Achieving food and nutritional security through agroforestry: a case of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Faidherbia albida</Emphasis> in sub-Saharan Africa

Faidherbia albida is an ideal agroforestry tree commonly intercropped with annual crops like millet and groundnuts in the dry and densely populated areas of Africa. With its peculiar reverse phenology, it makes growth demands at a different time from that of crops. In addition, it deposits great amount of organic fertilizer on food crops. Leaves entering soils are comparable to fertilization of almost 50 t·ha 1 ·year 1 of manure in dense stands of 50 large trees per ha. These nutrients help maximize agricultural production and reduce the need for a fallow period on poorer soils. Research has shown that millet grown under F. albida yielded 2.5 and 3.4 fold increases in grain and protein, respectively. Animals eat pods which contain mean amounts of crude protein of 20.63% and carbohydrate of 40.1% in seeds. Moreover, the continued existence of F. albida in agroforestry parklands as in Ethiopia and Mali signifies the success of traditional conservation measures. Modern scientists have also developed much interest in the role of agroforestry in maintaining long-term biological balance between agriculture and livestock production systems. To ensure food security, which still remains a major challenge in sub-Saharan Africa, and concurrently minimize environmental degradation, promotion of agroforestry that specifically involves indigenous trees is crucial. We discuss the prospective role of F. albida in alleviating poverty while simultaneously protecting the environment from factors associated with, for example, deforestation and loss of biodiversity. The overall aim is to promote wide-scale adoption of F. albida as a valuable tree crop in farming systems, particularly in those areas where it remains unexploited.     

木荷天然林分个体类型及材性性状变异

在浙、闽2省选取成一定纬度和海拔梯度的6个木荷天然林分,开展树干形质、树皮形态、木材纹理扭曲度、木材颜色和基本密度等个体类型表型变异及产地纬度和海拔影响研究。结果表明:木荷天然林分个体树皮厚度、颜色、形状及木材颜色等类型多样,除木材纹理扭曲度外,树干形质、树皮形态和木材基本密度等在林分间存在显著表型差异,但在林分内个体间变异以木材纹理扭曲度最大,树干圆满度、通直度和木材基本密度最小。木材性状的径向变异研究发现:木材基本密度由髓心向树皮方向逐渐下降,而年轮则先变宽后变窄,15～25年轮为平稳生长期。较高纬度的天然林分其树干相对通直圆满、树皮较薄、木材颜色较浅,而其他性状则未呈现明显的规律性;随海拔升高,木荷天然林分具有树干圆满、树皮薄而光滑,但树干通直度低、年轮窄、木材基本密度小的变化趋势。基于中心产区2个不同海拔天然林分个体性状相关分析表明,性状相关因林分所处海拔不同而有较大差异。在高海拔林分中,树皮性状是材性和径生长较好的指示指标,树干圆满的个体树皮光滑且颜色较浅、木材基本密度较小,而树干越通直的个体,树皮颜色越深,径生长也越快;在低海拔林分中,树皮厚度对树皮的其他性状和木材密度也有较好的指示作用,树干通直...     

木瓜属植物新品种特异性、一致性和稳定性(DUS)测试指南的研制

遵循国际植物新品种保护联盟及我国的相关规定,分析木瓜属植物品种的性状变异规律及其稳定性和相关性(DUS),探讨标准品种和测试性状的选择。筛选31个测试性状和12个标准品种用于新品种DUS测试;其中,质量性状10个、数量性状6个、假质量性状15个,*号性状24个、非*号性状7个,每个性状的表达状态给以相应的代码。*号性状主要有株型、花色、花径、重瓣性、果实形状及果皮皱缩状况等。提出木瓜属植物新品种的特异性、一致性、稳定性判别标准。     

木荷人工林生长和木材基本密度

在福建省建瓯市选取1968—1997年间营造的多片木荷纯林和荷杉混交林,系统研究坡位、坡向等生境条件及与杉木混交对木荷人工林生长和木材基本密度的影响。结果表明:坡向和坡位对木荷生长和干形影响显著,但对木材基本密度影响较小。相对于阴坡和中坡,阳坡和下坡的木荷其树冠浓密、树高和冠幅生长量较大,干形略有改善,而阴坡因土壤水湿条件较好有利于木荷胸径的生长。与杉木按适当比例(如荷杉比为1∶3)进行混交,可明显促进木荷胸径、树高和冠幅的生长,并改善了干形。通过比较表明:木荷人工林分叉干发生的几率变化在22.50%～35.75%之间,且以0.5m以下的1叉干为主;对于地处阳坡和下坡的纯林及1∶3荷杉混交林,木荷分叉干发生几率相对较小;相对于坡向,坡位对分叉干形成的影响较大。研究发现:木荷人工林木材基本密度由髓心向树皮呈逐渐下降的趋势,15～20年生时开始明显减小,35～40年间达到最小值。木材基本密度从髓心向树皮下降的速度还随径生长量的增加而加快;年轮宽度呈先变宽后变窄的趋势,5～15年为木荷人工林径生长的速生期。据此应选择土壤水肥、光照条件较好的阳坡和下坡林地营造木荷人工林,同时提倡以适当比例混交经营,加强幼林的抹芽除萌...     

Evidence of Long-Range Transport of Pollutants from the Size-Fractionated Ionic Composition of Aerosols in the Jeju Island of Korea

The ionic composition of total suspended particulate (TSP) and fine (PM_2.5) fractions was investigated from an 1,100 site in the middle of Mt. Halla in Jeju Island, Korea from March to November 2006. The sum concentrations of cation and anion species in TSP fraction were 205 ± 170 and 183 ± 164 neq m^?3, respectively, while those for PM_2.5 as 118 ± 129 and 88.5 ± 89.3 neq m^?3, respectively. In TSP, the concentration of the major ions changed in the order of SO₄ ^2? > NH₄ ⁺ > Ca²⁺ > Na⁺ > NO₃ ^? > Mg²⁺ > K⁺ > Cl^?, while its PM_2.5 counterpart as NH₄ ⁺ > SO₄ ^2? > Ca²⁺ > NO₃ ^? > Na⁺ > Mg²⁺ > K⁺ > Cl^?. Inspection of the temporal variabilities of ionic components indicated that most ions peaked in spring or fall months. The back trajectory analysis showed that the atmospheric composition of the major ionic species was affected fairly sensitively by long-range transport from China under the favorable meteorological conditions. In contrast, the lowest ionic concentration levels were seen most abundantly, when air masses passed from South Sea. Hence, the analysis of ionic concentration data suggests that their distributions are controlled by the combined effects of various source processes including the most prominent Chinese origin and the meteorological condition favorable for such transport.     

Responses of phosphorus flux in the sediment–water interface to C:N:P stoichiometry of different sediment components following temperature warming in steppe wetland,China

Journal of Soils and Sediments - The objectives of this study were to (i) determine the ecological stoichiometry of sediment resources, sediment microbial biomass, and sediment enzyme following...     

RZWQM simulation of long-term crop production, water and nitrogen balances in Northeast Iowa

Agricultural system models are tools to represent and understand major processes and their interactions in agricultural systems. We used the Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM) with 26 years of data from a study near Nashua, IA to evaluate year to year crop yield, water, and N balances. The model was calibrated using data from one 0.4 ha plot and evaluated by comparing simulated values with data from 29 of the 36 plots at the same research site (six were excluded). The dataset contains measured tile flow that varied considerably from plot to plot so we calibrated total tile flow amount by adjusting a lateral hydraulic gradient term for subsurface lateral flow below tiles for each plot. Keeping all other soil and plant parameters constant, RZWQM correctly simulated year to year variations in tile flow (r² = 0.74) and N loading in tile flow (r² = 0.71). Yearly crop yield variation was simulated with less satisfaction (r² = 0.52 for corn and r² = 0.37 for soybean) although the average yields were reasonably simulated. Root mean square errors (RMSE) for simulated soil water storage, water table, and annual tile flow were 3.0, 22.1, and 5.6 cm, respectively. These values were close to the average RMSE for the measured data between replicates (3.0, 22.4, and 5.7 cm, respectively). RMSE values for simulated annual N loading and residual soil N were 16.8 and 47.0 kg N ha⁻¹, respectively, which were much higher than the average RMSE for measurements among replicates (7.8 and 38.8 kg N ha⁻¹, respectively). The high RMSE for N simulation might be caused by high simulation errors in plant N uptake. Simulated corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yields had high RMSE (1386 and 674 kg ha⁻¹) with coefficient of variations (CV) of 0.19 and 0.25, respectively. Further improvements were needed for better simulating plant N uptake and yield, but overall, results for annual tile flow and annual N loading in tile flow were acceptable.     

混联式太阳能果蔬烘干机的研制

为了解决新疆地区传统果蔬干制工艺存在的问题,提高农产品加工质量,根据该地区的气候特点及农产品特点,确定了混联式太阳能果蔬烘干机的总体结构方案,完成了集热、控制和烘干等主要系统设计计算、参数设定,成功进行了葡萄烘干试验,通过葡萄烘干试验表明,比传统干燥方式缩短时间66.7%,绿级品率由低于35%提高到79.19%,该设备可提高新疆农产品的干制效率,促进该地区农业的发展。     

Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle Circulation in an Aquatic Ecosystem

Nanotechnology is a dynamically developing field of scientific and industrial interest across the entire world, and the commercialization of nanoparticles (NPs) is rapidly expanding. Incorporation of nanotechnologies into a range of manufactured goods results in increasing concern regarding the subsequent release of engineered NPs into the environment. One of the biggest threats of using NPs is the transfer and magnification of these particles in the trophic chain. The aim of the studies was the evaluation of the distribution of TiO₂ NP contamination in the aquatic ecosystem under laboratory conditions. Bioaccumulation of TiO₂ NPs by plants (Elodea canadensis) and fish (Danio rerio) in the source of contamination was investigated. The studies were focused on the consequences of short-term water contamination with TiO₂ NPs and the secondary contamination of the components of the investigated model ecosystem (plants, sediments). It was found that in the fish and the plants exposed to NP contamination, the amount of Ti was higher than in the control, indicating an effective bioaccumulation of NPs or ions originating from NPs. It was clearly shown that the NPs present in the sediments are available to plants and fish. Additionally, the aquatic plants, an important trophic level in the food chain, can accumulate NPs and be a source of NPs for higher organisms. It was concluded that even an incidental contamination of water by NPs may result in long-term consequences induced by the release of NPs.     

Pathogen Inactivation In Cow Manure Compost

During aerobic composting of animal manure, microbial activity within the mixture generates heat and metabolic by-products that inactivate zoonotic pathogens. Although it is recognized that the type and level of microbial activity will vary with the nutrient availability of different compost ingredients, the degree to which these changes could impact pathogen inactivation is of interest. Towards that goal, the purpose of this study was to determine inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Listeria monocytogenes in compost laboratory-scale bioreactor systems formulated to different initial carbon:nitrogen (C:N) ratios with cow manure, straw, and cottonseed meal. The C:N ratio did not significantly affect the time to inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes. In contrast, Escherichia coli O157:H7 survived for significantly (P < 0.05) longer periods of time in 40:1 C:N systems than in 30:1 or 20:1 systems even though the cumulative heat exposures were statistically similar in the systems. An increase of pH values to 8 to 9 occurred initially for 40:1 C:N systems, whereas the pH of the 20:1 and 30:1 systems initially declined to 5.5 to 6 before increasing to 8 to 9 after 2 days of composting.