Some effects of burning cereal straw on seed viability, seedling establishment and control of Alopecurus myosuroides Huds.

Straw burning destroyed many Alopecurus myosuroides(blackgrass)seeds lying on the soil surface and, compared with straw baling, resulted in a smaller weed infestation in a subsequent direct-drilled winter wheat crop. The larger the amount of straw burnt, the higher the temperature reached on the soil surface and consequently the greater the control of the weed. Seeds that were fully imbibed were less susceptible to destruction by heat than were dry seeds. A shallow soil covering protected most seeds although some were stimulated to germinate. After straw burning the soil surface was a better environment for seed germination or seedling development than that under stubble. Differences in seedling numbers between treatments were not always proportional to differences in the numbers of viable seeds in the soil. Quelques effets du brûlage des pailles des céréales sur la viabilité des semences et l'implantation des plantules d'Alopecurus myosuroïdes Huds. et influence sur sa destruction Le brûlage des pailles a détruit de nombreuses semences d'Alopecurus myosuroïdes (vulpin) se trouvant à la surface du sol, ce qui a eu pour effet, par comparaison avec la récolte de la paille, de réduire l'infestation de la mauvaise herbe dans la culture suivante, un blé d'hiver en semis direct. Plus grande est la quantité de paille brûlée plus la température au niveau du sol est élevée et, par suite, meilleure est la destruction de la mauvaise herbe. Les semences qui avaient été complètement imbibées se sont montrées moins susceptibles d'être détruites par la chaleur que les semences sèches. L'existence d'une couche meuble superficielle sur le sol s'est révélée comme un meilleur environnement pour la germination des semences ou le développement des plantules que sous le chaume. Les différences entre le nombre des plantules selon les traitements n'ont pas toujours été proportionnelles aux quantités de semences viables présentes dans lesol. Einige Auswirtcungen des Verbrennens von Getreidestroh auf die Lebensfähigkeit der Samen, das Auflaufen und die Bekämpfung von Alopecurus myosuroides Huds. Das Verbrennen von Stroh zerstörte viele Samen von Alopecurus myosuroides(Ackerfuchsschwanz) die auf der Bodenoberfläche lagen und hatte, im Vergleich zum Ballenpressen, eine geringere Verseuchung in im Direktsaatverfahren nachgebauten Weizen zur Folge. Je grösser die Strohmenge war, desto höher war die Temperatur auf der Bodenotrerfläche und umso besser war die Bekämpfung des Ackerfuchsschwanzes. Samen, die mit Wasser vollgesogen waren, wurden durch die Hitze weniger geschädigt als trockene. Durch eine flache Bodenabdeckung wurden die meisten Samen geschützt, bei einigen wurde aber die Keimung stimuliert. Nach dem Strohverbrennen waren die Bodenverhältnisse für die Keimung und die Entwicklung der Keimlinge günstiger als in der Stoppel. Die Unterschiede in der Keimpflanzenzahl zwischen den Behandlungen waren nicht immer proportional zu den Unterschieden in der Anzahl lebensfähiger Samen im Boden.     

Characterisation and molecular basis of ALS inhibitor resistance in the grass weed Alopecurus myosuroides

Several UK populations of the grass weed Alopecurus myosuroides were identified where high proportions of individuals showed resistance to the acetolactate synthase (ALS)‐inhibiting herbicides, mesosulfuron‐methyl + iodosulfuron‐methyl sodium mixture and sulfometuron‐methyl. Screening with sulfometuron, followed by DNA sequencing of the ALS gene from resistant and susceptible individuals, led to the identification of eight populations where a single point mutation segregated with resistance to sulfometuron. All highly resistant individuals from seven of eight populations showed a single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the first position of the Pro197 codon of an A. myosuroides ALS gene, conferring a predicted proline to threonine target‐site change. One population showed resistant individuals with single‐nucleotide polymorphism in the second position of the Trp574 codon, conferring a predicted tryptophan to leucine substitution. No other mutations segregating with resistance were found. Enzyme assays confirmed that resistance was due to an altered form of ALS enzyme, which was less susceptible to inhibition by sulfonylureas, making this one of the first fully characterised cases of ALS target‐site resistance in a European grass weed. Increased information regarding the nature and distribution of ALS target‐site mutation may help support sustainable management strategies, allowing continued use of mesosulfuron + iodosulfuron against this weed in the UK.     

Macroinvertebrate frequency data for the RIVPACS III sites in Great Britain and their use in conservation evaluation

1. A total of 637 macroinvertebrate taxa were recorded from the 614 running-water sites in the RIVPACS III data-set for Great Britain, after the application of a standardization procedure to ensure that all samples were identified to the same taxonomic level. 2. The frequency of occurrence of the 637 taxa in the data-set is presented and discussed. 3. The wide range of sites and taxa included in this study represents a valuable source of information on the occurrence of local species which complements the Red Data Book (RDB) and Notable (N) species designations in current use for conservation evaluations.     

Differences in the molecular basis of resistance to the cyclohexanedione herbicide sethoxydim in Lolium multiflorum

Resistance to the cyclohexanedione (CHD) herbicide sethoxydim was investigated in two UK Lolium multiflorum populations, Yorks A2 and PYL. Resistance screening experiments demonstrated a qualitative difference in the responses of the two populations to sethoxydim, suggesting that the molecular basis of resistance between them was different. After treatment, Yorks A2 plants were either alive (78% of sample tested) or dead (22% tested) but plants of the PYL population showed two further intermediate categories of response. The level of acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACCase) insensitivity directly correlated with the degree of resistance at the whole plant level, indicating that the molecular basis of resistance is associated with differences in ACCase sensitivity in each population. Direct sequencing of the carboxyl transferase domain of the ACCase gene showed that an Ile-418-Leu substitution in the L. multiflorum chloroplastic ACCase (GenBank accession number AY710293 ) confers resistance to sethoxydim in Yorks A2. This corresponds to amino acid residue 1781 in the Alopecurus myosuroides full ACCase sequence. This is the first report of this mutation in this L. multiflorum, which has also been reported in four other grass-weeds, including L. rigidum. However, no amino acid substitutions were found to be specifically associated with the resistant phenotypes in the PYL population and the molecular basis of resistance in this population remains to be resolved.