Integrating the effects of climate and plant available soil water holding capacity on wheat yield

In the Mediterranean farming systems of the Western Australian wheatbelt, crop yields are influenced primarily by the amount and distribution of rainfall and the soil's capacity to hold moisture. The wheatbelt's growing season rainfall varies in the range of 200–400 mm (average) and the plant available water holding capacity (PAWC) of soils is generally in the 40–140 mm range. The grain yield of wheat is sensitive to this combination of small rainfall and small storage capacity.In this study, we explore the relationship between yield and PAWC using a combination of simulation modelling and analysis of field data. Crop yields and soil properties were monitored in detail at 17 locations (PAWCs 43–131 mm) across six seasons (1997–2005). Crop yields were also simulated using the APSIM crop simulator (RMSE = 311 kg/ha) to evaluate the long-term relationship between crop yield and plant available water capacity using 106 years of historical climate data.The relationship between crop yield and PAWC varied with season, and two important factors emerged: (1) for PAWC < 65 mm, there was a linear relationship with crop yields that ranged from 17 kg/ha/mm to 58 kg/ha/mm of PAWC across seasons; (2) for PAWC 65–131 mm the crop yield response to PAWC ranged from 11.5 kg/ha/mm in 45% of seasons to no response.The impact of PAWC on crop yield was reduced in seasons with late rainfall, and magnified in seasons with reduced rainfall late in the growing season. Six distinct season types with different yield–PAWC relationships are identified and season-specific management strategies that exploit within-field variation in PAWC are developed to manage the spatial variation of PAWC in a field.     

外源亚精胺对PEG胁迫下燕麦幼苗生长及部分生理特性的影响

为探讨外源亚精胺(Spd)对燕麦幼苗生长和抗旱性的影响,选用燕麦品种坝莜1号为材料,以PEG-6000模拟水分胁迫,采用砂培法研究了叶面喷施不同浓度(0.3、0.6、0.9和1.2mmol·L~(-1))外源Spd后燕麦幼苗生长、活性氧代谢、抗氧化酶活性及非酶抗氧化剂和渗透调节物质含量的变化。结果表明,PEG胁迫显著抑制了燕麦幼苗生长。在PEG胁迫下,与只喷施蒸馏水的对照相比,0.6mmol·L~(-1) Spd处理对燕麦幼苗根系活力、抗坏血酸(ASA)含量和抗坏血酸过氧化酶(APX)活性具有显著的促进作用;喷施0.9mmol·L~(-1)外源Spd明显提高了燕麦幼苗的株高、根长、生物量积累,抑制了O_2~-·、H_2O_2和膜脂过氧化产物MDA的生成,增强了超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)、过氧化氢酶(CAT)、过氧化物酶(POD)和谷胱甘肽还原酶(GR)的活性,降低了游离氨基酸含量,促进了脯氨酸、可溶性糖和可溶性蛋白的积累,维持了较高的渗透调节能力;1.2mmol·L~(-1)外源Spd处理后幼苗生长、抗氧化能力和渗透调节作用出现下降趋势。综合来看,在PEG胁迫下,叶面喷施0.9mmol·L~(-1)Spd可通过提高幼苗抗氧化和渗透能力,维持生物膜系统的稳定,减轻渗透胁迫对幼苗的伤害,促进生长和增强抗旱性。     

Spring wheat response to timing of water deficit through sink and grain filling capacity

Water and nitrogen (N) availability are the main factors influencing crop growth globally. Poorly distributed or insufficient water for crop growth requirements decreases yields in drought-prone areas such as those with a Mediterranean type environment. Cereal grain yield is a complex trait of interrelated components: plants per unit land area, spikes per plant, spikelets per spike, grains per spikelet, and single grain weight (SGW). The effect of water limitation and timing on development of yield components was studied in detail at the spike level in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivar Amaretto. An experiment with three watering treatments (control watering, CONT; drought prior to pollination, DR1 and terminal drought, DR2) was arranged in a large greenhouse (20 m × 30 m), with the use of standard field-trial machinery. Automated blackout curtains were used to control day length, which was set to correspond to that at 40°N. With watering treatments, two N application rates (60 and 120 kg N ha⁻¹) were used to investigate the N effect and potential watering × N interaction on yield formation and realisation. The water deficit effect exceeded the effect of N on fertile floret and grain number and SGW. DR1 strongly reduced the number of fertile florets and grains, whereas terminal drought reduced the number of grains per spike. Resuming the watering at pollination markedly enhanced photosynthesis, and hence grain filling capacity, resulting in the highest SGW in DR1. Enhancement in availability of key resources was associated with reduced rate of fertile floret and grain abortion, which resulted in higher grain to fertile floret ratio in DR1. Spikelets in the mid-section of the spike dominated yield formation in all treatments. In DR1 this was especially emphasised as 53% of the grain yield was produced in spikelets 4–6, whereas in DR2 and CONT this was 45 and 41%, respectively. Grains in proximal position in the spikelets produced about 80% of the spike grain yield, the proportion being slightly higher in stressed plants and plants receiving 60 kg N. No marked N × water deficit treatment interaction occurred for any of the measured parameters.     

Composition of polymeric proteins and bread-making quality of wheat lines with allelic HMW-GS differing in number of cysteines

Three lines of Australian wheat variety Avocet, two biotypes of Australian variety Halberd, and the Italian bread wheat cultivar Fiorello and its derived line were used to study the possible role of the Glu-B1 HMW-GS in polymeric protein composition and flour functionality. These sets of lines contain HMW-GS 7+8, 7+9, 20x+20y or 26+27. Subunit Bx7 has four cysteine residues, while subunit Bx20 has only two. Compared to Avocet A (7+8), line Avocet C (20x+20y) exhibited an increase in polymeric protein, a decrease in the gliadin-to-glutenin ratio, and a marked decrease in unextractable polymeric protein (UPP). Avocet C doughs exhibited greater extensibility and shorter Mixograph dough development times, and baked into smaller loaves compared to those from Avocet A. Similar differences were observed in comparisons between the two Fiorello lines and between the two Halberd biotypes that had differing Glu-B1 alleles. These results show that in closely related genotypes, the presence of the Bx7+By8 or Bx7+By9 HMW-GS instead of Bx20+By20 or Bx26+By27 is associated with higher UPP, higher dough strength and better bread-making performance. It is suggested that this could be due to the greater number of cysteines in the Bx7 subunit that are available for forming higher-molecular-weight glutenin polymer. This could give the possibility to manipulate dough properties and bread-making quality by utilizing HMW-GS alleles with varying numbers of cysteine residues.     

Effect of heat stress on wheat proteins during kernel development in wheat near-isogenic lines differing at Glu-D1

Two near-isogenic lines of the wheat variety Lance having Glu-D1a (HMW-GS 2 + 12) and Glu-D1d (HMW-GS 5 + 10) were subjected to several regimes of heat stress. In 2001, the temperature regimes were (i) 20/16 (day/night, °C) from planting to maturity, (ii) 20/16 except for a 3-day heat treatment of 35/20, 25 days after anthesis and (iii) 20/16 until 25 DAA, after which plants were subjected to 40/25 until maturity. In 2002, treatments (i) and (iii) were the same while treatment (ii) used a temperature of 40/25 °C for 3 days at 25 DAA. Seed was collected at 3-day intervals starting from 16 days after anthesis and analyzed for protein composition by SE-HPLC. The line with the Glu-D1d allele showed an earlier polymerization of glutenin than its allelic counterpart and a higher molecular weight of glutenin at maturity, this being deduced from measurements of the percentage of unextractable polymeric protein. It is postulated that the timing and rate of glutenin polymerization, and the timing of high temperature application may be the key factors contributing to an explanation of the effect of heat stress on functionality.     

苗期外源脱落酸和茉莉酸缓减小麦花后干旱胁迫的效应及其生理机制

为探究生育前期喷施脱落酸（ABA）和茉莉酸（JA）对小麦花后干旱胁迫的缓减效应,在盆栽试验条件下,测定和分析了苗期喷施ABA和JA后花后干旱胁迫下小麦籽粒产量及部分生理指标的变化。结果表明,花后干旱胁迫显著降低小麦穗粒数、千粒重和产量。干旱胁迫下,喷施ABA和JA可显著提高植株内源ABA和JA含量、旗叶光合速率和PSⅡ的最大光化学效率、渗透调节物质（可溶性糖、游离氨基酸和脯氨酸）含量以及抗氧化酶（SOD、CAT、APX和GR）活性,降低丙二醛含量,增加穗粒数、千粒重和产量。说明生育前期喷施外源ABA和JA可缓解花后干旱胁迫对小麦光合的抑制作用,增强干旱胁迫下植株的渗透调节和抗氧能力,促进产量形成。     

亚精胺对渗透胁迫下小麦幼苗渗透调节物质含量和脯氨酸代谢酶活性的影响

为了探讨多胺提高小麦抗旱性的机理,以两个抗旱性不同的小麦品种(豫麦48,抗旱性较弱;洛麦22,抗旱性较强)为材料,研究了亚精胺对短期渗透胁迫下小麦幼苗叶片渗透调节物质含量以及脯氨酸代谢的调控效应。结果表明,渗透胁迫下,两个小麦品种幼苗叶片中脯氨酸、葡萄糖和蔗糖含量增加,且抗旱性较强的洛麦22增加幅度显著大于抗旱性较弱的豫麦48;脯氨酸代谢关键酶Δ1-吡咯啉-5-羧酸合成酶(P5CS)和Δ1-吡咯啉-5-羧酸还原酶(P5CR)活性增强,且洛麦22的P5CS活性增强幅度大于P5CR。但渗透胁迫处理对两个品种鸟氨酸转氨酶(OAT)活性影响不大。外源亚精胺处理则进一步提高了渗透胁迫下脯氨酸、葡萄糖、蔗糖含量以及P5CS和P5CR活性,且对抗旱性较弱的豫麦48效应较明显,但对两个品种的OAT活性基本没什么影响。这些结果表明,外源亚精胺处理能通过提高脯氨酸合成代谢谷氨酸途径的关键酶P5CS和P5CR的活性促进脯氨酸和可溶性糖的积累,从而提高小麦幼苗的保水性,增强其抗旱性,对抗旱性较弱的小麦品种的效果更加明显。     

The effect of water stress in regulated deficit irrigation on soybean yield (Glycine max [L.] Merr.)

The objective of this research was to investigate the effect of water stress in regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) on the yield of soybean growing on Ultisol soil. This research was conducted under plastic house on the experimental farm of Lampung Polytechnique from August to November 2004. The water stress treatments in regulated deficit irrigation were ET₁ (1.0 × ET_c), ET₂ (0.8 × ET_c), ET₃ (0.6 × ET_c), ET₄ (0.4 × ET_c) and ET₅ (0.2 × ET_c), arranged in a randomized block design with four replications. ET_c means crop evapotranspiration under standard condition, which was well watered. For example, the ET₂ (0.8 × ET_c) treatment means that the amount of supplied water per a day is the same as the crop adjustment evapotranspiration (ET_cadj) with the value 0.8 of water stress coefficient (K _s). The RDI treatments were carried out just at vegetative phase and its treatments were stopped at the beginning of flowering phase, and afterwards the treatments were watered at 1.0 × ET_c. The results showed that since week II, the soybean experienced stress throughout the growth period except ET₂ treatment. ET₂ treatment started to be stressed at week V and continued to be stressed until the harvest time. At the ET₃ treatment, the critical water content (θ_c) of soybean was reached at week II, and the θ_c was 0.24 m³/m³ on the average. The RDI at vegetative period significantly affected the yield. The highest yield was ET₁ (35.2 g/plant), followed by ET₂ (31.0 g/plant), ET₃ (18.1 g/plant), ET₄ (7.6 g/plant), and ET₅ (3.3 g/plant). The optimal water management of soybean with the highest yield efficiency was regulated deficit irrigation with water stress coefficient (K _s) of 0.80 for vegetative phase.     

Grain number and grain weight in wheat lines contrasting for stem water soluble carbohydrate concentration

In wheat, the ability to store and remobilise large amounts of stem water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) to grain constitutes a desirable trait to incorporate into germplasm targeted to regions with frequent terminal drought. The main aim of this paper was to examine the relationships between WSC storage, grain number and grain weight across several environments. A small set of recombinant inbred lines (2–4) contrasting in stem WSC were grown in six field trials where water availability, sowing date and/or N level were manipulated, with line yields ranging from 400 to 850 g m⁻² across experiments. Biomass, N and WSC concentration (WSCc, mg g⁻¹ dry weight) and amount (WSCa, g m⁻²) were monitored. A resource-oriented area-based model [Fischer, R.A., 1984. Growth and yield of wheat. In: Smith, W.H., Bante, S.J. (Eds.), Potential Productivity of Field Crops Under Different Environments. International Rice Research Institute, Los Baños, pp. 129–154] and intrinsic rates of organ growth were used to investigate the consequences on grain number of potential competition between spike and stem around flowering.     

水分胁迫条件下施氮对不同水氮效率基因型冬小麦苗期生长发育的影响

为了明确水分胁迫条件下施氮对小麦苗期生长发育的影响,采用室内水培试验,以两个不同水氮效率基因型冬小麦品种(小偃6号和小偃22)为供试材料,在不同水分条件(5% PEG-6000胁迫和正常水分供应)下,设置三个氮水平(低氮:0.1 mmol/L;中氮1.4 mmol/L;高氮2.8 mmol/L),研究了水分胁迫下氮肥对不同水氮效率基因型冬小麦苗期株高、叶面积、植株含水率和含氮量及地上、地下生物量的影响.结果表明,同正常供水相比,除根冠比外,水分胁迫明显抑制了冬小麦幼苗的生长发育,使地上生物量、株高、叶面积、植株含氮量和含水率显著降低;适量供氮减小了降低的程度,且小偃22的表现优于小偃6号.说明水分胁迫条件下适量供氮能够减轻干旱对冬小麦生长发育的影响,水氮高效型品种小偃22较水氮低效型品种小偃6号对水分和氮素胁迫具有更强的适应性.     

Growth, yield and water productivity of zero till wheat as affected by rice straw mulch and irrigation schedule

Intensive cultivation of rice and wheat in north-west India has resulted in air pollution from rice straw burning, soil degradation and declining groundwater resources. The retention of rice residues as a surface mulch could be beneficial for moisture conservation and yield, and for hence water productivity, in addition to reducing air pollution and loss of soil organic matter. Two field experiments were conducted in Punjab, India, to study the effects of rice straw mulch and irrigation scheduling on wheat growth, yield, water use and water productivity during 2006-2008. Mulching increased soil water content and this led to significant improvement in crop growth and yield determining attributes where water was limiting, but this only resulted in significant grain yield increase in two instances. There was no effect of irrigation treatment in the first year because of well-distributed rains. In the second year, yield decreased with decrease and delay in the number of irrigations between crown root initiation and grain filling. With soil matric potential (SMP)-based irrigation scheduling, the irrigation amount was reduced by 75 mm each year with mulch in comparison with no mulch, while maintaining grain yield. Total crop water use (ET) was not significantly affected by mulch in either year, but was significantly affected by irrigation treatment in the second year. Mulch had a positive or neutral effect on grain water productivity with respect to ET (WP_ET) and irrigation (WP_I). Maximum WP_I occurred in the treatment which received the least irrigation, but this was also the lowest yielding treatment. The current irrigation scheduling guidelines based on cumulative pan evaporation (CPE) resulted in sub-optimal irrigation (loss of yield) in one of the two years, and higher irrigation input and lower WP_I of the mulched treatment in comparison with SMP-based irrigation scheduling. The results from this and other studies suggest that farmers in Punjab greatly over-irrigate wheat. Further field and modelling studies are needed to extrapolate the findings to a wider range of seasonal and site conditions, and to develop simple tools and guidelines to assist farmers to better schedule irrigation to wheat.     

Impacts of water cycle changes on the rice market in Cambodia: stochastic supply and demand model analysis

A supply and demand model for rice in Cambodia, which includes among other factors evapotranspiration as a water supply variable impacting regional yields and planted areas, is developed to aid in the design of agricultural policies and planning. Impacts are determined stochastically by drawing on water cycle distributions and evaluating the resulting variation in production and price bands for local rice markets. The results of the baseline analyses indicate that production of wet and dry season rice steadily increases and the consumption per capita slightly decreases due to the negative income elasticity. Results of a partial stochastic analyses show that the production of rice in regions where elevations are high and the land vulnerable to flooding are the most sensitive to increased fluctuations in water supply. The changes also affect the rice market through equilibrium price changes. The upper price band, which is the width between average and 90th percentile, is larger than the lower band, which is the width between average and tenth percentile, suggesting that the situation of low income consumers could grow worse under an unstable environment with relatively larger upward price spikes. The results imply that development of irrigation facilities and water management systems maybe required for Cambodian provinces which rely heavily on agriculture, particularly rice production, under increasing climatic variation.     

Growth,yield and nitrogen performance of faba bean intercrops with oat and triticale at varying seeding ratios

Intercropping of grain legumes with cereals may offer several advantages over sole crops for forage production and is commonly used, particularly in low‐input agriculture. Faba bean (Vicia faba L.), oat (Avena sativa L.) and triticale (×Triticosecale Wittmack) sole crops as well as the intercrops of faba bean with each of the above cereals, in three seeding ratios (75:25, 50:50 and 25:75), were compared for dry‐matter (DM) yield, nitrogen (N) concentration, chlorophyll content, growth rate and plant height in a 2‐year field experiment. Triticale sole crop and faba bean intercrops with triticale provided higher DM yield than faba bean sole crop and the intercrops of faba bean with oat. Growth rates of faba bean, oat and triticale in mixtures were lower than those in sole crops. Faba bean plants were taller in the intercrops than in the sole crop at 3 weeks after tillering (WAT), whereas at 6 WAT, the trend was different as faba bean plants in the sole crop were taller than in the intercrops. N concentration was higher for the cereals when faba bean was included in the mixture. Crude protein (CP) concentration was the highest in faba bean sole crop followed by the faba bean intercrops with oat. However, triticale sole crop and faba bean mixtures with triticale provided higher CP yield than all other crops because of their highest DM yield. Thus, mixtures of faba beans with triticale could be a promising alternative for increased forage production because of their capacity for high DM and protein yields.     

小麦花生两熟制一体化高产高效平衡施肥技术研究

将小麦花生两作视为一项整体工程,经研究建立了麦油两熟制一体化栽培平衡施肥决策系统。该系统充分考虑了土壤、作物产量、栽培措施等对肥料决策的影响,并通过气候、土壤及农业措施等对作物产量的综合影响,总结出确定适宜目标产量的方法,确保了系统决策结果的准确性和经济性。该系统用ＢＡＳＩＣ语言编制而成,用户可直接进行人机对话,操作简单,使用方便。山东、河南两省５ 县（市）４ 年（１９９５～１９９８）１７６个定点农户使用结果表明,小麦、花生分别平均增产９．１％ 和１２．５％     

Phenotypic plasticity of yield and agronomic traits in cereals and rapeseed at high latitudes

In the northernmost European environments of Finland, large variability in the yield and quality of crops is a critical source of uncertainty for growers and end-users of grain. The aims of this study were (i) to quantify and compare the plasticity, i.e., cultivar responsiveness to environment, in yield of spring oat, spring wheat, six-row barley, two-row barley, winter rye, winter wheat, turnip rape and oilseed rape, (ii) to explore the existence of hierarchies or positive correlations in the plasticity of agronomic, yield and quality traits and (iii) to probe for trends in yield plasticity associated with different eras of breeding for yield potential and agronomic traits. Plasticities of yield, agronomic and quality traits were derived as slopes of norms of reaction using MTT Agrifood Research Finland data sets combining long-term (1970-2008 for cereals and 1976-2008 for rapeseed) results from 15 to 26 locations. Plasticity of yield ranged typically between 0.8 and 1.2, was smallest for six-row barley (0.84-1.11) and largest for winter rye (0.72-1.36). We found two types of associations between plasticity of yield and yield under stressful or favourable conditions for cereals but none for rape. In spring wheat, oat and six-row barley, high yield plasticity was associated with crop responsiveness to favourable conditions rather than yield reductions under stressful conditions. Modern spring wheat cultivars had higher maximum grain yields compared to older ones at the same level of plasticity. In winter wheat and rye, high yield plasticity resulted from the combination of high yield in favourable conditions and low yield in stressful environments. Many associations between yield plasticity and other traits were identified in cereals: e.g., high yield plasticity was often associated with higher grain weight, more grains per square meter, later maturity (contrary to turnip rape), shorter plants, less lodging and lower grain protein content and in winter cereals with higher winter damage.     

Performance of wheat and triticale varieties in a variable soil water environment IV. Yield components and their association with grain yield

Yield components (Y_c) and their association with grain yield (GY) were studied in seventeen varieties of Triticum aestivum, T. durum and triticale grown for five years in irrigated and unirrigated environments. The varieties were categorized into four contrasting groups based on their drought susceptibility indices (S) and yield potentials (Y_p). The slope (b) and intercept (a) of the linear regression between Y_c and the environmental index, and S values of Y_c were estimated. Their relationships with b, a and S of GY were also studied irrespective of the parameter used. Total dry matter (DM) and the number of grains per m² (GNO) were always positively correlated with GY. GWT (1000-grain weight) was not correlated with GY.There was considerable variation among the groups in their Y_c at different water-availability levels. The group of varieties having low S and moderate Y_p produced more spikes per m² (SPIKES) relative to other groups irrespective of the water availability. Simultaneously, their increased number of grains per spike (GNOSP) in drought environments relative to irrigated environments partially offset the accompanying reduction in SPIKES. The group of varieties characterized by high Y_p and low S had highest yield in irrigated and moderate drought environments because they had both more SPIKES and more GNOSP. By comparison, the varietal group having high Y_p and high S had higher GNOSP but lower SPIKES. Varieties which had low Y_p and were susceptible to drought had the lowest SPIKES, GNOSP and DM.It was concluded that maintenance of SPIKES would provide an advantage in environments varying in soil water availability. Performance in irrigated environments would depend on the maintenance of high GNOSP also. Higher DM production would be advantageous in all environments.     

Effect of water deficits on within-plot variability in growth and grain yield of spring wheat in northwest China

For adapted cultivars under normal crop densities, biological yield is largely determined by the pool of available resources, e.g. water, nutrients and photosynthetically active radiation, while the nature and intensity of intraspecific competition plays an important role in determining the magnitude of harvest index (HI). Water deficits can drastically reduce the HI from its genetic potential to zero. This study was conducted to determine the effect of drought-weighted intraspecific competition on the HI and, consequently, the grain yield in spring wheat populations along a natural moisture gradient in northwestern China. Along the natural moisture gradient (annual mean rainfall decreased 328→204→185 mm per year, supplemented with 70 mm of irrigation), culm size inequality (as measured by the Gini coefficient of above-ground biomass per culm) always increased, and Lorenz curves were more concave. HI decreased significantly in 1999 (0.364→0.345→0.307) and 2000 (0.341→0.303→0.251). There was a significant negative correlation between the Gini coefficient and the HI of spring wheat along the moisture gradient (R²=0.92, P<0.01). These results suggested that size hierarchies in spring wheat populations are closely correlated with the water regime in the field, and that under greater drought stress there are relatively more smaller plants with lower HI (size-dependent reproductive allocation). Size inequality is an index of competitive status in plant populations under stress environments. Agriculturally, greater size inequality may result in a competitive cost for energy and photosynthetic products, in other words, growth redundancy, which is detrimental to reproductive allocation and consequently, grain yield. The results support the view that stand uniformity in field crops is an important mechanism for increasing grain yield.     

Water use and yield of wheat/maize intercropping under alternate irrigation in the oasis field of northwest China

A field experiment was carried out to investigate the effects of alternate irrigation (AI) on the yield, water use and water use efficiency (WUE) of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)/maize (Zea mays L.) intercropping system in an oasis region of northwest China in 2006-2008. Three planting patterns, i.e., sole wheat, sole maize and wheat/maize intercropping. Three irrigation levels were applied for each treatment during 3 years. Results showed that land use efficiency of wheat and maize was significantly enhanced by intercropping system; land equivalent ratio (LER) of wheat/maize intercropping system in different treatments was all greater than 1.0. Moreover, significant difference in grain yield was observed between intercropping treatment and sole cropping treatment, in which the yield of intercropped wheat was 55.37-74.88% of sole wheat, and intercropped maize was 66.63-78.87% of sole maize. Wheat/maize intercropping treatments increased water use by 1.8-16.4% than half of the total water use of sole-cropping wheat and maize. Compared to sole cropping wheat treatments, wheat/maize intercropping with alternate irrigation significantly improved water use efficiency (WUE) by 30.5-57.7%, 55.5-71.4% and 12.0-19.8%, and increased by 32.7-37.8%, 9.5-15.8% and 4.0-20.8% than sole cropping maize treatments in 2006-2008, respectively. Our results suggest that AI should be a useful water-saving irrigation method on wheat/maize intercropping in arid oasis field where intercropping planting is decreased because of limited water resource.     

不同生育阶段受旱对旱区夏玉米生长发育和产量的影响

2013和2014年在陕西杨凌进行田间控水试验,试验设置两个灌溉水平,每个灌溉水平下设置4种受旱处理,以全生育期均灌水为对照,分析不同生育时期受旱条件下夏玉米的株高、叶面积、生物量和产量等生理生态指标的变化特征以及蒸散量和水分利用效率的变化规律。结果表明,不同的灌水水平与受旱时段对夏玉米的产量有明显的交互作用,拔节前受旱会使最终产量偏低,且低灌水处理产量低于高灌水处理;在抽雄期受旱会明显减少穗粒数,但在同一灌水水平下产量最高;灌浆期受旱不仅明显减小了百粒重导致减产,而且蒸散量偏大,导致水分利用效率降低。因此,灌水水平较低时,应尽量避免玉米营养生长阶段(出苗和拔节)受旱;灌水水平较高时,可选择在苗期适度亏水,并避免灌浆期受旱。     

Compatibility of potatoes to contrasting seasonal conditions,to high temperatures and to water deficit: The association with time of maturation and yield potential

Summary Genotypic variation in the adaptation of potatoes of several maturity classes to the specific climatological conditions of the autumn season, to the high summer temperatures and to water deficit, was studied. Late-maturing cultivars exhibited the highest yielding potential both in the spring and autumn seasons but specific compatibility of cultivars to the autumn was detected. The late-maturing cultivars were more susceptible to high temperatures than were the early ones. However, there were significant differences in susceptibility to high temperatures among cultivars of the same maturity class. Susceptibility to water deficit was similar in the various maturity classes, but there were differences in the susceptibility to drought among cultivars of the same maturity class. High yielding potential generally resulted also in acceptable tuber yields under conditions of water deficit. High temperatures in combination with a water deficit aggravated yield losses, especially in the late-maturing cultivars. Contribution from the Agricultural Research Organization, The Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, Israel. No. 2782-E, 1989 series.