Assessment of Grain Harvest Moisture Content Using Machine Learning on Smartphone Images for Optimal Harvest Timing

Grain moisture content (GMC) is a key indicator of the appropriate harvest period of rice. Conventional testing is time-consuming and laborious, thus not to be implemented over vast areas and to enable the estimation of future changes for revealing optimal harvesting. Images of single panicles were shot with smartphones and corrected using a spectral–geometric correction board. In total, 86 panicle samples were obtained each time and then dried at 80 °C for 7 days to acquire the wet-basis GMC. In total, 517 valid samples were obtained, in which 80% was randomly used for training and 20% was used for testing to construct the image-based GMC assessment model. In total, 17 GMC surveys from a total of 201 samples were also performed from an area of 1 m2 representing on-site GMC, which enabled a multi-day GMC prediction. Eight color indices were selected using principal component analysis for building four machine learning models, including random forest, multilayer perceptron, support vector regression (SVR), and multivariate linear regression. The SVR model with a MAE of 1.23% was the most suitable for GMC of less than 40%. This study provides a real-time and cost-effective non-destructive GMC measurement using smartphones that enables on-farm prediction of harvest dates and facilitates the harvesting scheduling of agricultural machinery.

The estimation of the new self-pollinated waxy maize lines and hybrids (Zea mays l. Ceratina)

Though waxy maize is a valuable raw material for the starch industry, its subspecies are still poorly studied. The purpose of the current work was to study the new self-pollinated hybrids and lines of waxy maize according to a complex of economically valuable traits and to identify promising ones for further breeding. The study was carried out at the FSBSI “Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy” in 2019–2020. The objects of research were 40 self-pollinated waxy maize lines and 30 hybrids developed in the Center. They were studied according to a set of economically valuable traits. There have been identified the self-pollinated lines (24/82, 26/18, 26/51, 24/15) with a high kernel productivity of 0.91–2.23 t/ha, low and medium harvest moisture content of kernel (14.0–14.7%), high resistance to lodging (0–4.6% of lodged plants), weak infestation with smut on a natural background (0–5.0% of damaged plants). There have been identified the lines (24/15, 26/18), characterized by a high starch content in matured kernel (69.2% and 69.8%). There have been developed the new waxy maize hybrids (91×93, 103×105), which significantly exceeded the standard hybrid ‘Zernogradsky 282 MB’ both in kernel productivity (on 0.41–0.80 t/ha) and in the yield of amylopectin starch (on 0, 20–0.54 t/ha). The new hybrids were characterized with low harvest moisture content of kernels (13.3–13.9%), resistance to lodging and smut on a natural background. There have been identified the new maize hybrids (91 × 94, 91×93, 91×95) with a high starch content (68.5–68.9%), an average oil content (4.4–4.6%) and protein percentage (12.1–12.2%) in matured kernel.

Effects of Field Processing of Sorghum Grain on Popping Traits

Interest in the use of popped sorghum in food products has resulted in a niche market for sorghum hybrids with high popping quality but little work has been done to assess the relative effects of field processing methods of grain on popping quality. This study evaluated the relative effects of harvest moisture and threshing methods on the popping quality of sorghum grain. A grain sorghum hybrid with good popping quality was produced during two different years in Texas wherein it was harvested at two moisture levels (low and high) and grain was removed from panicles using five different threshing methods (hand, rubber belt, metal brushes and two metal concave bar systems). Years, harvest moisture content and threshing method influenced all three popping quality measurements (popping efficacy, expansion ratio and flake size), but threshing method had an order of magnitude larger effect than either moisture level or year. While many of the interactions were significant, they did not influence the general trends observed. As such, the threshing methods with less direct impact force on the grain (hand and rubber belt) had higher popping quality than those samples threshed with greater impact force on the grain (metal-based systems). The popping quality differences between threshing system are likely due to a reduction in kernel integrity caused by the impacts to the kernel that occurred while threshing the grain. The results herein indicate that field processing of the grain, notably threshing method has significant impacts on the popping quality and should be taken into consideration when grain sorghum is harvested for popping purposes.

Ecological approach in the adapted breeding system of mid-late maize hybrids (FAO 300-399) in the Lower Volga region

The article examines the results of the ecological testing of maize hybrids (FAO 300-399), created in different selective centers of Russia. The volume of nursery ecological testing of hybrids varied in the range of 15-30 titles. Plot area 14.8 m2. The plant density for harvesting in the Saratov region is 45 thousand plants / ha. Repetition three times. The cultivation technique is zonal. The hydrothermal coefficient during the growing season varied from 0.32 to 1.1. The amplitude of variation of the parameters of maize hybrids in the years of research was: plant height - 149.1 ... 268.1 cm; the height of the cob is 37.8 ... 106.0 cm; grain yield - 1.13 ... 8.69 t / ha; harvest moisture content of grain - 9.21 ... 46.85%; the protein content in the grain is 7.16 ... 13.83%. Insignificant coefficients of skewness (As) and kurtosis in most years of research characterize the samples of hybrids as corresponding to the normal distribution. As a result of the research, it has been established that, in terms of grain yield of corn hybrids, hybrids created at the FGBNU «NСZ im. P.P. Lukyanenko», which also feature increased grain moisture during harvesting. Lower costs for drying grain will be required for the cultivation of hybrids Ak – OOO «Agroplasma», OOO «Pioneer Hi-Brad Rus», FGBNU «NСZ im. P.P. Lukyanenko»

Development of Prediction Model for Harvest Moisture Content of Rough Rice Using Meteorological Data and Color Characteristics

HighlightsMoisture content, meteorological data, and leaf color characteristics of rice were investigated by harvest time.The moisture content decreased, and leaf color value increased as days after heading passed.Harvest moisture content prediction models were developed using meteorological data and leaf color.It is necessary to use both leaf color and meteorological data to determine the harvest time.Abstract.In this study, ambient temperature, accumulated temperature, and rice leaf color values were measured before harvest time to develop models for predicting the harvest moisture content (HMC) of short-grain rice. Field tests were conducted on Chuchung and Whang-gum-nu-ri, which are short-grain rice cultivars, at different experimental plots, for four years. As days after heading (DAH) passed, the moisture content (MC) decreased, and leaf color (L*, a*, and b* values) tended to increase. An experimental model that can predict HMC was developed based on the experimental results of 3 years, and the experimental results of the remaining 1 year were used for verification. The coefficient of determination of the HMC prediction model that used ambient and accumulated temperatures was 0.719, and that of the prediction model that used leaf color was as low as 0.418. However, the coefficient of determination of the integrated model that used all the factors, i.e. ambient and accumulated temperatures and leaf color, was as high as 0.915. Therefore, to determine the harvest time using the HMC of rough rice, leaf color, and meteorological data should be used together. Leaf color tended to increase markedly as the DAH increased, but the leaf color values were not similar for the same MC each year. This is because leaf color is influenced not only by MC but also by various cultivation factors such as soil conditions and growth rate during the rice cultivation process. Keywords: Accumulated temperature, Harvest, Harvest moisture content, Leaf color, Rice, Short variety.

Formation of economically and valuable features of sugar corn lines in the conditions of the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe

Sugar corn is an important vegetable crop, the popularity of which is growing every year. Its cultivation has been increasing since 2009 by 56 % in Ukraine, by 115 % in the United States and by approximately 135 % in Thailand and China. Crop products are also a natural source of fructose and sucrose. However, due to the limited quantity and quality of the genetic material of the lines, the synthesis of new hybrids is carried out using lines with low adaptability and the effect of heterosis. Therefore, the creation of new and improvement of the source material contributes to the production of new lines of sweet corn for a number of morpho-biological and economically valuable features. The tests were conducted in the experimental field of Uman NUH in the conditions of the Right-Bank Forest-Steppe. Both domestic and foreign selection lines were used as test material. The process of obtaining new high-yielding hybrids begins with the selection of parent components. Initially, the analysis of self-pollinated lines for morphological and basic economically valuable indicators based on their response to weathering conditions is performed. To develop a model of the future hybrid, we studied our lines for the length of the growing season and a number of morphological features such as plant height and the height of attachment of the productive ear. The above characteristics are just a genetic feature of the lines and their response to changes in air temperature and the amount of precipitation. Our research allows us to identify line 1050, which on average had a small coefficient of variation in plant height, grain harvest moisture and yield, and average — in the height of the attachment of the ear. It is also necessary to highlight the lines: 950 — provided a reduction in grain harvest moisture to the baseline data by 1.6 % and 910 — combines high yields and low coefficient of variation.

The results and prospects of maize breeding in the Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy”

The current paper has presented the results of breeding work on maize in the Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy”. The three-line and double interlinear middle early and middle ripening maize hybrids of various economic use ‘Zernogradsky 242 MV’, ‘Zernogradsky 282 MV’, ‘Zernogradsky 288 MV’, ‘Zernogradsky 299 MV’, ‘Zernogradsky 354 MV’, ‘Zernogradsky MV’, ‘Stepnyak MV’ were developed and included into the State List of Breeding Achievements from 2006 to 2020. The Competitive Variety Testing has identified a new high-heterosis simple hybrid ‘Zernogradsky 352 MB’ and the new early ripening hybrids ‘Krucha M × KB 215’, ‘Krucha M × SP 56/57’ with low harvesting grain moisture. The main method used to develop maize hybrids was an interline hybridization using heterosis in the first generation (F1 ). There have been determined the priority directions of further breeding, namely early ripeness, grain humidity-transfer intensity during ripening, drought resistance, high starch content in grain. There has been developed new initial material for each direction of breeding. There have been selected the introduced testers (‘Alpha M’, ‘Almaz M’, ‘Aurora S’, ‘Milena M’, ‘Istok S’) to develop early-ripening hybrids. There have been identified the early and middle-early ripening self-pollinated lines ‘C 207’, ‘RD 12’, ‘TVA 308’, ‘PLS 61’, ‘KB 215’, etc., with a high grain humidity-transfer intensity during ripening (0.95–1.30% per day), low harvest moisture content of grain (10.8–13.8%). There have been developed the new self-pollinated waxy maize lines (24/29/5, 25/64/10, 26/8, 26/4, 26/80, 24/28) with 68.1–69.8% of amylopectin starch in grain. There have been identified the new self-pollinated maize lines resistant to water stress (DS 498/217-3, DS 257/85-5, DS 498/203, KB 262, etc.) promising for breeding drought-resistant maize hybrids.

ECOLOGICAL STABILITY MAIZE HYBRIDS RELATIVELY GRAIN YIELD IMPORTANT CONDITION INCREASE IN GROSS PRODUCTION

The relevance of the conducted scientific analysis of long-term data of the competitive test of the State Institution Institute of Grain Crops of the NAAS, regarding the grain yield of maize hybrids, is due to the problems of climate change that has been observed. Due to an increase in air temperature and a long without a frosty period, corn is not only guaranteed to ripen in the Steppe, with timely sowing and harvesting, but also has a harvest moisture content of grain close to the base. Corresponding climate changes motivated the rapid expansion of the territory of corn cultivation in Ukraine, an increase in acreage, gross production, and grain yield of this crop. However, the dangers caused by stress factors of the flight period are increasing, which focuses on the problem of creating hybrids that are resistant to the extreme conditions of the northern Steppe. Due to the determination of the parameters of the tolerant types, models of hybrids were formed and recommended for use in production in the conditions of various ecological territories of Ukraine. The article discusses the results of the progress of the yield of corn hybrids due to breeding improvement, reflected in changes in the actual indicators of grain harvest and harvest moisture of grain caused by climate change and their impact on the elements of crop cultivation technologies. It was determined that under stressful conditions, the grain yield of maize hybrids decreased by an average of 2.9 t / ha, and the harvest moisture content of the grain increased by 1.6%. It was also noted that over the past 25 years, the yield of corn grain in the test, on average for a five-year period, increased from 5.69 (1995-1999) to 7.14 t / ha (2016-2020) with a decrease in the harvest moisture content of grain from 22.4 to 16.1%. In the discussion of the research results, the regularities of the formation of the trait "drought resistance" of hybrids are revealed, the genetic and agrotechnological components of the formation of the trait, their influence on the characteristics of crop cultivation are distinguished. As a result, the value of a hybrid with an average but stable grain yield, which is determined by economic feasibility, is proved, in comparison with high-intensity forms, which are characterized by significant fluctuations. In order to obtain high and stable yields of corn grain in each farm, it is necessary to plan the varietal structure of crops with an assortment of hybrids that have a diverse type of reaction to the variability of environmental conditions.

Crop Year Effects on the Quality and Quantity of Winter Wheat Varieties

Crop year impacts have been studied in a long-term trial of the Nagygombos experiments of the Szent István University, Gödöllő, Hungary. The present paper is intended to give an overview of 18 winter wheat Triticum aestivum L. varieties tested during the time range between 1996 and 2018. All of the varieties were studied under similar agronomic conditions, each of them for min 3 years in a series of a polyfactorial replicated field trials. The 120 kg.ha-1 N plant nutrition applications of the respective crop years were processed in the evaluation. Amount of grain yield, protein (%), wet gluten and farinographic values of the varieties examined were compared. The results obtained suggest that most of the varieties had a rather high variation concerning yield figures, however protein, and farinographic indicators proved to be more stable characteristics. Wet gluten values were influenced mainly by the crop year. The study supports an evidence that Fusarium graminearum infection of the trials was in accordance with the pre-harvest moisture conditions of a crop year. The study may support a conclusion that certain varieties have shown a higher stability in quality manifestation regardless to the amount of their grain yield. Alföld 90, Jubilejnaja 50, Mv Magdaléna and Mv Toldi varieties proved to be the best quality varieties in this research series.

Characteristics of the new self-pollinated waxy maize lines

The subspecies of waxy maize (Zea mays L. Ceratina) has not been adequately studied, despite the fact that its kernels are considered a valuable raw material in the food and technical industries. The purpose of the current work was to study new self-pollinated waxy maize lines and identify promising maize hybrids with an increased content of amylopectin starch in kernels. The study was carried out in the FSBSI “Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy” in 2017-2019. The initial material was presented by 40 new self-pollinated maize lines (I6) belonging to the waxy subspecies. They were studied according to the set of traits. The highly variable traits were kernels' productivity, plant lodging, blister smut infection, one cob weight (V = 27.4-191.6%); the moderate variable traits were a height of cob attachment, number of cobs per plant, 1000-kernel weight, number of kernels in a row and per cob (V = 10.3-19.0%); the slightly variable traits were harvesting moisture content in kernels, length of the period “sprouts - cobs' flowering”, plant height (V = 2.2-9.6). There have been identified the new lines ‘24/86', ‘25/92(2)', ‘26/8', ‘25/94' with a high content of amylopectin starch in kernels (68.6-69.4%), kernels' productivity (0.96-1.76 t/ha), low harvest moisture content of kernels (13.7-15.1%), high resistance to lodging (0-3.3% of lodged plants), weak infection of blister smut on a natural background (0.4-6, 5% of infected plants), with an average cob attachment height (42-53 cm). The new self-pollinated line ‘27/8' had an average starch content in kernels (68.0%), but was identified by high kernels' productivity (2.70 t/ha) and high values of other economically valuable traits. The results of the structural analysis have shown that the waxy maize lines formed the yields due to the combination of high values of various elements of the grain yield structure. For example, the most productive line ‘26/8' differed in the maximum weight of one cob (93.9 g) and 1000 kernel weight (251 g).