Yield, growth development and grain characteristics of seven Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) genotypes grown in open-field production systems under hot-arid climatic conditions.

Quinoa is an important Andean crop that can play a strategic role in the development of degraded lands in hot arid regions due to its high nutritional value, genetic diversity and its high adaptability to stressful environments. The aim of this work was to evaluate the agronomic performance (growth development, grain yield and grain quality characteristics) of seven quinoa genotypes (Giza1, Sajama, Santa Maria, Q102, Q29, Q27 and Q18) cultivated under open field conditions in the Sahara Desert of Algeria. Using randomized complete block design (4 blocks), field trials were conducted during two cropping seasons (2017-2018 and 2018-2019) from November to April.

Lithic cyanobacterial communities in the polyextreme Sahara Desert: implications for the search for the limits of life.

The hyperarid Sahara Desert presents extreme and persistent dry conditions with a limited number of hours during which the moisture availability, temperature and light allow phototrophic growth. Some cyanobacteria can live in these hostile conditions by seeking refuge under (hypolithic) or inside (endolithic) rocks, by colonizing porous spaces (cryptoendoliths) or fissures in stones (chasmoendoliths). Chroococcidiopsis spp.

Microenvironmental Conditions Drive the Differential Cyanobacterial Community Composition of Biocrusts from the Sahara Desert.

The Sahara Desert is characterized by extreme environmental conditions, which are a unique challenge for life. Cyanobacteria are key players in the colonization of bare soils and form assemblages with other microorganisms in the top millimetres, establishing biological soil crusts (biocrusts) that cover most soil surfaces in deserts, which have important roles in the functioning of drylands. However, knowledge of biocrusts from these extreme environments is limited.