fluorescence index of maize reached a very significant level (p < 0.01). The effect of single factor irrigation and biodegradable films on the photosynthetic index and fluorescence index of maize reached a significant level (p < 0.05). The photosynthesis index, fluorescence index, plant height, LAI (leaf area index) and yield of W3M3 treatment had the highest value, when compared with other treatments. The W1M1 treatment had the lowest value. The photosynthesis index, fluorescence index, plant height, LAI, and yield of the W3M2 treatment were second only to W3M3. In addition, the output was only 40 kg ha−1 less than W3M3. W3M2 has the best treatment effect from a perspective of sustainable agricultural development and efficient water saving; the optimal irrigation amount was 5625 m3 ha−1, induction period was 60 d, and thickness was 0.01 mm. The results of this study are of guiding significance for the promotion of the use of biodegradable films, search for suitable irrigation, and development of low-carbon agriculture.


Author(s):  
D.H. Ranade ◽  
M.L. Jadav ◽  
Indu Swarup ◽  
O.P. Girothia ◽  
D.V. Bhagat ◽  
...  

Background: Rainwater harvesting is commonly practiced in areas, where the rainfall is insufficient for crop growing. Due to the intermittent nature of run-off events, it is necessary to store the maximum possible amount of rainwater during the rainy season so that it may be used as irrigation to enhance the crop productivity and farm income under soybean based cropping system.Methods: A study was carried out during 2018-2019 in Indore district of Malwa region. Rainwater harvesting tanks at on station (42´21´2.4m) and on farm (15´11´4m) were constructed for irrigation water availability. Provision of water harvesting tank increased the irrigation water availability (1781m3 and 630m3 respectively) and stored water was managed through various irrigation systems viz. rain gun, drip and flood.Result: It was resulted that the provision of water harvesting tanks enhanced the crop productivity and farm income under soybean based cropping system. Availability of irrigation encouraged the farmers to diversify the cropping pattern (soybean-chickpea, soybean -wheat). It is also clear from the study that even with smaller storage tank and through conjunctive use of ground (1164.2m3) and surface water (596m3), multiple crops (Soybean, potato, sweet corn, chickpea, onion, garlic etc.) can be grown. Soybean-Chickpea cropping system at station gave the net return of 70976 Rs/ha with B: C ratio of 3.15. Soybean-Wheat cropping system at farm gave the net return of 119000 Rs/ha with B:C ratio of 3.38. 


1953 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. M. Phillips ◽  
Gordon E. Bucher ◽  
June M. Stephens

A bacterium, Bacillus cereus F. and F., which was isolated from diseased larvae of the codling moth, Carpocapsa pomonella (L.), is pathogenic to the codling moth in laboratory experiments (Stephens, 1952).A series of trials was set up at Kentville to test the effectiveness of this bacterium against codling moth larvae in the field. B. cereus spores were propagated according to the method of Reed and McKercher (1948) and shipped to the field as spore suspensions.


2005 ◽  
Vol 54 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 309-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
László Márton

The effect of natural rainfall and N, P and K nutrients on the yield of maize was investigated in 16 years of a long-term fertilization experiment set up at the Experimental Station of the Institute in Nagyhörcsök. The soil was a calcareous chernozem, having the following characteristics: pH (KCl): 7.3, CaCO 3 : 5%, humus: 3%, clay: 20-22%, AL-soluble P 2 O 5 : 60-80, AL-soluble K 2 O: 180-200, KCl-soluble Mg: 150-180; KCl+ EDTA-soluble Mn, Cu and Zn content: 80-150, 2-3 and 1-2 mg·kg -1 . The experiment had a split-split-plot design with 20 treatments in 4 replications, giving a total of 80 plots. The treatments involved three levels each of N and P and two levels of K in all possible combinations (3×3×2=18), together with an untreated control and one treatment with a higher rate of NPK, not included in the factorial system. The main results can be summarized as follows: An analysis of the weather in the 16 experimental years revealed that there were no average years, as two years were moderately dry (1981, 1982), eight were very dry (1973, 1978, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1997, 2002) and six were very wet (1969, 1974, 1977, 1994, 1998, 2001). In dry years the N, NP and NK treatments led to a yield increment of over 3.0  t·ha -1 (3.2 t·ha -1 ) (81%) compared with the unfertilized control, while the full NPK treatment caused hardly any increase in the maize yield (7.2 t·ha -1 ). In the case of drought there was a 4.0% yield loss in the N, NP and NK treatments compared to the same treatments in the dry years. This loss was only 1.0% in the NPK treatment. In very wet years the positive effects of a favourable water supply could be seen even in the N, NP and NK treatments (with yields of around 7.4 t·ha -1 ). The yield increment in these treatments compared with the droughty years averaged 8%, while balanced NPK fertilization led to a further 2% increase (10%). Significant quadratic correlations were found between the rainfall quantity during the vegetation period and the yield, depending on the nutrient supplies (Ø: R = 0.7787***, N: R = 0.8997***, NP: R = 0.9338***, NK: R = 0.9574***, NPK: R = 0.8906***). The optimum rainfall quantity and the corresponding grain yield ranged from 328-349 mm and 5.0-7.7 t·ha -1 , respectively, depending on the fertilizer rate. The grain yield increment obtained per mm rainfall in the case of optimum rainfall supplies was found to be 14.3-23.2 kg·ha -1 , while the quantity of rainfall utilized during the vegetation period for the production of 1 kg air-dry matter in the case of maximum yield amounted to 698, 449, 480, 466 and 431 litres in the control, N, NP, NK and NPK treatments, respectively. It was clear from the 43-year meteorological database for the experimental station (1961-2003) that over the last 23 years (1981-2003) the weather has become substantially drier. Compared with the data for the previous 20 years (1961-1980) there was an increase of 20, 500 and 50% in the number of average, dry and droughty years, no change in the number of wet years and a 71% drop in the number of very wet years.


2013 ◽  
pp. 67-69
Author(s):  
Mariann Móré ◽  
Zita Burján ◽  
Zoltán Győri ◽  
Péter Sipos

The yield and quality of wheat are mainly determined by the plant production system, thus we studied the effect of mineral fertilization. The field trials were set up in 1983 at the Látókép Research Institute of the University of Debrecen. We examined effect of different Nfertilizer doses (60 kg ha-1 N/P/K, 120 kg ha-1 N/P/K) on Lupus, Mv Toldi and GK Csillag's protein properties in 2012. During the tests, three quality parameters were determined: wet gluten content (%), wet gluten spread (mm/h) and gluten index (%). In the experiment the effect of different doses of N-fertilizers significantly influenced by the wet gluten content and gluten index of Lupus.


2018 ◽  
Vol 156 (4) ◽  
pp. 493-503 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Pannecoucque ◽  
S. Goormachtigh ◽  
J. Ceusters ◽  
J. Debode ◽  
C. Van Waes ◽  
...  

AbstractBacterial inoculation of soybean seeds to improve biological nitrogen fixation is a well-known practice to achieve higher seed and protein yield with reduced fertilization. The optimal inoculation strategy in temperate regions is unknown because soybeans are rarely cultivated under colder growing conditions. The aim of the present work was to determine the most suitable inoculation strategy for soybean cultivation in Belgium. Field trials were set up with four Bradyrhizobium inoculants (HiStick, Force 48, Biodoz and Optimize) at two locations over 2 years (2014–2015) and compared with a non-inoculated control treatment. In addition, HiStick was tested at three doses and Optimize at two time periods prior to sowing. Under Belgian conditions, all inoculants were effective in establishing rhizobial symbiosis, resulting in increased yield, protein content, protein yield and thousand-grain weight compared with the non-inoculated control. A single dose of HiStick was sufficient to establish symbiosis. Pre-inoculation with Optimize 2 weeks before sowing gave an intermediate performance for most parameters between the non-inoculated control treatment and inoculation with Optimize 24 h prior to sowing. Among the four products tested, Biodoz seemed the best product for inoculation under cool growing conditions. Based on the atpD gene, the bacterial strain of Biodoz showed complete similarity with Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens, while strains of other products were identified as Bradyrhizobium japonicum. In vitro growing capacity of the Biodoz strain at 8 °C was higher compared with the other strains. Better cold adaptation of the Biodoz strain might be a possible explanation for the better performance of Biodoz in Belgium.


Author(s):  
Florian Kraus ◽  
Patrick Puhani ◽  
Viktor Steiner

SummaryWe analyze the effectiveness of publicly financed training and retraining programs in east Germany as measured by their effects on individual re-employment probabilities after training. These are estimated by discrete hazard rate models on the basis of individual-level panel data. We account for unobserved individual heterogeneity in both the training participation and outcome equation. The latter differentiates between transitions into “stable” and “unstable” employment after the completion of a training program. Our findings are that in the first phase of the east German transition process, when the institutions delivering the training programs were being set up, there are no positive effects of training on the probability to find stable employment. For the period of September 1992 to November 1994, when the institutional structure for the programs was in place, we find positive effects of both on-the-job and off-the-job training for women, and positive effects of off-the-job training for men.


Author(s):  
Eija Kaasinen

Personal mobile devices are increasingly being used as platforms for interactive services. User acceptance of mobile services is not just based on usability but includes also other interrelated issues. Ease of use is important, but the services should also provide clear value to the user and they should be trustworthy and easy to adopt. These user acceptance factors form the core of the Technology Acceptance Model for Mobile Services introduced in this chapter. The model has been set up based on field trials of several mobile services with altogether more than 200 test users. The model can be used as a design and evaluation framework when designing new mobile services.


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