Effect of Inoculum Density on Verticillium Wilt Incidence in Commercial Olive Orchards

Verticillium wilt, caused by Verticillium dahliae Kleb., is presently the most destructive disease of olive, particularly in Andalucía (southern Spain). ‘Picual’ and ‘Arbequina’ are the dominant cultivars being planted in Spain. Both cultivars are highly susceptible to the defoliating pathotype of V. dahliae when artificially inoculated by root‐dipping or stem injection. Conversely, ‘Arbequina’ is considered more resistant than ‘Picual’ based on field observations and farmer's experience. In this study, the differential reaction between of cultivars was confirmed by surveys of naturally infested orchards with different inoculum densities of the pathogen. The average percentage of affected olive trees of ‘Picual’ was 60.2%, while only 13.1% of trees of ‘Arbequina’ showed disease symptoms. Overall, the pathogen caused extensive wilting of branches and defoliation on the trees of ‘Picual’, whereas ‘Arbequina’‐infected trees showed chlorotic symptoms and slight defoliation. The relationship between inoculum density and disease incidence fit a logarithmic function for both cultivars. The percentage of affected trees of ‘Arbequina’ per year increased linearly (y = 0.3559x, R² = 0.5652, and P = 0.0195) with the inoculum density in the soil, whereas this relationship was not observed for the ‘Picual’. Planting density had no effect on disease incidence for any of the two cultivars.     

Effects of plant hedgerows on soil erosion and soil fertility on sloping farmland in the purple soil area

Effect of using plant hedgerows on controlling soil and water losses has received wide recognition and this technology has been applied in many areas in the world. Yet, studies on the effect of using plant hedgerows on soil fertility on sloping lands are rare. Carrying out an eight-year fixed field experiment, the authors investigated the effect of two different hedgerows against the control treatment on soil fertility. Results showed that clay particles tended to accumulate in front of the plant hedgerows and began to erode downward below the hedgerows along the contour lines across the field. Distribution of soil organic matter and all plant nutrients except potassium (K) showed the same pattern as the clay particles. Potassium, however, was evenly distributed in the field without any noticeable influence from the hedgerows. Since the fixed experiment started, soil phosphorus (P) kept accumulating, while soil organic matter and K were in depletion. The results accordingly suggested better nutrient management practices on the sloping lands by using properly reduced rates of P and increased rates of farm manure and K. Taking the sloping field as a whole, special attention in nutrient management should be given to the soil strips —the portions below the plant hedgerows suffering from more serious soil erosion.     

Effects of plant hedgerows on soil erosion and soil fertility on sloping farmland in the purple soil area

Effect of using plant hedgerows on controlling soil and water losses has received wide recognition and this technology has been applied in many areas in the world. Yet, studies on the effect of using plant hedgerows on soil fertility on sloping lands are rare. Carrying out an eight-year fixed field experiment, the authors investigated the effect of two different hedgerows against the control treatment on soil fertility. Results showed that clay particles tended to accumulate in front of the plant hedgerows and began to erode downward below the hedgerows along the contour lines across the field. Distribution of soil organic matter and all plant nutrients except potassium (K) showed the same pattern as the clay particles. Potassium, however, was evenly distributed in the field without any noticeable influence from the hedgerows. Since the fixed experiment started, soil phosphorus (P) kept accumulating, while soil organic matter and K were in depletion. The results accordingly suggested better nutrient management practices on the sloping lands by using properly reduced rates of P and increased rates of farm manure and K. Taking the sloping field as a whole, special attention in nutrient management should be given to the soil strips —the portions below the plant hedgerows suffering from more serious soil erosion.     

Hide and seek in forests: colonization by the pine processionary moth is impeded by the presence of nonhost trees

• 1 The disruption of host‐finding cues has been proposed as a key mechanism underlying the lower damage caused by phytophagous insects in mixed forests. We tested this hypothesis by investigating the distribution of pine processionary moth Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Denis & Schiffer‐Müller) (Lepidoptera) infestation at the edges of pure stands of Pinus pinaster (AÏton) at some distance from nonhost trees (Experiment 1) or bordered in part by a broadleaved hedgerow (Experiment 2).
• 2 An ‘edge effect' was demonstrated, with trees at the edge of the stand being more heavily infested than those at the interior of the stand.
• 3 The presence of a nonhost broadleaved hedgerow in front of the edge of the pine stand resulted in lower T. pityocampa infestation. There were significantly fewer T. pityocampa nests behind the hedgerow than on the exposed part of the edge. The presence of the hedgerow did not dilute or repel T. pityocampa infestation further into the pine stand, although it decreased the infestation of T. pityocampa throughout the pine stand. The decrease in T. pityocampa infestation behind the hedgerow was greater when the broadleaved hedgerow was taller than the pine trees.
• 4 These results highlight the benefits of using nonhost tree species on the edge of monospecific forest stands to reduce insect damage. This approach could be promoted as an innovative forest pest management method.

     

Dangerous life at the edge: Implications of seed predation for roadside revegetation

Question

Anthropogenic edges caused by transport infrastructure such as dirt roads and trails (also known as Soft Linear Developments; SLD) are pervasive in almost every terrestrial ecosystem. Revegetating these edges may reduce some of their negative effects, such as their permeability to biological invasions and detrimental effects on wildlife, potentially becoming suitable habitat for a broad range of species. Selecting species with low post‐dispersal seed predation rates may improve the effectiveness of revegetation programmes.

Location

Mediterranean scrublands in SW Spain.

Methods

We made offerings of a total of 16,000 seeds of eight species of fleshy‐fruit shrubs both along SLD edges and scrubland interiors in two independent blocks in each of three distant locations. Using four types of selective enclosure, we assessed the relative contribution of three seed predator guilds (ants, rodents and birds) to seed predation rates both along SLD edges and scrubland interiors.

Results

The effects of anthropogenic edges on seed predation rates were species‐specific. The large and hard‐seeded species Chamaerops humilis was not predated at all. Juniperus phoenicea and Corema album seeds had higher predation rates in scrubland interiors than in edges. The small‐seeded Rubus ulmifolius experienced relatively low seed predation rates compared to the other species. Predation rates for this species were higher along SLD edges than in scrubland interiors. Ants were the main seed predators in the area, and showed marked preferences for J. macrocarpa and C. album seeds at both SLD edges and scrubland interiors.

Conclusions

Our results show the strong context‐dependency of seed predation rates in both SLD edges and scrubland interiors, and thus the importance of well spatially and temporally replicated studies. Species with large and hard seeds may be good candidates for roadside revegetation programmes. However, the relative suitability of plant species would depend on the seed predator community. Our findings confirm that studies on seed predation may help planning cost‐effective species selection for edge revegetation efforts worldwide.     

短期夜间低温后番茄光合作用及叶绿体超微结构的恢复效应

为明确短期夜间低温后番茄光合作用在常温下的恢复效应,研究了番茄幼苗经夜间15 ℃（对照）、12 ℃、9 ℃和6 ℃处理7 d后植株光合作用和叶绿体超微结构的变化.结果表明：短期夜间低温处理有利于恢复期番茄叶片的光合作用;12 ℃和9 ℃处理叶片叶绿素含量均可恢复至对照水平,6 ℃处理叶绿素含量则不可恢复;夜间低温处理并未严重抑制叶片气孔的形成,相反刺激了恢复期叶片气孔的形成与发育;6 ℃处理后叶绿体基粒片层排列较松散,片层数减少.恢复7 d时,夜间处理温度越低,叶绿体中淀粉粒越小、数量越少,基粒片层排列越整齐致密.另外,短期夜间低温处理促进了番茄植株叶片在恢复期的光合产物运输.     

植物篱的生态效益研究进展

植物篱/植被隔离带指沿坡地等高线,或在农田、河岸、沟道等水体边缘营建的,由草本或木本植物单一或组合形成的植物条带.植物篱可以改善土壤结构,对土壤质地、孔隙度、容重等物理性质有显著影响,其机械阻挡作用可以拦截径流、增加入渗、减少土壤流失、影响侵蚀过程,还能减缓坡度、促进坡耕地梯化.本文通过梳理和总结国内外学者在不同生态系统类型区和自然地理单元上开展的相关研究,综述了植物篱对改良土壤理化属性、调节降雨入渗和水蚀过程、植被恢复、生物多样性保护、优化景观及生态服务等多个方面的影响.同时,提出了当前植物篱研究中的两大主要问题：在工程技术与应用上,需要对植物篱种植模式、结构选择、管理办法系统化;在科学研究层面上,要深入探究影响植被恢复与生态演替的机理.     

长江上游不同植物篱系统的土壤物理性质

在长江上游现有植物篱调查的基础上,对3种不同植物篱(乔木类、灌木类和草本类)不同位置的土壤物理性质进行了分析.结果表明:与植物篱带间相比,研究区3种不同类型植物篱带内土壤物理性质均得到了显著改善和提高;乔木类、草本类和灌木类植物篱带内土壤孔隙度、含水量、饱和导水率、水稳性团聚体含量、抗蚀指数、抗冲指数和土壤粘粒含量平均值分别提高了18.8%、30.1%、12.9%、139.3%、108.3%、95.9%和25.5%,土壤容重和土壤沙粒含量分别平均减小17.3%和9.6%;3种不同植物篱带内的土壤物理性质存在差异性,乔木类植物篱带内土壤抗冲性指数最大,灌木类植物篱带内土壤孔隙度、含水量、饱和导水率、抗蚀指数、水稳性团聚体含量、土壤粘粒含量高于乔木类和草本类,其土壤容重则低于乔木类和草本类;植物篱对植物篱-坡耕地系统内不同位置土壤物理性质影响程度的差异导致了土壤物理性质各指标在植物篱带内、带上、带下和带间坡耕地也存在一定的变异性,乔木类植物篱土壤水分含量、抗蚀指数、饱和导水率和土壤粘粒含量的变异系数大于灌木类和草本类植物篱,灌木类植物篱土壤容重、孔隙度、水稳性团聚体含量和抗冲指数的变异系数高于乔木类和草本类植物篱...     

Experimental simulation of some visual and physical components of a hedge and the effects on butterfly behaviour in an agricultural landscape

Experiments on the corridor function of linear features in real landscapes are difficult and expensive to carry out using the classic replicated and controlled experimental regimes usually required as formal proof of a concept. We describe two experiments using model structures to simulate different attributes of hedges for their potential role in initiating corridor movement.We examined: (i) the visual signal or link provided by flowering plants associated with hedges (represented by a narrow red-and-white builder's warning tape) and (ii) the physical presence of the body of the hedge itself (represented by green horticultural windbreak). Removable, 100 m long, links were created between two habitat patches (Åkerholmer) in an arable field in Vestby, Norway. We recorded the effect of the links on the behaviour of three `species' of the free-flying butterfly community of the study area: the scarce copper (Heodes virgaureae), the heath fritillary (Mellicta athalia) and, as a complex, the high brown (Fabriciana adippe) and niobe fritillaries (F. niobe).The visual link did not elicit a uniform response by the different `species'. Significantly more high brown/niobe fritillaries flew along the visual link than along the control (no link) and mean distances traveled along the tape were significantly longer than for the control. The heath fritillary and scarce copper did not react in this way. The tape had a slight, but statistically significant, barrier effect on the scarce copper but did not act as a barrier to the other species.All three `species' were strongly affected by the presence of the physical link. A significant barrier effect was detected for all three `species' as was a corridor effect with an increased proportion of butterflies moving along the windbreak compared with the control. Mean distances traveled along the windbreak were significantly longer compared with the control, the response being strongest for the scarce copper.The results demonstrated that simple structures could modify the behaviour of species moving through the landscape and that individual species reacted in different ways to the same structure. The experimental approach of using model structures may have promise for modeling aspects of landscape elements in natural situations for a range of species. The results are discussed in relation to butterfly population structure, mate finding, dispersal and corridor design.     

Proximity of restored hedgerows interacts with local floral diversity and species' traits to shape long‐term pollinator metacommunity dynamics

Disconnected habitat fragments are poor at supporting population and community persistence; restoration ecologists, therefore, advocate for the establishment of habitat networks across landscapes. Few empirical studies, however, have considered how networks of restored habitat patches affect metacommunity dynamics. Here, using a 10‐year study on restored hedgerows and unrestored field margins within an intensive agricultural landscape, we integrate occupancy modelling with network theory to examine the interaction between local and landscape characteristics, habitat selection and dispersal in shaping pollinator metacommunity dynamics. We show that surrounding hedgerows and remnant habitat patches interact with the local floral diversity, bee diet breadth and bee body size to influence site occupancy, via colonisation and persistence dynamics. Florally diverse sites and generalist, small‐bodied species are most important for maintaining metacommunity connectivity. By providing the first in‐depth assessment of how a network of restored habitat influences long‐term population dynamics, we confirm the conservation benefit of hedgerows for pollinator populations and demonstrate the importance of restoring and maintaining habitat networks within an inhospitable matrix.