Vertical Distribution of Arthropod Interactions Within Turfgrass

Arthropod predators are abundant in turfgrass systems, and they play an important role in managing pests. Understanding the vertical distribution of predation is critical to developing cultural strategies that enhance and conserve predatory services. However, little is known on how the predation is vertically distributed within the turfgrass canopy. Thus, the objective of this study was to determine the vertical distribution of predation within the turfgrass canopy. Clay models were used to emulate the general appearance of Noctuidae caterpillars, to estimate the predatory activity. The choice and no-choice experiments were conducted by placing clay models at 2.54, 5.08, and 7.62 cm from the thatch surface and denoted as lower, intermediate, and upper levels, respectively, within turfgrass canopy. The predator-mediated impressions, paired mark, scratch, deep cut mark, deep distortion, prick, dent, stacked surface impression, scooped mark, granulation, and U-shaped mark, were identified on clay models. The incidence and severity of impressions were significantly greater on clay models placed at the lower canopy level than on those placed at the intermediate and upper canopy levels in the choice and no-choice experiments (P < 0.05). Thus, predators are more likely to find their prey at the soil level. This information can be used to refine management strategies, such as mowing height and insecticide use for effectively managing soil-borne and foliar-feeding arthropod pests and beneficial arthropods.     

Application of system dynamics approach for time varying water balance in aerobic paddy fields

Increasing water scarcity has necessitated the development of irrigated rice systems that require less water than the traditional flooded rice. The cultivation of aerobic rice is an effort to save water in response to growing worldwide water scarcity with the pressure to reduce water use and increase water productivity. An accurate estimation of different water balance components at the aerobic rice fields is essential to achieve effective use of limited water supplies. Some field water balance components, such as percolation, capillary rise and evapotranspiration, can not be easily measured; therefore a soil water balance model is required to develop and to test water management strategies. This paper presents results of a study to quantify time varying water balance under a critical soil water tension based irrigation criteria for the cultivation of non-ponded “aerobic rice” fields along the lower parts of the Yellow River. Based on the analysis and integration of existing field information on the hydrologic processes in an aerobic rice field, this paper outlines the general components of the water balance using a conceptual model approach. The time varying water balance is then analyzed using the feedback relations among the hydrologic processes in a commercial dynamic modeling environment, Vensim. The model simulates various water balance components such as actual evapotranspiration, deep percolation, surface runoff, and capillary rise in the aerobic rice field on a daily basis. The model parameters are validated with the observed experimental field data from the Huibei Irrigation Experiment Station, Kaifeng, China. The validated model is used to analyze irrigation application soil water tension trigger under wet, dry and average climate conditions using daily time steps. The scenario analysis show that to conserve scarce water resources during the average climate years the irrigation scheduling criteria can be set as −30 kPa average root zone soil water tension; whereas it can be set at −70 kPa during the dry years, however, the associated yields may reduce. Compared with the flooded lowland rice and other upland crops, with these two alternatives irrigation event triggers, aerobic rice cultivation can lead to significant water savings.     

耐高温陆地棉品种综合评价及优良品种选择

 在高温干旱条件下,通过大田试验测定20个陆地棉花品种的主要产量性状、纤维品质性状及农艺性状,并进行综合评价。应用主成分分析法对20个品种的皮棉产量、生育期、株高、始果节、果枝数、有效铃、铃重、衣分、纤维长度、整齐度、麦克隆值、伸长率和断裂比强度进行分析。确定了主要性状的5个主成分及其主成分的函数方程和主成分综合函数方程,主成分的方差累积贡献率达到84.087%。通过计算主成分值和综合主成分值,对供试的20个品种进行了比较,进而选择了湘YC₃F₁、晋棉38、豫宝8号3个综合性状优良的品种,其结果与实际相一致。     

Human health risk due to consumption of vegetables contaminated with carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Purpose  

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are persistent, toxic, and carcinogenic contaminants present in soil ecosystem globally. These pollutants are gradually accumulating in wastewater-irrigated soils and lead to the contamination of vegetables. Food chain contamination with PAH is considered as one of the major pathways for human exposure. This study was aimed to investigate the concentrations of PAH in soils and vegetables collected from wastewater-irrigated fields from metropolitan areas of Beijing, China. Origin of PAH, daily intake, and health risks of PAH through consumption of contaminated vegetables were studied.     

Digestibility, faeces recovery, and related carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus balances of five feed ingredients evaluated as fishmeal alternatives in Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus L.

This study shows that alternatives for fishmeal in a fish diet affect not only fish growth but also faeces stability and nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) waste production. Wheat gluten diet (WGD), soybean meal extract diet (SBE), soybean meal diet (SBM), duckweed diet (DWD) and single‐cell protein diet (SCP) were evaluated as a fishmeal replacement on a 15% weight weight^?1 basis in tilapia diets. Fishmeal replacement affected dry matter (dm), protein, ash and P digestibility significantly. Faeces recovery (6.8–11.2%) was not significantly affected, although the amount of non‐recovered faeces and total faeces showed significant differences. Duckweed diet and SCP resulted in the largest amounts of non‐recovered and total faeces (199–210, 224–225 g dm kg^?1 feed dm). Compared with fishmeal diet (FMD), the WGD and SBE resulted in similar growth, but higher non‐faecal N losses (471–495 vs. 416 g N kg^?1 N). Soybean meal diet, DWD and SCP resulted in lower growth but less non‐faecal loss (409–450 g N kg^?1 N). The DWD and FMD had the highest N retention (480 g N kg^?1 N) compared with the other diets (431–451 g N kg^?1 N). Carbon retention, faecal and non‐faecal losses and P retention were similar for all diets (302–358, 142–176 and 489–523g C kg^?1 C, 606–704 g P kg^?1 P). Phosphorus faecal loss was lower for all diets (329–381 g P kg^?1 P) than for the FMD (401 g P kg^?1 P).     

5‐Aminolevulinic Acid Activates Antioxidative Defence System and Seedling Growth in Brassica napus L. under Water‐Deficit Stress

The present study assesses the effects of 5‐aminolevulinic acid (ALA, 0, 0.1, 1 and 10 mg l^?1) on the growth of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L. cv. ZS758) seedlings under water‐deficit stress induced by polyethylene glycol (PEG 6000, 0 and ?0.3 MPa). Water‐deficit stress imposed negative effects on seedling growth by reducing shoot biomass, cotyledon water potential, chlorophyll content and non‐enzymatic antioxidants (glutathione and ascorbic acid) levels. On the other hand, water‐deficit stress enhanced the malondialdehyde (MDA) content, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, enzymatic antioxidants activities, reduced/oxidized glutathione ratio (GSH/GSSG) and reduced/oxidized ascorbic acid (ASA/DHA) ratio in seedlings. Application of ALA at lower dosages (0.1 and 1 mg l^?1) improved shoot weight and chlorophyll contents, and decreased MDA in rape seedlings, whereas moderately higher dosage of ALA (10 mg l^?1) hampered the growth. The study also indicated that 1 mg l^?1 ALA improved chlorophyll content, but reduced MDA content and ROS production significantly under water‐deficit stress. Lower dosages of ALA (0.1 and 1 mg l^?1) also enhanced GSH/GSSG and ASA/DHA as compared to the seedlings under water‐deficit stress. The antioxidant enzymes (ascorbate peroxidase, peroxidase, catalase, glutathione reductase and superoxide dismutase) enhanced their activities remarkably with 1 mg l^?1 ALA treatment under water‐deficit stress. It was also revealed that 1 mg l^?1 ALA treatment alone induced the expression of APX, CAT and GR substantially and under water‐deficit stress conditions ALA treatment could induce the expression of POD, CAT and GR to a certain degree. These results indicated that 0.1–1 mg l^?1 ALA could enhance the water‐deficit stress tolerance of oilseed seedlings through improving the biomass accumulation, maintaining a relative high ratio of GSH/GSSG and ASA/DHA, enhancing the activities of the specific antioxidant enzymes and inducing the expression of the specific antioxidant enzyme genes.     

Prey consumption during development as well as longevity and reproduction of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Typhlodromus pyri</Emphasis> Scheuten (Acari,Phytoseiidae) at higher temperatures in the laboratory

The predatory mite Typhlodromus pyri Scheuten (Acari, Phytoseiidae) has been reported as an important predator of the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch) (Acari, Tetranychidae) in apple culture and vineyards at below 25?°C. However, sufficient biological data was lacking on its efficiency at temperatures above 25?°C. Therefore, the purpose of the present laboratory work was to obtain experimental data on prey consumption during development as well as longevity and reproduction of T. pyri on apple leaf discs and in Plexiglas cells at constant temperatures of 25?±?2?°C and 30?±?2?°C with P. ulmi as prey.     

Effects of seasonal changes on the population levels of some plant-parasitic nematodes in the plantations of Pinus caribaea and P. oocarpa in the savanna areas of Nigeria

The mean values of the total number of nematodes found in each of four pine plantations in Nigeria were depressed during the dry season to a minimum between March and April. A gradual increase in the population started from June–July, and the population reached its peak in August–October. The seasonal decline in nematode population coincided with the period of low soil moisture. An important ecological factor affecting population changes in the selected plantations was the vegetation cover; while a gradual decline in nematode population was observed in the 1968, 1974a and 1974b plantations, which have a full canopy, a sharp decline in nematode population was observed in the 1982 plot, which did not have a complete canopy. Populations of some nematode genera, such as Rotylenchus spp., Criconemella spp., Coslenchus spp. and Triversus spp., declined to zero in this last plantation.     

Molecular phylogeny and pathotyping of Fusarium solani: a causal agent of Dalbergia sissoo decline

Sissoo (Dalbergia sissoo), commonly known as shisham, is amongst the finest woods of South Asia, but ‘wilt’ disease has caused a rapid decline in this species. The cause of the disease remains uncertain. The aim of this study is to identify the causal agent of the disease and characterize isolates made from diseased trees, based on genomic data and variations in virulence. Samples of infected roots, stems and the ooze exuded from infected trees were obtained from plants showing symptoms in different geographical regions of India for the isolation of microorganisms. Isolates were used to inoculate healthy plants. Based on the morphological characteristics, genus‐ and species‐specific PCR, and in silico analysis of 5.8S rDNA‐ITS regions, of the 38 fungal isolates, 24 and 14 were identified as Fusarium solani and Fusarium sp., respectively. In a pathotyping study, eighteen F. solani isolates, isolated from roots and stem parts of symptomatic plants, induced typical wilt symptoms when inoculated through soil and roots on D. sissoo seedlings of 1–15 months in age. The population of F. solani was the highest in infected roots and the lowest in parts of stems, gradually decreasing with height, and was isolated constantly up to approximately 40% height of the seedling. F. solani isolates used in inoculations were successfully re‐isolated from the rhizosphere, infected roots and wilted stems, as confirmed using isolate‐specific DNA fingerprints. Molecular phylogenies based on rDNA‐ITS sequences showed that the 38 isolates fell into 2 groups. Group I comprised of F. solani isolates from D. sissoo and F. solani sequences in the NCBI GenBank database, whereas group II included Fusarium isolates other than F. solani. These results are helpful in developing integrated control measures for this highly variable pathogen and to establish a base for future population studies.