A Rhizogenic Biostimulant Effect on Soil Fertility and Roots Growth of Turfgrass

[EN] The excessive use of chemical fertilizers can lead to severe environmental damages. In recent decades, the application of biostimulants to improve soil composition and stimulate plant growth has contributed significantly to environmental preservation. In this paper, we studied the effect of a rhizogenic biostimulant, obtained from fulvic acids, probiotics, and prebiotics, on the fertility of two types of soils, sandy and sandy loam soils, in which turfgrass was growing. Soil samples from plots treated with biostimulant and controls (untreated plots) were collected. The analyzed parameters from the soil include organic matter, microbial activity, soil chemical composition, catalase, dehydrogenase, and phosphatase enzyme activities. Moreover, root lengths was examined and compared in turfgrass species. The biostimulant application improved microbial activity, organic matter, and enzymatic activity in both types of soils. The soil calcium, potassium, magnesium, and phosphorus content increased with the biostimulant application, whereas pH and electrical conductivity decreased. The most relevant improvement was a 77% increase of calcium for sandy loam soil and 38% increase in potassium for sandy soil. Biostimulant application led to a significant increase in turf root length. This increase was greater for sandy soil than in sandy loam soil with an increment of 43% and 34% respectively, compared to control.This research was funded by AREA VERDE-MG projects, by project PDR18-XEROCESPED, funded under the PDR-CM 2014-2020 by the EU (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, EAFRD), Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) and Comunidad de Madrid regional government through IMIDRA. and by a post-doc grant by Conselleria de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte through "Subvenciones para la contratacion de personal investigador en fase postdoctoral", reference APOSTD/2019/04.Yousfi, S.; Marin, J.; Parra, L.; Lloret, J.; Mauri, PV. (2021). A Rhizogenic Biostimulant Effect on Soil Fertility and Roots Growth of Turfgrass. Agronomy. 11(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11030573S11

RGB Vegetation Indices, NDVI, and Biomass as Indicators to Evaluate C-3 and C-4 Turfgrass under Different Water Conditions

[EN] Grasslands have a natural capacity to decrease air pollution and a positive impact on human life. However, their maintenance requires adequate irrigation, which is difficult to apply in many regions where drought and high temperatures are frequent. Therefore, the selection of grass species more tolerant to a lack of irrigation is a fundamental criterion for green space planification. This study compared responses to deficit irrigation of different turfgrass mixtures: a C-4 turfgrass mixture, Cynodon dactylon-Brachypodium distachyon (A), a C-4 turfgrass mixture, Buchloe dactyloides-Brachypodium distachyon (B), and a standard C-3 mixture formed by Lolium perenne-Festuca arundinacea-Poa pratensis (C). Three different irrigation regimes were assayed, full irrigated to 100% (FI-100), deficit irrigated to 75% (DI-75), and deficit irrigated to 50% (DI-50) of container capacity. Biomass, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), green area (GA), and greener area (GGA) vegetation indices were measured. Irrigation significantly affected the NDVI, biomass, GA, and GGA. The most severe condition in terms of decreasing biomass and vegetation indices was DI-50. Both mixtures (A) and (B) exhibited higher biomass, NDVI, GA, and GGA than the standard under deficit irrigation. This study highlights the superiority of (A) mixture under deficit irrigation, which showed similar values of biomass and vegetation indices under full irrigated and deficit irrigated (DI-75) container capacities.This research was funded by AREA VERDE-MG projects and Projects GO-PDR18-XEROCESPED funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and IMIDRA.Marín, J.; Yousfi, S.; Mauri, PV.; Parra, L.; Lloret, J.; Masaguer, A. (2020). RGB Vegetation Indices, NDVI, and Biomass as Indicators to Evaluate C-3 and C-4 Turfgrass under Different Water Conditions. Sustainability. 12(6):1-16. https://doi.org/10.3390/su1206216011612

Evaluating the Effects of Environmental Conditions on Sensed Parameters for Green Areas Monitoring and Smart Irrigation Systems

[EN] The irrigation of green areas in cities should be managed appropriately to ensure its sustainability. In large cities, not all green areas might be monitored simultaneously, and the data acquisition time can skew the gathered value. Our purpose is to evaluate which parameter has a lower hourly variation. We included soil parameters (soil temperature and moisture) and plant parameters (canopy temperature and vegetation indexes). Data were gathered at 5 different hours in 11 different experimental plots with variable irrigation and with different grass composition. The results indicate that soil moisture and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index are the sole parameters not affected by the data acquisition time. For soil moisture, the maximum difference was in experimental plot 4, with values of 21% at 10:45 AM and 27% at 8:45 AM. On the other hand, canopy temperature is the most affected parameter with a mean variation of 15 degrees C in the morning. The maximum variation was in experimental plot 8 with a 19 degrees C at 8:45 AM and 39 degrees C at 12:45 PM. Data acquisition time affected the correlation between soil moisture and canopy temperature. We can affirm that data acquisition time has to be included as a variability source. Finally, our conclusion indicates that it is vital to consider data acquisition time to ensure water distribution for irrigation in cities.This research was funded by AREA VERDE-MG projects, by project PDR18-XEROCESPED funded under the PDR-CM 2014-2020 by the EU (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, EAFRD), Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) and Comunidad de Madrid regional government through IMIDRA, and by the Conselleria de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte through "Subvenciones para la contratacion de personal investigador en fase postdoctoral", grant number APOSTD/2019/04.Mauri Ablanque, PV.; Parra-Boronat, L.; Yousfi, S.; Lloret, J.; Marin, JF. (2021). Evaluating the Effects of Environmental Conditions on Sensed Parameters for Green Areas Monitoring and Smart Irrigation Systems. Sensors. 21(6):1-22. https://doi.org/10.3390/s2106225512221

Edge detection for weed recognition in lawns

[EN] The rapid propagation of weeds is a major issue for turfgrass management (both ornamental and sports turf). While pesticides can ensure weed eradication, they pose a risk to human health and the environment. In this context, the early detection of weeds can allow a dramatic reduction in the amount of pesticide required. Here we present the use of edge detection techniques to identify the presence of these invasive plants in ornamental lawns and sports turf. Regarding the former, images from small experimental plots in the facilities of IMIDRA were used while images for the latter were taken on a golf course. Up to 12 different filters for edge detection were tested on the images collected. Aggregation techniques, with a range of cell values, were applied to the results of the three most effective filters (sharpening (I), sharpening (II), and Laplacian) to minimise the number of false positives. After the tests with different cell sizes, two filters were selected for more in-depth analysis. Box plots were selected to define the best cell size and identify the filter with the best performance. The sharpening (I) filter and the aggregation technique with the minimum value and a cell size of 10 offered the best results. Finally, we determined the most appropriate threshold value on the basis of the number of false positives, false negatives, and derived indexes (Precision, Recall, and F1-Score). A threshold of 78 gave the best performance. The results achieved with this methodology differed slightly between ornamental and sports turf.This work was partially funded by the Conselleria de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte through "Subvenciones para la contratacion de personal investigador en fase postdoctoral", grant number APOSTD/2019/04, by the European Union through ERANETMED (Euromediterranean Cooperation through ERANET joint activities and beyond) project ERANETMED3-227 SMARTWATIR, and by the European Union with the "Fondo Europeo Agricola de Desarrollo Rural (ERDF) - Europa invierte en zonas rurales", the MAPAMA, and Comunidad de Madrid with the IMIDRA, through the "PDR-CM 2014-2020" project number PDR18-XEROCESPED.Parra, L.; Marin, J.; Yousfi, S.; Rincón, G.; Mauri Ablanque, PV.; Lloret, J. (2020). Edge detection for weed recognition in lawns. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. 176:1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2020.10568411317

Remote Sensing: Useful Approach for Crop Nitrogen Management and Sustainable Agriculture

Soil fertility is among the most important criteria that affect crop yield and quality. Nitrogen stress due to the low soil fertility and the lack of nitrogen availability is a major factor limiting the crop productivity in arid and semiarid environments, where fertilization is not optimized in terms of timing and quantity. Managing nitrogen fertilization is one of the most important criteria in the precision agriculture, which helps to improve crop production, environment conditions, and farmer’s economy. It is very important to apply N fertilizers with efficient methods allowing to the nutrient use efficiency and avoiding nitrogen losses and environment contamination. Nowadays, remote sensing methods using spectral and thermal approaches have been proposed as potential indicators to rapid identification of crop nitrogen status by providing information about vegetation canopy properties across large areas. The use of remote sensing methods to schedule nitrogen fertilization can help farmers to practice a more sustainable agriculture, minimizing risks of losing the harvest by providing an adequate rate of nitrogen when the crops’ needs and at a specific location

Drone RGB Images as a Reliable Information Source to Determine Legumes Establishment Success

[EN] The use of drones in agriculture is becoming a valuable tool for crop monitoring. There are some critical moments for crop success; the establishment is one of those. In this paper, we present an initial approximation of a methodology that uses RGB images gathered from drones to evaluate the establishment success in legumes based on matrixes operations. Our aim is to provide a method that can be implemented in low-cost nodes with relatively low computational capacity. An index (B1/B2) is used for estimating the percentage of green biomass to evaluate the establishment success. In the study, we include three zones with different establishment success (high, regular, and low) and two species (chickpea and lentils). We evaluate data usability after applying aggregation techniques, which reduces the picture's size to improve long-term storage. We test cell sizes from 1 to 10 pixels. This technique is tested with images gathered in production fields with intercropping at 4, 8, and 12 m relative height to find the optimal aggregation for each flying height. Our results indicate that images captured at 4 m with a cell size of 5, at 8 m with a cell size of 3, and 12 m without aggregation can be used to determine the establishment success. Comparing the storage requirements, the combination that minimises the data size while maintaining its usability is the image at 8 m with a cell size of 3. Finally, we show the use of generated information with an artificial neural network to classify the data. The dataset was split into a training dataset and a verification dataset. The classification of the verification dataset offered 83% of the cases as well classified. The proposed tool can be used in the future to compare the establishment success of different legume varieties or species.This research and the contract of S.Y. were funded by project PDR18-XEROCESPED, under the PDR-CM 2014-2020, by the EU (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, EAFRD), Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) and Comunidad de Madrid regional government through IMIDRA and the contract of L.P. was funded by Conselleria de Educacion, Cultura y Deporte with the Subvenciones para la contratacion de personal investigador en fase postdoctoral, APOSTD/2019/04.Parra-Boronat, L.; Mostaza-Colado, D.; Yousfi, S.; Marin, JF.; Mauri, PV.; Lloret, J. (2021). Drone RGB Images as a Reliable Information Source to Determine Legumes Establishment Success. Drones. 5(3):1-18. https://doi.org/10.3390/drones5030079S1185

Interactive effects of CO2 concentration and water regime on stable isotope signatures, nitrogen assimilation and growth in sweet Pepper.

Sweet pepper is among the most widely cultivated horticultural crops in the Mediterranean basin, being frequently grown hydroponically under cover in combination with CO2 fertilization and water conditions ranging from optimal to suboptimal. The aim of this study is to develop a simple model, based on the analysis of plant stable isotopes in their natural abundance, gas exchange traits and N concentration, to assess sweet pepper growth. Plants were grown in a growth chamber for near 6 weeks. Two [CO2] (400 and 800 μmol mol−1), three water regimes (control and mild and moderate water stress) and four genotypes were assayed. For each combination of genotype, [CO2] and water regime five plants were evaluated. Water stress applied caused significant decreases in water potential, net assimilation, stomatal conductance, intercellular to atmospheric [CO2], and significant increases in water use efficiency, leaf chlorophyll content and carbon isotope composition, while the relative water content, the osmotic potential and the content of anthocyanins did change not under stress compared to control conditions support this statement. Nevertheless, water regime affects plant growth via nitrogen assimilation, which is associated with the transpiration stream, particularly at high [CO2], while the lower N concentration caused by rising [CO2] is not associated with stomatal closure. The stable isotope composition of carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen (δ13C, δ18O, and δ15N) in plant matter are affected not only by water regime but also by rising [CO2]. Thus, δ18O increased probably as response to decreases in transpiration, while the increase in δ15N may reflect not only a lower stomatal conductance but a higher nitrogen demand in leaves or shifts in nitrogen metabolism associated with decreases in photorespiration. The way that δ13C explains differences in plant growth across water regimes within a given [CO2], seems to be mediated through its direct relationship with N accumulation in leaves. The changes in the profile and amount of amino acids caused by water stress and high [CO2] support this conclusion. However, the results do not support the use of δ18O as an indicator of the effect of water regime on plant growth

Evaluation restrospective de la sélection effectuée dans un programme d'amélioration d'orge par des marqueurs moléculaires

Preliminares de la publicación : Portada, Resúmenes, Índice (Obra completa: 103 Pags.). Thesis submitted for the Degree of Master of Science (Centro Internacional de Altos Estudios Agronómicos Mediterráneos). Travail réalisé au Département d'Amélioration et de Production Végétale, EEAD-CSIC, Zaragoza, sous l'encadrement conjoint des Dr Ana Mª Casas et Mª Pilar Gracia.[ES] El programa de meJora público español de cebada tiene una de sus sedes en la Estación Experimental de Aula Dei, CSIC (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas), en Zaragoza. Su objetivo principal es la obtención de nuevas variedades de cebada para las condiciones españolas. En este estudio se va a evaluar retrospectivamente el efecto del resultado de la selección sobre los cruzamientos del programa de mejora efectuados en la Estación Experimental de Aula Dei. El análisis se centra en dos aspectos: el primero, un análisis estadístico de la composición de las generaciones del programa ( en cuanto a supervivencia de cruzamientos y parentales) hasta la F8, y el segundo, el estudio molecular de un grupo de líneas avanzadas.[FR] Le programme d'amélioration Espagnol publique dispose de un de ses sites a Saragosse, dans la Station Expérimentale de Aula Dei, CSIC (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas). Son objectif principal est l'obtention de nouvelles variétés d'orge adaptées aux conditions espagnoles. Dans notre étude on va évaluer rétrospectivement le résultat de la sélection sur les différents croisements du programme d'amélioration de Aula Dei. L'analyse se focalise sur deux volets: le premier qui se caractérise par une analyse statistique de la composition des générations du programme jusqu'á la F8 (en prenant en compte la survie des croisements et parents), et un deuxieme volets qui est l'étude moléculaire d'un certain groupe de lignes avancées.[EN] The Spanish public barley breeding programme has as its main objective to obtain barley cultivars for the Spanish growing conditions. It is carried out by four different Organizations, one of which is the Aula Dei Experimental Station, CSIC (Council for Scientific Research), in Saragosse. In our study, we retrospectively evaluated the effect of selection on the progenies from different crosses of the breeding program carried out at Saragosse. The study has two different parts: a statistical analysis of parents and crosses survival through the generations from F2 up to F8, and a study of a group of advanced lines with molecular markers.Peer reviewe

Evaluation rétrospective de la sélection effectuée dans un programme d'amélioration d'orge par des marqueurs moléculaires

103 Pags. Travail réalisé au Départment d'Amelioration et de Production Végétale, Estación Experimental de Aula Dei, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (EEAD-CSIC).Peer reviewe

Salinidad y trigo duro: Firmas isotópicas, actividad enzimática y expresión génica

[spa] La salinidad y el estrés hídrico son los factores más importantes que limitan la producción de trigo duro, sobre todo en regiones áridas y semiáridas, como la región Mediterránea. El trigo duro es uno de los principales cultivos en el sur y este de la Cuenca Mediterránea, donde se cultiva frecuentemente en condiciones de secano y si es posible con riego deficitario, a menudo con agua de poca calidad, que junto a una elevada evapotranspiración, puede provocar una progresiva salinización del terreno. En este sentido, la mejora genética de trigo duro para una mejor adaptación a estas condiciones de estrés es una de las pocas alternativas viables. El objetivo general de esta Tesis es estudiar las bases fisiológicas y moleculares de las diferencias genotípicas en crecimiento potencial y tolerancia a la salinidad y el estrés hídrico. En un primer estudio (Experimento 1) publicado en “Functional Plant Biology” se investigó qué criterio fenotípico de selección era el más adecuado para seleccionar genotipos de trigo duro que crecieran mejor en condiciones de salinidad continuada. De esta forma se determinó la importancia de los isótopos estables como criterios eficientes para seleccionar genotipos tolerantes y susceptibles a la salinidad. Posteriormente, se realizó un segundo estudio (Experimento 2) donde se evaluó el efecto de la salinidad en la composición isotópica del carbono (δ13C) y el nitrógeno (δ15N) de genotipos de trigo duro y de dos amfiploides (un tritordeo y un triticale). Este trabajo está publicado en la revista “Journal of Experimental Botany”. En este segundo ensayo, la salinidad se aplicó durante la floración y el llenado del grano durante unas pocas semanas. Los resultados de este trabajo representaron la puesta a punto del estudio del comportamiento fisiológico del trigo duro durante la fase reproductiva y bajo diferentes combinaciones de salinidad y riego. Como continuación de los dos Experimentos (1 y 2) y en vista de los resultados obtenidos en el uso de las firmas isotópicas como criterio de evaluación bajo condiciones salinas, se planteó evaluar el uso combinado de la composición isotópica del carbono (δ13C), oxígeno (δ18O) y el nitrógeno (δ15N) en materia seca para observar las respuestas genotípicas de plantas de trigo duro sometidas a diferentes combinaciones de salinidad. Como contribución original, se elaboró un modelo conceptual de las tres firmas isotópicas juntas (δ13C, δ18O, δ15N) junto con características del metabolismo nitrogenado para explicar las diferencias genotípicas en tolerancia a distintas condiciones de salinidad y estrés hídrico. También se evaluaron las características fotosintéticas en relación con las firmas isotópicas y las actividades de enzimas clave del metabolismo nitrogenado. (Trabajo Publicado en la revista “New Phytologist”). Además de los resultados anteriores obtenidos, en esta Tesis se comparó la eficiencia de las firmas isotópicas del carbono, oxígeno y nitrógeno mediante dos vías: muestras de materia seca y muestras de fracción soluble en genotipos de trigo duro para la evaluación de diferencias genotípicas en tolerancia a diferentes condiciones de salinidad y regimenes hídricos. Posteriormente se analizó la respuesta genética de plantas de trigo duro a la salinidad evaluando el nivel de transcripción de genes específicos asociados a tolerancia a salinidad y estrés hídrico, junto a otros que codifican para enzimas claves del metabolismo nitrogenado. También se han estudiado las relaciones entre estas tasas de transcripción, las diferencias genotípicas en crecimiento, firmas isotópicas y actividades de enzimas del metabolismo nitrogenado. El trabajo ha mostrado la eficacia de los isótopos estables de carbono y del nitrógeno como herramientas de evaluación de la respuesta del trigo duro frente a la salinidad.[eng] Inadequate irrigation for long term and under conditions of high evapotranspiration demand, combined with the use of poor water quality and the lack of adequate drainage frequently induces the salinization of arable land causing a significant increase in the area affected by salinity. Salinity is an environmental factor that limits in a remarkable manner the production of crops in many parts of the world, but especially in arid and semiarid regions like the Mediterranean. Under these conditions, which is often grown durum wheat improvement for tolerance to salinity under irrigation deficit may be one of the strategies to alleviate this problem. This Thesis shows that isotope compositions of carbon (δ13C), oxygen (δ18O), and nitrogen (δ15N) and the concentration of nitrogen in dry matter are potentially and effective criteria for discriminating between different growing conditions and between genotypes tolerant or susceptible to salt. Furthermore, the results of this study reflect the importance of nitrogen metabolism in tolerance to salinity. Additionally, this thesis develops a model relating genotypic tolerance to different conditions of salinity and drought with the signatures of the three isotopes (C, O, N), together with photosynthetic and transpiration exchanges and parameters key of nitrogen metabolism such as nitrogen concentration and activities of the glutamine synthetase and nitrate reductase. Finally, we study the relationship between the expression of genes potentially key in the tolerance to salinity and drought and genotypic variability in response to different combinations of these stresses