Changes in soil hydraulic conductivity, runoff, and soil loss due to irrigation with different types of saline–sodic water

Irrigation with saline–sodic water causes sodic conditions in the soil which reduces soil productivity. We evaluated the changes in a number of important indices related to soil structural stability when treated wastewater (TWW), albeit with higher loads of organic matter and suspended solids, was used instead of more saline–sodic irrigation water, under different degrees of aggregate slaking. We studied soil saturated hydraulic conductivity (HC) using disturbed samples packed in columns, and soil infiltration rate, runoff and erosion under simulated rainfall. Aggregate slaking was manipulated by wetting the samples prior to all tests at either a slow (1–2 mm h^− 1) or a fast (50 mm h^− 1) rate. Samples of a calcareous silty clay (Typic Calciorthids) from the Bet She'an Valley, Israel, were taken from plots irrigated for three years with either TWW, saline–sodic Jordan River water (JRW), or moderately saline–sodic spring water (SPW), and also from a non-cultivated area (control). With little or no aggregate slaking (use of slow wetting), higher HC values and lower amounts of total runoff and soil loss were measured compared to when more severe aggregate slaking was induced (use of fast wetting). The HC values for the TWW treatment were similar to, or lower than, those for the control and significantly higher than those for the JRW treatment. For the runoff and soil loss data, differences among the water quality treatments were, generally, more pronounced when aggregate slaking was substantially reduced, and were related to soil sodicity. Under the latter condition, runoff and soil loss from the TWW treatment were comparable with those from the control and significantly lower than those from the JRW treatment. Our results suggested that replacing saline–sodic irrigation water with TWW could have favorable effects on soil structural stability, especially under conditions where aggregate slaking can be reduced (e.g., in regions with low to moderate rain intensities; and/or use of low intensity irrigation systems).     

Sensitivity to chloropicrin of microsclerotia ofVerticillium dahliae as related to their germination on growth media and in soil

Sensitivity of microsclerotia ofVerticillium dahliae to chloropicrin increased considerably during incubation on Czapek’s medium and in moist soil. However, whereas on a growth medium maximum sensitivity was obtained after 48–96 h, a period of 216–288 h was required to obtain a similar degree of sensitivity of microsclerotia incubated in moist soil. At the end of the incubation period, the microsclerotia which had been incubated in moist soil gave rise to an average of four hyphae per microsclerotium as compared with 130 observed on Czapek’s agar. It is concluded that germination does not play a major role in the increase of sensitivity to chloropicrin during the incubation of microsclerotia ofV. dahliae in moist soil.     

Development and assessment of a novel servo-controlled spraying system for real time adjustment of the orientation angle of the nozzles of a boom sprayer

Background

Pesticide spray drift, which is the movement of pesticide by wind to any location other than the intended area, is hazardous to human, animal, food safety and environmental health. It is not possible to completely eliminate spray drift during spraying with field crop sprayers, but spray drift can be reduced by developing new technologies. The most common methods to reduce spray drift are carrying the droplets to the target with air-assisted spraying, electrostatic spraying, preferring air induction nozzles and boom shields. With these methods, it is not possible to make a change on the sprayer depending on the wind intensity during spraying. In this study, a novel servo-controlled spraying system was designed and developed to change the nozzle orientation angle in the reverse direction of the wind current to reduce the ground spray drift in real time and automatically in a wind tunnel. The displacement in the spray pattern (D_c) was used as a ground drift indicator for each nozzle to evaluate the spray drift.

Results

The developed system, operated by LabVIEW software, calculated different nozzle orientation angles depending on nozzle types, wind velocities and spraying pressures. Orientation angles calculated for different test conditions achieved in reduction were up to 49.01% for XR11002 nozzle, 32.82% for AIXR11002 nozzle and 32.31% for TTJ6011002 nozzle at 400 kPa spray pressure and 2.5 m s⁻¹ wind velocity.

Conclusion

The developed system, which has a self-decision mechanism, calculated the nozzle orientation angle instantaneously according to the wind velocity. It has been observed that the adjustable spraying nozzle system, sprayed with high precision towards the wind in the wind tunnel, and the developed system have advantages compared to conventional spraying systems. © 2023 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

Pacheco's parrot disease in macaws of the Lisbon's Zoological Garden. Description of an outbreak, diagnosis and management, including vaccination

The Lisbon's Zoological Garden, Portugal, has maintained for many years a large collection of psittacine birds without any serious health problems. Unexpectedly, in April 1999, a total of nine macaws died after a short period of illness. Clinical signs consisted mainly of anorexia, ruffled feathers and yellowish droppings. A herpesvirus was isolated from brain, trachea, lung, liver, spleen, kidney and intestine of each of the examined dead birds, confirming that all animals succumbed during viraemia. Serotyping of the isolate in cross neutralization tests with reference sera prove that the outbreak was caused by serotype 3 of Pacheco's parrot disease herpesviruses. An autogenous, formalin-inactivated vaccine with adjuvant (aluminium hydroxid gel) was prepared from one of the isolates and injected intramuscularly 14 days and six weeks after the onset of mortality in an attempt to protect the remaining psittacine birds in the zoo from the disease. The autogenous vaccine was well tolerated and was able to rapidly stop virus spread and morbidity and mortality among the psittacine birds. Follow-up studies demonstrate that all nine blood samples from vaccinated birds obtained nine month' after the second vaccination contain neutralizing antibodies. Twenty five month' after vaccination two out of four serum samples were still antibody positive. No herpesvirus was isolated from faecal samples nine and twenty five months after the onset of the outbreak. These data prove that the autogenous vaccine played a major role in containing a severe outbreak of Pacheco's parrot disease in a large collection of psittacine birds.     

Monitoring and efficacy of selected insecticides for European corn borer (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ostrinia nubilalis</Emphasis> Hubn., Lepidoptera: Crambidae) control

The European corn borer (ECB), Ostrinia nubilalis (H?bner) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), is the major arthropod pest of corn in Croatia. However, chemical control is carried out only in maize for seed production, and in sweet corn. A 3-year investigation was carried out in corn fields in northwest Croatia to establish the most attractive pheromone lure for ECB monitoring, the optimal timing of insecticide applications, and the efficacy of selected insecticides against ECB. During each of the 3 years, the pheromone lures E, Z and E/Z («Isagro») were evaluated in the field from May to July. Insecticides were sprayed 14–20 days after the maximal capture in 2002 and 2003. In 2004, three different trials were set up: one trial with one early treatment (when corn was in the R49 development stage according to the extended BBCH scale); one with one late treatment (when corn was in the R65 development stage according to the BBCH scale); and one with two treatments in both stages. In the trials studying Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (B.t.k.), insect growth regulators (IGR), spinosad and classical chemical insecticides were applied. Pheromone lure E was the most attractive for monitoring ECB flights throughout 2 years of investigation. Insecticide efficacy depended on application timing. The insecticides most suitable for integrated pest management (IPM) programs, including spinosad, B.t.k. and IGR, resulted in high (spinosad) to moderate (B.t.k.) efficacy. The efficacy of IGRs indicates the need for earlier application. The efficacy of chemical insecticides depended on the year and the insecticide. The organophosphate (OP) insecticides and pyrethroids gave moderate to good results; imidacloprid did not provide significant efficacy. One application of all insecticides based on proper (early) timing resulted in the same efficacy as two applications of the same insecticides.     

Detection and counting of flowers on apple trees for better chemical thinning decisions

Precision Agriculture - Accurate chemical thinning of apple trees requires estimation of their blooming intensity, and determination&nbsp;of the blooming peak date. Performing this task, as of...     

Acute kidney injury in dogs: Etiology,clinical and clinicopathologic findings,prognostic markers,and outcome

BackgroundAcute kidney injury (AKI) is a common, potentially fatal condition.ObjectivesTo characterize the etiologies, clinical and clinicopathologic findings, hospitalization period, and outcome of dogs with AKI and to identify markers of negative prognosis.AnimalsTwo hundred forty‐nine client‐own dogs diagnosed with AKI and hospitalized at a veterinary teaching hospital.MethodsRetrospective study. Search of medical records for dogs with AKI.ResultsCommon clinical signs included lethargy (225/249, 90%), anorexia (206/249, 83%), and vomiting (168/249, 68%). Etiologies included ischemic/inflammatory (144/249, 58%), infectious (19/249, 8%), nephrotoxicosis (14/249, 6%), or other (13/249, 5%). Hospital‐acquired AKI was diagnosed in 9% (23/249) of the dogs. Median presentation and peak serum creatinine (sCr) concentrations were 4 mg/dL (range, 1.1‐37.9) and 4.6 mg/dL (range, 1.1‐43.1), respectively. Dogs were classified to AKI grades as follows: Grade I, 6 (2%), Grade II, 38 (15%), Grade III, 89 (36%), Grade IV, 77 (31%), and Grade V, 39 (16%). One hundred and sixty‐four (66%) dogs survived. There was a positive association between death and AKI grade (P = .009). The case fatality rate was higher among dogs with anuria compared with dogs without anuria (50% vs 28%, respectively; odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 2.5 [1.39‐4.6]; P = .002). Forty‐seven (18.8%) dogs underwent hemodialysis, of which 60% survived.Conclusion and Clinical ImportanceTwo‐thirds of dogs with AKI survived. Hospital‐acquired AKI was common. The severity of AKI, as reflected by presence of anuria, AKI grade, and other body organs involvement, was associated with the outcome.     

光皮树优良无性系组织培养的无菌体系建立

以光皮树优良无性系的嫩枝茎段为试验材料,研究不同时期的外植体、灭菌处理与植物激素对接种污染率和无菌外植体得率的影响。结果表明,秋季带顶芽的嫩茎为接种培养的适宜外植体,外植体最佳消毒方法为75%酒精浸泡10 s后,用2~3滴吐温80的0.1%升汞溶液消毒7~9 min。试验获得了光皮树适宜的初代培养基:MS+6-BA 2.0 mg.L-1+NAA 0.05 mg.L-1+PVP 300 mg.L-1+蔗糖30 g.L-1。     

Site suitability assessment and mapping for rice cultivation using multi-criteria decision analysis based on fuzzy-AHP and TOPSIS approaches under semihumid ecological condition in delta plain

Paddy and Water Environment - Many areas in Turkey are ecologically suitable for paddy cultivation, and their yield per hectare is above the world average. Despite this fact, the amount of...     

Pedogenic and biogenic alkaline‐extracted silicon distributions along a temperate land‐use gradient

The primary source of dissolved silicon (Si: DSi) is the weathering of silicate minerals. In recent years, it has been shown that Si cycling through vegetation creates a more soluble Si pool in the soil, as amorphous Si (ASi) deposits in plants (phytoliths) are returned to the soil through litter. Amorphous Si accumulation in soils depends on a number of factors, including land use. In addition to the biogenic ASi fraction, soils contain other non‐biogenic amorphous and sorbed Si fractions that could contribute significantly to DSi export to rivers, but hitherto these Si fractions have been difficult to separate from each other with traditionally applied extraction methods. The objective of this paper is to understand better how land use affects the distribution of the different extractable Si fractions. We re‐analysed samples from the land‐use gradient studied previously by Clymans et al. ( 2011 ) with a continuous Si and aluminium (Al) extraction technique. Different extractable Si fractions of biogenic or pedogenic origin were successfully separated on the basis of their dissolution in alkaline solutions (Na₂CO₃ and NaOH) and Si:Al ratios. We show that forests store almost all alkaline extractable Si (AlkExSi) in the pedogenic fraction while the importance of phytoliths increases with human disturbance to become the dominant fraction in the AlkExSi pool at the arable site. The pedogenic AlkExSi pool is also more reactive than the phytolith‐bound Si. Conversely, pastures and croplands tend to preserve phytoliths in the soil, which are less reactive, decreasing the potential of DSi export relative to forested ecosystems.