Phenological and physiological evaluation of first and second cropping periods of sorghum and maize crops

Environmental conditions influence phenology and physiological processes of plants. It is common for maize and sorghum to be sown at two different periods: the first cropping (spring/summer) and the second cropping (autumn/winter). The phenological cycle of these crops varies greatly according to the planting season, and it is necessary to characterize the growth and development to facilitate the selection of the species best adapted to the environment. The aim of this study was to characterize phenological phases and physiological parameters in sorghum and maize plants as a function of environmental conditions from the first cropping and second cropping periods. Two parallel experiments were conducted with both crops. The phenological characterization was based on growth analyses (plant height, leaf area and photoassimilate partitioning) and gas exchange evaluations (net assimilation rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration and water-use efficiency). It was found that the vegetative stage (VS) for sorghum and maize plants was 7 and 21 days, respectively, longer when cultivated during the second cropping. In the first cropping, the plants were taller than in the second cropping, regardless of the crop. The stomatal conductance of sorghum plants fluctuated in the second cropping during the development period, while maize plants showed decreasing linear behaviour. Water-use efficiency in sorghum plants was higher during the second cropping compared with the first cropping. In maize plants, in the second cropping, the water-use efficiency showed a slight variation in relation to the first cropping. It was concluded that the environmental conditions as degree-days, temperature, photoperiod and pluvial precipitation influence the phenology and physiology of both crops during the first and the second cropping periods, specifically cycle duration, plant height, leaf area, net assimilation rate, stomatal conductance and water-use efficiency, indicating that both crops respond differentially to environmental changes during the growing season.     

Direct and Residual Contributions of Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation by Legumes to the Yield and Nitrogen Uptake of Maize (Zea mays L.) in the Nigerian Savannah

Field experiments were conducted to determine the direct and residual contributions of legumes to the yield and nitrogen (N) uptake of maize during the wet seasons of 1994 and 1995 at the University Farm, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Nigeria, located in the Northern Guinea savannah of Nigeria. Nodulating soybean, lablab, green gram and black gram contributed to the yield and N uptake of maize either intercropped with the legumes or grown after legumes as a sole crop. Direct transfer of N from the nodulating soybean, lablab, green gram and black gram to the intercropped maize was 24.9–28.1, 23.8–29.2, 19.7–22.1 and 18.4–18.6 kg N ha^–1, respectively. However, the transfer of residual N from these legumes to the succeeding maize crop was 18.4–20.0, 19.5–29.9, 12.0–13.7 and 9.3–10.3 kg N ha^–1, respectively. Four years of continuous lablab cropping resulted in yields and N uptake of the succeeding maize crop grown without fertilizer N that were comparable to the yields and N uptake of the succeeding maize crop supplied with 40–45 kg N ha^–1 and grown after 4 years of continuous sorghum cropping. It may therefore be concluded that nodulating soybean, lablab, green gram and black gram may be either intercropped or grown in rotation with cereals in order to economize the use of fertilizer N for maize production in the Nigerian savannah.     

Effect of Low Night Temperatures on Photosynthetic Activity of the Maize Seedlings (Zea mays L.)

Night chilling (5 °C) subsequently lowered photosynthetic intensity in the leaves of maize seedlings at 20 °C through an increase in leaf diffusive resistance brought on by lower tissue water content in morning hours. A more significant increase in leaf diffusion resistance was observed when soil temperature was lowered than in the case of lower air temperature.
The unfavorable effect of soil and air cooling temperature on photosynthesis was limited by air saturated with water vapour. However, as a result of lowering the night temperature from 5 °C to 1 °C, the efficiency of the protective influence of higher atmospheric humidity was decreased. This demonstrates that the participation of factors unrelated to plant water status in inhibiting photosynthesis increases with lower night temperatures.
An additional reason for inhibited photosynthesis following cool nights was a decrease in chlorophyll accumulation, below 50 μg per 1 cm² of leaf area.     

Radiation Balance Components of Maize Hybrids Grown at Various Plant Densities

Components of the energy and heat balances were examined in two maize hybrids grown at three different plant densities (40, 70 and 100 thousand plants per hectare). One of the hybrids was drought tolerant, while the other was bred for cultivation under irrigated conditions. An increase in plant density influenced not only the size of the leaf area, but also the distribution of the leaves at various plant heights. The extinction coefficient, which provides a quantification of radiation penetration, was higher in the irrigated treatments. By contrast to the other two treatments, the plant canopy in the thinly sown stands remained open throughout the vegetation period, and thus behaved quite differently to the closed stands, making it impossible to compare them. Smaller albedo values were recorded for the hybrid bred for irrigation and in thinly sown stands. The low plant density allowed more energy to reach the soil, from which it was reflected, making a considerable contribution to the final temperature in the stand. The latent heat, in keeping with the quantity of water transpired, was the greatest in the densely sown stands. There was little difference between the latent heat values of the normal and dense stands in either hybrid, indicating that they both had a similar sensitivity to increased stand density. If sufficient water is available it would appear that the stand density could be increased even for the drought-tolerant hybrid.     

Abscisic Acid May Alter the Salicylic Acid‐Related Abiotic Stress Response in Maize

The effect of 0, 0.05 or 0.1 mm abscisic acid treatment on chilling tolerance and salicylic acid‐related responses was investigated in young maize seedlings (Zea mays L., hybrid Norma). Although the pre‐treatment of maize seedlings with abscisic acid slightly decreased the chlorophyll content, it also reduced the level of chilling injury caused by 6 days of cold treatment at 5 °C. Under normal growth conditions, increased levels of bound salicylic acid and of bound ortho‐hydroxycinnamic acid were observed in the leaves during abscisic acid treatment. In the roots, abscisic acid did not affect the free and bound salicylic acid levels, but increased the amount of free and bound ortho‐hydroxycinnamic acid. The activity of glutathione‐S‐transferase increased on the 3rd day of abscisic acid treatment, whereas it did not change when followed by cold stress, compared with the control leaves. In the roots, the activities of glutathione reductase, glutathione‐S‐transferase and ascorbate peroxidase increased during the abscisic acid treatment, and those of glutathione‐S‐transferase and ascorbate peroxidase were also stimulated when abscisic acid pre‐treatment was followed by cold stress, compared with the control roots. Our results suggest that an overlap may exist between the abscisic acid‐induced cold acclimation and the salicylic acid‐related stress response.     

球孢白僵菌-玉米共生体对亚洲玉米螟取食行为的影响

为明确球孢白僵菌-玉米共生体对亚洲玉米螟幼虫取食行为及取食选择性的影响，本文通过室内控制试验，采用培养皿叶盘法，研究了共生体对亚洲玉米螟初孵幼虫和3龄幼虫的选择、非选择性取食的影响。结果表明，在48 h非选择性试验中，亚洲玉米螟初孵幼虫在球孢白僵菌-玉米共生体叶片组织（处理组）上的取食率显著低于未接种球孢白僵菌玉米叶片（对照组），第48 h时在共生体和对照玉米上的幼虫取食率分别为35.7%和62.5%，差异极显著；3龄幼虫在共生体茎秆组织上的取食率与对照组玉米差异不显著。在48 h选择性试验中，初孵幼虫在共生体玉米叶片组织上的取食率显著低于对照组，共生体玉米叶片组织上的幼虫取食率随时间的增加呈下降趋势，第48 h时在共生体和对照玉米上的幼虫取食率分别为6.3%和20.6%，差异极显著；3龄幼虫在共生体和对照组玉米茎秆组织上的幼虫取食率随时间的增加呈上升趋势，其中对照组幼虫取食率显著高于处理组，第48 h时在处理组和对照组玉米上的幼虫取食率分别为33.1%和45.6%，差异极显著。本研究初步表明，球孢白僵菌-玉米共生体对亚洲玉米螟幼虫的取食行为有显著的抑制和忌避作用。     

不同水分环境下玉米叶面积QTL定位及候选基因分析

玉米叶面积的大小及分布特征不仅影响其光合效率、蒸腾速率,而且与其耐旱性、耐密性、抗倒伏性及产量形成紧密相关。深入剖析不同水旱环境下玉米不同生育时期不同叶位叶面积的分子遗传机理对玉米耐旱高产新品种的选育具有重要意义。本研究以构建的2套F_2∶3群体为试材,在8种水分环境下,采用复合区间作图法（CIM）和基于混合线性模型的复合区间作图法（MCIM）对玉米相应叶（V₁₈时期第10片叶、R₁时期穗三叶）叶面积进行单环境和多环境联合QTL分析;参考玉米基因组B73 RefGen_v3挖掘稳定表达的QTLs （sQTLs）区间内的候选基因,并对其进行功能分析。结果表明,采用CIM法,单环境下2个生育时期2套F_2∶3群体间总共定位到了7个玉米相应叶叶面积QTLs,主要受显性（81.0%）、部分显性（14.3%）和超显性（4.7%）等遗传效应的调控,其中在干旱环境下定位到了5个QTLs。采用MCIM法,在2套F_2∶3群体间总共检测到6个相应叶叶面积的联合QTLs,其中1个表现为显著的QTL与环境的互作（QTL×E, Bin 2.08~2.09）,1对QTLs （Bin 1.08~1.10与 Bin 2.08~2.09）参与了显著的加性与加性（AA）上位性互作。结合CIM和MCIM法进一步分析在2套F_2∶3群体间检测到了6个sQTLs,其分别位于Bin 1.08~1.10、Bin 2.08~2.09、Bin 4.08~4.09、Bin 6.05、Bin 8.03和Bin 10.03处,并在这些sQTLs区间内确定了12个玉米叶发育相关候选基因。采用生物信息学,总共收集了75个玉米叶发育相关候选基因,通过系统进化树分析表明,这些候选基因划分为3大进化分支,且上述检测到的12个候选基因分布于这3大进化分支上。这些结果为系统地解析玉米不同生育时期不同水旱环境下相应叶叶面积的分子遗传机理提供理论依据,检测到的sQTLs可作为叶面积改良的重要染色体区段,检测到的候选基因为其进一步克隆、功能分析及育种应用提供了信息参考。     

兰州引黄灌区玉米田杂草群落及生态位研究

对兰州引黄灌区玉米田杂草进行了研究,初步了解了其杂草种类和杂草种群的消长动态。主要杂草有打碗花、田旋花、藜、刺儿菜、荠菜、稗草、马齿苋、反枝苋、狗尾草。主要杂草的干重为藜、反枝苋、稗草分别列第1、第2和第3位。生态位的研究结果表明,藜的时间、水平、垂直生态位宽度值最高,分别为0.952 6,0.971 8,0.937 9,其危害最大;其次为反枝苋和稗草。藜、反枝苋和稗草为优势种群,与玉米存在时间、水平、垂直空间的竞争激烈,并且这3种杂草的生态位重叠值也最大,因此在使用一种除草剂时,可能会导致另两种杂草的发生与蔓延。马齿苋尽管数量最多,但其在垂直方位的生态位宽度值最小,对玉米影响小,处于劣势。除草处理各经济性状指标值均较不除草对照高,其折合产量为10 111.11 kg/hm2,较不除草处理增产36.19%。     

磺酰脲类除草剂药害规律的研究

采用作物主根长法测定了常用两种磺酰脲类除草剂对玉米（Zea mays L.)农大1236和豌豆（Pisum sativum L.）中碗6号的相对毒力，玉米试验结果表明，以IC50值比较，氯磺隆、胺苯磺隆对玉米的毒力较高，容易造成药害。豌豆试验结果表明，豌豆对氯磺隆和胺苯磺隆比玉米更敏感。离体玉米和豌豆ALS酶的研究表明，豌豆的ALS对两种磺酰脲类除草剂较玉米更敏感，氯磺隆对两种作物的ALS抑制作用也较胺苯磺隆强。