Agronomy

23 pages, 4659 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

BMAE-Net: A Data-Driven Weather Prediction Network for Smart Agriculture

by Jian-Lei Kong, Xiao-Meng Fan, Xue-Bo Jin, Ting-Li Su, Yu-Ting Bai, Hui-Jun Ma and Min Zuo

Agronomy 2023, 13(3), 625; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13030625 - 22 Feb 2023

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 2951

Abstract

Weather is an essential component of natural resources that affects agricultural production and plays a decisive role in deciding the type of agricultural production, planting structure, crop quality, etc. In field agriculture, medium- and long-term predictions of temperature and humidity are vital for [...] Read more.

Weather is an essential component of natural resources that affects agricultural production and plays a decisive role in deciding the type of agricultural production, planting structure, crop quality, etc. In field agriculture, medium- and long-term predictions of temperature and humidity are vital for guiding agricultural activities and improving crop yield and quality. However, existing intelligent models still have difficulties dealing with big weather data in predicting applications, such as striking a balance between prediction accuracy and learning efficiency. Therefore, a multi-head attention encoder-decoder neural network optimized via Bayesian inference strategy (BMAE-Net) is proposed herein to predict weather time series changes accurately. Firstly, we incorporate Bayesian inference into the gated recurrent unit to construct a Bayesian-gated recurrent units (Bayesian-GRU) module. Then, a multi-head attention mechanism is introduced to design the network structure of each Bayesian layer, improving the prediction applicability to time-length changes. Subsequently, an encoder-decoder framework with Bayesian hyperparameter optimization is designed to infer intrinsic relationships among big time-series data for high prediction accuracy. For example, the R-evaluation metrics for temperature prediction in the three locations are 0.9, 0.804, and 0.892, respectively, while the RMSE is reduced to 2.899, 3.011, and 1.476, as seen in Case 1 of the temperature data. Extensive experiments subsequently demonstrated that the proposed BMAE-Net has overperformed on three location weather datasets, which provides an effective solution for prediction applications in the smart agriculture system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Data-Driven Farming)

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17 pages, 7463 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Grassland Ecosystem Progress: A Review and Bibliometric Analysis Based on Research Publication over the Last Three Decades

by Xiaoyu Zhu, Jianhua Zheng, Yi An, Xiaoping Xin, Dawei Xu, Ruirui Yan, Lijun Xu, Beibei Shen and Lulu Hou

Agronomy 2023, 13(3), 614; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13030614 - 21 Feb 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4469

Abstract

Understanding the grassland ecosystem is crucial for improving grassland ecosystem functions and services such as climate regulation, water and soil conservation, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity and gene pool maintenance. However, a systematic and comprehensive review of the relevant literature is still unclear and [...] Read more.

Understanding the grassland ecosystem is crucial for improving grassland ecosystem functions and services such as climate regulation, water and soil conservation, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity and gene pool maintenance. However, a systematic and comprehensive review of the relevant literature is still unclear and lacking. The VOSviewer software and cluster analysis were used to visually analyze and perform dimension reduction classification on the 27,778 studies related to grassland ecosystem research based on the Web of Science database. The number of publications targeting grassland ecosystem increased rapidly from 2006 to 2021. Ecology, agronomy, and environmental science were the most popular research categories, and the top journal sources were Remote Sensing, Journal of Ecology, and Ecology and Evolution. The leading publishing countries were the United States, China, and Germany. The top three institutions were the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Colorado State University. Cooperation between different countries and institutions had increased. Keyword co-occurrence network analysis showed that Biodiversity, Vegetation and Conservation were the most popular study areas, grassland management, climate change, land use pattern, and ecosystem impact were the hot research topics. All studies could be divided into three categories by cluster analysis: grassland ecological characteristics including basic physicochemical properties, vegetation community characteristics, aboveground and belowground biomass, and soil structural quality of grassland; driving mechanisms that demonstrated effects of human activities and climate change on grassland ecosystem function; and grassland ecosystem services that focused the influences of different grassland management strategies on ecological services, animal welfare and human well-being. The three topic categories of reviewed studies were interrelated and consistent with each other, and the performances were progressive. This paper reviewed the trend evolution through keyword hotspots and analyzed the future research directions to provide an important reference for scientists to better respond to the balance of herbage and sustainable utilization of grassland and maintenance of ecological security. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modeling and Monitoring of Grassland Ecosystem Productivity, Carbon Assimilation and Allocation)

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18 pages, 6119 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Genome-Wide Characterization of the SAMS Gene Family in Cotton Unveils the Putative Role of GhSAMS2 in Enhancing Abiotic Stress Tolerance

by Joseph Wanjala Kilwake, Muhammad Jawad Umer, Yangyang Wei, Teame Gereziher Mehari, Richard Odongo Magwanga, Yanchao Xu, Yuqing Hou, Yuhong Wang, Margaret Linyerera Shiraku, Joy Nyangasi Kirungu, Xiaoyan Cai, Zhongli Zhou, Renhai Peng and Fang Liu

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 612; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020612 - 20 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2214

Abstract

The most devastating abiotic factors worldwide are drought and salinity, causing severe bottlenecks in the agricultural sector. To acclimatize to these harsh ecological conditions, plants have developed complex molecular mechanisms involving diverse gene families. Among them, S-adenosyl-L-methionine synthetase (SAMS) genes initiate the physiological, [...] Read more.

The most devastating abiotic factors worldwide are drought and salinity, causing severe bottlenecks in the agricultural sector. To acclimatize to these harsh ecological conditions, plants have developed complex molecular mechanisms involving diverse gene families. Among them, S-adenosyl-L-methionine synthetase (SAMS) genes initiate the physiological, morphological, and molecular changes to enable plants to adapt appropriately. We identified and characterized 16 upland cotton SAMS genes (GhSAMSs). Phylogenetic analysis classified the GhSAMSs into three major groups closely related to their homologs in soybean. Gene expression analysis under drought and salt stress conditions revealed that GhSAMS2, which has shown the highest interaction with GhCBL10 (a key salt responsive gene), was the one that was most induced. GhSAMS2 expression knockdown via virus-induced gene silencing (VGIS) enhanced transgenic plants’ susceptibility to drought and salt stress. The TRV2:GhSAMS2 plants showed defects in terms of growth and physiological performances, including antioxidative processes, chlorophyll synthesis, and membrane permeability. Our findings provide insights into SAMS genes’ structure, classification, and role in abiotic stress response in upland cotton. Moreover, they show the potential of GhSAMS2 for the targeted improvement of cotton plants’ tolerance to multiple abiotic stresses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Developing Temperature-Resilient Plants: Responses and Mitigation Strategies)

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16 pages, 5620 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Tomato Maturity Recognition Model Based on Improved YOLOv5 in Greenhouse

by Renzhi Li, Zijing Ji, Shikang Hu, Xiaodong Huang, Jiali Yang and Wenfeng Li

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 603; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020603 - 20 Feb 2023

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2598

Abstract

Due to the dense distribution of tomato fruit with similar morphologies and colors, it is difficult to recognize the maturity stages when the tomato fruit is harvested. In this study, a tomato maturity recognition model, YOLOv5s-tomato, is proposed based on improved YOLOv5 to [...] Read more.

Due to the dense distribution of tomato fruit with similar morphologies and colors, it is difficult to recognize the maturity stages when the tomato fruit is harvested. In this study, a tomato maturity recognition model, YOLOv5s-tomato, is proposed based on improved YOLOv5 to recognize the four types of different tomato maturity stages: mature green, breaker, pink, and red. Tomato maturity datasets were established using tomato fruit images collected at different maturing stages in the greenhouse. The small-target detection performance of the model was improved by Mosaic data enhancement. Focus and Cross Stage Partial Network (CSPNet) were adopted to improve the speed of network training and reasoning. The Efficient IoU (EIoU) loss was used to replace the Complete IoU (CIoU) loss to optimize the regression process of the prediction box. Finally, the improved algorithm was compared with the original YOLOv5 algorithm on the tomato maturity dataset. The experiment results show that the YOLOv5s-tomato reaches a precision of 95.58% and the mean Average Precision (mAP) is 97.42%; they are improved by 0.11% and 0.66%, respectively, compared with the original YOLOv5s model. The per-image detection speed is 9.2 ms, and the size is 23.9 MB. The proposed YOLOv5s-tomato can effectively solve the problem of low recognition accuracy for occluded and small-target tomatoes, and it also can meet the accuracy and speed requirements of tomato maturity recognition in greenhouses, making it suitable for deployment on mobile agricultural devices to provide technical support for the precise operation of tomato-picking machines. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Applications of Big Data and Machine Learning in Smart Agriculture)

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12 pages, 1161 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Efficacy of Pendimethalin Rates on Barnyard Grass (Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) Beauv) and Their Effect on Photosynthetic Performance in Rice

by Chinaza B. Onwuchekwa-Henry, Robert Coe, Floris Van Ogtrop, Rose Roche and Daniel K. Y. Tan

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 582; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020582 - 18 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2800

Abstract

Pendimethalin herbicide toxicity to rice plants and barnyard grass invasion have increasingly affected the productivity of direct-seeded rice (DSR) in the fields. Whether and how to promote DSR productivity and sustain weed management depend on the appropriate pre-emergence herbicide application rate to minimise [...] Read more.

Pendimethalin herbicide toxicity to rice plants and barnyard grass invasion have increasingly affected the productivity of direct-seeded rice (DSR) in the fields. Whether and how to promote DSR productivity and sustain weed management depend on the appropriate pre-emergence herbicide application rate to minimise its toxicity in the rice ecosystem. Pot experiments were conducted to determine the effects of pendimethalin rates (1.5, 1.75, 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹, two control treatments include the untreated control and the treated control with 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ S-metolachlor) on barnyard grass (Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) Beaux) and their potential toxicity risk to photosynthetic performances of rice (Topaz and Sen pidao). All the pendimethalin treatments provided excellent control of barnyard grass. Among the treatments, 1.5, 1.75, 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin and 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ S-metolachlor (treated control) decreased leaf area of barnyard grass significantly by 38.9, 49.6, 49.6 and 46.2%, respectively, compared with the untreated control at 40 days after sowing (DAS). The above-ground biomass of barnyard grass significantly decreased by 40% (1.48 g plant⁻¹) with 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin and by 46.2% (1.33 g plant⁻¹) when 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹S-metolachlor was applied at 40 DAS compared with the untreated pots. Higher pendimethalin rates increased toxicity in Topaz and Sen pidao varieties, and 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin significantly reduced effective quantum yield (light-adapted) of photosystem (PS) II by 18% (0.58) and 19% (0.52), respectively, compared with the untreated control. Application of 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin rate significantly decreased the maximum quantum yield (dark-adapted) of Sen pidao (0.66) compared with 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin (0.68) including the untreated control. All pendimethalin treatments suppressed above-ground biomass at 55 DAS, but above-ground biomass of barnyard grass significantly decreased by 59.9% when 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin was applied compared with the untreated control. Although application of 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin rates reduced the effective quantum yield (light-adapted) of photosystem II of Sen pidao (0.55) by a small percentage (8%) than Topaz (0.65), it was non-toxic for both varieties compared with 2.0 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin. Therefore, the use of 1.5 kg a.i. ha⁻¹ pendimethalin can be used for effective weed management in the direct seeding of rice at an early growth stage. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Weed Science and Weed Management)

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26 pages, 4824 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Bibliometric and Social Network Analysis on the Use of Satellite Imagery in Agriculture: An Entropy-Based Approach

by Riccardo Dainelli and Fabio Saracco

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 576; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020576 - 17 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1602

Abstract

Satellite imagery is gaining popularity as a valuable tool to lower the impact on natural resources and increase profits for farmers. The purpose of this study is twofold: to mine the scientific literature to reveal the structure of this research domain, and to [...] Read more.

Satellite imagery is gaining popularity as a valuable tool to lower the impact on natural resources and increase profits for farmers. The purpose of this study is twofold: to mine the scientific literature to reveal the structure of this research domain, and to investigate to what extent scientific results can reach a wider public audience. To meet these two objectives, a Web of Science and a Twitter dataset were retrieved and analysed, respectively. For the academic literature, different performances of various countries were observed: the USA and China resulted as the leading actors, both in terms of published papers and employed researchers. Among the categorised keywords, “resolution”, “Landsat”, “yield”, “wheat” and “multispectral” are the most used. Then, analysing the semantic network of the words used in the various abstracts, the different facets of the research in satellite remote sensing were detected. The importance of retrieving meteorological parameters through remote sensing and the broad use of vegetation indexes emerged from these analyses. As emerging topics, classification tasks for land use assessment and crop recognition stand out, alongside the use of hyperspectral sensors. Regarding the interaction of academia with the public, the analysis showed that it is practically absent on Twitter: most of the activity therein stems from private companies advertising their business. This shows that there is still a communication gap between academia and actors from other societal sectors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Use of Satellite Imagery in Agriculture)

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15 pages, 2739 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Edge Device Detection of Tea Leaves with One Bud and Two Leaves Based on ShuffleNetv2-YOLOv5-Lite-E

by Shihao Zhang, Hekai Yang, Chunhua Yang, Wenxia Yuan, Xinghui Li, Xinghua Wang, Yinsong Zhang, Xiaobo Cai, Yubo Sheng, Xiujuan Deng, Wei Huang, Lei Li, Junjie He and Baijuan Wang

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 577; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020577 - 17 Feb 2023

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3321

Abstract

In order to solve the problem of an accurate recognition of tea picking through tea picking robots, an edge device detection method is proposed in this paper based on ShuffleNetv2-YOLOv5-Lite-E for tea with one bud and two leaves. This replaces the original feature [...] Read more.

In order to solve the problem of an accurate recognition of tea picking through tea picking robots, an edge device detection method is proposed in this paper based on ShuffleNetv2-YOLOv5-Lite-E for tea with one bud and two leaves. This replaces the original feature extraction network by removing the Focus layer and using the ShuffleNetv2 algorithm, followed by a channel pruning of YOLOv5 at the neck layer head, thus achieving the purpose of reducing the model size. The results show that the size of the improved generated weight file is 27% of that of the original YOLOv5 model, and the mAP value of ShuffleNetv2-YOLOv5-Lite-E is 97.43% and 94.52% on the pc and edge device respectively, which are 1.32% and 1.75% lower compared to that of the original YOLOv5 model. The detection speeds of ShuffleNetv2-YOLOv5-Lite-E, YOLOv5, YOLOv4, and YOLOv3 were 8.6 fps, 2.7 fps, 3.2 fps, and 3.4 fps respectively after importing the models into an edge device, and the improved YOLOv5 detection speed was 3.2 times faster than that of the original YOLOv5 model. Through the detection method, the size of the original YOLOv5 model is effectively reduced while essentially ensuring recognition accuracy. The detection speed is also significantly improved, which is conducive to the realization of intelligent and accurate picking for future tea gardens, laying a solid foundation for the realization of tea picking robots. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue AI, Sensors and Robotics for Smart Agriculture)

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16 pages, 9094 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Biofertilizers Improve the Leaf Quality of Hydroponically Grown Baby Spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.)

by Hayriye Yildiz Dasgan, Sevda Kacmaz, Bekir Bülent Arpaci, Boran İkiz and Nazim S. Gruda

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 575; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020575 - 17 Feb 2023

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3758

Abstract

Plant nutrition through mineral fertilizers is commonly used in soilless culture systems. Our study aims to replace intensive mineral fertilizers with bio-fertilizers, at least partially. We supplemented 50% of the mineral fertilizers with Chlorella vulgaris microalgae, a mix of beneficial bacteria and mycorrhiza. [...] Read more.

Plant nutrition through mineral fertilizers is commonly used in soilless culture systems. Our study aims to replace intensive mineral fertilizers with bio-fertilizers, at least partially. We supplemented 50% of the mineral fertilizers with Chlorella vulgaris microalgae, a mix of beneficial bacteria and mycorrhiza. In addition, we investigated how to enhance spinach quality by implementing a sustainable and eco-friendly production method. Our research focused on analyzing the parameters of leaf quality and nitrate accumulation of baby spinach grown in a floating culture system utilizing biofertilizers. When mycorrhiza, algae, and bacteria supplemented 50% of mineral fertilizers, 17.5%, 20%, and 21.9% fewer leaf yields than 100% mineral fertilizers (5270 g m⁻²) were achieved. However, biofertilizers improved the internal leaves’ quality of hydroponically grown baby spinach. The highest amount of total phenolic (356.88 mg gallic acid 100g⁻¹), vitamin C (73.83 mg 100 g⁻¹), total soluble solids (9.4%), phosphorus (0.68%), and iron (120.07 ppm) content were obtained by using mycorrhiza. Bacteria induced the lowest nitrate content (206 mg kg⁻¹) in spinach leaves, while 100% mineral fertilizers showed the highest nitrate (623 mg kg⁻¹) concentration. Moreover, bacteria provided the highest SPAD-chlorophyll (73.72) and titrable acidity (0.31%). The use of microalgae, Chlorella vulgaris, induced the highest amount of potassium (9.62%), calcium (1.64%), magnesium (0.58%), zinc (75.21 ppm), and manganese (64.33 mg kg⁻¹). In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that the utilization of biofertilizers has the potential to significantly reduce the reliance on mineral fertilizers by up to 50%. Furthermore, an improvement in the quality of baby spinach, as evidenced by an increase in health-beneficial compounds, is possible. Thus, implementing biofertilizers in the cultivation of soilless baby spinach presents a promising approach to achieving both environmental sustainability and improved crop quality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Horticultural and Floricultural Crops)

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18 pages, 4368 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Genetic and Morphological Variation of Belgian Cyperus esculentus L. Clonal Populations and Their Significance for Integrated Management

by Sander De Ryck, Dirk Reheul, Jan De Riek, Ellen De Keyser and Benny De Cauwer

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 572; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020572 - 16 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1149

Abstract

Cyperus esculentus is an invasive troublesome neophyte in many arable crops across the globe. Analysis of the genetic and morphological profile of local C. esculentus clonal populations may be useful in explaining differential herbicide sensitivity found among distinct clonal populations and spatial distribution [...] Read more.

Cyperus esculentus is an invasive troublesome neophyte in many arable crops across the globe. Analysis of the genetic and morphological profile of local C. esculentus clonal populations may be useful in explaining differential herbicide sensitivity found among distinct clonal populations and spatial distribution patterns. In this study, 35 Belgian C. esculentus clonal populations, evenly spread across the entire infestation area (30,689 km²) and covering a great diversity of farm and soil types, and hydrological and environmental conditions, were genetically characterized using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) profiling. These clonal populations were also grouped into different morphological clusters using data from shoot, tuber, and inflorescence number, fresh tuber biomass, individual fresh tuber weight, and number of germinable seeds collected in three consecutive years. Of the 271 AFLP markers, 207 were polymorphic. The gene diversity among clonal populations was 0.331 and three genetically distinct clusters were identified. Depending on observation year, clonal populations were grouped in four to five morphologically distinct clusters that closely aligned with the genetic clusters. The genetically distinct clusters differed in their geographical distribution pattern and range as well as in their morphological characteristics. Clonal populations belonging to clusters with broad distribution ranges produced numerous viable seeds. Clusters with clonal populations that produced large tubers were less widespread than the cluster with clonal populations producing many small tubers. The results suggest that tuber size, tuber number, and fecundity may all play an important role in the spread of C. esculentus. Morphotyping may be very useful in designing effective preventive and curative C. esculentus management strategies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Weed Science and Weed Management)

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13 pages, 1383 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Synthesis of Aminophenoxazinones and Evaluation of Their Phytotoxicity in the Search for New Natural Herbicides

by Cristina Díaz-Franco, Carlos Rial, José M. G. Molinillo, Rosa M. Varela and Francisco A. Macías

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 568; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020568 - 16 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3379

Abstract

Natural products have been postulated as an alternative to the use of synthetic herbicides in pest control. The latter compounds have caused numerous problems and these include the appearance of resistance to such herbicides. Aminophenoxazinones are natural products that have shown multiple biological [...] Read more.

Natural products have been postulated as an alternative to the use of synthetic herbicides in pest control. The latter compounds have caused numerous problems and these include the appearance of resistance to such herbicides. Aminophenoxazinones are natural products that have shown multiple biological activities, such as pharmacological or phytotoxic effects. In the case of phytotoxicity, the mode of action of aminophenoxazinones has not been widely exploited in agriculture and resistant weeds have not been reported to date. This fact makes aminophenoxazinones promising candidates in the development of herbicides. In the study reported here, seven aminophenoxazinone derivatives have been synthesized and their phytotoxicity has been evaluated on wheat coleoptiles and two important agricultural weeds (Lolium rigidum and Portulaca oleracea). Several derivatives have shown phytotoxic activity, which is similar to the positive control pendimethalin, and even higher in some cases at the highest concentrations tested. The most affected parameter in weeds was root length and the most susceptible weed was P. oleracea. Compound 2, in which nitrogen atoms are present in the heterocycles, was the most active and this was followed by compound 1. Modifications at C-8 led to a reduced activity, with the exception of the nitro compound on the root length of P. oleracea. However, the phytotoxicity also increased on introducing an iodo-substituent at C-4. The results highlight aminophenoxazinones as promising candidates in the development of natural herbicides. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Allelopathy in Sustainable Agriculture)

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31 pages, 4645 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Sustainable Phosphorus Fertilizer Supply Chain Management to Improve Crop Yield and P Use Efficiency Using an Ensemble Heuristic–Metaheuristic Optimization Algorithm

by Mohammad Shokouhifar, Mahnaz Sohrabi, Motahareh Rabbani, Seyyed Mohammad Hadji Molana and Frank Werner

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 565; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020565 - 16 Feb 2023

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2191

Abstract

Phosphorus (P) is the most important substance in inorganic fertilizers used in the agriculture industry. In this study, a multi-product and multi-objective model is presented considering economic and environmental concerns to design a renewable and sustainable P-fertilizer supply chain management (PFSCM) strategy. To [...] Read more.

Phosphorus (P) is the most important substance in inorganic fertilizers used in the agriculture industry. In this study, a multi-product and multi-objective model is presented considering economic and environmental concerns to design a renewable and sustainable P-fertilizer supply chain management (PFSCM) strategy. To handle the complexities of the model, an ensemble heuristic–metaheuristic algorithm utilizing the heuristic information available in the model, the whale optimization algorithm, and a variable neighborhood search (named H-WOA-VNS) is proposed. First, a problem-dependent heuristic is designed to generate a set of near-optimal feasible solutions. These solutions are fed into a population-based whale optimization algorithm which benefits from exploration and exploitation strategies. Finally, the single-solution variable neighborhood search is applied to further improve the quality of the solution using local search operators. The objective function of the algorithm is formulated as a weighted average function to minimize total economic cost while increasing crop yield and P use efficiency. The experimental results for a real case study of the P-fertilizer supply chain confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method in improving the crop yield and P use efficiency by 33% and 27.8%, respectively. The results demonstrate that the proposed H-WOA-VNS algorithm outperforms the Heuristic, WOA, and VNS models in reducing the total objective function value of the PFSCM model by 9.8%, 2.9%, and 4%, respectively. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intelligent Monitoring, Modeling, Optimization and Control in Smart Agriculture)

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12 pages, 2091 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Evaluation of the Effect of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter Solanacearum’ Haplotypes in Tobacco Infection

by Julien G. Levy, Azucena Mendoza-Herrera, Naveed Merchant, Katherine M. Berg-Falloure, Michael V. Kolomiets and Cecilia Tamborindeguy

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 569; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020569 - 16 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1331

Abstract

‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ (Lso) is a phloem-limited bacterial plant pathogen infecting solanaceous plants in the Americas and New Zealand and is associated with diseases of apiaceous crops in Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East. This pathogen is also related to other [...] Read more.

‘Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum’ (Lso) is a phloem-limited bacterial plant pathogen infecting solanaceous plants in the Americas and New Zealand and is associated with diseases of apiaceous crops in Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East. This pathogen is also related to other Liberibacter species that infect other crops. In the USA, two haplotypes of Lso, LsoA and LsoB, are predominant and responsible for diseases in potato and tomato. Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum, a model species to study plant defenses, is a host for Lso; therefore, the interaction between Lso and this host plant could be used to study Liberibacter−plant interactions. In this study, we characterized the infection associated with LsoA and LsoB in tobacco. Under laboratory conditions, LsoB caused more severe symptoms than LsoA, and LsoA and LsoB titers were dynamic during the 7 weeks of the experiment. We also measured SA and other metabolites, including oxylipins, at an early point of infection and found that SA was accumulated in plants infected with LsoB but not with LsoA; whereas ABA levels were reduced in LsoA- but not in LsoB-infected plants. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signaling and Responses to Stress Combinations in Plants)

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36 pages, 4348 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Biogeneration of Valuable Nanomaterials from Agro-Wastes: A Comprehensive Review

by Pinku Chandra Nath, Amiya Ojha, Shubhankar Debnath, Minaxi Sharma, Kandi Sridhar, Prakash Kumar Nayak and Baskaran Stephen Inbaraj

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 561; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020561 - 15 Feb 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4587

Abstract

The exponential growth of agricultural output is a result of the increasing world population. Agro-wastes are now acknowledged as an alternative material for the manufacture of renewable, inexpensive, and sustainable bio-composite-based products. Huge amounts of agricultural produce are often lost owing to a [...] Read more.

The exponential growth of agricultural output is a result of the increasing world population. Agro-wastes are now acknowledged as an alternative material for the manufacture of renewable, inexpensive, and sustainable bio-composite-based products. Huge amounts of agricultural produce are often lost owing to a lack of processing facilities or storage space. Agriculture wastes contain a significant concentration of carbohydrates as well as various multifunctional groups and organic substances, such as polymeric proteins. Interestingly, nanotechnology provides better potential to transform agricultural wastes easily into valuable and cost-effective products, removing the need to utilize noxious chemicals, which can create a variety of health and environmental difficulties. Recently, there has been an increase in interest in eco-friendly nanomaterial (NM) production techniques that utilize extracts generated from agricultural waste. Such nanoparticles (NPs) have been extensively studied for numerous uses, including antibacterial agents, water purification, the breakdown of industrial colours, and many others. Consequently, the purpose of this review is to investigate the different sources, characteristics, and nano-management of agro-waste; valuable NMs derived from agro-waste; and their possible applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agricultural Waste Derived Nanomaterials: Synthesis, Characterization and Applications)

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23 pages, 1138 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Effect of L-Tryptophan and L-Glutamic Acid on Carrot Yield and Its Quality

by Robert Rosa, Larysa Hajko, Jolanta Franczuk, Anna Zaniewicz-Bajkowska, Alena Andrejiová and Ivana Mezeyová

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 562; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020562 - 15 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2730

Abstract

Positively affecting crop quality and yields, amino acids used as plant stimulants play a special role in ensuring global food security. L-tryptophan (L-Try) and L-glutamic acid (L-Glu) are important biostimulants that increase the yield of field crops and vegetables. Carrot is one of [...] Read more.

Positively affecting crop quality and yields, amino acids used as plant stimulants play a special role in ensuring global food security. L-tryptophan (L-Try) and L-glutamic acid (L-Glu) are important biostimulants that increase the yield of field crops and vegetables. Carrot is one of the most important vegetables due to its production volume in the world (sixth most consumed vegetable) and its nutritional value. The response of different plant species to amino acid application varies. The literature mainly deals with the effects of ready-made products containing a mixture of several amino acids, with no exhaustive studies on the effects of individual amino acids on carrot quality and yield. This paper is based on a two-year field experiment (2019–2020), in which the effect of two amino acids, L-Trp (7.5 g·ha⁻¹) and L-Glu (60.0 g·ha⁻¹), on carrot (Daucus carota L.) was investigated. They were applied to the leaves (FA) or both to the soil and to the leaves (S + FA), separately, (L-Trp or L-Glu) or as a mixture (L-Trp + L-Glu). The control plot was treated with mineral fertilizers only. The research was conducted as a field experiment in a split-block design. The yield of carrot storage roots and their content of dry matter, protein, sugars, total soluble solids (TSS), and ascorbic acid were determined. The amino acids positively affected the yield of carrots compared to the control, but only the synergistic action of L-tryptophan and L-glutamic acid increased it significantly. On average, for both amino acids the S + FA application increased the protein content and the marketable yield of storage roots significantly more than in response to FA treatment. A significant increase in marketable yield compared to the control was found after the combined soil and foliar application (S + FA) of all amino acid combinations, but the L-Trp + L-Glu mixture worked best. The storage roots of carrots grown on the plot with L-Trp + L-Glu contained significantly more protein and TSS than those on the control plot. The content of TSS was also positively affected by L-Trp used on its own, while L-Glu increased the content of ascorbic acid. Amino acids applied to the leaves (FA) increased the content of total sugars in the carrot roots more than when applied both to the soil and to the leaves (S + FA). Of all treatment combinations, the synergistic action of L-Trp and L-Glu made it possible to obtain the highest yields of carrot storage roots, containing the most protein and total soluble solids. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Soil Fertility and Plant Growth Promoters on Horticultural Crops)

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13 pages, 2660 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Optimization of a Microwave-Assisted Extraction Method for the Recovery of the Anthocyanins from Jabuticaba By-Products

by Tiago L. C. T. Barroso, Luiz E. N. Castro, Gerardo F. Barbero, Miguel Palma, Ceferino Carrera, Mauricio A. Rostagno and Tânia Forster-Carneiro

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020556 - 15 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1367

Abstract

In this study, a Box-Behnken Design (BBD) has been used to optimize the recovery of bioactive compounds from jabuticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora) by-products through microwave-assisted extraction (MAE). Thus, the Box-Behnken (BBD) experimental design was followed by a response surface methodology (RSM) that [...] Read more.

In this study, a Box-Behnken Design (BBD) has been used to optimize the recovery of bioactive compounds from jabuticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora) by-products through microwave-assisted extraction (MAE). Thus, the Box-Behnken (BBD) experimental design was followed by a response surface methodology (RSM) that would allow investigating the influence of the four independent variables (temperature, solvent composition, pH, and sample-solvent ratio) that have been considered. The results revealed that temperature and solvent composition (%MeOH) were the most significant factors regarding the yields of anthocyanins obtained from the studied plant matrix. The established optimized conditions and 10-min-extraction time resulted in yields of 9.70 ± 0.28 mg g⁻¹ of total anthocyanins. The method exhibited good repeatability and intermediate precision, with RSD variations lower than 5% for both parameters. The developed process was also able to extract and identify anthocyanins in commercial samples (jabuticaba pulp and jam). The results obtained from the optimized MAE method suggest that this technique is not only efficient for the recovery of anthocyanins from jabuticaba by-products, but it is also beneficial for a circular economy approach. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extraction and Analysis of Bioactive Compounds in Crops)

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24 pages, 1621 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Microbial Community in the Composting Process and Its Positive Impact on the Soil Biota in Sustainable Agriculture

by Ana Aguilar-Paredes, Gabriela Valdés, Nicole Araneda, Emky Valdebenito, Felipe Hansen and Marco Nuti

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 542; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020542 - 14 Feb 2023

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 7759

Abstract

Conventional agriculture has important challenges to guarantee soil fertility and sustainable food production. Many agricultural soils in the world are degraded and multiple strategies are currently being developed to restore them. The study of beneficial soil microorganisms has attracted increasing interest due to [...] Read more.

Conventional agriculture has important challenges to guarantee soil fertility and sustainable food production. Many agricultural soils in the world are degraded and multiple strategies are currently being developed to restore them. The study of beneficial soil microorganisms has attracted increasing interest due to their relevant role in sustainable agricultural development. The balance and maintenance of ecosystem services, such as biomass transformation, nutrient cycling, plant growth, and health, are directly dependent on soil microbial activity. Therefore, it is important to promote its establishment and propagation. An ancient technique that favors soil biodiversity is the production and application of compost. While numerous studies have focused on the benefits of plant cultivation, fewer studies have focused on the benefits for soil microbiota. The objective of this review was to elucidate the role of the microbiota in the composting process and its impact on soil microorganisms in agriculture. The review presents the advances in the knowledge and importance of microorganisms involved in the composting process and how compost promotes the maintenance and multiplication of beneficial microbial consortia and their ecosystem functions in agricultural soils, shifting towards a more sustainable and resilient agriculture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biotechnology of Microorganisms in the Agriculture Environment)

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22 pages, 5888 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Summer Maize Growth Estimation Based on Near-Surface Multi-Source Data

by Jing Zhao, Fangjiang Pan, Xiao Xiao, Lianbin Hu, Xiaoli Wang, Yu Yan, Shuailing Zhang, Bingquan Tian, Hailin Yu and Yubin Lan

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 532; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020532 - 12 Feb 2023

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2050

Abstract

Rapid and accurate crop chlorophyll content estimation and the leaf area index (LAI) are both crucial for guiding field management and improving crop yields. This paper proposes an accurate monitoring method for LAI and soil plant analytical development (SPAD) values (which are closely [...] Read more.

Rapid and accurate crop chlorophyll content estimation and the leaf area index (LAI) are both crucial for guiding field management and improving crop yields. This paper proposes an accurate monitoring method for LAI and soil plant analytical development (SPAD) values (which are closely related to leaf chlorophyll content; we use the SPAD instead of chlorophyll relative content) based on the fusion of ground–air multi-source data. Firstly, in 2020 and 2021, we collected unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) multispectral data, ground hyperspectral data, UAV visible-light data, and environmental cumulative temperature data for multiple growth stages of summer maize, respectively. Secondly, the effective plant height (canopy height model (CHM)), effective accumulation temperature (growing degree days (GDD)), canopy vegetation index (mainly spectral vegetation index) and canopy hyperspectral features of maize were extracted, and sensitive features were screened by correlation analysis. Then, based on single-source and multi-source data, multiple linear regression (MLR), partial least-squares regression (PLSR) and random forest (RF) regression were used to construct LAI and SPAD inversion models. Finally, the distribution of LAI and SPAD prescription plots was generated and the trend for the two was analyzed. The results were as follows: (1) The correlations between the position of the hyperspectral red edge and the first-order differential value in the red edge with LAI and SPAD were all greater than 0.5. The correlation between the vegetation index, including a red and near-infrared band, with LAI and SPAD was above 0.75. The correlation between crop height and effective accumulated temperature with LAI and SPAD was above 0.7. (2) The inversion models based on multi-source data were more effective than the models made with single-source data. The RF model with multi-source data fusion achieved the highest accuracy of all models. In the testing set, the LAI and SPAD models’ R² was 0.9315 and 0.7767; the RMSE was 0.4895 and 2.8387. (3) The absolute error between the extraction result of each model prescription map and the measured value was small. The error between the predicted value and the measured value of the LAI prescription map generated by the RF model was less than 0.4895. The difference between the predicted value and the measured value of the SPAD prescription map was less than 2.8387. The LAI and SPAD of summer maize first increased and then decreased with the advancement of the growth period, which was in line with the actual growth conditions. The research results indicate that the proposed method could effectively monitor maize growth parameters and provide a scientific basis for summer maize field management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue AI, Sensors and Robotics for Smart Agriculture)

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19 pages, 2916 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Early-Season Mapping of Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense), Common Cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium) and Velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti) in Corn Fields Using Airborne Hyperspectral Imagery

by María Pilar Martín, Bernarda Ponce, Pilar Echavarría, José Dorado and Cesar Fernández-Quintanilla

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 528; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020528 - 11 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1601

Abstract

Accurate information on the spatial distribution of weeds is the key to effective site-specific weed management and the efficient and sustainable use of weed control measures. This work focuses on the early detection of johnsongrass, common cocklebur and velvetleaf present in a corn [...] Read more.

Accurate information on the spatial distribution of weeds is the key to effective site-specific weed management and the efficient and sustainable use of weed control measures. This work focuses on the early detection of johnsongrass, common cocklebur and velvetleaf present in a corn field using high resolution airborne hyperspectral imagery acquired when corn plants were in a four to six leaf growth stage. Following the appropriate radiometric and geometric corrections, two supervised classification techniques, such as spectral angle mapper (SAM) and spectral mixture analysis (SMA) were applied. Two different procedures were compared for endmember selections: field spectral measurements and automatic methods to identify pure pixels in the image. Maps for both, overall weeds and for each of the three weed species, were obtained with the different classification methods and endmember sources. The best results were achieved by defining the endmembers through spectral information collected with a field spectroradiometer. Overall accuracies ranged between 60% and 80% using SAM for maps that do not differentiate the weed species while it decreased to 52% when the three weed species were individually classified. In this case, the SMA classification technique clearly improved the SAM results. The proposed methodology shows it to be a promising prospect to be applicable to low cost images acquired by the new generation of hyperspectral sensors onboard unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Field Spectroscopy in Agriculture)

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17 pages, 3493 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Maize Leaf Disease Identification Based on YOLOv5n Algorithm Incorporating Attention Mechanism

by Li Ma, Qiwen Yu, Helong Yu and Jian Zhang

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 521; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020521 - 11 Feb 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1776

Abstract

Maize diseases are reported to occur often, and are complicated and difficult to control, which seriously affects the yield and quality of maize. This paper proposes an improved YOLOv5n model incorporating a CA (Coordinate Attention) mechanism and STR (Swin Transformer) detection head, CTR_YOLOv5n, [...] Read more.

Maize diseases are reported to occur often, and are complicated and difficult to control, which seriously affects the yield and quality of maize. This paper proposes an improved YOLOv5n model incorporating a CA (Coordinate Attention) mechanism and STR (Swin Transformer) detection head, CTR_YOLOv5n, to identify common maize leaf spot, gray spot, and rust diseases in mobile applications. Based on the lightweight model YOLOv5n, the accuracy of the model is improved by adding a CA attention module, and the global information acquisition capability is enhanced by using TR2 as the detection head. The average recognition accuracy of the algorithm model can reach 95.2%, which is 2.8 percent higher than the original model, and the memory size is reduced to 5.1MB compared to 92.9MB of YOLOv5l, which is 94.5% smaller and meets the requirement of being light weight. Compared with SE, CBAM, and ECA, which are the mainstream attention mechanisms, the recognition effect we used is better and the accuracy is higher, achieving fast and accurate recognition of maize leaf diseases with fewer computational resources, providing new ideas and methods for real-time recognition of maize and other crop spots in mobile applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue “Smart Agriculture” Information Technology and Agriculture Cross-Discipline Research and Development)

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14 pages, 503 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Winter Oilseed Rape: Agronomic Management in Different Tillage Systems and Seed Quality

by Mateusz Sokólski, Dariusz Załuski, Artur Szatkowski and Krzysztof Józef Jankowski

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 524; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020524 - 11 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1297

Abstract

A three-year study was conducted to analyze agronomic management in the production of winter oilseed rape (WOSR) under different tillage systems. A field experiment was conducted at the University’s Agricultural Experiment Station in Bałcyny (north-eastern Poland), in three growing seasons (2016/2017, 2017/2018, and [...] Read more.

A three-year study was conducted to analyze agronomic management in the production of winter oilseed rape (WOSR) under different tillage systems. A field experiment was conducted at the University’s Agricultural Experiment Station in Bałcyny (north-eastern Poland), in three growing seasons (2016/2017, 2017/2018, and 2018/2019). The experiment had a 3^5–2 resolution III fractional factorial design with five fixed factors that were tested at three levels of intensity. The experimental factors were: A—tillage: (A0) strip-till, (A1) low-till, (A2) conventional tillage; B—weed control: (B0) pre-emergent, (B1) foliar, (B2) sequential; C—growth regulation: (C0) none, (C1) in fall, (C2)—in fall and spring; D—rate of nitrogen (N) fertilizer applied in spring: (D0) 160, (D1) 200, (D2) 240 kg ha⁻¹; and E—rate of sulfur (S) fertilizer applied in spring: (E0) 0, (E1) 40, (E2) 80 kg ha⁻¹. The crude fat (CF) content of WOSR seeds was highest in the strip-till system (498 g kg⁻¹ dry matter, DM), and the total protein (TP) content of seeds was highest (196 g kg⁻¹ DM) in low-till and conventional tillage systems. The content of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) was higher in seeds harvested from strip-till and low-till systems than from the conventional tillage system. The seeds of WOSR plants grown in the conventional tillage system accumulated more (by 0.4%) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and less (by 0.5–0.6%) monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs). An increase in the N rate from 160–200 to 240 kg ha⁻¹ decreased the CF content (495 vs. 484 g kg⁻¹ DM) and increased the TP content of seeds (191 vs. 199 g kg⁻¹ DM). Sulfur fertilization induced a 34% increase in glucosinolate (GLS) concentrations in WOSR seeds, mainly by enhancing the biosynthesis of alkenyl GLS (by 39%). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cropping Systems and Agronomic Management Practices of Field Crops)

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20 pages, 5141 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Integrating Agrivoltaic Systems into Local Industries: A Case Study and Economic Analysis of Rural Japan

by Hideki Nakata and Seiichi Ogata

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 513; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020513 - 10 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2260

Abstract

The growing number of photovoltaic installations has created competition in land use between the need for electricity and food. Agrivoltaic systems (AVSs) can help solve this problem by increasing land use efficiency through the co-production of electricity and food. However, in Japan, where [...] Read more.

The growing number of photovoltaic installations has created competition in land use between the need for electricity and food. Agrivoltaic systems (AVSs) can help solve this problem by increasing land use efficiency through the co-production of electricity and food. However, in Japan, where more than 2000 AVSs have been installed, some undesirable AVS cases have led to new problems. In this study, we developed an AVS installation model that is compatible with a regional society and limits the scale of AVS installation to a low-risk level. AVS projects have also entered local industrial clusters and stimulated the local economy. In this study, we used public information and geographic information systems to ensure quantifiability and applicability. The results revealed that the rural area targeted in this study had an AVS generation potential of 215% (equal to 17.8 GWh) of the region’s annual electricity consumption and an economic ripple effect of 108.9% (EUR 47.8 million) of the region’s gross regional product. Furthermore, the levelized cost of electricity was estimated to be 14.94–25.54 Euro cents/kWh under secure settings. This study provides solutions to food, economic, and energy problems in rural areas by promoting the installation of AVSs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agrivoltaic: Challenge and Progress)

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13 pages, 1712 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Agroclimatic Requirements of Traditional European Pear (Pyrus communis L.) Cultivars from Australia, Europe, and North America

by Erica Fadón, María Teresa Espiau, Pilar Errea, José Manuel Alonso Segura and Javier Rodrigo

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 518; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020518 - 10 Feb 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1478

Abstract

Flowering in temperate fruit trees depends on the temperatures during the previous months; chill is required to overcome endodormancy, and then heat exposure is needed. These agroclimatic requirements are cultivar-specific and determine their adaptability to the growing area and their response to climate [...] Read more.

Flowering in temperate fruit trees depends on the temperatures during the previous months; chill is required to overcome endodormancy, and then heat exposure is needed. These agroclimatic requirements are cultivar-specific and determine their adaptability to the growing area and their response to climate change. We aim to estimate the agroclimatic requirements of 16 traditional cultivars of European pears grown in Zaragoza (Spain). We used Partial Least Squares regression analysis to relate 20-year records of flowering dates to the temperatures of the 8 previous months. This approach allowed us to establish the chilling and forcing periods, through which we quantified temperatures with three models for chill accumulation (Chilling Hours, Utah model, and Dynamic model) and one model for heat accumulation (Growing Degree Hours). The results indicated very little difference in the chilling and forcing periods. Chill requirements ranged from 43.9 to 49.2 Chill Portions; from 1027 to 1163 Chilling Units; and from 719 to 774 Chilling Hours. Heat requirements ranged from 6514 to 7509 Growing Degree Hours. Flowering dates were mainly determined by the temperatures during the chilling period. This means that reductions in winter chill caused by global warming in many regions could cause flowering delays or even failures in the fulfillment of chill requirements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Temperature Stress and Responses in Plants)

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17 pages, 1033 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Effect of Water Regime, Nitrogen Level, and Biostimulant Application on the Water and Nitrogen Use Efficiency of Wild Rocket [Diplotaxis tenuifolia (L.) DC]

by Vincenzo Candido, Vito Cantore, Donato Castronuovo, Michele Denora, Maria Immacolata Schiattone, Lucrezia Sergio, Mladen Todorovic and Francesca Boari

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 507; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020507 - 09 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1252

Abstract

The use of biostimulants in agriculture is an emerging technique that can contribute to improved production and resource use efficiency. This research was carried out in southern Italy to evaluate the biostimulating effects of seaweed extract (SW) and azoxystrobin (AZ) on wild rocket [...] Read more.

The use of biostimulants in agriculture is an emerging technique that can contribute to improved production and resource use efficiency. This research was carried out in southern Italy to evaluate the biostimulating effects of seaweed extract (SW) and azoxystrobin (AZ) on wild rocket subjected to two water regimes (WRs) and three nitrogen levels (NLs), and grown in pots under unheated greenhouse conditions. The following treatments were compared: (i) two WRs: restoration of 100% (WR₁₀₀) and 50% (WR₅₀) of crop evapotranspiration; (ii) three NLs: 0 (N₀), 75 (N₇₅), or 150 (N₁₅₀) kg ha⁻¹ of N; and (iii) three biostimulants (BSs): an untreated control (C), and the application of AZ or SW. This paper reports the effects on N uptake (N_up), N use efficiency (NUE), and water use efficiency (WUE). The following indicators of NUE were assessed: apparent recovery efficiency (RE), internal utilization efficiency (IE), partial productivity factor (PFPn) of N supplied, agronomic efficiency (AE), and physiological efficiency (PE). The following indicators of WUE were assessed: photosynthetic WUE (p_WUE), yield WUE (Y_WUE), biomass WUE (B_WUE), and irrigation yield WUE (IY_WUE). The indicators of NUE were affected differently by treatments. RE was 20% higher with SW. IE was higher with AZ. PFPn increased by 10.4 and 8.1% with AZ and SW, respectively. AE increased by 10.9 and 19.9% after applying AZ and SW, respectively. PE rose by 6.7 and 9.3% after applying AZ and SW. AZ and SW improved p_WUE, mainly under water deficit (interaction of WR × BS). With AZ application, Y_WUE, B_WUE, and IY_WUE were higher by 17.8, 13.8, and 19.3%, respectively, while the application of SW resulted in a smaller increase (9.5–7.7 and 9.9%). SW and AZ were shown to be effective through the moderate improvement of wild rocket’s nitrogen and water use efficiency. The two biostimulants were more effective at improving p_WUE in water deficit conditions, proving to be particularly useful for farmers operating with water scarcity. Therefore, they can provide valuable support to farmers by improving the sustainability of resource use. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Horticultural and Floricultural Crops)

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17 pages, 2887 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Phytochemical Profile and Activity against Fusarium Species of Tamarix gallica Bark Aqueous Ammonia Extract

by Eva Sánchez-Hernández, Vicente González-García, Adriana Correa-Guimarães, José Casanova-Gascón, Jesús Martín-Gil and Pablo Martín-Ramos

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 496; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020496 - 09 Feb 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 1927

Abstract

French tamarisk, Tamarix gallica L. (family Tamaricaceae) is a deciduous tree that, like other halophytes, grows in a wide variety of saline habitats thanks to its powerful phenolics-based antioxidant system. Given that antioxidant properties are usually linked to the presence of compounds [...] Read more.

French tamarisk, Tamarix gallica L. (family Tamaricaceae) is a deciduous tree that, like other halophytes, grows in a wide variety of saline habitats thanks to its powerful phenolics-based antioxidant system. Given that antioxidant properties are usually linked to the presence of compounds with antifungal properties, in the work presented herein the antimicrobial activity of T. gallica bark extract was investigated against four phytopathogenic species of genus Fusarium. According to the results of gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy, the phytochemical profile of the aqueous ammonia extract included 1-(2,4,6-trihydroxyphenyl)-2-pentanone; 3,5-dimethoxy-4-hydroxycinnam aldehyde; trans-squalene; 4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy-benzaldehyde; dihydro-3-methylene-2,5-furandione; 1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-ethanone; and 4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxy-benzoic acid as main constituents. Concerning in vitro antifungal activity, EC₉₀ effective concentrations in the 335–928 μg·mL⁻¹ range were obtained against F. acuminatum, F. culmorum, F. equiseti, and F. graminearum, remarkably lower than those of two conventional fungicides (viz. mancozeb and fosetyl-Al). The antifungal activity of the extract was tested further in wheat and maize grain protection bioassays, confirming that the treatment effectively controlled F. graminearum at a concentration of 375 µg·mL⁻¹. Given this promising activity, T. gallica bark extracts may be susceptible to valorization as a natural and sustainable biorational for Fusarium spp. control. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Treatment and Management of Fusarium Disease in Wheat)

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16 pages, 6667 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Branch Interference Sensing and Handling by Tactile Enabled Robotic Apple Harvesting

by Hongyu Zhou, Hanwen Kang, Xing Wang, Wesley Au, Michael Yu Wang and Chao Chen

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 503; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020503 - 09 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2027

Abstract

In the dynamic and unstructured environment where horticultural crops grow, obstacles and interference frequently occur but are rarely addressed, which poses significant challenges for robotic harvesting. This work proposed a tactile-enabled robotic grasping method that combines deep learning, tactile sensing, and soft robots. [...] Read more.

In the dynamic and unstructured environment where horticultural crops grow, obstacles and interference frequently occur but are rarely addressed, which poses significant challenges for robotic harvesting. This work proposed a tactile-enabled robotic grasping method that combines deep learning, tactile sensing, and soft robots. By integrating fin-ray fingers with embedded tactile sensing arrays and customized perception algorithms, the robot gains the ability to sense and handle branch interference during the harvesting process and thus reduce potential mechanical fruit damage. Through experimental validations, an overall 83.3–87.0% grasping status detection success rate, and a promising interference handling method have been demonstrated. The proposed grasping method can also be extended to broader robotic grasping applications wherever undesirable foreign object intrusion needs to be addressed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue AI, Sensors and Robotics for Smart Agriculture)

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11 pages, 309 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

The Effect of Babassu Industry By-Products as an Alternative Feed for Dairy Cows

by Anderson Zanine, Cledson De Sá, Daniele Ferreira, Henrique Parente, Michelle Parente, Edson Mauro Santos, Rosane Rodrigues, Francisco Naysson Santos, Anny Graycy Lima, Ivo Alexandre Cunha, Francisca Claudia de Sousa, Renata Costa, Danillo Pereira, Paloma Gabriela Gomes and João Ricardo Dórea

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 491; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020491 - 08 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1318

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the fermentative characteristics, chemical composition, and in vitro digestibility of a total mixed ration silage containing two babassu by-products, starchy flour and babassu cake. The treatments were distributed in a completely randomised design containing four [...] Read more.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the fermentative characteristics, chemical composition, and in vitro digestibility of a total mixed ration silage containing two babassu by-products, starchy flour and babassu cake. The treatments were distributed in a completely randomised design containing four treatments and five replications. The treatments consisted of corn silage, corn silage based on the standard corn and soybean diet, corn silage with babassu flour, and corn silage with babassu cake. No significant difference was observed in the pH values (p = 0.256) for the studied silages. Higher values for dry matter recovery were observed for the silages of the total diets. The corn silage presented lower lactic acid production (55.15 g/kg DM) and acetic acid (11.54 g/kg DM) in relation to the total ration silages. The inclusion of babassu by-products increased the dry matter (p < 0.001), crude protein (p < 0.001), and total digestible nutrient content (p < 0.001) in the total ration silages. Silage in the form of the total ration containing regional babassu by-products improved the fermentative profile of the silages and the nutritional value of the diets, endowing them with potential for use as a feed alternative for dairy cattle. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agricultural Valorization of Agro-Industrial By-Products: From Waste to Value)

19 pages, 1479 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Elevated Temperature Affects Avena sterilis ssp. ludoviciana Reproductive Biology

by Mohammad Ali, Alwyn Williams, Michael Widderick and Steve Adkins

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 474; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020474 - 06 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1278

Abstract

The weed Avena sterilis ssp. ludoviciana has a high economic impact in the winter cereal crop production systems of Australia’s northern grains region (NGR). In the NGR, the frequency of high-temperature periods at the end of winter is increasing. This shift in climate [...] Read more.

The weed Avena sterilis ssp. ludoviciana has a high economic impact in the winter cereal crop production systems of Australia’s northern grains region (NGR). In the NGR, the frequency of high-temperature periods at the end of winter is increasing. This shift in climate may modify this weed’s maturity time and reproductive biology, and thereby impact on crop production. This study examined the reproductive biology of four A. ludoviciana biotypes in relation to elevated temperature when applied at different times during their seed development. Plants of all four A. ludoviciana biotypes were grown in an ambient temperature glasshouse (23/14 °C day/night). At panicle initiation, a portion of the plants were transferred to an elevated temperature glasshouse (29/23 °C day/night) and remained there until maturity. This process of plant movement was repeated on three further occasions with separate batches of plants, each 10 days apart. The remaining plants were kept under ambient conditions for their whole lifespan. Plants exposed to elevated temperature from panicle initiation to maturity, matured 18 days earlier than plants kept under ambient conditions, had 30% fewer filled seeds, 37% lower seed mass, and 40% less seed dormancy. Depending on the time and duration of plants exposed to elevated temperature, predicted seed longevity was ranged from 1 to 4 years in the soil seedbank. All reproductive traits were less affected when plants were exposed to elevated temperature at a later stage of development. If the frequency of high-temperature periods continues to increase, then it may lead to the development of less dormant populations of this weed that would be ready to germinate and re-infest the next winter crops under no-tillage conservation agriculture (that does not bury seeds deep in the soil profile). However, the seasonal climatic variability of the NGR in addition to the weed’s natural genetic variability may contribute to a seedbank of both dormant and less dormant seeds—making this species an even more difficult-to-control weed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Weed Population Dynamics)

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16 pages, 18115 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Detection of Soybean Insect Pest and a Forecasting Platform Using Deep Learning with Unmanned Ground Vehicles

by Yu-Hyeon Park, Sung Hoon Choi, Yeon-Ju Kwon, Soon-Wook Kwon, Yang Jae Kang and Tae-Hwan Jun

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 477; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020477 - 06 Feb 2023

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2616

Abstract

Soybeans (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), a popular food resource worldwide, have various uses throughout the industry, from everyday foods and health functional foods to cosmetics. Soybeans are vulnerable to pests such as stink bugs, beetles, mites, and moths, which reduce yields. Riptortus [...] Read more.

Soybeans (Glycine max (L.) Merr.), a popular food resource worldwide, have various uses throughout the industry, from everyday foods and health functional foods to cosmetics. Soybeans are vulnerable to pests such as stink bugs, beetles, mites, and moths, which reduce yields. Riptortus pedestris (R. pedestris) has been reported to cause damage to pods and leaves throughout the soybean growing season. In this study, an experiment was conducted to detect R. pedestris according to three different environmental conditions (pod filling stage, maturity stage, artificial cage) by developing a surveillance platform based on an unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) GoPro CAM. Deep learning technology (MRCNN, YOLOv3, Detectron2)-based models used in this experiment can be quickly challenged (i.e., built with lightweight parameter) immediately through a web application. The image dataset was distributed by random selection for training, validation, and testing and then preprocessed by labeling the image for annotation. The deep learning model localized and classified the R. pedestris individuals through a bounding box and masking in the image data. The model achieved high performances, at 0.952, 0.716, and 0.873, respectively, represented through the calculated means of average precision (mAP) value. The manufactured model will enable the identification of R. pedestris in the field and can be an effective tool for insect forecasting in the early stage of pest outbreaks in crop production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Applications of Big Data and Machine Learning in Smart Agriculture)

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26 pages, 1321 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Hemp Agronomy: Current Advances, Questions, Challenges, and Opportunities

by John Sunoj Valiaparambil Sebastian, Xuejun Dong, Calvin Trostle, Hanh Pham, Madhumita V. Joshi, Russell W. Jessup, Mark D. Burow and Tony L. Provin

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 475; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020475 - 06 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 7245

Abstract

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L. ssp. sativa) has a long history of domestication due to its versatile use. Recently, different sectors in the economy are investigating hemp cultivation to increase agronomic production and to limit delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Despite the rapid growth of [...] Read more.

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L. ssp. sativa) has a long history of domestication due to its versatile use. Recently, different sectors in the economy are investigating hemp cultivation to increase agronomic production and to limit delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Despite the rapid growth of hemp literature in recent years, it is still uncertain whether the knowledge gained from higher latitude regions is applicable to low latitude and tropical regions where hemp has not been grown traditionally. This review provides a comprehensive and updated survey of hemp agronomy, focusing on environmental and management factors influencing the growth and yield of hemp, methods of cannabinoids detection and quantification, and hemp breeding. This review suggests that some previous claims about hemp as a low input crop may not hold true in low-latitude regions. Additional research strategies, such as the integration of experimentation and modeling efforts, are encouraged to hasten new discoveries. Furthermore, to effectively increase the outputs of value products (cannabinoids, seeds, fiber and biomass, etc.) while limiting the THC level, new collaborations between hemp agronomists and economists may streamline the production process by increasing the efficiency of the total production system of hemp as a multifaceted crop. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Cropping Systems and Biomasses for Energy and Biorefinery Applications)

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20 pages, 558 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Effects of Liquid Manure Application Techniques on Ammonia Emission and Winter Wheat Yield

by Martin ten Huf, Thorsten Reinsch, Mareike Zutz, Christoph Essich, Reiner Ruser, Caroline Buchen-Tschiskale, Heinz Flessa and Hans-Werner Olfs

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 472; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020472 - 05 Feb 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1847

Abstract

Ammonia emissions following liquid manure application impair human health and threaten natural ecosystems. In growing arable crops, where immediate soil incorporation of the applied liquid manure is not possible, best-available application techniques are required in order to decrease ammonia losses. We determined ammonia [...] Read more.

Ammonia emissions following liquid manure application impair human health and threaten natural ecosystems. In growing arable crops, where immediate soil incorporation of the applied liquid manure is not possible, best-available application techniques are required in order to decrease ammonia losses. We determined ammonia emission, crop yield and nitrogen uptake of winter wheat in eight experimental sites across Germany. Each individual experiment consisted of an unfertilized control (N0), broadcast calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN) application as well as four different techniques to apply cattle slurry (CS) and biogas digestate (BD). Fertilizer was applied to growing winter wheat at a total rate of 170 kg N ha⁻¹ split into two equal dressings. The following application techniques were tested for both liquid manure types: (i) trailing hose (TH) application using untreated and (ii) acidified (~pH 6) liquid manure (+A), as well as (iii) a combination of open slot injection (SI) for the first dressing and trailing shoe (TS) application for the second dressing without and (iv) with the addition of a nitrification inhibitor (NI) for the first dressing. The highest ammonia emissions (on average 30 kg N ha⁻¹) occurred following TH application of BD. TH application of CS led to significantly lower emissions (on average 19 kg N ha⁻¹). Overall, acidification reduced ammonia emissions by 64% compared to TH application without acidification for both types of liquid manures. On average, the combination of SI and TS application resulted in 23% lower NH₃ emissions in comparison to TH application (25% for the first application by SI and 20% for the second application by TS). Supplementing an NI did not affect ammonia emissions. However, decreasing ammonia emissions by acidification or SI did not increase winter wheat yield and nitrogen uptake. All organically fertilized treatments led to similar crop yield (approx. 7 t ha⁻¹ grain dry matter yield) and above-ground biomass nitrogen uptake (approx. 150 kg ha⁻¹). Yield (8 t ha⁻¹) and nitrogen uptake (approx. 190 kg ha⁻¹) were significantly higher for the CAN treatment; while for the control, yield (approx. 4.5 t ha⁻¹) and above-ground biomass nitrogen uptake (approx. 90 kg ha⁻¹) were significantly lower. Overall, our results show that reducing NH₃ emissions following liquid manure application to growing crops is possible by using different mitigation techniques. For our field trial series, acidification was the technique with the greatest NH₃ mitigation potential. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Organic Amendments in Agricultural Production)

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16 pages, 4012 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Foliar Applications of ZnO and SiO₂ Nanoparticles Mitigate Water Deficit and Enhance Potato Yield and Quality Traits

by Mahmoud F. Seleiman, Wadei A. Al-Selwey, Abdullah A. Ibrahim, Mohamed Shady and Abdullah A. Alsadon

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 466; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020466 - 04 Feb 2023

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 2243

Abstract

The yield and quality of field crops are affected by abiotic stresses such as water deficit, which can negatively impact crop growth, productivity, and quality. However, nanotechnology holds great promise for increasing crop yield, maintaining quality, and thus mitigating abiotic stresses. Therefore, the [...] Read more.

The yield and quality of field crops are affected by abiotic stresses such as water deficit, which can negatively impact crop growth, productivity, and quality. However, nanotechnology holds great promise for increasing crop yield, maintaining quality, and thus mitigating abiotic stresses. Therefore, the current study was conducted to examine the influences of 0, 50, and 100 mg L⁻¹ zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles and 0, 25, and 50 mg L⁻¹ silicon dioxide (SiO₂) nanoparticles on the yield and quality traits of potato plants grown under water deficit conditions (100%, 75%, and 50% ETc). Water deficit significantly reduced yield traits (average tuber weight, number of plant tubers, and tuber yield) and quality traits (tuber diameter, crude protein, and mineral content). However, it enhanced tuber dry weight, specific gravity, ascorbic acid, starch, and total soluble solids. Foliar applications of ZnO and SiO₂ nanoparticles under water deficit treatments significantly enhanced yield and improved quality traits of potato plants. Moreover, significant and positive correlations were found among yield traits. Thus, it can be concluded that using ZnO NPs at 100 mg L⁻¹ significantly improves potato productivity and quality traits by mitigating the negative effects of water deficit in arid regions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Resilience to Biotic and Environmental Stresses in Horticultural Crops)

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19 pages, 16404 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Computer Vision and Deep Learning as Tools for Leveraging Dynamic Phenological Classification in Vegetable Crops

by Leandro Rodrigues, Sandro Augusto Magalhães, Daniel Queirós da Silva, Filipe Neves dos Santos and Mário Cunha

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 463; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020463 - 04 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2233

Abstract

The efficiency of agricultural practices depends on the timing of their execution. Environmental conditions, such as rainfall, and crop-related traits, such as plant phenology, determine the success of practices such as irrigation. Moreover, plant phenology, the seasonal timing of biological events (e.g., cotyledon [...] Read more.

The efficiency of agricultural practices depends on the timing of their execution. Environmental conditions, such as rainfall, and crop-related traits, such as plant phenology, determine the success of practices such as irrigation. Moreover, plant phenology, the seasonal timing of biological events (e.g., cotyledon emergence), is strongly influenced by genetic, environmental, and management conditions. Therefore, assessing the timing the of crops’ phenological events and their spatiotemporal variability can improve decision making, allowing the thorough planning and timely execution of agricultural operations. Conventional techniques for crop phenology monitoring, such as field observations, can be prone to error, labour-intensive, and inefficient, particularly for crops with rapid growth and not very defined phenophases, such as vegetable crops. Thus, developing an accurate phenology monitoring system for vegetable crops is an important step towards sustainable practices. This paper evaluates the ability of computer vision (CV) techniques coupled with deep learning (DL) (CV_DL) as tools for the dynamic phenological classification of multiple vegetable crops at the subfield level, i.e., within the plot. Three DL models from the Single Shot Multibox Detector (SSD) architecture (SSD Inception v2, SSD MobileNet v2, and SSD ResNet 50) and one from You Only Look Once (YOLO) architecture (YOLO v4) were benchmarked through a custom dataset containing images of eight vegetable crops between emergence and harvest. The proposed benchmark includes the individual pairing of each model with the images of each crop. On average, YOLO v4 performed better than the SSD models, reaching an F1-Score of 85.5%, a mean average precision of 79.9%, and a balanced accuracy of 87.0%. In addition, YOLO v4 was tested with all available data approaching a real mixed cropping system. Hence, the same model can classify multiple vegetable crops across the growing season, allowing the accurate mapping of phenological dynamics. This study is the first to evaluate the potential of CV_DL for vegetable crops’ phenological research, a pivotal step towards automating decision support systems for precision horticulture. Full article

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13 pages, 1828 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Identification of Pathogens Causing Alfalfa Fusarium Root Rot in Inner Mongolia, China

by Le Wang, Na Wang, Jialiang Yu, Jie Wu, Huan Liu, Kejian Lin and Yuanyuan Zhang

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 456; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020456 - 03 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1687

Abstract

Alfalfa Fusarium Root Rot (AFRR) is a serious soil-borne disease with a complex pathogenicity. Diseased samples suspected of AFRR were collected from Hohhot, Ordos, Hulunbeier, Chifeng, and Bayannur in Inner Mongolia, China, leading to 317 isolates. The isolates were identified as Fusarium acuminatum [...] Read more.

Alfalfa Fusarium Root Rot (AFRR) is a serious soil-borne disease with a complex pathogenicity. Diseased samples suspected of AFRR were collected from Hohhot, Ordos, Hulunbeier, Chifeng, and Bayannur in Inner Mongolia, China, leading to 317 isolates. The isolates were identified as Fusarium acuminatum, F. solani, F. equiseti, F. incarnatum, F. oxysporum, F. avenaceum, F. verticillioides, F. proliferatum, F. falciforme, F. tricinctum, F. virguliforme, and F. redolens, and the results of pathogenicity testing showed that 12 Fusarium species could cause alfalfa root rot. Among these, F. verticillioides, F. falciforme, and F. virguliforme have not previously been reported to cause AFRR in China. Although the population structure of the pathogens differed in different regions, the dominant pathogenic species was F. acuminatum. Fungicide toxicity tests showed that seven fungicides inhibited F. acuminatum, of which fludioxonil, kresoxim-methyl, and triadimefon were found to be strongly toxic towards F. acuminatum with EC₅₀ values of 0.09, 2.28, and 16.37 μg/mL, respectively, suggesting that these could be used as alternative fungicides for the control of AFRR. The results of this study can provide a theoretical basis for exploring the occurrence and epidemiology of alfalfa root rot and strategies for its control. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Epidemiology and Control of Fungal Diseases of Crop Plants)

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15 pages, 1342 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Allelopathic Effects of Cannabis sativa L. Aqueous Leaf Extracts on Seed Germination and Seedling Growth in Durum Wheat and Barley

by Cristina Patanè, Alessandra Pellegrino, Salvatore L. Cosentino and Giorgio Testa

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 454; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020454 - 03 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2441

Abstract

In this study, the allelochemical-induced effects of the leaf water extract of hemp (Cannabis sativa) on seed germination and seedling growth were investigated in durum wheat (Triticum durum) cv. Mongibello and barley (Hordeum vulgare) cv. Alamo. The seeds were [...] Read more.

In this study, the allelochemical-induced effects of the leaf water extract of hemp (Cannabis sativa) on seed germination and seedling growth were investigated in durum wheat (Triticum durum) cv. Mongibello and barley (Hordeum vulgare) cv. Alamo. The seeds were imbibed in 25%, 50%, 75%, or 100% solution concentrations, obtained from a 2% hemp leaf extract, and they were germinated at 20 and 10 °C. The 2% extract stock solution (i.e., 100% solution concentration) was obtained by extracting 20 g of leaf powder in 1 L distilled water (2%, w/v). A control of seeds imbibed in distilled water was considered. Germination was scored daily and at the end of the germination test, the final germination percentage (FGP), mean germination time (MGT), germination index (GI), and vigor index (VI) were calculated. The radicles and shoots of the germinated seeds of both species were also measured for their length and weight. The analyses revealed the presence of phenols in the hemp leaf extract, which were the highest in the 100% concentration (13.14 ± 0.20 mg gallic acid equivalent-GAE g⁻¹ extract). At 20 °C, increasing the concentration had either minor (in wheat) or no effects (in barley) on the seed germination. At 10 °C, the germination was reduced by the increasing concentration, suggesting a potential allelopathic effect of the extract. However, at 100% concentration, the seeds germinated significantly better that those at 75% concentration. At 20 °C, increasing concentration progressively depressed both the radicle and shoot elongation in both species. At 10 °C, the radicle elongation was depressed by the extract, irrespective of the concentration, whilst the shoots were as long as those of the control in wheat, and smaller at the 50 and 75% concentrations in barley. We can conclude that the water extract of hemp leaves can have a negative impact on wheat and barley seed germination and seedling growth, particularly at temperatures below optimal. However, the high concentration of phenols in the extract may stimulate seed germination and seedling growth. Thus, in semi-arid areas, such as those of the Mediterranean regions, sowings of wheat and barley after hemp at an optimal (i.e., 20 °C) or nearly optimal temperature are recommended in order to minimize the combined stressing effects of the temperature and allelopathic leaf extract upon plant establishment, which may limit a successful crop establishment. Full article

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20 pages, 1889 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Soil Organic Carbon Significantly Increases When Perennial Biomass Plantations Are Reverted Back to Annual Arable Crops

by Enrico Martani, Andrea Ferrarini, Astley Hastings and Stefano Amaducci

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 447; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020447 - 02 Feb 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1859

Abstract

The cultivation of perennial biomass crops (PBCs) on marginal lands is necessary to provide feedstock for the bio-based EU economy and accrue environmental benefits through carbon (C) sequestration in soil. Short rotation coppice (SRC) species, e.g., willow, black locust, and poplar, and perennial [...] Read more.

The cultivation of perennial biomass crops (PBCs) on marginal lands is necessary to provide feedstock for the bio-based EU economy and accrue environmental benefits through carbon (C) sequestration in soil. Short rotation coppice (SRC) species, e.g., willow, black locust, and poplar, and perennial rhizomatous grasses, e.g., miscanthus, switchgrass, and giant reed, have been tested in many EU projects in the last 10 years to investigate their productive potential and contribution to the mitigation of climate change. A major knowledge gap regarding PBCs is the fate of accumulated soil organic carbon (SOC), once PBC plantations are reverted to arable crops. In this study, the effects of PBCs reversion on SOC and carbon-dioxide emission (CO₂) were monitored over a 2-year period in a long-term (11-year) multispecies trial of six PBCs: Three SRC species including poplar (Populus spp.), willow (Salix spp.), and black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), and three herbaceous rhizomatous grasses including miscanthus (Miscanthus x giganteus), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), and giant reed (Arundo donax). The SOC change and GHG emissions were then modeled with the ECOSSE model. Two years after the reversion, SOC increased significantly for all PBCs with no significant difference between them. During the PBC cultivation phase, 5.35 Mg SOC ha⁻¹ was sequestered while 10.95 Mg SOC ha⁻¹ was added by reversion, which indicated that 67% of SOC sequestration occurred after the reversion. The ECOSSE model was successfully used to simulate SOC sequestration trajectories (R² = 0.77) and CO₂ emission from soil (R² = 0.82) after the reversion of the six PBCs. This indicated that the high SOC sequestration rate after the reversion was due to humification of belowground biomass (roots + rhizomes/stumps), which had been mulched and incorporated into the reversion layer (0–30 cm). This occurred in the first 2 months (on average 5.47 Mg SOC ha⁻¹ y⁻¹) and in the first year after the reversion (1.3–1.8 Mg SOC ha⁻¹ y⁻¹). Considering the entire PBCs cultivation cycle (13 years of PBCs + reversion), PBCs showed annual SOC sequestration rates higher than 1 Mg SOC ha⁻¹ y⁻¹, placing PBCs cultivation and reversion as one of the most promising agricultural practices to combine biomass production, with the recovery of marginal lands to agricultural production through increasing the SOC. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Farming Sustainability)

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24 pages, 543 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Dry Matter Losses in Silages Resulting from Epiphytic Microbiota Activity—A Comprehensive Study

by Barbara Wróbel, Janusz Nowak, Agata Fabiszewska, Anna Paszkiewicz-Jasińska and Wojciech Przystupa

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 450; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020450 - 02 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2987

Abstract

An overview was made of dry matter (DM) and quality losses that occur during the ensiling process. The aim was to review the current knowledge on the course of the fermentation pathways in various raw materials and the loss of DM accompanying this [...] Read more.

An overview was made of dry matter (DM) and quality losses that occur during the ensiling process. The aim was to review the current knowledge on the course of the fermentation pathways in various raw materials and the loss of DM accompanying this process. This review discusses the main groups of microorganisms involved in the ensiling process, the accompanying fermentation patterns, and the resulting DM losses. The possibility of reducing DM and quality losses during the ensiling process in practice is presented. The paper concludes with future perspectives and recommended management practices to reduce losses over the whole ensiling process. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Research Progress and Future Perspectives of Silage)

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12 pages, 10134 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

An Automatic Jujube Fruit Detection and Ripeness Inspection Method in the Natural Environment

by Defang Xu, Huamin Zhao, Olarewaju Mubashiru Lawal, Xinyuan Lu, Rui Ren and Shujuan Zhang

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 451; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020451 - 02 Feb 2023

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2109

Abstract

The ripeness phases of jujube fruits are one factor mitigating against fruit detection, in addition to uneven environmental conditions such as illumination variation, leaf occlusion, overlapping fruits, colors or brightness, similar plant appearance to the background, and so on. Therefore, a method called [...] Read more.

The ripeness phases of jujube fruits are one factor mitigating against fruit detection, in addition to uneven environmental conditions such as illumination variation, leaf occlusion, overlapping fruits, colors or brightness, similar plant appearance to the background, and so on. Therefore, a method called YOLO-Jujube was proposed to solve these problems. With the incorporation of the networks of Stem, RCC, Maxpool, CBS, SPPF, C3, PANet, and CIoU loss, YOLO-Jujube was able to detect jujube fruit automatically for ripeness inspection. Having recorded params of 5.2 m, GFLOPs of 11.7, AP of 88.8%, and a speed of 245 fps for detection performance, including the sorting and counting process combined, YOLO-Jujube outperformed the network of YOLOv3-tiny, YOLOv4-tiny, YOLOv5s, and YOLOv7-tiny. YOLO-Jujube is robust and applicable to meet the goal of a computer vision-based understanding of images and videos. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture: Cultivation, Management and Harvest)

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22 pages, 4764 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Effect of Mycorrhizal Inoculation on Melon Plants under Deficit Irrigation Regimes

by Alessandro Miceli, Filippo Vetrano, Livio Torta, Alessandro Esposito and Alessandra Moncada

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 440; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020440 - 01 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1575

Abstract

The shortage of good quantity and quality of water for irrigated agriculture is a major problem in arid and semiarid regions. To deal with this problem, deficit irrigation (DI) or arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation have been proposed and adopted for many crops [...] Read more.

The shortage of good quantity and quality of water for irrigated agriculture is a major problem in arid and semiarid regions. To deal with this problem, deficit irrigation (DI) or arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation have been proposed and adopted for many crops as a tool to save water, or to improve crop tolerance to drought stress. An experiment was conducted for two consecutive years to evaluate the effect of mycorrhizal inoculation on the physiological, morphological, yield, and quality characteristics of melon plants grown under deficit irrigation. Melon crop (Cucumis melo L. cv. Helios) was grown under field conditions adopting a split-plot design with four replications, where DI was the main factor and AMF inoculation was the secondary factor. DI treatments consisted of applying 60%, 80%, or 100% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) on melon plants inoculated or not with a commercial biostimulant containing 50% of Rhizophagus irregularis, and 50% of Funneliformis mosseae. Moderate and severe deficit irrigation significantly reduced the relative water content, stomatal conductance, yield, nitrogen applied efficiency (NAE), and fruit firmness of the uninoculated plants, but significantly increased irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) and the ascorbic acid content of the fruit. AMF had a positive effect on plant tolerance to moderate water stress, and on some fruit quality parameters (fruit length, firmness, and sugar content). The combined use of moderate deficit irrigation (80%) and soil inoculation with AMF on melon plants allows water savings without affecting fruit yield, and increases IWUE, NAE, and some fruit quality characteristics (firmness, SSC, and SSC/TA). Furthermore, the use of AMF plants could be worth it to reduce the yield loss and increase fruit quality, even with severe deficit irrigation (60%). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Management Tactics for Resilient and Sustainable Vegetable Crops Production)

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12 pages, 3307 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Foliar Application of Carnosine and Chitosan Improving Drought Tolerance in Bermudagrass

by Tian Hao, Zhimin Yang, Jianfeng Liang, Jingjin Yu and Jun Liu

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 442; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020442 - 01 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1305

Abstract

Drought stress is one of the crucial factors affecting plant growth and development in turfgrass species, especially during the summer season. Exogenous plant growth regulators are an effective and convenient approach to mitigating the adverse effects of drought stress on plant growth. The [...] Read more.

Drought stress is one of the crucial factors affecting plant growth and development in turfgrass species, especially during the summer season. Exogenous plant growth regulators are an effective and convenient approach to mitigating the adverse effects of drought stress on plant growth. The objectives of this study were to reveal the effects of exogenous carnosine or chitosan on turf performance and physiological indexes in bermudagrass (Cynodon transvaalensis × C. dactylon) in response to drought stress. Bermudagrass was foliar sprayed with carnosine or chitosan, and dose-dependent effects on turf quality were observed under drought stress. Under drought stress, foliar application of either carnosine (0.03%) or chitosan (10 mg L⁻¹) significantly increased turf quality, chlorophyll content, leaf relative water content, and decreased electrolyte leakage, malonaldehyde, and hydrogen peroxide content in comparison with untreated control in bermudagrass. Moreover, exogenous carnosine treatment significantly enhanced the activities of both catalase and peroxidase, but chitosan application only increased catalase activity. The results of this experiment were beneficial to the development of new plant growth regulators and would provide helpful insights for turf management under drought-stressed conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Genetics, Breeding, and Quality Traits in Forage and Turf Grass)

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13 pages, 3033 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Development of Superabsorbent Polymer (SAP) Seed Coating Technology to Enhance Germination and Stand Establishment in Red Clover Cover Crop

by Masoume Amirkhani, Hilary Mayton, Michael Loos and Alan Taylor

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 438; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020438 - 01 Feb 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2429

Abstract

Drought conditions after sowing threaten the seedling establishment of all seeds, including cover crops. Cover crops are commonly broadcast and, thus, are often susceptible to drought stress after sowing. Our hypothesis was that seed coating with superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) would enhance germination in [...] Read more.

Drought conditions after sowing threaten the seedling establishment of all seeds, including cover crops. Cover crops are commonly broadcast and, thus, are often susceptible to drought stress after sowing. Our hypothesis was that seed coating with superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) would enhance germination in the lab and stand establishment in the field by increasing water availability to single seeds. Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) seeds were coated with the following selected SAP formulations at 2% of their seed weight: cross-linked potassium polyacrylate (PAL), cross-linked polyacrylamide-based polymer (PAM), PAM with graphite (PAM+G), and Starch-g-2-Propenoic acid (potassium salt) (STR). The water absorbency of each SAP formulation was >200 g water/g of polymer; STR had the greatest absorbency, at 352 g water/g of polymer. A seed coating method was developed, resulting in the uniform application of SAP from seed to seed. All SAP coating treatments increased germination compared to the 0% SAP coating in controlled environment studies in the lab. Three field trials were conducted for each seed coating treatment, providing a range of climatic soil conditions. Within each field trial, the STR with the greatest water absorbency had a higher stand for treatments sown by broadcasting followed by raking to incorporate seeds. The first two trials were conducted under more stressful conditions. PAM+G performed best in the first two trials by broadcasting seeds with no raking. Collectively, the selected SAP seed coating improved field stands compared to the non-treated controls. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Modern Seed Technologies for Developing Dynamic Agriculture)

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16 pages, 1706 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Estimation of Maize Yield and Protein Content under Different Density and N Rate Conditions Based on UAV Multi-Spectral Images

by Yu Jiang, Huijuan Wei, Shengxi Hou, Xuebo Yin, Shanshan Wei and Dong Jiang

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 421; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020421 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1514

Abstract

In the field of precision agriculture research, it is very important to monitor crop growth in time so as to effectively conduct field diagnosis and management and accurately predict yield and quality. In this experiment, the relationship between the vegetation index of Zhengdan [...] Read more.

In the field of precision agriculture research, it is very important to monitor crop growth in time so as to effectively conduct field diagnosis and management and accurately predict yield and quality. In this experiment, the relationship between the vegetation index of Zhengdan 958 and Suyu 41 and their yield and quality when reducing N application (25 and 50% N reduction compared to local conventional N application rate) under low, medium and high planting densities (60,000, 75,000 and 90,000 plants·ha⁻¹) during 2018–2020 was investigated using multispectral images obtained from UAV monitoring. The results showed that under different density treatments, the normalized vegetation index (NDVI) and ratio vegetation index (RVI) decreased with the decrease in nitrogen application, while the plant senescence reflectance index (PSRI) increased. Through principal component analysis (PCA) and subordinate function analysis, the comprehensive score of each treatment can reflect the maize yield and total protein content under each treatment. Based on the vegetation index, predictive models of maize yield and protein content were established. The best prediction period for grain yield and protein content were physiological maturity and 35 days after silking (R4), respectively. The R² of the predictive models are greater than 0.734 and 0.769, respectively. Multi-period and multi-vegetation indexes can better monitor crop growth and help agricultural field management. Full article

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14 pages, 1538 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Current Agronomic Practices, Harvest & Post-Harvest Processing of Soybeans (Glycine max)—A Review

by Ondulla T. Toomer, Edgar O. Oviedo, Muhammad Ali, Danny Patino, Michael Joseph, Mike Frinsko, Thien Vu, Pramir Maharjan, Ben Fallen and Rouf Mian

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 427; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020427 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3771

Abstract

Globally, soybeans are grown to meet the needs for animal and human nutrition, oil extraction, and use in multiple industrial applications. Decades of soybean research, innovative farming methods, and the use of higher yielding resistant seed varieties have led to increased crop yields. [...] Read more.

Globally, soybeans are grown to meet the needs for animal and human nutrition, oil extraction, and use in multiple industrial applications. Decades of soybean research, innovative farming methods, and the use of higher yielding resistant seed varieties have led to increased crop yields. Globally, soybean producers have utilized enhanced processing methods to produce nutritious high-quality meal and extracted oil for use in animal feed and within the food industry. Soybeans contain highly digestible proteins and are processed using various mechanical and chemical techniques to produce high quality animal feed ingredients. Defatted soybean meal (DSM) is usually prepared by the solvent extraction process of soybeans, whereby almost all oil content is removed. When oil is not extracted, full-fat soybean meal (FFSBM) is created. This form provides an excellent source of dietary energy by retaining the lipid component and is very useful in animal feeds by reducing the need for adding exogeneous lipids. However, some anti-nutritional factors (ANF) are present in FFSBM if not properly heat treated before inclusion in the finished feed. These ANF adversely affect the internal organ function and overall growth performance of the animal. Among these ANF, protease inhibitors are most important, but can be readily destroyed with optimal thermal processing. However, if the process protocols are not followed precisely, excessive heat treatment may occur, resulting in both reduced protein quality and amino acid bioavailability in the meal. Conversely, insufficient heat treatment may result in the retention of some ANF in the meal. Thermally resistant ANF can be greatly reduced in the bean and meal when dietary enzyme supplementation is included in the finished feed. This approach is cost-effective and most commonly utilized commercially. After processing, the soybean meal quality is often measured using in vitro methods performed at commercial analytical laboratories to assess the nitrogen solubility index (NSI), protein dispersibility index (PDI), urease activity (UA), and protein solubility in potassium hydroxide. Once properly processed, FFSBM or DSM can be utilized optimally in the diets of poultry and aquaculture to enhance the economic viability, animal nutrition, production performance, and the quality and nutritional value of the meat and/or eggs produced. Full article

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15 pages, 3895 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Yield Components and Development in Indeterminate Tomato Landraces: An Agromorphological Approach to Promoting Their Utilization

by Adolfo Donoso and Erika Salazar

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 434; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020434 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1606

Abstract

Nowadays, increments in tomato yield seem to have reached a plateau. Tomato genebank collections have been recognized as a novel source for yield increments. The use of the diversity in Latin America for novel improved varieties is limited by the knowledge gap regarding [...] Read more.

Nowadays, increments in tomato yield seem to have reached a plateau. Tomato genebank collections have been recognized as a novel source for yield increments. The use of the diversity in Latin America for novel improved varieties is limited by the knowledge gap regarding field-grown tomatoes. As yield has complex, unresolved trade-offs, agromorphological traits become useful for further improvement. In this study, the development of successive clusters was studied in twenty-four Chilean tomato landraces to elucidate the relationships among agromorphological traits of flowers, inflorescences, and fruits. Plants yielded an average of 3297 g m⁻², with a variation coefficient of 0.44. Correlation analyses were performed to evaluate the relationships between yield components and plant phenology. Findings suggested a two-level compensation between average fresh fruit weight and the number of fruits, one on a plant basis and the second on a cluster basis. All traits evaluated had significant phenotypic correlations with yield traits. Growing degree days for a cluster to develop had a low negative phenotypic correlation with yield (−0.33***) and a high genetic correlation with the number of clusters (−0.90***). The number of set flowers, as opposed to the number of flowers, was significantly correlated with average fresh fruit weight (−0.17***), supporting the initiation of the trade-off after the fruit set. This study provides new insight into the plant agromorphology of indeterminate plants. In a global climate change context, further study of trade-off relationships is important for identifying genotypes able to sustain their productivity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cultivation Physiology, Molecular Biology and Molecular Breeding of Solanaceae)

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39 pages, 4074 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Evaluation of the Effect of Water Stress on Clonal Variations of Cv. Monastrell (Vitis vinifera L.) in South-Eastern Spain: Physiology, Nutrition, Yield, Berry, and Wine-Quality Responses

by Pascual Romero, Pablo Botía, Rocío Gil-Muñoz, Francisco M. del Amor and Josefa María Navarro

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 433; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020433 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1333

Abstract

The present study aims to analyze the physiological and agronomical response to drought among seven local and traditional field-grown Monastrell clones (4, 94, 188, 360, 276, 372, and 373) over four seasons (2018–2021) under optimum irrigation conditions (control) and water stress (stress). We [...] Read more.

The present study aims to analyze the physiological and agronomical response to drought among seven local and traditional field-grown Monastrell clones (4, 94, 188, 360, 276, 372, and 373) over four seasons (2018–2021) under optimum irrigation conditions (control) and water stress (stress). We have focussed on measuring Monastrell interclonal variability in plant water relations and leaf gas exchange, vegetative growth, leaf mineral nutrition, yield, water use efficiency (WUE), and grape and wine quality. A classification of the different clones according to drought-tolerance degree and agronomical/oenological performance was established. The classification revealed that (a) The most drought-tolerant clone (i.e., clone 4) was neither the most productive (8600 kg ha⁻¹), the most efficient in terms of water use (average of 25 kg m⁻³), nor the one that presented a better grape quality; (b) The most productive and efficient clone (i.e., clone 94) (11,566 kg ha⁻¹, average of 30 kg m⁻³) was also a drought-tolerant clone, but it provided the worst berry and wine qualities with the lowest aromatic/nutraceutical potential, and it is not recommended for premium red wine production; (c) Conversely, clone 360 provided the highest berry quality, but at the expense of a greatly reduced vigor and yield (4000 kg ha⁻¹) and a lower WUE_yield (average of 10 kg m⁻³); (d) Low-vigor clones 372 and 276 were the most sensitive to drought conditions and put more water conservation mechanisms into play, i.e., a tighter control of vine water use and reduced leaf transpiratory surface, under soil water deficit and high vapor pressure deficit (VPD). In addition, these clones reached a balance between drought tolerance, productive water use efficiency (WUE_yield), and berry and wine quality, because they provided moderate yields (7400–7700 kg ha⁻¹), a high WUE_yield (average between 17–19 kg m⁻³ applied water), and an enhanced berry and wine quality with greater oenological, nutraceutical, and aromatic potential; (e) High-vigor clone 188 also displayed several mechanisms of drought tolerance (tighter stomatal control of water use), maintained a higher yield (10,500 kg ha⁻¹) and a very high WUE_yield (29 kg m⁻³), enhanced berry quality (similarly to 276 or 372), and improved oenological/aromatic potential, and can also be recommended for the application of low water volume deficit irrigation (DI) strategies under semi-arid conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Water Use and Irrigation)

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13 pages, 1546 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Capsaicinoid Content in the Pericarp and Placenta of Bolilla Peppers (Capsicum annuum L.) throughout the Ripening of the Fruit at Two Different Stages of Plant Maturation

by Mercedes Vázquez-Espinosa, María Álvarez-Romero, Ana V. González-de-Peredo, Ana Ruíz-Rodríguez, Marta Ferreiro-González, Gerardo F. Barbero and Miguel Palma

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 435; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020435 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1335

Abstract

Peppers are a very popular ingredient in many dishes, either as the fruit itself or as derived products. They are not only consumed because of their organoleptic characteristics, but also because of their high content of bioactive compounds. The aim of this work [...] Read more.

Peppers are a very popular ingredient in many dishes, either as the fruit itself or as derived products. They are not only consumed because of their organoleptic characteristics, but also because of their high content of bioactive compounds. The aim of this work was to determine the optimal time to harvest the Bolilla pepper, based on the capsaicinoid concentration in the pericarp and placenta at two different plant maturities (young and adult), in order to maximize their potential biological properties. In the case of the pericarp, the maximum capsaicinoid concentration was reached at 30 days post-anthesis (dpa) (with values of 1565.98 and 2158.82 µmol/kg, for the young and adult plant, respectively), while in the placenta it was registered at 41 dpa with greater values (5898.12 and 2349.67 µmol/kg). In either case, from that moment on, there was a drastic reduction in the capsaicinoid content. With regard to the capsaicinoid content levels in the pericarp, this was greater in older plants, while the placenta presented greater content in younger plants, which is of considerable importance from an economic point of view. This work allows a better selection of the final product, taking full advantage of its beneficial effects on health and taste, which would be very interesting for analytical laboratories or industries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Evolution of Compounds and Characteristics of Crops during Ripening and after Harvest)

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8 pages, 3261 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceCommunication

Short Communication: Spatial Dependence Analysis as a Tool to Detect the Hidden Heterogeneity in a Kenaf Field

by Gyujin Jang, Dong-Wook Kim, Hak-Jin Kim and Yong Suk Chung

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 428; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020428 - 31 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1087

Abstract

Ever since research attention was first paid to phenomics, it has mainly focused on the use of high throughput phenotyping for characterizing traits in an accurate and fast manner. It was recently realized that its use has huge potential in precision agriculture. However, [...] Read more.

Ever since research attention was first paid to phenomics, it has mainly focused on the use of high throughput phenotyping for characterizing traits in an accurate and fast manner. It was recently realized that its use has huge potential in precision agriculture. However, the focus so far has mainly been on ”obtain large data set”, not on “how to analyze them”. Here, the expanded application of high throughput phenotyping combined with special dependence analysis is demonstrated to reveal the hidden field heterogeneity, using a kenaf field. Based on the method used in the study, the results showed that the growth of kenaf in the field was grouped into two, which led to a large variation of sources among replications. This method has potential to be applied to detect hidden heterogeneity, to be utilized and applied in plant breeding not only for better analysis, but also for better management of fields in precision agriculture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Precision Agriculture Monitoring Using Remote Sensing)

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17 pages, 2051 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Cotton-Based Rotation, Intercropping, and Alternate Intercropping Increase Yields by Improving Root–Shoot Relations

by Qingqing Lv, Baojie Chi, Ning He, Dongmei Zhang, Jianlong Dai, Yongjiang Zhang and Hezhong Dong

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 413; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020413 - 30 Jan 2023

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5445

Abstract

Crop rotation and intercropping are important ways to increase agricultural resource utilization efficiency and crop productivity. Alternate intercropping, or transposition intercropping, is a new intercropping pattern in which two crops are intercropped in a wide strip with planting positions switched annually on the [...] Read more.

Crop rotation and intercropping are important ways to increase agricultural resource utilization efficiency and crop productivity. Alternate intercropping, or transposition intercropping, is a new intercropping pattern in which two crops are intercropped in a wide strip with planting positions switched annually on the same land. Transposition intercropping combines intercropping and rotation and thus performs better than either practice alone. Compared with traditional intercropping or rotation, it can increase yield and net return by 17–21% and 10–23%, respectively, and the land equivalent ratio (LER) by 20% to 30%. In crop growth and development, a balanced root–shoot relation is essential to obtain satisfactory yields and yield quality. Intercropping, rotation, or the combination can alter the original root–shoot relation by changing the ecology and physiology of both root and shoot to achieve a rebalancing of the relation. The crop yield and yield quality are thus regulated by the root–shoot interactions and the resulting rebalancing. The review examines the effects of above- and belowground interactions and rebalancing of root–shoot relations on crop yields under cotton-based intercropping, rotation, and particularly alternate intercropping with the practices combined. The importance of signaling in regulating the rebalancing of root–shoot relations under intercropping, rotation, and the combination was also explored as a possible focus of future research on intercropping and rotation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemical Regulation and Mechanized Cultivation Technology of Cotton)

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14 pages, 3303 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Based on FCN and DenseNet Framework for the Research of Rice Pest Identification Methods

by He Gong, Tonghe Liu, Tianye Luo, Jie Guo, Ruilong Feng, Ji Li, Xiaodan Ma, Ye Mu, Tianli Hu, Yu Sun, Shijun Li, Qinglan Wang and Ying Guo

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 410; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020410 - 30 Jan 2023

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 1650

Abstract

One of the most important food crops is rice. For this reason, the accurate identification of rice pests is a critical foundation for rice pest control. In this study, we propose an algorithm for automatic rice pest identification and classification based on fully [...] Read more.

One of the most important food crops is rice. For this reason, the accurate identification of rice pests is a critical foundation for rice pest control. In this study, we propose an algorithm for automatic rice pest identification and classification based on fully convolutional networks (FCNs) and select 10 rice pests for experiments. First, we introduce a new encoder–decoder in the FCN and a series of sub-networks connected by jump paths that combine long jumps and shortcut connections for accurate and fine-grained insect boundary detection. Secondly, the network also integrates a conditional random field (CRF) module for insect contour refinement and boundary localization, and finally, a novel DenseNet framework that introduces an attention mechanism (ECA) is proposed to focus on extracting insect edge features for effective rice pest classification. The proposed model was tested on the data set collected in this paper, and the final recognition accuracy was 98.28%. Compared with the other four models in the paper, the proposed model in this paper is more accurate, faster, and has good robustness; meanwhile, it can be demonstrated from our results that effective segmentation of insect images before classification can improve the detection performance of deep-learning-based classification systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue “Smart Agriculture” Information Technology and Agriculture Cross-Discipline Research and Development)

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20 pages, 2111 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Evaluation of the Carry-Over Effect of the “Crop-Forcing” Technique and Water Deficit in Grapevine ‘Tempranillo’

by Nieves Lavado, David Uriarte, Luis Alberto Mancha, Daniel Moreno, M. Esperanza Valdés and M. Henar Prieto

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020395 - 29 Jan 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1424

Abstract

“Crop-forcing” is an effective technique to delay grape maturation to a period of lower temperatures, and in this way, improve grape quality. Because of the aggressiveness of this technique (removal of leaves and fruit to reinitiate a second vegetative cycle), it may affect [...] Read more.

“Crop-forcing” is an effective technique to delay grape maturation to a period of lower temperatures, and in this way, improve grape quality. Because of the aggressiveness of this technique (removal of leaves and fruit to reinitiate a second vegetative cycle), it may affect the level of reserves and could provoke progressive vine exhaustion. The aim of the present work is to evaluate the short- and medium-term evolution of carbohydrate reserves in different plant organs and the effect of “crop-forcing” under different irrigation regimes on seasonal biomass production and its distribution. The study was carried out over a four years period (2017–2020), applying “crop-forcing” in three consecutive years (2017–2019) to the same vines on two different dates and using two irrigation strategies. The application of “crop-forcing” did not decrease root reserve levels in either the year of application or the following year, but did modify starch and soluble sugar levels in shoots and leaves in some moments of the vegetative cycle during the years of “crop-forcing” application. Total biomass production in terms of grams per vine was lower in the “crop-forcing” treatments and continued to be so when “crop-forcing” was no longer applied. The percentage of biomass in vegetative organs increased at the expense of productive organs. Full article

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16 pages, 2281 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Preharvest Abiotic Stress Affects the Nutritional Value of Lettuce

by Sanja Ćavar Zeljković, Nikola Štefelová, Karel Hron, Ivana Doležalová and Petr Tarkowski

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 398; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020398 - 29 Jan 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1768

Abstract

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is one of the most consumed leafy green vegetables in the world, and is a good source of important bioactive compounds. However, environmental stress factors, such as salinity or drought, cause physiological and biochemical changes in plants and [...] Read more.

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is one of the most consumed leafy green vegetables in the world, and is a good source of important bioactive compounds. However, environmental stress factors, such as salinity or drought, cause physiological and biochemical changes in plants and influence the yields and levels of both primary and secondary metabolites, which drastically changes the nutritional value and quality of the crop. In the present work, six typical Czech cultivars/landraces of various lettuce morphotypes (Altenbursky, Dubacek, Kamenac, Jupiter, Prazan, and Robin) were grown under driven conditions and then analyzed for the content of sugars, fatty acids, amino acids, phenolics, and vitamins. Obtained data were subjected to compositional tables statistical analysis, which provided not only information on general trends in the changes in their nutritional value but also how these changes affected each particular variety. Overall, drought caused the largest relative increase in phenolic compounds and some amino acids. Conversely, drought caused overall the largest relative decrease in vitamin C, but also in fatty acids. In addition, salt stress caused a larger decrease in many metabolites, especially the amino acid arginine, while fatty acids were only slightly increased, together with vitamin E. In addition, the interpretation of data from statistical analysis showed that varieties Prazan and Altenbursky had the least changes in their chemical composition when subjected to drought stress. Again, var. Altenbursky showed the least variability in comparison to other varieties when subjected to salt stress. These findings confirm the fact that landraces and old cultivars do not change their chemical profiles significantly, as is the case for improved cultivars, and they emphasize the need for their cultivation when raising the productivity of staple food crops. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Climate Changes and Quality of Crops)

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