Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science最新文献

{"title":"A Radiation-Modulated Frost Index Improves the Representation of Frost Stress and Yield Response in Winter Wheat","authors":"Yuying Ran,&nbsp;Mengquan Wu,&nbsp;Xinran Luo,&nbsp;Hao Wu,&nbsp;Baoyou Liu,&nbsp;Shaoqing Liu","doi":"10.1111/jac.70260","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70260","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Late spring frost is a major abiotic stress affecting winter wheat (<i>Triticum aestivum</i> L.) production, yet its impact on yield remains difficult to quantify because crop responses depend not only on the intensity of low-temperature exposure but also on environmental conditions following frost events. Conventional frost indices are primarily temperature-based and therefore do not fully capture variability in yield responses under comparable thermal stress conditions. This study aims to improve the representation of frost impacts by incorporating radiation-related information as an additional explanatory factor. A radiation-modulated accumulated frost degree day index (R_AFDD) was developed to integrate temperature deficits with radiation conditions. Using daily meteorological data and county-level yield records from 2015 to 2024 across Shandong Province, China, the performance of this index in explaining yield variability was evaluated in comparison with conventional frost indices. The results indicate that yield responses to frost are nonlinear and strongly condition-dependent. Compared with temperature-based indices, the proposed approach improved the ability to explain yield variability and reduced prediction errors. This improvement is associated with a better representation of variability under similar levels of thermal stress, suggesting that incorporating radiation-related information helps account for differences in environmental conditions linked to yield outcomes. These findings indicate that frost impacts on winter wheat are influenced by both stress intensity and associated environmental conditions. Although the underlying physiological processes were not directly measured, the results are consistent with a role of radiation in shaping conditions that may affect post-frost responses. Overall, this study provides an empirically improved framework for assessing frost impacts and offers practical value for regional-scale risk assessment under increasing climate variability.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70260","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149172820","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nonlinear Modelling Estimates Potassium Sufficiency Ranges for Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) Under Salinity Stress","authors":"Zahra Nasiri,&nbsp;Mohammad Kafi,&nbsp;Behnam Kamkar,&nbsp;Masoumeh Salehi,&nbsp;Jutta Papenbrock","doi":"10.1111/jac.70258","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70258","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;Salinity is a major environmental constraint limiting crop productivity, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. Quinoa (&lt;i&gt;Chenopodium quinoa&lt;/i&gt; Willd.), a facultative halophyte, demonstrates remarkable tolerance to salinity; however, its potassium (K) nutrition dynamics under salt stress remain poorly characterized. This study investigated the role of K in alleviating salinity-induced stress and estimated model-derived K sufficiency ranges associated with quinoa's physiological and agronomic performance under contrasting salinity conditions. Field experiments were conducted over two consecutive years (2022–2023) using a split-plot design with three salinity levels (10, 80, and 160 mM NaCl) imposed by irrigation treatments and seven K concentrations (5–11 mM). A suite of physiological (photosynthesis (Pn), transpiration (E), stomatal conductance (Gs), chlorophyll &lt;i&gt;a&lt;/i&gt; (&lt;i&gt;Chl a),&lt;/i&gt;) and &lt;i&gt;chlorophyll b&lt;/i&gt; (&lt;i&gt;Chl b&lt;/i&gt;)), biochemical (proline, malondialdehyde (MDA)), ionic traits, and seed yield (SY) and relative seed yield (RSY) were measured. Linear, linear-plateau, tent-shaped, and negative exponential decay (NED) regression models were applied to the trait data to characterize response patterns and determine key K thresholds. Model robustness was assessed using leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV), and the resulting validation statistics were compared with the calibration metrics. For the majority of traits, the LOOCV statistics supported the calibration results, confirming the robustness and predictive reliability of the selected models. Across the evaluated traits, the model-derived responses generally supported an approximate K sufficiency range of ~8–10 mM under the experimental conditions. Physiologically, increasing K improved quinoa's photosynthetic performance, gas exchange, and chlorophyll content, with response patterns and K thresholds varying among traits and salinity levels. Under mild salinity, several physiological traits exhibited linear-plateau responses with thresholds of approximately 8.4–9.2 mM K, whereas under moderate salinity, thresholds generally increased to approximately 9.4–10.7 mM K, and some traits, such as stomatal conductance, responded linearly across the tested K range. Increasing K also improved ionic homeostasis by increasing tissue K&lt;sup&gt;+&lt;/sup&gt; and suppressing Na&lt;sup&gt;+&lt;/sup&gt; accumulation. The decline in leaf and shoot Na&lt;sup&gt;+&lt;/sup&gt; concentrations with increasing K supply was well described by negative exponential models, indicating that K supply was strongly associated with reduced tissue Na&lt;sup&gt;+&lt;/sup&gt; accumulation and improved ionic balance. Both SY and RSY exhibited tent-shaped responses under severe salinity: they peaked at an optimal K (~9–10 mM) and then declined at ~11 mM, indicating a supra-optimal K threshold beyond sufficiency. The corresponding model-derived RSY point estimates were 8.8, 9.8, and 9.2 mM K under 10, 80, and 160 mM NaCl, respectively; because confidence interva","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-10-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70258","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149172570","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Root Plasticity and Hormonal Regulation Shape Alfalfa Cultivar Responses to Drought and Waterlogging","authors":"Camila Jaime,&nbsp;Carlos Dezar,&nbsp;Marcos Reyes,&nbsp;Lucas Daurelio,&nbsp;German Dunger","doi":"10.1111/jac.70261","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70261","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Alfalfa (<i>Medicago sativa</i> L.) is a globally strategic forage legume whose productivity is increasingly threatened by climatic variability, particularly recurrent drought and flooding events. Although both stresses disrupt plant water balance, they impose contrasting physiological constraints that require distinct adaptive strategies. Here, we performed an integrative evaluation of three commercial cultivars (Monarca, Matrera and Vaquera) subjected to controlled drought and waterlogging conditions, combining agronomic, anatomical, physiological and molecular analyses. All cultivars survived drought but exhibited significant reductions in chlorophyll content and biomass. Monarca showed the strongest inhibition of root growth and failed to induce ABA-related gene expression, whereas Matrera and Vaquera maintained greater root structural integrity and upregulated genes associated with stress-hormone biosynthesis. Under waterlogging conditions, cultivar-dependent divergence was more pronounced: Matrera displayed severe reductions in root biomass and architecture, whereas Vaquera preserved root area and uniquely developed aerenchyma, a feature associated with its comparatively greater tolerance to hypoxia. Both stresses modified epicuticular wax deposition and stomatal aperture, indicating coordinated regulation of water loss and gas exchange. Differential expression of hormone-related genes (ABA, ethylene, jasmonic acid and salicylic acid) revealed stress-specific and genotype-dependent signalling dynamics. Together, our findings indicate that root morphological plasticity and hormone-mediated signalling are associated with cultivar-specific responses to hydric extremes. These results provide insights into genotype-specific stress responses and suggest root and hormonal traits that may be considered in breeding programmes aimed at improving alfalfa resilience under increasingly variable climate scenarios.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70261","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130437","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Differential Leaf Cuticular Wax Responses to Cold Acclimation in Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua L.) and Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.)","authors":"Devendra Prasad Chalise,&nbsp;Emily Merewitz","doi":"10.1111/jac.70259","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70259","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Winterkill is a major challenge on golf course putting greens in climates that support cool-season turfgrass species, including annual bluegrass (<i>Poa annua</i>) and creeping bentgrass (<i>Agrostis stolonifera</i>). The cuticle is a critical protective outer layer of above-ground plant organs, but its role in the winter resistance of cool-season grasses is not well understood. An enhanced understanding of cuticle-related mechanisms during cold acclimation and overwintering could reveal novel management or breeding strategies to promote turfgrass stress resistance. A 2-year field study was conducted in East Lansing, Michigan, during the 2024–2025 and 2025–2026 autumn/winter seasons to analyse leaf clippings before cold acclimation, during early Nov and late autumn, and post-snow and/or ice melt for total wax content and composition. Creeping bentgrass had 2.69 and 2.53 times more wax coverage than annual bluegrass across sampling dates in the experimental years. Cold acclimation increased wax content in creeping bentgrass during early Nov, but this was not observed in annual bluegrass. The increase in wax was mainly due to C₂₉-nonacosane and C₂₆-hexacosanol, which together accounted for over 82.5% of the total wax across both species and samplings. Creeping bentgrass showed greater variation and retained more wax during winter than annual bluegrass, possibly aiding winter stress tolerance.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70259","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130438","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Saline-Water Irrigation Elicits Hormetic Yield Responses in Sweetpotato Across 28 Genotypes Under Field Conditions","authors":"Johanna Volk,&nbsp;Maria Isabel Andrade,&nbsp;Folkard Asch","doi":"10.1111/jac.70251","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70251","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The use of saline water for irrigation is increasing as the quantity and quality of irrigation water resources are declining. Saline irrigation also provides a means to investigate crop responses to heterogenous salinity, which is a common occurrence in agricultural fields. Crop responses to salinity are dose- and genotype dependent, providing opportunities for sustainably managing saline soils and irrigation water. Sweetpotato, a food security crop in regions often affected by salinity and limited water resources, exhibits broad genotypic variation, which provides potential for selecting salt-adapted genotypes. The effects of saline irrigation on sweetpotato storage root yield were assessed in a split-plot field trial with 28 genotypes during the dry seasons of 2022 and 2023 in Southern Mozambique. The treatments were freshwater irrigation (control) and saline water irrigation, applied at 37 mM NaCl in 2022 and 75 mM NaCl in 2023, respectively. After 5 months, plants were harvested and assessed for aboveground biomass, yield and yield components, and quality traits. Saline irrigation enhanced mean storage root yield, with an increase of 5 t ha⁻¹ in 2022 (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.05) and 2 t ha⁻¹ in 2023 (<i>p</i> &gt; 0.05). In both years, salinity amplified genotypic variation, with 75 mM NaCl enhancing both positive and negative responses. Genotypic yield ranged from 0.3 to 2.2 times the freshwater yield with hormetic optima being genotype specific. Yield stimulation was associated with larger storage roots and higher harvest indices. Genotypes showing positive yield response also exhibited higher dry matter and sucrose, and lower glucose and fructose concentrations in storage roots grown under salinity. The results demonstrate that saline irrigation can induce hormetic responses in sweetpotato, improving yield in specific genotypes. We hypothesize that adaptive biomass allocation mediated by phloem transport is a potential mechanism underlying salinity hormesis. Strong genotype × salinity interactions at 75 mM NaCl indicate that this treatment may serve as an effective selection environment. Targeted use of saline irrigation with adapted genotypes may support the resilience of sweetpotato production under constrained water resources and seasonal salinity.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70251","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149083851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Coupling Oxygen-Enriched Drip Irrigation With an Optimized Nitrogen Rate Improves Yield, Water Productivity and Grain Quality of Winter Wheat: A Two-Season Field Study","authors":"Qi Xu,&nbsp;Wenda Du,&nbsp;Changkun Ma,&nbsp;Quanjiu Wang","doi":"10.1111/jac.70255","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70255","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;Drip irrigation displaces soil air at the emitter and transiently depresses dissolved oxygen (DO) in the wetted root zone, and recovery is slow in fine-textured, slightly saline soils. Whether aeration of the irrigation stream can be combined with nitrogen (N) management to raise water productivity while safeguarding grain quality in winter wheat remains unresolved. Over two growing seasons (2023–2024 and 2024–2025) on a slightly saline sandy loam in the southern Loess Plateau, we compared conventional water (CW; dissolved oxygen 6–8 mg L&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;) with oxygen-enriched water produced by a micro-nano bubble generator (OW; dissolved oxygen 12–15 mg L&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;) under drip fertigation at three N rates (90, 180 and 270 kg ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt;; N1–N3) in a randomized complete block design with three replicates, the same plots carrying the same treatments in both seasons. We measured the post-irrigation DO supply window together with soil water content, mineral N, enzyme and microbial activity, root morphology and activity, leaf gas exchange and fluorescence, dry-matter and N accumulation, grain yield, water productivity (WP) and grain quality, and analysed all variables in a linear mixed model with year as a repeated measure. Relative to CW, OW raised topsoil DO on day 1 after irrigation by 2.5–2.6 mg L&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt; (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; &lt; 0.001) and the elevated DO was still detectable at 7 days; mineral N was repartitioned from &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;mi&gt;NH&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 &lt;mn&gt;4&lt;/mn&gt;\u0000 &lt;mo&gt;+&lt;/mo&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {mathrm{NH}}_4^{+} $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt;-N towards NO&lt;sub&gt;3&lt;/sub&gt;&lt;sup&gt;−&lt;/sup&gt;-N, with &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;mi&gt;NH&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 &lt;mn&gt;4&lt;/mn&gt;\u0000 &lt;mo&gt;+&lt;/mo&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {mathrm{NH}}_4^{+} $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt;-N in the 0–20 cm layer at heading lower by 0.92–1.06 mg kg&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt; (8%–10%) and &lt;span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;math&gt;\u0000 &lt;semantics&gt;\u0000 &lt;mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;mi&gt;NO&lt;/mi&gt;\u0000 &lt;mn&gt;3&lt;/mn&gt;\u0000 &lt;mo&gt;−&lt;/mo&gt;\u0000 &lt;/msubsup&gt;\u0000 &lt;/mrow&gt;\u0000 &lt;annotation&gt;$$ {mathrm{NO}}_3^{-} $$&lt;/annotation&gt;\u0000 &lt;/semantics&gt;&lt;/math&gt;-N higher by 5.8–6.9 mg kg&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt; (21%–24%); and soil enzyme activity, microbial biomass, root length density, root activity and net photosynthesis all increased (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; &lt; 0.001). Grain yield rose by 1305–1314 kg ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt; (18.4%–19.3%) and water productivity by 2.23–2.37 kg ha&lt;sup&gt;−1&lt;/sup&gt; mm&lt;sup&gt;","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70255","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149077648","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biochar and K-fertigation modulate stomatal behaviour, ion homeostasis and water use efficiency in waxy maize seedlings under salt stress","authors":"Chunshuo Liu,&nbsp;Zesen Gao,&nbsp;Jingxiang Hou,&nbsp;Heng Wan,&nbsp;Changtong Xu,&nbsp;Wentong Zhao,&nbsp;Manyi Zhang,&nbsp;Bingjing Cui,&nbsp;Guiyu Wei,&nbsp;Zhenhua Wei","doi":"10.1111/jac.70256","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70256","url":null,"abstract":"<p>K-fertigation and soil amendment could ameliorate the adverse effects of saline stress on <i>C</i>₄ crop physiology and performance, yet the underlying mechanisms remained largely elusive. This study investigated the interactive effects of two K-fertigation regimes (full irrigation and deficit irrigation regime during K-fertigation (FIK and DIK)) combined with two soil amendments (no (CK) and wheat straw biochar (WSB) amendment) on ABA signal, non-stomatal limitation, gas exchange, water use efficiency (WUE) and ion homeostasis in <i>C</i>₄ crops waxy maize seedlings under two salt stress levels (non-salt stress, 0 mM NaCl and salt stress, 120 mM NaCl), totalling eight treatments, each with four biological replicates. The results indicated that salt stress and DIK conjointly reduced 48.19% gas exchange rates, 50.68% water relations and 94.34% leaf K/Na ratio, while increasing 6.37% leaf abscisic acid concentration ([ABA_l]), 22.59% non-stomatal limitation, 1.38% stomatal density and 16.54% carbon isotope discrimination. WSB notably increased 24.26% leaf photosynthetic capacity under salt stress and DIK, primarily by elevating 78.98% [ABA_l] and thereby reducing 4.07% non-stomatal limitation. Moreover, WSB improved 21.05% plant WUE and presented a synergistic effect when associated with the DIK regime, achieving a 7.96% higher plant WUE than either single factor. WSB reduced 30.41% leaf Na⁺ accumulation and increased 59.70% leaf K/Na ratio to recover salt-impaired ion homeostasis. These findings would provide some novel insights for efficient water use and ion homeostasis in <i>C</i>₄ waxy maize seedlings under soil drying and salinity and support further field investigation.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70256","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149068099","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validation and Fine Mapping of Quantitative Trait Loci Associated With Salinity Tolerance at Reproductive Stage on Chromosome 6 in the Rice Variety Nona Bokra","authors":"M M Emam Ahmed,&nbsp;Koki Maeoka,&nbsp;Yuki Sakata,&nbsp;Asami Tomita,&nbsp;Yoshihiko Hirai","doi":"10.1111/jac.70252","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70252","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Soil salinity is a major abiotic stress affecting rice production globally. Previously, one promising salinity-tolerant line (SL535) was identified through screening of Nona Bokra-CSSLs with a Koshihikari background. In 2016, 102 F₂ individuals derived from SL535/Koshihikari were evaluated under long-term salt stress, with salt treatment imposed from the active tillering stage to maturity to investigate salt tolerance at the reproductive stage. Three QTLs for plant dry weight, panicle number, and panicle weight were detected on chromosome 6. This genomic region was further validated in 2019 and 2020 for plant dry weight, tiller number, and Na⁺ and Cl⁻ contents using homozygous lines with or without the Nona Bokra allele in a Koshihikari background. As expected, significantly higher tiller number and lower Na⁺ and Cl⁻ contents were maintained in plants carrying the Nona Bokra allele (NIL) at the full-heading stage. In 2023, seven newly developed NILs were evaluated for agronomic traits under control and salt stress conditions. Based on their performance, the QTL for plant dry weight, qPDW6.1, was narrowed down to a 390 kb region ranging from 4.78 to 5.17 Mb on chromosome 6. Within this region, several stress-related candidate genes were predicted based on annotation information and variant effect prediction analysis. Among them, two genes, <i>Os06g0196700</i> (Auxin response factor 1) and <i>Os06g0199100</i> (P-type pentatricopeptide repeat protein), were considered the most likely candidate genes associated with salt tolerance. These findings provide a foundation for future gene cloning and functional validation studies, which may help elucidate the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying salt tolerance at the reproductive stage.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70252","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149068103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Drought-Induced Anatomical Compensation Stabilizes Gas Exchange in Sorghum","authors":"Oluwatoyosi M. Adaramodu,&nbsp;Brian D. Gregory,&nbsp;Brent Helliker","doi":"10.1111/jac.70257","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70257","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Drought limits carbon gain in crops, yet the functional role of bulliform cells in regulating gas exchange and water-use efficiency remains unclear. Here, we tested whether natural variation in bulliform size alters carbon assimilation rate and whole-leaf water-use efficiency in <i>Sorghum bicolor</i>. Two locally adapted ecotypes with contrasting bulliform cell abundance were examined under well-watered, mild water deficit, and severe (total) drought conditions using integrated anatomical, hydraulic, gas exchange, and time-resolved leaf rolling measurements. Under well-watered conditions, the large-bulliform ecotype (PI-533871, F) exhibited thicker leaves, wider interveinal spacing, greater hydrenchyma, higher stomatal density, and smaller xylem area than the small-bulliform ecotype (PI-656076, A). Under mild water deficit, ecotype F underwent pronounced developmental remodelling of leaf structure, whereas ecotype A showed comparatively little anatomical change. Despite these shifts, carbon assimilation and stomatal conductance were maintained in both ecotypes as leaf water potential declined, and water-use efficiency did not differ between ecotypes or treatments. Leaf rolling showed transient, time-dependent differences between ecotypes and did not predict steady-state gas exchange. Ecotype F maintained higher water content per unit leaf area, consistent with coordinated anatomical compensation that stabilized physiological function. When well-watered plants were subsequently subjected to total drought, ecotype-specific physiological divergence emerged, consistent with a possible contribution of pre-existing hydrenchyma differences to drought responses. Although stomatal conductance declined similarly in both lines, the large bulliform ecotype showed higher carbon assimilation rate and exhibited increased water-use efficiency relative to A, suggesting that its greater hydrenchyma investment could have slowed the physiological decline under extreme water limitation. These findings highlight the importance of considering drought intensity, drought timing relative to leaf development, and coordinated trait responses when interpreting bulliform-associated variation and selecting for drought resilience.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70257","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149068488","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimizing Fertilization in Double-Rice Systems: Balancing Grain Yield, Soil Organic Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Emissions","authors":"Chaoming Ma,&nbsp;Shiyu Qin,&nbsp;Hongen Liu,&nbsp;Wenjian Xia,&nbsp;Fengshuo Zhao,&nbsp;Zhaojun Nie,&nbsp;Haiyang Liu,&nbsp;Peng Zhao,&nbsp;Qian Zhang,&nbsp;Yongfei Ma,&nbsp;Long Wang,&nbsp;Guangxin Li,&nbsp;Mengchan Xie,&nbsp;Yifan Feng,&nbsp;Ningning Jin","doi":"10.1111/jac.70249","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70249","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Addressing the urgent need to balance high yields with environmental sustainability in the Yangtze River's double-rice systems, this study evaluates fertilization strategies combined with a decomposition agent. We aim to identify an optimized regime that enhances grain yield and soil organic carbon while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and to elucidate the underlying metabolic mechanisms. This study conducted a field experiment with four treatments: T1 (conventional fertilization), T2 (conventional fertilization + decomposition agent), T3 (optimized fertilization I, elemental fertilizer + decomposition agent) and T4 (optimized fertilization II, novel slow/controlled-release fertilizer + decomposition agent). The results showed that T4 significantly increased rice yield, with the total double-season yield increasing by 5.7% compared with T1 treatment. In addition, T4 treatment significantly increased soil organic carbon, total nitrogen and available potassium content. The increase rates for early rice and late rice were 19.8% and 21.05%, 28.57% and 20.00% and 76.36% and 77.78%, respectively. The T4 treatment reduced the global warming potential (GWP) and greenhouse gas intensity (GHGI) by 30.5% and 29.5%, respectively, while significantly increasing the activities of nitrate reductase (NR) and glutamine synthetase (GS) in early rice leaves, enhancing nitrogen assimilation capacity. Metabolomics analysis showed that optimized fertilization altered the crop's metabolic profile, characterized mainly by lower abundances of metabolites mapped to lipid and amino acid pathways. In summary, while T3 maximizes immediate emission reduction, the T4 represents a superior comprehensive strategy by synergistically sustaining high crop yields, sequestering soil organic carbon and effectively mitigating global warming potential.</p>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"212 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.2,"publicationDate":"2026-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jac.70249","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149068487","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}