Italian Journal of Agronomy最新文献

{"title":"Deconstructing agronomic resource use efficiencies to increase food production","authors":"J. Porter, P. Thorburn, H. Brown, E. Teixeira, D. Moot, A. Mills, S. Christensen","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1694","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1694","url":null,"abstract":"Food production per unit land area needs to be increased, thus cropping systems need to use nutrients, water and solar radiation at as close to maximal efficiencies as possible. We deconstruct these efficiencies into their components to define a theoretical crop ideosystem, in which all resource use efficiencies are maximised. This defines an upper biological limit to food production. We then quantify the difference between maximum use efficiencies and those observed in three agronomic systems (maize, cocksfoot, sugarcane) and identify how, in actual farm systems, efficiencies can be raised to raise food production. We find that crop nutrient use efficiency can be limited by low water availability; thus adding nutrients would not raise production but adding water would. The converse situation of water use efficiency being affected by nutrition is not as evident. Ideosystem thinking can be used to define smalland large-scale agronomic systems that optimize water and nutrient use to maximise food production. Introduction Providing food for an expanding human population using lower levels of resource input, and in the face of an increasingly hostile climate (Porter et al., 2014), has led to the notion of sustainable intensification. This posits a simultaneous increase in primary production and resource use efficiencies (Garnett et al., 2013), with the main resources being water, nutrients and solar radiation. Efficiency is defined as the amount of output per unit input (Fischer et al., 2014). Efforts to find mainly genetics-based solutions to increased crop production efficiency in the field have been Ac ce pt ed p ap er disappointing (Sinclair and Rufty, 2012), mainly because of a lack of focus on and understanding of whole cropping systems. We think, as agronomists, that sustainable intensification lacks operationalization and quantification (Garnett et al., 2013). Thus, in this paper we show two things: deconstruction of cropping system intensification into operational and quantifiable resource (water, nitrogen, radiation) use efficiencies, and an assessment of the maximum level of these efficiencies that sets an absolute upper limit to food production from three systems. We measure the sustainability of intensification via the degree of closure in crop nutrient and water cycles and the minimisation of losses. Other tools, such as complex crop models (Ewert et al., 1999; Jones et al., 2003; Holzworth et al., 2014,), are too detailed to help policy persons and/or farmers define where efforts would best be focused to raise the sustainable intensification of food production. One insight offered by our method is that resource use efficiencies interact asymmetrically and that the efficiency of, for example, nutrient use depends also on water use efficiency. The policy implication is that focussing on raising water use efficiency alone is likely to benefit nutrient use efficiency and contribute to raising crop production without additional nutrient inp","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43135067","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Synthetic nitrogen coupled with seaweed extract and microbial inoculants improves rice (Oryza sativa L.) production under a dual cropping system","authors":"Huimin Xie, Ke Wu, A. Iqbal, Izhar Ali, Liang He, Saif Ullah, Shangqin Wei, Quan Zhao, Xiaoyan Wu, Qian-chun Huang, Ligeng Jiang","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1800","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1800","url":null,"abstract":"The over-reliance on synthetic nitrogen (N) in current farming is a major concern because of its adverse effects on soil quality, the environment, and crop production. Organic fertilizers such as seaweed extract (SE) and microbial inoculants (MI) provide alternatives to chemical fertilizers that could decrease the amount of synthetic N needing to be applied and improve crop growth productivity. This study evaluated the combined effect of SE and MI with reduced N rates on the growth, biomass accumulation, yield, and yield components of an N-efficient rice cultivar (Baixiang 139-A) and N-inefficient rice cultivar (Guiyu 9-B). Field experiments were conducted in the early and late growing seasons at different sites in Guangxi province, China, in 2019. A total of five treatments, such as T1: N 180 + SE 0 + MI 0 (kg ha–1) (control); T2: N 180 + SE 3 + MI 3 (kg ha –1); T3: N 144 + SE 3 + MI 3 (kg ha–1); T4: N 126 + SE 3 + MI 3 (kg ha–1); and T5: N 108 + SE 3 + MI 3 (kg ha–1) were used. The leaf area index (LAI), effective panicle number, grain per spike, grain filling rate, and 1000-grain weight were significantly increased in T2 and T3 compared with the control. The treatments T2 and T3 enhanced the biomass accumulation and grain yield of rice compared with the control. Furthermore, differences in the growth, yield, and yield components among the different cultivars were significant; however, there were no significant differences among the different locations. T3 increased the LAI, grain filling rate, biomass accumulation, and grain yield of rice by 4.5%, 5.9%, 6.6%, and 5.2%, respectively, compared with the control. Improvements in grain yield were mainly attributed to the enhanced growth and yield components. The correlation analysis also confirmed that LAI, productive tillers, grain filling rate, and biomass accumulation were positively correlated with grain yield. In sum, T3 [N144 + SE 3 + MI 3 (kg ha–1)] could achieve higher grain yield despite a reduction in the usage of chemical N. Generally, this study provides a sustainable nutrient management plan that increases crop production while minimizing costs of chemical N fertilizer application.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42122892","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Smart fertilizers: what should we mean and where should we go?","authors":"Giorgia Raimondi, C. Maucieri, Arianna Toffanin, G. Renella, M. Borin","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1794","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1794","url":null,"abstract":"The current agricultural system faces several challenges, the most important being the ability to feed the increasing world population and mitigate climate change. In this context, the improvement of fertilizers’ agronomic efficiency while reducing their cost and environmental impact is one of the biggest tasks. Available literature shows that many efforts have been made to develop innovative fertilizers defined as ‘smart fertilizers’, for which, different interpretations and definitions have been used. This paper aims to define, classify, and describe the new frontier of the so-called smart fertilizers with a particular focus on field-scale studies on herbaceous species. Most of the analysed papers associate the ‘smart’ concept to the controlled and/or slow release of nutrients, using both terms as synonymous. Some others broadened the concept, including the controlled release of nutrients to reduce the environmental impact. Based on our critical analysis of the available literature, we conclude that a fertilizer can be considered ‘smart’ when applied to the soil, it allows control over the rate, timing, and duration of nutrients release. Our new definition is: ‘Smart fertilizer is any single or composed (sub)nanomaterial, multi-component, and/or bioformulation containing one or more nutrients that, through physical, chemical, and/or biological processes, can adapt the timing of nutrient release to the plant nutrient demand, enhancing the agronomic yields and reducing the environmental impact at sustainable costs when compared to conventional fertilizers’.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45711631","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Application of Zn-containing foliar fertilisers for recovery of the grain productivity potential of Zn-deficient maize plants","authors":"K. Ivanov, A. Vasilev, A. Mitkov, N. Nguyen, T. Tonev","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1759","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1759","url":null,"abstract":"Maize is one of the most sensitive industrial crops of zinc supply. Questions about fertilisation methods and the type of fertilisers used are the subject of serious scientific discussion. The key objective of this paper was to evaluate the possibilities to recover the yielding potential of Zn-deficient young maize plants by application of nanosized Zn-containing foliar fertilisers. The agronomic response of Zn-deficient maize plants to foliar fertilisation with nanoscale zinc-containing foliar fertilisers was investigated. The study was conducted in two stages: i) planting and growing the plants under controlled conditions in a zinc-deficient environment for three months; and ii) moving the plants and continuing the experiment in field conditions. A single spray with two nanosized zinc-containing foliar fertilisers was carried out. The physiological status of the plants and the dynamic of zinc and microand macroelements concentration in plant organs were monitored. The influence of foliar zinc fertilisation on yield and grain structural components has been determined. Our results indicated that zinc fertilisation throughout the initial growth stages plays a decisive role in the formation of the reproductive organs of maize plants. Foliar zinc fertilisers can entirely recover the physiological performance of plants grown under conditions of zinc deficiency.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47443001","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A multi-criteria qualitative tool for the sustainability assessment of organic durum wheat-based farming systems designed through a participative process","authors":"I. Iocola, L. Colombo, Giovanni Dara Guccione, P. De Vita, M. Palumbo, Vincenzo Ritunnano, F. Sciacca, N. Virzì, S. Canali","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1785","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1785","url":null,"abstract":"The agriculture sustainability assessment is a difficult issue for the coexistence of conflicting objectives and the multidimensionality of the performances. The environmental, economic and social pillars need to be simultaneously considered in an assessment to evaluate potential synergies and trade-offs of the agricultural processes within and among the attributes of the dimensions in both implemented systems (ex-post analysis) and potential options (ex-ante analysis). Among several sustainability assessment methods, tools based on multi-criteria analysis (MCA) are increasingly adopted in evaluating sustainability in agriculture. The aim of this work was to present the MCA tool developed in the framework of the BioDurum project for the sustainability assessment of organic farms located in southern Italy and characterised by durum wheat-based crop rotations. The tool was entirely designed through a participatory process and it was realised using the open-source DEXi software that have demonstrated to be particularly suitable for creating qualitative multi-criterial hierarchic models with the engage of stakeholders. The hierarchic structure of BioDurum_MCA tool was resulted composed by 64 indicators and 45 aggregated attributes articulated in three branches representing the agro-environment, economic, and social sustainability pillars. The articulated structure of the tool reflected the complexity and the sustainability issues and priorities expressed by the involved stakeholders. The tool was tested in four Italian organic farms presenting different agro-environmental and socio-economic patterns for their ex-post evaluations and in three different ex-ante production systems identified in compliance with the Italian regulation concerning the requirements of the rotations to be implemented in organic farming. The results highlighted the well discriminatory power of the tool. The best overall sustainability scores were reached in both ex-post and ex-ante analysis by the well diversified cereal farming systems with processed products sold through short supply chain mechanisms. BioDurum_MCA has proved to be a feasible tool to identify strengths and weaknesses of organic durum wheat-based production systems. Its adoption can support the definition of specific interventions for the sector in the Italian Strategic National Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy. Further improvements in the threshold classes of some indicators by using the tool in a wider number of Italian durum wheat based organic farms will increase model sensitivity and reliability of the results. \u0000Highlights - BioDurum_MCA is an effective tool for sustainability assessment of durum wheat organic Italian production systems. - Hierarchic structure of the tool reflects the sustainability issues and priorities expressed by involved stakeholders. - MCA tools can support a holistic evaluation of farm sustainability performances in the frame of post-2020 CAP.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-02-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46648958","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Low-input cultivation of camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz) in a Mediterranean semi-arid environment","authors":"G. Avola, O. Sortino, F. Gresta","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1728","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1728","url":null,"abstract":"The cultivation of oil crops for biofuel production has often been accused of not being environmentally sustainable due to the high inputs needed. To explore the effect of reduced input on productive and qualitative traits of camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz), a trial was carried out over a two-year period. This study analysed two different levels of input: a low input treatment (shallow non-inversion tillage and low fertilisation rate) and a high input treatment (deeper tillage and high fertilisation rate). Camelina was positively, even though to a limited extent, affected by high input treatment as highlighted by the increase in seed yield (from 1.8 to 2.0 t ha–1), crop residues (from 4.8 to 5.2 t ha–1), seed protein content (from 26.5 to 28.9%), seed oil content (from 41.5 to 43.4%) and oil yield (from 0.75 to 0.88 t ha–1). So, from a sustainable point of view, we must consider negligible the effect of high input and satisfactory the performances of camelina in the low input regime. Low input management resulted in satisfactory yields in terms of both quantity and quality, results which were not very different from high input, indicating promising potential for conservation agriculture practices in camelina in a semi-arid environment.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-01-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41467909","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"On farm survival of Apulian legume and cereal landraces in relation to land cover/land use changes. A case study","authors":"A. Piergiovanni, B. Margiotta","doi":"10.4081/IJA.2021.1724","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/IJA.2021.1724","url":null,"abstract":"Apulia (southeast of Italy) has always been an agricultural region in the Italian landscape. Nowadays, the countryside is a mix of natural environments and artificial landscapes. From 2014 to 2016, the region has been the object of a project aimed to collect information about geographic position and surface devoted to legume and/or cereal landrace cultivation. The collection missions carried out allowed the acquisition of 352 samples belonging to eight legumes and six cereal species. Chickpeas predominated among legumes, while durum and common wheat landraces prevailed among cereals. The cultivation of these landraces was mainly located in the marginal areas of central and southern Apulia region. The geographical information system technology, used in order to geo-reference the collection sites, allowed investigating the changes in land cover/land use (LCLU) occurred over the last three decades at each collecting site. In addition to the evidences collected at field level, the comparison of old ortho-photos and recent satellite images, available on Copernicus Land Monitoring Service of European Environment Agency, shown that very limited changes of LCLU have occurred. Near the collection sites, the agrarian landscape is remained highly fragmented as it was three decades ago. The cultivation side by side of irregular patches with legumes, cereals, olive trees, and grapevine characterise the agricultural landscape. Based on these evidences it can be infer that the absence of significant changes in LCLU has play a positive role in the safeguard of on farm conservation of Apulian landraces.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-01-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44546104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Improved salinity tolerance in early growth stage of maize through salicylic acid foliar application","authors":"Iqra Sultan, I. Khan, M. U. Chattha, M. Hassan, L. Barbanti, Roberta Calone, Muqarrab Ali, Shahid Majid, M. A. Ghani, Maria Batool, Warda Izzat, Sajid Usman","doi":"10.4081/ija.2021.1810","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/ija.2021.1810","url":null,"abstract":"Soil salinity threatens agricultural production worldwide by constraining plant growth and final crop yield. The early stages are most sensitive to salinity, in response to which salicylic acid (SA) has demonstrated beneficial effects in various plant species. Based on this, a maize (Zea mays L.) pot experiment was set up combining three levels of soil salinity (0, 6 and 12 dS m–1), obtained through NaCl addition, with three levels of SA (0, 300 and 600 mM), applied by leaf spraying 20 days after seedling emergence. Fifteen days later, the following traits were assessed: morphology (plant height, leaf number), growth (root and shoot dry weight), leaf water status [relative water content (RWC), electrolyte leakage (EL)], pigments (chlorophyll a and b, carotenoids, anthocyanin), antioxidant enzymes (peroxidase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, vitamin C), oxidative stress markers (H2O2, malondialdehyde), osmo-regulating compounds (free amino acids, soluble proteins and sugars, proline), hormones [indole-3-acetic acid, gibberellic acid (GA), abscisic acid (ABA), ethylene], element (Na, K, Ca, Mg and Cl) concentration and content in roots, stem and leaves. Salinity severely affected maize growth (–26% total dry weight), impaired leaf water status (–31% RWC), reduced photosynthetic pigments, enhanced all antioxidant enzymes and oxidative stress markers, two osmo-regulating compounds (soluble sugars and proline) out of four, and all hormones except GA. SA was shown effective in containing most of the stress effects, while supporting plant defences by upgrading antioxidant activities (reduced oxidative stress markers), increasing cell membrane stability (–24% EL) and leaf water status (+20% RWC), and reducing plant stress signalling (–10% ABA and -20% ethylene). Above all, SA contrasted the massive entry of noxious ions (Na+ and Cl–), in favour of K+, Ca2+ and Mg2+ accumulation. Lastly, salicylic acid was shown beneficial for maize growth and physiology also under non-saline condition, suggesting a potential use in normal field conditions. Highlights - Foliar applied salicylic acid alleviated salinity effects on maize growth at early plant stage. - Salicylic acid improved leaf water status, chlorophyll content, and strengthened anti-oxidant enzymes under salinity. - Salicylic acid reduced oxidative stress markers while enhancing osmo-regulating and hormonal responses to salinity. - Salicylic acid hampered Na and Cl entry and translocation to above ground organs, preserving leaf cell membrane integrity. - Salicylic acid was shown beneficial for maize growth and physiology also under non-saline conditions.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70190786","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of overseeding times on different warm-season turfgrasses: Visual turf quality and some related characteristics","authors":"S. Ozkan, B. Kir","doi":"10.4081/ija.2021.1820","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/ija.2021.1820","url":null,"abstract":"The sustainability of warm-season turfgrass species in winter dormancy is a major concern in Mediterranean ecology. The concept of overseed a lawn has been still new for many developing countries such as Turkey as part of a regular maintenance. Therefore, a 2-year study was conducted at the experimental fields of Ege University, Izmir/Turkey during 2014-2016 years to compare the effects of four different overseeding times (September 15, September 30, October 15 and October 30) on four warm season turfgrass species (Cynodon dactylon cv. SR9554, Cynodon dactylon × Cynodon transvaalensis cv. Tifway-419, Paspalum vaginatum cv. Sea Spray and Zoysia japonica cv. Zenith) by measuring visual turf quality (1-9 score) and some related characteristics as texture (mm), cover (1-9 score), weed infestation (1-9 score) and colour (1-9 score). ‘50% cv. Troya+50% cv. Esquire’ perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) mixture was used for overseeding in trial. According to results, visual turf quality performance of 6.0 scores and above were obtained from all treatments. We concluded that October 15 should be most suitable time for overseeding applications. Additionally, L. perenne L. can be practiced successfully in Mediterranean region in order to eliminate the concerns of warm-season turfgrasses in the winter dormancy period observed in cold temperatures. Highlights - No gaps were formed in plots and high coverage degrees were maintained during overseeding periods in all treatments. - Homogeneous spring transition was occurred from Lolium perenne L. to warm-season turfgrass species in all overseeding times. - Visual turf quality performance of 6.0 scores and above which is acceptable level were obtained from all overseeding times. - Better results were obtained from overseeding applications on Paspalum vaginatum and Cynodon dactylon × Cynodon transvaalensis. - The different results among the warm-season turfgrass species can provide effective information for future research studies.","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"70190913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Forage and grain yields of dual-purpose triticale as influenced by the integrated use of Azotobacter chroococcum and mineral nitrogen fertilizer","authors":"H. Salama, H. Badry","doi":"10.4081/ija.2020.1719","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4081/ija.2020.1719","url":null,"abstract":"The utilization of dual-purpose cereals is encouraged in the Mediterranean environments to fill a feed gap during the winter season. Triticale is a promising dual-purpose crop for forage and grain production. Studies on the variations in productivity and quality of dual-purpose triticale under variable fertilization management are scarce. This study was carried out during winter 2018/2019 and 2019/2020, in Northern Egypt, to evaluate the performance of triticale grown in dual-purpose and grain-only production systems under variable mineral N (mN) rates (zero, 25, 50, 75% of the recommended), accompanied with Azotobacter chroococcum (AC) seed inoculation, as well as 100% mN application without AC. The application of 50% mN with AC seed inoculation resulted in an average of 7.23, 7.27 t ha-1, forage and grain yields, respectively. Moreover, forage and grain crude protein reached 125.57, and 200.60 g kg-1, respectively. Forage fiber fractions were nonsignificantly variable among the fertilizer treatments. Azotobacter chroococcum seed inoculation, thus, allowed for the reduction of the used amount of mN to 50% without sacrificing the forage and grain yields and protein content. In the dual-purpose system, an average of 7.23 t ha-1 forage yield was obtained with little reduction in the grain yield (19% reduction in average). Meanwhile, grain CP content was higher in dual-purpose system (201.38 g kg-1) than in grain-only system (182.98 g kg-1). In similar conditions to the current study, it is recommended to expand the production of dual-purpose triticale in the winter while reducing mN fertilizer rate to 50% in combination with AC seed inoculation. Introduction Ac ce pt ed p ap er Sustainable agriculture encourages the integration of crop and livestock production systems, in order to make the maximum benefit out of the available agricultural inputs, especially in the developing countries suffering from increased populations and limited resources. However, one of the main challenges facing this mixed farming system is the exposure of livestock to seasonal feed gaps, especially in the winter. Thus, there is a pressing need to expand the utilization of dualpurpose winter cereals, as a successful strategy to fill the feed gap in the winter season (Bell et al. 2015). These are crops that are cut during the vegetative growth stage, early in the winter, and then left till maturity and grain production. This practice is highly encouraged, especially in the Mediterranean countries to narrow the gap between feed demand and supply (Sadreddine 2016; Rajae et al. 2017; Salama 2019). Triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack) is a hybrid crop species developed by crossing two cereal crops; i.e., wheat (Triticum spp.) and rye (Secale cereale L.). It combines the best of both crops, the nutritional value of wheat along with the hardiness and nutrient-use efficiency of rye (Ayalew et al. 2018). Thus, triticale became an alternative cereal crop, mainly grown for grain produc","PeriodicalId":14618,"journal":{"name":"Italian Journal of Agronomy","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2020-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43085298","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}