Rural Landscape Signatures: the interconnectedness of place, culture and ecosystems

Aotearoa-New Zealand’s legal, ecological and social perspectives are composed of combined Pākehā (NZ European) and Māori identities, values, perspectives and traditions. These two very different cultural perspectives are reflected in the conversations and dialogues occurring with regards to the landscape, and also in the lands forms and features itself. The separation between traditional Māori values and prevailing European developments and design approaches promotes regional landscapes that lack place and a sense of place within the wider Aotearoa-New Zealand context. South Wairarapa, in Aotearoa-New Zealand’s lower North Island, presents such a collision; the land bears the imprints of its colonising rural pedigree, and blatantly and unashamedly disregards the undeniable Indigenous Māori connection. This paper explores how landscape architecture can overlay past cultural conversations to restructure and enhance the presence of a defined regional and cultural identity and therefore promote a re-emergence of placed identity. Cultural signatures are written onto the landscape to be read and interpreted, and can be re-written, corrected and modified so to further reflect Indigenous and intrinsic connectedness with one’s landscape and its associated processes. The design, management and development of rural regional landscapes can evidence cultural values and landscape heritages while maintaining their obvious need for economic and regional prosperity, and sustainability. The apparent disconnect most modern populations have with their landscape is palpable internationally; the processes and management techniques of old are insufficient. There is a need in Aotearoa-New Zealand for an alternative approach to regional planning and design practices, which evidence our cultural pedigrees. Prominent landscape signatures should be reworked, new ones written, and the old rewritten, to create an inter-relatedness and interconnectedness between humans and ecosystems to protect past places and placements, enhance new ones, and promote the sustainable management and stewardship of the landscape

Schematic diagram showing the locations of the P1BS and CTTC motifs in promoter regions of 8 <i>SiPHT1s</i>.

<p>The P1BS and CTTC motifs are shown in green and red respectively and are located between −1 to −3000 bp upstream of the start codon ATG.</p

Seed yield (dry weight) of AM or non-AM foxtail millet.

<p>The seeds were harvested after 16 weeks of growth. Values are mean ± SD (<i>n</i> = 5). Data were tested using a t-test where *** = <i>P</i><0.001.</p

Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of <i>SiPHT1</i>;2, <i>SiPHT1</i>;3 and <i>SiPHT1</i>;4.

<p>Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of <i>SiPHT1</i>;2, <i>SiPHT1</i>;3 and <i>SiPHT1</i>;<i>4</i> expression in leaf and root samples of 15 d foxtail millet plants grown hydroponically in media containing either 300 µM or 10 µM Pi. Values are mean ± SE of 3 biological replicates each consisting of 3 technical replicates. The values were compared by one way ANOVA for the expression of genes. Values indicated by the same letter are not significantly different (<i>p</i><0.05), based on a Bonferroni post-hoc test for the expression level of the same gene in different tissues.</p

RT-PCR analysis of expression patterns of the foxtail millet <i>PHT1</i> gene family.

<p>cDNA produced by reverse transcription of mRNA was prepared from various tissues of plants grown in Pi<b>-</b>deficient (10 µM) and Pi-sufficient (300 µM) conditions and then amplified with primers specific for each of the 12 <i>SiPHT1</i> genes and for the <i>Siactin-</i>2 gene. PCR products were separated on 10% polyacrylamide gels and visualized using SYBR safe DNA gel stain. The 15 and 31 d leaf and root samples were obtained from hydroponically grown plants; 15 dshoot was obtained from pot grown plants (perlite:vermiculite).</p

Assay of total and inorganic phosphate content in leaf and root samples.

<p>A and B, Total P and inorganic P (Pi) content in leaf and root samples of foxtail millet grown hydroponically in media containing 300 µM (A) and 10 µM (B) Pi. The total height for the bar represents total P, while inorganic P is shown within the total P bar and indicated by the lighter shading. Values shown are the means ± SD (<i>n</i> = 5). Data were analysed by a <i>t</i>-test where *** represents a significant difference (<i>P<</i>0.001) between the plants grown with high (300 µM) compared to low (10 µM) Pi concentrations. C, Root architecture of 20-day old foxtail millet plants grown hydroponically in medium containing 300 or 10 µM Pi. The insets show roots magnified to illustrate the induction of root hairs in plants grown in 10 µM Pi.</p

Plant growth experiments.

<p>Foxtail millet plants grown in pots containing a 1∶1 (v/v) ratio of perlite:vermiculite and supplied with nutrient solution containing various concentrations of inorganic phosphate (Pi). A, 6-week old plants grown in various concentrations of Pi; from left to right: 300 µM, 100 µM, 50 µM, 10 µM and no added Pi (0 µM); B, image of flowers representative of plants grown for 12 weeks in the presence of sufficient (300 µM) or deficient (10 µM) Pi; C, plant height measured weekly for plants grown in the presence of various concentrations of Pi. Statistical analysis was conducted at the end of the recording period (i.e. at 8 weeks); D, shoot (S) and root (R) weight (mg) and root:shoot (R:S) weight ratio of foxtail millet seedlings grown for 16 days in the presence of sufficient (300 µM) or deficient (10 µM) Pi; and E, seed yield (seed dry weight) of plants grown in the presence of various concentrations of Pi after 16 weeks of growth. Data shown are means ± standard deviation (SD), <i>n</i> = 5. Values followed by the same letter were not significantly (<i>P</i><0.05) different based on a Bonferroni post-hoc test. For Fig. 1D, data were tested by a <i>t</i>-test; *** represents a significant difference (<i>P<</i>0.001) between the shoots or roots of plants grown with high (300 µM) compared to low (10 µM) Pi concentrations.</p

Phylogenetic analysis of plant <i>PHT1</i> family members.

<p>Roman numerals (I–IV) indicate the four <i>PHT1</i> subfamilies identified by Nagy <i>et al</i>. <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108459#pone.0108459-Nagy1" target="_blank">[33]</a> together with a more-recently identified family of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF)-inducible transporters (V) specific to the Poaceae <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108459#pone.0108459-Yang1" target="_blank">[65]</a>. Sequence names start with the first letter of the genus and the first one or two letters of the species name, followed by the gene name. Accession numbers for the proteins are given in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0108459#pone.0108459.s006" target="_blank">Table S5</a>. <i>PHT1</i> family members from <i>S. italica</i> are indicated by open diamonds or, in the case of AMF-inducible members, filled diamonds. Other plant <i>PHT1</i> family members that have been described to be AMF-inducible are indicated by filled circles.</p