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Premise of the study: People retain culinary customs when they migrate. We tested this commitment via the study of Puerto Rican fresh produce markets in the continental United States over time. 18 yr, and space, by comparisons with source markets in Puerto Rico (PR). Methods: A survey of Puerto Rican markets in Hartford (HT), Connecticut in 1993-1994 was repeated in 2009-2010. A comparative study was made at open-air markets in PR in 2009. Surveys recorded fresh crops, and interviews with vendors and Hartford Puerto Rican residents provided context. Key results: We recorded 84 plant crops (64 species; 32 families) for seven categories. The largest category was viandas (fresh, starchy "root" crops and immature fruits), followed by saborizantes (flavorings). In the second HT survey, 80% of the crops were still present. And -90% of the HT 1993-1994 crops and -75% of the HT 20092010 crops were shared with markets in PR. Conclusions: On the basis of our results, we suggest two new concepts. The persistence of these largely tropical foods in a temperate market far removed from tropical PR shows the importance of basic foods as an element of cultural identification. We recognize this stability as an example of "culinary cultural conservation". Second, analysis of these fresh produce markets leads to the conclusion that viandas are the most prominent in diversity, persistence over time and distance, volume, and in terms of consumers' "willingness to pay". Accordingly, we consider the viandas a good example of a "cultural keystone food group", a food group that is emblematic of a community's culinary conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous common wheat varieties have been developed in Bulgaria, which when grown under variable environments, the magnitude of the grain yield is influenced by them. In order to determine the reasons for such variations the effect of the growing conditions on grain yield from the winter wheat cultivars with the highest distribution in production were investigated. The cultivars were investigated during four successive years at twelve different locations in Bulgaria with contrasting environmental components such as soil and climate. The phenotypic response of the cultivars was followed with a focus on the size of the yield and the direction of variation within the group of cultivars as a result of each factor: season, location of growing, genotype, and their complex interactions. The collected data were analyzed with the help of several well-known statistical software, (Statistica 7, Statgraphics XV, Jmp 10), which provided sufficient information on the genotype x environment interaction. Significant differences were found among the investigated cultivars by grain yield regardless of their specific response to the year conditions and the location. The genotype x environment interaction was significantly high and non-linear. This means that under changeable environments the different cultivars react differently and can therefore be grouped according to the grain yield stability and plasticity they demonstrated. This is very clear from the significantly high values of heterogeneity of variation. The principal component analysis showed that the dispersion of grain yield was of three-component type, PC1 being only about 1/3 of the total variation of the character, while PC2 and PC2 formed about 50 % from this variation. Within a wide ecological network of 12 locations in Bulgaria a significant genotype x environment interaction was established for grain yield in four successive years. The direct influence of the investigated factors, through their correlations with grain yield, showed the highest effect of the year (r=0. 476*), followed by the location (r=0.208*), the value of the genotype was the lowest and negative (r=-0. 194*). This normal distribution of the data on grain yield was combined with linear and non-linear type of interaction of the groups of cultivars with the year conditions, the location and their interaction as factors of influence; this made the analysis on the adaptability of each cultivar very difficult. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent discussion on invasive species has invigorated the debate on strategies to manage these species. Lantana camara L., a shrub native to the American tropics, has become one of the worst weeds in recorded history. In Australia, India and South Africa, Lantana has become very widespread occupying millions of hectares of land. Here, we examine historical records to reconstruct invasion and management of Lantana over two centuries and ask: Can we fight the spread of invasive species or do we need to develop strategies for their adaptive management? We carried out extensive research of historical records constituting over 75% of records on invasion and management of this species in the three countries. The records indicate that governments in Australia, India and South Africa have taken aggressive measures to eradicate Lantana over the last two centuries, but these efforts have been largely unsuccessful. We found that despite control measures, the invasion trajectory of Lantana has continued upwards and that post-war land-use change might have been a possible trigger for this spread. A large majority of studies on invasive species address timescales of less than one year; and even fewer address timescales of .10 years. An understanding of species invasions over long time-scales is of paramount importance. While archival records may give only a partial picture of the spread and management of invasive species, in the absence of any other long-term dataset on the ecology of Lantana, our study provides an important insight into its invasion, spread and management over two centuries and across three continents. While the established paradigm is to expend available resources on attempting to eradicate invasive species, our findings suggest that in the future, conservationists will need to develop strategies for their adaptive management rather than fighting a losing battle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on an unreported bunt disease observed on winter wheat ears at the grains collected in Latvia in August 2006. Glumes pushed apart laterally, spherical sori and blackish mass of teliospores were among the visible symptoms found on the ears. The use of epiflourescence microcopy in confirming the identity of T. controversa was mentioned. Endospore wall layer fluoresced yellow and cytoplasm was yellow-green while the teliospores of T. tritici collapse in immersion oil and the reticulated walls do not autofluoresce.

Extensive economic and environmental damage has been caused by invasive exotic plant species in many ecosystems worldwide. Many comparative studies have therefore attempted to predict, from biological traits, which species among the pool of naturalized non-natives become invasive. However, few studies have investigated which species establish and/or become pests from the larger pool of introduced species and controlled for time since introduction. Here we present results from a study aimed at quantifying predicting three classes of invasive species cultivated in Hawaii. Of 7,866 ornamental species cultivated in Hawaii between 1840 and 1999, 420 (5.3%) species naturalized, 141 (1.8%) have been classified as weeds, and 39 (0.5%) were listed by the state of Hawaii as noxious. Of the 815 species introduced >80 years ago, 253 (31%) have naturalized, 90 (11%) are classed as weeds, and 22 (3%) as noxious by the state of Hawaii. Using boosted regression trees we classified each group with nearly 90% accuracy, despite incompleteness of data and the low proportion of naturalized or pest species. Key biological predictors were seed mass and highest chromosome number standardized by genus which, when data on residence time was removed, were able to predict all three groups with 76-82% accuracy. We conclude that, when focused on a single region, screening for potential weeds or noxious plants based on a small set of biological traits can be achieved with sufficient accuracy for policy and management purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article presents a study which documents the knowledge as well as the use of native and exotic plants used in capturing and sustaining wild finches in the province of Alicante, Spain. It offers details on the area of study including climate, seasonal description, and vegetation. It states that the researchers employed semi-structured interviews in gathering information and verified it thru participant field observation.

The article presents the authors insights on various endeavors of the Society for Economic Botany (SEB). The author mentions the 2009 recipients of the Distinguished Economic Botanist Award namely Dr. Michael Balick and Dr. Nina Etkin, who passed away on the same year due to a long-time illness. Also discussed are the objectives on the society and one of its programs called Biodiversity and Human Health in Micronesia, which cater on the study of islands in the face of global change.

In recent years, forestry has been strongly promoted by the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam through large-scale projects to rehabilitate and reforest millions of hectares of land. One project to reforest 5 million hectares has received hundreds of millions of US dollars for implementation. Yet based on a case study in one area of northern Vietnam, this project appears to have had a number of unforeseen consequences. Large areas of land classified as ''bare hills'' have been targeted for reforestation, despite the fact that these lands already harbor a number of species that were used by local communities. The bare hills were especially economically important to poor households and to women who collected a variety of nontimber forest products there. Because the reforestation project focused most efforts on establishing new plantations rather than supporting natural regeneration, diverse sources of nontimber forest products were being replaced with monocrop exotic tree plantations. A strong inequity in the allocation of private lands for reforestation has characterized the regreening projects to date, and this may have continuing unwelcome social, environmental, and economic impacts into the future, particularly for the poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract  Shoot and root mass of tobacco plants treated with only 0.05 µM boron was decreased by 25 and 50 %, respectively, when compared to plants sufficiently supplied with B (2 and 5 µM). Leaf B content of 0.05 µM B-treated plants decreased (about 80–90 %) when compared to 2 µM B treated plants; this drop of B content were not as marked (about 25–45 %) in roots. Leaf and root nitrate contents in B-deficient plants were 45–60 % and 35–45 % lower, respectively, than those from 2 and 5 µM B treated plants. It is suggested that B deficiency might decrease nitrate uptake rather than nitrate reductase activity in tobacco plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnobotanical studies often assume plant knowledge is shared by all members of an arbitrarily bounded human group. By describing the uses and local categorization of plants in one village in rural Panama in a heteroglossic approach, the different know/edges within a village are presented in one article. Plants used in the daily work of women and men, and the work of village specialists are described. Villagers negotiate changing realities by adapting plant use and knowledge; this is reflected in local categorization of plant names into antes and hoy día. Unlike the established ethnobotanical assumption that bounded units of plant knowledge are dying, the younger generations of villagers, who work both within and outside the village, know more plants useful to their changing economic opportunities. Subsistence agriculturalists possess the adaptive plant knowledge skills to be stewards of the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of the twelve species of Chamaedorea palm recorded for Belize, three are of international economic value because their cut leaves (xaté) are traded in the floricultural industry. Traditionally, Belize has not harvested xaté, the industry being based in Mexico and Guatemala. However, a decline in wild xaté stocks in these countries means Guatemalan leaf harvesters now illegally harvest xaté in Belize. To assess the local abundance of the Belizean Chamaedorea resource, its economic value, and the extent to which it has been illegally harvested, 209 plots measuring 20 meters (m) by 20 m were established ill the Greater Maya Mountains (GMM) in western Belize, which includes the Chiquibul Forest Reserve (CFR). We estimate that 37.8 million leaves with a value of U.S. $0.3 million to xateros have been extracted from the CFR. The standing export value is calculated as U.S. $1.8 million for the CFR and U.S. $5 million for the GMM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple one-tube one-step RT-PCR assay with degenerate primers followed by direct sequencing of a 327 bp coat protein gene fragment was used to identify the potyviruses infecting vanilla. With this technique, unambiguous species allocation was achieved for 34 potyvirus-infected vanilla samples collected in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific areas between 1997 and 2005. Virus identification relied onblast homology and nucleotide identities of 162 to 327 nt fragments with known potyvirus sequences. Species allocation was confirmed by neighbour-joining of the 149 nt common to 32 vanilla sequences and 51 known potyviruses. Subject to further identification, these data revealed four additional Potyvirus species that may infect vanilla: Bean yellow mosaic virus, Cowpea aphid-borne mosaic virus, Ornithogalum mosaic virus and Wisteria vein mosaic virus. The procedure was rapid, cost-effective, easy to use and showed a good taxonomic discriminating value. It also enabled the identification of potyviruses in adjacent weeds and should thus aid the understanding of outbreaks of potyviruses occurring in varied epidemiological circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. Alexander von Humboldt engaged in a staggering array of diverse experiences in the Andes and adjoining lowlands of northwestern South America between 180l and 1803. Yet examination of Humboldt's diaries, letters, and published works shows how his principal activities in the Andes centered on three interests: mining and geological landscapes; communications and cartography; and use and distribution of the quinine-yielding cinchona trees. Each node represented a pragmatic concern dealing with environmental resources in the context of the Andes. To pursue these interests in his Andean field studies, Humboldt relied on varied cultural interactions and vast social networks for knowledge exchange, in addition to extensive textual comparisons. These modes of inquiry dovetailed with his pragmatic interests and his open-ended intellectual curiosity. Fertile combinations in his Andean studies provided the foundation and main testing ground for Humboldt's fused nature-culture approach as well as his contributions to early geography and interdisciplinary environmental science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on a study related to economic botany. According to the researchers, talking books are effective tools for capturing and preserving traditional knowledge. The research findings suggest that the photos of each plant, disease or other concept shown in each image in the talking book should be simple and show features that are salient to the community members who will use the book. The talking book can be recharged in the sun once there is a need for it. The moving cassette mechanism can easily break down in the harsh environments in which they might be used. The plastic containers and bags are readily available in kitchen stores in many cities around the world. A talking book was developed that can be used to return documentation and preserve knowledge of not only medicinal plant knowledge, for which it has been used in a project, but also of construction techniques and hunting techniques. The study shows that the solar-powered, weather-resistant talking book presented has shown initial promise in community education, traditional knowledge documentation and preservation and stimulation of the interest of future generations.

The use and management of "angico" (Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) Brenan) by a rural community in northeastern Brazil was examined. By employing different techniques of data collection and population structure analysis, it was determined that this species had multiple uses within the local community (especially as timber and for other wood products), and that local management of this species is based on simple maintenance and harvesting of individuals in agroforest homegardens. The study of the population structure of this tree species indicated that management and conservation strategies must include the participation of the local community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the market for medicinal plants sold in the Vietnamese town of Sapa as well as in nine different markets in the Vietnamese capital city, Hanoi. A total of 44 medicinal plants were identified botanically, 27 of which are on sale in Sapa and 28 in Hanoi. Most buyers of medicinal plants in Sapa are members of the Vietnamese middle classes who go to Sapa on holidays. Medicinal plants are gathered or cultivated predominantly by members of ethnic minority groups (Hmong and Dao) who live in small hamlets, some located several hours from the town of Sapa. Sapa is one of the poorest districts in Vietnam with a GDP per household of only U.S. $322 in 2005, so the cash that people are able to earn from the sale of medicinal plants is very important. The article argues that the social roles of the weekend market in Sapa are equally important, as the market helps ethnic minorities to fulfil their needs for a social life beyond the village. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A light microscopic and molecular analysis of photobionts in Ramalina and Cladonia from coastal habitats of Brazil is presented. A Bayesian phylogenetic analysis of ITS rDNA sequences suggests a Trebouxia lineage which is preferentially tropical in geographic distribution. This highly diverse clade also includes the morphological similar species Trebouxia higginsiae and galapagensis. Within the predominantly tropical clade of Trebouxia we distinguish several subclades, three of which are represented in our samples of Ramalina species. Since sexuality has not been recognized in coccal lichenised photobionts until recently, we cannot apply a biological species concept, but when compared with the sequence diversity between known species we conclude that several new species need to be described in this clade. The mutually exclusive presence of other Trebouxia lineages in temperate samples of Ramalina suggests an evolution towards higher selectivity in this genus. A strictly tropical lineage is not conspicuous in the photobionts of the genus Asterochloris sampled from Cladonia so far. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

New observations of long distance transport of pollen to southern Greenland are recorded during two consecutive weeks, 19 May until 1 June 2003. These new results indicate again Northeastern America as the source area of the transported pollen grains. Backward trajectories studies indicate that transport occurred twice during the first week, which corresponds to the interval of maximum pollen flux emitted in the atmosphere. This is indicated by the large percentage of exotic pollen grains identified, about 11% of the total counted including the local vegetation. Conversely, the transport observed during the second week occurred during a single day, at a time of reduced pollen emission into the atmosphere in the source area, and experienced severe wash out and thus is indicated by a lower percentage of exotic grains, 1% of the total identified ones. The trajectories modeled by the HYSPLIT application show different patterns to those previously identified in 2002. Although air volumes passing over southern Greenland at 3000m carried out the main transport, additional transport occurred at a much lower altitude leading producing a more complicated pattern of modeling than previously considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1 The effect of elevated CO2 on species’ performance was investigated in communities composed of five annual weeds that are characteristic of early old field succession in central Europe:Centaurea cyanusL.,Matricaria chamomillaL.,Silene noctifloraL.,Papaver rhoeasL. andLegousia speculum-veneris(L.) Chaix.2 The experiment was based on a simplex design, repeated at two overall levels of initial stand density, to give a wide range of five-species communities across which the initial composition and species abundance varied systematically.3 A multivariate method, based on analysing the differences in relative growth rates (RGRD) between pairs of species, was extended for use with more than two species, in order to assess the relative importance of various determinants of change in stand biomass composition.4 On average,Centaurea(54.6% of final yield) gave the highest yield, followed byMatricaria(22.9%),Silene (16.9%),Legousia(3.1%) andPapaver(2.7%).5 The major determinants of change in community structure were species identity and CO2 level. Elevated CO2 significantly changed community composition towards the previously more poorly performing speciesSilene,LegousiaandPapaver.6 Despite strong effects of intra- and interspecific competition on individual species performance, species’ initial abundance had relatively little impact on the change in community composition. Most cases where such effects were significant involvedSilene: performance ofPapaverwas poorer in communities with higher initial presence ofSileneand higher initial abundances ofCentaureaandMatricariaalways facilitated performance ofSilene.7 These new methods proved a powerful system for identifying the biotic and abiotic factors determining change in biomass composition in multispecies communities.Journal of Ecology(2005)doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2745.2005.00999.x [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the economic botany, the introduction to the U.S., as well as the status and outlook of Colocasi gigantea use based on research comparing food plant usage by American Vietnamese. Bạ hà, the southern Vietnamese name for Colocasi gigantea, is a key "traditional ingredient" in making a Vietnamese soup called canh chua, which literally means "sour soup." Anatomically, it is not the stem, but rather the petiole that is eaten. The petioles extend from a thickened corm that is up to a meter or more in length. Moreover, "taro" typically refers to Colocasia esculenta. Individual leaves are cut from standing plants at the base of the petiole just above the ground. In the Chinatown markets of Hawaii, and other Asian markets in the U.S., the aroidpetioleis sold whole or cut into smaller sections with the leaf blade completely removed. For consumption, the epidermis of the petiole is peeled and then sliced in diagonal cross-sections and slightly blanched in soup, retaining its crisp texture. Vietnamese immigrants have been credited for the introduction and/or increased availability of 20 to 30 taxa of plants to the U.S. in their efforts to have traditional Vietnamese foods.

Question: The use of plant traits to predict weed impact is a long-standing goal in weed ecology. In particular, trait plasticity, i.e. the variability of a trait response to environmental change, is widely considered to contribute to weed success. However, the generality of the role of trait plasticity in determining weed impacts has never been systematically tested. Methods and location: We tested the hypothesis that high-impact environmental weeds have greater plasticity in growth responses to nutrient availability than low-impact species. In a glass house experiment, we supplied a complete nutrient solution at five different concentrations to seedlings of 24 species of high- and low-impact environmental weeds from south east Queensland, Australia, Results: Almost all species showed plasticity in biomass accumulation in response to the nutrient treatments, but plasticity in biomass accumulation did not differ between related high- and low-impact species. There was no evidence of nutrient-related plasticity in root:shoot allocation. Seedling survival was greater at higher nutrient concentrations, and also differed greatly between families. Survival among low-impact species was marginally (p = 0.0610) lower than among high-impact species. Conclusion: We conclude that the impact of environmental weeds in south east Queensland cannot be predicted from nutrient-related plasticity in seedling growth. The effects of nutrients on seedling survival warrant further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eight-parental diallel cross and SSR molecular markers were used to determine the combining ability of common wheat lines grown under well-watered (WW) and water-stress (WS) conditions. Analysis of variance of yield indicated highly significant differences among the progenies. General combining ability (GCA) determined most of the differences among the crosses. Specific combing ability (SCA) was also significant but less important. The estimates of GCA effects indicated that one line was the best general combiner for grain yield under drought. Nei’s genetic distance, measured using SSR markers, differed from 0.20 to 0.48 among the eight genotypes. The correlation of Nei’s genetic distance with SCA for grain yield and heterosis ranged from 0.4 to 0.5. These results indicate that the level of SCA and heterosis depends on the level of genetic diversity between the wheat genotypes examined. Microsatellite markers were effective in predicting the mean and the variance of SCA in various cultivars combinations. However, selection of crosses solely on microsatellite data would miss superior combinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper represents a preliminary study of the botany, natural history and taxane chemistry of the Mexican yew, Taxus globosa Schltdl. Taxonomic history, morphological comparison to other North American species and ecological habitat are discussed. Chemical study involved leaf and twig material from forty-nine plants from three localities in Mexico. Levels of taxol, cephalomannine and baccatin III were determined by HPLC analysis. Intrapopulational variation was found to be very high while mean taxane levels for each of the three populations were very similar. The average percentage of taxol in leaves of T. globosa is higher than in all other species of Taxus (0.0121% dry wt.).

In previous empirical and modelling studies of rare species and weeds, evidence of fractal behaviour has been found. We propose that weeds in modern agricultural systems may be managed close to critical population dynamic thresholds, below which their rates of increase will be negative and where scale-invariance may be expected as a consequence. We collected detailed spatial data on five contrasting species over a period of three years in a primarily arable field. Counts in 20 x 20 cm contiguous quadrats, 225,000 in 1998 and 84,375 thereafter, could be re-structured into a wide range of larger quadrat sizes. These were analysed using three methods based on correlation sum, incidence and conditional incidence. We found non-trivial scale invariance for species occurring at low mean densities and where they were strongly aggregated. The fact that the scale-invariance was not found for widespread species occurring at higher densities suggests that the scaling in agricultural weed populations may, indeed, be related to critical phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main models within the MILDRI modelling network for studying plant protection, PVNOR, a dynamic model which simulates the development of weeds and diseases in cereals, and FARMNOR, an economic analysis model for choosing and evaluating management practices, were used to predict the effect of different production systems on the need for plant protection measures, and the resulting yield and economic output in different climatic situations. The simulations were run for 22 years using historic weather data. The study showed that PVNOR reflected fairly well the changing plant protection problems and agricultural consequences which emerged during the simulation period, and that the model handled the interactions between the large number of variables involved in such perennial systems. The combination of PVNOR and FARMNOR proved to be a valuable analytical tool, which in addition to predicting plant protection problems and consequences, also allows the prediction of the economic outcomes arising from different cereal production systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Philippines is a country that has little low-forest cover left, but it still has many useful forest species. Despite the decline of forest area and the degradation of forests, many of the poorest households, both indigenous and migrant, are pushed into the remaining forest area and depend on forest goods for their subsistence and monetary income. These goods are inevitably nonwood forest products (NWFPs) because timber extraction is now illegal in many parts of the country. The extraction of nonwood forest products, such as resin and rattan, is the only source of a cash income for many households. However, despite the long tradition of NWFP extraction in forest-edge villages, the income that collectors get from these products is still minimal. The impediments to a more equitable and efficient trade in NWFPs are examined, and possible ways of adding value locally to NWFPs are presented, using almaciga (Agathis philippinensis) resin extraction as a case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iriartea deltoidea grows abundantly from Nicaragua to Bolivia. The stem is harvested for construction, furniture making, and handicrafts. The objective of my study was to understand the potential for sustainable harvesting of this palm. Ethnographic fieldwork about market patterns and decision-making among harvesters revealed the nature of harvesting pressures near settled areas. The study also demonstrates methods for assessing social and economic influences on harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Conservation Biology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

• Background and Aims The early growth rate of seedlings in the exponential phase is an important eco‐ physiological trait in crop/weed competition models based on assessments of relative weed green area. An understanding of the role of various plant traits in determining early growth rate may also be useful for identifying contrasting weed strategies for establishment before canopy closure.• Methods The response of seedling relative growth rate (RGR) to the environment was measured in outdoor sand beds in the autumn and the spring for 18 temperate annual weed species and two crops. Seedling growth was modelled using thermal time and effective day‐degrees (combining the effect of temperature and radiation). The contribution of various plant traits in determining variability in RGR was investigated using regression analysis.• Key Results The effective day‐degree model was more effective for describing early weed growth than thermal time. Variability in RGR measured in the autumn was largely determined by differences between the species in net assimilation rate (NAR), whereas in the spring leaf area ratio (LAR) played a larger part. There were differences between the broadleaf and grass species in the relative contribution of NAR and LAR to RGR in both seasons. RGR in the spring was negatively correlated with initial seedling size.• Conclusions The parameters derived in this study can be used to calibrate empirical models of crop yield loss based on relative weed green area to different growing seasons and assessment dates. The grass weeds, which tended to have large seeds, had a higher investment in roots in the seedling stage, potentially making them more competitive later in the season when resources become limiting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indigenous people, such as the Tagbanua of Palawan Island in the Philippines, are often considered to be experienced and responsible users of natural resources. The Tagbanua have traditionally been involved in the collection of nonwood forest products (NWFPs) both for trade and for subsistence purposes. The proximity of many Tagbanua communities to the forest allows them easy access to NWFPs, although various restrictions, such as distance from markets, legal land issues, and lack of formal education, prevent them from receiving more favorable earnings from the sale of NWFPs. Similarly, increasing access to manufactured products also lessens dependence on NWFPs for food, medicine, and housing purposes, although small incomes prevent extensive conversion to the use of purchased goods. The knowledge and current subsistence-level use of NWFPs by the Tagbanua from the settlement of Boong are described and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Discusses the uses of Zostera marina, mainly found in Norway. Vernacular names for Zostera in the country; Common applications for the aquatic plant; Endurance of the plant as a roof cover.

The communities of Tsehlanyane and Bokong depend on subsistence agriculture and harvesting natural resources for a variety of needs, mainly firewood, handcrafts, medicine, food, construction, and socio-cultural amenities. They have done so since time immemorial and are singularly responsible for the good conservation value that the area represents. The area has the longest history of conservation championed by a local traditional authority in Lesotho. From December 1999 to March 2000 we conducted a survey that was aimed at making an inventory of resources, on which people rely, that will be affected by the establishment of a biosphere reserve linking the Tsehlanyane National Park and the Bokong Nature Reserve. In the survey, 149 households were sampled representing a sampling intensity of 19% in both communities. One hundred forty-seven species of plants were mentioned, falling into 51 families with the most commonly used families being Asteraceae, Liliaceae sens. lat. and Poaceae. The study also revealed that tenurial rights on these resources are communal and usufructuary and are increasingly being undermined by commercialization that relegate resources to an open access system. The study identified six main use categories, namely, firewood, handcrafts, medicinals, wild fruits, wild vegetables, and miscellaneous uses. Finally, the study demonstrated that ethnobotanical knowledge is widely held in Lesotho with the traditional doctors being the major repositories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In most of the western world where industrial hemp, Cannabis sativa, is licensed for cultivation, the plants must not exceed a level of 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the principal intoxicating constituent of the species. Because there are no publicly available germplasm hemp collections in North America and only a very few, recent North American cultivars have been bred, the future breeding of cultivars suitable for North America is heavily dependent on European cultivars and European germplasm collections. Based mostly on material from Europe, this study surveyed THC levels of 167 accessions grown in southern Ontario, making this the largest survey to date of germplasm intended for breeding in North America. Forty-three percent of these had THC levels ≥0.3% and, therefore, are unsuitable for hemp development in North America. Discrepancies were found between THC levels reported for some germplasm holdings in Europe when they were grown in Canada and, accordingly, verification of THC levels developed in North America is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic Botany is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study was carried out in the regions where handcrafts such as carpet and rug weaving are common in Turkey. In the regions where natural dyes are used, 123 plant species belonging to 50 families were identified as sources of natural dyes. In natural dye production, different parts of the plant or the whole aboveground plant is used. Ten different colors are gained from the plants. Sometimes the same color can be obtained from different plants. By mixing different plants, it is possible to produce various colors. We also identified more than 12 natural and more than eight chemical assistant substances (mordant) that are used in the regions to bind dye to fibers, to maintain the strongness and brightness of the colors, and to obtain various colors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are a number of weeds, both native and exotic, which are of considerable economic and ecological importance in UK forestry. These weeds compete with young trees for resources, and suppress their growth in commercial plantations as well as native woodlands. Chemical and cultural control methods are expensive and, in many situations, have not prevented the spread of forest weeds. An alternative, or additional method of weed control, is biological control using bioherbicides. Using this approach, native fungi pathogenic on the target weed are developed and applied inundatively, in a similar manner to that of chemical herbicides. The damage caused by fungi to the weed reduces its impact in young plantations and native habitats. Four important forest weed species in the UK – bracken, bramble, Japanese knotweed and rhododendron – are reviewed here in terms of their biology and impact, current control options and their potential for control using bioherbicides. Despite having a serious impact in forestry, bracken, bramble and Japanese knotweed are not deemed suitable target weeds for the development of a bioherbicide. Considerable effort has already been directed into bioherbicide control of bracken in the UK, without success. Bramble has proved difficult to control using bioherbicides in Canada, and its degree of importance as a forest weed in the UK is probably not as great as for other weeds. Japanese knotweed is already under investigation for biological control using the classical approach, for which it is most suited. Rhododendron, however, is considered a suitable target weed for control using the bioherbicide approach. Of greatest potential is the application of a wood?rotting fungus as a bioherbicide stump treatment for rhododendron – an approach already developed for weedy hardwood species in South Africa, Canada and The Netherlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of root anoxia on a tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) wild type (WT) and a transformant (LNR-H) lacking root nitrate reductase were compared. LNR-H plants were visibly more sensitive to oxygen deprivation than WT, showing rapid and heavy wilting symptoms. LNR-H roots also produced substantially more ethanol and lactate than WT roots under anoxia, and their sugar and sugar-P content, as well as their ATP levels, remained higher. The fermentation rates of WT and LNR-H roots were unaffected by sugar feeding and the higher fermentation rate in the LNR-H roots was associated with a greater acidification of the cytoplasm under anoxia. From these observations it is concluded: (i) that the absence of NR activity in the LNR-H roots does not necessarily limit NADH recycling; and (ii) that nitrate reduction in the WT roots results in a more acidifying metabolism. It is the higher metabolic rate in the LNR-H roots that leads to the greater cytoplasmic acidification under anoxia despite the absence of a contribution from the metabolism of nitrate. Competition for NADH cannot explain this difference in metabolic rate, and it remains unclear why the NR-free LNR-H, and tungstate-treated WT roots, had much higher fermentation rates than WT roots. The difference in anaerobic metabolism could still be due to the presence or absence of nitrate reductase and the possibility that this could occur through the production of nitric oxide is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the views of the speakers at the Society for Economic Botany's 26th Annual Meeting of 1985 on the future of ethnobotany in the U.S. Details of the lack of cooperation among researchers to develop plant pharmaceuticals; Research on the use of Plasmodium falciparum in treating malaria; Analysis of the effect of plant extracts on tuberculosis.

Wild edible mushrooms are harvested in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, where both trees and mushrooms grow in the same landscape. Although there has been some discussion about the value of trees and mushrooms individually, little information exists about the joint production of, and value for, these two forest products. Through four case studies, the information needed to determine production and value for three wild mushroom species in different forests of the Pacific Northwest is described, and present values for several different forest management scenarios are presented. The values for timber and for mushrooms are site- and species-specific. On the Olympic Peninsula in Washington, timber is highly valued and chanterelles are a low-value product by weight; timber has a soil expectation value (SEV) 12 to 200 times higher than chanterelles. In south-central Oregon, timber and American matsutake mushrooms have the potential to have about the same SEV. In eastern Oregon, timber is worth 20 to 110 times as much as the morels that grow in the forest. Production economics is concerned with choices about how much and what to produce with what resources. The choices are influenced by changes in technical and economic circumstances. Through our description and analysis of the necessary definitions and assumptions to assess value in joint production of timber and wild mushrooms, we found that values are sensitive to assumptions about changes in forest management, yields for mushrooms and trees, and costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents three studies on economic plants. The first research centered on jujube, a multipurpose plant that is one of the world's major fruit crops, its natural history and cultivation. The second study focused on a certain ritual in Tuscany, Italy that used botanicals against the evil-eye. The third feature investigated the presence of diosgenin in Dioscorea batatas.

Lichen samples collected in and around Hetauda Industrial area, (HIA) Narayani zone, Makwanpur district, Nepal, were analyzed for Cr, Ni, Pb, Zn, Ca, Mn, Fe, Si, and Al. The samples from the location inside the industrial area have higher levels of metal than the outside areas. Pyxine meissnerina growing inside the industrial area accumulated higher levels of all the metals analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]