Effects of restoration and management of Mediterranean traditional water systems on Odonata alpha diversity: a long-term monitoring survey

The progressive abandonment and disappearance of traditional water uses and management of wetlands during the twentieth century has led not only to a loss of identity, heritage, and landscape values, but also to significant declines in the diversity and abundance of many organisms. Here, we take advantage of an existing project for the restoration and management of traditional irrigation infrastructures in the wetland of El Prado (Pinoso, south-eastern Spain) to evaluate the spatio-temporal effect of this action on the alpha diversity and abundance of Odonata. The wetland was organized in different sectors according to the coverage of riparian and aquatic vegetation, width and depth of watercourses, ditches and ponds, water flow, and restoration and management. Odonates were sampled every month for ten years. We used alpha diversity to measure biodiversity using Hill’s number diversity. To analyse how alpha diversity measures varied across all sectors sampled over the years, we determined diversity-time relationships. To assess the effects of the different variables on odonate biodiversity we used partial least squares regressions. Our results showed that restoration of traditional water infrastructures, encouraging the increase of aquatic vegetation cover, an adequate and regular management of riparian vegetation naturalizing the margins, as well as reducing speed of water flow have a positive effect on odonate diversity and abundance. Our study provides useful information for conservation and management of semi-arid wetlands and its associated water infrastructures by showing which actions are most successful to enhance biodiversity in one of the priority habitats for conservation in Europe.

Assessment of water-holding capacity of leaves of Armeniaca vulgaris Lam. in the conditions of the Zhezkazgan region (the Central Kazakstan)

The expansion of the existing range of tree crops for the greening of settlements is of practical and environmental importance. In the Zhezkazgan industrial region it is necessary to select plants that are resistant to heat, drought, low temperatures and atmospheric pollution, which limits the species composition. In present article studies are conducted to assess the water content in the leaves of Armeniaca vulgaris Lam. during the vegetation season under growing using traditional furrow watering and drip irrigation. The assessment of leaf water content showed maximum parameters in May, a decrease in June and July, and repeated increase in August of 2020–2021. Minimum indicators of water-holding capacity are noted in May, maximum — in June. Leaves of plants grown on drip irrigation had parameters of water-holding capacity 1.3–3.9 % higher than under the traditional irrigation method, which indicates a better moisture supply. In general, the water content of apricot leaves was above 50 %, which shows sufficient water supply. The results showed the resistance of Armeniaca vulgaris plants to heat and drought, so, this species is recommended for use in green construction of the Zhezkazgan industrial region.

Use of Routine Leaching Fraction Testing to Guide Irrigation at a Container Nursery

Efficient irrigation during container plant production is difficult to achieve as irrigation is scheduled daily or multiple times per day to maintain an adequate supply of water in the limited substrate volume. Leaching fraction (container drainage/water applied) testing is one strategy to monitor and adjust irrigation to limit excessive container drainage. We compared an automated irrigation schedule based on routine leaching fraction testing and weather (LFI) with a nursery's traditional irrigation practice (TIP). Compared to TIP, LFI reduced water applied in four of five sprinkler-irrigated trials without a notable growth affect; LFI increased water applied in a fifth trial but plant growth was also increased. Compared to TIP, LFI reduced water applied in all three micro-irrigated trials but also reduced growth in one of the trials. LFI reduced water applied by an average of 21% [57.8 vs. 73.1 kL·ha−1· d−1 (15,300 gal/acre/day) or $3,000 ha−1yr−1 ($1,200/acre/year) at a pumping cost of $0.53/kL ($0.20/1000 gal). We concluded that the greater economic benefit of water savings was to provide increased capacity for additional production under consumptive water use limitations rather than to reduce the unit cost of production. Index words: automation, evapotranspiration, sprinkler, micro-irrigation, weather. Species used in this study: Leyland cypress, Cupressus × leylandii A.B. Jacks. and Dallim., Parson juniper, Juniperus squamata Gordon ‘Expansa Parsonii', crape myrtle, Lagerstroemia indica L. × fauriei Koehne ‘Natchez', Indian hawthorn, Raphiolepis indica (L.) Lindl., sweet viburnum, Viburnum odoratissimum Ker Gawl.

Gradually Varied Flow Computation in Structured Irrigation Networks

In this paper an algorithm for analysis and design of a structured irrigation network and a traditional irrigation network are developed on the basis of the gradually varied flow analysis of the flow in the entire network. The model developed brings advantages of the structured irrigation network concept and also allows the user to analyses and design the flow distribution in the entire network. Model built around the gradually varied flow analysis model with a tree network is divided into a group based on network consisting of an initial value problem and also a boundary value problem with junctions as the reconciled boundaries. The essence of the model is that it can handle several types of structures such as head regulators, duckbill weirs in the main canal, an open flume, a pipe semi module, a pipe outlet with and without a sleeve, proportional distributors and tail clusters in the offtakes. These structures are very important from the standpoint of analysis and design for successful implementation of a structured irrigation network on an existing system and also for analysis and design of a traditional irrigation system consisting of many gates and other structures. The focus of this paper is the efficacy of the water management in ensuring equitable distribution of flow at different discharges released at the head works.

Ideal Communication Facilities for Smart Irrigation Systems in Short Range and Long-Range Scenarios

Agriculture is one of the key aspects that affects the growth of a country. Extreme weather conditions and climate change are something that the agriculturists and the farmers have always found difficult to deal with. Irrigation is an essential agriculture practice that enhances crop production by providing adequate water to the land. Irrigation in essential because they maintain the soil moisture and help in the absorption of nutrient contents. From time immemorial and even till date, irrigation has been done manually with the need of human interventions. With the advancement in the technology, one question always arose. Is it possible to automate some or all the parts of agriculture to maximise the yield? The notion of smart irrigation came into existence. The agricultural industry was able to overcome the said disadvantages of traditional irrigation procedures by incorporating "smart" technologies into irrigation systems. IoT can make agriculture and farming processes more efficient by automating them and reducing human interference. Smart irrigation systems and solutions are being embraced in many regions of the world due to their numerous benefits. The difference is with respect to the way of implementation, the communication network that these applications made use of and the environmental conditions where these applications were used. This paper aims at reviewing certain approaches to smart irrigation from the perspective of communication technologies used and perceive ideal communication technologies that can be used for communication over a shorter range and for the communication over longer range.

Efetividade da ozonioterapia contra microrganismos endopatogênicos: revisão de literatura

Introduction: The scientific community is in constant search for therapeutic alternatives that promote the disinfection of root canals. Among the various existing protocols, ozone therapy has been shown to be a viable technique for this purpose. Thus, the aim of the present literature review is to describe the effectiveness of ozone therapy on reduction of endopathogenic microorganisms. Literature review and discussion: Most part of the literature presents in vitro and clinical studies on the subject and demonstrate that the liquid and gaseous ozone have antimicrobial properties and are efficient in disinfecting the root canal system. However, due to the different protocols for ozone therapy use associated with the methodological differences from the studies, it can be indicated that ozone therapy seems to be an efficient disinfection of root canals, but there are controversies about its use as a complementary or substitute technique in place of traditional irrigation solutions. Conclusion: It is not yet possible to consider ozone as a substitute for hypochlorite sodium. However, some authors report that ozone can be used as a supporting agent on reduction of microorganisms present in the root canals and a viable alternative for cases in which hypochlorite is contraindicated.