Heterosis of interspecific soybean hybrids for traits related to N2 fixation

Summary Three greenhouse experiments were conducted to compare the performance of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), wild soybean (G. soja Sieb. et Zucc.), and soybean x wild soybean hybrids for traits relating to N₂ fixation including nodulation, acetylene reduction, nodule leghemoglobin concentration, and nitrogen (N) accumulation and dry matter (DM) accumulation. In all three experiments G. max generally exceeded G. soja in nodulation, acetylene reduction, and N and DM accumulation while the soybean possessed higher nodule leghemoglobin concentration. In Experiment I, the mean of the hybrids did not differ significantly from the G. max parent in nodule mass, acetylene reduction activity, nodule leghemoglobin concentration, or DM accumulation. The hybrids did exceed the soybean parent in N accumulation, thus demonstrating high parent heterosis. In Experiments IIA and IIB with a more carefully chosen set of G. soja parents, high parent heterosis of individual crosses was common. Across the three experiments average high parent heterosis was 34, 28, and 28%, respectively, for nodule mass, N accumulation, and DM accumulation. If one accepts the assumption that hybrid vigor results from the accumulation of dominant alleles, then these alleles could theoretically be accumulated via selection in a homozygous genotype. If this is true than the results of the experiments reported here suggest that interspecific soybean x wild soybean crosses could serve as sources of homozygous lines which would exceed currently available soybean cultivars in nodule mass, and N and DM accumulation.This work was supported in part by the USDA Competitive Grants Program, Grant 82-CRCR-1-1039 and Cooperative Agreement 58-32U4-2-370 between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Agronomy Department, University of Maryland, Scientific Article No. A-4648, Contribution No. 7644 of the Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station.     

配方施肥对香蕉生物量及养分积累的影响

为探究配方施肥对香蕉植株生物量、各器官养分积累量及养分积累规律,对巴西蕉施肥后,彻底刨根、分解取样研究,得出香蕉生物量及各元素含量。结果表明：配方肥处理各元素吸收大小规律为K＞Si＞N＞Ca＞Mn＞Mg＞P＞Fe＞Zn＞B＞Cu。与常规施肥相比,配方施肥可增加香蕉生物量约69.47%,平均每株可增加N、P、K、Ca、Mg、Mn、Fe、Cu、Zn、B、Si约75.98%、63.71%、5.07%、49.39%、82.85%、26.60%、76.24%、44.49%、152.50%、162.22%、81.18%。配方施肥能有效促进植株生长,提高果实和叶片养分积累,为科学制定香蕉养分综合管理技术提供参考。     

Chlorophyll fluorescence as a tool in soybean improvement for N2 fixation efficiency

Summary Chlorophyll fluorescence, and more particularly the fluorescence decrease ratio (Rfd) which indicates the potential photosynthetic activity of the leaf is highly correlated with the plant nitrogen fixation activity, at stage R₂ (onset of flowering), under controlled growth conditions, using nutrient solutions where mineral nitrogen supply is decreasing. The Rfd value affords the analysis of the efficiency of the nitrogen fixation related to the host plant and the rhizobial strain, and the characterization of the best strain-genotype pairs. The rapidity of the measurement together with the availability of portable fluorescence determination systems make possible an application to soybean improvement for increased nitrogen fixation.     

不同供氮水平对春小麦产量、氮肥利用率及氮平衡的影响

【目的】研究施氮量对春小麦产量、氮肥利用率、土壤中硝态氮累积及氮平衡的影响,旨在了解在宁夏引黄灌区减少施氮量的可行性。【方法】通过田间小区试验,设置0、120、240、360 kg/hm24个施氮量,探讨不同施氮水平对作物和环境的影响。【结果】施用氮肥可显著提高春小麦的籽粒产量、籽粒蛋白质含量及成熟期地上部总吸氮量,但过量施用氮肥对籽粒增产和蛋白质含量提高不显著。氮肥利用率随着施氮量的增加呈现降低趋势,根据差值法计算结果,当施氮量分别为120、240、360 kg/hm2时春小麦的氮肥利用率分别为27.2%、24.3%、18.2%,表明多达81.8%～72.8%的氮肥没有被作物吸收利用。氮平衡计算的结果进一步表明,未被当季小麦利用的肥料主要以无机氮的形式存在于0～150cm土层内,施氮量分别为120、240、360 kg/hm2时氮肥的土壤残留率依次为41.6%、33.1%和29.7%,而相应的表观损失率为31.2%、42.6%、52.1%。【结论】综合考虑春小麦产量、品质和环境安全,本试验条件下,春小麦的合理施氮量应控制在120～240 kg/hm2之间。     

间作种植模式对玉米和大豆干物质积累与产量组成的影响

玉米/大豆间作是中国北方地区常见的一种种植模式。本文通过2个生长季的大田试验,研究了间作种植模式对玉米和大豆的干物质积累与产量组成的影响。试验结果表明,生育前期（播后第79d以前）,不同种植模式下玉米的单株干物质量之间没有显著差异;生育后期,玉米/大豆1:3间作模式下（I1处理）玉米的单株干物质量高于单作玉米,达到极显著水平;玉米/大豆2:3间作模式下（I2处理）玉米的单株干物质量高于单作玉米,达到显著水平,1:3和2:3间作模式下玉米的单株干物质量也存在显著差异。生育期内不同种植模式下大豆的单株干物质量之间没有显著差异。利用Logistic方程拟合了单作和间作条件下玉米和大豆单株干物质积累的动态,相关性均达到极显著水平（P<0.01）。由于边际效应的影响,间作群体内玉米各器官干物质积累量高于单作。不同种植模式下大豆各器官的干物质积累差异不明显。间作玉米的干物质转换率高于单作,单作大豆的转换率高于间作。I1和I2处理间作总籽粒产量比单作玉米的籽粒产量增加约6%,比单作大豆的籽粒产量增加约320%。     

Inheritance of N2 fixation efficiency in cowpea

Summary Host plant genetics of N₂ fixation in the cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) — Rhizobium symbiosis was investigated in the field with a mixed strain inoculum and in the greenhouse with a single strain inoculum. Five cowpea genotypes, including H-Brown Crowder and L-Bush Purple Hull, were used to generate populations for genetic studies. Diallel analysis for general combining ability (GCA), specific combining ability (SCA) and reciprocal effects was carried out for the N₂ fixation variables nitrogenase activity, nodule number, nodule weight, and top dry weight, in the field study. Generation mean analysis and heritability estimates were performed on the greenhouse population which included P₁ (H-Brown Crowder), P₂ (L-Bush Purple Hull), F₁, F₁. F₂, BC₁, and BC₂. Positive and significant correlations were observed between nitrogenase activity and both nodule weight and nodule number. Correlation coefficients between top dry weight and the other 3 variables were not significant. Estimates of SCA were highly significant for all variables except top dry weight, while those of GCA were significant only for nodule weight. Generation mean analysis revealed that additive gene action was more prominent than dominance and interallelic gene action for nodule number and nitrogenase activity, while the opposite was true for nodule weight and top dry weight. Narrow sense heritability estimates were moderately high for nodule number (0.55) and nitrogenase activity (0.62), and low for nodule weight (0.39) and top dry weight (0.17).Texas Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Article 20385. Research supported in part by a grant under USAID PASA AG/TAB 610-9-76 (USDA-CSRS-701-15-59).     

Rice dry matter and nitrogen accumulation,soil mineral N around root and N leaching,with increasing application rates of fertilizer

Rice morphology and N leaching, together with mineral N in the soil and soil solution around root, were determined at different growth stages in a 3-year experiment located in the Taihu Lake region, China. The results showed that the N application rates had little impact on the soil mineral N around root, but increased the dry matter and N accumulation aboveground in the high fertility soil (55.3 mg kg⁻¹ of soil mineral N before rice season in 2008). However, no significant difference in grain yield was observed in all N treatments in these 3 years. Path analysis showed that spikelet per panicle made the greatest direct contribution (0.781) and total contribution (0.309) to grain yield compared to other yield components. And a higher panicle per m² and dry matter accumulation resulted in yield decline later in the season due to a decline in the percentage of filled grains.No significant increases in plant N uptake, regardless of N application rates, were observed at the seedling stage, which indicated that lower N application rates could suffice during the rice early growing stages. Nitrate contents, in spite of high N rates input, in the percolation water were all below 1.0 mg L⁻¹ throughout the rice growing season. The increased N rates showed an increment of total N leaching through the percolation water, but not significant. The cumulative total N leaching only accounted for 1.86–4.96% of N fertilizer input, which suggested the N leaching should not be considered as main pollution resources in paddy filed in summer rice season. However, the evaluation of N leaching in different stages indicated that N leaching at seedling stage was larger in dominant (averaged 39.8% of total N leaching) than other stages. For the lower absorbing ability of rice seedling and more N leaching risk, suggestions on N fertilizer reduction should be made at rice early growing stage in this region.     

Effect of varied N rates and N timings on yield, N uptake and fertilizer N use efficiency of a six-row and a two-row winter barley

The effects of N rates and N timings on yield formation, N uptake at five growth stages and fertilizer N use efficiency of six-row and two-row winter barley were evaluated in field trials conducted from 1990/91 to 1992/93 at the TU Munich's research station Roggenstein.

On average over 3 years the six-row cultivar yielded most at a total rate of 110 kg ha⁻¹ N including an early application of 40 kg ha⁻¹ N up to EC 30 (Zadoks scale). The two-row cultivar achieved maximum yield at a total rate of 140 kg ha⁻¹ N including early applications of 70 kg ha⁻¹ N up to EC 30. The highest yielding N-treatments of six-row barley regularly took up less nitrogen at EC 32 (95 kg ha⁻¹ N on average) than the non-optimally fertilized treatments, whereas full exploitation of the yield potential of two-row barley was associated with higher rates of N-uptake at EC 32 (113 kg ha⁻¹ N on average).

Lodging did not occur in the trials conducted in 1991 and 1992 and no difference was detected between the two cultivars in fertilizer N use efficiency. With six-row barley the N treatment giving maximum yield also led to an optimum fertilizer N use efficiency. Full exploitation of the two-row barley yield potential was associated with suboptimal fertilizer N use efficiencies.     

玉米-大豆轮作及氮肥施用对土壤细菌群落结构的影响

在大豆开花期分别对3个施氮水平下(0、50和100 kg hm^-2)大豆连作(大豆-大豆-大豆)、玉米-大豆轮作I (大豆-玉米-大豆)及玉米-大豆轮作II (玉米-玉米-大豆),应用PCR-DGGE技术研究了玉米-大豆轮作及施氮对土壤细菌群落结构变化的影响。结果表明,随着施氮水平的提高,3种种植方式土壤中细菌群落多样性、丰富度均呈减少趋势。高氮处理(100 kg hm^-2)明显降低了大豆连作、玉米-大豆轮作II根际土壤细菌群落多样性及丰富度,玉米-大豆轮作I根际土壤细菌群落多样性及丰富度略有降低。玉米-大豆轮作I种植方式可减轻氮肥对其根际细菌群落多样性和丰富度的影响,但施氮明显改变了其细菌群落结构。玉米-大豆轮作II中大豆根际土壤细菌群落结构较为稳定,受氮肥影响较小。在3种种植方式的土壤中,分布着酸杆菌门、变形菌门及厚壁菌门细菌,其中前两门菌群占主导地位。     

不同种植密度和施肥水平对大豆籽粒品质的影响

本试验自2002年开始至2004年止，从种植密度和施肥水平两方面对大豆脂肪、蛋白质含量的影响进行了分析。结果表明：种植密度对大豆籽粒的脂肪、蛋白质含量具有显著的影响，相关性分析结果显示，种植密度与大豆籽粒的脂肪含量存在着负相关性，与籽粒中的蛋白质含量之间为正相关。中国品种的脂肪含量受种植密度的影响大于美国品种，而中国品种的蛋白质含量受种植密度的影响小于美国品种。蛋脂总含量受种植密度的影响较小，并且不存在品种间的差异性。磷酸二铵的施用量与大豆籽粒脂肪含量和蛋白质含量之间没有显著的相关性，但是中美品种的品质对磷酸二铵施用量的反应不同。磷酸二铵的施用量与中国品种的脂肪含量、蛋白质含量和蛋脂总含量呈正相关，而与美国品种的脂肪、蛋白质含量和蛋脂总含量呈负相关，但相关程度均不显著。     

有机肥替代对棉花养分积累、产量及土壤肥力的影响

【目的】研究不同有机肥替代率对黄河流域棉株生物量、养分积累、产量、氮磷比及土壤肥力的影响,试图探索出有机肥替代化肥的适宜替代率,为有机肥、无机肥在黄河流域棉田合理施用提供参考依据。【方法】试验始于2016年,在中国农业科学院棉花研究所试验基地设置6个施肥处理:T1:不施肥,T2:100%化肥,T3:20%有机肥+80%化肥,T4:40%有机肥+60%化肥,T5:50%有机肥+50%化肥,T6:100%有机肥。经3年施肥后,2018年进行田间取样,分析不同施肥处理对棉花生物量、养分积累、产量、氮磷比及土壤肥力的影响。【结果】(1)有机肥替代50%化肥处理提高棉株生物量、养分积累和籽棉产量。(2)与单施化肥处理相比,施用有机肥处理土壤有机质、全氮、速效磷、碱解氮含量均有增高趋势,全部施有机肥显著增加土壤速效磷含量。(3)棉株全氮、全磷积累量与棉株生物量呈极显著正相关,棉株根、茎氮磷比与籽棉产量呈极显著负相关。【结论】有机肥替代部分化肥能减少化肥用量,连续应用有机肥替代部分化肥具有增加土壤肥力的趋势;有机肥替代50%化肥处理能增加棉花生物量、养分积累量,提高籽棉产量,替代效果最好。     

Analysis of host genotype x rhizobial strain interaction in N2 fixation

Summary A method of analyzing host genotype x rhizobial strain interaction for N₂ fixation potential, based on the principle of structural relationship analysis, is proposed. When this interaction is significant, selecting genotypes for high N₂ fixation potential is incorrect, because the N₂ fixation efficiency is dependent on the rhizobial strain used. Under such circumstances, grouping genotypes based on average fixing ability (AFA), a linear response to the effectiveness of rhizobial strain, and specific fixing ability (SFA), deviation from the linear response in terms of the magnitude of the error variance, is useful before initiating a breeding program for enhanced N₂ fixation. Host genotype x strain interaction effect is partitioned into two components, and two parameters are derived which estimate AFA and SFA. N₂ fixation data from 3 mungbean genotypes and 6 rhizobial strains are used to illustrate this method.     

The effects of dairy cattle manure and mineral N fertilizer on irrigated maize and soil N and organic C

This work was aimed at providing a sustainable approach in the use of manure in irrigated maize crop under Mediterranean climatic conditions. To this end, the effect of continuous annual applications of dairy cattle manure, combined or not with mineral N fertilizer, on the following parameters was studied: grain yield, grain and plant N concentration, N uptake by plant, N use efficiency, and soil N and organic carbon. The experiment was conducted in a furrow-irrigated sandy soil under dry Mediterranean conditions during seven years. Three different rates of cattle manure (CM): 0, 30 and 60 Mg ha⁻¹, were applied each year before sowing. These CM rates were combined with four mineral N rates (0, 100, 200 and 300 kg N ha⁻¹) applied at sidedress.On average, the highest grain yields during the 7 years were obtained with the combination of CM at 30 Mg ha⁻¹ and mineral fertilizer and with CM at 60 Mg ha⁻¹ without mineral fertilizer. With CM at 30 Mg ha⁻¹, mineral fertilizer increased yields during most of the growing seasons, meanwhile with CM at 60 Mg ha⁻¹, there was not any significant effect of the joint application of mineral fertilizer on yields. Overall, best results were obtained exceeding maximum rates according to present legislation. The mean apparent nitrogen recovery (ANR) fraction during the 7 seasons was 29% for N exclusively applied as CM. Overall, increased N rates applied as CM resulted in decreased ANRs. However, ANR with CM at 30 and 60 Mg ha⁻¹ increased during the first two seasons. This increased ANR ascribed to mineralization of residual organic N applied in previous seasons explained the increasing yields observed in the treatments along the study.The application of CM during 7 years increased the soil organic carbon in the first 30 cm by 5.7 and 9.9 Mg ha⁻¹ with CM at 30 and 60 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively, when compared to the initial stock. Thus, manure-based fertilization could be an alternative to mineral fertilizer in order to achieve high maize yields while improving soil quality under dry Mediterranean conditions.     

Diversity of seed cesium accumulation in soybean mini-core collections

Radiocesium is an extremely harmful radionuclide because of its long half-life; it is important to reduce its transfer from contaminated soil into crops. Here we surveyed genetic variation for seed cesium (Cs) concentration in soybean mini-core collections representing large genetic diversity. The collections grown over 3 years in rotational paddy fields exhibited varying seed Cs concentrations with significant year-to-year correlations, although the phenotypic stability of Cs concentration was lower than that of the congeners potassium (K) and rubidium (Rb). Although Cs is supposedly accumulated in plants via the K transport system, there was no apparent relationship between Cs and K concentrations, whereas a clear positive correlation was observed between Cs and Rb concentrations. Cs and K concentrations in seed showed slightly positive and negative correlations, respectively, with days to flowering. We selected several high or low Cs accumulator candidates on the basis of the 3 years of seed concentration data. These two groups showed significantly different seed Cs concentrations in another field. The differences could not be explained by flowering time alone. These results suggest that genetic variation for seed Cs concentration is present in soybean germplasm and would be useful for breeding low Cs-accumulating varieties.     

Long-term effects of N fertilization on cropping and growth of olive trees and on N accumulation in soil profile

Two experiments were conducted for 13 years in two olive groves of southern Spain to study the long-term effect of nitrogen (N) fertilization on trees and soil. In the first experiment, 12-year-old ‘Picual’ olive trees were arranged in a split plot design with method of N application (soil versus a 50% soil:50% foliar combination) as the whole plot factor, and amount of N applied annually (0, 0.12, 0.25, 0.5 or 1.0 kg N tree⁻¹) as the subplot factor. In the second experiment, N application to 50-year-old ‘Picual’ trees was based on the previous season's leaf N concentration. Urea was the source of N in both experiments. During the last 4 years, soil samples were taken at 0–20, 20–40, 40–60, 60–80, and 80–100 cm depth to evaluate the effect of N application on soil eutrophication. Fertilization with N had no significant effects on yield, fruit characteristics, and growth of olive trees for the 13 years of study, even when leaf N concentration increased with the amount of fertilizer N applied. Combining soil and foliar application may reduce the amount of fertilizer N necessary to correct a possible N deficiency because our experiments showed this practice to be more effective in increasing leaf N that applying N only to the soil. Our results question the established deficiency threshold of 1.4% of N in dried leaf because no reduction in yield or growth was observed for lower concentrations. However, leaf N concentration did not drop below 1.2% after 13 years with no N application, probably because of N inputs from rainfall and the mineralization of organic N. Whereas under natural conditions of the non-fertilized treatments NH₄⁺–N represented the dominant fraction of mineral N in soil, accumulation of high amounts of NO₃⁻–N in the soil profile occurred in the fertilized plots, which represents a high risk of N leaching from soil. All these results suggest that annual applications of fertilizer N are unnecessary to maintain high productivity and growth in olive. Applying N only when the previous season's leaf analysis indicates that leaf N concentration is below the deficiency threshold, is thus a recommended practice to optimize N fertilization in olive orchards and to reduce N losses by leaching.     

有机肥“黑珍珠”对线辣椒的施用效果及环境效应

（西北农林科技大学 资源环境学院,陕西杨凌 712100）     

Long-term effects of N fertilization on cropping and growth of olive trees and on N accumulation in soil profile

Two experiments were conducted for 13 years in two olive groves of southern Spain to study the long-term effect of nitrogen (N) fertilization on trees and soil. In the first experiment, 12-year-old ‘Picual’ olive trees were arranged in a split plot design with method of N application (soil versus a 50% soil:50% foliar combination) as the whole plot factor, and amount of N applied annually (0, 0.12, 0.25, 0.5 or 1.0 kg N tree⁻¹) as the subplot factor. In the second experiment, N application to 50-year-old ‘Picual’ trees was based on the previous season's leaf N concentration. Urea was the source of N in both experiments. During the last 4 years, soil samples were taken at 0–20, 20–40, 40–60, 60–80, and 80–100 cm depth to evaluate the effect of N application on soil eutrophication. Fertilization with N had no significant effects on yield, fruit characteristics, and growth of olive trees for the 13 years of study, even when leaf N concentration increased with the amount of fertilizer N applied. Combining soil and foliar application may reduce the amount of fertilizer N necessary to correct a possible N deficiency because our experiments showed this practice to be more effective in increasing leaf N that applying N only to the soil. Our results question the established deficiency threshold of 1.4% of N in dried leaf because no reduction in yield or growth was observed for lower concentrations. However, leaf N concentration did not drop below 1.2% after 13 years with no N application, probably because of N inputs from rainfall and the mineralization of organic N. Whereas under natural conditions of the non-fertilized treatments NH₄⁺–N represented the dominant fraction of mineral N in soil, accumulation of high amounts of NO₃⁻–N in the soil profile occurred in the fertilized plots, which represents a high risk of N leaching from soil. All these results suggest that annual applications of fertilizer N are unnecessary to maintain high productivity and growth in olive. Applying N only when the previous season's leaf analysis indicates that leaf N concentration is below the deficiency threshold, is thus a recommended practice to optimize N fertilization in olive orchards and to reduce N losses by leaching.     

长期施肥对红壤旱地作物产量及肥料效益影响

摘要：通过对红壤旱地13年连续监测研究,发现在红壤地区红壤旱地上：长期使用化学肥料,其肥料利用率和作物产量表现为逐步下降的趋势。在N处理中,前5年比CK处理,玉米平均增产213%,小麦增产96%;10年以后,玉米平均减产45%,小麦减产85%;在NP、NK、NPK处理中,与N处理具有相同的趋势;在NPKM、M处理中,玉米和小麦产量表现为平稳和轻微的上升趋势。肥料的利用率变化与产量变化具有同一性。为提高红壤旱地玉米和小麦子粒的品质,使用化学氮肥是一项必不可少的技术措施,同时化学氮肥对玉米和小麦子粒品质提高效果大于有机氮。