Ryegrass Utilization of Nutrients Released from Composted Biosolids and Cow Manure

Use of composts as soil amendments to enhance crop growth requires a knowledge of rates and amounts of nutrients released. A greenhouse study was conducted using ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) as a test plant to evaluate this release from composts. The experimental design consisted of four blocked replicates in a complete factorial with two types of compost (wastewater treatment plant biosolids and cow manure), four application rates (1, 2, 5 and 10 percent of weight of sand), and three fertilizer treatments (0, 100 mg N/kg mixture, and 100 mg P/kg mixture). Rye-grass top growth was harvested after 21 days. The regrowth was harvested three additional times. Roots were recovered after the fourth harvest. Total N uptake was significantly and positively affected by the total amount of N supplied by the compost or compost plus N fertilizer (r² values ranged from 0.992 to 0.999). Initial N uptake depended on the mineral N concentration in the compost and was higher from biosolids than from cow manure compost. Biosolids compost contained 10 times more mineral N and this N was primarily taken up in the first two harvests. Cow manure compost, however, provided N gradually over the entire 84 day test. In addition to N, both composts also supplied P, K, and other major and minor nutrients essential for plant growth.     

Decomposition of a Native Shrub,Piliostigma reticulatum,Litter in Soils of Semiarid Senegal

Developing effective management strategies that restore degraded soils requires an evaluation of the quality of the litter residues. This study relates the chemical composition of the biomass components to the decomposition rates for Piliostigma reticulatum (DC.) Hochst., a native shrub, under field and laboratory conditions. The rates were determined by mass loss. The changes in the specific surface area of the residue in relation to mass loss ranged from 15 X 10 -5 to 45 X 10 -5 which was similar to crop residues in other studies. At field conditions, P. reticulatum mass loss was higher (80% of the initial mass lost over eight months) than that under controlled conditions (50%). Such fast decomposition of residues offers the potential for farmers to stop burning these residues because high amounts of residues will not likely accumulate and cause interference with tillage and planting operations. Further studies are needed on the role of soil fauna on decomposition, mineralization of nutrients from these residues, and the potential for incorporating residues into the system without burning.     

Viscosity reduction of castor oil esters by the addition of diesel, safflower oil esters and additives

The high viscosity of vegetable oil can be reduced by transesterification with alcohols and converting it into biodiesel. Biodiesel can be used neat or blended with diesel as engine fuel. This study demonstrates that esters of castor oils have a higher viscosity than safflower oil derived esters and the viscosity can be reduced by blending with diesel. The viscosity increased in a non-linear fashion as the percentage of castor esters increased in castor esters diesel blends and in castor esters safflower esters blends. Only slight increases in viscosity were observed for B40 and B60 mixtures with No. 2 diesel. Addition of ten chemical additives in castor esters at the rate of 0.01%, 0.1% and 1.0% showed limited viscosity reduction.     

Versuche mit Herbiziden in Zitronenmelisse Melissa officinalis L. in Thüringen

Between 1996 and 2008 19 experiments with 33 herbicides were carried out in lemon balm in experimental stations and on lemon balm fields of Thuringian farms. The main objective of the tests was to get the necessary data for the authorization procedure according to the regulations of §?18a PflSchG. Lemon balm plants are very susceptible against some herbicides like Bacara, Bandur, Centium 36?CS, Goltix 700?SC, Husar, Sumimax. Other herbicides like Boxer, Stomp?SC and other Pendimethalin-herbicides can cause severe damages on peppermint if they are applied to the false stage of development of the plant and/or unfavourable climatic conditions. The use oft the herbicides Basagran, Boxer, Fusilade MAX, Lentagran WP and Stomp SC, Stomp Aqua, Stomp Raps is authorized for the application in lemon balm according the regulations of §?18a PflSchG. The herbicides Goltix 700?SC, Lontrel?100 und CLIOPHAR?100, Roundup UltraMAX and Targa Super can be used in lemon balm according the regulations of §?18b PflSchG. Further experiments with herbicides in lemon balm are intended to the authorization to more herbicides and to unsolved problems with the weed control in this crop like for example the often insufficient effects of the recently authorized herbicides against Solanum spec., Galinsoga spec., Polygonum spec. and other weeds.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Mycobacterium bovis</Emphasis>, but also <Emphasis Type="Italic">M. africanum</Emphasis> present in raw milk of pastoral cattle in north-central Nigeria

Using deletion typing technique, five mycobacteria isolated from unpasteurised milk samples from cows in north-central Nigeria were characterized as Mycobacterium bovis (n = 4) and M. africanum (n = 1). This report emphasizes that transmission between the animal and human reservoir is a serious threat in Nigeria.     

Depletion of soil organic carbon and nitrogen under Pinus taeda plantations in Southern Brazilian grasslands (Campos)

Establishment of pine (Pinus spp.) plantations on grasslands could increase carbon (C) sequestration to counteract increased atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. In the grasslands of the southern Brazilian highland (Campos), large areas have been converted to Pinus plantations over the last 30 years. In order to assess the impact of this land‐use change on the amount and composition of soil organic matter (SOM), we investigated a grassland pasture site (G), and both an 8‐year‐old (P8) and a 30‐year‐old (P30) plantation with Pinus taeda. Soil samples down to 45 cm were analysed for texture, pH, soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N_tot) concentrations. Chemical composition of SOM was determined by using cross‐polarization magic angle spinning (CPMAS) ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. We analysed for stable C isotope (δ¹³C) and assessed the lignin composition by CuO oxidation. Additionally, contents of pyrogenic organic material (PyOM) were determined because the Campos is regularly burnt. Both pine plantations revealed relatively small SOC concentrations in the mineral soil of 72.6 mg g^?1 (P8) and 56.8 mg g^?1 (P30) and N_tot concentrations of 4.0 mg g^?1 (P8) and 2.9 mg g^?1 (P30) for the A horizon, while grassland showed significantly (P < 0.01) larger contents of 100.2 mg g^?1 for SOC and 5.9 mg g^?1 for N_tot. Accumulation of litter layers suggests decreased input of organic material into the mineral soil under pine, which was confirmed by the δ¹³C values and lignin composition. Smaller contents of vanillyl‐ (V), syringyl‐ (S), and cinnamyl (C)‐phenols, smaller ratios of S/V and C/V, and smaller ratios of acidic to aldehydic forms of V and S phenols indicated a high degree of decomposition of residual grass‐derived SOM in the upper part of the mineral soil (0–10 cm) under pine plantations. This was confirmed by CPMAS ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, showing an increasing Alkyl C/O‐Alkyl C ratio at the same depth. No significant changes in the contents of PyOM could be detected, but all sites tended to show the greatest concentrations at deeper soil depths > 15 cm, indicating a vertical relocation of PyOM. The results suggest that decomposition of residual SOM originating from grassland species contributes to the decrease of SOC and N_tot and to an acidification in the topsoil under pine plantations. We also suggest that slow litter decomposition and incorporation and the absence of fires at the plantations are additional reasons for the reduced amount of SOM. Depletion of SOM and the acidification of the topsoil may reduce the availability and supply of nutrients and diminish the C sequestration potential of the mineral soil.     

Application of 13C-labeled litter and root materials for in situ decomposition studies using phospholipid fatty acids

Microorganisms play a central role in litter decomposition and partitioning C between CO₂ evolution and sequestration of C into semi-permanent pools in soils. At the ecosystem level, forest stand age influences rates of litter accumulation and quality, and micro-climatology which could affect the microbial community structure and C sequestration processes. Although numerous laboratory experiments have studied the decomposition of model ¹³C-labeled compounds, few studies have verified these findings under field conditions. The objective of this study was to track decomposition of ¹³C-labeled Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) materials into the soil microbial community using ¹³C-phospholipids fatty acid (PLFA) analysis in three different aged forest stands. A field experiment was conducted that had three forest stand age treatments: old-growth (>500 yrs); 8-year-old clear-cut (CC8); and 25-year-old clear-cut (CC25) (landscape reps of n = 2). Each stand age had in situ microcosms that were amended with either ¹³C-labeled surface litter or root material. Microcosms were destructively sampled seven times over a 22-month period and the soil was analyzed for the relative amounts of ¹³C incorporated (¹³C%_INCORP) into PLFAs and the proportional distribution of ¹³C incorporated into PLFAs. The ¹³C%_INCORP was affected by stand age and ¹³C source with greater ¹³C%_INCORP in samples from CC8 than OG or CC25. Also, the level of ¹³C%_INCORP was greater for labeled litter than root material in five out of the seven sample dates. In general, 18:1ω9 and 18:2ω6,9 (common fungal biomarkers) had the greatest amount of ¹³C incorporation throughout the study period in both clear-cut and old-growth sites, especially in plots with ¹³C-labeled litter. Our data showed a low fungal ¹³C-PLFA: bacterial ¹³C-PLFA ratio (0.45) 1 month after incubation was initiated compared to 5, 7 and 9 months after incubation (two of these dates were >1.0). This suggests that initially bacteria played a greater role in the decomposition of the added needles with fungi playing a more important role in subsequent sample dates. Our results illustrate that the use of ¹³C-labeled materials in field studies coupled with¹³C-PLFA profiling is a powerful tool for determining microbial dynamics during decomposition – enabling statistically significant detection of land management treatment effects on C acquisition by microbial functional groups.     

The distribution of pepsinogen within the abomasa of cattle and sheep infected with Ostertagia spp. and sheep infected with Haemonchus contortus.

The effect of nematode infections on the production of pepsinogen by ruminants was investigated immunohistochemically and biochemically. Abomasal tissues were collected from parasite-naive cattle and sheep, from sheep infected with predominantly Ostertagia circumcincta, sheep infected experimentally with Haemonchus contortus and cattle infected with Ostertagia ostertagi. Pepsinogen was also assayed biochemically in homogenates of fundic mucosae from sheep infected with predominantly O. circumcincta. Infection with Ostertagia spp. parasites was associated mainly with nodular hyperplasia, resulting in increased numbers of cells that produce both pepsinogen and mucus. Measured biochemically, nodules contained more pepsinogen than adjacent more normal mucosa (p < 0.05), and this effect was largely attributable to the greater mass of nodules. Infection of sheep with H. contortus was associated with generalised hyperplasia, characterised by increased numbers of mucopeptic cells and in at least one animal with reductions in parietal cell numbers. At the same time, the zymogen granule content of chief cells was reduced. Similar changes were occasionally seen in sheep infected predominantly with O. circumcincta. Generalised hyperplasia is likely to be indicative of the presence of ambulatory parasitic stages as opposed to those confined to nodules. The potential for the enhanced production of pepsinogen by increased numbers of cells with a joint mucous cell and zymogenic cell phenotype may offset decreases in the numbers of chief cells or reductions in chief cell activity.     

Physiological and genetic control of tuber formation

Summary Tuber formation is a plalstic and complex, but well-orchestrated sequences of morphological. physiological and biochemical events. The physiological control mechanisms of this sequence of events may involve many hormones, but certainly gibberellic acids play a dominant role: they affecft most steps and are influenced by inducing or non-inducing conditions in a manner consistent with effects of these conditions on tuber induction. The genetic control is also complex. Numerous cDNA fragments have been isolated which are specifically expressed during tuberization. They can be used in anti-sense orientation in transgenic plants to thest their possible role in tuberization. In addition these cDNA fragments are used as genetic marker loci in QTL mapping studies and serve as candidate genes to exlain phenotypic variation. Profiles of the importance of QTLs over time may be combined with expression profiles of candidate genes. Such novel approaches offer unique opportunities for synergism between physiology, molecular biology and genetics.     

栗树提取物可增强机体健康

当你漫步在农业展览会的展厅小道时,有时可能会经过一个正在展览不为大多数人所知晓的新产品的展台。今年,在荷兰乌德勒支市的VIV交易会上,Dick Ziggers就惊奇地发现,意大利Silvamicha公司正在展览他们专为牛、猪和禽开发的饲料添加剂--栗树提取物。