Fungal succession in decomposing ash leaves colonized by the ash dieback pathogen or its harmless relative .

Introduction: The ascomycete , originating from Asia, is currently threatening common ash () in Europe, massive ascospore production from the saprotrophic phase being a key determinant of its invasiveness.

Methods: To consider whether fungal diversity and succession in decomposing leaf litter are affected by this invader, we used ITS-1 metabarcoding to profile changes in fungal community composition during overwintering. The subjected ash leaf petioles, collected from a diseased forest and a healthy ash stand hosting the harmless ash endophyte , were incubated in the forest floor of the diseased stand between October 2017 and June 2018 and harvested at 2-3-month intervals.

Effect of grassland cutting frequency, species mixture, wilting and fermentation pattern of grass silages on in vitro methane yield.

Mitigating enteric methane (CH) emissions is crucial as ruminants account for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. We hypothesised that less frequent harvesting, use of crops with lower WSC concentration, ensiling at low crop dry matter (DM) and extensive lactic acid fermentation would reduce in vitro CH production. Timothy (T), timothy + red clover mixture (T + RC) or perennial ryegrass (RG), cut either two or three times per season, was wilted to 22.

Introducing Semi-Interpenetrating Networks of Chitosan and Ammonium-Quaternary Polymers for the Effective Removal of Waterborne Pathogens from Wastewaters.

The present work aims to study the influence of ammonium-quaternary monomers and chitosan, obtained from different sources, upon the effect of semi-interpenetrating polymer network (semi-IPN) hydrogels upon the removal of waterborne pathogens and bacteria from wastewater. To this end, the study was focused on using vinyl benzyl trimethylammonium chloride (VBTAC), a water-soluble monomer with known antibacterial properties, and mineral-enriched chitosan extracted from shrimp shells, to prepare the semi-IPNs. By using chitosan, which still contains the native minerals (mainly calcium carbonate), the study intends to justify that the stability and efficiency of the semi-IPN bactericidal devices can be modified and better improved.

Sub-arctic mosses and lichens show idiosyncratic responses to combinations of winter heatwaves, freezing and nitrogen deposition.

Arctic ecosystems are increasingly exposed to extreme climatic events throughout the year, which can affect species performance. Cryptogams (bryophytes and lichens) provide important ecosystem services in polar ecosystems but may be physiologically affected or killed by extreme events. Through field and laboratory manipulations, we compared physiological responses of seven dominant sub-Arctic cryptogams (three bryophytes, four lichens) to single events and factorial combinations of mid-winter heatwave (6°C for 7 days), re-freezing, snow removal and summer nitrogen addition.

Performance of Sweet Cherry Cultivars and Advanced Selections on Gisela 5 Rootstock in Young Orchards.

Six sweet cherry cultivars and two advanced selections of Gisela 5 rootstock were tested in 2015-2021 at the Institute of Horticulture, Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry. Fruit trees were planted at distances of 4.5 × 2.

Light exposure of roots in aeroponics enhances the accumulation of phytochemicals in aboveground parts of the medicinal plants and .

Light acts as a trigger to enhance the accumulation of secondary compounds in the aboveground part of plants; however, whether a similar triggering effect occurs in roots is unclear. Using an aeroponic setup, we investigated the effect of long-term exposure of roots to LED lighting of different wavelengths on the growth and phytochemical composition of two high-value medicinal plants, and . In , root exposure to white, blue, and red light enhanced the accumulation of artemisinin in the shoots by 2.

Low precipitation due to climate change consistently reduces multifunctionality of urban grasslands in mesocosms.

Urban grasslands are crucial for biodiversity and ecosystem services in cities, while little is known about their multifunctionality under climate change. Thus, we investigated the effects of simulated climate change, i.e.

Development of a universal height response model for transfer of Norway spruce ( L. Karst) in Fennoscandia.

Norway spruce is a major industrial tree species in Fennoscandia and future productivity of the species must be secured by matching the variation in adaptation of the species with suitable sites for optimized performance. An appropriate transfer model for forest reproductive material (FRM) is crucial for regeneration of productive forests in the changing climatic conditions that are predicted to occur in Fennoscandia. We have developed a transfer model for prediction of height of Norway spruce in Norway, Sweden, and Finland, using data acquired from 438 progeny and provenance trials with 1919 genetic entries of local and transferred origins.

Long-lasting memory of jasmonic acid-dependent immunity requires DNA demethylation and ARGONAUTE1.

Stress can have long-lasting impacts on plants. Here we report the long-term effects of the stress hormone jasmonic acid (JA) on the defence phenotype, transcriptome and DNA methylome of Arabidopsis. Three weeks after transient JA signalling, 5-week-old plants retained induced resistance (IR) against herbivory but showed increased susceptibility to pathogens.

Simple Models Outperform More Complex Big-Leaf Models of Daily Transpiration in Forested Biomes.

Transpiration makes up the bulk of total evaporation in forested environments yet remains challenging to predict at landscape-to-global scales. We harnessed independent estimates of daily transpiration derived from co-located sap flow and eddy-covariance measurement systems and applied the triple collocation technique to evaluate predictions from big leaf models requiring no calibration. In total, four models in 608 unique configurations were evaluated at 21 forested sites spanning a wide diversity of biophysical attributes and environmental backgrounds.

Linking spatial distribution of Rhipicephalus appendiculatus to climatic variables important for the successful biocontrol by Metarhizium anisopliae in Eastern Africa.

Cattle production is constantly threatened by diseases like East Coast fever, also known as theileriosis, caused by the protozoan parasite Theileria parva which is transmitted by ticks such as the brown ear tick, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus. To reduce the extensive use of chemical acaricides, fungal-based microbial control agents such as Metarhizium anisopliae have been tested and show promising results against R. appendiculatus both in field and in semi-field experiments in Africa.

liquid culture of the mollusc-parasitic nematode (Rhabditida: Rhabditidae).

The success of the mollusc-parasitic nematode, (Schneider) Andrássy (Rhabditida: Rhabditidae), as a biological control agent in Europe has led to worldwide interest in phasmarhabditids as biocontrol agents. In this study, the mass culture potential of three phasmarhabditids, namely , and , was assessed. In addition, ten bacterial candidates, consisting of seven associated with slugs and three associated with entomopathogenic nematodes, were investigated.

Comparative analysis of the anthelmintic efficacy of European heather extracts on Teladorsagia circumcincta and Trichostrongylus colubriformis egg hatching and larval motility.

Background: Gastrointestinal nematode (GIN) control is traditionally achieved with the use of anthelmintic drugs, however due to regulations in organic farming and the rise in anthelmintic resistance, alternatives are sought after. A promising alternative is the use of bioactive plant feeding due to the presence of plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) such as proanthocyanidins (PAs). This study focussed on the perennial shrub heather (Ericaceae family), a plant rich in PAs, highly abundant across Europe and with previously demonstrated anthelmintic potential.

Rapid and accurate determination of protein content in North Atlantic seaweed by NIR and FTIR spectroscopies.

Seaweed is considered a potentially sustainable source of protein for human consumption, and rapid, accurate methods for determining seaweed protein contents are needed. Seaweeds contain substances which interfere with common protein estimation methods however. The present study compares the Lowry and BCA protein assays and protein determination by N-ratios to more novel spectroscopic methods.

Microcosm test for pesticide fate assessment in planted water filters: C,N-labeled glyphosate as an example.

Planted filters are often used to remove pesticides from runoff water. However, the detailed fate of pesticides in the planted filters still remains elusive. This hampers an accurate assessment of environmental risks of the pesticides related to their fate and thereby development of proper mitigation strategies.

Farmer surveys in Europe suggest that specialized, intensive farms were more likely to perceive negative impacts from COVID-19.

Unlabelled: It has been shown that the COVID-19 pandemic affected some agricultural systems more than others, and even within geographic regions, not all farms were affected to the same extent. To build resilience of agricultural systems to future shocks, it is key to understand which farms were affected and why. In this study, we examined farmers' perceived robustness to COVID-19, a key resilience capacity.

Effects of Post-Harvest Elicitor Treatments with Ultrasound, UV- and Photosynthetic Active Radiation on Polyphenols, Glucosinolates and Antioxidant Activity in a Waste Fraction of White Cabbage ( var. ).

Biosynthesis of phytochemicals in leaves of can be initiated by abiotic factors. The aim of the study was to investigate elicitor treatments to add value to waste of cabbage. A leaf waste fraction from industrial trimming of head cabbage was exposed to UV radiation (250-400 nm, 59 and 99 kJ∙m, respectively), photosynthetic active radiation (PAR, 400-700 nm, 497 kJ∙m), and ultrasound in water bath (35 kHz, at 15, 30 and 61 kJ∙l water), in order to improve nutraceutical concentration.

Development of a Decision Support System for the Management of Mummy Berry Disease in Northwestern Washington.

Mummy berry, caused by , is the most important disease of the northern highbush blueberry ( L.) in North America and can cause up to 70% yield losses in affected fields. A key event in the mummy berry disease cycle is the primary infection phase where ascospores are released by apothecia that infect emerging floral and vegetative tissues.

The Coordinated Action of MYB Activators and Repressors Controls Proanthocyanidin and Anthocyanin Biosynthesis in .

berries are regarded as "superfoods" owing to their high concentrations of anthocyanins, flavonoid metabolites that provide pigmentation and positively affect human health. Anthocyanin localization differs between the fruit of cultivated highbush blueberry () and wild bilberry (), with the latter having deep red flesh coloration. Analysis of comparative transcriptomics across a developmental series of blueberry and bilberry fruit skin and flesh identified candidate anthocyanin regulators responsible for this distinction.