Natural and Artificial Oxidation of Grape Seed Phenolics are Influenced by Extractability and Galloylation Pattern

In cool-climate viticulture, the short growing season can influence grape seed maturation by reducing the apparent oxidation of flavan-3-ols and associated increase in seed browning. A reduction in seed maturation increases the potential extraction of flavan-3-ols into wine during maceration operations, heightening bitterness. Here, we carried out a 2x2 factorial experiment to test the ability of freezing and heating treatments to artificially “ripen” seeds (decrease flavan-3-ols, improve browning) of (Vitis vinifera L.) Pinot noir and Cabernet Sauvignon over a 24-hour incubation period. Only freezing significantly increased seed browning in both cultivars. Subsequent correlations with seed flavan-3-ols concentrations suggest that freezing enhanced the oxidation of these compounds. Interestingly, natural ripening and freezing reduced galloylated flavan-3-ols to a greater extent than non-galloylated ones. This study provides new information regarding the susceptibility of flavan-3-ols to freezing and heating, and also suggests that freezing can artificially ripen the seeds of under-ripe red vinifera grapes.

The Potential of Deep Roots to Mitigate Impacts of Heatwaves and Declining Rainfall on Pastures in Southeast Australia

Declines in growing-season rainfall and increases in the frequency of heatwaves in southern Australia necessitate effective adaptation. The Sustainable Grazing Systems Pasture Model (SGS) was used to model the growth of three pasture species differing in root depth and root distribution under three different climate scenarios at two sites. The modelled metabolisable energy intake (in MJ) was used in a partial discounted net cash flow budget. Both the biophysical and economic modelling suggest that deep roots were advantageous in all climate scenarios at the long growing season site but provided no to little advantage at the short growing season site, likely due to the deep-rooted species drying out the soil profile earlier. In scenarios including climate change, the DM production of the deep-rooted species at the long growing season site averaged 386 kg/ha/year more than the more shallow-rooted species, while at the site with a shorter growing season it averaged 205 kg/ha/year less than the shallower-rooted species. The timing of the extra growth and pasture persistence strongly influenced the extent of the benefit. At the short growing season site other adaptation options such as summer dormancy will likely be necessary.

Some aspects of the study on the species Phacelia tanacetifolia Benth. as honey plant in the Republic of Moldova

Phacelia tanacetifolia Benth., which is a species with high potential as forage and honey plant, served as the subject of a new study. The species is characterized by short growing season, staggered and long flowering period (about 55 days depending on the climatic conditions and the date when it was sown). Under laboratory conditions, the germination capacity of the seeds is 84-92 %. The climatic conditions of the Republic of Moldova allow P. tanacetifolia plants to complete the whole ontogenetic development cycle – they bloom, bear fruit and produce viable seeds.

Effect of Harvesting Corn after Frost in Alberta (Canada) on Whole-Plant Yield, Nutritive Value, and Kernel Properties

This study compares yield, nutritive value, and kernel properties of whole plant corn (WPC) harvested before and after a light frost in short growing season areas. Six corn hybrids grown in two years at three locations within Alberta (Canada) were harvested before or after the first frost. Samples of WPC were analyzed for dry matter (DM) content, neutral detergent fiber (NDF) concentration, starch concentration, and 48-h in vitro DM and NDF digestibility (DMD and NDFD, respectively). Cob samples were analyzed for DM, and kernels were analyzed for DM, hardness, particle size distribution, density, and stage of maturity. Delaying harvest to after frost increased DM content of WPC at all locations but exceeded the recommended range (32–38%) in the two warmest locations. Whatever the year and hybrid, DM yield was either not affected or decreased after frost. Postfrost harvest increased starch concentration and modified kernel characteristics only if these were less than expected before frost. Fiber concentration was not affected by harvesting time. Frost had either no impact or increased DMD or NDFD of WPC. We conclude that delaying harvest until after frost in short growing season areas can be beneficial when whole-plant DM content is low before frost.

New soya variety Volgogradka 2

Purpose: creation of a new high-yield, mid-ripening, technological, with a high protein content soybean variety, responsive to irrigation and suitable for cultivation in crops without irrigation. Materials and methods. A collection of soybeans, numbering 2 thousand varieties of various ecological and geographical origin, including the selection of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution VNIIOZ, created in 1983 and annually replenished with new genotypes. Hybridization and selection in later generations. The research was carried out on the chernozem soils of Volgograd region. Results. The original plant varieties were identified in the period 2008–2010, competitive variety trials were carried out in 2014–2016, state tests were held in 2018 and 2019. A new soybean variety called Volgogradka 2 has been included in the State Register of Varieties approved for use since 2020. In accordance with the indicators of its comparative with the standard characteristics, it stands out for its high yield (3.04 t/ha (an increase of 0.34 t/ha)), a short growing season (105 days), medium-sized (0.74 m) plants with a high attachment of lower beans (0.16 m), an increased protein content in seeds (41 %) and a gross crude protein and fat yield of 1.51 t/ha. It is drought-resistant in non-irrigated agriculture of the steppe zone of chernozem soils of Volgograd region, highly profitable and provides high-quality grain production suitable for food processing. Conclusions. A fundamentally new soybean variety with a complete type of stalk growth during the period of mass flowering, a low stem that is resistant to lodging and high attachment of lower beans, a short growing season, which contributes to a significant increase in the grain yield and quality in terms of protein content relative to standard varieties VNIIOZ 76 and VNIIOZ 86 was developed by traditional methods of breeding. The introduction of the new variety will allow expanding soybean crops in the Lower Volga region and increasing domestic soybean production.

Divergence in parturition timing and vegetation onset in a large herbivore—differences along a latitudinal gradient

In northern environments, the period of access to high-quality forage is limited, exerting strong selective pressure to optimize the timing of parturition. We analysed timing and variation in moose ( Alces alces ) parturition dates of 555 females at 18 study sites across 12° of latitude (56–68° N, 1350 km) in Sweden. We found evidence for a spatial match of parturition timing to vegetation onset, but no evidence that moose adjust parturition to vegetation onset in a given year. We found a breakpoint at 64° N. Despite adaptation across latitudes, temporal divergences occurred. Females below 64° N calved after vegetation onset and females above 64° N calved before. Here, parturition before vegetation onset might be a strategy to optimize forage utilization time with the very short growing season. Highly seasonal environments such as at higher latitudes may make it advantageous to adapt parturition towards long-term climatic patterns by matching the most favourable period. Given the direction of temporal divergence, our study suggests that climate change may have less of an impact on moose parturition at northern latitudes than southern latitudes.

Greenhouse Agriculture in the Icelandic Food System

Greenhouses are a frequent feature on the Icelandic rural landscape and an integral part of Iceland’s food system. Iceland’s reserves of geothermal energy present an opportunity to extend an otherwise short growing season. This promotes sustainability, increases food security, and benefits consumers. This article examines the relative strengths of Iceland’s greenhouse sector - using a combination of statistics, observations, and interviews to understand the resource demands of greenhouse agriculture, how well greenhouses can allay some food insecurity and provide local foods. It ends with an examination of how the reduction of subsidies used to keep greenhouse agriculture going, has had an effect and forces the question of whether losing much of Iceland’s agricultural sector and locally sourced food is worth the social and political costs.

Assessing the dynamics of vegetation productivity in circumpolar regions with different satellite indicators of greenness and photosynthesis

High-latitude treeless ecosystems represent spatially highly heterogeneous landscapes with small net carbon fluxes and a short growing season. Reliable observations and process understanding are critical for projections of the carbon balance of the climate-sensitive tundra. Space-borne remote sensing is the only tool to obtain spatially continuous and temporally resolved information on vegetation greenness and activity in remote circumpolar areas. However, confounding effects from persistent clouds, low sun elevation angles, numerous lakes, widespread surface inundation, and the sparseness of the vegetation render it highly challenging. Here, we conduct an extensive analysis of the timing of peak vegetation productivity as shown by satellite observations of complementary indicators of plant greenness and photosynthesis. We choose to focus on productivity during the peak of the growing season, as it importantly affects the total annual carbon uptake. The suite of indicators are as follows: (1) MODIS-based vegetation indices (VIs) as proxies for the fraction of incident photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) that is absorbed (fPAR), (2) VIs combined with estimates of PAR as a proxy of the total absorbed radiation (APAR), (3) sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) serving as a proxy for photosynthesis, (4) vegetation optical depth (VOD), indicative of total water content and (5) empirically upscaled modelled gross primary productivity (GPP). Averaged over the pan-Arctic we find a clear order of the annual peak as APAR ≦ GPP<SIF<VIs/VOD. SIF as an indicator of photosynthesis is maximised around the time of highest annual temperatures. The modelled GPP peaks at a similar time to APAR. The time lag of the annual peak between APAR and instantaneous SIF fluxes indicates that the SIF data do contain information on light-use efficiency of tundra vegetation, but further detailed studies are necessary to verify this. Delayed peak greenness compared to peak photosynthesis is consistently found across years and land-cover classes. A particularly late peak of the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) in regions with very small seasonality in greenness and a high amount of lakes probably originates from artefacts. Given the very short growing season in circumpolar areas, the average time difference in maximum annual photosynthetic activity and greenness or growth of 3 to 25 days (depending on the data sets chosen) is important and needs to be considered when using satellite observations as drivers in vegetation models.

Assessing the dynamics of vegetation productivity in circumpolar regions with different satellite indicators of greenness and photosynthesis

High latitude treeless ecosystems represent spatially highly heterogeneous landscapes with small net carbon fluxes and a short growing season. Reliable observations and process understanding are critical for projections of the carbon balance of climate sensitive tundra. Spaceborne remote sensing is the only tool to obtain spatially continuous and temporally resolved information on vegetation greenness and activity in remote circumpolar areas. However, confounding effects from persistent clouds, low sun elevation angles, numerous lakes, widespread surface inundation, and the sparseness of the vegetation render it highly challenging. Productivity during the peak of the growing season importantly affects the total annual carbon uptake. Here, we conduct an extensive analysis of the timing of peak vegetation productivity as shown by satellite observations of complementary indicators of plant greenness and photosynthesis. The suite of indicators are: (1) MODIS-based vegetation indices (VIs) as proxies of the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically radiation; (2) VIs combined with estimates of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR); (3) sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) serving as a proxy for photosynthesis; (4) vegetation optical depth (VOD), indicative of total water content; and (5) empirically upscaled modelled gross primary productivity (GPP). Averaged over the pan-Arctic we find a clear order of the annual peak as APAR < GPP < SIF < VIs / VOD. SIF as an indicator of photosynthesis is maximized around the time of highest annual temperatures. Model GPP peaks at a similar time like APAR. The time lag of the annual peak between APAR and instantaneous SIF fluxes indicates that the SIF data do contain information on light-use efficiency of tundra vegetation, but further detailed studies are necessary to verify this. Delayed peak greenness compared to peak photosynthesis is consistently found across years and land cover classes. A particularly late peak of NDVI in regions with very small seasonality in greenness and a high amount of lakes probably originates from artefacts. Given the very short growing season in circumpolar areas, the average time difference in maximum annual photosynthetic activity and greenness/growth of 3 to 25 days (depending on the data sets chosen) is important and needs to be considered when using satellite observations as drivers in vegetation models.

Features of studying of introduced soy samples (Glycine max. (L.) Merr.) in the conditions of irrigation of the south of Ukraine

Goal. The study of introduced soybean samples to isolate genetic sources of the main biological and economically valuable traits for further use in the breeding process. Results and Discussion. The article highlights the results of research for 2016-2018. study of introduced soybean samples for a complex of economically valuable traits. The samples origin from Ukraine (17), Canada (.), Australia, France (2 each) and the USA (1 sample). According to the results of the research, the sources of valuable economic traits were identified: with very short growing season, seedlings-full ripeness (98 days) –Marysia (UKR), short (101 – 120 days) – 14 samples; yield excess in relation to the standard – 6 samples. Among the varieties studied in 2018 for ultra-ripeness and yield, the Samorodok and Zhemchuzhyna varieties were stood out. The level of relationships between the main elements of sample productivity has been established. Common to all varieties was the closest connection between the number of seeds per plant and productivity, which was within r = 0.76 – 0.97, exept Triada varietiy. A close correlation between productivity and the number of nodes (r = 0.91) was established for the Samorodok variety, between productivity and the diameter of the first interstice (r = 0.93) – for the Feieriia variety. The established level of links between the main elements of the productivity of samples, which are planned to be used later in the breeding work, for the development of a model of varieties. Conclusions. Attraction of new soybean samples to the collection, their study and application in the selection process is the way to create high-yielding, adapted to irrigated growing conditions, resistant to diseases and the occurrence of soybean varieties that meet the requirements of producers.