Annals of Agricultural Science最新文献

The study was carried out to evaluate the genotype by environment (G × E) interaction on physicochemical and functional properties of ten (10) cassava advanced genotypes and improved varieties. The genotypes and varieties were collected from a multi-location trial (Uniform yield) of the IITA breeding program at four research stations in Malawi. Based on the results, G × E interaction was highly significant (P ≤ 0.001) in explaining the variance of the physicochemical parameters and functional properties. Thus, G × E interaction highly influenced starch and amylopectin contents, swelling power, and water binding capacity. Additive main effect and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) analysis identified I010040, MM06/0045 and TMSL110080 genotypes and Mbundumali, Mpale and Sagonja varieties as the most stable with high yield performance hence recommended for cultivation in a wide range of environments for the production of high quality cassava flour (HQCF) and starch for various industrial applications such as the production of ethanol, biofuels, starch and glucose syrup in chemical industries; thickeners, stabilizers, and texture modifiers in food, bakery and confectionery industries.

Since the application of deficit water became a dominant tactic in crop irrigation, developing and surveying newly adapted genotypes should be adopted. In this study, we determined the physio-biochemical activities of 21 maize genotypes under 100 % and 70 % crop evapotranspiration irrigation conditions (normal and deficit irrigation, respectively) in sandy soil to determine which activities can identify drought-tolerant, high-yield genotypes. The experimental design was arranged in randomized complete blocks with three replicates. Results showed that the drought-tolerant parents and hybrids had the highest relative water content (RWC), membrane stability index (MSI), chlorophyll a and b (Chl. a, b), total chlorophyll (total Chl.), chlorophyll a/b ratio (Chl. a/b), chlorophyll stability index (CSI), proline, phenolic content, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) levels. They also had the lowest malondialdehyde (MDA) content. The physio-biochemical traits were positively correlated with more tolerant inbred lines and hybrids that displayed a high yield under both irrigation treatments. Furthermore, maize parents that performed well under the 100 % and 70 % evapotranspiration levels were capable of producing high-performance hybrids under both conditions. Accordingly, the hybrids P1 x P6, P2 x P5, and P4 x P6 gave a high performance in sandy soil under both conditions, based on yield attributes estimation. It could be concluded that physio-biochemical traits can be used as effective selection criteria at the silking stage of maize plants to identify high-yield inbred lines and hybrids under stress and normal conditions. These findings will undoubtedly aid maize breeders in rapidly improving and developing new drought-tolerant varieties.

The local variety of Jarak Towo cassava has a distinctive sweet taste and soft texture, suitable for use as raw materials for the creative food industry. The development of quality commodities requires suitable soil and land. This study aims to identify soil fertility index (SFI), determinants of SFI, and provide land management recommendations for developing the Jarak Towo in Jatiyoso Sub-Regency, Indonesia. The research phase consists of (1) determination of land map unit (LMU); (2) field survey; (3) soil sample analysis; (4) determination of the minimum soil fertility indicator (MSFI); (5) determination of soil fertility index (SFI) and (6) data analysis. Land Map Units are based on an altitude of 400, 600, 800, 1000, 1200, and 1400 m asl (meters above sea level), with 4 sampling points at each LMU. The results showed that soil fertility in Jatiyoso Sub-Regency was classified as moderate and high. Altitude greatly affects SFI. Area 1200–1400 m asl have moderate SFI while area 400–1000 m asl have high SFI. An altitude of 1000 m asl has the potential for the development area of Jarak Towo. Determinant factors of soil fertility are total nitrogen, ratio C/N, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable calcium and exchangeable magnesium. Land management recommendations to improve soil fertility and Jarak Towo varieties' development include adding organic matter and applying manure, lime and dolomite before planting.

Aluminum (Al) is a copious element in the earth's crust, typically causing high acidity in soil-plant systems. Much research has primarily investigated adverse impacts of Al on plants, little is known about its beneficial role in enhancing mineral nutrient availability and acquisition in cassava, which is a vital economic crop relevant to human health. Herein, we examined the effect of Al levels on proton and organic acid release from the roots of two cultivars under an acid-washed sand microcosm. Consequential effects of the Al were examined on the extractability of Al and selected nutrients (iron: Fe and phosphorus: P) in the rhizosphere and bulk sands and the nutrient uptake in the plant. The results demonstrated that the highest Al level significantly demoted fresh root weight (8.53 g) but promoted the proton release from roots (2.03 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ fresh weight), compared to the control treatment (11.92 g and 0.40 μmol h⁻¹ g⁻¹ fresh weight). Water-extractable Al and Fe concentrations in the rhizosphere sand were higher by 188–276 % and 201–291 %, respectively, than bulk sand in the highest Al level. The moderate Al levels (<50 μmol Al L⁻¹) also increased Fe accumulation in the plant, elaborating on the beneficial role of Al in enhancing Fe acquisition. The main organic anions (oxalate and tartrate) released from the roots were cultivar-dependent. Our study highlighted that moderate Al levels showed the benefits of Al in promoting proton release from roots, enhancing Fe availability in the rhizosphere zone, and Fe acquisition in the cassava plant.

Biopolymer-coated phosphorus fertilizers have shown promising results in slowing the release of P. However, their dissolution behaviour has been studied mainly in water, and their impacts on soil properties have rarely been addressed. The aim of this study was to compare the dissolution of P from uncoated triple superphosphate (TSP) and biopolymer-coated TSP fertilizers at the surface of cropped Mediterranean soils and to evaluate their impacts on the soil pH and the distributions of several P pools. The experimental treatments were: no fertilizer, uncoated TSP, TSP coated with lignin and TSP coated with lignin and carrageenan. The spatial and temporal variations in the pH of the fertilized soils were investigated using optodes. The concentrations of different pools of P (available P, microbial P), and total P as well as P recovery at different distances from the granules were determined. The coated TSP acidified the soil to a radius of 14 mm around each fertilizer granule, while the acidification spread to 21 mm in the treatment with the uncoated TSP. Moreover, an increase in microbial P was observed in the soil treated with coated TSP, possibly due to the carbon input and the consequent increase in microbial biomass. However, slower P-release was observed from the coated TSP due to the effect of the coating barrier. The P recovery results showed P migration within a 21 mm radius from each granule, and the P recovery from the TSP coated with lignin alone was significantly greater than that from the uncoated TSP treatment.

This study investigated the effects of adding carob molasses at 5 %, 10 %, and 15 % on physicochemical, rheological, and biological activities such as antioxidant, antibacterial and antitumor activities, as well as microbiological and sensory properties of stirred yoghurt samples during the cold storage period. Increasing the concentration of carob molasses increased the content of total solids (TS), titratable acidity, yellowness /blueness values, antioxidant, antibacterial, cytotoxic activity, and overall acceptability. Still, it significantly decreased the samples' ash content and water holding capacity. Furthermore, carob molasses concentration significantly affected on the fat content, viscosity, whiteness, redness /greenness values, molds, and yeast counts. In contrast, it had no significant effect on protein content, pH values, and the count of Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus in the stirred yoghurt containing carob molasses. The energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) microanalysis of stirred yoghurt containing carob molasses showed differences in elemental content among samples. The stirred yoghurt fortified with 15 % carob molasses had the highest overall acceptability in the sensory evaluation and exhibited a higher effect in decreasing the viability of the three tested human tumor cell lines compared to the control and other treatments.

Among the plant nutrients, potassium (K) plays a fundamental role in plant physiology and the soil-plant dynamics of various nutrients. Careful rate recommendations for K are needed to ensure that the balance between cationic nutrients and micronutrients is maintained, especially in sandy soils. The current research aimed to evaluate the absorption dynamic of several nutrients by soybean (Glycine max. Merrill.) growing in sandy soil under the application of five rates of K (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 kg ha⁻¹) via potassium chloride (KCl) with five replications. The concentrations of K⁺ in the diagnostic leaves of the soybean plants presented quadratic behavior with the increase in K rate and reached a maximum of 17.74 mg kg⁻¹ at a rate of approximately 81 kg ha⁻¹ K, which was found through a regression test. The leaf concentrations of calcium (Ca²⁺) and magnesium (Mg²⁺) decreased linearly with increasing K rate. By contrast, the leaf concentrations of the micronutrients; boron (B) and iron (Fe²⁺) decreased with increasing K rate. Soybean productivity was not influenced by the application of K. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed a clear influence of increasing K rates on the leaf nutritional parameters of soybean plants. The results confirm that the high application of K in sandy soils can disrupt the balance of nutrient uptake by soybean plants.

Rot disease is responsible for serious economic losses related to okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) crops cultivated in Upper Egypt. Colonies with a consistent morphology were isolated from the infected okra stems and leaves and subjected to morphological and molecular examinations. The causal pathogen was identified as Cochliobolus spicifer based on morphological fungus descriptions, as well as on the amplified 28S rDNA and internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) sequences, which showed 99%–100% similarity to the sequences of C. spicifer-CSN-20 strains. The volatile and non-volatile organic compounds (VOCs and n-VOCs, respectively) produced by the endophytic fungi that are associated with the medicinal plant Solenostemma arghel, namely Fusarium solani-F4-1007, Penicillium verrucosum-F2-1006, and Aspergillus terreus-F5-1008, inhibited the growth of the C. spicifer pathogen by 34.2%,31.4%, and 30.5%, respectively. In total,27 VOCs were identified by GC/MS, among which eight were specific to A. terreus-F5-1008, eight to P. verrucosum-F2-1006, and three to F. solani-F4-1007, whereas nine VOCs were commonly produced by the three endophytic fungi. Moreover, F. solani-F4-1007-produced VOCs and n-VOCs exhibited the highest antifungal activity, with 37.27% and 37.1% inhibition against C. spicifer colony growth, respectively. The potent antifungal VOCs produced by F. solani-F4-1007 were identified as 3,4-dihydro-2 h-1,5-(3″-t-butyl) benzodioxepine, 4-(2-hydroxyethyl) phenol, and phenylethyl alcohol using GC/MS. Therefore, F. solani-F4-1007 was tested as a potential biocontrol agent against C. spicifer-CSN-20 using an in-planta assay. Okra plants treated with endophytic F. solani-F4-1007did not show any disease symptoms, whereas those that were not treated with F. solani-F4-1007 exhibited severe disease symptoms when challenged with inoculation of the C. spicifer pathogen. Our results demonstrated the contribution of the endophytic fungus F. solani-F4-1007 as a potential biocontrol agent against the C. spicifer pathogen, to improve okra growth.

Winged bean [Psophocarpus tetragonolobus (L.) DC.] is a neglected and underutilized crop in Thailand, and yet is locally important throughout much of Asia and in some parts of Africa. In Thailand, winged bean cultivars are landrace selections that are mainly grown in home gardens across the country. In this study, the genetic diversity and population structure of 60 domestic (Thai) and 64 imported winged bean accessions were assessed via their comparative morphological traits and 13 gene-based simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. The 13 markers generated 36 alleles in total with an average of 2.77 alleles per marker, and overall gene diversity of 0.47. The gene diversity of the Thai and imported winged bean accessions was comparable with values of 0.42 and 0.49, respectively. The estimated out-crossing rate was relatively high, at 16.28%. STRUCTURE, phylogenetic, and principal coordinate analyses consistently revealed the separate yet intermingled attributes of several accessions, which demonstrated their similar genetic diversity of the Thai and imported winged beans. The Thai and imported winged bean populations were comparable in days to flowering, pod length and seed size. Majority of the Thai and imported winged bean accessions showed the same qualitative traits, including leaf shape, flower color, pod color and pod shape. These suggested the winged bean growers' similar preferences and selection of winged beans in different geographical regions. The admixture within the genetic base of the winged bean indicates the need for the management of future breeding programs.

The study was carried out to establish soil map. Land evaluation was made according to MicroLEIS models. The study area is Naghamish valley, North Western coast of Egypt. The study indicated that the study area could be distinguished into seven landforms. Twenty-two soil profiles, spatially distributed upon Sentinel-2A satellite image classification to represent the landforms of wadi Naghamish's basin. They were morphologically described, their chemical and physical properties were determined, and their diagnostic characteristics were pointed. Results point out, in terms of topography, profile depth and soil texture, ten soil units could be identified. The study area could be distinguished into five sub great soil groups. Cervatana model reveals that 64.25% of soils are considered non-productive, 22.64% is moderately capable, whereas only 0.54% and 2.64% of the total area range from excellent to good capable land for agricultural production, respectively. The rest of the area occupying 9.94% is associated with urban settlement and escarpment landform units. At subclass level, there are S3l and S3r, referring to moderate capability with slight constraint severity and S3lr specifying those affected by severe soil constraints and erosion risk. Regarding soil suitability for some selected crops, the results of Almagra model indicated that the soils formed on the coastal plain vary from suitable to marginally suitable, in contradiction of soils formed on the wadi course, piedmont plain and tableland of plateau vary from marginally suitable to unsuitable in general for most tested crop as affected by limiting factors related to very shallow to shallow depth, high lime content, light soil texture and very poor to poor drainage.