Field screening of European avena genetic resources collections

Oat is a crop with an important European history and tradition. The high value of oat in human nutrition, which is unique among cereals, is widely recognized and confirmed by health claims issued in various countries. It is based on a high content and quality of proteins, considerable content of fat with high proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids, high contents of dietary fiber, especially the soluble, highly viscous mixed linked (1->3)(1->4)-ß-D-glucans, which hypocholesterolemic effects, minerals and antioxidants, especially tocopherols, tocotrienols and avenanthramides. The main goal of this paper is on characterization and evaluation of accessions from European ex situ collections for different traits, which are important for the quality of oats in human nutrition. All field experiments carried out in experimental field of Suceava Genebank, during 2014-2016. Field screening of genetic material was performed by using several IPGRI descriptors: days to heading; growth habit; lodging at immature and mature stages; shape of panicle; lemma color; length of panicle; panicle numbers/m2; plant height; productivity; (g/m2); seed weight (g) and test weight (kg/hl). A wide variability was observed for all used descriptors, and some genotypes potentially interesting for breeding programs were identified (landraces and obsolete cultivars)

Maize local landraces used like prebreeding material for simultaneous improvment of main agronomic traits

In the maize breeding programs the local maize landraces shows a particular interest, especially as useful sources for adapting capacities, physiological, agronomic and valuable quality traits. A morpho-physiological evaluation of main germplasm genepool represented by 200 local maize landraces was achieved through a CEEX Project (2006-2008). Characterization of maize local populations was done in an appropriate experimental system based on morpho-physiological descriptors edited by the International Institute of International Plant Genetic Resources (BIOVERSITY) located in Rome (www.bioversityinternational.org). (www.bioversityinternational.org). Evaluation of maize genetic resources is found in the online database http// www. scdasuceava. ro/ biomaize which includes information concerning the value of biological material with useful genes for breeding programs. It was noticed some maize local landraces which can be used like initial genetic material for breeding of main traits (precocity, resistance to low temperatures, elements of productivity and resistance to root and stalk lodging , diseases ) such as: Rodna16, Botiza12, Ivăneasa1, Solca3, Vama7, Gersa11, Tiha Bargaului 8 Moisei 5, Valea Mare 2, Bucerdea, Putna 3 Pojorâta, Brodina 1. Of a particular interest are local populations valuable like rebreeding material for simultaneous improving of some important agronomic traits: Rodna 16 for cold resistance and disease resistance Botiza 12 for low temperatures resistance, resistance to root and stalk lodging, small percentage of sterile plants Moisei 5 and Valea Mare 2 for productivity, low temperature resistance, precocity, resistance to diseases and others locale landraces that may be selected from the mentioned database

Field and laboratory screening of Romanian maize landraces very resistant to low temperatures

Submountain and mountain areas of Romania have a wide variety of maize landraces thathave not been characterized, and landraces varieties may be a good source of new allelicdiversity for useful traits. There is possible due to studies and comprehensive measures whichcan lead to the maintenance of biodiversity and increase its efficiency. The paper presents theresults of characterization and evaluation of a total of 61 local landraces with cold test index>84%, selected from a total of 300 studied local landraces. They were characterized in thefield and laboratory from morphologic, agronomic and physiologic point of view, as a basisfor use of this maize accessions in a breeding program for creating of extra earlier hybrids.Landraces maize accessions: SVGB-1790, SVGB-7754, SVGB-8012, SVGB-14453, SVGB-5172 were identified with high yield components traits and extremely resistant to lowtemperatures (K>0,92).Utilization of these local landraces as starting material can lead to the identification of usefulgenes sources for improvement of important agronomic characters of maize (yield capacity,precocity, resistance to low temperatures and to Fusarium infection).This accessions have a good agronomic stability, could be potentials donors of genes toimprove maize tolerance to low temperature in order to create hybrids for cold and wet areas

Researches of the influence of nitrate contents on main morphological traits of maize plants

Nitrogen is an important element required for plant growth and development. It is a key component in many biological compounds that play a major role in photosynthetic activity and crop yield capacity. Variation in nitrogen availability can affect plant development and productivity in maize. One of the ways of soil pollution through agricultural technology is over-fertilization and, in particular, the administration of high doses of nitrogen fertilizers. Excess of nitrogen fertilizers, as well as their empirical application, have negative effects on harvest quality. Excessive use of fertilizers with nitrogen, produces of ion nitric accumulation in the soil (temporary) and in plants, which disturbs the balance of photosynthesis, causes the appearance of necrosis and burns on leaves, severe intoxication and even death by asphyxiation phenomena and cyanosis at ruminants, children and old people. The main aim of this study was to determine the effect of different nitrogen levels and different type of fertilizers on nitrates levels in maize leaves and on morphological traits of maize plants. Field experiments were conducted in two growing seasons (2017 and 2018) with five nitrogen levels (80 kg/ha, 120 kg/ha, 160 kg/ha, 200 kg/ha and 240 kg/ha) and two type of nitrogen fertilizers (ammonium nitrate and urea)

Resistance of some barley cultivars at leaf diseases

Plant genetic resistance at diseases is a decisive factor for the productivity of every species. The diseases produced by fungi in barley crops had a large virulence spectrum and an infection intensity, which depended on the ecological conditions from the cultivation zone and the biological status of the genotype. The study has involved investigations conducted in the experimental field, under the climatic conditions of the years 2001 and 2006 on 42 barley genotypes (lines, varieties and landraces) from the Suceava Genebank collection. The biologic material was studied by the methodology of evaluation resistance within the European Project Genres CT98-104, in which Romania was a partner (1999-2002). The leaf diseases developed on plants were powdery mildew (Erysiphe graminis f.sp. hordei), leaf stipe (Pyrenophora graminea), spot bloth (Drechslera sorokiniana), leaf rust (Puccinia recondita) and scald (Rhynchosporium secalis). The infection degree on the leaf area was estimated for every studied genotype. The assessments were made during the vegetation period, by using the FAO notation and percentage. The results obtained in both years were pointed out by the different reaction of cultivars to diseases. Some genotypes developed immunity to fungi, like Pyrenophora graminea, Erysiphe graminis var. hordei, Rhynchosporium secalis, while others were extremely resistant at every identified fungus, pointing out the main role of the genotype in the resistance reaction. The climatic conditions of the two years, characterized by water deficit and normal temperatures, were a relevant factor in assessing the infection degree at diseases in the studied cultivars. The extremely resistant and immune genotypes could be used as a resistance source in the barley breeding programs

Researches regarding the using the varietal diversity of barley in the intercropping system with white lupine (Lupinus albus l.) and oat (Avena spp.)

The aim of this study is to test the varietal mixtures of barley in intercropping system and to select genotypes adapted for the redesign of breeding programs in the management of modern agroecosystems. Descriptors such as yield / genotypes, seeds weight and foliar diseases were evaluated in 36 barley genotypes (10 advanced cultivars, 16 local populations, 10 inbred lines) by testing in mono-cropping and intercropping experiments in two years (2019, 2021), in the climatic conditions of northeastern Romania. Intercropping experiments (barley-oats, barley-white lupine) versus mono-cropping (barley, oats, white lupine) were performed in blocks with 36 genotypes sown in alternating rows (intercropping) and successive (mono-cropping) 2 m long and 12.5 cm between rows, for each variant. The results obtained of the barley evaluation in the two cropping systems by using the descriptors of productivity, disease and equivalent land ratio (LER) showed: high barley yield in mono-cropping and intercropping systems with white lupine, low incidence of powdery and life stripe in white lupine intercropping and spot blotch in oat intercropping, respectively positive interspecific interference regarding the resources in white lupine intercropping especially of local barley populations (LER -1.15). The selection of the varietal mixture (7-advanced cultivars, 13 local populations, 3 inbred lines) in the Ward dendogram can be used in intercropped crops and as genetic sources to obtain forms well adapted to the intercropping system

Study of phenotypic variability using the varietal diversity of cultivated forms of naked and hulled oats in the intercropping system

The research carried out at the Gene Bank in Suceava, Northern Romania, aimed to highlight the phenotypic variability of the germplasm of Avena spp. For this purpose, the morpho-productive traits and resistance to diseases, pests and weeds were analysed. Productivity, diseases and pests, days to heading and days to maturity descriptors of 46 Avena spp. genotypes (naked and hulled oat) with different biological statuses (36 local populations, 10 cultivars), were evaluated by testing in intercropping experiments with small grain cereals and grain legumes. The unidirectional ANOVA analysis generated values that allowed the elaboration of a hierarchy of heterogeneity in the hulled local populations, for some of the analysed characters (one thousand seeds weight/genotype, degree of attack by Puccinia coronata and Oulema melanopa and days to maturity) and these were less in naked forms. There was a high competition of Avena species, regarding weeds in small grain cereal variants and potentially beneficial for nitrogen symbiotic fixation by increasing naked and hulled local oat population productivity in intercropping with fava bean. The Euclidean distance classification of the oat genotypes investigated in the dendrogram distinguished the generated groups, indicating the maximum distance in cluster IV. With high heterogeneity of productivity traits, better resistance to disease and pests, and shorter maturity, members of this cluster could be used to develop genetic mixture programs

Agrochemical evolution of the chernozemic soil in the superficial horizon by differentiated nitrogen fertilization

Soil fertility, upon which plant growth and hence crop yield and quality depend, embraces its content of plant food (nutrients), its organic matter content, its structure, its ability to supply water and its depth. Excessive use of fertilizers with nitrogen products of ion nitric accumulation in the soil (temporary) and in plants, which disturbs the balance of photosynthesis, causes the appearance of necrosis and burns on leaves, severe intoxication and even death by asphyxiation phenomena and cyanosis at ruminants, children and old people. One of the ways of soil pollution through agricultural technology is overfertilization and, in particular, the administration of high doses of nitrogen fertilizers. Excess of nitrogen fertilizers, as well as their empirical application, have negative effects on harvest quality. The main aim of this study was to determine the effect of five nitrogen levels and different type of fertilizers on the agrochemical evolution of the chernozemic soil in the superficial horizon. Field experiments were conducted at the Agricultural Research and Development Station (ARDS) Suceava, Romania, in two growing seasons (2017 and 2018) with five nitrogen levels (80 kg/ha, 120 kg/ha, 160 kg/ha, 200 kg/ha and 240 kg/ha) and two type of nitrogen fertilizers (ammonium nitrate and urea)

Fungus evaluation from seeds germplasm before medium and long term storage

During 2000-2016, 213 entries from 29 plant species from different crop groups (cereals, legumes, industrial crops, perennial grasses, vegetables, cucurbits, aromatic and medicinal plants) from core collection of the Suceava Genebank were evaluated from phytosanitary status point of view, before the storing. The seeds testing to the micromycetes incidence in the laboratory by incubating of them on blotting paper substrate and agar medium was performed. Fungal saprophytes from genus as: Alternaria spp., Stemphylium spp., Cladosporium sp., Rhyzopus sp., Epicocum sp., Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., Botrytis sp. occurred frequently in seeds samples of the tested crops. Also, 12 fungal parasite were isolated: Sclerospora sp., Diplodia sp., Nigrospora sp. on maize; Drechslera spp. on wheat, barley, rye and flax; Septoria sp. on barley; Fusarium spp. on maize, barley, rye, millet, bean, pea, flax, hemp, peppers, cucumbers; Colletotrichum spp. on maize, bean and faba bean; Sclerotinia sp., Isariopsis sp. and Rhyzoctonia sp. on bean; Verticillium sp. on peppers and okra, Ascochyta sp. on pea. The obtained results were expressed as percentage of the number of fungal isolated from tested samples species, highlighting the existing microflora and need to seed health testing with major importance in maintaing of high quality germplasm avoiding the pathogens preservation and dissemination

Genetic characterization of some local maize landraces coming from Romania by RAPD method

The evaluation of morphological differences is a traditional method of evolutionary and pedigree relationship determination. It was particularly useful in maize, where phenotypic differences occur (e.g. color, kernel type and kernel size). However, only molecular markers provide information that is independent of environmental influences or a plant development phase. Therefore, techniques of DNA analysis have become more and more important. Methods based on polymerase chain reaction -PCR- are used widely in research. Ones of the most used methods are the RAPD (Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA) metho