Planted conifer seedling growth under two soil thermal regimes in high-elevation forest openings in interior British Columbia

A field trial was conducted investigating the single season growth response of 1+0 313 PSB Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud.) seedlings planted into two different soil thermal regimes at three high-elevation locations spanning 200 km in the Engelmann Spruce-Subalpine Fir (ESSF) biogeoclimatic zone in the Cariboo Mountains of central British Columbia. Temperature treatments represented the extremes of soil temperature commonly found in high-elevation clear-cuts. A warm soil treatment (clear day, mid-afternoon soil temperature in mid-summer of 18 to 25 °C at –10 cm) consisting of a bare mineral soil hummock (average dimensions of 100 cm × 100 cm × 40 cm) was contrasted with a cool soil treatment (clear day, mid-afternoon soil temperature in mid-summer of 10 to 13 °C at –10 cm) comprised of organic forest floor overlying mineral soil. By the end of the growing season, seedlings of both species planted into the warm treatment generally exhibited greater root, stem, foliage, and total seedling biomass than cool treatment seedlings. Measurements of root growth at 30, 60, and 90 days after planting showed that total root number and total root length were consistently greater for warm treatment seedlings than for cool treatment seedlings. Root growth was greater from the bottom rather than from the side of the root plug for all seedlings. These results suggest that the effect of low soil temperatures on outplanted styroblock conifer seedlings is pronounced and may be limiting growth performance in high-elevation plantations in British Columbia. We recommend silvicultural treatments that secure natural regeneration, ensure that warmer microsites are always planted, and utilize seedling stocktypes able to make rapid lateral root growth into warmer surface organic horizons.     

神农架地区珍衡植物沿河岸带的分布格局

Due to the importance of riparian zone in maintaining and protecting regional biodiversity, increasingly more ecologists paid their attentions to riparian zone and had been aware of the important effects of riparian zone in basic study and practical management. In this study, 42 sampling belts (10 m×100m) parallel to the bank of Xiangxi River at different elevations in Shennongjia Area were selected to investigate the riparian vegetation and rare plants. 14 species of rare plants were found distributing in riparian zone, accounting for 42.4% of the total rare plant species in Shennongjia Area. The main distribution range of the 14 rare plant species was the evergreen and deciduous mixed broadleaved forest at elevation of 1200–1800 m, where, species diversity of plant community was the maximum at the moderate elevation. The analysis of TWINSPAN divided the 14 rare species into 3 groups against the elevation, namely low elevation species group, moderate elevation species group, and high elevation species group. The analysis of DCA ordination showed similar results to that of TWINSPAN. In the paper, the authors discussed the reasons forming the distribution pattern of rare plant species, and pointed out that the important function of riparian zone on rare plant species protection. Foundation item: This project was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC39970123), and Changbai Mountain Open Research Station, Chinese Acadamy of Science. Biography: JIANG Ming-xi (1965-), male, associate professor in Wuhan Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430074, P. R. China Responsible editor: Chai Ruihai     

Past, present and future criteria to breed crops for water-limited environments in West Africa

Asia's Green Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s has largely bypassed West Africa, and “modern” (high-yielding, input responsive) germplasm for staple crops has found comparatively little adoption, except for systems that are have good access to markets and sufficient water resources. It is unlikely, however, that breeding objectives conserving traditional crop characteristics as found in extensive systems would have been more successful. The authors identify systems caught in the agricultural transition from subsistence to intensified, market-oriented production as the most important target for crop improvement, and provide examples of new breeding objectives for cowpea, sorghum and upland rice. In each of these cases, breeders, with the help of physiologists, have developed innovative plant-type concepts that combine improved yield potential and input responsiveness with specific traditional crop characteristics that remain essential during the agricultural transition. In the case of cowpea, dual-purpose varieties were developed that produce a good grain yield due to an erect plant habit, then produce new leaves enabling a second harvest of green foliage. For upland rice systems that are limited by labour (mainly needed to control weeds that abound due to shortened fallow periods), a weed competitive plant type was developed from Oryza sativa × Oryza glaberrima crosses. Lastly, sorghum breeders who had previously deselected photoperiod sensitivity are now re-inserting sensitivity into plants having “modern” architecture, in order to allow for flexible sowing dates while maintaining an agro-ecologically optimal time of flowering near the end of the wet season. The ecophysiological basis of these plant types, their place in current and future cropping systems, as well as the problem of under-funding for their realisation, are discussed.     

使用迭代重加权最小二乘法求解平面度误差

提出了几何误差评定的迭代重加权最小二乘（IRLS-Iterative Reweighted Least Squares)算法。该算法采用一个迭代过程求解一系列加权最小二乘问题，并在每一步迭代中按照一定的规则对权系数进行调整，使其逐步逼近最优拉格朗日乘子。对于用CMM(坐标测量机)和其他设备得到的数据，可得到平面度误差的精确值。     

吴起县"果用型"沙棘林分改造技术

1998年以来,吴起县共在退耕地营造沙棘林12.53万hm2,人均1hm2,吴起也成为全国沙棘种植面积最大的县。但退耕8年后,农民的生计如何解决,是一个迫切需要回答的问题。本文对“果用型”沙棘林分改造技术进行了一些探讨,提出对退耕地中条件较好的4万hm2雌株沙棘林,在保证密度、不破坏地被物、不引起水土流失的前提下,进行适度改造,以形成良好的结果冠形,增加结实量,借此增加农民的采果叶收入,提高其种植、管护、经营沙棘林的积极性,从而实现生态、经济“双盈”的目标。     

农田优化灌溉动态管理基本程序与方法研究

从土壤———作物———大气连续体角度出发 ,利用田间试验资料和气象资料 ,分析了影响优化灌溉方案制定的有关因子 ,确定出春小麦、春玉米不同生长阶段土壤水分控制下限标准 ;在土壤水分平衡理论的基础上 ,建立了时域滚动预报灌溉日期的方法 ;并以春小麦、春玉米农田为例进行了检验 ,结果比较理想     

Deficit irrigation based on drought tolerance and root signalling in potatoes and tomatoes

Agriculture is a big consumer of fresh water in competition with other sectors of the society. Within the EU-project SAFIR new water-saving irrigation strategies were developed based on pot, semi-field and field experiments with potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.), fresh tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) and processing tomatoes as model plants. From the pot and semi-field experiments an ABA production model was developed for potatoes to optimize the ABA signalling; this was obtained by modelling the optimal level of soil drying for ABA production before re-irrigation in a crop growth model. The field irrigation guidelines were developed under temperate (Denmark), Mediterranean (Greece, Italy) and continental (Serbia, China) climatic conditions during summer. The field investigations on processing tomatoes were undertaken only in the Po valley (North Italy) on fine, textured soil. The investigations from several studies showed that gradual soil drying imposed by deficit irrigation (DI) or partial root zone drying irrigation (PRD) induced hydraulic and chemical signals from the root system resulting in partial stomatal closure, an increase in photosynthetic water use efficiency, and a slight reduction in top vegetative growth. Further PRD increased N-mineralization significantly beyond that from DI, causing a stay-green effect late in the growing season. In field potato and tomato experiments the water-saving irrigation strategies DI and PRD were able to save about 20-30% of the water used in fully irrigated plants. PRD increased marketable yield in potatoes significantly by 15% due to improved tuber size distribution. PRD increased antioxidant content significantly by approximately 10% in both potatoes and fresh tomatoes. Under a high temperature regime, full irrigation (FI) should be undertaken, as was clear from field observations in tomatoes. For tomatoes full irrigation should be undertaken for cooling effects when the night/day average temperature >26.5 °C or when air temperature >40 °C to avoid flower-dropping. The temperature threshold for potatoes is not clear. From three-year field drip irrigation experiments we found that under the establishment phase, both potatoes and tomatoes should be fully irrigated; however, during the later phases deficit irrigation might be applied as outlined below without causing significant yield reduction:

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Potatoes

°

After the end of tuber initiation, DI or PRD is applied at 70% of FI. During the last 14 days of the growth period, DI or PRD is applied at 50% of FI.

•

Fresh tomatoes

°

From the moment the 1st truce is developed, DI is applied at 85-80% of FI for two weeks. In the middle period, DI or PRD is applied at 70% of FI. During the last 14 days of the growth period, DI or PRD is applied at 50% of FI.

•

Processing tomatoes

°

From transplanting to fruit setting at 4th-5th cluster, the PRD and DI threshold for re-irrigation is when the plant-available soil water content (ASWC) equals 0.7 (soil water potential, Ψ_soil = −90 kPa). During the late fruit development/ripening stage, 10% of red fruits, the threshold for re-irrigation for DI is when ASWC = 0.5 (Ψ_soil = −185 kPa) and for PRD when ASWC (dry side) = 0.4 (Ψ_{soil, dry side} = −270 kPa).

The findings during the SAFIR project might be used as a framework for implementing water-saving deficit irrigation under different local soil and climatic conditions.     

An approach for precision farming under pivot irrigation system using remote sensing and GIS techniques

The current work is aimed to realizing land and water use efficiency and determining the profitability of precision farming economically and environmentally. The studied area is represented by an experimental pivot irrigation field cultivated with maize in Ismailia province, Egypt. Two field practices were carried out during the successive summer growing seasons (2008 and 2009) to study the response of maize plants single hybrid 10 (S.H.10) to traditional and precision farming practices. Traditional farming (TF) as handled by the farm workers were observed and noted carefully. On the other hand precision farming (PF) practices included field scouting, grid soil sampling, variable rate technology and its applications. After applying PF a dramatic change in management zones was noticed and three management zones (of total four) were merged to be more homogenous representing 84.3% of the pivot irrigation field.Under PF Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System techniques have played a vital role in the variable rate applications that were defined due to management zones requirements. Fertilizers were added in variable rates, so that rationalization of fertilizers saved 23.566 tonnes/experimental pivot area. Natural drainage system was improved by designing vertical holes to break down massive soil layers and to leach excessive salts. Crop water requirements were determined in variable rate according to the actual plant requirements using SEBAL model with the aid of FAO Cropwat model. Irrigation schedule of maize was adopted considering soil water retention, depletion, gross and net irrigation saving an amount of water equal to 93,718 m³ in the pivot irrigation field (153.79 acre). However costs of applying PF were much higher than TF, the economic profitability (returns-costs) achieved remarkable increase of 29.89% as a result of crop yield increment by 1000, 2100, 800 and 200 kg/acre in the management zones 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Finally applying adequate amounts of fertilizers beside water control the environmental hazards was reduced to the acceptable limits.     

内蒙古河套灌区隆胜节水农业示范区水盐动态分析

通过水管部门组织科技人员对河套灌区调研为基础,以农业综合节水为目的,在灌区的中游永济灌域隆胜乡境内建设了节水农业示范区,面积为0.28万hm2.节水农业改造工程主要措施:渠道防渗衬砌、平地缩块.节水农业改造工程2002年竣工后,在运行中监测了3年,得出灌溉水量平均减少了12.3%;对示范区水盐动态进行了分析.     

乐昌峡水利枢纽工程右岸坝肩边坡变形稳定分析

乐昌峡水利枢纽右岸高边坡风化层深厚,岩石强度弱,大坝右岸坝肩开挖后,将形成约215m的开挖边坡,边坡处于降雨强度大的地区,在施工期边坡开挖过程中的变形稳定,直接影响到碾压混凝土大坝的施工工期,十分关键.为了验算边坡开挖中和开挖后的稳定性,首先采用有限元法,对边坡开挖过程进行模拟,给出边坡的变形、屈服区等应力应变情况,利用强度折减法得到边坡的抗滑稳定安全系数,其次,用刚体极限平衡法计算安全系数,并与有限元的计算结果进行对比分析.在缺少渗流基本资料情况下,对深厚风化层的稳定状态,在极限平衡分析中,进行受降雨影响下的敏感性分析.最后对该工程提出加强观测和排水等措施,对边坡的稳定具有指导意义.