Farms in the black forest of Baden-Württemberg: A historical review

Today the Black Forest is an internationally renowned tourist region in Germany. For centuries the Black Forest remained as a low mountain range regarded as not suitable for settlement due to its unfavourable climatic conditions and difficult terrain. Clearing the dense forests and settlement therefore started at a historically late stage compared to other regions of Germany, about 1000 years ago. Due to the special conditions in this area, the structure of the settlement had to be quite different to those landscapes with more favourable conditions for agriculture. A single-farm settlement developed, farms situated 200 to 400 m away from each other, surrounded by meadows, agricultural land and forests and owned by the farmer’s family. This structure has remained in some areas until today; in other areas different types of settlement took place, and great changes occurred during history. A special type of agroforestry — a slash-and-burn-management of forests — also took place 150 to 200 years ago.     

Konkurrenzerscheinugen in Parasitenkomplexen als Problem der Biologischen Schädlinfbekämpfung

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Microclimate within beech stands—part II: thermal conditions

Within the framework of an interdisciplinary project on the effects of climate and forest management on beech-dominated deciduous forests (Swabian Jura, south-western Germany), forest meteorological investigations are carried out to analyse the influences of exposure and canopy density on the microclimate within various beech stands (Fagus sylvatica L.). This second paper of the series Microclimate within beech stands focuses on the thermal conditions that exist mainly in the near-surface layer at different test plots. They were analysed by air temperature, T_a, (at 1.5 m a.g.l) and soil temperature, T_s, at six depths measured continuously in the period 1999–2003. The main results can be summarized as follows. (1) The thermal situation within the beech stands described by T_a depended primarily on the turbulent air-mass exchange conditions which were based on the slope-specific energy balance of the forest floor and advective heat fluxes. (2) The thermal situation within the soil described by T_s at 3 and 20 cm depth was governed by the molecular heat transport. Therefore, the heating and cooling rates of T_s were always lower than for T_a. Higher T_a and T_s values for the test plots on the SW slope showed that the thermal conditions within the beech stands depended primarily on the exposure. (3) Based on slope-specific differences of daily extremes of T_a and T_s at 3 cm depth between the silviculturally treated and control plots, the influence of the more pronounced height growth of the understorey vegetation under the near-surface thermal conditions could be clearly verified for the NE slope.Abbreviations PAR Photosynthetically active radiation - PAI Plant area index - LAI Leaf area index     

Impact of arbuscular mycorrhiza on the St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) wilt disease induced by Colletotrichum cf. gloeosporioides

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The importance of herbal plants is evident in the prevalent use as flavoring ingredients in food. However, meeting the growing demand for organic grown...     

Biotechnische Regulierung der Kohlmottenschildlaus in Kohlgem��se �C Sachstand und Perspektiven

The cabbage whitefly,Aleyrodes proletella, has developed to a key pest in brassica vegetable crops throughout Germany. In a 3-year project we investigated a biotechnical approach employing netting (0.8?×?0.8 mm meshsize) in combination with the native parasitoidEncarsia tricolor in an inoculative-inundative approach in organic Brussels sprouts under field conditions. In small scale plot experiments continuous netting from transplanting in May till October alone reduced whitefly larval densities by 77 % at peak infestation in all years. Remaining whitefly infestation under net was associated with the necessity of temporary net removal for the purpose of mechanical weeding, which caused primary whitefly infestation. Release of mass rearedE. tricolour under net at the first signs of larval infestation significantly increasedA. proletella-parasitation and reduced infestation compared to netted controls without release. Furthermore, at highest dosage in 2009,E. tricolor had a significant enhancing effect on raw yield and the quality level of marketable yield. Additional on-farm experiments without netting in 2008 and 2009 confirmed the control potential ofE. tricolor. Although the most important project mile stones have been achieved, namely (a)E. tricolour-establishment under net and in the open field, (b) enhanced parasitation corresponding with pest density decline and (c) a positive impact on yield and quality parameters, further research will be necessary. The focus should be on the initial infestation period, optimizing the timing, frequency and required dosage.     

Experiences in Collecting Data on Farm Forest Enterprises over More than Three Decades

This paper documents the development of the Accountancy Network in farm and small-scale forests in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, from its inception until today. The main emphasis of the paper is to describe the experiences stemming from the establishment of the network and running it for more than 30 years. The paper discusses the historical developments and their motivations. It points out the positive and negative factors which influenced the development. Statistical and accounting issues are described as examples of conflicts between scientific exactness and practicability and the respective solutions are presented. The reasons for the network’s establishment, including its legal framework, how it was established and arising problems and difficulties along with general information, results and its main benefits are the topics of the paper. The main idea of the network was to obtain economic figures which were trustworthy and would meet the requirements of the users. Farmers were interested in obtaining key data about their situation so they could manage their forests in a better way. The decision-makers in administrative and political arenas were interested in better information on the economic situation of this type of private forestry. These requirements necessitated statistical representativeness and the application of accounting principles similar to those of industrial enterprises. This design has been successful; the financial results obtained have been judged as useful by all groups who where interested in the figures. Therefore, the network will continue.     

Antioxidant effectiveness of phenolic apple juice extracts and their gut fermentation products in the human colon carcinoma cell line caco-2

Apples represent a major dietary source of antioxidative polyphenols. Their metabolic conversion by the gut microflora might generate products that protect the intestine against oxidative damage. We studied the antioxidant effectiveness of supernatants of fermented apple juice extracts (F-AEs, 6 and 24 h fermentation) and of selected phenolic degradation products, identified by HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS. Cell free antioxidant capacity of unfermented apple juice extracts (AEs) was decreased after fermentation by 30-50%. In the human colon carcinoma cell line Caco-2, F-AEs (containing <0.5% of original AE-phenolics) decreased the reactive oxygen species (ROS) level more efficiently than the F-blank (fermented without AE) but were less effective than the respective AEs. Similarly, antioxidant effectiveness of individual degradation products was lower compared to respective AE constituents. Glutathione level was slightly increased and oxidative DNA damage slightly decreased by fermented AE03, rich in quercetin glycosides. In conclusion, F-AEs/degradation products exhibit antioxidant activity in colon cells but to a lesser extent than the respective unfermented AEs/constituents.