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Background: In recent decades, grain amaranths have attracted attention due to their valuable combination of nutritional traits, with higher protein and oil content than conventional cereals. Before they can be proposed as an unconventional ingredient in animal feed, many aspects still need to be investigated from field production to nutritive value. The present research aimed to study the agronomic traits, proximate composition, and digestibility/degradability, fatty acid profile, antioxidant activity, and total phenolic content of two grain amaranth species, Amaranthus cruentus and Amaranthus hypochondriacus (for a total of six accessions), grown in a Mediterranean environment. Results: Both species showed seed yields comparable to or higher than the traditional cereal crops in the same environment. On the whole, A. cruentus resulted in a higher seed production than A. hypochondriacus. Mexico and Montana accessions, both belonging to A. cruentus, showed the highest yield (3.73 t ha-1 , on average). Few differences emerged in nutritive value between species and accessions: the Illinois accession of A. cruentus showed the best performance in terms of in vitro degradability and gas production, but not for volatile fatty acid production; the fermentation kinetics was slowest in the Illinois accession and fastest in the Montana accession of A. cruentus and the India accession of A. hypochondriacus. Conclusion: From a health perspective, the Nebraska accession of A. hypochondriacus represents the best accession, with the lowest saturated fatty acid content and the highest polyunsaturated fatty acid content. © 2022 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Crocus is a taxonomically complex genus, characterized by high intra- and inter-specific variability. Five wild Crocus taxa - Crocus biflorus, C. longiflorus, C. neapolitanus, C. siculus and C. thomasii from three different areas of Southern Italy (Calabria, Basilicata and Sicily) have been investigated. We considered both flower morphological traits (inner and outer perigone segments, style branches and anthers) and the chemical profile of specialised metabolites (apocarotenoids: crocins; flavonoids: flavonols) in style branches, which were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography, coupled with a diode array detector and mass spectrometry (HPLC-UV-DAD-ESI-MS). Saffron (C. sativus) was also included as the 'control' species. The length of perigone tube, outer and inner tepals, anthers and style branches gave the highest contribution to the discrimination of different taxa. Concerning the specialised metabolite profiles, 20 flavonols and 24 crocins have been identified and quantified in the Crocus extracts and used to discriminate among samples, confirming that Crocus taxa can be considered as an important natural source of these substances. The chemical profiles of the different populations showed some distinctive qualitative and quantitative patterns that contributed to a certain degree of discrimination among species, in fact, flavonoids content range is comprised between 2.7 and 145.9 mg/g, whereas crocins range between 19.8 and 604.0 mg/g. It is thus hypothesized that the combination of morphological and phytochemical screenings may be an effective methodology to characterize wild Crocus genotypes from Southern Italy, also in comparison to C. sativus (saffron).

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Over the last three decades, farming systems in Europe and Australia have seen a decline in legume plantings, leading to reduced soil carbon and fertility, and an increase in plant disease, reliance on industrial nitrogen fertilizer and herbicides. In Australia, one reason for this decline has been the movement towards sowing crops and forages into dry soil, before the opening rains, as a consequence of climate variability. This practice predicates against the survival of rhizobial inoculants, and hence generates uncertainty about legume performance. The research reported here was initiated to improve the robustness of a specific forage legume/rhizobia symbiosis to increase nitrogen fixation in low pH, infertile soils. Rhizobial strains (Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae) from Pisum sativum L. were sourced from acid soils in southern Italy and southern Australia. Strains were evaluated for N fixation on the forage legumes P. sativum, Vicia sativa and Vicia villosa, then for survival and persistence in acid soils (pHC? 4.6). Fourteen of the strains produced a higher percentage of nitrogen derived from the atmosphere (%Ndfa) compared to commercial comparator strain SU303 (

With the aim to explore the use of A. hypochondriacus seeds for animal feeding, the agronomic traits, nutrients, and bioactive compounds of four accessions with different origin (India, Nebraska, Iowa, and Pennsylvania) grown in a Mediterranean environment were studied. Proximate composition was determined using the official methods of analyses, fatty acid profile by gas chromatography, total phenolic content (TPC) and the scavenging activity (DPPH• and ABTS•+) by colorimetric method. A one-way ANOVA model was performed to determine the differences between accessions. The four A. hypochondriacus accessions showed interesting seed yield results. No significant differences were observed for crude protein and crude fiber, the oil content showed the significant highest values in the seeds from Nebraska and Pennsylvania, but their nutritional characteristics were significantly different. The accession from Nebraska showed the highest oleic and linoleic acid levels, the highest values of polyunsaturated fatty acids, the best atherogenic and thrombogenic indices and hypocholesterolemic/hypercholesterolaemic ratio, and the highest TPC content. The accession from Pennsylvania showed the highest antioxidant activity and lowest peroxidation index. On the whole, A. hypochondriacus seeds can be used as pseudo-cereal to balance the animal diet and the accession should be chosen according to the different metabolic pathways of unsaturated fatty acids in ruminant and monogastric animals.

Agronomic traits, oil content, fatty acid composition, antioxidant activity, and total phenolic content were studied on eight A. cruentus accessions cultivated in Southern Italy. A one-way ANOVA model was performed to compare accessions and the Principal Components Analysis was applied to identify patterns in our dataset and highlight similarities and differences. A. cruentus showed valuable seed yield (0.27 kg/m2, on average) comparable to the main tradition cereals used for animal feeding. Seed-oil composition showed significant differences among the accessions. Data showed a higher lipid content than most cereal grains (from 5.6 to 7.3%). Approximately 60% of fatty acids were unsaturated, linoleic fatty acid ranged from 19 to 34%, oleic acid from 29 to 36%, and alfa-linolenic fatty acid from 0.3 to 0.5%, respectively. The saturated/unsaturated fatty acid ratio ranged from 0.5 to 0.8, the hypocholesterolemic:hypercholesterolaemic ratio from 1.7 to 2.7, the Atherogenic Index from 0.38 to 0.66, the Thrombogenic Index from 0.85 to 1.48, the total phenolic content from 0.14 to 0.36 mg/g seeds, and the antioxidant activity (DPPH&bull, ) from 0.30 to 0.50. The studied seed-oil composition evidenced A. cruentus as a healthy ingredient for animal feed and consequently, as a possible substitute for traditional cereals. Accessions from Mexico and Arizona emerged for their high qualitative traits.

Cotton is one of the most important industrial crops in the world. Though widely cultivated in Sicily (Italy) in the past, cotton growth on the island has disappeared today due to a complex variety of agronomic, economic and socio-political reasons. In recent years, increased interest in natural fibers worldwide has led to a revival in cotton plants in the Mediterranean area. The aim of this paper was to assess the response of Gossypium hirsutum L. cultivars to different environments and sowing times. Elsa and Juncal were selected from the most promising cotton cultivars regarding earliness and productivity. Plants were tested with three sowing times and in two Sicilian environments. Cotton yield and yield components were significantly affected by experimental station, sowing time and cultivar. Lint yield of cultivars was 1.60 t ha&minus, 1 on average, and the highest value of 1.99 t ha&minus, 1 was obtained from an early sowing time. The three indices of agronomic earliness varied significantly based on treatments. In conclusion, the evaluation of response genotype-by-environment under different sowing times could represent a strategy to obtain optimal cotton seed and lint yields, although other general aspects, such as labor costs, land availability and capital resources, should be also considered when evaluating the reintroduction of the species in Sicily.

Four varieties of buckwheat ( Fagopyrum esculentum Moench), Aizu, Botan, Hitaci and Kitawase, were evaluated using two sowing times and two irrigation treatments in a Mediterranean environment in order to ascertain a possible adaptation of this crop to this environment. Buckwheat is cultivated in particular for the high protein content and for its good biological value compared to common cereals, and for its high levels of phenolic compounds. In addition, it is gluten-free and thus suitable for people suffering from celiac disease. Overall the 4 buckwheat varieties tested in this study showed high protein content (14%, on average), although grain yield was low (420 kg ha −1 , on average). Yield was affected by sowing time and irrigation treatment, whereas protein content was related to the variety. Low irrigation treatment (“water stress”) resulted in a lower yield (325.9 kg ha −1 ) and lower protein content (13.7%) compared to full irrigation treatment (514.7 kg ha −1 and 14.3%, respectively), but also in a higher content of phenolic compounds (4.46 vs . 2.79 mg/g). Grain yield and phenolic fingerprint of buckwheat seeds were investigated in order to establish differences and similarities related to variety, sowing time and soil water content.

Saffron is an annual plant usually grown as a perennial crop, with well-known problems, which are related to the reduction of soil fertility (mainly caused by weeds, biotic pathologies and micronutrients scarcity) that in the long run determine a dramatic yield reduction and overexploitation of the soil. In this view, crop rotations are considered the traditional antidote to the soil sickness. However, the evidence of the effects of previous crop on saffron stigma yield and corm production is slender and fragmentary. A two-year study was carried out to evaluate the effect of three different previous crops (faba bean, saffron and fallow) on saffron stigmas yield and replacement corms production. Two different corm densities (30 and 45 corms m −2 ) were also studied. Faba bean as previous crop determined the highest performance in terms of flower number (up to 400 flowers m −2 ), stigma yield (up to 2 g m −2 ) and replacement corms (up to 4.7 kg m −2 ). This paper, to our knowledge, is the first experimental based research on the effects of previous crop on stigma and corm yield of saffron.

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.), a grain legume grown in India, Pakistan and the United States, draws interest for irrigated environments in the Mediterranean areas. A limitation to widespread guar adaptation in this environment is its low capability to develop N-fixing Rhizobium nodulation. A study was conducted in South-Eastern Sicily, Italy in 2005 and 2006, to examine three levels of Rhizobium inoculation (non-inoculated, inoculated at sowing, inoculated at sowing plus at the third true leaf) and two levels of applied phosphorus fertilizer (0 and 40 kg ha−1 P). Plant height, pods per plant, seed yield, number of nodules per plant and seed galactomannan content were measured. No significant difference was found due to year of cultivation. Plant height was not significantly affected by Rhizobium or P fertilizer. Phosphorus fertilizer promoted the number of pods per plant, especially when bacteria inoculation was applied. Seed yield was significantly increased by inoculation and phosphorus levels. Inoculant caused a significant increase in seed yield (by 34%) from 2.2 t ha-1 (I0) to 3.4 t ha-1 (I2), whereas phosphorus application enhanced yields by 18% when P0 (2.7 t ha-1) were compared with P40 plots (3.3 t ha-1). Without inoculant there was no nodulation, whereas the number of nodules per plant increased to 14 in plots with the highest level of inoculation. Fertilizer P application did not affect Rhizobium nodulation. Galactomannan content was not influenced by inoculation and P fertilization, however increased seed yield resulting from inoculation and P fertilization led to increased galactomannan production per hectare.

Morpho-productive evaluation in combination with molecular studies has received great attention for their synergetic action in the characterization of plant species. Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L) Taub.) is an annual legume crop that in the last century gained great interest as an industrial crop due to the galactomannan content of its grain. Guar genotypes adapted to India and the United States have been selected, while genotypes suitable for the Mediterranean environment able to maximize seed production, are missing. In the present study valuable morpho-agronomic traits such as growth habit, pods per plant and seeds per pod were assessed and genetic traits were investigated as selection criterion for breeding purposes. Pods per plant resulted negatively associated with seeds per pod and with 1000 seed weight. Present data underline that morpho-agronomic evaluation together with molecular analysis through AFLP markers could be an appropriate approach to individuate elite lines for future breeding programs of the species. Among studied genotypes, Monument seems to show the best morpho-productive traits for cultivation in the Mediterranean environment such as a short crop cycle, an elevated height of the first fertile node, a lack of branches and a good seed production. Lewis also seems interesting, even though a little less early and with a greater number of branches, but also with a higher seed production. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Dietary partially destoned olive cake supplementation on performance, carcass traits and meat quality of intensively finished bulls was evaluated. Forty-five Limousin bulls, divided into three homogenous groups, received a diet with no supplementation (Control-CTR), 7.5% (Low Olive Cake-LOC), and 15.0% of olive cake supplementation (High Olive Cake-HOC). The trial was realized for 150 days, all bulls were individually weighed at the beginning, middle, and end of the trial, to calculate the individual average daily gain (ADG). At slaughtering, on each carcass, hot weight was recorded and, after 7 days, the pH and temperature were measured. On Longissimus lumborum muscle, color, cooking loss, and shear force of the cooked sample were determined. The chemical composition and the fatty acid content of muscle were determined. Olive cake inclusions (7.5% and 15.0%) increased (p &lt, 0.05) the body weight, ADG, slaughter traits and intramuscular fat content and influenced (p &lt, 0.05) the quality indices. The 15.0% of the inclusion reduced (p &lt, 0.05) the cooking loss and shear force, and increased the unsaturated fatty acid content. The olive cake can be considered as a functional component in beef production and, in substitution to a quote of cereals into the diet of bulls, could be an opportunity to improve agriculture sustainability.

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.) is mainly cultivated as an industrial crop due to its high-quality galactomannan gum used as a thickener, flocculant, emulsion stabilizer and gelling agent in many industrial activities. In the present study, carried out in Southern Italy, a core collection of 46 guar genotypes, collected across the natural distribution area of the species, was characterized through a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on morphological (plant, leaf, stem and branch), productive (1000-seed weight and seeds per plant) and genetic traits. Plant height ranged from 37.7 to 97.3 cm. Branch number ranged from 0 to 12; branching genotypes showed a lower height of insertion of the first cluster. Seed weight showed an average value of 40.1 g per 1000 seeds with a narrow CV (10.1%) and nine genotypes yielded more than 45 g of seeds per plant. Positive correlation was observed between seeds and clusters per plant (0.77), seeds and pods per plant (0.94) and seeds per plant and seeds per pod (0.44). The high-throughput sequencing allowed us to isolate a set (157) of nuclear microsatellite (nSSR) markers from guar. Fourteen out of 48 analyzed nSSR markers showed polymorphisms and a sizeable discrimination power (PIC = 0.399; PI = 0.380) and gene diversity (0.276

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.) is a valuable industrial crop, widely cultivated in India and Pakistan for the high galactomannan content of its endosperm. The present multi-trait characterization of 68 guar genotypes was conducted to identify an ideotype combining desirable traits suitable for cultivation in a Mediterranean climate and that allows an easy harvest. Plant height, branch number, stem diameter, length of crop cycle, number of cluster, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, 1000 seeds weight, seed production per plant, galactomannan and protein content were measured. In addition, correlations between morphological and productive traits were applied, calculating the relationships between traits, and giving biological meaning to the ideotype. To select high performance genotypes under Mediterranean climate, we mainly took into consideration non-branching (easy harvestability, uniformity of maturation) and short crop cycle genotypes with valuable productive and qualitative traits. From this viewpoint, the results showed that 17 genotypes resulted non-branching, 11 genotypes showed a short crop cycle and seven genotypes were characterized by a seed production greater than 50 g plant−1. Four of the 17 genotypes (PI 288757, PI 340263, NC70300525and PI 288745) possess all these desirable traits along with good seed production and therefore should be selected as multi-trait high performance genotypes. As far as the galactomannan and protein contents are concerned, a lower coefficient of variation emerged when compared to those of the morphological or productive traits. Correlation analysis showed that plant production was related to cluster number, number of pods per plant, seeds per pod, number of branches and length of crop cycle. Finally, an interesting negative association between galactomannan and protein content was found.

Grain legume crops play a strategic role in cropping systems around the world, but their acceptance in European agriculture is rather low, because of low yield stability. We used a dataset comprising five to eleven genotypes for each of four legume crops (field pea, lentil, faba bean and chickpea) in four dry environments (two locations by two years). We focused on ‘genotype by environment’ interactions, by using several statistical techniques, such as random models, BLUPs and redundancy analysis. The main aim was to show how these techniques and the concomitant use of yield and other phenological/morphological traits as well as environmental data can help understand which species/genotypes are most adapted to dry environments and address the possible reasons for yield instability. Our results confirmed large environmental effects on the expression of phenology and productive traits, even though a shorter duration of the vegetative phase was associated to higher yields in most species and genotypes. The use of BLUPs gave information on the most suitable genotypes for each of the studied species, targeting the traits and environmental variables which are mostly related to yield level and stability. Baccara in field pea, Pantelleria in lentil, Gemini in faba bean and PA34 in chickpea showed high correlation between yield and precocity of the flowering stage. BLUPs for genotype means across environments emphasize that the reported genotypes where characterized by a low value of stability variance that implies the ability to keep an additive relationship between genotypic and environmental effects. This could represent a strategic issue for genotype selection.

Twenty-three populations of Lotus ornithopodioides L., collected from different regions of the Mediterranean basin, were investigated for their ecological and agronomic traits in Western Australia. Great variability was found between and within populations for flowering time, forage and seed yield. Flowering time ranged between 75 and 120 days, dry matter production from 2.8 to 4.3 t ha−1 and seed yield from 284 to 684 kg ha−1. Other important traits such as non-shattering pods and hard seed were taken into account during the selection to assure an easy seed harvesting and legume persistence in the targeted environments. The high level of hard seed recorded in early winter, associated to the low seedling regeneration, indicates that L. ornithopodioides is best suited to ley cropping systems. Elite lines of L. ornithopodioides characterized by early flowering time, high seed yield and non-shattering pods were selected. Two of them, LOR02.1 and LOR03.2, showed dry matter higher than 4.0 t ha−1 and seed yield around 700 kg ha−1 resulting the lines with most potential for Mediterranean farming systems. The results encourage the exploitation of L. ornithopodioides germplasm to develop a new annual self-reseeding legume resource for Mediterranean farming systems for both forage production and crop rotation uses.

In order to evaluate the possibility of introducing saffron into a greenhouse crop cycle, in 2013-2014 the present trial was carried out in a greenhouse traditionally devoted to horticultural crops. Two treatments were studied: corm dimensions (greater and smaller than 3.0 cm) and fertilization (not fertilized and fertilized with 45 kg ha-1 of nitrogen). A late sowing (September 28) was adopted. Soil and air temperatures were recorded. Leaf number, flower number, flower calendar and stigma weight were measured. All samples were analyzed by a combination of solid phase micro extraction (SPME) and GC-FID/GC-MS. Late sowing determined a slight shift of harvest period compared to the traditional harvest in open field: stigma harvest started on November 21 and ended on December 11, for a total of 21 days. Corm dimension and fertilization greatly affected leaf number per corm and stigma yield, but not the flower calendar. The late sowing of saffron in greenhouse determined a shorter and later crop cycle and proved to better fit with the cycles of the other main horticultural crops. Volatile compounds analysis allowed us to establish that the main compound is safranal. Among the minor components are to be underlined γ-crotonolactone, and a series of cyclohexene derivatives (α-isophorone, ketoisophorone 3-cyclohexene-5,5-dimethyl-2-methylene-1-carboxyaldehyde, hydroxy isophorone) which normally accompany the safranal.

The aim of this study was to assess the productive and qualitative traits of seeds of six guar genotypes coming from India, South Africa and the USA, grown in a Mediterranean environment, both for industrial use (galactomannans) and as animal feed (guar meal). Yield of the six varieties ranged from 1.49 t ha−1 to 2.05 t ha−1. Galactomannan content reached values from 28.6 g/100 g to 34.6 g/100 g with the highest significative value exhibited by Indian genotype, Lewis and South African genotype. Galactomannan yield resulted 0.55 t ha−1, on average, with small differences among genotypes. The mean values of protein content of the guar seeds showed an average value of all the genotypes of 283 g/kg on a DM basis of 896 g/kg with the significantly highest values in Indian and South African genotypes. Lipids (on a DM basis) was of 28.3 g/kg DM on average, with the significantly highest value in South African and Indian genotypes. Crude Fibre, ranged from 107 to 122 g/kg. The fibrous fractions were on average 496 g/kg DM, 133 g/kg DM and 5.08 g/kg DM for NDF, ADF and ADL, respectively. Polyphenols ranged from 3.61 mg gallic acid/g of Matador to 6.63 mg gallic acid/g of Kinman and tannins from 2.01 mg/g of catechin equivalents of Kinman to 4.05 mg/g of catechin equivalents of South African genotype. Monument showed the highest content of n6-PUFA, whereas, the highest content of n3-PUFA was observed in Indian genotype. The ratio n3/n6 PUFA, the Atherogenic and Thrombogenic indices underline the high quality of guar oil for human and animal nutrition. This study underlines the double aptitude of guar seed of gum extraction and the by-product, assessing, respectively, its productive traits for industrial use and nutritional traits for increasing its use in feedstuff in the Mediterranean crop-livestock system. This double use represents an important added value to promote the widespread cultivation of the crop.

In a trial carried out in 2004 in inner Sicily (southern Italy), we explored saffron plants to find a relation between flowering peaks and meteorological data. Temperature and rainfall of the experimental site were recorded throughout the experimental period, as well as daily flower number and total stigma weight. Flowering lasted 24 days from November 2 to 25. Two main production peaks were detected. In both cases, this synchrony in flowering was achieved just after a considerable decrease of the minimum temperature that reached values lower than 5°C. Interesting relations between daily flowering peaks and temperature trend have been hypothesized.

Sesame seeds are an excellent food and non-food raw material, for which there is a consolidated deficit in Italy and in other European Union countries. For this reason, a 2-years experiment was conducted in Sicily to compare the agronomic performance (phenology, morphological and productive traits) and grain quality (oil and its main constituents, protein of defatted flour, fibre) of three landraces, one of Turkish origin and two Sicilian (“Ispica” and “Modica”), and two improved varieties (‘Pachequino’ and ‘Yori 77’). The landraces evidenced earliness (115 days) and the greater height of insertion of first capsule (0.52 m), whereas the variety ‘Pachequino’ was the most productive (3.5 t ha−1). Turkish and “Ispica” landraces and ‘Yori 77’ variety provided seeds with greater lipid (54 %, on average) and protein contents (44 % on defatted flour, on average). ‘Pachequino’ and both Sicilian landraces produced seeds richer in fibre fractions. As regard to oil quality, the oleic acid/linoleic acid was found balanced (about 1) for Turkish landrace, and it decreased for the other cultivars reaching the lowest value for ‘Pachequino’. “Modica” had higher quantity of unsaponifiable matter (1.98 %) in the oil, whereas ‘Yori 77’ had the maximum concentration of phytosterols (5532.8 mg kg−1). Policosanol fraction prevailed in oil of “Ispica” (205.8 mg kg−1). Moreover, there was variability in the fatty acid, sterol and policosanol compositions with differences among the cultivars. Research provide information to exploit sesame within agrosystems under Mediterranean climates, and may be a starting point for breeding activity to enhance crop productivity and grain quality.

With the aim of characterizing from a morphological and aromatic point of view, C. biflorus Mill., a trial was carried out in 2016 collecting flowers of wild C. biflorus in three sites of southern Italy (Randazzo, CT; Cesarò, ME; Samo, RC) with different altitudes (930, 970 and 1271 m a.s.l., respectively), environmental and climatic conditions. Perigone external segments, stigmas and anthers were measured and perigones, stigmas and anthers were weighed. Concerning the phytochemical investigation, we have focused our interest toward the aromatic profile of stigmas. Therefore, we have adopted the same procedure applied in the saffron analyses, using the SPME methodology combined with GC-FID and GC-MS. In the three sites, the length of perigone external segments ranged from 29.7 to 34.5 mm, stigma length from 9.7 to 11.7 mm and anthers from 10.5 to 11.7 mm. Unitary perigone dry weight ranged from 27.8 to 36.5 mg, unitary stigmas dry weight from 0.6 to 1.0 mg, while anthers from 2.7 to 4.5 mg. The heaviest stigmas were recorded in the high altitude environment, while the heaviest anthers in the intermediate environment. The analyses of the aromatic components evidenced a similar profile for the samples: safranal (25-33%), ?- isophorone (23-33%), ketoisophorone (10-14%) and 4-methylene isophorone (7- 11%). Specifically, the samples collected in Randazzo and Cesarò, two neighbouring Sicilian localities, appear similar, instead the sample collected in Samo shows some differences. This is a first report on the morphological and phytochemical analysis of this species, further analyses will be necessary to establish similarities with the saffron and other wild Crocus species.

Mediterranean forage systems suffer from limited availability of fresh forage because of water deficits and extreme temperatures. Consequently, fresh forage is unavailable for at least 6–7 months a year, and farmers must buy feed to support livestock production. With the aim of overcoming these limitations, a 2-year trial was conducted on three distinct sites in Sicily (at 10, 600 and 1200 m elevation) with thirty-four varieties of forage species belonging to nine biennial/perennial and thirteen annual species. Results showed that by integrating grasses and legumes, species from environments with different climatic conditions enable the season of forage production to be extended from mid-April to mid-November. Quality traits of forage in different areas varied in relation to species and varieties. In general, the sown-forage quality was better than in pastures and fallows in the same areas commonly used to feed animals. This also leads to a reduction in the use of supplementary feeds. Among the tested species, Lolium multiflorum and Medicago sativa emerged as the most promising for filling the forage-deficit periods, and Trifolium spp. and Vicia sativa were found to be superior for increasing forage quality. The results are discussed in the context of adapting Mediterranean forage supplies for ensuring greater sustainability of livestock production in mountain, hill and plain areas. The proposed forage chain arrangement represents part of local potential adaptation to climate limitations and climate change.

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) is a summer, annual, legume crop primarily grown as an industrial crop for the galactomannans content of its seeds. Guar is grown in India, Pakistan and USA, but no cultivation has of yet been established in a Mediterranean environment. In the last few years, world demand for guar gum has considerably grown and its price has increased. In order to explore the possibility of extending guar cultivation into a Mediterranean environment, a 2-year experiment was carried out in Southern Italy with the aim of evaluating the seed yield, protein and galactomannan content as affected by two sowing times (early and late) and four different varieties. Guar seed was produced with an average of 2.650 m3 ha−1 of water, which is a volume compatible with many semiarid areas. Lewis and Santa Cruz cultivars proved to be the most productive varieties (2.5 t ha−1) and the early sowing time resulted in higher yields compared to the later one (2.3 t ha−1 vs. 2.1 t ha−1). Protein content was variable among varieties and galactomannan content was higher in the second sowing time, the highest protein and gum yield was obtained in the early sowing due to higher seed yield by Lewis and Santa Cruz. Galactomannans yield was mainly related to pods per plant and seed yield, thus management techniques and genetic improvement of guar for gum production should be addressed to maximize the number of pods per plant. In general, guar seed and gum yield support the hypothesis that the Southern European Mediterranean environment is a potentially valuable area for guar cultivation.

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) is an interesting summer legume multipurpose crop used for the extraction of seed gum, due to its galactomannan content, and the high-protein by-product, (germ and hull) used for animal feed. The aim of this study was to assess qualitative traits of degummed seeds, named guar meal, of six guar varieties from India, South Africa and USA, grown in a Mediterranean environment (Sicily, Southern Italy), in order to explore their suitability for livestock, and comparing them with the marketed Indian products of guar meals, Churi and Korma. After harvest, seeds were manually degummed and proximate composition was analysed using the official method of analyses, total phenols and tannins by UV spectrophotometry and fatty acids by GC-FID. Qualitative profile of degummed guar seeds (DGS) was significantly (p

Summary In order to promote the use of lupin in pig nutrition, in this research the nutritional characteristics (i.e. dietary fibre, alkaloid and fatty acid profile) and the in vitro gas production of 12 lupin varieties grown in the Mediterranean basin and belonging to three lupin species (Lupinus albus, Lupinus angustifolius and Lupinus luteus) were assessed. Four varieties of L. albus (Asfer, Lublanc, Lutteur and Multitalia) were grown in South Campania. Three varieties of L. luteus (Dukat, Mister and Taper), three of L. angustifolius (Jindalee, Sonet and Wonga) and two of L. albus (Rosetta and Luxor) were grown in Eastern Sicily. Lupinus albus varieties showed interesting nutritional and dietetic characteristics (i.e. high protein and low fibre content); the lipid fraction, rather elevated, is well represented by monounsaturated fatty acids (544 g/kg), whereas saturated fatty acids (SFAs) are less represented (167 g/kg) and the n-3/n-6 ratio (0.510) is the most favourable. Lupinus luteus varieties presented the most remarkable dietetic aspects, in terms of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content (569 g/kg), n-6 PUFA series (490 g/kg), UFA/SFA (5.24) and PUFA/SFA (3.56) ratios and atherogenic (0.059) and thrombogenic (0.100) indices and very low alkaloid content (1.07 mg per 100 g). Lupinus angustifolius varieties showed the least interesting nutritional and dietetic characteristics: low protein and fat content, high fibre level, high SFA amount (248 g/kg) and the lowest favourable nutritional indices (IA: 0.164 and IT: 0.334). Regarding the fermentation process, in L. albus, the tendency to increase the rate of gas production during the early stages of fermentation suggests that the high presence of alkaloids did not affect the in vitro degradability, production of short-chain fatty acids and fermentation process, probably due to their concentration and/or water solubility. Lupinus angustifolius and L. luteus showed intermediate and slightly worse in vitro fermentation patterns respectively. From a nutritional and dietetic point of view, lupin may represent an interesting alternative to soya bean in pig feeding.

Due to the high content of galactomannans extractable from the endosperm, guar or cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub), is always more frequently cultivated as a grain crop. Guar galactomannans are a source of hydrocolloid able to form a thick solution even in cold water in low concentrations. For this reason, in the last few years the demand for guar gum has greatly increased both for the food and the oil industry. Guar seed accessions identification is quite difficult, since American and Indian varieties and unlabelled genotypes show similar phenotypic seed traits, but very different agronomic value. Eight guar accessions with different origins have been cultivated in a Mediterranean environment and grain yield and galactomannans enzymatic determination have been carried out. The data of 137 morpho-colorimetric quantitative variables were measured, on each seed, by image analysis techniques and analysed applying a stepwise Linear Discriminant Analysis. This procedure allowed us to implement an identification grading system able to discriminate among varieties, with an overall performance of 92.2%. With this work it has been proved that an objective, repeatable and non-destructive method, based on seed phenotypic characterization can be effectively applied also to identify and discriminate C. tetragonoloba accessions. Moreover, for the first time, many strong and positive correlations were found between the galactomannans content and the size descriptive variables measured on seeds, allowing an easy procedure for the determination and comparison of seed galactomannans content. This procedure could become a useful tool for researchers and stakeholders.

Experiments on redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) were conducted to investigate whether the germinative response to environmental conditions is affected by the time of seed set. Seeds were collected in the same field (Sicily, Southern Italy) in May, July and October; each lot was dry-stored from 15 to 400 days after harvest (DAH) and submitted to germination assays from 15 to 40°C, both in continuous darkness (D) and in alternate light/darkness regime (L/D). For the three lots, over 15 DAH, the response to temperature and light regime was strongly affected by harvesting time. Seeds set in May, negatively affected by L/D, showed a high germination capability (>80%) at 95 DAH from 25 to 40°C. Seeds set in July were favoured by L/D and required at least 170 DAH to reach 80% germination capability. Seeds set in October were also favoured by L/D and gave a good germination capability only at 300 and 400 DAH. These results prove that seed germination behaviour in redroot pigweed is not independent of t...

Field surveys were carried out in the Catania plain (eastern Sicily, Italy) on winter–spring weed communities in citrus groves, an economical and traditional crop of the Mediterranean area. The aim of this study was to define species–area relationships and to derive information on the minimum sampling area in citrus groves, taking into consideration the ecological, botanical and agronomical implications. Weed flora was composed of 63 taxa belonging to 25 botanical families (42% of taxa included in the families Poaceae, Asteraceae and Brassicaceae). The dominance of therophytes and species with a wide distribution was related to the high degree of artificiality induced by human pressure. The species richness per survey was rather low, ranging from 8 to 22 species, in a surface area of 256 m2. Species–area analyses showed that the minimum sampling area that fully expressed the specific characteristics of plant communities in these citrus groves ranged from 33 to 56 m2. As a result, this methodology can be a...

Scorpiurus subvillosus L., wide spread in pastures of Mediterranean basin, is disappearing in the native pastures of the Hyblean plateau (Sicily, southern Italy), because of overgrazing and intensive management techniques. Moreover, it exhibits seed coat dormancy, which delays and reduces germination preventing its diffusion. This paper represents a first attempt in order to investigate changing in germination determined by storage time and temperature on seeds of two populations of S. subvillosus. Germination of S.␣subvillosus seeds was tested in relation to four storage time (30, 130, 200 and 360 days after harvest (DAH)), eight constant temperatures (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40°C) and two populations of different provenience (30 and 600 m above mean sea level). The experiments were conducted either on scarified and unscarified seeds. In S. subvillosus the failure of germination under favourable conditions must be attributed␣only to seed coat, since seed scarification enhanced germination percentage with values up to 100% at almost all tested temperatures. In both treatments, but with a grater incidence in unscarified, seed germination increased gradually as temperature raised, peaking at 20–25°C, then declined with further increases of temperatures. At 40°C no germination occurred. Storage time induced a softening effect, which is somewhat limited by the natural ageing of seeds occurring from about 6 months after harvest.

Spontaneous populations of Silybum marianum L. of three environments were evaluated for their biological and productive traits. Despite the different environmental conditions of the studied sites (hill and plane), there was a general uniformity in the main observed plant traits. Hilly environments produced a higher number of secondary flower heads compared with the plane site. Seeds in the secondary flower heads had a conspicuously lower weight (−56%) when compared to the primary ones. Plant height and height of the first branch insertion was positively related, directly or indirectly, to the seed yield. A first approach for the definition of an ideotype is proposed.

Guar ( Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) is a spring-summer legume with a high drought tolerance, grown mainly in India, Pakistan, United States and South Africa, whose seeds contain galactomannans. These can be used as an emollient, softening or thickening agent, a flocculant, as well as in hydraulic fracturing, and as a stabiliser in a wide range of other industrial activities: the production of cosmetics, paper, textiles, paints and varnishes, detergents, in construction, and in food products (jams, jellies, yogurt, mayonnaise, ketchup, diet foods, foods for coeliacs, etc .). In the light of a growing industrial demand for guar flour, in May 2012 a trial was carried out in southern Italy. Seeds from South Africa were sown in large plots on two farms with different soil characteristics. The crop showed yields varying between 1.8 and 2.2 t ha –1 . Agronomic results were then used to conduct an integrated sustainability analysis using the production cost analysis and the life cycle assessment, in order to assess, respectively, the cost-effectiveness and the environmental impact of the production process of guar in a Mediterranean environment. Compared to other competitive crops, guar, with less than 3000 kg of CO 2 eq. emissions, can be considered as a low-emission crop. Given the above-mentioned yield, guar growing is economically sustainable when the purchase price of seeds is not less than 0.96 € kg –1 .