The Experts below are selected from a list of 2007 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Fusuo Zhang - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Cropping System Conversion led to Organic Carbon Change in China’s Mollisols Regions
Nature Publishing Group, 2017Co-Authors: Yuxin Tong, Jianguo Liu, Jing Sun, Anna Herzberger, Dan Wei, Weifeng Zhang, Zhengxia Dou, Fusuo ZhangAbstract:Abstract Land use change driven by diet, globalization, and technology advancement have greatly influenced agricultural production and environment in the mollisols region of China, with a marked impact on the depletion of soil organic matter, a signature property of mollisols. Here we report findings on soil organic carbon (SOC) change in three different cropping systems (soybean, soybean/maize, corn) in Northeast China during a 10-year time span. The results indicated that the decline rate of SOC in recent ten years (0.27 g kg−1 yr−1) has slowed down considerably compared to previous decades (1.12 g kg−1 yr−1). Crop system conversion from soybean Monocropping to corn Monocropping or break system was the critical factor for SOC change, and the background SOC was the second influence factor. When approaching a SOC turning point, conversion from low carbon input crop system (soybeans Monocropping) to high carbon input crop system helped slow down the SOC decline (break crop) or even improve SOC (corn Monocropping) in mollisols regions. This result implied that imported soybean has brought benefit for Northeast China. But for sustainable goal in China’s mollisols region, straw returning, optimized nitrogen fertilization and no tillage are all necessary whatever in continues maize or rotation system
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rhizosphere properties in Monocropping and intercropping systems between faba bean vicia faba l and maize zea mays l grown in a calcareous soil
Crop & Pasture Science, 2013Co-Authors: Fusuo Zhang, Zed Rengel, Jianbo ShenAbstract:The processes involving pH modification, carboxylate exudation and phosphorus (P) dynamics in the rhizosphere of crops grown in intercropping are poorly understood. Two groups of maize (Zea mays L.) or faba bean (Vicia faba L.) plants (Monocropping) or one group of plant of each species (intercropping) were grown between three 1-mm-thick soil layers; the central soil layer is referred to as inter-rhizosphere, and the two outer soil layers are designated sole-rhizosphere. Faba bean intercropped with maize had an 11% increase in shoot biomass and a 15% increase in P uptake compared with monocropped faba bean. The cropping pattern did not significantly influence maize growth. After 4 weeks of growth, faba bean significantly decreased soil pH in both the sole- and inter-rhizosphere in Monocropping, but no effects were apparent for the intercropping rhizosphere. The major carboxylates in the rhizosphere of faba bean were malate (18–45 nmol g–1 soil) and maleate (1.2–2.4 nmol g–1 soil). Only trace amounts of carboxylates were measured in the rhizosphere of monocropped maize. However, intercropped maize had a high concentration of malate (~11 nmol g–1 soil) in both sole- and inter-rhizosphere; the malate was likely exuded by faba bean and was then diffused to the sole-rhizosphere of intercropped maize. The amount of malate exuded by intercropped faba bean was 19% higher than with monocropped plants. The results indicate that diffusion of protons and carboxylates extended the interaction zone between maize and faba bean, and may have contributed to enhancements of P uptake in the intercropping system.
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iron and zinc biofortification strategies in dicot plants by intercropping with gramineous species a review
Agronomy for Sustainable Development, 2009Co-Authors: Y Zuo, Fusuo ZhangAbstract:The lack of micronutrients such as iron and zinc is a widespread nutrition and health problem in developing countries. Biofortification is the process of enriching the nutrient content of staple crops. Biofortification provides a sustainable solution to iron and zinc deficiency in food around the world. Reports have highlighted the current strategies for the biofortification of crops, including mineral fertilization, conventional breeding and transgenic approaches. Any approach which could increase root growth and result in a high transfer of Fe and Zn from the soil to the plant is crucial for biofortification. In addition to these approaches, we draw attention to another important aspect of Fe and Zn biofortification: intercropping between dicots and gramineous species. Intercropping, in which at least two crop species are grown on the same plot of land simultaneously, can improve utilization of resources while significantly enhancing crop productivity, whereas Monocropping is a traditional cropping system of only one crop growth. Monocropping has maintained crop productivity through heavy chemical inputs including the application of fertilizers and pesticides. Monocropping has therefore resulted in substantial eutrophication, environmental pollution, a food security crisis and economic burdens on farmers. Monocropping has also reduced the plant and microorganism diversity in the ecosystem. Compared with monocropped plants, intercropped plants can use nutrients, water and light better due to the spatial and temporal differences in the growth factors and a variety of species-specific mechanisms of physiological response to environmental stress. Intercropping is common in developing countries such as China, India, Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa. In particular, interspecific interaction facilitates the iron and zinc nutrition of intercropping systems such as peanut/maize, wheat/chickpea and guava/sorghum or maize. Intercropping also increases iron and zinc content in the seeds. In a peanut/maize case study, the Fe concentrations in peanut shoots and seed were 1.47–2.28 and 1.43 times higher than those of peanut in Monocropping, respectively. In intercropping of chickpea and wheat, the Fe contents in wheat and chickpea seed were increased 1.26 and 1.21 times, respectively, and Zn concentration in chickpea seed was 2.82 times higher than that in Monocropping. In this review, we focus on exemplary cases of dicot/gramineous species intercropping that result in improved iron and zinc nutrition of the plants. We present the current understanding of the mechanisms of improvement of iron and zinc in intercropping. The available literature shows that a reasonable intercropping system of nutrient-efficient species could prevent or mitigate iron and zinc deficiency of plants. Here, we propose that intercropping can potentially offer an effective and sustainable pathway to iron and zinc biofortification.
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effect of peanut mixed cropping with gramineous species on micronutrient concentrations and iron chlorosis of peanut plants grown in a calcareous soil
Plant and Soil, 2008Co-Authors: Yuanmei Zuo, Fusuo ZhangAbstract:To gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of improvement of iron nutrition of peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) intercropped with maize (Zea mays L.) in calcareous soil, both greenhouse and field experiments were conducted to investigate the rhizosphere (phytosiderophores) effects from maize, barley, oats and wheat with different phytosiderophores release rates on iron nutrition and other micronutrients in calcareous soil. Six cropping treatments were examined in a greenhouse experiment: peanut grown separately in monoculture, normal peanut/maize intercropping (two genotypes: Danyu13, Zhongdan12), peanut/barley intercropping, peanut/oats intercropping, and peanut/wheat intercropping. Additionally, we investigated in a field experiment the same five cropping systems as the greenhouse experiment (maize/peanut intercropping not including Zhongdan12). Our results show that the chlorophyll and active Fe concentrations in the young leaves of the peanut in the intercropping system with different gramineous species were much higher than those of the peanut in monoculture. In greenhouse conditions, the Fe concentration in the shoots of peanut plants grown in the intercropping systems of two maize genotypes separately were 1.40–1.44, 1.47–1.64 and 1.15–1.42 times higher respectively than those of peanut plants grown in Monocropping at 55, 60 and 70 days. In particular, the Fe concentration in shoots of peanut plants grown in the intercropping systems of barley, oats and wheat were not only higher than those in Monocropping but also higher than those in peanut intercropped cropping with maize. In the field, the concentration of Fe in shoot of intercropped peanut plants in rows 1–3 from gramineous species were significantly higher than in Monocropping at the flowering stage. Simultaneously with iron nutrition variation in peanut, Zn and Cu concentrations of intercropped grown peanut increased significantly compared to those in Monocropping in the greenhouse experiment, and different intercropping treatments generally increased the Zn and Cu content in the shoot of peanut in the field. Systemic mechanisms may be involved in adaptation to nutrient stresses at the whole plant level. The study suggests that a reasonable intercropping system of nutrient efficient species should be considered to prevent or mitigate iron and zinc deficiency of plants in agricultural practice.
Helena Kahiluoto - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Native forests but not agroforestry systems preserve arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal species richness in southern Ethiopia
Mycorrhiza, 2020Co-Authors: Zerihun Belay, Mesele Negash, Janne Kaseva, Mauritz Vestberg, Helena KahiluotoAbstract:The rapid conversion of native forests to farmland in Ethiopia, the cradle of biodiversity, threatens the diversity of the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) pivotal to plant nutrition and carbon sequestration. This study aimed to investigate the impact of this land-use change on the AMF species composition and diversity in southern Ethiopia. Soil samples were collected from nine plots in each of three land-use types: native forest, agroforestry, and khat Monocropping. The plots of the three land-use types were located adjacent to each other for each of the nine replicates. Three 10 × 10m subplots per plot were sampled. AMF spores were extracted from the soil samples, spore densities were determined, and species composition and diversity were evaluated through morphological analysis. Both spore density and species richness were statistically significantly higher in the native forest than in the agroforestry plots with no clear difference to khat, whereas the true diversity (exponential of Shannon–Wiener diversity index) did not differ among the three land-use types due to high evenness among the species in agroforestry. In total, 37 AMF morphotypes belonging to 12 genera in Glomeromycota were found, dominated by members of the genera Acaulospora and Glomus . The highest isolation frequency index (78%) was recorded for Acaulospora koskei from native forest. Consequently, the agroforestry system did not appear to aid in preserving the AMF species richness of native forests relative to perennial Monocropping, such as khat cultivation. In contrast, the native forest areas can serve as in situ genetic reserves of mycorrhizal symbionts adapted to the local vegetative, edaphic, and microbial conditions.
Xuemei Xiao - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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a green garlic allium sativum l based intercropping system reduces the strain of continuous Monocropping in cucumber cucumis sativus l by adjusting the micro ecological environment of soil
PeerJ, 2019Co-Authors: Xuemei Xiao, Zhihui Cheng, Jianming XieAbstract:The continuous cropping obstacle of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) under facility cultivation is more prevalent in China. This is associated with an imbalance in soil microbial and ecological environment in long-term monocultures. It was postulated that intercropping with green garlic would relieve the continuous cropping obstacle of cucumber by altering the soil micro-ecology status. A pot-based experiment was conducted to investigate the green garlic-cucumber intercropping and cucumber Monocropping systems. The results showed that the cucumber shoot biomass was improved by intercropping with green garlic. However, the population of soil bacteria and actinomycetes increased, while the fungal population decreased. The fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiles indicated that soil contained more fungal FAME biomarkers (18:1ω9c, 18:2ω6, 9) and higher fungal:bacterial ratio in the monoculture system, whereas clustering of more bacterial FAME biomarkers (cy17:0, cy19:0, 16:1ω7c10, Me16:0, 10Me17:0, 10Me18:0) was observed under intercropping conditions. Moreover, significantly (P < 0.05) higher soil invertase and alkaline phosphatase activities, organic matter, and available N, P and K contents were observed under intercropping systems. These were high in both bulk and rhizosphere soils in the intercropping system when compared to Monocropping system. These findings suggest that intercropping with green garlic can alleviate continuous cropping obstacle of cucumber by improving the diverse composition of soil microbial community, enzyme activities, and nutrient availability.
Cristina Cruz - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal species differ in their capacity to overrule the soil s legacy from maize Monocropping
Applied Soil Ecology, 2018Co-Authors: Teresa Dias, Patricia Correia, Luis Madeira De Carvalho, Juliana Melo, Amarilis De Varennes, Cristina CruzAbstract:Abstract Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are promoted as biofertilizers for cleaner agricultural production. So far, most researchers have investigated the effects of AMF on plant growth under highly controlled conditions with sterilized soil. However, how the soil microbial community shapes AMF’s impact on host plant performance is still poorly documented. To focus on the impact of belowground interactions (plant-AMF-soil microbes) alone, we compared sterilized versus non-sterilized soil, inoculating maize (Zea mays ssp. mays) seedlings with five commercial AMF inoculants (Claroideoglomus claroideum, Funneliformis mosseae, Gigaspora sp., Rhizophagus irregularis and Scutellospora sp.). Plants were pot-cultivated for nine weeks using soil which had been used for maize Monocropping in the field. AMF inoculation was successful, despite an abundant native AMF community. As hypothesized: i) the soil microbial community interfered with AMF’s benefits for maize growth; ii) these benefits depended on the AMF species, as C. claroideum, F. mosseae and Gigaspora sp. overruled the soil’s legacy from maize Monocropping. When plants were grown in sterilized soil, we found little to no effects of AMF inoculation on maize growth and nutrients acquisition. AMF’s benefits to the host plants could not be explained by improved nutrition alone, since interaction with the remainder soil microbes also differed between inoculated AMF. Data show that the soil microbial community and AMF species should be taken into consideration when applying AMF inoculants in agriculture.
E Frey - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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yields and land use efficiency of maize cowpea crop rotation in comparison to mixed and Monocropping on an alfisol in northern ghana
Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science, 1991Co-Authors: R. Härdter, W. J. Horst, G Schmidt, E FreyAbstract:Results reported in the literature with regard to productivity of intercropping systems in comparison to sole cropping are very inconsistent. A field experiment was therefore conducted in the northern part of the Guinea Savanna in Ghana to compare the productivity of maize/cowpea mixed cropping, maize/cowpea relay intercropping with maize/cowpea rotation and maize Monocropping over a 4-year period. The treatments included two levels of nitrogen (0 and 80 kg of N ha−1 y −1 as urea) and two levels of phosphorus application (0 and 60 kg of P ha−1 y−1 as Volta phosphate rock). At all levels of N and P application, maize yields of the intercropping systems, especially of maize/cowpea mixed cropping, were significantly lower than in sole cropping. Highest maize yields were obtained in maize/cowpea rotation, which in contrast to the other cropping systems did not show any reductions in yields over years. Cowpea yields were generally less affected by the cropping system, but were notably depressed when cowpea was relay-intercropped with maize. In treatments without fertilizer application (N and P) Land Equivalent Ratios (LER) and Area x Time Equivalency Ratios (ATER) generally indicated lower productivity of the intercropping systems as compared to sole cropping, with the maize/cowpea rotation showing the highest productivity. Conversely, fertilizer application resulted in higher productivity of the intercropping systems over the 4-year period. Productivity on the basis of ATER was generally lowest in maize/cowpea relay-intercropping as a consequence of the long time of land occupation. All of the parameters indicate low productivity of maize Monocropping, clearly demonstrating that crop sequence as well as fertilizer application must be considered as important for maintaining high production levels at this site.