Poorly crystalline iron and aluminium oxides contribute to the carbon saturation and sorption of dissolved organic carbon in the soil

Soil carbon (C) saturation implies an upper limit to a soil's capacity to store C depending on the contents of silt + clay and poorly crystalline Fe and Al oxides. We hypothesized that the poorly crystalline Fe and Al oxides in silt + clay fraction increased the C saturation and thus reduced the capacity of the soil to sorb additional C input. To test the hypothesis, we studied the sorption of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) on silt + clay fractions (<53 µm) of highly weathered oxic soils, collected from three different land uses (i.e., improved pasture, cropping and forest). Soils with high carbon saturation desorbed 38% more C than soils with low C saturation upon addition of DOC, whereas adsorption of DOC was only observed at higher concentration (>15 g kg^?1). While high Al oxide concentration significantly increased both the saturation and desorption of DOC, the high Fe oxide concentration significantly increased the desorption of DOC, supporting the proposition that both oxides have influence on the DOC sorption in soil. Our findings provide a new insight into the chemical control of stabilization and destabilization of DOC in soil.     

Effect of farm management on topsoil organic carbon and aggregate stability in water: A case study from Southwest England,UK

There are few reliable data sets to inspire confidence in policymakers that soil organic carbon (SOC) can be measured on farms. We worked with farmers in the Tamar Valley region of southwest England to select sampling sites under similar conditions (soil type, aspect and slope) and management types. Topsoils (2–15 cm) were sampled in autumn 2015, and percentage soil organic matter (%SOM) was determined by loss on ignition and used to calculate %SOC. We also used the stability of macroaggregates in cold water (WSA) (‘soil slaking’) as a measure of ‘soil health’ and investigated its relationship with SOC in the clay‐rich soils. %SOM was significantly different between management types in the order woodland (11.1%) = permanent pasture (9.5%) > ley‐arable rotation (7.7%) = arable (7.3%). This related directly to SOC stocks that were larger in fields under permanent pasture and woodland compared with those under arable or ley‐arable rotation whether corrected for clay content (F = 8.500, p < .0001) or not (F = 8.516, p < .0001). WSA scores were strongly correlated with SOC content whether corrected for clay content (SOC_adj R² = .571, p < .0001) or not (SOC_unadj R² = 0.490, p = .002). Time since tillage controlled SOC stocks and WSA scores, accounting for 75.5% and 51.3% of the total variation, respectively. We conclude that (1) SOC can be reliably measured in farmed soils using accepted protocols and related to land management and (2) WSA scores can be rapidly measured in clay soils and related to SOC stocks and soil management.     

筇竹种子发芽条件及筇竹笋矿质元素分析

筇竹为珍稀笋材两用混生竹,具有较高的经济价值。本研究对筇竹种子进行不同温度和光照条件的萌发实验,并培育实生苗发笋后,利用空气-乙炔火焰原子吸收光谱法测定了3个不同出土高度(2 cm,5 cm,8 cm)的筇竹笋中8种矿质元素的含量。实验结果显示,最适宜筇竹种子萌发的条件是20℃,12 h光照/12 h黑暗,但25℃和暗处理更能促进胚根伸长。不同生长时期的筇竹笋钾含量丰富(6521.13~7405.24 mg·kg-1),其次是钠(625.56~814.83 mg·kg-1),铜含量最低(6.86~9.62 mg·kg-1)。筇竹笋的钾、钠含量随高度的增高逐渐下降,而钙、铁、铜、锰含量逐渐升高,锌含量变化呈中峰优势,镁含量基本保持不变。研究为筇竹种子萌发及笋品质提升提供了参考。     

Banishing barberry: The history of Berberis vulgaris prevalence and wheat stem rust incidence across Britain

Wheat stem rust, caused by the fungus Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt), is a notoriously damaging disease of wheat and barley. Pgt requires two hosts to complete its lifecycle; undergoing asexual reproduction on cereal crops and completing sexual reproduction on Berberis spp. The latter stage of its lifecycle is of particular importance in temperate regions such as western Europe, where asexual urediniospores are unable to survive cold winter weather. In the past, the crucial role of Berberis in the lifecycle of stem rust led to intensive eradication campaigns, initially carried out by farmers in the face of hostile scientific opinion. In the United Kingdom, common barberry (Berberis vulgaris) is today a relatively rare plant. Stem rust is, however, currently experiencing a resurgence; at the same time, there has been a general increase in the prevalence of barberry and an upsurge in its planting which, in the United Kingdom, is associated with attempts to encourage the endangered barberry carpet moth (Pareulype berberata). This article situates current developments within a broader chronological framework, examining changing attitudes towards barberry and rust in England in the past and the history of the plant's use and cultivation. It assesses how widespread B. vulgaris really was in the environment historically, and thus the scale of its eradication. We suggest that Berberis was never widely established as an archaeophyte in the United Kingdom. Current attempts to re-establish it are based on a misunderstanding of the plant's historical status and could potentially pose a serious threat to food security.     

SnToxA,SnTox1, and SnTox3 originated in Parastagonospora nodorum in the Fertile Crescent

The centre of origin of the globally distributed wheat pathogen Parastagonospora nodorum has remained uncertain because only a small number of isolates from the Fertile Crescent were included in earlier population genetic and phylogeographic studies. We isolated and genetically analysed 193 P. nodorum strains from three naturally infected wheat fields distributed across Iran using 11 neutral microsatellite loci. Compared to previous studies that included populations from North America, Europe, Africa, Australia, and China, the populations from Iran had the highest genetic diversity globally and also exhibited greater population structure over smaller spatial scales, patterns typically associated with the centre of origin of a species. Genes encoding the necrotrophic effectors SnToxA, SnTox1, and SnTox3 were found at a high frequency in the Iranian population. By sequencing 96 randomly chosen Iranian strains, we detected new alleles for all three effector genes. Analysis of allele diversity showed that all three effector genes had higher diversity in Iran than in any population included in previous studies, with Iran acting as a hub for the effector diversity that was found in other global populations. Taken together, these findings support the hypothesis that P. nodorum originated either within or nearby the Fertile Crescent with a genome that already encoded all three necrotrophic effectors during its emergence as a pathogen on wheat. Our findings also suggest that P. nodorum was the original source of the ToxA genes discovered in the wheat pathogens Phaeosphaeria avenaria f. sp. tritici 1, Pyrenophora tritici-repentis, and Bipolaris sorokiniana.     

Genetic variation of seedling traits responded to brassinosteroid and gibberellin inhibitors in maize (Zea mays) doubled haploid lines

The purpose of this study was to examine the genotypic variation in maize doubled haploid (DH) lines response to brassinosteroid and gibberellin inhibitors. Plant responses to hormone inhibitors were determined in growth chamber experiments using germination paper for three different seedling treatments: application of propiconazole (Pcz), uniconazole (Ucz) or water (control). Mesocotyl length (ML) was more sensitive to hormone inhibitors, especially to the Ucz treatment, than other seedling traits. ML was significantly correlated with other traits in the Ucz treatment. All the seedling traits showed moderate-to-high broad sense heritability values, ranging from 0.39 to 0.82. The Euclidian genetic distances of inbred line pairs ranged from 1.27 to 19.94, indicating there was a high level of variability across the maize DH lines used in this study. DH lines with extreme MLs were identified, which can provide valuable breeding resources for improving abiotic stress tolerance, and for further genetic studies.     

残塬沟壑区果园复合种植对土壤动物群落特征的影响

为了解苹果复合种植即果-蔬[MB]、果-草[MH]、果-荒[MW]、果-粮[MZ]模式下土壤动物群落结构特征,采用手拣法和改良干、湿生漏斗法,对黄土残塬沟壑区苹果园4种复合种植模式下的土壤动物群落组成及特征进行调查研究。4种模式下共分离得到土壤动物57.33百只/m~2,隶属4门11纲23目42个类群。4种复合种植模式下土壤动物个体密度和类群数的垂直分布特征表现出明显的表聚特征,水平分布特征表现为果-草[MH]果-蔬[MB]果-荒[MW]≥果-粮[MZ]。果-草[MH]复合种植模式下土壤动物的多样性指数、均匀度指数及丰富度指数最高,优势度指数最低,表明4种复合种植模式对果园土壤动物类群多样性的影响呈现不同的特征。研究结果可为黄土残塬沟壑区苹果果园生物多样性保护提供土壤动物生态学依据。     

覆盖作物翻压对华北平原春玉米产量和土壤养分的影响

冬季覆盖作物-春玉米种植模式是减缓华北平原冬小麦减少导致的耕地裸露及其环境影响的新型农业生产方式,但其翻压后对华北平原下一季春玉米生长季作物产量和土壤养分及微生物学性质的影响研究鲜见。本研究以华北平原冬闲田-玉米(WFM)为对照,设置毛叶苕子-玉米(VrM)、二月兰-玉米(OvM)以及冬油菜-玉米(BcM)3个覆盖作物处理,通过盆栽试验研究了冬季种植覆盖作物翻压对玉米生长季土壤理化性质、微生物量和玉米生长特性的影响。结果表明:(1)翻压覆盖作物显著提高了玉米产量以及作物养分吸收量。与WFM处理相比,OvM处理秸秆产量和籽粒产量提高幅度最大,分别为33.3%和35.5%(P0.05);BcM处理地上部氮、磷、钾和地下部磷素吸收量显著提高(P0.05),分别为30.7%、74.7%、57.6%和171.4%。(2)翻压覆盖作物能显著提高0～10和10～20 cm土层有机质、碱解氮、有效磷、速效钾、全氮和全钾含量(P0.05)。此外,翻压覆盖作物能显著降低玉米幼苗期土壤NH_4~+-N和NO_3~--N含量(P0.05),范围为0.50～3.52和21.40～33.13mg·kg~(-1)。(3)在玉米的不同生育期,覆盖作物翻压处理的SMBC、SMBN和SMBP均显著高于冬闲处理(P0.05)。综合翻压覆盖作物对华北平原玉米产量及土壤理化性质和微生物量含量的影响,华北平原冬油菜-玉米和二月兰-玉米轮作模式效果较好。     

马铃薯细菌多样性解析及促生高产 IAA菌株的筛选

采用 3种不同的培养基从马铃薯根际土壤和叶片中共分离出 78株细菌，优势菌属是 Pantoea，占菌株总数的 55.13%。马铃薯根际土采用 R2A培养基(27株优势菌，13个菌属)分离的细菌多样性相对较好，阿须贝培养基(31株优势菌，9个菌属)次之，土壤浸提液培养基(1株优势菌，1个菌属)最少；马铃薯叶片内生菌用阿须贝培养基(19株优势菌，3个菌属)分离的细菌多样性较差。采用 Salkowski比色液显色法定量测定菌株产 IAA能力，结果表明有 58株细菌具有分泌 IAA的能力，占测定菌株总数的 74.36%，从马铃薯根际土(42株优势菌，13个菌属)筛选的产 IAA菌数量及细菌多样性均高于马铃薯叶片内生菌(16株优势菌，2个菌属)。根据菌株产IAA能力强弱和分离部位及分离培养基的差异，选择 7株产 IAA菌进行促生特性和马铃薯盆栽幼苗促生能力等研究，结果显示:有 6株产 IAA菌具有 ACC脱氨酶能力，1株产 IAA菌具有溶解无机磷能力，2株产 IAA菌具有溶解有机磷能力；两轮温室促生实验结果显示，菌株 Pantoeasp.MLS-34-25对马铃薯幼苗具有明显的促生作用，是生产微生物肥料的潜在菌种。