Mowing increased community stability in semiarid grasslands more than either fencing or grazing.

A substantial body of empirical evidence suggests that anthropogenic disturbance can affect the structure and function of grassland ecosystems. Despite this, few studies have elucidated the mechanisms through which grazing and mowing, the two most widespread land management practices, affect the stability of natural grassland communities. In this study, we draw upon 9 years of field data from natural grasslands in northern China to investigate the effects of gazing and mowing on community stability, specifically focusing on community aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and dominance, which are two major biodiversity mechanisms known to characterize community fluctuations.

High stocking rates effects in continuous season long grazing reduces the contribution of microbial necromass to soil organic carbon in a semi-arid grassland in Inner Mongolia.

Livestock grazing strongly influences the accumulation of soil organic carbon (SOC) in grasslands. However, whether the changes occurring in SOC content under different intensities of continuous summer long grazing are associated with the changes in microbially-derived necromass C remains unclear. Here, we established a sheep grazing experiment in northern China in 2004 with four different stocking rates.

Effects of nitrogen fertilization and a commercial arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal inoculant on root rot and agronomic production of pea and lentil crops.

In the Canadian prairies, pulse crops such as field pea ( L.) and lentil ( L.) are economically important and widely grown.

A Combination of Leaf Rust Resistance Genes, Including and , Is the Key to the Durable Resistance of the Canadian Wheat Cultivar, Carberry.

The hexaploid spring wheat cultivar, Carberry, was registered in Canada in 2009, and has since been grown over an extensive area on the Canadian Prairies. Carberry has maintained a very high level of leaf rust ( Eriks.) resistance since its release.

Mapping quantitative trait loci associated with leaf rust resistance in five spring wheat populations using single nucleotide polymorphism markers.

Growing resistant wheat (Triticum aestivum L) varieties is an important strategy for the control of leaf rust, caused by Puccinia triticina Eriks. This study sought to identify the chromosomal location and effects of leaf rust resistance loci in five Canadian spring wheat cultivars. The parents and doubled haploid lines of crosses Carberry/AC Cadillac, Carberry/Vesper, Vesper/Lillian, Vesper/Stettler and Stettler/Red Fife were assessed for leaf rust severity and infection response in field nurseries in Canada near Swift Current, SK from 2013 to 2015, Morden, MB from 2015 to 2017 and Brandon, MB in 2016, and in New Zealand near Lincoln in 2014.

Mapping quantitative trait loci associated with common bunt resistance in a spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) variety Lillian.

Based on their consistency over environments, two QTL identified in Lillian on chromosomes 5A and 7A could be useful targets for marker assisted breeding of common bunt resistance. Common bunt of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) caused by Tilletia tritici and T.

Genetic map-guided genome assembly reveals a virulence-governing minichromosome in the lentil anthracnose pathogen Colletotrichum lentis.

Colletotrichum lentis causes anthracnose, which is a serious disease on lentil and can account for up to 70% crop loss. Two pathogenic races, 0 and 1, have been described in the C. lentis population from lentil.

RNA-Seq Analysis of Plant Maturity in Crested Wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum L.).

Crested wheatgrass ( L.) breeding programs aim to develop later maturing cultivars for extending early spring grazing in Western Canada. Plant maturity is a complex genetic trait, and little is known about genes associated with late maturity in this species.

Quantitative trait loci for resistance to stripe rust of wheat revealed using global field nurseries and opportunities for stacking resistance genes.

Quantitative trait loci controlling stripe rust resistance were identified in adapted Canadian spring wheat cultivars providing opportunity for breeders to stack loci using marker-assisted breeding. Stripe rust or yellow rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis Westend. f.

QTL mapping reveals genetic determinants of fungal disease resistance in the wild lentil species Lens ervoides.

Lens ervoides, a wild relative of lentil is an important source of allelic diversity for enhancing the genetic resistance of the cultivated species against economically important fungal diseases, such as anthracnose and Stemphylium blight caused by Colletotrichum lentis and Stemphylium botryosum, respectively. To unravel the genetic control underlying resistance to these fungal diseases, a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population (n = 94, F) originating from a cross between two L. ervoides accessions, L01-827A and IG 72815, was genotyped on the Illumina HiSeq 2500 platform.

RNA-Seq analysis of gene expression for floral development in crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum L.).

Crested wheatgrass [Agropyron cristatum L. (Gaertn.)] is widely used for early spring grazing in western Canada and the development of late maturing cultivars which maintain forage quality for a longer period is desired.