Management of Strawberry Grey Mold Disease Using Biocontrol Agents and Plant Extracts

Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) is a significant global soft fruit crop, prized for its nutrient content and pleasant flavor. However, diseases, particularly grey mold caused by Botrytis cinerea Pers. Fr. poses major constraints to strawberry production and productivity. Grey mold severely impacts fruit quality and quantity, diminishing market value. This study evaluated five B. cinerea isolates from various locations in the Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya. All isolates were pathogenic, with isolate SGM 2 identified as highly virulent. Host range studies showed the pathogen-producing symptoms in the fava bean pods, marigold, gerbera, and chrysanthemum flowers and in the fava bean, gerbera, and lettuce leaves. In vitro tests revealed that neem extract (15% w/v) achieved the highest mycelial growth inhibition at 76.66%, while black turmeric extract (5% w/v) had the lowest inhibition at 9.62%. Dual culture methods with bio-control agents indicated that Bacillus subtilis recorded the highest mean inhibition at 77.03%, while Pseudomonas fluorescens had the lowest at 20.36% against the two virulent isolates. Pot evaluations demonstrated that B. subtilis resulted in the lowest percent disease index at 20.59%, followed by neem extract at 23.31%, with the highest disease index in the control group at 42.51%. Additionally, B. subtilis significantly improved plant growth, yielding an average of 0.32 kg compared to 0.14 kg in the control. The promising results of B. subtilis and neem leaf extract from this study suggest their potential for eco-friendly managing grey mold in strawberries under field conditions.

Ellagic Acid Enhances Antioxidant System Activity and Maintains the Quality of Strawberry Fruit during Storage

Ellagic acid(EA)is a natural antioxidant,widely present in a lot of forms’soft fruits,nuts,and other plant tissues,and helpful for promoting human health;however,its protective effect on postharvest fruit and improving the quality index of postharvest fruit have rarely been studied.In this experiment,the strawberries were soaked in 0,100,200,300,400,and 500 mg L^(−1) EA,respectively,and the influential EA on fruit quality and the antioxidant system of strawberries were studied.Compared with the control,EA treatment can reduce the browning degree and rotting rate of strawberry fruit during storage and augment the soluble solid content(SSC).EA treatment can also increase the content of related stuff and enzyme activity in antioxidant systems;the gene expression level of polyphenol oxidase(PPO)in strawberries treated with EA was always down-regulated,correspondingly,the expression of other antioxidant enzyme genes was enhanced.Among the strawberry fruits treated with EA of different concentrations,300 mg L^(−1) EA had the best effect in the process of strawberry preservation.The results suggested that the proper concentration of exogenous EA at 300 mg L−1 could maintain strawberries’quality and enhance the antioxidant system by improving the activities of antioxidative enzymes and the ascorbateglutathione(AsA-GSH)cycle during storage.

Real-Time Detection and Instance Segmentation of Strawberry in Unstructured Environment

The real-time detection and instance segmentation of strawberries constitute fundamental components in the development of strawberry harvesting robots.Real-time identification of strawberries in an unstructured envi-ronment is a challenging task.Current instance segmentation algorithms for strawberries suffer from issues such as poor real-time performance and low accuracy.To this end,the present study proposes an Efficient YOLACT(E-YOLACT)algorithm for strawberry detection and segmentation based on the YOLACT framework.The key enhancements of the E-YOLACT encompass the development of a lightweight attention mechanism,pyramid squeeze shuffle attention(PSSA),for efficient feature extraction.Additionally,an attention-guided context-feature pyramid network(AC-FPN)is employed instead of FPN to optimize the architecture’s performance.Furthermore,a feature-enhanced model(FEM)is introduced to enhance the prediction head’s capabilities,while efficient fast non-maximum suppression(EF-NMS)is devised to improve non-maximum suppression.The experimental results demonstrate that the E-YOLACT achieves a Box-mAP and Mask-mAP of 77.9 and 76.6,respectively,on the custom dataset.Moreover,it exhibits an impressive category accuracy of 93.5%.Notably,the E-YOLACT also demonstrates a remarkable real-time detection capability with a speed of 34.8 FPS.The method proposed in this article presents an efficient approach for the vision system of a strawberry-picking robot.

FaSnRK1a mediates salicylic acid pathways to enhance strawberry resistance to Botrytis cinerea

Strawberry is a major fruit crop worldwide because its nutritional and health benefits to human health,but its productivity is limited by Botrytis cinerea.Sucrose nonfermentation 1-related protein kinase 1(SnRK1)has a defense function against pathogens,but the function of SnRK1 in the defense response to B.cinerea in plants is still unclear.In this study,FaSnRK1a-OE and RNAi fruits were constructed and then inoculated with B.cinerea.The result reveals a positive role of Fa SnRK1a in the regulation of resistance to gray mold.FaSnRK1a affects SA content by regulating FaPAL1 and FaPAL2 expressions.The genes related to the SA signaling pathway(FaTGA1 and FaTGA2.1)were significantly increased/decreased in FaSnRK1a-OE or FaSnRK1a-RNAi fruit,respectively.FaSnRK1a interacted with the FaWRKY33.2 protein and negatively regulated FaWRKY33.2 expression,and FaWRKY33.2 acts as a repressor of disease resistance to B.cinerea.Finally,FaSnRK1a regulates the expression of six PR genes and the activities of antioxidant enzymes to boost defense response after B.cinerea inoculation.Our findings showed that FaSnRK1a increases the resistance of strawberry fruit to B.cinerea via SA signaling pathway and interaction with the FaWRKY33.2 transcription factor.

Genome-Wide Discovery and Expression Profiling of the SWEET Sugar Transporter Gene Family in Woodland Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) under Developmental and Stress Conditions: Structural and Evolutionary Analysis

The SWEET(sugar will eventually be exported transporter)family proteins are a recently identified class of sugar transporters that are essential for various physiological processes.Although the functions of the SWEET proteins have been identified in a number of species,to date,there have been no reports of the functions of the SWEET genes in woodland strawberries(Fragaria vesca).In this study,we identified 15 genes that were highly homolo-gous to the A.thaliana AtSWEET genes and designated them as FvSWEET1–FvSWEET15.We then conducted a structural and evolutionary analysis of these 15 FvSWEET genes.The phylogenetic analysis enabled us to categor-ize the predicted 15 SWEET proteins into four distinct groups.We observed slight variations in the exon‒intron structures of these genes,while the motifs and domain structures remained highly conserved.Additionally,the developmental and biological stress expression profiles of the 15 FvSWEET genes were extracted and analyzed.Finally,WGCNA coexpression network analysis was run to search for possible interacting genes of FvSWEET genes.The results showed that the FvSWEET10 genes interacted with 20 other genes,playing roles in response to bacterial and fungal infections.The outcomes of this study provide insights into the further study of FvSWEET genes and may also aid in the functional characterization of the FvSWEET genes in woodland strawberries.

Effect of K Fertilizer on Absorption of Mineral Elements in Greenhouse-grown Strawberry Fruits

[Objectives]The paper was to explore the effect of K fertilizer on the absorption of mineral elements in greenhouse-grown strawberry fruits.[Methods]A systematic investigation was conducted on the effects of K fertilizer dosage levels on the absorption of mineral elements in Fengxiang strawberries,an excellent variety suitable for cultivation in Anhui Province.The investigation was carried out under medium N and P conditions in a greenhouse.[Results]The N content of strawberry fruits increased as the K_(2)O dosage increased within the range of 0-250 kg/hm^(2).Similarly,the P content of strawberry fruits increased gradually with the increase of K_(2)O dosage within the range of 0-125 kg/hm^(2).[Conclusions]This study presents a basis for enhancing the absorption of mineral elements in strawberry fruit by applying K appropriately.

5-Aminolevulinic acid against strawberry Fusarium wilt:Bidirectional regulation of biocontrol agents and pathogens

Strawberry Fusarium wilt (SFW) is a systematic soil-borne disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum f.sp.fragaria (Fof),which infects the vascular bundles,blocking water and nutrient transport from roots to the aboveground.It is a severe pathogen which spreads rapidly and destroys strawberry production.Finding a way to control this disease is of great scientific value and practical importance.In this study,three fungi were isolated from the vascular tissues of sick strawberries in the field.After DNA sequencing,they were identified as Fof,Aspergillus fumigatus and Trichoderma harzianum,respectively,among which the first two are pathogens and the third is a probiotic.All fungi were controlled by thiophanate-methyl (TM),a commercial fungicide.On PDA medium,20 mg·L^(-1)5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA),a natural non-protein amino acid,promoted T.harzianum proliferation,but inhibited Fof and A.fumigatus.In confrontation test,the growth of Fof or A.fumigatus was inhibited by T.harzianum and exogenous ALA promoted T.harzianum growth but significantly inhibited the pathogen growth.When three species of fungi were separately or combinedly inoculated on healthy strawberry plants,T.harzianum promoted plant growth and development while Fof or A.fumigatus caused growth retardation,where Fof directly caused leaf yellowing and plant wilting.When the plants inoculated with different fungus were treated with ALA,the results turned out that ALA alleviated SFW symptoms by bidirectionally promoting T.harzianum proliferation and inhibiting Fof and A.fumigatus.Thus,ALA might be used in comprehensively controlling SFW in strawberry industry.

Effects of Different Agricultural Managements on Characteristics of Soil Microbial Community under Continuous Cropped Strawberry(Fragaria ananassa Duchesne)

[Objective] The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of different agricultural managements on soil microbial population,activity,functional diversity and soil enzyme activity in continuous mono-cropping field of strawberry.[Method]A field plot experiment was carried out to evaluate characteristics of soil microbial community by soil enzyme analysis,microbial cultivation and Biolog analysis.[Result]The results showed that bacteria population proportion,the ration of bacteria to fungi,microorganism amount,AWCD,soil dehydrogenase activity,the Shannon,Simpson,and Mcintosh indices of soil microbial communities were obviously increased under strawberry-rice rotation,soil solarization with rice bran,and calcium cyanamide（CaCN2）treatments,in addition,soil urease activity was significantly increased under strawberry-rice rotation and soil solarization with rice bran treatment,when compared with no fertilization.When compared with conventional fertilization treatment,strawberry-rice rotation and soil solarization with rice bran both significantly increased AWCD and Mcintosh index of soil microbial communities,meanwhile respectively increased soil urease and dehydrogenase activity.PCA analyses suggested that carbon utilization of soil microbial communities under strawberry-rice rotation,soil solarization with rice bran,and calcium cyanamide treatment was obviously different from that of conventional fertilization and no fertilization treatment.[Conclusion] strawberry-rice rotation and soil solarization with rice bran were effective agricultural managements to control soil biological degradation under Continuous Cropped Strawberry.

Study on Soilless Culture of Facility Strawberry

[Objective] The aim was to establish a set of soilless cultivation and management method of facility strawberry cultivation in the south of China.[Method] In the research,strawberry species,substrate formulae,cultivation modes and nutri ent solutions were selected and optimized.[Result] Three-dimensional strawberry cultivation was much suitable for Frandy,Hongbao and Gumei No.1; substrate with coconut shred-mushroom residue-peat soil ratio at 2∶2∶1 was the optimal; the treatment C3,containing Ca（NO3）2·4H2O,KNO3,（NH4）2HPO4,MgSO4·7H2O,and NH4NO3 at 280,303,62,246 and 80 mg/L,promoted strawberry growth,and the cultivated strawberry was large and thick in leaves,thick in stem,dark green in leaf color,with best fruit yield and quality.Among three cultivation modes,the density,space use ratio and yield in the treatment with PVC pipes in A-shape were all higher and the strawberry was easier and more convenient for picking.[Conclusion] The research provides references for soilless cultivation of strawberry in the south of China.

Effects of Different Boric Fertilizers on Growth,Yield and Quality of Strawberry

[Objective] This study aimed to investigate the effect of different boric fer- tilizer on the growth, yield and quality of strawberry. [Method] With a strawberry cultivar Hongyan as the test material, water, borax and foliar disodium octoborate tetrahydrate was respectively sprayed to the leaves of strawberry four times from the squaring stage on. At the initial flowering stage and mature stage, the plant height, stem diameter, leaf area and petiole length of strawberry were measured; at the harvest time, the single fruit weight of strawberry was measured; and at the mature stage, the VC, sugar and organic acids contents in the strawberry fruit were determined. [Result] Compared with the control group, the spraying of foliar disodi- um octoborate tetrahydrate promoted the growth and significantly increased the plant height and leaf area of strawberry. However, no significant difference was found in root shoot ratio of strawberry between foliar disodium octoborate tetrahydrate treat- ment and the control group. Spraying of boric fertilizers significantly increased the single fruit weight and yield of strawberry. Compare with the control group, the spraying of foliar disodium octoborate tetrahydrate and borax increased the single fruit weight of strawberry by 20.14% and 4.86% respectively, and increased the yield of strawberry by 17.28% and 4.02% respectively. Compared with borax treat- ment and the control group, spraying of foliar disodium octoborate tetrahydrate im- proved the quality, i.e., increased the VC content, soluble solids content and sugar- acid ratio in strawberry fruit. The B content in leaf of strawberry was increased after foliar B fertilization. Among the three groups, the B content in leaf of strawberry ranked as disodium octoborate tetrahydrate treatment＇s 〉 borax treatment＇s 〉 con- trol＇s. [Conclusion] Spraying foliar disodium octoborate tetrahydrate can promote the growth, yield and quality of strawberry.

Cloning and Sequencing the Full-length cDNA of Annexin from Strawberry Fruit

采用RACE技术从草莓 (FragariaananassaDuch .)成熟果实中分离克隆了膜联蛋白 (annexin)基因的cDNA 5′_端未知序列 ,并通过测序确定了翻译的起始密码位点、终止密码位点及完整的读码框 ,从而首次获得了草莓果实膜联蛋白基因的cDNA全序列 ,命名为annfaf(annexinofFragariaananassafruit)基因。

Analysis on Microsatellites Derived from Strawberry ESTs

[Objective]The aim was to obtain effective microsatellite markers from the public strawberry ESTs data.[Method]The distribution frequency and density of simple sequence repeats（SSRs） in strawberry EST was analyzed by MISA（Microsatellite） software,and the redundancy was analyzed with CAP3 software.[Result]A total of 10 129 SSR sequence was received in 17 565 of EST sequences,and the distance among SSRs was about 0.90 kb,in which the Hexanucleotide repeats gained the greatest abundance,which was accounted for 61.0%,while the Trimeric,Monomeric,Dimeric,Tetrameric and Pentameric repeats accounted for 14.3%,13.1%,6.2%,4.3% and 1.1% respectively.The most abundant motif was A/T,AG,AAG and AAAG in the Monomeric,Dimeric,Trimeric and Tetrameric repeat motifs,while the CG was not found in the coding region.In these six types of repeat motifs,there was no significant difference between redundant and non redundant ESTs.[Conclusion]The availability of microsatellite markers could be expected to be achieved in the public strawberry database.

Ultrasonic Assisted Extraction of Anthocyanins from Strawberry

This study aimed to explore the main factors influencing the extraction of anthocyanins from strawberry, such as solid-liquid ratio, concentration of solvent, duration of ultrasonic treatment and ultrasonic power. According to the results of sin-gle factor test, an orthogonal experiment was designed to determine the optimum extraction conditions. The effects of the four factors on anthocyanins extraction from strawberry were listed here in an decreasing order： ethanol concentration 〉 solid-liq-uid ratio〉duration of ultrasonic treatment〉ultrasonic power. And the optimal condi-tions of ultrasonic extraction of anthocyanins from strawberry were： ultrasonic treat-ment of 30 min, solid-liquid ratio of 1：15, ethanol concentration of 60% and ultra-sonic power of 300 W. Under such conditions, the content of extracted antho-cyanins was 33.247 mg/100g, which was 1.3 folds higher than that by extraction without ultrasonic treatment.

Optimization of Hybrid Combination and an Application Example for Strawberry Breeding

This study was conducted to select new strawberry cultivars with early maturity, disease resistance and high quality, by optimizing the hybrid combinations of Benihoppe, a Japanese strawberry cultivar, which is extensively planted but not resistant to anthrax. The reciprocal crosses were performed using Benihoppe, as the female parent, four disease-resistant European cultivars Albion, Camino Real, Ven- tana and Virginia, and one Japanese cultivar Meiho as the male parent. Then, the seedling propagation coefficient, disease resistance, fruit quality and yield of F1 gen- eration of the combinations were detected and compared. Besides, the breeding and traits of a new cultivar F1-40 developed from the cross between Benihoppe and Mei- ho were introduced as an instance to prove the feasibility of the combinations/lines.

Application of Plant Growth Regulator TDZ in Strawberry Anther Culture

[Objective] The aim was to investigate the application of plant growth regulator thidiazuron（TDZ）in strawberry anther culture.[Method]Different combinations of TDZ and naphthalene acetic acid（NAA）auxine with different concentrations were used for induction culture,and then its effect on callus induction and plant regeneration were observed.[Result] The combination of 1.0 mg/L TDZ＋0.5 mg/LNAA was effective to accelerating the differentiation and regeneration of strawberries,and the differentiation ratio was as high as 75%.However,TDZ showed insignificant effect on strawberries anther induction.[Conclusion]This research had provided reference for large-scale production of strawberry through anther culture.

Shelf-cultivation of Strawberry with Mulch and Heat Preservation Technology with Natural Energy

It is proved that the treatment with white mulch and black thin films per- formed the best in terms of heat preservation in cultivation of strawberry with shelves. In winter, drip irrigation performed significantly in transporting hot water through solar energy. The combination of the two methods resolved the issue of heat preservation difficulty and guaranteed growth of strawberry in winter.

Identification of Strawberry Anthracnose Pathogens and Screening of Germicides

[Objective] This study aimed to identify strawberry anthracnose pathogens and screen appropriate germicides. [Method] Strawberry anthracnose pathogens in Jurong City of Jiangsu Province were isolated and identified. The toxicities of sever-al germicides to Col etotrichum fragariae were determined with indoor mycelial growth inhibition assay. Field control test was preformed to further verify the control efficacy of germicides. [Result] The isolated strawberry anthracnose pathogenic strains were identified as C. gloeosporioide from genus Col etotrichum of subphylum Deuteromycotina. Prochloraz, pyrazole Kresoxim and hexaconazole al exhibited good indoor control effects; 25% pyrazole Kresoxim EC2000-fold solution, 24% azoxys-trobin＆#183;hexaconazole （azoxystrobin∶hexaconazole=1∶2） SC1500-fold solution and 25%prochloraz EC1000-fold solution al exhibited significant field control efficacy. [Con-clusion] The study provides reference for the alternate use of germicides in actual production.

Effects of Rainy or Snowy Day and Temperature Drop on Strawberry in Greenhouse and Countermeasures

From middle December, 2012 to early January, 2013, Jinan City was in- fluenced by cold airs and successive rainy and snowy days lasted for 13 d. Consequently, strawberry in greenhouse was seriously affected. In the research, the causes of strawberry cold injury were surveyed and analyzed, to provide references for scientific management for farmers.

Goals and Key Technology of Fertilizer-pesticide "Double Reduction" and Synergism for Greenhouse Strawberry

In order to develop green good, reduce the use of chemical fertilizer and pesticide, realize ＂double reduction＂ and synergism, improve safety and quality of products, protect the ecological environment and promote the healthy and steady development of strawberry industry, the goals and key technology of fertilizer-pesticide ＂double reduction＂ and synergism for greenhouse strawberry are summed up in this paper targeting at the current situation of strawberry production and combined with the new technology achievements at home and abroad. The key technology includes six items： healthy seedling cultivating technique, soil improvement and continuous cropping obstacle treatment technique, agricultural ecological prevention tech- nique, physicochemical trap of pest control technique, biological control technique and low residual risk chemical control technique.

Study on Rooting of Strawberry Bechika

[Objective] The aim was to study rooting environment of strawberry ＂Bechi- ka＂ seedlings, and the somaclone domesticated transplanting was carded on. [Method] With the stem tip of stolon as material, the influence factom of rooting and the effects of different transplanting substrata on survival rate was investigated. [Result] The results showed that： 1/2MS was the best concentration for rooting and the rooting rate could reach 100%. IBA was better than IAA for rooting on growth regu- lator levdls, and it had the best effect on rooting with 0.3 mg/L, which produced the thickest and most-fibrous roots. Activated carbon had positive influences on the growth of roots, and the suitable concentration of activated carbon was 0.5 mg/l_ for rooting. The study found that survival rate of tissue culture seedlings was obviously higher in the combination of perlite and vermiculite than that in the combination of humus and sand, and the survival rate could reach 98.1% （perlite：vermiculite=l：l）. Seedlings in various transplanting substrata could normally bloom, fruit and form stolons. [Conclusion] The study provided technical support for achieving large-scale production of virus-free strawberry and quickly cultivating good seedlings.