Search Results (1,139)

Effective weed management is critical to sustaining rice productivity and profitability, particularly under conservation-oriented production systems, where weed dynamics may differ from conventional puddled cultivation. A two-year field experiment was conducted to evaluate weed management practices under puddled transplanted rice (PTR) and zero-till non-puddled transplanted rice (ZT NPTR) production systems during the boro seasons of 2020 and 2021. Six weed management practices, comprising season-long weed-free, season-long weedy, Pretilachlor, Acetachlor (14%) + Bensulfuron methyl (4%), Pyrazosulfuron-ethyl, and Penoxsulam treatments, were evaluated. Weed density and dry biomass were significantly influenced by production system and weed management practice. Compared with 2020, weed density in 2021 decreased by approximately 74% at both 30 and 60 days after transplanting (DAT) under PTR and by 91% and 86%, respectively, under ZT NPTR. Similarly, weed dry biomass decreased by 90% and 86% under PTR and by 81% and 77% under ZT NPTR at 30 and 60 DAT, respectively. Pyrazosulfuron-ethyl and Penoxsulam achieved 100% weed control efficiency, comparable to the season-long weed-free treatment, whereas Pretilachlor, and Acetachlor (14%) + Bensulfuron methyl (4%) provided comparatively lower weed suppression. The ZT NPTR system increased grain yield by approximately 5% in 2020 and 35% in 2021 relative to the PTR system. Among weed management practices, Penoxsulam produced the highest or a statistically comparable grain yield and increased yield by approximately 105% and 80% over the season-long weedy treatment in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Economic analysis showed that Pyrazosulfuron-ethyl was the most profitable treatment under PTR in both years and under ZT NPTR in 2021, whereas Penoxsulam provided the greatest economic return under ZT NPTR in 2020. Overall, effective post-emergence weed management with Pyrazosulfuron-ethyl or Penoxsulam within the ZT NPTR production system provided effective weed suppression, high rice productivity, and favourable economic returns. However, because pre-plant glyphosate application was an integral component of the ZT NPTR system, the differences between the PTR and ZT NPTR systems should be interpreted as responses to the overall production systems rather than to tillage alone. Full article

The lipoxygenase–hydroperoxide lyase (LOX-HPL) pathway is responsible for the biosynthesis of green leaf volatiles and traumatic acid (TA) in plants; however, the feedback regulatory role of TA in tea plant remains poorly understood. Here, we applied a gradient of exogenous TA concentrations (10⁻⁸–10⁻⁴ M) to both pre- and post-harvest tea leaves, and systematically determined fatty acid precursors, key enzyme activities, and structural gene genes in the LOX-HPL pathway. Moderate TA treatment (10⁻⁷ M) markedly enhanced the activities of LOX and ADH in post-harvest leaves, while concurrently upregulating multiple upstream CsLOX genes. Higher TA concentrations suppressed both enzyme activities and gene transcription. In pre-harvest leaves, the optimal concentration shifted to 10⁻⁶ M for gene upregulation. Higher TA concentrations (≥10⁻⁶ M post-harvest, ≥10⁻⁵ M pre-harvest) consistently suppressed both enzyme activities and gene transcription. Optimal TA treatment also markedly reduced ALA accumulation, indicating feedback inhibition on precursor pools. TA mediates feedback regulation of the LOX-HPL pathway, with its regulatory effect influenced by TA concentration and tissue type, providing a potential strategy for modulating fatty acid-derived flavor quality in tea production. Full article

Real-time monitoring of radioactive liquid effluents from nuclear power plants (NPPs) is essential for environmental safety assurance, yet existing liquid scintillation counting (LSC) instruments are bulky (>200 kg), laboratory-bound, and incapable of autonomous online deployment. This paper presents the design and implementation of a fully automated online LSC monitoring process integrating seawater sampling, distillation pre-treatment, liquid scintillator mixing, dual photomultiplier tube (PMT) coincidence detection, field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based digital signal processing, and 4G remote data transmission in a single portable unit weighing 21.59 kg. The automated process executes a complete sample-to-result cycle in approximately 45 min without human intervention. The signal processing chain comprises a dual-PMT coincidence system, a custom two-stage pre-amplifier, a 14-bit 40 MSPS analogue-to-digital converter (ADC; AD9245, Analog Devices, Norwood, MA, USA), and a five-stage FPGA pipeline implementing anti-coincidence rejection, pulse amplitude discrimination, charge comparison method (CCM) waveform discrimination, and convolutional neural network (CNN)-based alpha/beta classification achieving 97.4% accuracy on a Geant4-simulated test set. System performance was validated against a PerkinElmer 1220 QUANTULUS reference spectrometer across a five-point calibration range (0–400 Bq/L; R² = 0.9987, recovery 99.4–101.6%), confirmed via third-party environmental testing (−10 °C to +50 °C, GB/T 2423.1-2008), and verified in field measurements at Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant. The experimentally determined system background is (1.83 ± 0.12) cpm; the calculated minimum detectable activity (MDA) for tritium is 0.073 Bq/mL at 30 min counting time (η = 3.4%, V = 10 mL, T_s = 1800 s per the Currie formulation), satisfying the GB 14587 (the Chinese national standard: Limits of Radioactivity for Liquid Effluents from Nuclear Power Plant) regulatory reference limit of 0.5 Bq/mL with a 7× safety margin. The proposed system is, to the authors’ knowledge, the first reported instrument combining full process automation (including distillation pre-treatment), single-person portability, and real-time 4G remote data transmission for continuous NPP liquid effluent surveillance in high-salinity seawater environments. Full article

Plateau environments are characterized by low temperatures, intensive radiation and drastic diurnal temperature fluctuations, all of which greatly suppress rooting and seedling establishment of tea chrysanthemum cuttings. To compare the regulatory effects of different rooting regulators on tea chrysanthemum cuttings under plateau cultivation conditions, this study conducted a 60-day plug-tray cultivation experiment from late July to late September with three biological replicates. All the cuttings, including the IBA-pre-treated control (CK), were uniformly pretreated with 500 mg·L⁻¹ indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). On this basis, four treatments, including 5-aminolevulinic acid hydrochloride (5-ALA, T1), γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA, T2), Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (T3) and Bacillus velezensis (T4), were applied to determine root morphology, seedling growth, physiological stress metabolism, photosynthetic capacity and rhizosphere substrate characteristics. The different rooting promoters exerted distinct regulatory effects on cutting performance. The GABA treatment significantly improved leaf gas exchange, seedling growth, antioxidant status and rhizosphere nutrient conditions, with net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate improved by 316.34%, 92.31% and 168.00%, respectively, and significantly increased seedling vigor index, plant height and stem diameter by 21.74%, 60.85% and 46.08%, respectively. It also elevated the soluble sugar content and the ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity, reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) accumulation, and optimized rhizosphere available nitrogen and phosphorus levels, as well as related enzyme activities. Nevertheless, the 5-ALA treatment exhibited unique advantages in improving rooting rate and seedling survival. Mantel tests confirmed that the seedling vigor index closely correlated with the root architecture, the total chlorophyll and the transpiration rate. A principal component analysis (PCA) and a cluster heatmap both identified GABA as the treatment with relatively balanced overall performance. A comprehensive D-value evaluation ranked the treatments as GABA > B. amyloliquefaciens > 5-ALA > B. velezensis > control. The treatment with 5-ALA mainly improved the antioxidant capacity, the B. amyloliquefaciens treatment favored root elongation and total nutrients, and the B. velezensis treatment only produced mild improvements. This study indicates that the different exogenous regulators target divergent growth and physiological processes, and the GABA treatment could coordinately boost root development, photosynthetic performance, antioxidant defense and rhizosphere nutrient cycling, thus presenting great application potential for tea chrysanthemum cutting propagation under plateau cultivation conditions. Full article

Microbial fertilizers may improve phosphorus availability and pH in acidic soils, but field evidence linking these changes with medicinal plant biomass and specialised metabolite accumulation remains limited. Here, a one-season field experiment was conducted in acidic yellow soil in Guizhou Province, China, using four fertilization regimes for Lonicera macranthoides: an organic fertilizer plus compound fertilizer control (CK), a bacterial consortium (T1), a simplified bacterial combination (T2), and a fungal agent (T3). Soil chemical properties, soil aggregate composition, flower-bud biomass, and chlorogenic-acid-related compounds were measured. T1 and T3 increased soil available phosphorus and pH at the pre-flowering stage and increased the proportion of water-stable macroaggregates (>5 mm). Both treatments also increased fresh and dry biomass. T1 showed the highest numerical chlorogenic acid content, whereas T3 was more favourable for the accumulation of isochlorogenic acids A and C. Across plot-level observations, available phosphorus was positively correlated with fresh weight (r = 0.804) and dry weight (r = 0.781), and pH was positively correlated with chlorogenic acid (r = 0.687). Univariate regression and redundancy analysis further indicated that available phosphorus and pH were the soil factors most closely associated with biomass and chlorogenic acid accumulation. These findings provide preliminary field indications that microbial fertilizers may improve yield and medicinal quality in acidic-soil L. macranthoides production. However, the single-season, single-site nature of the experiment warrants cautious interpretation and further validation across broader conditions. The observed associations are consistent with, but do not prove, a mechanistic pathway involving microbe-mediated phosphorus transformation and acidity regulation. Full article

Ornamental plants constitute an important sector of the agricultural market, with global relevance. The impacts of climate change also affect flowering plants, increasing susceptibility to stress conditions. The most common effects are related to germination capacity and uniformity, which can indirectly compromise aesthetic value. Seed priming represents a promising environmentally friendly strategy to improve germination performance and stress tolerance in ornamental plants. This review gives an overview of the most recent advances in priming applied to ornamental species, highlighting the physiological, biochemical, and molecular impacts of the technique. Priming approaches can differ (e.g., hydro-, osmotic, hormonal, nano-based), with the common aim of enhancing germination efficiency, seed vigor, and promoting greater uniformity and quality of plantlets under stress conditions. Up to now, a bottleneck in the use of this promising tool has been represented by different responses related to species and protocol standardization. Molecular evaluation is required to monitor the long-term effectiveness of priming. The use of priming represents a sustainable and low-cost tool to enhance the adaptability of ornamental species in stress conditions, supporting the transition to new sustainable solutions for the future of ornamental plant production. Full article

The increasing demand for sustainable agricultural practices has intensified the search for natural alternatives for the control of plant pathogens. This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro inhibitory activity of plant extracts obtained from agro-industrial byproducts, including pomegranate peel (Punica granatum), chestnut peel (Castanea sativa), and grape pomace (Vitis vinifera), against the bacterium Pseudomonas savastanoi and the fungus Colletotrichum fioriniae. Antibacterial activity was assessed using the disk diffusion and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) methods. Antifungal activity was evaluated for all extracts through mycelial growth inhibition, spore quantification, and viability assays. Based on its overall antimicrobial performance and extraction yield, the P. granatum extract was selected for evaluation in a detached olive fruit bioassay. The results showed that the pomegranate peel extract exhibited an inhibition halo of $9.80\pm 0.10$ mm against Pseudomonas savastanoi, with a MIC of 5.0 mg/mL and a predominantly bacteriostatic effect. Regarding antifungal activity, the Castanea sativa extract showed the highest inhibition of mycelial growth, reaching 27.27% after 3 days and reducing sporulation by up to 44.36%, whereas the Punica granatum and Vitis vinifera extracts exhibited only moderate inhibitory effects. In the sporulation assay, all extracts reduced spore production and increased early conidial germination, a transient response not accompanied by enhanced fungal development. In the detached olive fruit bioassay, pre-treatment with the P. granatum extract delayed disease progression and reduced final disease severity from 100% in the positive control to 64%, whereas simultaneous application of the extract and the pathogen did not provide a protective effect. Overall, the findings highlight the potential of plant-derived agro-industrial byproducts as sources of bioactive compounds for sustainable plant disease management strategies. Full article

Predicting plantation establishment-failure prior to planting remains a major operational challenge due to the strong spatial variability in post-harvest environmental conditions. This study developed a spatially explicit modelling framework that integrated pre-planting unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-derived environmental, structural, terrain, and operational-treatment data to predict establishment risk across plantation landscapes. Environmental, terrain, vegetation, and structural predictors were derived from pre-planting multispectral UAV imagery, while plantation establishment outcomes were quantified approximately 21 months later using an automated tree-detection and assessment framework. The datasets were integrated within a ridge-regularised logistic regression model incorporating interaction terms, multi-scale predictors, operational treatment masks, and blocked spatial cross-validation. The model achieved strong predictive performance under within-site blocked spatial cross-validation, with moisture-related variables, vegetation condition, and structural metrics contributing most strongly to establishment-failure prediction. Predicted risk surfaces closely matched observed patterns of reduced stocking density and suppressed growth. Beyond predicting establishment-failure, the framework enables plantation managers to screen model-predicted outcomes under alternative treatment encodings before planting and to integrate the composite stocking-density and height response within a spatially explicit Establishment Index. The framework therefore demonstrates that future plantation establishment can be predicted from environmental conditions measured before planting and provides a scalable pathway for translating high-resolution UAV data into operational decision support. Full article

This study evaluates the technical, environmental, and economic feasibility of converting plantain and banana biomass (PBB) into renewable energy in the Santa Elena province, Ecuador. Through GIS-based assessment, empirical correlations for heating value estimation, and energy/exergy analyses, our work identifies 253,389.98 tons/year of field residues with a theoretical energy potential of 382.79 GWh/year. Passive solar drying and mechanical grinding enable low-energy pre-treatment, yielding a net energy output of 12.41 MJ/kg and an exergy efficiency of 51.2%, confirming the system’s thermodynamic viability. If implemented at scale with a 20% plant factor, the energy recovered could meet 17% of the province’s current electricity demand. Economic projections estimate a potential annual revenue of USD 18.95 million based on current electricity prices, supporting the profitability of decentralized combustion systems. The integration of PBB into the regional energy matrix contributes to reducing fossil fuel reliance, enhancing energy security, and promoting sustainable rural development. These findings align with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 7 and 13, positioning biomass energy as a viable solution to Ecuador’s decarbonization goals and rural energy challenges. Full article

Melatonin is a naturally occurring compound that regulates many aspects of plant growth and development. Recently, its stress-protective potential has been extensively studied. This study investigates the effect of exogenous melatonin on non-enzymatic antioxidants, gene expression, and activity of key antioxidant enzymes in young winter wheat plants subjected to 5 days of drought. Melatonin was root-supplemented 24 h before or after the stress. The parameters were analyzed in the leaves of two Bulgarian cultivars at the end of drought, and after recovery. Drought activated both enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant defense in both cultivars, with distinct responses reflecting their tolerance. The drought-tolerant cv. Gines showed marked increase in total phenolics, thiol containing compounds, catalase (CAT) and glutathione reductase (GR) activities, and catalase (CATA, CAT3) and class III peroxidase (POX2) transcript levels. The less tolerant cv. Fermer exhibited more limited induction, primarily involving CATA, CAT3 and GR transcripts and the glutathione pool. Melatonin pre-treatment generally attenuated drought-induced antioxidant responses. This effect was more pronounced in cv. Fermer, where the most drought-responsive parameters were also the most alleviated by melatonin, whereas in cv. Gines only CATA expression, and CAT and GR activities were significantly influenced, suggesting cultivar-dependent modulation of antioxidant systems by melatonin. During recovery, both pre- and post-drought melatonin applications produced comparable effects on the antioxidant defense. The post-treatment selectively enhanced the studied transcripts in a cultivar-specific manner. Full article

The propagation of native plants that support pollinators is a relevant strategy for strengthening seed banks, pollinator gardens, and local restoration efforts. This study evaluated whether pre-sowing magnetic exposure modifies germination, early survival, and initial seedling growth in two Salvia species with ecological and biocultural value from Michoacán, Mexico. A total of 1000 seeds, equally distributed between both species, were analyzed. The seeds were assigned to a non-exposed control group and magnetic field exposure treatments at 83.94, 166.94, 292.30, 305.40, 350.70, or 375.10 mT for 5, 10, 15, or 20 min. Germination, survival, time to radicle emergence, and seedling height on day 13 were recorded. Although magnetic exposure did not significantly increase germination, seedlings from exposed seeds were taller on day 13 than those in the control group. Furthermore, higher seed mass increased germination probability. These results suggest that magnetic exposure cannot be considered a direct strategy to increase germination in these species but could be explored as a complementary tool to promote early seedling growth in native plants intended for conservation, environmental education, and restoration. Full article

Plant-mediated interactions can modify herbivore behaviour and vector-borne plant disease dynamics, yet the systemic consequences of prior cereal leaf beetle (Oulema spp.) window-pane feeding for later phloem feeder vectors remain unclear. We hypothesised that prior Oulema window-pane feeding induces systemic changes in barley that alter the subsequent host acceptance and feeding behaviour of Psammotettix alienus. Plants received one of three 24 h treatments on one leaf: Oulema pre-colonisation, standardised artificial vascular injury or an undamaged control. Leafhopper responses were measured on a different, systemic leaf using female choice assays and electrical penetration graph recordings. Oulema damage was low and strongly right-skewed and did not affect most feeding variables, including non-phloem activities, phloem activity, drinking latency or phloem activity latency. Artificial vascular injury, however, reduced the phloem–saliva ratio in females, which indicates a lower relative investment in phloem preparation once the phloem phase was reached. Within Oulema-treated plants, increasing damage reduced the number of transitions between penetration phases in males but not females. Females showed no treatment-related preference in salivary sheath production or oviposition. Thus, Oulema window-pane feeding left only a weak systemic plant-mediated legacy for P. alienus, closer to behavioural neutrality than strong facilitation or interference under these short-term systemic experimental conditions. Full article

Water scarcity in the Peruvian Altiplano demands irrigation strategies that optimise water use without compromising agricultural productivity. The objective of this study was to compare the effects of drip irrigation and micro-sprinkler irrigation on the agronomic development, water balance, and yield of Chinese garlic (Allium sativum L.) in the community of Challapujo, Ilave, Puno, during the 2021–2022 growing season. Six plots were evaluated under two localised irrigation treatments: T-1 (drip) and T-2 (micro-sprinkler). The irrigation scheduling was based on a daily water balance, accounting for evapotranspiration, precipitation, effective root depth, and soil moisture thresholds. The soil exhibited analogous hydro-physical characteristics across treatments, with a bulk density of 1.28 g cm⁻³, a field capacity of 20.31%, and a permanent wilting point of 10.33% for T-1 and values of 1.31 g cm⁻³, 19.99%, and 10.16%, respectively, for T-2. The C-factor was calculated based the actual volume applied and the effectively wetted area, estimated at 80% for drip irrigation and close to 100% for micro-sprinklers. During the 190-day growing period, 84 effective irrigation events and a cumulative precipitation of 424.30 mm were recorded. Treatment T-1 required 1099.98 min of irrigation and applied 223.87 mm, whereas T-2 required 1280.75 min and 346.76 mm; this represented an absolute saving of 122.89 mm and a 35.5% reduction in favour of drip irrigation. Nevertheless, no significant differences were observed regarding to plant height, pseudostem diameter, leaf length, pre-bulbing stage, number of leaves, or yield—with values of 14.70 t ha⁻¹ for T-1 and 14.83 t ha⁻¹ for T-2. In conclusion, both systems yielded equivalent agronomic results, but drip irrigation demonstrated superior water-use efficiency, making it a technically favourable alternative for high-Andean production systems with limited water availability. Full article

Chemical regulators play an important role in alleviating abiotic stress during seed germination and early seedling establishment, providing a low-cost and effective solution for crop production under stress conditions. The seed germination stage is critical for crop establishment under drought stress. Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) is relatively drought-tolerant during later growth stages but remains sensitive during seed germination and early seedling establishment. In this study, two P. miliaceum varieties (‘Yumi 2’ and ‘Yumi 5’) were used as materials. Seeds were soaked with 2,4-epibrassinolide (EBR) at concentrations of 0, 0.01, 0.1, 0.5, and 1 μmol·L⁻¹, and then germinated under polyethylene glycol (PEG-6000) solutions at 0%, 15%, and 20% (w/v) to simulate drought stress. Drought stress progressively reduced seed germination potential, germination percentage, germination index, and vigor index, while increasing mean germination time and decreasing germination synchrony. EBR soaking, particularly at 0.01 μmol·L⁻¹, consistently alleviated the above inhibitory effects. Under 20% PEG stress, 0.01 μmol·L⁻¹ EBR increased the germination potential of ‘Yumi 5’ to 82% and significantly improved the germination percentage of both varieties. Compared with the control, low concentrations of EBR (0.01 and 0.1 μmol·L⁻¹) increased the germination synchrony of ‘Yumi 2’ by up to 89.5% and 93.6%. Under 20% PEG stress, the germination synchrony of ‘Yumi 2’ treated with 0.01 μmol·L⁻¹ EBR was 54.7% higher than that of the control. EBR treatment increased α-amylase activity, with the highest activity observed at 0.01 μmol·L⁻¹ under non-stress conditions, and it maintained relatively high activity under drought stress, especially in ‘Yumi 5’. The two varieties exhibited genotype-dependent response differences: ‘Yumi 5’ responded to a wider range of EBR concentrations under drought stress, whereas ‘Yumi 2’ showed a selective response. Soaking seeds with 0.01 μmol·L⁻¹ EBR is a promising pre-sowing treatment strategy for improving seedling establishment of P. miliaceum under drought-prone conditions. In summary, this study provides a low-cost and easily applicable hormone soaking method that can be directly used to enhance the early drought tolerance of cereal crops. Furthermore, this strategy may offer practical guidance for improving seedling techniques in medicinal plants facing similar drought stress during propagation, thereby supporting sustainable agricultural production in water-deficient regions. Full article

Water deficit is a major abiotic constraint limiting maize growth and productivity worldwide. Although silicon (Si) is not classified as an essential element, its beneficial effects on numerous crop species are well documented. Silicon has been shown to promote plant growth and enhance tolerance to abiotic stresses, particularly drought stress. Seed priming, a pre-sowing technique known to stimulate early germination processes, has emerged as a promising approach to enhance seedling establishment and stress tolerance in crops. In the present study, silicon-based seed priming was investigated as a strategy to alleviate the adverse effects of water deficit in maize (Zea mays) using two sodium silicate priming-solution concentrations (10 and 20 mM). Maize plants were subjected to six experimental treatments based on seed priming: three under well-watered conditions (no silicon seed priming and seed priming with 10 and 20 mM sodium silicate solutions) and three corresponding treatments combined with irrigation withdrawal for 15 days to induce drought stress. Morphological traits, biomass accumulation, photosynthetic pigment content, plant water status, and PSI- and PSII-related photochemical parameters were evaluated. Drought stress markedly reduced plant growth, biomass production, relative water content, chlorophyll pigment levels, and photosystem photochemical performance, reflecting a strong negative impact of water deficit on most measured parameters. In particular, root and shoot fresh weights decreased by 75% and 71%, respectively, compared with those of well-watered unprimed control plants, indicating a substantial reduction in biomass accumulation under drought conditions. Furthermore, drought conditions impaired photochemical performance and increased non-regulated energy dissipation, indicative of impaired photosynthetic performance. Silicon seed priming mitigated several drought-induced effects in a trait-dependent manner. Under water-deficit conditions, 20 mM Si produced the strongest improvement in root and shoot fresh weights, whereas 10 mM Si showed stronger responses for selected shoot-growth and PSI-related parameters. Both Si treatments improved leaf water status and photosynthetic stability to varying extents. Collectively, these results indicate that sodium silicate seed priming partially improves drought-related responses in maize seedlings under the conditions of this study by sustaining growth performance, preserving plant water status, and maintaining photosynthetic stability under water-deficit conditions. Full article