Analyses of the oil content, fatty acid composition, and antioxidant activity in seeds of Thlaspi arvense L. from different provenances and correlations with environmental factors

Background Pennycress (Thlaspi arvense L.) is an annual herbaceous plant of the Cruciferae family that has attracted attention as an oil crop and interseeded cover crop. We collected seeds of pennycress from five provenances in Northeast China, compared their characteristics, i.e. oil content, fatty acid composition, physical, chemical and antioxidant properties, their correlations with environmental factors were also analysed. Results There were significant differences in the seed characteristics, oil content, quality indicators and composition among different provenances (P < 0.05). The 1000-seed weight ranged from 0.80 to 1.03 g; seed oil content from 28.89 to 42.57%; iodine from 79.19 to 99.09; saponification value from 186.51 to 199.60; peroxide value from 0.07 to 10.60; and acid value from 0.97 to 13.02. The range of seed oil colours were 66.53–78.78 (L*), 4.51–10.29 (a*), and 105.68–121.35 (b*). Erucic acid (C22:1) was the fatty acids with the highest content in pennycress seed oils (31.12–35.31%), followed by linoleic acid (C18:2 16.92–18.95%) and α-linolenic acid (C18:3 14.05–15.34%). The fatty acid 8,11,14-eicosatrienoic acid (C20:3) was detected for the first time in seed oils from Beian city, Panshi city and Kedong county, with contents of 1.13%, 0.84% and 1.03%, respectively. We compare and report for the first time on the radical-scavenging activity of the seed oils of pennycress. The EC50 values of the DPPH radical-scavenging activity and ABTS+ radical-scavenging activity of the seed oils from different provenances were 8.65–19.21 mg/mL and 6.82–10.61 mg/mL, respectively. The ferric ion reduction antioxidant capacity (FRAP) ranged from 0.11 to 0.30 mmol Fe2+/g, which is equivalent to 4 mg/mL FeSO4 of pennycress seed oils. Conclusions There was a significant correlation between seed characteristics and changes in geographical factors. With increasing longitude, the thickness of seeds, 1000-seed weight, and seed oil content increased, while the acid and peroxide values of the seed oil decreased. As the latitude increased, the 1000-seed weight and seed oil content increased, while the seed oil peroxide value decreased. Furthermore, mean annual temperature and annual rainfall are the two key environmental factors affecting the quality of pennycress. Graphical Abstract

Organic dry pea (Pisum sativum L.) biofortification for better human health

A primary criticism of organic agriculture is its lower yield and nutritional quality compared to conventional systems. Nutritionally, dry pea (Pisum sativum L.) is a rich source of low digestible carbohydrates, protein, and micronutrients. This study aimed to evaluate dry pea cultivars and advanced breeding lines using on-farm field selections to inform the development of biofortified organic cultivars with increased yield and nutritional quality. A total of 44 dry pea entries were grown in two USDA-certified organic on-farm locations in South Carolina (SC), United States of America (USA) for two years. Seed yield and protein for dry pea ranged from 61 to 3833 kg ha-1 and 12.6 to 34.2 g/100 g, respectively, with low heritability estimates. Total prebiotic carbohydrate concentration ranged from 14.7 to 26.6 g/100 g. A 100-g serving of organic dry pea provides 73.5 to 133% of the recommended daily allowance (%RDA) of prebiotic carbohydrates. Heritability estimates for individual prebiotic carbohydrates ranged from 0.27 to 0.82. Organic dry peas are rich in minerals [iron (Fe): 1.9–26.2 mg/100 g; zinc (Zn): 1.1–7.5 mg/100 g] and have low to moderate concentrations of phytic acid (PA:18.8–516 mg/100 g). The significant cultivar, location, and year effects were evident for grain yield, thousand seed weight (1000-seed weight), and protein, but results for other nutritional traits varied with genotype, environment, and interactions. “AAC Carver,” “Jetset,” and “Mystique” were the best-adapted cultivars with high yield, and “CDC Striker,” “Fiddle,” and “Hampton” had the highest protein concentration. These cultivars are the best performing cultivars that should be incorporated into organic dry pea breeding programs to develop cultivars suitable for organic production. In conclusion, organic dry pea has potential as a winter cash crop in southern climates. Still, it will require selecting diverse genetic material and location sourcing to develop improved cultivars with a higher yield, disease resistance, and nutritional quality.

Genetic study of terminal heat stress in indigenous collections of Indian mustard (Brassica juncea L.) germplasm

Aim: The present study was carried out to evaluate 145 genotypes of Indian mustard for terminal heat stress under late sown irrigated conditions. Methodology: One hundred and forty five genotypes of Indian mustard were evaluated for terminal heat tolerance, along with six checks in augmented block design. The effect of heat stress was assessed on different agro-morphological traits. Data were recorded on five randomly selected plants for 12 different quantitative traits for each genotype. Results: Terminal heat stress caused significant reduction in performance of all traits, except oil content and fruiting zone length. Seed yield per plant showed highest reduction (33.92%) followed by 1000-seed weight (21.28%). Thousand-seed weight and secondary branches per plant were found associated with seed yield under late sown conditions. Based on yield under stress, yield index, geometric mean productivity and stress tolerance indices, five lines viz., DRMR-59, DRMR-2094, DRMR-2129, DRMR-2071, DRMR-2136 were identified as high yielding and terminal heat stress tolerant. Whereas, based on heat stress susceptibility index, DRMR-1347, DRMR-1154, DRMR-1190 were top performing lines tolerant to terminal heat stress. Interpretation: Selection of high yielding lines under stress condition can be done using correlated traits. Yield under stress was found significantly correlated with YSI, YI, MP, STI and GMP suggesting to use these indices for selection of high yielding and heat tolerant lines. However, further re-validation is very much needed for effective use of these indices for selection of heat tolerant lines in Indian mustard.

Path-coefficient and correlation analysis in Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea [L.] Verdc.) accessions over environments

In a breeding program, studies of genotypic and phenotypic relationships among agricultural crop traits are useful to design, evaluate, and develop selection criteria for desirable traits. Using path coefficient analysis, the present study was executed to estimate the phenotypic, genotypic, and environmental correlation coefficients between yield and yield-related traits and to determine the direct and indirect effects of yield-related traits on yield per plant. A total of 30 genotypes of Vigna subterranea were studied under tropical conditions at two sites over two planting seasons (considered as four environments). The experiment at each site used a randomized complete block design with three replicates. Data were collected on vegetative and yield component attributes. Based on analysis of variance, pooled results showed that there were positive and highly significant differences (p ≤ 0.01) among the 30 genotypes for all attributes studied. Highly significant and positive strong correlation at phenotypic level was observed for dry seed weight (0.856), hundred seed weight (0.754), fresh pod weight (0.789), and total pod weight (0.626) with yield in kg per hectare, while moderate positive correlations were observed for harvest cut (0.360) and days to maturity (0.356). However, a perfect positive correlation was observed for the dry weight of pods with seed yield. In contrast, days to 50% flowering (− 0.350) showed a negative significant relationship with yield per hectare. The dried pod weight attribute (1.00) had a high positive direct effect on yield. Fresh pod weight had the greatest indirect effect on yield per hectare, followed by the number of total pods by dry pod weight. As a result, dry pod weight, hundred seed weight, number of total pods, and fresh pod weight could be used as selection criteria to improve the seed yield of Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea).

Effect of sowing methods and weeding regimes on the yield of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)

The experiment was conducted at the Agronomy Field Laboratory, Bangladesh Agricultural University to observe the effect of sowing methods and weeding regimes on the yield of sesame. The experiment comprised of two factors. Two methods of sowing i.e., broadcasting and line sowing (S2), and six weeding regimes- control (T0), weed free (T1), one hand weeding at 15 DAS (T2), two hand weedings at 15 and 30 DAS (T3), three hand weedings at 15, 30 and 45 DAS (T4) and application of Panida (Pendimethalin) herbicide (T5) at 3 DAS. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Almost all the yield characters of sesame were affected significantly due to sowing methods, weeding regime and their interaction. Result showed that the l ine sowing showed better performance regarding plant height (100.40 cm), number of branches (4.983) plant–1, number of capsules plant–1 (47.82), number of seeds capsule–1 (69.66), 1000–seed weight (2.96 g), seed yield (956.90 kg ha–1), stover yield (2167.0 kg ha–1), biological yield (3123.00 kg ha–1) and harvest index (31.45%) than that of broadcasting method. Also weed free treatment had the highest plant height (101.90 cm), highest number of branches (5.00) plant-1, highest capsule (47.08) plant–1, heaviest 1000–seed weight (3.28 g), highest number of seeds capsule–1 (76.22), highest seed yield (974.30 kg ha–1), stover yield (2947.0 kg ha–1) and biological yield (3922.0 kg ha–1) as compared to other treatments while unweeded plot had least significant effect among the whole yield and yield attributes of sesame. In case of interactions, both weed free treatment and herbicidal effect with line sowing methods produced the highest plant height, number of branches and capsules plant–1, seeds capsule–1, seed yield, stover yield and biological yield (109.80 cm, 5.967, 56.57, 81.53, 1054.0 kg ha–1, 3139.0 kg ha–1 and 4193.0 kg ha–1, respectively) as compared to other interaction combinations. The results of the study reveal that the weed free treatment along with line sowing would be the proper technique for higher production of sesame. But line sowing along with application of Panida herbicide would be the best combination for obtaining higher yield of sesame since it is not feasible for the farmers to keep their field weed free throughout all the growing periods. Res. Agric., Livest. Fish.8(3): 291-299, December 2021

Role of beneficial microbes with nitrogen and phosphorous levels on canola productivity

A research was conducted to evaluate the impact of various nitrogen and phosphorus levels along with beneficial microbes to enhance canola productivity. The research was carried out at Agronomy Research Farm, The University of Agriculture Peshawar in winter 2016-2017. The experiment was conducted in randomized complete block factorial design. The study was comprised of three factors including nitrogen (60, 120 and 180 kg ha-1), phosphorous (70, 100 and 130 kg ha-1) and beneficial microbes (with and without BM). A control treatment with no N, P and BM was also kept for comparison. Application of beneficial microbes significantly increased pods plant, seed pod, seed filling duration, 1000 seed weight, biological yield and seed yield as compared to control plots. Nitrogen applied at the rate of 180 kg ha-1 increased pods plant-1, seed pod, seed filling duration, seed weight, biological yield and seed yield. Maximum pods plant-1, seed pod, early seed filling, heavier seed weight, biological yield, seed yield, and harvest index were observed in plots treated with 130 kg.ha-1 phosphorous. As comparison, the combine treated plots have more pods plant-1, seeds pod-1, seed filling duration, heaviest seeds, biological yield, seed yield and harvest index as compared to control plots. It is concluded that application of beneficial microbes with N and P at the rate of 180 kg ha-1 and 130 kg ha-1, respectively, increased yield and its attributes for canola.

Yield components of the M7 Kipas Putih mutant soybean

This study aimed to obtain the homogeny of M8 soybean lines in an effort to release new high yielding varieties. The research was conducted in Lamsidaya village, and the observation of yield components was carried out at the Plant Breeding Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Syiah Kuala. This study did not use an experimental design, so that the quantitative characters were observed individually from each plant, then analyzed by estimating the heritability broad sense value and the progress of selection. The material used were var. Kipas Putih and var. Dega1 as control, eight of 7th generation Kipas Putih mutant lines (B4, B7, B10, B12, B13, B15, B18 and B22). All genotypes were planted in rectangular plot 10 m x 1 m, drainage 50 cm, and planting distance 50 cm x 30 cm. Plants were maintained in accordance with the recommendation for soybean cultivation from Balitkabi, and fertilizer NPK (16:16:16) was given 200 g/plot (200 kgha-1). Parameters observed included plant height, flowering time, harvest time, number of productive branches, total number of pods per plant, number of filled pods per plant, percentage of filled pods per plant, seed weight per plant, weight of 100 seeds, seed weight per plot, and yield potential. All quantitative characters indicated increase on selection except for the character of plant height, percentage of filled pods and weight of 100 seeds because the heritability value was low. The B18 line has the potential to become a new high yielding variety because it has a high yield potential (3.02 tons ha-1) with a large seed size compared to the other seven mutant lines and is also higher than the parent Kipas Putih and var Dega 1 varieties.

Root system architecture and seed weight relations in forage pea (Pisum sativum ssp. arvense L. Poir.)

ABSTRACT: Forage pea (Pisum sativum ssp. arvense (L.) Poir.) is an important legume crop for fresh and dry herbage production with high input costs as irrigation and fertilization. Selection and breeding of accessions for improved drought tolerance, water, and mineral uptake efficiency become a necessity, rather than a choice. This study evaluated a set of forage pea accessions for the seedling root system architecture diversity and seed reserve utilization, under controlled conditions. Eight cultivars and an elite breeding line were evaluated for the first time in a plexiglass system. The number and lengths of the roots in each depth zone (0, 5, 10, 15+ cm) were evaluated and significant diversity was identified. The cultivar Livioletta had the highest number of roots and total root length. There was a significant correlation between seed weight, seed reserve utilization ratio, and root system vigor. Accessions with the highest seed reserve utilization had the highest total root length and numbers. Seedling root system vigor seems to be effective in predicting the fate of the accessions through maturity. The results suggested a possibility of “seedling root selection” for forage crop breeding.

Evaluation of rice genotypes on seed attributes and agronomic performance for developing direct-seeded cultivar

<abstract> <p>Direct seeding of rice (DSR) may give benefit in using water and labor more efficient and reduce production costs. This study purposes to investigate the character of the seeds, their early vigor traits, the growth and development of rice plants for developing DSR cultivar. The research was conducted in four stages: the measurement of the size of the seed, endosperm, and embryo; the germination test in the laboratory; seedling test using experimental pots; and testing the agronomic performance on transplanting and direct seeding methods in a plastic house. Seed material used eight breeding lines of IPB University and two released varieties. The results of study showed that each genotype had different characteristics of seed, endosperm, and embryo in both weight and area. Seed weight becomes the most dominant in the emergence of superior EV traits, whereas the more seed weight indicates faster radicle emergence and more weight of seedling. DSR method compared to transplanting showed performance such as taller plant, higher leaf area and photosynthesis rate at early growth stage, earlier heading time, and higher plant dry weight since early growth until 65 days old. The seed characters have positively correlation to dry weight of seedlings, number of leaves, leaf area, and canopy dry weight. We also found that higher area of endosperm and embryo significantly correlated to have faster plumule emergence, higher leaf area and plant height. Candidate genotypes for DSR would be further investigated in the field trial agronomically.</p> </abstract>