The genetic control of mildly restricted branching in narrow-leafed lupin (Lupinus angustifolius L.)

The indeterminate growth habit of most cultivars of narrow-leafed lupin(Lupinus angustifolius) results in undue competition between podgrowth and branch growth, and sometimes poor partitioning of dry massto grain. Selection of restricted-branching genotypes has been proposedas a method to overcome this problem. The restricted branching (RB)trait occurs in two forms, mild and severe. This paper reports the patternof genetic control of mild RB derived from a number of independentsources. The trait, as indicated by the number of leaves on the uppermostbranch, was found to be quantitative (quasi-continuous), but highlyheritable, and largely controlled by additive genetic effects. There was noconsistent correlation of this trait with the number of leaf nodes on themain stem or the time to flowering. It should therefore be possible toobtain different combinations of branching pattern and maturity datethrough plant breeding, and to assess their adaptation to a range ofenvironments.     

Cost-Benefit Analysis of a Community Forest in Nepal

Community forestry is an approach for mitigating deforestation and forest degradation by managing the forest resources for benefitting neighboring communities. Monetary benefits and costs are associated in a community forest during conservation and management of a forest. For sustainable forest management, the benefit should be more than cost which is a contesting issue of research. So, this study was conducted in a community forest of the central part of Nepal with the help of 80 household surveys and a focus group discussion. The firsthand information collected at the site is complimented by forest product harvest and cost-related secondary information. It was observed that the total annual harvest of timber was 60 cubic feet, pole was 8 cubic feet, firewood was 1,110 Bhari,¹ fodder was 4,388 Bhari, and leaf litter was 590 Bhari. To manage a forest, people were involved in fencing, thinning, and meetings. Management cost was six times higher than administration cost. The benefit from firewood and fodder was more due to the dependency of people in a forest for enhancing their livelihood. The higher value of benefit cost ratio indicates that the Community Forest User Group benefited from community forest management.     

Evaluating smallholder farmers’ demand for rice variety attributes in Nepal

Despite the release of many modern varieties of rice (Oryza sativa), farmers in Nepal have been cultivating relatively few rice varieties. The objective of this study is to estimate farmers’ demand for rice variety attributes and to identify the factors that influence their decision regarding varietal choice. Yield increase is considered jointly with other attributes, such as cooking and eating quality, drought tolerance, and maturity period. Choice experiments were conducted and results showed that there was significant demand from farming households for yield increase, improvement in cooking and eating quality, tolerant to drought, and short maturing varieties. The choice data were analyzed using a multinomial and random parameter logit model. From a policy perspective, results showed that for broader adoption of crop varieties, variety development programs should give priority to aforementioned attributes rather than solely on increased crop productivity.     

Genotypic and Pathotypic Diversity in Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae in Nepal

ABSTRACT Among the 171 strains of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (the bacterial blight pathogen of rice) collected from eight rice-producing zones in Nepal, 31 molecular haplotypes were distinguished using two polymerase chain reaction-based assays. Six common haplotypes represented nearly 63% of the strains, and some haplotypes were geographically dispersed. Multiple correspondence analysis divided the collection into five putative genetic lineages. Lineages 1, 2, and 4 were the most frequently detected and occurred in diverse geographic populations. Twenty-six pathotypes (virulence phenotypes) of X. oryzae pv. oryzae were identified using 11 near-iso-genic rice lines, each containing a single gene for resistance. The 26 pathotypes grouped into five clusters, and cluster 1 contained wide virulence spectrum strains from all geographic populations. Although molecular variation was greatest between strains of different virulence phenotypes, some variation was observed among strains with identical virulence. There was a weak correlation (r = 0.52) between molecular haplotypes and virulence phenotypes. There are two major groups of X. oryzae pv. oryzae in Nepal. One group consists of strains with high molecular polymorphism and many pathotypes that are either virulent to the 11 major resistance genes or avirulent only to Xa21. Strains in the second group have low molecular polymorphism and are avirulent to Xa4, xa5, Xa7, and Xa21.     

Effects of temperature on infection and subsequent development of clubroot under controlled conditions

Controlled‐environment studies were conducted on two Brassica crops (canola, Brassica napus; and Shanghai pak choi, B. rapa subsp. chinensis var. communis) to examine the effects of temperature on infection and subsequent development of clubroot caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae. In the first experiment, canola seedlings were grown in infested soil for 3 weeks at 14–26°C to assess the impact on primary and secondary infection and transferred to 20°C for 3 weeks to assess symptom development under uniform conditions, or started at 20°C for 3 weeks and then placed at the treatment temperatures for the final 3 weeks to assess the impact of temperature on symptom development. A second experiment examined a wider range of temperatures (10–30°C). Similar experiments were also conducted on Shanghai pak choi. The studies demonstrated that clubroot severity was affected by temperature during both infection and vegetative development of the crop. Both early and late in crop development, little or no clubroot developed at temperatures at or below 17°C, and development was slower above 26°C than at 23–26°C for both crops throughout the study. In canola, the high levels of inoculum used in the study resulted in a high incidence of clubroot irrespective of temperature, but in pak choi incidence showed the same pattern as severity. This is the first study to demonstrate under controlled conditions that temperature during vegetative growth of the crop affects symptom development of clubroot.     

Trichothecene profiling and population genetic analysis of Gibberella zeae from barley in North Dakota and Minnesota

Gibberella zeae, the principal cause of Fusarium head blight (FHB) of barley, contaminates grains with several mycotoxins, which creates a serious problem for the malting barley industry in the United States, China, and Europe. However, limited studies have been conducted on the trichothecene profiles and population genetic structure of G. zeae isolates collected from barley in the United States. Trichothecene biosynthesis gene (TRI)-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays and 10 variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) markers were used to determine the genetic diversity and compare the trichothecene profiles of an older population (n = 115 isolates) of G. zeae collected in 1997 to 2000 with a newer population (n = 147 isolates) collected in 2008. Samples were from across the major barley-growing regions in North Dakota and Minnesota. The results of TRI-based PCR assays were further validated using a subset of 32 and 28 isolates of G. zeae by sequence analysis and gas chromatography, respectively. TRI-based PCR assays revealed that all the G. zeae isolates in both populations had markers for deoxynivalenol (DON), and the frequencies of isolates with a 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol (3-ADON) marker in the newer population were ≈11-fold higher than those among isolates in the older population. G. zeae populations from barley in the Midwest of the United States showed no spatial structure, and all the isolates were solidly in clade 7 of G. zeae, which is quite different from other barley-growing areas of world, where multiple species of G. zeae are commonly found in close proximity and display spatial structure. VNTR analysis showed high gene diversity (H = 0.82 to 0.83) and genotypic diversity but low linkage disequilibrium (LD = 0.02 to 0.07) in both populations. Low genetic differentiation (F(ST) = 0.013) and high gene flow (Nm = 36.84) was observed between the two populations and among subpopulations within the same population (Nm = 12.77 to 29.97), suggesting that temporal and spatial variations had little influence on population differentiation in the Upper Midwest. Similarly, low F(ST) (0.02) was observed between 3-ADON and 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol populations, indicating minor influence of the chemotype of G. zeae isolates on population subdivision, although there was a rapid increase in the frequencies of isolates with the 3-ADON marker in the Upper Midwest between the older collection made in 1997 to 2000 and the newer collection made in 2008. This study provides information to barley-breeding programs for their selection of isolates of G. zeae for evaluating barley genotypes for resistance to FHB and DON accumulation.     

From sharecropping to crop-rent: women farmers changing agricultural production relations in rural South Asia

This paper explores changing production relations in agriculture in context of increasingly widespread and longer-duration male outmigration, as against previous, short-duration and seasonal migration. It investigates how de facto women-heads of households (WHHs) are changing a resilient crop-sharing system in absence of adequate access to productive assets, formal training or experience in farming, and while contributing labour to farming and coping with gendered demands on their time. Based on qualitative inquiry in one of the poorest parts of South Asia, the Eastern Gangetic Plains, the paper shows that a section of WHHs are replacing sharecropping arrangements with fixed-value rental arrangements that resemble commercial contracts. The paper ends with a discussion on the implications of this emerging development.     

Regeneration ecology and population status of a critically endangered and endemic tree species （Ilex khasiana Purk.） in north-eastern India

Detailed studies on population structure and regeneration ecology of Ilex khasiana were carried out at five representative natural populations i.e. Mylliem (Population - I), Upper Shillong (Population - II), Shillong Peak (Population - III), Laitkor (Population - IV) and Nongpiyur (Population - V) to probe into the responsible affecting factors for its population structure and regeneration ability in these populations. Experimental observation under three controlled light conditions (full sunlight (100%), intermediate sunlight (50%) and low sunlight (30%)) showed that the growth status and survival rates of seedlings under intermediate and low light were better than those under the high light condition. The density-diameter distribution in population of adult trees (≥5cm dbh) exhibited a typical character of a regenerating population. A higher seedling mortality rate in natural populations of I. khasiana was most probably due to increase in light intensity following vegetation destruction and other anthropogenic disturbances that cause opening of forest canopy. The findings of the present study would be of immense value in formulating appropriate conservation measures for the species.     

Walkable Neighborhood Systems

This essay defines walkable neighborhood systems, summarizes the negative impacts of suburbia on the economy as a whole, and presents indirect pricing as a major cause of suburbia. The paper proposes several pricing reforms and green mobility as solutions based on prices that reflect full costs. Several hypotheses are presented concerning the performance of walkable neighborhood systems and the concept of an inflection point for the takeoff of non‐auto modes when density within a walkable area reaches economies of scale. It proposes research on old neighborhoods as a way to quantify relationships in the absence of pricing reforms. The paper discusses building types and high rise, and how at highest densities there may be diminishing returns. While it is natural for most scholars to study dominant land uses, there is a need to understand better dense walking neighborhoods as solutions to the costs of suburbia and to enhance their functioning to show a path to a sustainable future.