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Topic Review
Heat Stress on Wheat Grain Yield and Quality
Climate change threatens to impact wheat productivity, quality and global food security. Maintaining crop productivity under abiotic stresses such as high temperature is therefore imperative to managing the nutritional needs of a growing global population.
  • 1.4K
  • 22 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Crop Diversification and Weed Control
Weeds can be defined as any plant that is objectionable or interferes with the activities or welfare of humans. In a crop production system, weeds compete for the same resources as the crops, such as water, nutrients, sunlight, and space, limiting crop productivity. Aggressive weed competition reduces crop yield significantly and adds further cost to crop production owing to their management. Yield loss due to weeds depends on several factors such as density, time of emergence, type of weed, and crop type. 
  • 1.4K
  • 02 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Constraints to Cowpea Production
Climate change and variability trends affect crop yields both directly and indirectly. Direct impacts include effects caused by a modification of physical characteristics such as low or high atmospheric temperature, soil fertility level, and water deficiency or erratic rainfall distribution in specific crop production systems. Indirect effects are those that affect production through changes in other species such as pollinators, insect pests, diseases, and weeds. These indirect effects can play a significant role in the production and productivity of cowpea. These limiting factors can broadly be termed abiotic and biotic stresses, resulting in climatic variations and ultimately reducing cowpea yield potential and its productivity.
  • 1.3K
  • 27 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Aspergillus fumigatus
Aspergillus fumigatus is a ubiquitous saprophytic fungus. Inhalation of A. fumigatus spores can lead to Invasive Aspergillosis (IA) in people with weakened immune systems. The use of triazole antifungals with the demethylation inhibitor (DMI) mode of action to treat IA is being hampered by the spread of DMI-resistant “ARAf” (azole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus) genotypes.
  • 1.3K
  • 21 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Biochar in Soil Systems Regulation
Biochar is a carbon-rich material prepared from the pyrolysis of biomass under various conditions. Recently, biochar drew great attention due to its promising potential in climate change mitigation, soil amendment, and environmental control. Obviously, biochar can be a beneficial soil amendment in several ways including preventing nutrients loss due to leaching, increasing N and P mineralization, and enabling the microbial mediation of N2O and CO2 emissions.
  • 1.3K
  • 25 Jun 2021
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Climate Change Challenges in Temperate and Sub-Tropical Fruit Tree Cultivation
In the last few years, the world has experienced the impacts of climate change, such as elevated mean annual temperature, extreme weather events, drought, etc. Among living organisms, perennial plant species are the ones mostly exposed to climate change impacts, as they may experience different extreme events within the same year, such as flooding during some periods and drought in summer months, extremely low temperatures in winter but excessively high temperatures in summer, etc. Climate change affects a range of physiological functions of temperate fruit and nut tree species, such as their phenophases, bud dormancy release and vernalization, pollination and fruit set, fruit growth and quality, as well as bud sprouting and growth initiation. Besides these, the impact of climate change on pests, diseases, and weeds may generate significant negative interactions with tree physiology, threatening food production, food safety, and human welfare. In the present manuscript, a general aspect of climate change impacts on fruits’ and nut trees’ physiological functions is described and commented on.
  • 1.3K
  • 27 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Agro-Industrial Waste Composting Process Enhancement via Microbial Inoculation
Composting is an important technology used to treat and convert organic waste into value-added products. Recently, several studies have been done to investigate the effects of microbial supplementation on the composting of agro-industrial waste. According to these studies, microbial inoculation is considered to be one of the suitable methods for enhancing the biotransformation of organic materials during the composting process.
  • 1.3K
  • 19 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Biofumigation for Fighting Replant Disease
Replant disease is a soil (micro-) biome-based, harmfully-disturbed physiological and morphological reaction of plants to replanting similar cultures on the same sites by demonstrating growth retardation and leading to economic losses especially in Rosaceae plant production. Commonly, replant disease is overcome by soil fumigation with toxic chemicals. With chemical soil fumigation being restricted in many countries, other strategies are needed. Biofumigation, which is characterized by the incorporation of Brassicaceae plant materials into soil, is a promising method. 
  • 1.3K
  • 09 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Organic Amendments and Sustainable Agriculture
The use of organic amendments (OAs) dates back to the origin of agriculture by humans and has been reported to have a positive influence on soil health and plant yield. OAs may originate from suitable naturally occurring plant species, food and agricultural processing industries, disposed waste materials, or crop residues, and biodegradable wastes, such as sludge to improve soil fertility.
  • 1.3K
  • 27 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Remote Sensing Applied on the Agriculture
Agricultural remote sensing technology has made great progress. The availability of sensors capable of detecting electromagnetic energy and/or heat emitted by targets improves the pre-harvest process and therefore becomes an indispensable tool in the post-harvest phase. The use of sensors in the field and post-harvest processes allows for accurate real-time monitoring of operations and grain quality, enabling decision-making supported by computer tools such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence algorithms. This way, grain producers can get ahead, track and reduce losses, and maintain grain quality from field to consumer.
  • 1.3K
  • 20 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Ficus carica Fruits
Ficus caricaL. (fig) is a species of the very large number of the genusFicusbelonging to the Moraceae famil, characterized by milky latex in all parenchymatous tissue, unisexual flowers, anatropous ovules and aggregated drupes or achenes. Figs are infruitescences—the true fruits of the fig are located inside the fig or siconio, which are called achenes.
  • 1.3K
  • 28 Sep 2021
Topic Review
Major Vegetation Indices in Precision Agriculture
Vegetation indices have a crucial role in precision agriculture and crop monitoring by providing a straightforward and reliable assessment of the condition and health of crops. Depending on the vegetation index, information on various aspects of plant growth and development can be monitored, such as chlorophyll content, leaf area, canopy structure, and water status. This information can then be used to optimize prescription rates in precision agriculture, such as variable fertilizer application, irrigation, and pesticide application. This is generally performed by identifying intra-field zones that are underperforming or experiencing stress, and target inputs to those areas to improve crop productivity and yield. Vegetation indices also provide a cost-effective and non-destructive way of crop monitoring, ensuring a widely available and environmentally sustainable approach for assessing crop health. The development of remote-sensing sensors for crop monitoring in both broadband and narrowband bands opens immense possibilities for their combination into novel vegetation indices.
  • 1.3K
  • 22 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Plastic Mulch Materials
Mulches can be defined as materials that are applied or grow on the soil surface (the latter are the living mulches), in contrast to soil-incorporated materials. The use of plastic mulch films is widespread in agriculture for specialty cropping systems because of several benefits. 
  • 1.3K
  • 28 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Xanthomonas citri pv. glycines in Soybean
Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is an economically important crop with high protein and oil contents. A range of biotic stresses constantly threaten soybean production and lead to decreases in yield and quality, bacterial pustule caused by Xanthomonas citri pv. glycines (Xcg) is one of the most destructive diseases affecting worldwide soybean production.
  • 1.3K
  • 23 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Plant Growth Inhibition Induced by Heavy Metals
Heavy metals are included as one of the main abiotic stresses which reduces plant development and productivity all over the world. 
  • 1.3K
  • 01 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Seed Systems
Seeds are a basic input for all crop production. Good seed is crucial for the global food and nutrition security, for rural development and farmers’ livelihoods and for all green value chains. What “good seed” is depends on individual farmer’s needs. The sustainable availability of seed and seed choice is thus an essential issue for every farmer. Farmers access seeds from multiple sources. Different seed systems have their strengths and vulnerabilities, affecting their resilience.
  • 1.3K
  • 13 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Netting in Fruit Cultivation
The use of nets is considered an indispensable measure in the cultivation of many fruit species. This is especially true, as modern agriculture is experiencing a need to protect crops from their cultivation environment due to global climate changes and their resulting extreme climatic events. Furthermore, urbanization processes are thrusting agriculture towards less amenable environments, and, on the other hand, there is a need to meet rising market demands for better product quality, reduced chemical applications, food safety, and sustainability of the production processes. The usage of nets in agriculture is not a novelty. The oldest net applications were in fruit cultivation (grapes, peaches, apricots, apples, and cherries) and ornamental plant production (cut flowers).
  • 1.3K
  • 23 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Spring Wheat Genetic Resources in Siberia
Spring wheat is an important crop in Russia, with an annual cropping area of 11–12 Mha. The main spring wheat-production belt stretches from the mid-Volga region across the southern Ural mountains to Western Siberia. This is a short-season crop grown from May to August in an extensive, rainfed cropping system dominated by cereals, and occasionally rotated with oilseed and legume crops. 
  • 1.2K
  • 25 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Measurement Techniques for Soil Organic Matter Assessment
Parameters that determine soil organic matter (SOM) status, soil health, and functions are generally difficult to measure directly. Therefore, they are evaluated by deriving indicators that correlate with soil conditions. Soil condition indicators may be chemical, physical, or biological, and can be either descriptive or quantitative. Descriptive indicators are qualitative and are used in the field, while quantitative indicators are assessed by laboratory analytical procedures. Because total soil organic matter is often not sensitive enough to small and short-term changes due to its complexity levels and background, some studies have recommended using soil organic matter fractions (sub-pools) as more sensitive indicators to detect even small changes over a short period of time. These fractions or sub-pools have been classified by various researchers based on their formation, levels, and ease of decomposition. They include labile, less-stable, and stable fractions. The most labile fraction can decompose in less than a year or two, while the actively decomposing fraction, including partially stabilized organic material from plants and microbial metabolites, may have a turnover of up to 26 years. There is also a chemically stabilized and resistant fraction with a radiocarbon age of up to 2500 years. Quantitative analysis of SOM can be performed using various parameters, including oxidation kinetics, lability, carbon management index, humification degree, humification index, and humification ratio. On the other hand, qualitative evaluation of SOM can involve techniques such as oxidizability, high-performance size-exclusion chromatography, electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry, visual examination, smell, assessment of microorganism content, plant growth, cation exchange capacity, type of organic material, and decomposition. These techniques and parameters provide valuable insights into the characteristics and transformation of SOM, enabling a comprehensive understanding of its dynamics. Evaluating SOM dynamics is of utmost importance as it is a determining factor for soil health, fertility, organic matter stability, and sustainability. Therefore, developing SOM models and other assessment techniques based on soil properties, environmental factors, and management practices can serve as a tool for sustainable management. Long-term or extensive short-term experimental data should be used for modeling to obtain reliable results, especially for quantitative SOM transformation analysis, and changes in the quality and quantity of SOM should be considered when developing sustainable soil management strategies.
  • 1.2K
  • 11 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Drought Stress Responses: Coping Strategy and Resistance
Plants’ resistance to stress factors is a complex trait that is a result of changes at the molecular, metabolic, and physiological levels. The plant resistance strategy means the ability to survive, recover, and reproduce under adverse conditions. Harmful environmental factors affect the state of stress in plant tissues, which creates a signal triggering metabolic events responsible for resistance, including avoidance and/or tolerance mechanisms. 
  • 1.2K
  • 16 May 2022
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