The distinctive population structure of Colletotrichum species associated with olive anthracnose in the Algarve region of Portugal reflects a host–pathogen diversity hot spot

Anthracnose (Colletotrichum spp.) is an important disease of olive fruits. Diversity and biogeographic relationships of the olive anthracnose pathogens in the Algarve (Portugal) were investigated, along with host association patterns and disease levels during 2004–2007, to test the hypothesis that this region is a host–pathogen diversity hot spot. Diverse Colletotrichum acutatum and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides populations were identified based on rRNA-internal transcribed spacer and partial β-tubulin 2 gene sequences of 95 isolates. Spatial and temporal variations in the occurrence of the eight genetic entities of the pathogens were linked to olive biogeography. Disease occurrence patterns suggest that C. acutatum populations are more stable pathogens, while C. gloeosporioides populations appear to be more influenced by favourable conditions. Three unique C. acutatum populations were identified, but none of the eight populations were dominant, with the most frequent type representing only 27%. Thus, the population structure of olive anthracnose pathogens in the Algarve is distinct from other parts of Portugal and other world locations, where only one or two genetic entities are dominant. This pattern and level of genetic diversity in a restricted area, where oleaster (wild olive tree), ancient landraces and modern cultivars of olive occur in close proximity, suggests the Algarve as a centre of diversity of the anthracnose pathogens and corroborates recent work suggesting western Mediterranean as an important centre of olive diversity and domestication

Economically justified equity investment strategies capable of withstanding growing interest rate environment

Mestrado em Economia Monetária e FinanceiraThis thesis proposes an approach for selection of stocks that could serve as a natural hedge for fixed income portfolios to minimize rising interest rate risk. The developed approach is applied to the case of US equity markets. Based on macroeconomic analysis, vector autoregressive model and Granger causality tests, and financial analysis, it is concluded that US financial sector is the optimal choice among all sectors that have strong correlations with interest rates. The thesis? results could be useful for interest rate risk management of the investment portfolios under the growing interest rate environment, in particular, and for investment industry professionals.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Hedgerow agroforestry in England and Wales: increasing width to sequester additional carbon

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Field data on vegetation structure and effects of human use of the Dambos ecosystem in northern Mozambique

Data ArticleThe data content of this paper is related to the original research article entitled “Vegetation Structure and Effects of Human Use of the Dambo Ecosystem in Northern Mozambique” that was published in the Global Ecology and Conservation. Woody and grass vegetation was inventoried in the dambos wetlands of the Niassa National Reserve (NNR), the largest Protected Area (PA) in Mozambique and the third largest in Africa. The six dambos assessed were selected through Google Earth, MODIS satellite images and exploratory field visits. The selected dambos were surveyed using a two-stage systematic sampling procedure in which woody vegetation was inventoried by means of transects, and the grass was inventoried using quadratic sub-plots laid down within the transects. The woody vegetation survey included the identification of all individuals to the species level, measurement of total height and diameter at breast height (DBH). The grass vegetation survey consisted of measurement of the total height and species identification within sub-plots. Woody vegetation data in this article includes also estimation of total richness, absolute and relative abundance, dominance, frequency, species volume and successional stage of each species in the vertical structure. Estimation of richness and absolute dominance is also presented for the grass vegetationinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Constraints towards organic conversion in agroforestry systems: the case of dehesa livestock farms in Extremadura (SW Spain)

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Specialty crop development for temperate agroforestry systems: sustainable management, marketing and promotion for the Midwest region of the USA

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Caracterização de Puccinia hemerocallidis causadora do primeiro surto de ferrugem de lírio-de-um-dia na Europa

Daylily (Hemerocallis spp.) is an ornamental plant widely used in gardens. Daylily rust, caused by the fungus Puccinia hemerocallidis, has disseminated through all continents only in the 21th century, except in Europe, where it has been considered a quarantine disease by the European Plant Protection Organisation. In Portugal, since November 2015, typical rust symptoms were observed in daylily plants in gardens in Lisbon, Alentejo, Algarve and Madeira, attaining high prevalence, incidence and severity. The causal agent was identified as P. hemerocallidis and the Koch’s postulates were fulfilled. Phylogenetic data suggest that this fungus may have been introduced from North America. Using flow cytometry, the genome size of the P. hemerocallidis populations present in Portugal was estimated to be 345 Mbp (0.3533 pg DNA/1C). For such analysis Rhamnus alaternus was validated as a DNA standard, exhibiting a nuclear content of 0.680 pg DNA/2C. The identification of this disease in diverse locations in Portugal represents a threat to European breeding and nursery industries, since there are the appropriate conditions for inoculum maintenance and propagation from Portugal to the rest of Europeinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exploring the potential of agroforestry integration in arable and dairy farms in the Netherlands - an ex-ante assessment at field and farm level

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Mineral composition of ash leaves (Fraxinus excelsior L.) used as fodder for the ruminants in summer

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Linear woody features on homegardens in European Union

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