Magnitude differences in agronomic, chemical, nutritional, and structural features among different varieties of forage corn grown on dry land and irrigated land

Determination by near infrared microscopy of the nitrogen and carbon content of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) leaf powder

Near infrared microscopy (NIRM) has been developed as a rapid technique to predict the chemical composition of foods, reduce analytical costs and time and ease sample preparation. In this study, NIRM has been evaluated as an alternative to classical chemical analysis to determine the nitrogen and carbon content of small samples of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) leaf powder. Near infrared spectra were obtained by NIRM for independent leaf samples collected on 216 plants grown under six different levels of nitrogen. From these, 30 calibration and 30 validation samples covering the spectral range of the whole set were selected and their nitrogen and carbon contents were determined by a reference method. The calibration model obtained for nitrogen content proved to be excellent, with a coefficient of determination in calibration (R(2)c) higher than 0.9 and a ratio of performance to deviation (RPDc) higher than 3. Statistical indicators of prediction using the validation set were also very high (R(2)p values > 0.90). However, the calibration model obtained for carbon content was much less satisfactory (R(2)c < 0.50). NIRM appears as a promising and suitable tool for a rapid, non-destructive and reliable determination of nitrogen content of tiny samples of tomato leaf powder.

Alleviation of Drought Stress and Metabolic Changes in Timothy (Phleum pratense L.) Colonized with Bacillus subtilis B26

Drought is a major limiting factor of crop productivity worldwide and its incidence is predicted to increase under climate change. Drought adaptation of cool-season grasses is thus a major challenge to secure the agricultural productivity under current and future climate conditions. Endophytes are non-pathogenic plant-associated bacteria that can play an important role in conferring resistance and improving plant tolerance to drought. In this study, the effect of inoculation of the bacterial endophyte Bacillus subtilis strain B26 on growth, water status, photosynthetic activity and metabolism of timothy (Phleum pratense L.) subjected to drought stress was investigated under controlled conditions. Under both drought-stress and non-stressed conditions, strain B26 successfully colonized the internal tissues of timothy and had a positive impact on plant growth. Exposure of inoculated plant to a 8-week drought-stress led to significant increase in shoot and root biomass by 26.6 and 63.8%, and in photosynthesis and stomatal conductance by 55.2 and 214.9% respectively, compared to non-inoculated plants grown under similar conditions. There was a significant effect of the endophyte on plant metabolism; higher levels of several sugars, notably sucrose and fructans and an increase of key amino acids such as, asparagine, glutamic acid and glutamine were recorded in shoots and roots of colonized plants compared to non-colonized ones. The accumulation of the non-protein amino acid GABA in shoots of stressed plants and in roots of stressed and unstressed plants was increased in the presence of the endophyte. Taken together, our results indicate that B. subtilis B26 improves timothy growth under drought stress through the modification of osmolyte accumulation in roots and shoots. These results will contribute to the development of a microbial agent to improve the yield of grass species including forage crops and cereals exposed to environmental stresses.