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Salinity stress reduces crop growth and agricultural productions around the world. The effects of salinity stress on seed germination, some morphological, physiological and biochemistry traits, and expression of four genes at seedling stage in salt contrasting barley genotypes were investigated in the current study. Seed germination percentage and morphological traits were analyzed based on a factorial randomized complete design which ANOVA results showed that interaction between salinity (150 and 250 mM NaCl) and genotype (Afzal and Sahand (salt tolerant), and Fajr and Reyhan (sensitive)) was significat (p

The article presents the results of a five-year study of the yield of the Melba apple variety on dwarf, semi-dwarf and medium-sized rootstocks selected by the North Caucasus Federal Scientific Center for Horticulture, Viticulture, and Winemaking (SKFNCSVV). The aim of the research is to study the influence of rootstocks of different growth strengths on the productivity potential of the Melba apple variety in the natural and climatic conditions of the Astrakhan region. The research revealed the influence of the rootstock genotype on the main productivity indicators: perishability, yield, frequency of fruiting, stability of productivity, marketable qualities of fruits. The early fruitfulness of the variety was most affected by the dwarf subspecies SK 3, SK 7 and semi-dwarf SK 2, on which 60–100% of the trees bloomed in the first year of growth in the garden. Among the studied combinations, the highest rates of crop growth in the Melba variety were noted on the dwarf rootstock SK 3 and semi-dwarf SK 2, in combination with which the variety was characterized by maximum values of average (19.4–16.3 t/ha) and total yield (97.2–81.6 t/ha), with the values of these indicators on the control variants 16.0–10.6 t/ha and 80.2–53.1 t/ha respectively. Low indicators of the periodicity index were noted on the dwarf rootstock SK 3 (15.6) and semi-dwarf rootstock: control M 26 (23.0), SK 2 (20.0), SK 5 (27.5), high index of productivity stability (0.75–0.86) – on rootstocks SK 3, SK 2 and SK 5. In the arid conditions of the Astrakhan region, the zoned variety Melba is recommended to be grown in an intensive garden on rootstocks SK 3 and SK 2, which ensure regular and stable yields.

The present study was carried out at Crop Research Centre of SVPUAT Meerut, U.P during three cropping seasons i.e. 2018, 2019 and 2020 using basmati rice as test cultivar. The study was primarily focused upon the combined effect of weather parameters and crop growth stages of rice crop on the progression of brown spot disease. It was noticed that disease was first observed at late vegetative stage in every cropping season viz. 2018, 2019 and 2020 and reached its maximum towards maturity phase of the crop by obtaining total AUDPC’S of 1049.3, 1170.74 and 852.6 respectively. A significant negative correlation between weekly percent disease index (PDI) and T-max & T-min was obtained recording correlation coefficients (r) of (- 0.71 & - 0.98), (- 0.88 & - 0.98) and (- 0.63 & - 0.98) during 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively indicating decline in maximum and minimum temperatures at the terminal stages of the crop can greatly favor disease progression. A non-significant positive correlation was obtained between weekly m-RH and PDI to the end of every crop season. During the year 2020, a highly significant negative correlation was obtained between weekly a-RH and PDI (r = - 0.803) in contrast with the years 2018 (r = - 0.55) and 2019 (r = -0.477) exhibiting non-significant negative correlation which might be the reason for low PDI during the year 2020 due to greater decline in relative humidity to the end of the crop season. Although, a non-significant negative correlation between weekly PDI and RF (rainfall) and partial positive correlation with weekly bright sunshine hours (BSS) was obtained during all three crop seasons, high intermittent rainfall from late vegetative to reproductive stage during 2018 and 2019 might be responsible for large amount of spore dispersal (high inoculum pressure) leading to greater disease progression. The regression model developed using 2018, 2019 and 2020 meteorological data, which was validated with disease severity data of 2019 yielded significant R2 value of 0.98 using observed and predicted values.

Greenhouses are self-contained ecosystems that can be optimized to create favorable microclimates for crop growth and productivity. Their productivity can be improved by introducing functionality t...

Salt stress is a globally increasing environmental detriment to crop growth and productivity. Exposure to salt stress evokes a complex medley of cellular signals, which rapidly reprogram transcriptional and metabolic networks to shape plant phenotype. To date, genetic engineering approaches were used with success to enhance salt tolerance; however, their performance is yet to be evaluated under realistic field conditions. Regulatory short non-coding RNAs (rsRNAs) are emerging as next-generation candidates for engineering salt tolerance in crops. In view of this, the present review provides a comprehensive analysis of a decade's worth of functional studies on non-coding RNAs involved in salt tolerance. Further, we have integrated this knowledge of rsRNA-mediated regulation with the current paradigm of salt tolerance to highlight two regulatory complexes (RCs) for regulating salt tolerance in plants. Finally, a knowledge-driven roadmap is proposed to judiciously utilize RC component(s) for enhancing salt tolerance in crops. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Aerobic rice production system provides a sustainable alternative to the traditional rice cultivation. To evaluate the agronomic and economic effect of intercropping aerobic rice with four leafy vegetables, field experiments were conducted at University of Agriculture Science Bangalore research station, India during 2017 and 2018. The experiments consisted of 9 treatments with 4 replications and, a Randomized Completely Block Design was applied. The treatments were as follows: Intercropping (IC1): rice+amaranth; IC2: rice + coriander; IC3: rice + spinach, and IC4: rice + fenugreek plus other 5 treatments of solecrops (SC), SC5: rice, SC6: amaranth, SC7: coriander, SC8: spinach, and SC9: fenugreek. Results showed that intercropping produced significantly better plant growth and higher yields than sole crops. The rice-spinach intercrop produced highest rice grain yield (7,651 kg ha-1), vegetable yield (25,508 kg ha-1), land equivalent ratio (2.13), rice equivalent yield (16,153 kg ha-1), production efficiency (107.69 kg day-1), area time equivalent ratio (1.23) and system harvest index (0.77). Net return and benefit cost ratio of rice-spinach intercropping were also higher than that of sole crops. This suggests that intercropping of aerobic rice with leafy vegetables can be productive and economically efficient. Key words: Aerobic rice, intercropping, leafy vegetables, productivity.

With the rapid development of genetic analysis techniques and crop population size, phenotyping has become the bottleneck restricting crop breeding. Breaking through this bottleneck will require phenomics, defined as the accurate, high-throughput acquisition and analysis of multi-dimensional phenotypes during crop growth at organism-wide levels, ranging from cells to organs, individual plants, plots, and fields. Here we offer an overview of crop phenomics research from technological and platform viewpoints at various scales, including microscopic, ground-based, and aerial phenotyping and phenotypic data analysis. We describe recent applications of high-throughput phenotyping platforms for abiotic/biotic stress and yield assessment. Finally, we discuss current challenges and offer perspectives on future phenomics research.

Identifying potato canopy defoliation methods that enhance tuber shelf-life is critical, particularly with increased quality losses in early potato production. Studies combining the evaluation of herbicides’ efficacy as desiccants and the comparison to mechanical vine kill can guide producers to strategically manage canopy desiccation. Five desiccation programs were tested during the Spring of 2017 and 2018 in Hastings, FL to (i) evaluate the efficacy of harvest-aid herbicides and mechanical defoliation on ‘Red LaSoda’ canopy desiccation rate, tuber yield, internal quality, and postharvest quality maintenance; and (ii) quantify the contribution of these desiccation methods to tuber skinning injury and peel resistance to excoriation. Slow and fast acting harvest-aid herbicides promoted similar desiccation rates 14 days after herbicide application. Vine killing methods led to similar influence on tuber physiology, with no differences in yield and tuber size distribution. The incidence of skinning injury was greatly reduced when desiccation programs were utilized, regardless of the type. Findings suggest that adoption of desiccation methods, both chemical and mechanical, were comparably effective at decreasing skinning injury and increasing tuber storage quality.

5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) modulates various defense systems in plants and confers abiotic stress tolerance. Enhancement of crop production is a challenge due to numerous abiotic stresses such as, salinity, drought, temperature, heavy metals, and UV. Plants often face one or more abiotic stresses in their life cycle because of the challenging growing environment which results in reduction of growth and yield. Diverse studies have been conducted to discern suitable mitigation strategies to enhance crop production by minimizing abiotic stress. Exogenous application of different plant growth regulators is a well-renowned approach to ameliorate adverse effects of abiotic stresses on crop plants. Among the numerous plant growth regulators, 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) is a novel plant growth regulator, also well-known to alleviate the injurious effects of abiotic stresses in plants. ALA enhances abiotic stress tolerance as well as growth and yield by regulating photosynthetic and antioxidant machineries and nutrient uptake in plants. However, the regulatory roles of ALA in plants under different stresses have not been studied and assembled systematically. Also, ALA-mediated abiotic stress tolerance mechanisms have not been fully elucidated yet. Therefore, this review discusses the role of ALA in crop growth enhancement as well as its ameliorative role in abiotic stress mitigation and also discusses the ALA-mediated abiotic stress tolerance mechanisms and its limitation and future promises for sustainable crop production.

The replant disease refers to abnormal crop growth caused by continuous cultivation of the same or related species on the same soil, and often occurring in crops and orchards. Recently, replant dis...

Introducción. La estimación previa de variables de rendimiento en plantaciones de caña de azúcar ( Saccharum officinarum ), es importante para adaptar prácticas de manejo y aumentar la competitividad en la agroindustria azucarera costarricense. Objetivo. El objetivo de este estudio fue realizar estimaciones de variables de rendimiento en el cultivo de la caña de azúcar, por medio de la integración de fotografías aéreas, métodos fotogramétricos y determinaciones de campo. Materiales y méto - dos. Se utilizó un lote de una hectárea de caña de azúcar, propiedad de la cooperativa CoopeCañita R.L. (Turrialba, Costa Rica), con 5 años de producción y sembrado con la variedad B76-256. La evolución espacio-temporal del crecimiento del cultivo se midió de mayo a noviembre del 2017, por medio de 6 vuelos con un VANT, el cual portaba una cámara fotográfica CoolPix A de 16,2 megapíxeles. Se realizó el procesamiento fotogramétrico y se obtuvieron los Modelos Digitales de Superficie (DSM). Estas variables permitieron estimar la altura y el volumen del cultivo. Las estimaciones se correlacionaron con diferentes variables de rendimiento como toneladas métricas de caña por hectárea (TMH), rendimiento de kilogramos de azúcar por tonelada (RKA), total de kilogramos de azúcar (TKA), total de kilogramos de miel (TKM) y rendimiento de kilogramos de miel (RKM) de la zaf ra 2017-2018. Resultados. La relación entre las TMH obtenidas en campo y las estimadas a partir del modelo de regresión lineal creado con la altura del cultivo fue de un R 2 de 0,83. El error absoluto de la estimación de rendimiento, a partir de altura de planta, fue de 3,7 ton.ha -1, el error residual estándar de 6,3 ton.ha -1 y el RMSE de 5,63 ton.ha -1. Conclusión. Según los resultados, la mejor fecha para la estimación TMH fue aproximadamente 3 meses antes de cosecha. No se encontró relación entre las estimaciones fotogramétricas y la variable RKA. Introduction. The estimation of yield variables in sugarcane ( Saccharum officinarum ) previous to its harvest is important to adapt management practices and to increase the competitiveness of the Costa Rican sugar agroindustry. Objective. The aim of this study was to carry out an estimation of different yield variables in sugarcane through the integration of aerial photos, photogrammetric methods, and calibration of the processed image outputs against measured field data. Materials and methods. A plot with a 5-years old ratoon of the variety B76-256 of sugar cane from CoopeCañita R.L. (Turrialba, Costa Rica) was used for the calibration. The spatial and temporal evolution of crop growth was monitored from May to November 2017 using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that carried a 16.2-megapixel CoolPix A camera during 6 f lights. The photogrammetric processing of the images and the generation of Digital Surface Models (DSM) allowed the estimation of plant height and crop volume. The estimations were correlated with different yield variables as metric tons of fresh biomass per hectare (TMH), kilograms of sugar per ton of fresh biomass (RKA), total kilograms of sugar per hectare (TKA) total kilograms of molasses per hectare (TKM) and yield of kilograms of molasses per ton of fresh biomass (RKM) of the 2017-2018 harvest. Results. The relationship between field-measured yield and the estimated values of plant height was R 2 = 0.83. The absolute error for yield estimation using the photogrammetric obtained plant height was 3.7 ton.ha -1, its residual error was about 6.3 ton.ha -1 and the RMSE was 5.63 ton.ha -1. Conclusion. According to the results, the best time to predict the sugarcane yield (TMH) through UAV images and photogrammetric tools is around three months before the harvest. No relationship was found between photogrammetric estimations and other sugar content variables of sugarcane. Universidad de Costa Rica/[733-B5-A11]/UCR/Costa Rica Universidad de Costa Rica/[733-B5-508]/UCR/Costa Rica UCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Unidades de Investigación::Ciencias Agroalimentarias::Centro de Investigaciones Agronómicas (CIA)

Salt stress is an important factor restricting crop growth. Thus, genes related to plant responses to high salinity at the sprout stage of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) should be identified and characterized. In this study, on the basis of the common bean germination index, 0.4% NaCl and day 5 of the incubation period were selected as the optimal salt concentration and sampling time, respectively. Salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive plant materials suitable for the local region were selected as representative common bean materials with contrasting salt-related phenotypes. A total of 441 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by analyzing the generated RNA-seq data. The enriched Gene Ontology terms and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathways indicated the DEGs were associated with oxidoreductase activities and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis. Furthermore, the superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase activities and the lignin content, which are related to oxidoreductase activities and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, were revealed to be significantly associated with common bean salt tolerance. The six DEGs with salt tolerance-related Arabidopsis thaliana homologs may be important candidate genes mediating the salt stress responses of common bean during the sprout stage. Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/13102818.2021.1954091 .

Plants naturally carry microbes on seeds and within seeds that may facilitate development and early survival of seedlings. Some crops have lost seed-vectored microbes in the process of domestication or during seed storage and seed treatment. Biostimulant microbes from wild plants were used by pre-modern cultures to re-acquire beneficial seed microbes. Today some companies have developed or are developing the use of microbes obtained from soils or plant sources to stimulate plant development and growth. Many of these biostimulant microbes are endophytic in plants. Biostimulant products also include humic substances, which appear to function as signal molecules in plants, triggering increased internalization of soil microbes into root cells and tissues. In addition, protein coatings on seeds fuel the growth of seed surface-vectored microbes, increasing microbial activity around and within roots. In this article, we provide evidence of the endophytic nature of many biostimulant microbes, and suggest that many of the beneficial effects of microbial biostimulants stem from their action as endophytes or as participants or stimulants of rhizophagy cycle activity.

Resource acquisition, one of the major functions of roots, can contribute to crop growth and mitigating environmental impacts. The spatio-temporal distribution of roots in the soil in relation to the dynamics of the soil resources is critical in resource acquisition. Root distribution is determined by root system development. The root system consists of many individual roots of different types and ages. Each individual root has specific development, resource acquisition, and transport traits, which change with root growth. The integration of individual root traits in the root system could exhibit crop performance in the various environments via root distribution in the soil. However, the relationship between individual root traits and the pattern of root distribution is complicated. To understand this complicated relationship, we need to evaluate enormous numbers of individual root traits and understand the relationship between individual root development and root distribution as well as the integrated functions of individual root traits along with dynamics of resources in the soil.

Vegetables being a rich source of vitamins, minerals and non- nutritive phytochemicals play a vital role in our diet. According to World Health Organization, lower intake of vegetables is one of the main risk factors for mortality. To make a healthy diet affordable to all, the gap between actual and potential yield of vegetables should be reduced. Foliar application of water soluble fertilizers can boost production in vegetables thus attaining the goal of food security. Foliar applied nutrients absorbed through stomata and cuticle. For better results, foliar application of nutrients at proper growth stage of crop is important. It is not an alternative to soil application, but supplement soil application especially when secondary and micro nutrient deficiencies arise. In spite of a few limitations foliar nutrition serves as an efficient means of nutrient management in vegetables. To combat the wide spread deficiencies of nutrients especially arising at the critical stages of crop growth foliar nutrition can be successfully adopted.

Rice is a major staple food worldwide and understanding its metabolism is essential for improving crop yield and quality, especially in a changing climate. Constraint-based modelling is an established method for studying metabolism at a systems level, but one of its limitations is the difficulty in directly integrating certain environmental factors, such as water potential, to the model for predicting metabolic changes in response to environmental changes. Here, we developed a framework to integrate a crop growth model and an upgraded diel multi-organ genome-scale metabolic model of rice to predict the metabolism of rice growth under normal and water-limited conditions. Our model was able to predict distinct metabolic adaptations under water-limited stress compared to normal condition across multiple developmental stages. Our modelling results of dynamic changes in metabolism over the whole-plant growth period highlighted key features of rice metabolism under water-limited stress including early leaf senescence, reduction in photosynthesis and significant nitrogen assimilation during grain filling.

A study was initiated in Instruction-cum-Research Farm of Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat-13, Assam, India during 2014-15 and 2015-16. The objective of this experiment is to understand the impact of legume intercropping system in combination with different weed management practices on the growth indices of ginger crop. Nadia, a commercially grown variety of ginger in Assam was examined in the current study. A total of 16 treatment combinations were considered which comprised of 4 intercropping systems along with 4 weed management practices. Amongst the legume intercropping, Cowpea in between rows of Ginger; incorporated at 40 days after sowing (DAS) and Cowpea in alternate rows of Ginger; incorporated at 40 DAS recorded better results in terms of Leaf area index (LAI), Crop growth rate (CGR), Absolute growth rate (AGR) and yield of Nadia variety ginger. Whereas amongst the weed management practices, pre-emergence application of Metribuzin 500 g ai ha-1 + hand weeding (HW) at 70, 100 and 140 days after planting (DAP) scored higher in growth indices and ginger yield, but neither the legume intercropping systems nor the weed management treatments had any significant impact on harvest index.

Leaf area index (LAI) and radiation use efficiency (RUE) are important ecophysiological characteristics for the realization of crop growth, development, and radiation absorption. A factorial field ...

Heat stress is a major constraint to crop production and food security. The incidence of heat stress in crops has increased due to rapid changes in the global climate. Heat stress has a tremendous impact on crop growth and productivity due to its direct and indirect effects on water. Therefore, it is important to understand the morphological, physiological, biochemical, molecular, and ecological basis of heat stress in crop plants to minimize its impact on food production. Several genes alter their expression, proteins, and transcription factors to cope with heat stress. Adverse effects on macromolecules and genes change the signaling pathways for heat stress resistance. In the early phase of heat stress, plants regulate their immunity and plant nutrition management to alleviate the heat stress. All the self management of plants gets fail in severe heat stress situation to overcome from heat stress condition a judicious combination of conventional breeding and new technologies will help plants to cope efficiently with heat stress, including maintaining/enhancing yield to contribute to the nutritional requirements of the growing population. A better understanding of plant responses to heat stress has practical implications for remedies and management.

Maize is cultivated under a broad range of soil conditions and environments. Maize is slightly vulnerable to salt stress and therefore it is seriously affected by soil salinity all over the world. Recognizing the responses of maize to salt stress and making a good strategy to overcome this problem could aid to develop solutions in saline areas to improve maize productivity. We investigated in this research the impacts, tolerance and salt stress management in corn. Many endophytic fungi can produce the Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) is known for their role in plant growth and development both with and without salt stress conditions. The current study was focused on the production of IAA by endophytic fungi (Aspergillus niger) and maize seeds germination and promotion of seedling growth and vigor. In order to evaluate the defense response of maize plant, in relation to A. niger, an experiment was designed with three replications of treatments (control, salt stressed, salt stressed inoculated with A. niger, and only A. niger inoculated plants. It was determined that A. niger has the ability to produce the IAA in NaCl and KCl stress peaking 53 μg/ml and was not significantly by alternating the nitrogen and carbon sources in the nutrient broth but increasing the tryptophan concentration raised its production level. High concentration stress of sodium chloride and potassium chloride decrease maize plant seeds germination percentage, shoot and root length also affected the fresh and dry weight of maize. A. niger improves salt resistance in maize and also increased the germination percentage up to 30%, also improved the chlorophyll level and it was proved an effective approach for improving maize germination and growth under salt stress.

Potassium (K) is the third most important major plant nutrient with numerous functions. The availability of K depends on concentration relative to that of Ca2+ and Mg2+ than on the total quantity of K present. The level of extraction of K by different extractants followed the order: boiling HNO3 (1 M) > Non- exchangeable K > Exchangeable K > Water soluble K. The amount of K extracted by different extractants was more in non- calcareous soil followed by calcareous soil. To know the K availability in both the soils, a pot culture experiment was conducted with the two soils (i.e., calcareous and non-calcareous) to know the response of maize to K application. Results showed that a significant higher value of available K in calcareous soil under potassium @ 120 kg K2O ha-1 treatment followed by 80 kg K2O ha-1 in non-calcareous soil irrespective of critical growth stages of hybrid maize. Among the K fractions, water soluble K was the least in magnitude and lattice K was found to be dominant one. Application of 120 kg K2O ha-1 recorded the highest potassium in all the K fractions (water soluble K, exchangeable K and nitric acid soluble K) in all stages of crop growth in calcareous soil whereas in non-calcareous soil 80 kg K2O ha-1 recorded high in all the fractions and the results emphasizing the importance of potassium in soil. Grain and straw yield of hybrid maize were significantly higher under 120 kg K2O ha-1in calcareous soil and 80 kg K2O ha-1 in non- calcareous soil which is well evidenced by a yield increase of 37.7 % over control. A significant and positive correlation was existing between all fractions of potassium viz., HNO3 soluble K, non- exchangeable K, exchangeable K, water soluble K and available K with grain and stover yield in calcareous soil and non- calcareous soil. It was found that calcareous soil showed comparatively better response to the application of potassium especially in water soluble K with an R2 value of 0.917** followed by HNO3 soluble K with a R2 value of 0.895**. Therefore, the present investigation stresses the vital importance of inclusion of higher dose of potassium in calcareous soil for maintaining soil K dynamics and enhancing yield of hybrid maize so as to sustain soil productivity.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L) is widely cultivated as a staple food crop of the world as well as in India. However, due to continuous use of chemical fertilizers the productivity is decreasing. Hence an experiment was conducted to study the effect of Vitormone (Azotobacter chroococcum) alongwith RDF at Agronomy Division, I.A.R.I. New Delhi. Results compiled indicated that application of Vitormone @ 2.0 ml/L alongwith RDF significantly increase tillers/m2 (49.17%), productive tillers/m2 (56.50%), ear length (32.18%), spikelets/ear (25.86%), grains/spikelet (29.72%), straw yield (53.77%), 1000 grain weight (21.80%), protein content (20.62%) and yield (78.10%) over control and 8.57% over RDF. Similarly, foliar nitrogen nutrition by Vitormone (Azotobacter chroococcum) can reduce 25 % nitrogen dose and increase yield by 47.02 % to 61.02 % over control and on par results with RDF.Also, spraying of Vitormone did not show any phyto-toxic effect on wheat plant.

Genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) is encountered in multi-environment trials. In sugarcane (Saccharum spp.), GEI affects crop growth and cane yield and complicates the selection of superior...

This study aims to determine the effect of giving Kirinyu (Chromolaena odorata) as a source of organic matter on growth and yield of two varieties of Chilli (Capsicum annum), and to determine the optimum dose Kirinyu that can improve crop growth and yield of the Big Chilli, research was conducted in the Garden University College of Agriculture experiment Flore, Village Lokoboko, District Ndona, Ende with ± 500 meters altitude above sea level, starting in September 2010-April 2011. The design used in this study is the Group Randomized Factorial Design with the treatment, the first factor (V), and Varieties Amando (V2), and the second factor (K) is the dose of organic material Kirinyu namely K0 (without Kirinyu), K1 (Kirinyu10 tons/ha), K2 (Kirinyu 15 tons/ha), K3 (Kirinyu20 tonnes/ha). Variable observation in this study was “Higher Plants, Number of Leaves, Leaf Area, Total Fruit, Fruit diameter and weight of fruit per plant”. The results showed that administration of doses as a source of organic material Kirinyu significant effect on the varieties (V) and different doses Kirinyu to Total Leaf, Leaf Area observations at age 42 days after transplanting (DAT), and also significantly influenced Number of Fruit, Fruit Weight, and fruit diameter. Use of Hot Beauty varieties has increased to Total Leaf (21.67 strands), number of fruits (31.00 fruits), and fruit weight (279.00 grams) and more resistant to high rainfall intensity, and for variety Amando has increased to broad leaves (187.02 cm), and fruit diameter (1.74 cm) and not resistant to rain intensity. But for Kirinyu dose also significantly influenced leaf number, leaf area at the age of 42 observation days after transplanting (DAT), and also significantly influenced fruit number, fruit weight and fruit diameter. Chili optimum plant growth is shown in the use Kirinyu a dose of 20 tonnes/ha ie number of leaves (19.23 strands), leaf area (208.25 cm), number of fruits (41.58), fruit weight (7.44 grams), fruit diameter (1.66 cm).

Water shortage is a major challenge for cotton production in Uzbekistan, substantially deteriorating crop growth and yield. Two-year field studies in a split-plot design were conducted at the exper...

Since the release of dicamba-tolerant cotton in 2016, preplant and POST applications of dicamba to control glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth have increased. With the increase in area treated with dicamba, the risk of off-target movement to nontarget crops has increased. A field study was conducted at the Texas Tech University New Deal Research Farm equipped with subsurface drip irrigation in 2017 and 2018 to evaluate non-dicamba tolerant cotton response to dicamba when applied at four crop growth stages [first square (FS) + 2 wk, first bloom (FB), FB + 2 wk, and FB + 5 wk]. Dicamba at 0.56 (1×), 0.056 (1/10×), 0.0112 (1/50×), 0.0056 (1/100×), and 0.00112 (1/500×) kg ae ha–1 was applied to ‘FM 1830GLT’ cotton. When applications were made at FS + 2 wk, a shift in boll nodal position was apparent following dicamba at the 1/50× rate in 2017 and at 1/10× in 2018 compared to the nontreated control (NTC). A shift in boll distribution from the 1/50× rate of dicamba was apparent at FB in 2017, but not in 2018. Dicamba applied at the 1× rate at FB + 2 wk resulted in reduced boll numbers. No change in boll number or boll position was apparent following any dicamba rate when applied at FB + 5 wk in both years. Dicamba applied at 1/500×, 1/100×, and 1/50× rates at all timings did not affect yield relative to the NTC. When dicamba was applied at the 1/10× rate, the greatest yield loss was observed at FS + 2 wk followed by FB and FB + 2 wk. Micronaire increased following dicamba applied at 1/10× at FS + 2 wk, FB, and FB + 2 wk in 2017. In 2018, micronaire decreased following dicamba applied at 1/10× at FB + 5 wk.Nomenclature: Dicamba; Palmer amaranth, Amaranthus palmeri S. Wats; cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L.

Soil microorganisms play important roles in crop growth and nutrient cycling. This study investigated the influence of the temporal changes in soil fatty acids (FAs) mainly derived from microorgani...

An experiment was under taken at the Agricultural College farm, Bapatla during two consecutive years of rabi 2016-17 and 2017-18. The crop growth stages of maize are dependent on various morphological, anatomical and physiological parameters. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with six maize hybrids viz., 900M Gold, DKC 9142, DKC 9120, DKC 9081, DKC 9042 and Pinnacle in four replications. CGR and NAR was found to be the highest at 57 to 63 DAS among all the hybrids during both the seasons where CGR was found to be the highest DKC 9142 followed by Pinnacle which were at par with each other. Whereas, pinnacle recorded highest NAR followed by DKC 9142. Among all the hybrids, RGR was found to be maximum at 50 to 56 DAS coinciding with reproductive primordial development. The yield and yield attributing characters such as length of the cob, number of rows per cob, number of kernels per row, 100 seed weight and the total kernel yield showed significant variation among the hybrids where the highest yield was obtained in pinnacle (9641.41 kg ha-1) and DKC 9142 (9243.9 kg ha-1).

In the absence of calibrated soil test and proper nutrient recommendations for crop growth, Haitian farmers suffer from suppressed and uneconomical yields. Thus, decisions made by farmers are mostl...

Early vigour in wheat is a trait that has received attention for its benefits reducing evaporation from the soil surface early in the season. However, with the growth enhancement common to crops grown under elevated atmospheric CO concentrations (e[CO ]), there is a risk that too much early growth might deplete soil water and lead to more severe terminal drought stress in environments where production relies on stored soil water content. If this is the case, the incorporation of such a trait in wheat breeding programs might have unintended negative consequences in the future, especially in dry years. We used selected data from cultivars with proven expression of high and low early vigour from the Australian Grains Free Air CO Enrichment (AGFACE) facility, and complemented this analysis with simulation results from two crop growth models which differ in the modelling of leaf area development and crop water use. Grain yield responses to e[CO ] were lower in the high early vigour group compared to the low early vigour group, and although these differences were not significant, they were corroborated by simulation model results. However, the simulated lower response with high early vigour lines was not caused by an earlier or greater depletion of soil water under e[CO ] and the mechanisms responsible appear to be related to an earlier saturation of the radiation intercepted. Whether this is the case in the field needs to be further investigated. In addition, there was some evidence that the timing of the drought stress during crop growth influenced the effect of e[CO ] regardless of the early vigour trait. There is a need for FACE investigations of the value of traits for drought adaptation to be conducted under more severe drought conditions and variable timing of drought stress, a risky but necessary endeavour.

An experiment were done to analyze the effect of different nitrogen levels on crop growth of various rice cultivars with different rice varieties. Six cultivars from rice (Naveen, Indira, Ratna, Surendra, Birupa and Daya) were evaluated in the kharif season 2017-2018. The experiment were conducted in factorial randomized block design with three replications. Among the cultivars of rice, the effect of nitrogen levels on crop growth rate found to be proportional till the vegetative stage and then diminishing effect on crop growth rate is observed during reproductive stage. The highest CGR was observed in naveen and birupa and lowest in daya and surendra

Finger millet production requires a lot of labour, particularly for weed management practices. Weed spectrum depends on the efficiency of the finger millet ecosystem and control measures practiced. A most possible way for controlling weeds is by manipulating the cropping system and making conditions more favourable for crop growth and unfavourable for weed growth. Weeds belong to various groups viz., grasses, sedges and broad leaved weeds (BLW) are associated in finger millet cultivation. The weed management practices are limited to five options viz., preventive, cultural, mechanical, chemical and biological methods. The common weed control method used is the hand weeding which is time consuming and also difficult to control weeds. Although manual weeding is effective, it is costly, tedious and time consuming. Fischer et al. (2001) reported that the increasing cost of labour have made these methods uneconomical for weed control. Since single method is not able to control all weeds up to desired level, integration of weed management practices can be an effective weed control strategy to achieve greater weed control efficiency and increase overall benefit of finger millet cultivation.

Understanding environmental impacts on crop growth and quality is essential in developing sustainable agricultural practices with climate change. Shifts are expected in precipitation, an essential ...

Seed number (SN) is the component most strongly associated with yield in soybean. SN depends on pod number (PN) and seeds per pod (SPP). Whereas SPP is a relatively stable component, PN is strongly influenced by environmental and management factors. However, the environmental cues involved in PN regulation are not completely understood. The influence of increasing SPP on other yield components is controversial. Field trials were conducted in two growing seasons using two pairs of lanceolate (L) and ovate (O) near-isogenic lines, sown at low (LD) and high (HD) plant densities to evaluate the effect of leaflet shape on crop growth parameters, canopy red/far-red (R/FR) ratio, their relationships with pod initiation, PN, and yield; and the effect of increasing SPP on PN, SN, and yield. L canopies showed a higher number of pods initiated (PI) than O canopies owing to the increase of PI on branches. No association between PI and crop growth rate during the pod set period was found. PI was negatively associated with leaf area index (LAI) and light interception. In contrast, a positive association between PI and canopy R/FR ratio was found. This latter association was sustained irrespective of whether the LAI was below or above its critical value, providing experimental evidence that R/FR ratio is positively associated with pod initiation in soybean canopies. An increase in SPP produced a direct and steady increase in SN regardless of PN and plant density. A yield increase was observed for the L-LD treatment, which combined the increased SPP of L lines with the highest PN of L-LD canopies. These results have implications for crop management and breeding strategies aimed at increasing the yield potential of soybean. Fil: Bianchi, Julieta Sofia. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Biologia. Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; Argentina Fil: Quijano, Alvaro. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Biologia. Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Consejo de Investigaciones de la Universidad de Rosario; Argentina Fil: Gosparini, Carlos Omar. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Biologia. Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; Argentina Fil: Morandi, Eligio Natalio. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Biologia. Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Agrarias de Rosario; Argentina

Two potato varieties namely, kufri bahar and kufri surya were tested for in vitro tuberization response to a same culture medium supplemented with three levels of 6-benzly aminopurine (0.75, 1.5 and 2.25 mg/L) in a completely randomized block design. The study was conducted in the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI), Modipuram, Meerut Campus, and India during the period of 2012 to 2013 and 2013-2014. The objective was to determine optimum concentration of 6-benzly aminopurine for tuberization. Both varieties, exhibited a better response when the culture medium supplemented with 2.25 mg/L of 6-benzyl aminopurine than the other concentrations and control for mean values of number of days for tuber initiation microtuber number, fresh weight of microtubers and number of eyes per microtuber was found optimum and it may be useful to enhance tuber quality as well as crop growth under in vitro conditions at farmer and industrial levels. Key words: In vitro plantlets, potato cultivars, 6- benzyl aminopurine, in vitro plants.

Genotype and agronomic management greatly influence crop growth and grain yield in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). To ensure sustainable production, seeding rate selection is important to maximize efficiency of every plant. Tillering can allow wheat plants to adjust growth relative to plant density and quality of growing conditions. This research sought to determine a method for assessing tillering of wheat cultivars and develop a standardized approach for characterizing cultivar tillering capacity. Nine cultivars with diverse genetic and phenotypic characteristics were seeded in 2017-2018 at Prosper, ND using various seeding techniques at differing plant spacing arrangements to evaluate tillering habit and spikes plant-1. Cultivars grown at population densities common in grower fields did not express full tillering potential. Spaced-plantings of cultivars promoted cultivar expression of tillering phenotype. The SOFATT (seed only a few, and then thin) method, where average spikes plant-1 was determined from multiple plants sampled from a cultivar grown at spaced-plantings (inter-row and intra-row spacing at 30 ± 12 cm), is recommended to properly assess tillering habits of wheat cultivars. Breeders and researchers can use results from SOFATT evaluations to determine tillering capacity rating for each cultivar based on raw or transformed z-score values for spikes plant-1.

The review provides current information on bacterial lipopeptides, mainly those produced by representatives of the genus Bacillus, which play an important role in plant protection against fungi, bacteria, and viruses exhibiting fungicidal, antibacterial, antiviral, and insecticidal properties, as well as phytoimmuno-modulating activity. The present review highlights the characteristics of bacterial lipopeptides, the genes responsible for their production, isolation methods from bacteria and estimation methods (quantitative and qualitative). The plant-protective mechanisms in reaction to lipopeptides, which are associated with signaling systems regulated by salicylates and jasmonates, are discussed. The review confirms that the search for rhizosphere and endophytic strains are promising for the creation of biological products that protect plants from a complex pathogens and pests and stimulate crop growth and productivity.

Purpose Keystone taxa play an important role in soil nutrient cycling and crop growth and can be influenced by soil tillage. We investigated the composition of keystone taxa and their relationships with soil properties under different long-term tillage practices. Methods Four tillage treatments were applied (i.e., CT, conventional tillage; NT, no tillage with mulch; RT, reduced tillage; and SS, subsoiling with mulch), maintained for 21 years. Co-occurrence network (CoNet) was constructed to identify the keystone taxa, and redundancy analysis (RDA) was carried out to explore the relationships between keystone taxa and soil properties under four tillage practices at two growth stages (elongation and grain filling stages) of winter wheat. Results Compared with CT, RT had no significant effect on the microbial community and the keystone microbiome, while NT and SS remarkably altered the microbial community structure and the keystone microbiome at both crop stages. Massilia was the keystone genus under CT and RT, while Sphingomonas , Asanoa and Hoeflea were the keystone genera under NT and SS. RDA results showed that keystone genera were significantly correlated with soil organic carbon (SOC), dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) at both stages, but especially at the elongation stage. Our results further revealed that the effects of NT and SS on crop growth might be related to the changes in keystone microbiome. Conclusion Our study suggests that NT and SS were suitable conservation regimes and may contribute to the development of sustainable agricultural production in the Chinese Loess Plateau.