Four techniques for compaction amelioration were studied: 1) Vertical drainage panels; 2) vertical gravel-filled sump drains; 3) soil trenches filled with sandy loam; and 4) peat amended back fill. The control was backfilled with existing soil on the site. Vertical drainage mats and vertical gravel-filled sump drains were shown to increase O2% in surrounding soil; however, all O2 levels regardless of treatment were above what is considered limiting. Shoot and root growth of Pyrus calleryana `Redspire' was greatest for treatments that alleviated mechanical impedance (soil trenches and amended back fill) and least for treatments that did not (controls and vertical drains). Vertical drainage mats which alleviated mechanical impedance to a lesser degree showed intermediate growth.
Mechanical stimulation is known to control excessive stem elongation in high-density tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) transplants. Mechanical stimulation using physical impedance provided height control equivalent to that obtained using brushing. Low-cost materials can be used to apply the impedance. Mylar film in a plastic frame was equivalent to expensive acrylic sheets in its effect on plant height (40 mm shorter than nontreated, a 40% reduction in the elongation rate during the treatment period), stem diameter (18% thicker), and biomass (14% lighter) when they applied a pressure of 66 N·m-2. Stem elongation was not reduced if less pressure was applied (25 or 50 N·m-2). Height control was equally effective with a solid material (mylar film) and a permeable material (fiberglass insect screen), indicating that restricting air movement is not an important mechanism for the growth response. Overnight treatments resulted in the desired growth response (27 mm shorter than nontreated, a 30% reduction in elongation rate), but 0.5-h treatments had insufficient effect for commercial use (11 mm shorter, 10% reduction in elongation rate). These experiments demonstrate that impedance can be used in commercial production conditions to control tomato transplant height with inexpensive materials. However, satisfactory height control requires a large applied force and a long daily treatment period.
roots. Different potting media led to an increase in the root number and length; however, the cause is unknown. Conclusions The data support the conclusion that new root growth from ‘PRI 73-50’ slips was limited by mechanical impedance to growth
Excessive stem elongation reduces plant survival in the field and hinders mechanical transplanting. Mechanical conditioning is an effective method for reducing stem elongation during transplant production. This investigation examined the consequences of mechanical conditioning, using brushing and impedance, on subsequent field performance of tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.). Mechanically conditioned transplants of processing tomatoes resumed growth after transplant shock as quickly as did untreated plants, and subsequent canopy development was also equal. In 4 years of field trials, yield was not reduced by mechanical conditioning. Transplants for fresh-market tomatoes may be more sensitive to injury than those for processing tomatoes because they flower sooner after the conditioning treatments. Nevertheless, neither earliness nor defects in the fruits of the first cluster were affected by mechanical conditioning. Early and total yields were equal in both years that fresh-market crops were tested. Thus, there were no adverse effects on field performance of either processing or fresh-market tomatoes as a result of reducing stem elongation by mechanical conditioning before transplanting. Improved wind tolerance was tested both in a wind tunnel and in the field. In wind-tunnel tests, brushed and impeded plants resisted stem bending at wind speeds 4 to 12 km·h–1 higher than did untreated plants. A 70 km·h–1 wind after transplanting killed 12% of untreated plants but only 2% of treated plants. Mechanical conditioning with brushing and impedance produced transplants with desirable qualities without adverse effects on field performance.
Mechanical conditioning is an excellent means of regulating the growth of vegetable transplants and some ornamental bedding plants. It improves the stature, appearance, handling characteristics, and overall quality of treated plants. The application procedures reported for transplants have included wind, shaking, brushing, and more recently impedance; all of which result in physical displacement of the growing points. Brushing has been most commonly studied for mechanical conditioning in high density transplant production. Brushing reduces plant height, increases stem and petiole strength, improves insect resistance in the greenhouse, tends to improve stress tolerance and enhance stand establishment in the field, and has no effect on crop yield. Although growers using the technique have been very pleased with the quality of brushed vegetable transplants, widespread commercial application of brushing is limited by a lack of automation.
Hydathodes of young, folded strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) leaves had unoccluded water pores With various sized apertures, as observed by low-temperature scanning electron microscopy. Hydathodes of fully expanded leaves were brownish and the water pores within the hydathodes were covered with a solid material, presumably comprised of epicuticular waxes and substances excreted through the hydathodes. The entire water pore area of the hydathode was occasionally covered with a shield-like plate. The shield-like plate over the hydathode water pores impeded water flow even with an induced positive pressure. Mechanical scraping of the hydathode area eliminated impedance to water conduction. These observations suggest that external occlusion of water pores in the hydathodes is the resistance component associated with the absence of guttation in older strawberry leaves.
Two field comparisons of conservation tillage tomato production alternatives following wheat were conducted in California's Central Valley. Both studies compared: 1) standard tillage; 2) bed disk or permanent bed minimum tillage; and 3) strip-tillage following winter wheat crops that were harvested the previous June. Processing tomatoes were produced at the site in Davis, Calif., and fresh market tomatoes were grown in Parlier, Calif. At both sites, establishing tomatoes using a commercial transplanter or a modified conservation tillage transplanter achieved adequate stands even in the minimally-tilled strip-till system. Timing of the strip till operation, however, is critical so that large chuncks of dry soil are not brought up and so that these do not create very rough bed surfaces that may cause harvest problems, particularly for processing tomatoes. Machine harvesting the crop at the Davis site did not seem to create any mechanical difficulties or generate additional trash going into the harvest trailer. This may have been due to the fact that by harvest time, the majority of the surface residue from the previous wheat crop had already been broken down or at least sufficiently worked into the soil to pose minimal mechanical harvester impedance or contamination. Tomato yields for the reduced till systems equalled yields of the standard till systems at both sites.
Heart attack and stroke, a leading cause of death in the United States, have been associated with blood platelet aggregation. Onion extract inhibits blood platelet aggregation both in vitro and in vivo. Current trends toward natural foods and health remedies may point to the importance of onion-induced antiplatelet activity (OIAA). The genetic control of OIAA has yet to be revealed. One-hundred-eighty-three F3 families were derived from a long-day mild inbred line crossed to a long-day pungent inbred line that differ by for OIAA by 67%. Families were grown in a RCB design with two replications in muck soil (Randolph, Wis.) in 1997. Extracts were made from crushing bulb tissue in a mechanical juicer. F3 families were evaluated for OIAA and soluble solids (SS). OIAA was measured by electrical impedance aggregometry using two human blood donors. Endpoint (ohms) and slope of the aggregation curve were recorded. SS were measured by refractometry. F3 families were significantly different for OIAA and SS (P < 0.0001) in the ANOVA. A strong positive correlation of 0.96 was revealed for slope of curve and endpoint across families, replications, and blood donors. This correlation has not been previously reported for onion and suggests that for these families, descriptions of OIAA based on either rate of aggregation or endpoint are functionally equivalent. Both SS and OIAA exhibit transgressive segregation in this group of F3 families. Twenty percent exhibit OIAA stronger than the pungent parent and 5% were less than the mild parent. The family with the highest OIAA was 4-fold higher than the pungent parent of the cross, which could be useful in future onion breeding efforts. In addition, transgressive segregation in these families aids in QTL investigations for OIAA, SS and other economically important traits.
The strategy for developing mechanical harvesting of a crop comes from analyzing its technical, economic, social, and environmental aspects. However, the primary drivers are generally the unsustainable high hand harvest costs and lack of available
.5.894 Garner, L.C. Björkman, T. 1997 Using impedance for mechanical conditioning of tomato transplants to control excessive stem elongation HortScience 32 227 229 10.21273/HORTSCI.32.2.227 Garner, L. Langton, A. 1997 Commercial adaptation of