Micronutrient availability to cereals from calcareous soils

Summary The mechanism of higher grain production of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) by four tillage methods was explored on a sandy calcareous soil of Sahl-Al Jafara, Libya, during the year 1976–77. Tillage methods increased grain yield and dry matter weight at the boot stage in the order of no-tillage<rotovator=disc plough < subsoiler. Rotovation to 15 cm and disc ploughing to 25 cm depth enhanced grain production mainly by eliminating weed competition. In both the cases, roots penetrated < 25 cm where plough-pan existed.Further yield increases by 50 cm deep subsoiling seems to be mainly explained by N and Cu rise in plants from their marginal to optimum levels and by reduction of Mn deficiency in plant shoots. Penetration of roots beyond the 25 cm plough-pan apparently resulted in higher absorption of these nutrients from leached or native soil supplies. Subsoiling also resulted in greater Zn concentration in plant shoots which, under marginal to deficient conditions, will also increase grain production.     

Hydroponic Seedling Bioassay for the Bioherbicides Colletotrichum truncatum and Alternaria cassiae

A rapid bioassay was developed to measure the bioherbicidal efficacy of spore preparations of the pathogens Colletotrichum truncatum (Schwein.) Andrus and W. D. Moore and Alternaria cassiae Jurair and Khan on hemp sesbania (Sesbania exaltata) and sicklepod (Cassia obtusifolia), respectively. The system uses 4-day-old dark-grown seedlings (grown hydroponically in paper towel cylinders) which were sprayed with spore suspensions. Shoot lengths were monitored non-destructively, and recorded over time under conditions of dark growth, 90-100% relative humidity and 25 C. Shoot growth inhibition and stem collapse (mortality) were directly related to the spore concentration applied. Generally, at 10 3 - 10 4 spores ml-1, these pathogens caused significant shoot growth inhibition within 25-30 h and seedling death within 40-50 h. This bioassay has been used to study herbicide-pathogen interactions, and may be extended to determine the bioherbicidal efficacy of different pathogen isolates, pathovars or spore formulations. This technique is more rapid, uses a lower inoculum volume, requires less space and is performed under more controlled conditions than conventional greenhouse bioassay methods. The data obtained are more quantitative than those obtained from bioassays relying on visual rating systems.     

云南金平分水岭国家级自然保护区苔类植物物种多样性

自2015年至2018年对云南金平分水岭国家级自然保护区的苔藓植物进行野外考察、标本采集及鉴定,统计该地区苔类植物34科60属203种(含种下分类单元)。对自然保护区苔类植物物种进行多样性分析,结果显示,细鳞苔科(57种)和羽苔科(34种)所包含物种数量最为丰富;平铺型是本调查区的优势生活型类型;从物种的区系组成来看,广义的热带成分比重最大,达40.4%。     

复方薏苡仁方对小鼠肠道菌群及微环境的调节作用

目的观察复方薏苡仁方调节小鼠肠道菌群功能及胃肠运动的效果,并考察复方薏苡仁方对小鼠盲肠内容物pH及肠黏膜结构等肠道内环境的影响。方法参照《保健食品检验与评价技术规范》(2003版)的规定进行调节肠道菌群实验和小肠墨汁推进试验,检测小鼠盲肠内容物pH,并对肠道黏膜结构进行病理形态学观察。结果 (1)与给样前相比,复方薏苡仁方中、高剂量组肠杆菌数和低、高剂量组肠球菌数均明显减少(P<0.05),中、高剂量组乳杆菌数和双歧杆菌数均明显或显著增加(P<0.05或P<0.01),且高剂量组乳杆菌数和中、高剂量组双歧杆菌数明显高于阳性对照组(P<0.05);(2)复方薏苡仁方各剂量组小鼠盲肠内容物pH值均显著降低(P<0.01),且均低于阳性对照组,其中低、高剂量组差异有统计学意义(P<0.05或P<0.01);(3)与正常对照组相比,复方薏苡仁方低、中、高剂量组小鼠十二指肠、空肠、回肠绒毛长度/隐窝深度比值(A/V)均明显或显著增加(P<0.05或P<0.01),且中、高剂量组十二指肠、空肠及回肠A/V比值明显或显著高于阳性对照组(P<0.05或P<0.01);(4)与模型对照组相比,复方薏苡仁方各剂量组小鼠小肠推进率均显著增加(P<0.01),且均高于阳性对照组(P<0.01)。结论复方薏苡仁方对调节肠道菌群及改善肠道微环境具有一定的促进作用。     

西藏色季拉山蕨类植物资源特征

为了摸清色季拉山蕨类植物资源的种类和资源特征,为该区蕨类开发利用提供依据。该研究通过查阅《西藏植物志》和标本,结合色季拉山多年植物调查名录,对该区野生蕨类植物进行统计分析,并对其用途进行了描述。结果显示:(1)色季拉山共有蕨类植物资源29科、57属、196种(包括变种和变型),分别占西藏蕨类植物总科、属、种的65.91%、45.24%、41.70%;优势科为鳞毛蕨科(3属/50种)、水龙骨科(9属/31种)、蹄盖蕨科(7属/22种)、中国蕨科(6属/14种),优势属为鳞毛蕨属(27种)、耳蕨属(19种)。(2)色季拉山蕨类植物的地理成分以热带类型的科和属占优势(分别占非世界分布科、属的80.00%、68.18%),具有明显的热带性质;生态分布类型以陆生为主(118种,占60.20%),其次为附生(45种,占22.96%)。(3)色季拉山共有药用蕨类植物66种,且以清热药种类最多(30种);观赏蕨类植物共有71种(其中新增加23种);食用蕨类植物共有14种,且多以嫩叶或嫩茎或根状茎为食;少数蕨类还具有指示、工业原料、饲料和绿肥等方面的作用。研究表明,色季拉山蕨类植物资源种类丰富,在西藏蕨类植物区系中占很大比例,具有很高的开发利用价值。     

帕米尔木灵藓和细齿木灵藓（木灵藓科）的形态特征及其在中国的新分布

该文报道了采自新疆的木灵藓属中国2个新记录种——帕米尔木灵藓(Orthotrichum pamiricum)和细齿木灵藓(O.scanicum)。帕米尔木灵藓的识别特征为:叶尖钝,气孔隐型,多着生于孢蒴下部,外齿层齿片8对,干燥时蒴齿背曲,内齿层蒴条16,上部内曲;细齿木灵藓的识别特征为:叶尖部具细齿,气孔半隐型,蒴帽具分散的透明毛,内齿层和外齿层均16片,具8条黄色细沟,干燥时中部以上具沟。对这2种藓类的形态特征、生境和地理分布及与其相似种的形态学进行了比较分析,并绘制了每种的形态结构墨线图。木灵藓属植物在中国的新分布记录进一步表明,新疆地区富含生物多样性,并与中亚植物区系存在密切关系。     

An updated checklist of the vascular flora native to Italy

An updated inventory of the native vascular flora of Italy, providing details on the occurrence at regional level, is presented. The checklist includes 8195 taxa (6417 species and 1778 subspecies), distributed in 1092 genera and 152 families; 23 taxa are lycophytes, 108 ferns and fern allies, 30 gymnosperms and 8034 angiosperms. The taxa currently occurring in Italy are 7483, while 568 taxa have not been confirmed in recent times, 99 are doubtfully occurring in the country and 19 are data deficient. Out of the 568 not confirmed taxa, 26 are considered extinct or possibly extinct.     

Chemical options for the control of Siam Weed (Chromolaena odorata) in natural ecosystems

The perennial shrub Siam Weed (Chromolaena odorata (L.) R. M. King & H. Rob.), a native of the rainforests of central and southern America, is predicted to invade most countries between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Subsequent to its discovery in northern Queensland, Australia in 1994, it was unsuccessfully targeted for eradication, with early control efforts restricted to manual removal and foliar spraying with triclopyr/picloram. A chemical trial involving five herbicides and three application methods (foliar, basal bark and cut stump) was undertaken in northern Queensland to identify effective chemicals to control this weed. Of the foliar herbicides tested, fluroxypyr (70 g/100 L) provided 99% mortality, triclopyr/picloram (105/35 g/100 L) 95%, while metsulfuron‐methyl (9 g/100 L) killed 85% of the treated plants. The herbicides fluroxypyr (300 g/100 L), picloram (43 g/1 kg) and triclopyr/picloram (400/200 g/100 L) killed greater than 98% of the plants when applied as basal bark or cut stump. The integration of fire into the management strategy either as a primary or secondary control option could have a major role, given that in this study, 99% of the Siam Weed soil seed bank was located on the soil surface.     

Allelopathic potential of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) germplasm resources of Yunnan Province in southwest China

A laboratory bioassay was conducted to determine the allelopathic potentials of aqueous extracts from either roots or leaves of seventeen sweet potato [Ipomoea batatas L. (Lam)] cultivars (SP0, SP1, SP2, SP3, SP4, SP5, SP6, SP7, SP9, SP10, SP11, SP13, SP14, SP15, SP16, SP18, and SP19). Most inhibitory rates on Lactuca sativa calculated for leaf or root extracts from the seventeen sweet potato cultivars exhibited positive values and significantly increased with increasing concentration. Germination was totally inhibited at a concentration of 0.05 g·mL^?1 for leaf water extracts of SP13, SP15, SP18 and at a concentration of 0.05 g·mL^?1 for both leaf and root water extracts of SP19. Inhibition of root length was clearly greater than inhibition of shoot length for both leaf and root water extracts. Biomass inhibition increased with increasing concentration, but some cultivars showed stimulatory effects at low concentrations, and inhibition was generally more pronounced for root water extracts than for leaf water extracts. Moreover, most synthetical inhibitory rates for both leaf and root water extracts from the seventeen cultivars exhibited positive values and significantly increased with increasing concentration. Comparing the synthetical inhibitory rates for both leaf and root water extracts among the seventeen cultivars, SP19, SP6, SP11, and SP7 had the highest allelopathic inhibition. The inhibitory activity on germination index was the greatest, followed by germination rate, root length, biomass, and shoot length in all bioassays. Inhibition by leaf water extracts was generally greater than inhibition by root water extracts, except in the case of shoot length or biomass. Overall, we conclude that all seventeen sweet potato cultivars have strong inhibitory effects on L. sativa, but that these effects vary with cultivar and plant part, with SP19, SP6, SP11, and SP7 exhibiting the highest rates of allelopathic inhibition.