Modeling mid-rotation fertilizer responses using the age-shift approach

Growth and yield modelers have incorporated mid-rotation fertilizer responses by: modifying site index; developing new models to include fertilizer responses directly; using multipliers or additional terms to scale existing models. We investigated the use of age-shifts to model mid-rotation fertilizer responses. Age-shift prediction models were constructed from 43 installations of a nitrogen (0, 112, 224 and 336 kg ha⁻¹ elemental) by phosphorus (0, 28 and 56 kg ha⁻¹ elemental) factorial experiment established in mid-rotation loblolly (Pinus taeda L.) pine stands in the southeastern US. Age-shifts for dominant height and basal area increased with time after fertilization, to a maximum and then either remained fairly constant, or declined. The initial rate of increase, maximum age-shift and decline were functions of the rate and combinations of fertilizers applied, as well as stand density and age at fertilization. Volume age-shifts increased linearly throughout the 10-year measurement period for most treatments with the rate of increase being a function of the elements applied, stocking, site index and age at fertilization. A mid-rotation fertilizer application of 224 and 28 kg ha⁻¹ elemental N and P, respectively, resulted in age-shifts of 1.1, 1.9 and 2.4 years for dominant height, basal area and volume, respectively, 10 years after fertilization. The age-shifts were incorporated into growth and yield models.     

Genetic diversity within Australian wheat breeding programs based on molecular and pedigree data

124 wheat cultivars and breeding lines were screened with 19 microsatellite (SSR) loci generating 160 scorable bands which were used to construct a genetic distance (GD) matrix. A distance matrix based on coefficient of parentage (COP) scores was also generated for the cultivars for which good pedigree records were available. The SSR and COP data for 101 of the wheat cultivars were compared with genetic distance scores obtained using1898 scorable restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) bands previously generated. Phylograms were generated based on the SSR, RFLP,combined SSR and RFLP and COP data. The standardised Mantel's Z test showed that the distance matrices generated from all of the data sets were significantly correlated. Bootstrap analysis showed that, although the SSR and RFLP data were correlated, a large number of SSR loci are required for determining robust genetic relationships between large numbers of cultivars. In addition, accurate pedigree records are needed to determine genetic relatedness using COP. The molecular data were also used to determine the level of genetic variability within breeding programs and to assess the impact of the introduction of semidwarf and other germplasm. The results showed that the level of genetic diversity in Australian wheat cultivars has increased over time and that in particular, the introduction of semidwarf germplasm resulted in an increase in the overall diversity. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Yield and adaptation of hexaploid spring triticale

Summary Gains in yield and stability were analysed using grain yield data from the 8th to the 14th International Triticale Yield Nursery (ITYN) and differences in adaptation between complete and substituted triticales (X Triticosecale Wittmack) were examined. A trend of improving yield and adaptation was observed. As highly significant genotype × site interaction each year was not adequately described using regression analysis, yield stability was examined by ranking genotypes within sites and summarizing scores for individual genotypes across sites. Cluster analysis was used to study the relationships among sites and among genotypes. There was little evidence of sites grouping on a geographical basis. Grouping of genotypes showed a tendency for complete and substituted triticales to perform differently, suggesting that diversity for adaptation is maximized by utilizing both types in breeding.Progress for grain yield is compared with more spectacular gains in test weight and reasons for the different rates of improvement are postulated.Abbreviations CIMMYT International Maize & Wheat Improvement Centre - ITYN International Triticale Yield Nursery contribution from CIMMYT/Agriculture Canada (No. R-002)