The feedstock anatomical properties determine biochar adsorption capacities: A study using woody bamboos (Bambuseae) and methylene blue as a model molecule.

Feedstock characteristics impact biochar physicochemical properties, and reproducible biochar properties are essential for any potential application. However, in most articles, feedstock aspects (i.e., taxonomic name of the species, part of the plant, and phenological phase) are scarcely reported. This research aimed at studying the effect of species and phenological stage of the feedstock on the properties of the derived biochars and, thus, adsorption capacities in water treatment. In this study, we analysed the anatomical characteristics of three different woody bamboo species [Guadua chacoensis (GC), Phyllostachys aurea (PA), and Bambusa tuldoides (BT)] in culms harvested at two different phenological phases (young and mature), and statistically correlated them with the characteristics of the six derived biochars, including their adsorption performance in aqueous media. Sclerenchyma fibres and parenchyma cells diameter and cell-wall width significantly differed among species. Additionally, sclerenchyma fibres and parenchyma cell-wall width as well as sclerenchyma fibre cell diameters are dependent on the phenological phase of the culms. Consequently, differences in biochar characteristics (i.e., yield and average pore diameter) were also observed, leading to differential methylene blue (MB) adsorption capacities between individuals at different phenological phases. MB adsorption capacities were higher for biochar produced from young culms compared to those obtained from matures ones (i.e., GC: 628.66 vs. 507.79; BT: 537.45 vs. 477.53; PA: 477.52 vs. 462.82 mg/g), which had smaller cell wall widths leading to a lower percentage of biochar yield. The feedstock anatomical properties determined biochar characteristics which modulated adsorption capacities.

Agrobiological evaluations of newly introduced grapes varieties under climatic conditions of the south of Kazakhstan / Avaliações agrobiológicas de variedades de uvas recém-introduzidas sob as condições climáticas do sul do Cazaquistão

Variety assortment enhancement is a normal task that involves enhancing the assortment's quality and upgrading varieties. The findings of a research of imported grape varieties in the southeast of Kazakhstan, namely in the Almaty region's bottom-mountain zone, are presented in this article. The onset and conclusion of the main phenological phases of a grape plant throughout the vegetative period were directly influenced by the climatic and meteorological conditions of this district. In comparison to the recognized variety Almaty early-maturing, it has been proven that types Priusadebny, Iyulsky, and Kuibyshevsk early-maturing have a high degree of eyes wintering buds and may provide a high-quality crop in this location.

O aprimoramento da variedade é uma tarefa normal que envolve o aprimoramento da qualidade da variedade e o aprimoramento das variedades. As descobertas de uma pesquisa de variedades de uvas importadas no sudeste do Cazaquistão, ou seja, na zona de base da montanha da região de Almaty, são apresentadas neste artigo. O início e a conclusão das principais fases fenológicas de uma videira ao longo do período vegetativo foram diretamente influenciados pelas condições climáticas e meteorológicas deste distrito. Em comparação com a variedade reconhecida Almaty de maturação precoce, foi comprovado que os tipos Priusadebny, Iyulsky e Kuibyshevsk de maturação precoce têm um alto grau de gomos de inverno de olhos e podem fornecer uma safra de alta qualidade neste local.

Agrobiological evaluations of newly introduced grapes varieties under climatic conditions of the south of Kazakhstan

Abstract Variety assortment enhancement is a normal task that involves enhancing the assortment's quality and upgrading varieties. The findings of a research of imported grape varieties in the southeast of Kazakhstan, namely in the Almaty region's bottom-mountain zone, are presented in this article. The onset and conclusion of the main phenological phases of a grape plant throughout the vegetative period were directly influenced by the climatic and meteorological conditions of this district. In comparison to the recognized variety Almaty early-maturing, it has been proven that types Priusadebny, Iyulsky, and Kuibyshevsk early-maturing have a high degree of eyes wintering buds and may provide a high-quality crop in this location.

Resumo O aprimoramento da variedade é uma tarefa normal que envolve o aprimoramento da qualidade da variedade e o aprimoramento das variedades. As descobertas de uma pesquisa de variedades de uvas importadas no sudeste do Cazaquistão, ou seja, na zona de base da montanha da região de Almaty, são apresentadas neste artigo. O início e a conclusão das principais fases fenológicas de uma videira ao longo do período vegetativo foram diretamente influenciados pelas condições climáticas e meteorológicas deste distrito. Em comparação com a variedade reconhecida Almaty de maturação precoce, foi comprovado que os tipos Priusadebny, Iyulsky e Kuibyshevsk de maturação precoce têm um alto grau de gomos de inverno de olhos e podem fornecer uma safra de alta qualidade neste local.

Micromorphology of Pine Needle Primordia and Young Needles after Bud Dormancy Breaking.

Using a scanning electron microscope, the micromorphologies of needle primordia and the young needles of seven pine species (Pinus cembra, P. mugo, P. nigra, P. rigida, P. sylvestris, P. strobus, and P. uncinata) were analyzed at phenological stages B2 and B3 (according to Debazac). In B2, needle tips were rounded or pointed, depending on the species. In P. cembra and P. strobus, teeth were noted on the tips. Teeth were also visible on the margins in P. mugo, P. cembra, and P. strobus. Stomata became visible in the late B2 phase (P. sylvestris, P. mugo, and P. nigra) near the needle tips and were arranged in rows. In the B3 phase, needle tips were pointed. Only in P. strobus was the needle tip slightly rounded. The teeth on the margin in all the species were pointed. In P. strobus, their size and density along the margin decreased basipetally. In B3 for all the species, numerous stomata were visible. In P. sylvestris, P. cembra, and P. strobus, Florin rings were also observed. These observations could be useful in pine systematics but also in palaeobotanical or physiological studies. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study on the micromorphology of very young needles in representatives of the genus Pinus.

Hybrids Provide More Options for Fine-Tuning Flowering Time Responses of Winter Barley.

Crop adaptation requires matching resource availability to plant development. Tight coordination of the plant cycle with prevailing environmental conditions is crucial to maximizing yield. It is expected that winters in temperate areas will become warmer, so the vernalization requirements of current cultivars can be desynchronized with the environment's vernalizing potential. Therefore, current phenological ideotypes may not be optimum for future climatic conditions. Major genes conferring vernalization sensitivity and phenological responses in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) are known, but some allelic combinations remain insufficiently evaluated. Furthermore, there is a lack of knowledge about flowering time in a hybrid context. To honor the promise of increased yield potentials, hybrid barley phenology must be studied, and the knowledge deployed in new cultivars. A set of three male and two female barley lines, as well as their six F1 hybrids, were studied in growth chambers, subjected to three vernalization treatments: complete (8 weeks), moderate (4 weeks), and low (2 weeks). Development was recorded up to flowering, and expression of major genes was assayed at key stages. We observed a gradation in responses to vernalization, mostly additive, concentrated in the phase until the initiation of stem elongation, and proportional to the allele constitution and dosage present in VRN-H1. These responses were further modulated by the presence of PPD-H2. The duration of the late reproductive phase presented more dominance toward earliness and was affected by the rich variety of alleles at VRN-H3. Our results provide further opportunities for fine-tuning total and phasal growth duration in hybrid barley, beyond what is currently feasible in inbred cultivars.

Geographical indication agricultural products, livelihood capital, and resilience to meteorological disasters: evidence from kiwifruit farmers in China.

Developing geographical indication agricultural products will help to expand regional characteristic industries by taking actions that suit local circumstances. Improving the adaptability of the kiwifruit farmers to cope with meteorological disasters is conducive to promoting the optimization of rural industrial structure and the implementation of rural revitalization strategy. Based on the field survey data of Shaanxi Province, this research uses the method of natural breaks to classify the resilience scores of meteorological disasters under the framework of Sustainable Livelihoods Approach. Finally, the ordinal logistic regression model is used to quantitatively research how livelihood capital contributes to the resilience of kiwifruit farmers to meteorological disasters during the phenological phases. The results show that the perception of meteorological disasters by farmers does not significantly affect their resilience, and the impacts of different livelihood capitals on the resilience strategies of farmers are quite distinct: physical capital, financial capital, social capital, and human capital have significant positive impact on the resilience strategies of farmers, while natural capital has a significant negative impact on the resilience strategies of farmers. The results extend the theoretical foundation of resilience strategies for meteorological disasters in kiwifruit phenological phases and bring quantitative evidence linkage of livelihood capital and resilience strategies. Furthermore, the study emphasizes that the agricultural activities of kiwifruit farmers during the phenological phases should be combined with the livelihood capital guarantee measures, as well as a better financial environment should be created by government intervention. Paying attention to science popularization work of middle-aged and elderly farmers, accelerating the linkages between the government and the mass, would help the government to obtain the best agricultural management methods.

Water management and phenology influence the root-associated rice field microbiota.

Microbial communities associated with plants are greatly influenced by water availability in soil. In flooded crops, such as rice, the impact of water management on microbial dynamics is not fully understood. Here, we present a comprehensive study of the rice microbiota investigated in an experimental field located in one of the most productive areas of northern Italy. The microbiota associated with paddy soil and root was investigated using 454 pyrosequencing of 16S, ITS and 18S rRNA gene amplicons under two different water managements, upland (non-flooded, aerobic) and lowland (traditional flooding, anaerobic), at three plant development stages. Results highlighted a major role of the soil water status in shaping microbial communities, while phenological stage had low impacts. Compositional shifts in prokaryotic and fungal communities upon water management consisted in significant abundance changes of Firmicutes, Methanobacteria, Chloroflexi, Sordariomycetes, Dothideomycetes and Glomeromycotina. A vicariance in plant beneficial microbes and between saprotrophs and pathotrophs was observed between lowland and upland. Moreover, through network analysis, we demonstrated different co-abundance dynamics between lowland and upland conditions with a major impact on microbial hubs (strongly interconnected microbes) that fully shifted to aerobic microbes in the absence of flooding.

Comparative metabolomics of Tilia platyphyllos Scop. bracts during phenological development.

The medicinal plant drug "Tiliae flos" consists of the botanical flowers and bracts of Tilia sp., gathered almost exclusively during flowering. In this study, we examined the changes in the metabolome of specialized products in the bracts of Tilia platyphyllos from the appearance of the organ till the onset of senescence by LC-ESI-MS and data mining. A set of 504 natural products were detected, 241 of which showed significant seasonal variation (p < 9.92E-5). Seven compounds were quantified and an additional 45 were putatively identified. These included flavonoid glycosides, catechins, procyanidins, quinic acid derivatives (including chlorogenic acid) and coumarins. Compared to bracts during flowering, young tissues were characterized by a relatively high diversity of polyphenolic substances. Higher amounts of flavonol glycosides (quercetin, kaempferol), catechins and derivatives have been observed. Deoxyhexosides were almost exclusive to this phenological stage. Changes of about one order of magnitude were not uncommon. For some substances, 5-fold differences were observed (calibration with authentic standards). Some compounds (e.g. the coumarin fraxin) were more prominent at the late fruit growth stage. It was shown that bracts gathered before or after flowering could potentially be therapeutically useful. Changes are rapid during the early phase of bract development: three different groups of compounds presented their maxima during the first 32 days. Considering seasonal variation is of extreme importance during bioactivity tests and screening candidate sources for bioactive natural products. In the case of T. platyphyllos, young and old bracts can be of interest because of their high diversity of distinct specialized metabolites.

Relações de variáveis ambientais e subperíodos na produtividade e teor de óleo em canola / Relations of environments variables and subperiods in yield and content oil in canola

O objetivo do estudo foi avaliar as relações existentes entre a produtividade de grãos, teor de óleo e subperíodos da canola com a soma térmica (ST, ºC dias) e a insolação real acumulada (IAC, horas) durante a fase de enchimento de grãos, além de classificar a importância dessas variáveis sobre as diferenças morfológicas observadas. Foram realizados três experimentos, com espaçamentos entre linhas de 0.20, 0.40 e 0.60m. Durante dois anos de cultivo (2008 e 2009), os genótipos 'Hyola 432' (precoce) e 'Hyola 61' (médio) foram avaliados em três densidades de plantio (20, 40 e 60 plantas m-2), em cada experimento. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos ao acaso, em arranjo fatorial 2x2x3 (anos x genótipos x densidades), com quatro repetições. A soma térmica no subperíodo da floração à maturação fisiológica não está diretamente associada ao rendimento e teor de óleo nos grãos, frente ao arranjo de plantas. Os dias da emergência ao início da floração, da emergência à floração final e o tempo de duração da floração em canola são as variáveis que mais contribuem para a variação morfológica total.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the relationship among grain yield, oil content and subperiods of canola with thermal time and accumulated sunshine hours during of grain-filling phase and classify the importance of this variables about morphological differences observed. Three experiments were carried out with row spacing of 0.20, 0.40 and 0.60m. During two crop years (2008 and 2009), the genotypes 'Hyola 432' and 'Hyola 61' were evaluated in three plant densities (20, 40 e 60 plants m-2) in each experiment. The experimental design was to randomized blocks in factorial arrangement 2x2x3 (years x genotypes x densities), with four replicates. The thermal time in subperiod of flowering to physiological maturation is not associated directly to the yield and oil content in grains by plant arrangement. The days of emergence to the beginning of flowering, of emergence to late flowering and duration time of flowering in canola are variables more contribute to morphological variation total.

Condensed tannin accumulation and nitrogen fixation potential of Onobrychis viciifolia Scop. grown in a Mediterranean environment.

BACKGROUND: Sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia Scop.) is a forage legume found in temperate areas but is less widespread in Mediterranean environments. Compared with other perennial legumes, it has the advantage of containing condensed tannins (CT) that can be important for their implications on ruminant nutrition and health. Data on nitrogen (N) fixation by sainfoin in the literature originate from very different environments and only a few field data are available, so it is important to improve knowledge on the N fixation potential of this species, particularly under a Mediterranean climate. Here the accumulation pattern of polyphenolic compounds (total, non-tannic polyphenols and CT) and the N fixation potential of sainfoin were studied in order to contribute to its valorisation for sustainable farming management in Mediterranean environments. RESULTS: CT concentrations were always in the range considered beneficial for animals, not exceeding 50 g delphinidin equivalent kg⁻¹ dry matter (DM). The regression of aerial fixed N on aerial DM showed a relationship of 22 kg fixed N t⁻¹ aerial DM in a Mediterranean environment. CONCLUSION: A wider exploitation of sainfoin is suggested for production under rain-fed conditions, thus enlarging the limited set of available perennial legumes suitable for Mediterranean environments.