Soil conduciveness to take-all of wheat: Influence of the nitrogen fertilizers on the structure of populations of fluorescent pseudomonads

In a field cropped with wheat, a high and low level of soil conduciveness to take-all were induced by applying a nitrogen fertilizer with either calcium nitrate or ammonium sulphate. From these two soils, two representative populations of fluorescent pseudomonads were tested for their in situ behaviour. Take-all index and root dry weight were assessed on plants cropped in soils infested with Gaeumannomyces graminis var tritici (Ggt) and each bacterized with one of the isolates of fluorescent pseudomonads. The bacteria tested can be split into three groups: antagonists which reduce take-all, deleterious isolates which aggravate the disease and neutral without evident effect on the disease. The predominance of antagonistic fluorescent pseudomonads in the NH₄-treated soil and the predominance of deleterious ones in the NO₃-treated soil was confirmed after statistical analysis. The microbial impact on take-all must be more considered as the resulting effect of divergent activities of both rhizobacteria types than the only consequences of the presence of antagonistic pseudomonads. All the high cyanogenic pseudomonads were antagonists in situ and were more numerous in the NH₄-treated soil than in the NO₃-treated soil.     

Effect of one year rotational set-aside on immediate and ensuing nitrogen leaching loss

This paper reports results from a 3-year field experiment which examined Nitrogen (N) leaching loss from land under various set-aside managements. Four treatments were examined: three ploughed plots which were sown with wheat, ryegrass or maintained fallow; the fourth treatment was unploughed and natural weed growth (volunteers) permitted. The l-year set-aside was followed by two winter wheat test crops. Ceramic suction cups were installed at a depth of 90 cm and used to collect drainage water. N leaching loss was calculated by multiplying drainage volume, calculated from meteorological data, by its inorganic N concentration.Set-aside management significantly affected N leaching loss over the three years. During the set-aside year, the peak nitrate concentration from the unploughed treatment growing volunteer weeds was significantly lower than that from ploughed plots. Of the latter, by the spring, crop (i.e. wheat and ryegrass) assimilation of N significantly reduced N concentration compared to the fallow. The four set-aside treatments had a carry-over effect to the following year (first wheat test crop) resulting in significant differences in N losses. Leaching following the ryegrass treatment was very small and we believe that the grass residues minimised rates of net-N mineralization.The influence of set-aside management continued to the second wheat test crop where N loss was greater under the all wheat rotation because take-all had reduced yield and therefore crop N uptake.     

Effects of take-all (Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici) on crop N uptake and residual mineral N in soil at harvest of winter wheat

Background and aims

Take-all, caused by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici, is the most damaging root disease of wheat. A severe attack often leads to premature ripening and death of the plant resulting in a reduction in grain yield and effects on grain quality (Gutteridge et al. in Pest Manag Sci 59:215–224, 2003). Premature death of the plant could also lead to inefficient use of applied nitrogen (Macdonald et al. in J Agric Sci 129(2):125–154, 1997). The aim of this study was to determine crop N uptake and the amount of residual mineral N in the soil after harvest where different severities of take-all had occurred.

Methods

Plant and soil samples were taken at anthesis and final harvest from areas showing good and poor growth (later confirmed to be caused by take-all disease) in three winter wheat crops grown on the same soil type on Rothamsted Farm in SE England in 1995, 2007 and 2008 (harvest sampling only). All crops received fertiliser N in spring at recomended rates (190–200?kg?N ha^?1). On each ocassion crops were assessed for severity of take-all infection (TAR) and crop N uptakes and soil nitrate plus ammonium (SMN) was determined. Grain yields were also measured.

Results

Grain yields (at 85% dry matter) of crops with moderate infection (good crops) ranged from 4.3 to 13.0?t ha^?1, compared with only 0.9–4.5?t ha^?1 for those with severe infection (poor crops). There were significant (P?<?0.05) negative relationships between crop N uptake and TAR at anthesis and final harvest. At harvest, good crops contained 129–245?kg?N ha^?1 in grain, straw and stubble, of which 85–200?kg?N ha^?1 was in the grain. In contrast, poor crops contained only 46–121?kg?N ha^?1, of which only 22–87?kg?N ha^?1 was in the grain. Positive relationships between SMN and TAR were found at anthesis and final harvest. The SMN in the 0–50?cm layer following harvest of poor crops was significantly (P?<?0.05) greater than that under good crops, and most (73–93%) was present as nitrate.

Conclusions

Localised patches of severe take-all infection decreased the efficiency with which hexaploid wheat plants recovered soil and fertiliser derived N, and increased the subsequent risk of nitrate leaching. The risk of gaseous N losses to the atmosphere from these areas may also have been enhanced.     

小麦远缘杂交后代对小麦全蚀病抗病性研究

研究了小麦—华山新麦草衍生系和小麦—簇毛麦衍生系19份材料苗期对小麦全蚀病菌禾顶囊壳小麦变种的抗病性,对9份抗病性较高的材料进行田间全生育期抗病性测试。结果表明：9份材料在不同生育期抗病性表现不同,苗期抗病性均高,越冬期无死亡;V2代换系、H922—9—12和V9125—2在返青期抗病性较高,病根严重度低于5．5％;H922—9—12和V9129—1在扬花期抗病性表现较好,成穗率可达80％;H922—9—12和V2代换系在成熟期抗病性较高,白穗率在13．8％以下。对照小偃6号高度感病,蒙燕94—4高度抗病。     

Solarization in a forest nursery: effect on ectomycorrhizal soil infectivity and soil receptiveness to inoculation with Laccaria bicolor

 Field experiments were carried out in a forest nursery during the summer of 1994 to examine the effect of soil solarization on ectomycorrhizal soil infectivity (ESI) and soil receptiveness to inoculation with Laccaria bicolor. Soil samples from solarized, steamed, fumigated and untreated plots were periodically collected and assayed for ESI. Untreated soil exhibited high ESI. Solarization was as effective as steaming or fumigation in reducing ESI in the uppermost layer. Solarization with a double layer of polyethylene film and fumigation were the only treatments which reduced ESI deeper in the soil. During July, the temperature of covered beds reached 50  °C at a soil depth of 5 cm. Ectomycorrhizal fungi were among the soil-borne fungi most sensitive to solar heating. Soil solarization provides an effective disinfection method for controlled mycorrhization in forest nurseries. Accepted: 10 April 1997     

小麦-华山新麦草抗全蚀病新种质的分子细胞遗传学研究

对小麦-华山新麦草附加系H20和代换系H1的抗病性及分子细胞遗传学进行了研究。结果 表明,H20和H1的体细胞染色体数目范围分别为42～44和40～42,2n=44和2n=42的细胞频率分别为58.33%和90%;花粉母细胞减数分裂中期Ⅰ,染色体构型分别为21．55Ⅱ十0．90Ⅰ和20．74Ⅱ十0．52Ⅰ,22Ⅱ和21Ⅱ的细胞频率分别为61．56％和86．18％;与中国春测交,21Ⅱ十1Ⅰ和20Ⅱ十2Ⅰ的细胞频率分别为70．14％和88．59％。用华山新麦草基因组DNA作探针进行原位杂交,结果显示H20和H1中均有2条华山新麦草染色体,他们的染色体构成分别为2n=44=42W 2N和2n=42=40W 2N。对全蚀病菌,H20表现近高度抗病性,H1表现中度抗病性。     

Changes in soil mineral nitrogen during and after 3-year and 5-year set-aside and nitrate leaching losses after ploughing out the 5-year plant covers in the UK

The management and effects of 3-year and 5-year set-aside covers on soil mineral nitrogen (SMN, 0.0–0.9 m) were studied at six sites in England. Soil mineral N was measured annually in autumn and spring during the period of set-aside cover, with more frequent SMN sampling over the first winter after ploughing out the covers. Spring SMN was measured in the second year after set-aside. Nitrate leaching losses were also measured at three sites in the first winter after destruction of the 5-year set-aside covers. Winter cereals were grown in both test years after each set-aside period.Amounts of both autumn and spring SMN in the perennial rye-grass (PRG), perennial rye-grass/white clover (PRG/WC) and natural regeneration (NR) covers were generally less than, or similar to those in the continuous arable treatment during each year of set-aside, indicating a slightly smaller nitrate leaching risk under set-aside management. Slight increases in autumn SMN, and hence leaching potential were, however, observed under PRG/WC in the fourth and fifth years, compared with continuous arable cropping.Ploughing out of both 3-year and 5-year covers increased soil N supply and potential nitrate leaching losses over winter, compared with continuous arable cropping. By the following spring, mean increases across all sites in amounts of SMN after 3-year covers of PRG, NR and PRG/WC were 14, 18 and 33 kg ha^–1 N, respectively, compared with the arable rotation. Equivalent increases in spring SMN following destruction of the 5-year set-aside covers were almost identical, at 17, 19 and 33 kg ha^–1, respectively, although only the ploughed-out PRG/WC covers increased SMN at the clay sites. Measured nitrate leaching losses in the first winter after 5-year set-aside were greatest after PRG/WC at two sites on shallow chalk but greatest after NR, which had a naturally large clover content, at the third site which was on a sandy soil. However, the leaching losses after set-aside were relatively small, relative to typical losses after ploughing out intensively managed grass or grass/clover swards, and would have been compensated for by potentially less leaching during set-aside.Spring SMN measurements in the second year after ploughing out the set-aside covers, showed negligible or, for PRG/WC, only slight increases (12 – 18 kg ha^–1) in residual soil N supply after both 3-year and 5-year covers, compared to continuous arable cropping. The extra N mineralisation after cover destruction justified small reductions in fertiliser N inputs for the first, but not second crop following either 3- or 5-year set-aside, unless the cover had contained a large clover content. Both 3-year and 5-year set-aside covers had minimal or no effect on either organic matter content, apart from a slight increase in the PRG/WC treatments, or extractable phosphorus, potassium and magnesium status in the topsoil.     

Response of the root system of a winter wheat crop to waterlogging

This study was aimed at analysing and quantifying the response of the root system dynamics of a wheat crop to waterlogging. Two experiments were carried out in parallel: one under controlled conditions with semi-permanent water tables using lysimeters equipped with oxygen measurers, and the other under conditions of artificially drained plots by continually monitoring their hydraulic functioning. The root system was observed frequently using the root mapping method, and this made it possible to measure the growth of the root front, to estimate root densities, and infer growth indices from them. The results showed that the anoxic medium for wheat roots consisted of a water-saturated soil with an oxygen concentration of below a critical threshold estimated to be 0.12 mol m^–3 water. The results also showed that the area which was unfavourable to root growth corresponded to the water table topped with a capillary zone of approximately 6 cm. Once the critical threshold had been reached, it was the water-table duration that explained root behaviour and the first effects were perceptible after approximately 48 h. On the basis of these results, two stress variables were analysed: water-table duration in the root zone (WTD) and proportion of roots in the water table (RPWT). The RPWT variable gave the best results within the two experimental contexts. In the case of the permanent regime, this variable made it possible to consider the root proliferation observations made above the saturated zone. Equations linking the stress variable RPWT to the growth indices are proposed that offer new perspectives to modelling waterlogging effects.     

不同耕作方式和秸秆还田对麦田土壤有机碳含量的影响

通过两个生长季试验,研究了不同耕作方式和秸秆还田及其交互效应对小麦全生育期0～20 cm土壤有机碳含量的影响.结果表明：小麦不同生育时期0～20 cm土层有机碳含量呈明显的动态变化;秸秆还田各处理的有机碳含量都高于无秸秆还田处理;保护性耕作措施土壤有机碳增加量显著高于传统翻耕.除传统翻耕处理外,各处理0～10 cm土层的有机碳含量都高于10～20 cm土层,秸秆还田各处理0～10 cm土层有机碳含量表现为深松(PS)＞旋耕(PR)＞免耕(PZ)＞耙耕(PH)＞传统翻耕(PC),而10～20 cm土层表现为传统翻耕(PC)＞深松(PS)＞旋耕(PR)＞耙耕(PH)＞免耕(PZ),说明保护性耕作措施能提高0～10 cm土层的有机碳含量.多因素方差分析表明：耕作因素、秸秆因素和两者交互效应在不同生育期对0～20 cm土层的有机碳含量都有显著影响.     

抗全蚀病小麦-华山新麦草中间材料H8911的细胞遗传学研究与利用

抗小麦全蚀病中间材料H8911(BC1F1)是通过小麦与华山新麦草杂种幼胚培养及杂种F1(ABDN2n=28)再与小麦回交后得到的。根尖细胞染色体数目49条,花粉母细胞减数分裂中期Ⅰ,染色体构型为20．85(19～21)Ⅱ 7．30(7～11)Ⅰ,21Ⅱ 7Ⅰ的细胞占86．67％。BC1F2和BC1F3体细胞染色体数目范围分别为45～53和44～52,49条染色体的植株类型分别占30．19％和27．50％,华山新麦草染色体丢失率分别为11．85％和13．14％;花粉母细胞减数分裂中期Ⅰ,染色体构型分别为20．62(18～22)Ⅱ 7．64(5～13)Ⅰ 0．04(0～1)Ⅲ和20．53(17～22)Ⅱ 7．79(5～15)Ⅰ 0．05(0～1)Ⅲ,21Ⅱ 7Ⅰ的细胞分别占77．24％和69．42％。随着自交世代的延续,21Ⅱ 7Ⅰ细胞的传递能力逐渐降低。利用H8911作供体,选育出小麦-华山新麦草抗全蚀病新种质13个,其中1个附加系表现近高度抗病性,6个附加系、3个代换系和3个易位系材料表现中度抗病性。     

覆盖方式对旱地冬小麦土壤水分的影响

在黄土高原半干旱雨养条件下,研究了不同覆盖方式(夏季覆膜,T₁;秋季覆膜,T₂;小麦碎秆覆盖,T₃;小麦整秆覆盖,T₄;夏季覆膜+麦秆还田,T₅;旧膜二茬利用,T₆;无覆盖对照,CK)对旱地冬小麦土壤水分的影响.结果表明: T₆在各时期、各土层土壤含水量普遍高于CK,其他5个覆盖处理可明显改善开花前0～90 cm土壤墒情,但开花后0～90 cm土层以及全生育期90～200 cm土层含水量普遍低于CK.全生育期0～200 cm土层平均含水量T₆显著高于CK,两者差值为0.9%,其余处理均低于CK.0～200 cm土层平均含水量秸秆覆盖处理高于覆膜处理,旧膜二茬利用高于新覆膜.覆膜处理单位面积籽粒产量较CK提高20.3%～29.0%,秸秆覆盖处理较CK提高5.0%～16.7%,冬小麦产量与生育期耗水量呈显著正相关(r=0.77^*).     

Effects of legumes on soil physical quality in a maize crop

The effect of intercropped legumes and three N fertilizer rates in a continuous maize (Zea mays L.) cropping system on the physical properties of two soils were investigated for three years. The legumes, being a mixture of alfalfa, clover and hairy vetch, had a significant cumulative effect on some physical properties of both soil. The lowest stability and smallest mean weight diameter of soil aggregates were associated with monoculture maize plots. Aggregate size and stability were not affected by N fertilization at any of the rates of 0, 70, and 140 kg ha^-1 in intercropped plots, except that aggregate stability was actually reduced by N fertilization in one soil, the Ste. Rosalie clay. In maize plots in both soils, stability and size of soil aggregates were significantly increased with increased added N. Intercropped legumes significantly decreased dry bulk density and soil penetration resistance. Added N had no measurable influence on these compaction factors. Soil water properties were not significantly affected by either intercropping or N fertilization. Positive effects noted on soil aggregation and other physical properties in intercropped plots are the result of enhanced root activity, or incorporation of legumes as green manure, or both. Improvement of soil structure in maize plots associated with increasing N application was the result of increased maize-root residues.     

Role of antibiotics and siderophores in biocontrol of take-all disease of wheat

Both antibiotics and siderophores have been implicated in the control of soilborne plant pathogens by fluorescent pseudomonads. In Pseudomonas fluorescens 2–79, which suppresses take-all of wheat, the importance of the antibiotic phenazine-1-carboxylic acid was established with mutants deficient or complemented for antiobiotic production and by isolation of the antibiotic from the roots of wheat colonized by the bacteria. Genetic and biochemical studies of phenazine synthesis have focused on two loci; the first is involved in production of both anthranilic acid and phenazine-1-carboxylic acid, and the second encodes genes involved directly in phenazine synthesis. Because the antibiotic does not account fully for the suppressiveness of strain 2-79, additional mutants were analyzed to evaluate the role of the fluorescent siderophore and of an antifungal factor (Aff, identified as anthranilic acid) that accumulates when iron is limiting. Whereas strains producing only the siderophore conferred little protection against take-all, Aff⁺ strains were suppressive, but much less so than phenazine-producing strains. Iron-regulated nonsiderophore antibiotics may be produced by fluorescent pseudomonads more frequently than previously recognized, and could be partly responsible for beneficial effects that were attributed in the past to fluorescent siderophores.     

Prediction of take-all disease risk in field soils using a rapid and quantitative DNA soil assay

A rapid, routine DNA-based assay to quantify Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici (Ggt), the causal agent of take-all disease of cereals, has been developed and used for the prediction of take-all in a wide range of field soils. Based on the correlation of the DNA-based assay and a soil bioassay, the risk of disease development can be estimated. Ggt DNA levels of <30 pg, 30–50 pg and >50 pg in 0.1 g soil organic matter correspond to low, moderate and high levels of the disease, respectively. Limitations in the prediction of take-all, including sampling requirements to obtain representative soil samples from fields and increasing the sensitivity and the accuracy of the DNA assay, are described. The main advantage in using the DNA-based assay, in estimating the amount of Ggt inoculum in soil, is that the levels of Ggt in soil samples can be assessed rapidly and accurately. Farmers can now have soil samples assessed before sowing. The DNA result can be used to predict the potential yield loss and determine the most appropriate management options using decision support software that is currently available. This DNA technology is currently being used commercially to detect and predict take-all. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Responses of a sterile red fungus to soil types,wheat varieties and the presence of certain isolates ofStreptomyces

The biological activities of a sterile red fungus (SRF) capable of plant growth promotion and suppression of take-all disease were investigated in soils collected from Lancelin, Newdegate and Mt. Barker regions of Western Australia. Further, the effects of three wheat cultivars and the presence of two isolates ofStreptomyces on the biological activities of the SRF were tested using the Lancelin soil. The biological activities of the SRF were greatest in the Lancelin and Newdegate (wheat field) soils and with the wheat cultivar Gutha. In in vitro studies the soil streptomycetes tested showed either a significant increase in the exudate production by the SRF, which had antifungal and growth promoting properties, or an inhibition of growth of the fungus. Streptomycete A63 which stimulated the exudate production by the SRF in vitro, however, did not enhance disease protection in vivo. On the other hand, protection from root rot by the SRF in vivo was reduced in the presence of the streptomycete isolate Ax which is capable of inhibiting the growth of the SRF in vitro.     

Effects of seed-bed conditions on slug numbers and damage to winter wheat in a clay soil

In a field experiment three levels of consolidation were combined with three seed-bed tilths, to produce nine different types of seed-bed. The soil properties of each combination of tilth and consolidation were measured and effects on the numbers and biomass of slugs in the top 10 cm of soil and on damage to wheat seeds and seedlings were assessed. Eight species of slug were present, with three species predominating (Deroceras reticulatum, Arion distinctus and Arion subfuscus). Between 3% and 33% of seeds and seedlings were killed by slugs (recorded at Growth Stage 12). Contrary to expectation, most damage occurred on consolidated seed-beds of fine or medium tilth, least on loose seed-beds of the same texture; intermediate damage occurred on cloddy seed-beds, where consolidation had little effect. The level of damage occurring on different types of seed-bed was directly related to the biomass of slugs in the top 10 crn of soil, and was inversely related to depth of sowing and the percentage of fine soil in the seed-bed. These three factors together accounted for 94–97% of the variance in slug damage. Consolidation was associated with increased slug damage probably because of its effects on these three factors: slug biomass was greater and seed was at shallower depth in consolidated than loose seed-beds and consolidation, whether before or after drilling, failed to break down clods of soil into finer particles. This is the first experimental evidence in the field of the effects of seedbed conditions on slug numbers and damage to winter wheat and represents a significant step towards forecasting and avoiding slug damage in this crop.     

不同覆盖施肥措施对黄土旱塬冬小麦土壤水分的影响

于2007年9月—2008年7月在位于黄土高原渭北旱塬的王东沟试验区进行冬小麦不同覆盖施肥措施（包括不施肥、农民习惯施肥、推荐施肥、推荐施肥+有机肥、推荐施肥+垄上覆膜、推荐施肥+垄上覆膜+沟内覆草、推荐施肥+全区覆草7个处理）田间试验,并采用水分中子仪定期观测土壤含水量,研究黄土高原旱塬区不同栽培措施下土壤水分的变化特征.结果表明：在干旱季节（春季）,推荐施肥+垄上覆膜+沟内覆草措施有利于贮存更多的土壤水分,其土壤储水量约比最低值（推荐施肥+有机肥）高48.2 mm,并可将土壤水分保持到冬小麦需水的关键期,而且推荐施肥+垄上覆膜措施仅次于推荐施肥+垄上覆膜+沟内覆草,表明这两种措施能够在田间蓄积较多天然降水,有利于黄土高原旱区雨养农业的发展.     

保护性耕作和杂草管理对冬小麦农田土壤水分及有机碳的影响

在秸秆全量还田的试验田中(从2004年起),于2008-2009年及2009-2010年冬小麦生育期间,研究了不同耕作措施(旋耕、耙耕、免耕、深松和常规耕作)和杂草管理对冬小麦田土壤水分及有机碳的影响.结果表明:在未除草条件下,免耕、深松的杂草总密度显著提高;而在除草条件下,杂草密度显著下降.小麦从拔节期到灌浆期0～60 cm土层水分含量呈明显波动变化,田间保留一定量的杂草可增加不同耕作方式0～20 cm的土壤水分含量,表现出一定的土壤水分保持效应.保留杂草仅提高了拔节期0～20 cm土层的土壤有机碳含量;而在抽穗期和灌浆期,0～20、20～40和40～60 cm土层有机碳含量均低于去除杂草处理.去除杂草条件下,深松显著提高了冬小麦籽粒产量;保留杂草条件下,旋耕的籽粒产量最高,常规耕作产量最低.