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In a 2-year study, the decomposition rates (changes in carbon to nitrogen ratio) of two kinds of sawdust used for blueberry production were determined. The effects of sawdust age and nitrogen application rates on carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N ratio) of two sawdust types were evaluated. When nitrogen was not applied, the C:N ratio in fresh and aged sawdust decreased 30% and 10% respectively over a 1-year period, indicating fresh sawdust decomposed faster than aged sawdust when used as a surface mulch. However, the C:N ratios between soils amended with aged and fresh sawdust were similar when no nitrogen was added, suggesting the age of sawdust does not affect the decomposition rate once the sawdust is incorporated into the soil. It was found that two nitrogen application rates (150 kg·ha-1 vs. 50 kg·ha-1) had an equal affect on the C:N ratio of both sawdust types. Nitrogen application had no affect on the C:N ratio of both sawdust types when both sawdust were used as soil amendments. Clearly, the decomposition rates of the sawdust were influenced by sawdust age and nitrogen application rates.
Aluminum (Al) and phosphorus (P) interactions were investigated in mycorrhizal (M) and nonmycorrhizal (NM) highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) plantlets in a factorial experiment. The toxic effects of Al on highbush blueberry were characterized by decreased shoot, root, and total plant dry mass. Many of the negative effects of Al on plant root, shoot, and total dry matter production were reversed by foliar P and N application, indicating P or N uptake were limited by high Al concentration. However, Al-mediated growth reduction in P-stressed plants indicated that the restriction of P uptake by high Al may not have been the only mechanism for Al toxicity in this experiment. Root Al and P concentration were negatively correlated in NM but not M plantlets, suggesting mycorrhizal infection may alter P uptake processes. Al uptake was also affected by mycorrhizal infection, with more Al accumulating in M plantlet roots and leaves. Correlations among foliar ion concentrations were also affected by mycorrhizal fungal infection.
Aluminum (Al) uptake and root cation exchange capacity (CEC) of mycorrhizal (M) and non-mycorrhizal (NM) blueberry plants (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) were studied. Mycorrhizal roots took up more Al than non-mycorrhizal roots over a 48-h period. Different patterns of Al uptake occurred between M and NM roots. The M roots contained more Al at hour 1, followed by a deep decrease at hour 3, and then increased gradually. However, Al uptake in NM roots increased with time. Foliar Al analysis indicated that Al concentration increased with time in both M and NM plants, but a significant increase of foliar Al concentration during the first 3-h period was not observed in M plants. The results suggested that the rate of Al transport and the redistribution of foliar Al were different in M and NM plants. The higher Al concentration in M roots may be due to the higher CEC in M roots and vice versa. Further, the CEC of M roots was decreased by the respiration inhibitor (CN-) treatment while the CEC of NM roots was not, suggesting that CEC in M roots is related to respiration.
Aluminum (Al) uptake by and root cation exchange capacity (CEC) of mycorrhizal (M) and nonmycorrhizal (NM) blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) plants were studied. Root CEC was higher in M plants than in NM plants, but total and root Al contents were higher in NM plants. Leaf Al content was higher in NM than in M plants after 1 and 5 hours of exposure. The aurintriboxylic acid stain for Al indicated the presence of Al in the M symbiont. Despite a larger root system and higher root CEC, regression analysis indicated roots of M plants absorbed less Al in the first 5 hours, suggesting that Al sequestration in the M symbiont is responsible for reduced total Al uptake. Differences in dry matter partitioning between M and NM plants were also observed.
The water use of three mature highbush blueberry cultivars was determined during the growing season by using TDR technology. A combination of four buriable TDR waveguides at 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-inch depth and two surface waveguides 6- and 18-inch length were installed in a 60-acre commercial `Bluejay', `Bluecrop', and `Jersey' blueberry field with four replications for each cultivar. The reference evapotranspiration (ETo) was obtained for each cultivar from three weather stations located in the vicinity of replicated waveguides. Soil moisture data were collected every 3-5 days from April to the end of September. The average daily crop evapotranspiration (ETc) was significantly different at different plant developmental stages among three cultivars; the highest daily plant water use was during the fruit development stage for all three cultivars. The crop ETc for `Bluejay' and `Elliott' can be as high as 0.35 inches per day and average 1.5 to 2 inches per week during the summer. The estimated crop coefficients at bloom, fruit development, harvest, and postharvest are 0.90, 1.51, 1.05, and 1.05 for `Bluejay'; 0.84, 1.11, 0.99, and 1.23 for `Bluecrop'; and 0.94, 1.30, 1.39, and 1.17 for `Jersey', respectively. The peak water use coincides well with the advancement of fruit maturity, suggesting irrigation scheduling should differ among early, mid, and later season highbush blueberry cultivars.
Cherry leaf spot (CLS), caused by Passalora circumscissa, is a fungal disease that can cause decreased fruit quality and yield via inconsistent ripening or premature defoliation. Germplasm resource screening is the most reliable approach to disease control for economically important crops. However, information is limited in China about the resistance of cherry cultivars to leaf spot caused by P. circumscissa. The aim of this study was to identify the resistance levels of cherry cultivars. Fifty-two cherry cultivars, including 40 Prunus avium, four Prunus pseudocerasus, and eight Prunus cerasus cultivars were collected for resistance level characterization. These specimens were then used to screen for P. circumscissa resistance through both detached leaf assays and natural field infection. Significant differences in the disease index (DI) value among test cultivars, ranging from 5.7 (resistant) to 53.7 (highly susceptible) and 6.5 (resistant) to 53.2 (highly susceptible), were observed under the controlled and field conditions respectively. Correlation coefficients between DI in pairs of years were highly significant (0.77–0.86). Although resistance rankings for cherry cultivars between screening methods were variable, the resistance levels of 52 cultivars evaluated under controlled and field condition were comparable with a correlation coefficient of 0.70 (P < 0.01). The results indicated that, across cherry cultivars, responses to CLS in the detached leaf assay corresponded well to responses under field conditions. A detached leaf assay was developed as a complementary method to facilitate the screening of cherry cultivars for resistance to leaf spot caused by P. circumscissa. Our study provides a theoretical basis for cherry disease resistance breeding and rational cultivar utilization.
Luculia pinceana Hook. (Rubiaceae) is a typical distylous species with dimorphic and long-styled monomorphic populations. Within this study, we developed 13 microsatellite markers from L. pinceana using a modified biotin–streptavidin capture method. Polymorphism of each locus was assessed in 30 individuals from four dimorphic populations and one monomorphic population. The average allele number of these microsatellites was 4.153 per locus ranging from three to seven. The observed and expected heterozygosities were from 0.040 to 0.840 and from 0.571 to 0.769, respectively. Additionally, all 13 identified microsatellite markers were successfully amplified in its related species, L. yunnanensis, 10 of which showed polymorphism. These microsatellite markers could provide a useful tool for further study of the breeding system and the population genetic structure in this species and within other Luculia species.
Fruit abscission occurring severely in the early fruit development affects macadamia yield. Developing effective methods to improve fruit retention is a priority for macadamia cultivation and production. Girdling is an important horticultural practice that has been widely used to increase fruit yield. Previous studies have shown that girdling fails to increase macadamia yield despite enhancing the early fruit set, but few have examined the effect of girdling on its related physiological mechanism. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of main-branch girdling (MBG) on early fruit retention and also on the levels of carbohydrates and endogenous hormones in the leaves, bearing shoots and fruit of macadamia. Herein, MBG was performed at fruit set using a single-blade knife on 9-year-old macadamia trees (Macadamia integrifolia). Results showed that MBG significantly reduced young fruit drop, concurrent with significant increases in the contents of starch in both the leaves and the bearing shoots and in glucose, fructose, and sucrose levels in the husk and seed. It was suggested that the availability of carbohydrate for fruit retention was improved by MBG. Additionally, MBG increased indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), gibberellin (GA3), and zeatin-riboside (ZR, a type of cytokinin) concentrations and decreased abscisic acid (ABA) contents in the husk and the seed, indicating that MBG reduced the early fruit drop by modifying the balance of endogenous hormones. Therefore, a positive interplay between carbohydrates and endogenous hormones induced by MBG was involved in the reduction of early fruit abscission in macadamia.
The ability of mycorrhizal and nonmycorrhizal `Elliott' highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) plants to acquire soil N under different preplant organic soil amendment regimes (forest litter, rotted sawdust, or no amendment) was investigated in a field experiment using 15N labeled (NH4)2SO4. Plants inoculated with an ericoid mycorrhizal isolate, Oidiodendron maius Dalpé (UAMH 9263), had lower leaf 15N enrichment and higher leaf N contents than noninoculated plants but similar leaf N concentrations, indicating mycorrhizal plants absorbed more nonlabeled soil N than nonmycorrhizal plants. Mycorrhizal plants produced more plant dry weight (DW) and larger canopy volumes. The effect of preplant organic amendments on the growth of highbush blueberry plants was clearly demonstrated. Plants grown in soil amended with forest litter produced higher DW than those in either the rotted sawdust amendment or no amendment. Plants grown in soils amended preplant with sawdust, the current commercial recommendation, were the smallest. Differences in the carbon to nitrogen ratio were likely responsible for growth differences among plants treated with different soil amendments.
Aluminum and P interactions were investigated in mycorrhizal (M) and nonmycorrhizal (NM) highbush blueberry plantlets in a factorial experiment. The toxic effects of Al on highbush blueberry were characterized by decreased shoot, root, and total plant dry weight. Many of the negative effects of Al on plant root, shoot, and total dry-matter production were reversed by foliar P and N application, indicating P or N uptake were limited by high Al concentration. However, Al mediated growth reduction in P-stressed plants suggested that the restriction of P uptake by high Al may not have been the only mechanism for Al toxicity in this experiment. Root Al and P concentration were negatively correlated in NM plantlets but not in M plantlets, suggesting mycorrhizal infection may alter P uptake processes. Al uptake also was affected by M infection, with more Al accumulating in M plantlet roots and leaves. Correlations among foliar ion concentrations were also affected by M fungal infection.