Trinexapac-ethyl application time in the crop corn agronomic performance grown under different plant arrangements

Reduced row spacing promotes more uniform spatial distribution of plants in the field. However, the adoption of reduced row spacing only is possible with smaller plants, which may be obtained with the use of plant growth regulator. This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic performance of the first corn crop with Trinexapac-ethyl applied at the different plant development stages and grown under different row spacing, with the same plant population. The experiments were arranged in a split-plot randomized block design with four replications, with row spacing for the plots (0.45 and 0.90 m) and Trinexapac-ethyl (TE) application time to subplots (control without application, at the V3, V6, V9 and V12 phenological stages). The Trinexapacethyl application time interacted with row spacings changing the growth and yield performance of the corn crop. For 0.45 m spacing Trinexapac-ethyl application at V12 and for 0.90 m spacing application at V9 and V12 reduced plant height and ear height. Trinexapac-ethyl application at V9 for both row spacings changed the plant architecture without changing the ear length and grain yield.

Forest yield prediction under different climate change scenarios using data intelligent models in Pakistan

This study aimed to develop and evaluate data driven models for prediction of forest yield under different climate change scenarios in the Gallies forest division of district Abbottabad, Pakistan. The Random Forest (RF) and Kernel Ridge Regression (KRR) models were developed and evaluated using yield data of two species (Blue pine and Silver fir) as an objective variable and climate data (temperature, humidity, rainfall and wind speed) as predictive variables. Prediction accuracy of both the models were assessed by means of root mean squared error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), correlation coefficient (r), relative root mean squared error (RRMSE), Legates-McCabe’s (LM), Willmott’s index (WI) and Nash-Sutcliffe (NSE) metrics. Overall, the RF model outperformed the KRR model due to its higher accuracy in forecasting of forest yield. The study strongly recommends that RF model should be applied in other regions of the country for prediction of forest growth and yield, which may help in the management and future planning of forest productivity in Pakistan.

Growth, nutrient accumulation and yield of onion as a function of micronutrient fertilization

ABSTRACT Micronutrients structurally constitute several enzymes and act as a cofactor of essential proteins to maintain cell function, thereby contributing to crop growth and yield. The objective of this study was to evaluate the leaf content, growth, accumulation of micronutrients, classification and yield of onion as a function of fertilization with boron, cooper and zinc in two years of cultivation. The experiments were carried out from June to November in 2018 and 2019, in a soil classified as Ultisol, both at the Rafael Fernandes Experimental Farm, belonging to the Universidade Federal Rural do Semiárido, in the municipality of Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. The experimental design was in randomized blocks with 15 treatments and four replicates. The treatments consisted of application of doses of B, Cu and Zn, in two experiments. Contents of B, Cu and Zn in the diagnostic leaf, growth, accumulation of B, Cu and Zn in the leaf, bulb and total, classification and commercial, non-commercial and total yields were evaluated. Application of B, Cu and Zn did not influence the number of leaves, relation of bulb shape, leaf, bulb, and total dry mass and yield of onion. Application of B, Cu and Zn, respectively at doses of 1-2-1 kg ha-1 favored a greater accumulation of B, Zn and Cu in the bulb. Higher number of leaves, leaf dry mass, bulb dry mass, total dry mass, class 1 bulbs and non-commercial yield were produced in Experiment 1.

Effect of Mulching on Growth and Yield of Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) on the Coastal Sandy Land in Nghe An Province, Vietnam

Background: Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is one of the oil and cash crops in Vietnam. However, owing to the lack of appropriate management practices, the production and the area under cultivation of peanut have remained low. Mulches are the key factors contributing to promoting crop development and early harvest and increasing yields. Methods: The experiment consisted of three mulch treatments, viz., plastic mulch, straw mulch and no-mulch control. All the treatments were replicated thrice in a complete randomized block design. Result: In the conditions of mulch, the plant growth parameters (germination rate, growing time, plant height, number of branches per plant), leaf area index, the number of nodules per plant, dry matter accumulation, yield components and yield of peanut was much higher than that of no-mulch control. Among the mulches, plastic mulch was found superior to straw mulch in the pod yields and water-use efficiency and moisture conservation, thereby can be considered as a reliable practice for increasing the productivity of peanut on the coastal sandy land in Nghe An province, Vietnam.

Genome-wide analysis reveals the spatiotemporal expression patterns of SOS3 genes in the maize B73 genome in response to salt stress

Background Salt damage is an important abiotic stress that affects the growth and yield of maize worldwide. As an important member of the salt overly sensitive (SOS) signal transduction pathway, the SOS3 gene family participates in the transmission of stress signals and plays a vital role in improving the salt tolerance of plants. Results In this study, we identified 59 SOS3 genes in the maize B73 genome using bioinformatics methods and genome-wide analyses. SOS3 proteins were divided into 5 different subfamilies according to the phylogenetic relationships. A close relationship between the phylogenetic classification and intron mode was observed, with most SOS3 genes in the same group sharing common motifs and similar exon-intron structures in the corresponding genes. These genes were unequally distributed on five chromosomes of B73. A total of six SOS3 genes were identified as repeated genes, and 12 pairs of genes were proven to be segmentally duplicated genes, indicating that gene duplication may play an important role in the expansion of the SOS3 gene family. The expression analysis of 10 genes that were randomly selected from different subgroups suggested that all 10 genes were significantly differentially expressed within 48 h after salt treatment, of which eight SOS3 genes showed a significant decline while Zm00001d025938 and Zm00001d049665 did not. By observing the subcellular localization results, we found that most genes were expressed in chloroplasts while some genes were expressed in the cell membrane and nucleus. Conclusions Our study provides valuable information for elucidating the evolutionary relationship and functional characteristics of the SOS3 gene family and lays the foundation for further study of the SOS3 gene family in the maize B73 genome.

Nano Zinc-Oxide Enhanced Photosynthetic Apparatus and Photosystem Efficiency of Maize (Zea Mays L.) in Sandy-Acidic Soils

Conventional Zinc (Zn) fertilization (e.g., zinc sulfate) often leads to poor availability in soils. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (nano ZnO) can be a potential solution, but their effect on crop photosynthetic activity isn’t well documented. The effects of nano ZnO (50, 100, 150, 200 mg L-1) and application methods (seed-coating, soil-drench, and foliar-spray) in comparison with ZnSO4 recommended dose were evaluated for plant height, biomass, chlorophyll pigments and photosystem efficiency in a greenhouse pot experiment. 100 mg L-1 of nano ZnO significantly increased the chlorophyll (Chl.) a, b, a+b, carotenoids (x+c), a+b/x+c, SPAD, leaf Chl., total chlorophyll content plant-1, plant height and total biological yield (by 18-30%, 33-67%, 22-38%, 14-21%, 14-27%, 12-19%, 12-23% 58-99%, 6-11% and 16-20%, respectively) and reduced Chl. a/b (by 6-22%) over the other treatments (p<0.01) irrespective of application methods. Nano ZnO applied at 100 mg L-1 significantly increased photochemical quenching (qP) and efficiency of photosystem II (EPSII) compared to 150 and 200 mg L-1 regardless of application methods. The positive correlations between Chl. a and Chl. b (r2 0.90), Chl. a+b and x+c (r2=0.71), SPAD and Chl. a (r2=0.90), SPAD and Chl. b (r2=0.94) and SPAD and Chl. a+b (r2=0.93) indicates a uniform enhancement in chlorophyll pigments; SPAD value, qP, EPSII, and growth and yield parameters. This elucidates that the application of nano ZnO at 100 mg L-1 promotes corn biochemical health and photosynthesis, irrespective of the application method. These findings have a great propounding for improving plant growth through nano ZnO bio-fortification in acidic Spodosols.