Search Results (576)

In modern livestock production, a reliable supply of high-quality forage is essential for sustaining animal productivity and product quality. Although nitrogen (N) fertilization can promote forage growth, excessive N inputs often result in low agronomic nitrogen use efficiency (NAUE) and increased environmental risks. Biochar, owing to its porous structure, high specific surface area, and physicochemical stability, can improve soil physical properties, enhance water and nutrient retention, and regulate soil N availability. However, the mechanisms by which biochar combined with reduced N rate fertilization affects NAUE in artificial grasslands remain insufficiently quantified. A two-year field experiment was conducted at the Grassland Science Experimental Station of Xinjiang Agricultural University on the northern slope of the Tianshan Mountains, Xinjiang, China. Eight treatments were established using a factorial design with two biochar rates (0 and 20 t·ha⁻¹; B0 and B20) and four N application rates (0, 75, 150, and 225 kg·ha⁻¹; N0, N75, N150, and N225). Results showed that biochar application significantly decreased soil bulk density and increased soil water content and electrical conductivity. It also elevated soil total carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, NH₄⁺–N, and NO₃⁻–N concentrations, with B20N150 exhibiting the highest overall nutrient status. Plant community diversity indices did not differ significantly among treatments (p > 0.05), though B20 slightly enhanced Shannon–Wiener and Simpson indices under N0 and N75. Moderate N application significantly increased hay yield, whereas the highest N rate (225 kg·ha⁻¹) did not further improve yield and reduced NAUE. Biochar combined with N75 or N150 improved NAUE, and B20N150 achieved the best balance of high hay yield and high NAUE. Structural equation modeling revealed that soil water content (path coefficient = 0.45), NH₄⁺–N (0.27), and plant community diversity (0.20) were key positive drivers of NAUE, with biochar exerting indirect effects primarily via improving soil water and available N. Collectively, applying 20 t·ha⁻¹ biochar with 150 kg·ha⁻¹ N (B20N150) is recommended as an optimal strategy for N rate reduction and NAUE enhancement in artificial grasslands of arid and semiarid regions. Full article

Optimizing nitrogen (N) management is essential for sustaining rice productivity and improving soil N retention in paddy ecosystems, yet whether long-term fertilizer postponing (FP) regulates bacterial community assembly and microbial N-cycling potential in a compartment-dependent manner remains unclear. Using soils from an 11-year field experiment, we investigated bacterial communities and eight N-cycling genes in bulk and rhizosphere soils across three rice growth stages. Compared with conventional fertilization (CF), FP significantly increased grain yield, plant N accumulation, soil NH₄⁺-N (8.1%), microbial biomass N (MBN, 4.3%), and urease activity (30.3%). N-cycling genes showed pronounced temporal variation, generally peaking at the heading stage. FP increased the abundance of genes involved in N fixation, nitrification, and denitrification in bulk soil but reduced most N-cycling genes in the rhizosphere. Although bacterial α-diversity was unchanged, FP significantly altered bacterial community composition. Network and redundancy analysis further showed that bacterial community assembly and N-cycling potential were closely associated with soil C and N status. These findings indicate that long-term FP improves rice productivity by enhancing soil N availability and reshaping bacterial community assembly and microbial N-cycling potential in a compartment-dependent manner, providing new insights into the microbial mechanisms underlying sustainable N management in paddy soils. Full article

The combined compost tea and biochar treatment (BC) showed more distinct responses than compost tea alone, particularly in selected growth-related traits. Plant height, leaf width, and SPAD value increased under the BC treatment at specific growth stages, whereas final fresh weight did not differ significantly among treatments. Antioxidant-related traits also showed no significant differences among treatments. Compared with the control treatment and, where applicable, the compost tea alone treatment, the BC treatment was associated with selective changes in plant ion composition, including increased K⁺ concentration and decreased Ca²⁺, Cl⁻, and NO₃⁻ concentrations in basil tissue extracts. In soil, the BC treatment was associated with increased pH, organic matter, NO₃⁻-N, and exchangeable Mg, and decreased NH₄⁺-N and exchangeable Na. Soil bacterial community analysis revealed treatment-related shifts in community structure, and these changes were associated with soil chemical properties, including pH, organic matter, inorganic nitrogen forms, and exchangeable cations. Genus-level analysis within Chloroflexi further indicated that the BC treatment was associated with changes in bacterial taxonomic composition. Overall, the combined compost tea and biochar treatment selectively affected basil growth-related traits, plant ion composition, soil nutrient status, and bacterial community structure. However, because a biochar-only treatment was not included, these responses should be interpreted as effects associated with the combined compost tea and biochar treatment rather than as effects attributable to biochar alone. Full article

This study evaluated the effects of peat-based organomineral fertilizers with different compositions and Bacillus spp. inoculation on the growth and nutrient accumulation of loose-leaf lettuce grown under summer and winter conditions. Two independent greenhouse experiments were conducted using a randomized complete block design with eight treatments: no basal fertilized control (T1); conventional mineral fertilization (T2); peat-based organomineral fertilizers containing 50% (T3), 40% (T4), or 30% peat (T5); and the corresponding formulations supplemented with Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus megaterium, and Bacillus aryabhattai (T6–T8). All fertilized treatments were standardized to supply the same P rate. Multivariate analyses revealed a strong effect of fertilization strategy on plant growth and nutritional status. In both seasons, fertilized treatments significantly outperformed the control, while organomineral fertilizers performed similarly to or better than conventional mineral fertilization. The greatest shoot fresh mass and nutrient accumulation were observed in formulations containing lower peat proportions and higher mineral nutrient density, particularly when combined with Bacillus spp. inoculation. In the summer experiment, the 40% peat formulation supplemented with Bacillus spp. (T7) produced the highest shoot fresh mass (197.57 g plant⁻¹), whereas in the winter experiment the highest value was obtained with the 30% peat formulation supplemented with Bacillus spp. (T8; 157.86 g plant⁻¹). These treatments also exhibited greater accumulation of macronutrients and micronutrients, particularly N, P, K, Fe, Mn, and Zn. The results indicate that the performance of peat-based organomineral fertilizers was influenced by the balance between the organic matrix and mineral fraction, as well as by seasonal growing conditions. In addition, Bacillus spp. inoculation was associated with improved performance of formulations with greater mineral nutrient density but did not compensate for less favorable fertilizer compositions. Under the conditions evaluated, peat-based organomineral fertilizers containing lower peat proportions and supplemented with Bacillus spp. performed similarly to or better than conventional mineral fertilization and promoted greater lettuce growth and nutrient accumulation than the non-fertilized control. These findings are limited to a single lettuce cultivar grown in pots under greenhouse conditions across two seasonal experiments conducted at one location. Full article

Agroecosystems must maintain high productivity over time and contribute to restoring the biodiversity and functionality of soils while agroecosystems yield the food we eat; however, the diversity related to food and agriculture has been shrinking. With this systematic review, the narrative and evidence map synthesized existing evidence about how cereal-legume rotations (as a form of diversifying crop diversity) could improve the diversity and function of the plant and functional aspects of biodiversity while restoring the soil health and agroecosystem resilience. A PRISMA 2020 report has been created alongside this work. This evidence will be used to understand improvements in soil physical and biological traits, nutrient cycles, and biologically fixed N, regulated pests/diseases/weeds, productivity and yield stability, environmental efficiency, and outcomes. In addition, several pieces of evidence were included and explained concerning the N cycle in cereal-legume rotations. When used compared to monoculture cereal systems, cereal-legume rotations lead to improved soil structure, activity, and nutritional status (N fixing) and may decrease pests and disease; these conditions often promote a better harvest or lead to higher and/or more stable productivity. Crop residue-based SOC increases are generally moderate in duration and degree. The increase in microbial biomass occurred more quickly over the years. For the environment, cereal-legume rotations generally achieve a lower total environmental efficiency due to lower N fertilizer inputs (N fixing), which means a lower C footprint per ton of production of crops, yet this strategy can also cause some environmental consequences, such as increasing N₂O emissions (due to over N fixing), which cause global warming and nitrate leaching when N is fixed in excess, not coupled with crop requirements, creating pollution. The rotation is context-dependent, so each site-specific system needs to be analyzed to improve trade-offs to yield, productivity, and environmental conservation. Full article

Efficient nutrient management is essential for sustainable orchard production; however, conventional laboratory analyses used to assess plant nutritional status are time-consuming and expensive. Optical sensing technologies offer a rapid and non-destructive alternative. This study evaluated the potential of proximal optical sensors and UAV-based multispectral imagery to assess the nutritional status of young potted ‘Nashi’ pear (Pyrus pyrifolia (Burm. f.) Nakai) trees. Three fertilization treatments based on different concentrations of Hoagland solution were applied to 18 one-year-old potted trees. Leaf measurements were collected during the growing season using Dualex, CL-01 chlorophyll meter, and Pocket PEA fluorimeter, while UAV-based multispectral imagery was used to calculate vegetation indices, including NDVI, SR, OSAVI, and MSAVI. Leaf nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) concentrations were chemically determined and used as reference values for the regression analyses. Significant (p < 0.05) relationships were observed between leaf N content (N%) and several optical parameters related to leaf pigments, including chlorophyll, flavonols, and the Nitrogen Balance Index (NBI), as well as multispectral indices, although with weak associations (R² = 0.326–0.488). The strongest individual relationship with N% was shown by NBI (R² = 0.480). To account for repeated measurements on the same plants, linear mixed-effects models were fitted. These models indicated that NBI showed the strongest association with N% among the proximal optical parameters (β = 0.019, p < 0.001; RMSE = 0.113; MAE = 0.091), followed by flavonols and Dualex chlorophyll. In contrast, optical parameters showed limited sensitivity to P and K. Multispectral indices were not significantly related to K, while only Red and Green reflectance showed weak correlations with P. Overall, optical parameters showed the best associations with N% under the combined nutrient-gradient conditions tested, whereas the assessment of P and K remained limited and should be considered exploratory. Full article

Mountain ecosystems of Kazakhstan host geographically isolated Sibiraea populations, whose taxonomic status is complicated by overlapping morphology, environmental plasticity, and conflicting nomenclatural treatments. We compared 177 adult shrubs sampled at nine elevation-stratified sublocalities nested within three regional analytical groups (two S. altaiensis groups, n = 60 each; one S. tianschanica group, n = 57) using whole-shrub morphology, quantitative leaf anatomy, four soil variables, and a preliminary four-locus DNA-barcode comparison based on eight taxon-level consensus sequences (two taxa × four loci). One-way ANOVA identified regional-group differences in bush width (F(2,174) = 8.89, p < 0.001), vegetative offshoot number (F(2,174) = 21.85, p < 0.001), leaf-blade thickness (F(2,174) = 21.09, p < 0.001), soil pH (F(2,174) = 72.61, p < 0.001), electrical conductivity (F(2,174) = 41.22, p < 0.001), total nitrogen (F(2,174) = 40.21, p < 0.001), and total carbon (F(2,174) = 39.00, p < 0.001). In contrast, plant height and several vascular traits did not differ significantly, and most soil-trait associations were weak (|$\mathsf{\rho }$| ≤ 0.33). Across ITS, matK/KIM, psbA-trnH, and rbcL, the concatenated alignment showed 99.49% identity and an uncorrected p-distance of 0.51%; psbA-trnH (0.97%) and ITS (0.69%) were the most variable loci. The combined evidence demonstrates regional phenotypic and edaphic differentiation but does not establish independent evolutionary lineages because taxon and geography are confounded, and individual-level genetic variation was sparsely sampled. By establishing measurable baselines for demographic monitoring, habitat protection, provenance-based ex situ conservation, and future restoration, the study directly supports the sustainable management and long-term resilience of rare mountain-plant populations in Kazakhstan. Full article

Biochar, a carbon-rich by-product of wood pyrolysis, improves soil structure, water retention, and plant growth. A two-year field experiment (2024–2025) was conducted in Poggibonsi (Tuscany, Italy) on tomato cv. “Canestrino” under contrasting climatic conditions. A single biochar application (15 t ha⁻¹) was evaluated for its effects on soil properties, water dynamics, plant water status, and ecophysiological and tissue-level responses. From the results, it emerged that biochar improved soil quality by increasing organic matter (+7.7%) and the C/N ratio (+10.6%), while reducing bulk density (1.42 to 1.25 Mg m⁻³). Soil water content was higher in amended plots, particularly in 2024 (32.84% vs. 24.87%), with a smaller increase in 2025 (24.66% vs. 24.08%). Improved soil water availability enhanced plant water status, as shown by less negative leaf water potential under stress conditions. Microscopic analyses confirmed better xylem integrity in treated plants, with reduced formation of tyloses and improved hydraulic functionality during drought. Agronomic responses reflected climatic variability: yield increased in biochar in 2024, whereas in 2025 drought stress reduced productivity in both treatments, with no significant differences. Overall, biochar improved soil moisture retention, plant water status, and ecophysiological performance, with effects dependent on seasonal rainfall patterns and environmental stress intensity. Full article

Accurate diagnosis of potato nitrogen status is critical for optimized fertilizer management and sustaining productivity. We used data from nine field experiments (2010–2018) across major potato-producing regions in northern China to develop a regional critical nitrogen dilution curve via a Bayesian hierarchical model. The curve, Nc = 4.179 × DW^−0.417 (DW = whole-plant dry matter), provided the basis for calculating the nitrogen nutrition index (NNI), which was related to canopy spectral indices from a GreenSeeker sensor. Relationships between spectral indices and NNI were strongly growth-stage dependent. The tuber initiation–bulking period, approximately 29–70 days after emergence (DAE), represented the effective phenological window, with 29–55 DAE as the primary operational window for quantitative spectral diagnosis. Stage-specific ratio vegetation index (RVI) showed the most consistent association with NNI, whereas pooled whole-season models had low predictive power. The Bayesian framework quantified uncertainty, emphasizing that near-threshold NNI values require cautious interpretation. The resulting regional-average reference supports rapid field diagnosis of potato N status while accounting for cultivar, year, and site variability. These findings provide practical guidance for stage-specific N management and demonstrate the importance of growth-stage-aware spectral assessment in operational decision-making. Full article

In citrus production, there is an absence of established standards of critical Nickel (Ni) content for deficiency, sufficiency, and excess, which could be used to determine the nutritional status of plant Ni. In this study, to explore the critical Ni concentrations for deficiency and excess, we conducted a hydroponic pot culture experiment and investigated the effects of Ni levels on flower and fruit development, dry weight, and nutrient accumulation of Newhall navel orange. We found that 0.8 and 6.4 mg L⁻¹ of solution Ni were the turning point concentrations of Ni deficiency and excess for plants, respectively. Solution Ni deficiency (0 to 0.8 mg L⁻¹ of Ni) tended to promote vegetative growth and increase the dry weight of new leaves, but suppress flower bud number and fruit development. It also significantly promoted the accumulation of N, P, K, Ca, and Mg in old leaves and N and K in roots, but significantly reduced that of Fe, Mn, and Zn in roots. Excess solution Ni (6.4 to 12.8 mg L⁻¹ of Ni) reduced the water content of fruit peel and was accompanied by fruit cracking during the fruit expansion period, inhibited new leaf growth and whole plant biomass or dry weight, and significantly decreased nutrient accumulation in roots. Equations of dry weight and solution Ni levels for each plant organ were established, showing that 3.93 to 4.72 mg L⁻¹ of Ni was the sufficient concentration of solution Ni for the growth and development of Newhall navel orange, with the corresponding range of Ni contents in new and old leaves being 17.87 to 20.42 and 10.24 to 11.64 mg kg⁻¹, respectively. These findings provide reference for the recommended range of Ni sufficient for citrus growth. Full article

Water scarcity increasingly threatens viticulture, yet the drought-response strategy of patrimonial cultivars such as País remains poorly characterized. This study evaluated intra-cultivar variation in the drought response of three País provenances from northern Chile (Arica, Huasco, and Limarí), using Cabernet Franc as a reference cultivar. The experiment was conducted under semi-controlled pot conditions at the Limarí Campus of the University of La Serena, Ovalle, Chile, using a completely randomized design (n = 5). Plants were subjected to a four-week dry-down followed by rewatering. Relative pot water content, stem water potential, and stomatal conductance were monitored, and stomatal thresholds (Pg12, Pg50, and Pg88) were estimated from nonlinear vulnerability curves. Water deficit reduced plant water status and stomatal conductance. Cabernet Franc maintained the highest maximum stomatal conductance, whereas País showed a more conservative stomatal pattern. Within País, Pg50 differences were weakly supported and model-dependent: Huasco tended to reach 50% stomatal reduction at more negative stem water potentials than Arica and Limarí, while Pg12 and Pg88 largely overlapped. After rewatering, stem water potential recovered faster than stomatal conductance, particularly in Arica and Limarí. These results indicate that drought-response variation in País reflects provenance-specific stomatal regulation and recovery rather than source-site aridity alone. Full article

Using plant byproducts as bioactive sources for in ovo injection (IOI) can enhance embryo development. This study evaluated the effects of air cell IOI of sweet orange peel (SP), pomegranate peel (PP), and olive leaf (OL) aqueous extracts on embryonic days 10 and 18, assessing chicken hatching and post-hatch performance up to 42 days of age. Nine hundred eggs were assigned to 10 treatments. Each treatment had three replicates (n = 30 eggs/replicate) with a 5 × 2 factorial design (uninjected negative control, injection with distilled water as positive control, or injection with 1% SP, PP, or OL on day 10 or 18 of embryogenesis). Compared to the negative control, the results revealed that in ovo-injected substances (IOSs) did not alter hatchability but significantly decreased pipped-chick percentage, the heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, malondialdehyde, cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose levels. However, IOSs were found to increase superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, liveability, and final body weight. Specifically, SP maximised hatch weight, gut length, and thymus weight, whilst decreasing eggshell conductance and uric acid. SP and OL reduced liver enzyme activities, whereas PP lowered creatinine. Compared to day 10, IOI on day 18 improved hatchability, packed cell volume, SOD activity, liveability, and organ development. In conclusion, IOI with SP or OL, particularly on day 18 of incubation, is recommended to improve antioxidant status, biochemical indices, and cumulative body weight. Full article

Vermicomposting is an environmentally sustainable, economically viable, and agronomically valuable method for converting organic waste into nutrient-rich soil amendments, thereby supporting sustainable development. However, the fertilization efficiency of vermicompost can vary significantly depending on the physicochemical properties of the feedstock used. This study aims to compare different feedstocks on vermicompost and evaluate their performance on soil fertility and plant nutritional status. Organic matter (OM), pH, salinity (EC), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), total phosphorus (TP) and total potassium (TK) of various vermicompost samples were taken into consideration to evaluate their fertilization efficiency as performance determinants in terms of plant growth, plant nutritional status, yield, crop quality and cost with the aim of determining the weights of the specific parameters in the total performance using multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods. The integrated ENTROPY-TOPSIS method was used. Twenty-one different vermicompost feedstock analyses were collected from the literature and compared in order to create an agronomic performance ranking based on the selected criteria. The ENTROPY method revealed that the TP was the most influential factor (21.6%), followed by the EC (20.7%) and the TK (18.5%), while the OM had the lowest impact (11.3%). Based on the TOPSIS ranking, vermicompost from brewer’s spent grain achieved the highest performance, followed by cow manure plus rice straw and olive pruning waste, whereas paper waste ranked at the bottom. A comparative analysis with other objective MCDM weighting methods proved strong correlations, particularly with WENSLO, MPSI and LODECI methods, confirming the robustness of the ENTROPY method. Full article

Fog-dependent Tillandsia landbeckii in the hyper-arid Atacama Desert lacks the red-edge reflectance pattern that supports vegetation monitoring, motivating shortwave infrared (SWIR) approaches. We evaluated a newly developed UAV-borne multispectral SWIR camera system for estimating plant water status and additional plant functional traits (fresh and dry biomass, and N uptake) from four spectral bands (1100, 1200, 1510, and 1650 nm) across 20 destructively sampled plots. Of five traits tested, only canopy water content (CWC) retained statistically robust spectral associations after multiple-testing correction, with most significant predictors concentrated in the 1200–1510 nm wavelength region. A physically interpretable predictor, the mean spectral slope between 1200 and 1510 nm, yielded conditional cross-validated $R_{\mathrm{cv}}^2=0.51$ (${\mathrm{RMSE}}_{\mathrm{cv}}\approx 170$ g m⁻²), though fully selection-corrected estimates were substantially lower ($R_{\mathrm{cv}}^2=0.10$–$0.20$), reflecting feature-selection instability at the given sample size. The absence of robust biomass- and nitrogen-related signals is physically interpretable given the species’ atypical surface optics. While expanded sampling and independent validation remain necessary to establish transferable performance estimates, these results demonstrate that SWIR-based water-status retrieval is feasible for this spectrally challenging species, opening a pathway toward functional monitoring of fog-dependent desert ecosystems. Full article

Optimizing orchard mulching regimes is a pivotal strategy for mitigating the detrimental effects of water scarcity and soil degradation on kiwifruit productivity in the Guanzhong Plain, China. To characterize the integrated effects of varying mulching patterns, a two-year field study was conducted in a kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa) orchard, evaluating four treatments: (1) FG: intra-row fabric with inter-row grass (multiple mulch); (2) FN: intra-row fabric with inter-row bare soil; (3) NG: intra-row bare soil with inter-row grass; and (4) NN: intra-row bare soil with inter-row bare soil. Understanding the impacts of these regimes on the edaphic environment, photosynthetic performance, and sugar metabolism is essential for improving kiwifruit production under semi-arid conditions. The results demonstrated that the FG treatment significantly improved soil water storage (SWS), with an increase of 1.83–55.16 mm, and enhanced the soil nutrient content (NH₄⁺-N, NO₃⁻-N, and soil organic matter), thereby optimizing the rhizosphere environment. During the critical phenological stages, the FG treatment increased the leaf photosynthetic parameters, such as the net photosynthetic rate (Pn), transpiration rate (Tr), and stomatal conductance (Gs), while reducing the intercellular CO₂ concentration (Ci). Specifically, grass mulching (FG and NG) elevated the chlorophyll a content during early growth and carotenoids levels throughout reproduction, whereas fabric mulching (FG and FN) enhanced the chlorophyll b content throughout the entire reproductive period. Collectively, these improvements bolstered photosynthetic efficiency and may have contributed to improved carbon allocation and sugar accumulation. All three mulching treatments (FG, FN, and NG) significantly improved the fruit yield-related parameters, including the total fruit number per plant (PFN), single fruit weight (SFW), and yield (Y), as well as the fruit sugar-related indices, such as soluble solids content (TSS), total soluble sugar content (TS), reducing sugar (TRS), and the sugar–acid ratio (SAR). The partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) revealed that these improvements were primarily driven by the synergistic optimization of SWS and photosynthetic productivity. Notably, the model identified a physiological trade-off between yield formation and sugar accumulation, while the overall fruit quality exerted a strong positive influence on sugar metabolism. The correlation analysis indicated that the higher fruit sucrose accumulation under the FG and FN treatments were associated with increased sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) and sucrose synthase (SS) activities, suggesting a potential link between mulching-induced improvements in plant physiological status and sucrose metabolism. These findings suggest that the combined use of intra-row fabric and inter-row grass mulching (FG) provides a sustainable strategy for enhancing soil conditions and fruit quality in water-limited kiwifruit orchards. Full article