Sorghum Productivity and Its Farming Feasibility in Dryland Agriculture:Genotypic and Planting Distance Insights

Sorghum(Sorghum bicolor L.Moench)is an essential food crop for more than 750 million people in tropical and sub-tropical dry climates of Africa,India,and Latin America.The domestic sorghum market in Indonesia is still limited to the eastern region(East Nusa Tenggara,West Nusa Tenggara,Java,and South Sulawesi).Therefore,it is crucial to carry out sorghum research on drylands.This research aimed to investigate the effect of sorghum genotype and planting distance and their interaction toward growth and sorghum’s productivity in the Gunungkidul dryland,Yogyakarta,Indonesia.In addition,the farm business analysis,including the feasibility of sorghum farming,was also examined.The research used a randomized complete block design(RCBD),arranged in a 5×4 factorial with 3 replicates.The first treatment consisted of 5 varieties(2 high-yielding varieties(Bioguma 1 and Kawali)and 3 local sorghum varieties(Plonco,Ketan Merah,and Hitam Wareng)).The second treatment consisted of 4 levels of planting distance,namely 50×20 cm,60×20 cm,70×15 cm,and 70×20×20 cm.Analysis of variance was used to analyze the data,where Duncan’s multiple range test(DMRT)was used post hoc.Plant height,panicle height,panicle width,panicle weight,stover weight,grains weight/plot,and productivity were significantly affected by sorghum varieties(p<0.05).However,there was no significant effect from the planting distance treatment and no interaction between planting distance and varietal treatments.Ketan Merah had the highest height,panicle length,and panicle width,while Bioguma 1 had the highest stover weight,panicle weight,grain weight/plot,and productivity.There was a significant linear regression equation,i.e.,productivity=0.0054–0.0003 panicle height+0.4163 grains weight/plot.Our findings on farm business analysis suggested that four out of five tested sorghum varieties were feasible to grow,except for the Ketan Merah variety.The most economically profitable sorghum variety to grow in Gunungkidul dryland was Bioguma 1.

Dryland agriculture and rangeland restoration priorities in Afghanistan

Afghanistan is threatened by rangeland degradation.A quantitative visual analysis of Google Earth Imagery was used to systematically locate,characterize and quantify the current extent of rangelands in Afghanistan degraded as a consequence of dryland agriculture.Climate data were used in conjunction with dryland agriculture locations to establish a climate envelope comprised by temperature and mean annual precipitation to create a geographical mask known to contain dryland agriculture.Within this mask we created a grid of 100 km2 cells that we analyzed individually to access dryland agriculture extent.Climatic limits to sustainable dryland agriculture and areas of high restoration priority were also assessed as was the distribution of rain-fed agriculture with respect to the location of traditional migration routes for extensive livestock producers.The extents of agriculture in Afghanistan,at both upper and lower elevations,correlated most closely with mean annual temperature（MAT） at the upper elevation limits,and with mean annual precipitation（MAP） at the lower elevation limits.In total,dryland agriculture comprised 38,980 km2 of former native rangeland.Conversion was highest in the northwestern,northern and northeastern provinces of Herat,Badghis,Faryab,Jawzjan,Sar-e-Pul,Samangan,Balkh,Baghlan,Kunduz,Takhar and Badakhshan,with the highest percentage of conversion occurring in Takhar.An MAP value of 〈400 mm is perceived by farmers as the current climatic limit to sustainable dryland agriculture across the northern regions of the country.Uder this MAP value,approximately 27,677 km2 of converted rangeland met the need for restoration priority.Climate projections indicate that Afghanistan will become warmer and drier in the coming decades.One consequence of this trend is that the MAP threshold of 〈400 mm to sustainable dryland agriculture will become obsolete in the coming decades.Restoration of currently converted rangelands is needed to restore critical grazing areas as is the adoption of prudent range management policies to prevent further land degradation and support a vital livestock industry.Food security is at stake as the conversion of rangelands to unsustainable rain-fed agriculture may leave large tracks of land unusable for either agriculture or livestock production.

Improving dryland maize productivity and water efficiency with heterotrophic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria via nitrification and cytokinin activity

A two-year field experiment conducted under dryland conditions in semi-humid and drought-prone regions of China aimed to assess the effect of ammonia-oxidizing bacterial on maize water use efficiency and yield.A heterotrophic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria(HAOB)strain S2_8_1 was used.Six treatments were applied:(1)no irrigation+HAOB strain(DI),(2)no irrigation+blank culture medium(DM),(3)no irrigation control(DCK),(4)irrigation+HAOB(WI),(5)irrigation+blank culture medium(WM),and(6)irrigation control(WCK).Results revealed that HAOB treatment increased maize growth,yield,and water use efficiency over controls,regardless of whether the year was wet or dry.This improvement was attributed to the accelerated nitrification in the rhizosphere soil due to HAOB inoculation,which subsequently led to increased levels of leaf cytokinins.Overall,these findings suggest that HAOB inoculation holds promise as a strategy to boost water use efficiency and maize productivity in dryland agriculture.

Zai Pit Effects on Selected Soil Properties and Cowpea (<i>Vigna unguiculata</i>) Growth and Grain Yield in Two Selected Dryland Regions of Kenya

Erratic rainfall and temperature regimes, strongly affect agricultural productivity. To address the reduction in production, this study assessed the effect of Zai pit depths on selected soil properties and cowpea growth and grain yield. “Zai” pit technology was tested in two locations falling under Agroecological Zone IV (relatively dry areas) i.e. Katumani in Machakos County and Naivasha in Nakuru County, Kenya, aiming to determine the combined effect of four “Zai” pit depths and two levels of manure (plots with manure and plots without manure) on selected soil properties, growth and yield of cowpea. Experiment was laid out in split plot arrangement, with manure levels as the main plot factor and “Zai” pit depths (Flat: Z0, 30 cm: Z30, 45 cm: Z45 and 60 cm: Z60) as subplot factor, replicated four times. Cowpea (M66 variety) was used as the test crop. Inorganic N and extractable P were significantly (P < 0.05) higher, at 1.37 mg⋅kg−1 for Nin and 80.4 mg⋅kg−1 for Pex in Zai pits compared to flat plots which were at 0.91 mg⋅kg−1 for Nin and 47.1 mg⋅kg−1 for Pex. The values of Nin and Pex also varied depending on depths, with Z45 having highest Nin at 1.17 against the least, at 0.89 in the Z0, while Pex was highest in Z30 at 102.3 mg⋅kg−1 while Z0 having the least Pex of 89.7 mg⋅kg−1. Generally, crops in “Zai” pitted plots were larger in diameter at 0.46 cm than crops in flat plots at 0.42 cm. Better performance was observed in yield, with Z30 yielding 30.5% against 18.2% Flat plots in Machakos while 27.9% in Z30 against 22.5% from Flat plots in Naivasha. This study demonstrated great potential of “Zai” pit technology on crop production, as reflected on improved growth and yield of cowpeas. Combining “Zai” pits with manure increases soil Nin, Pex and is a guarantee of great crop performance in terms of high final yields.

Genome-Wide Analysis for Yield-Related Agronomic and Biochemical Traits of Chinese and Bangladeshi Grass Pea Genotypes Using SSR Markers

Grass pea(Lathyrus sativus L.)is an imperative food crop cultured in dryland agricultural ecology.It is a vital source of dietary protein to millions of populaces living in low-income countries in South-East Asia and Africa.This study highlights the improvement of genomic properties and their application in marker-trait relationships for 17 yield-related characters in 400 grass pea genotypes from China and Bangladesh.These characters were assessed via 56 polymorphic markers using general linear model(GLM)(P+G+Q)and mixed linear model(MLM)(P+G+Q+K)in the tassel software based on the linkage disequilibrium and population structure analysis.Population structure analysis showed two major groups and one admixed group in the populace.Statistically significant loci pairs of linkage disequilibrium(LD)mean value(D′)was 0.479.A total of 99 and 61 marker-trait associations in GLM and MLM models allied to the 17 traits were accepted at a 5%level of significance.Among these markers,21 markers were associated with more than one trait;12 marker-trait associations passed the Bonferroni correction threshold.Both models found six markers C41936,C39067,C34100,C47146,C47638,and C43047 significantly associated with days to maturity,flower color,plant height,and seed per pod were detected in the Hebei and Liaoyang location(p≤0.01),and the interpretation rate(R^(2)value)11.2%to 43.6%.Conferring to the consequences,the association analysis methodology may operative system for quantitative,qualitative,and biochemical traits related to gene position mapping and support breeders in improving novel approaches for advancing the grass pea quality.

Implications of multipurpose tree leaf application on wheat productivity in dry tropics

Leaves of multipurpose tree species （those providing more than one function or product of human use） can serve as sources of fer- tilizer for nutrient supply, especially nitrogen （N）. In this study chopped leaves of tropical tree species （5 N-fixing species, 5 non-N-fixing species and combinations of 5 N-fixing with a non-N-fixing species） were in- corporated in soil to evaluate its effects on wheat biological productivity （including grain yield, GyIELD） under dryland conditions. High quality leaves of N-fixing tree species （e.g. Dalbergia sissoo, Cassia fistula and Prosopis cineraria） had lower carbon/nitrogen （C/N）, lignin/nitrogen （L^o/N）, polyphenol/nitrogen （PPt/N） and lignin＋polyphenol /nitrogen （L~＋PpL/N） ratios than low quality leaves of non-N-fixing species. Com- bination treatments had intermediate values of different parameters, Application of high quality leaves caused greater increases in wheat productivity and yield than other species.

Implications of agricultural success in the Yellow River Basin and its strategy for green development

The Yellow River Basin is an important food production area and an ecological challenge for China, where environmental protection and water scarcity are the major constraints. For the upper reaches of the Yellow River Basin,optimizing the adoption of chemicals in agricultural production and integrating crops with livestock are the key strategies for protecting the eco-environment.For dryland agriculture in the middle and upper reaches, this study summarizes four aspects of efficient precipitation techniques in terms of collection,storage, conservation, and use, which have greatly improved crop yields and supported dryland crop production. Irrigated agriculture in the middle and lower reaches is the core area of China's grain production, where the area under water-saving irrigation reached 13.0 Mha in 2018, greatly improving water use. Compared with 1998, cereal production in 2018 increased by 62.2 Mt under similar total water withdrawals(49.7 billion to 51.6 billion m~3),and the annual soil erosion at the Tongguan Hydrological Observatory reduced by 584 million m~3 in 2018, achieving great success in environmental protection and efficient water use. The Chinese government has set a goal for the Yellow River Basin to become the national leader in environmental protection and efficient water use by 2035. Such a high demand requires the combined efforts of the whole community, as well as the adoption of new technologies,coordinated basin-wide development, and adequate policy support.

LIGHT INTERCEPTION AND USE EFFICIENCY DIFFER WITH MAIZE PLANT DENSITY IN MAIZE-PEANUT INTERCROPPING

Intercropping increases crop yields by optimizing light interception and/or use efficiency.Although intercropping combinations and metrics have been reported,the effects of plant density on light use are not well documented.Here,we examined the light interception and use efficiency in maize-peanut intercropping with different maize plant densities in two row configurations in semiarid dryland agriculture over a two-year period.The field experiment comprised four cropping systems,i.e.,monocropped maize,monocropped peanut,maize-peanut intercropping with two rows of maize and four rows of peanut,intercropping with four rows of maize and four rows of peanut,and three maize plant densities(3.0,4.5 and 6.0 plants m^(-1) row)in both monocropped and intercropping maize.The mean total light interception in intercropping across years and densities was 779 MJ·m^(-2),5.5%higher than in monocropped peanut(737 MJ·m^(-2))and 7.6%lower than in monocropped maize(843 MJ·m^(-2)).Increasing maize density increased light interception in monocropped maize but did not affect the total light interception in the intercrops.Across years the LUE of maize was 2.9 g·MJ–1 and was not affected by cropping system but increased with maize plant density.The LUE of peanut was enhanced in intercropping,especially in a wetter year.The yield advantage of maize-peanut intercropping resulted mainly from the LUE of peanut.These results will help to optimize agronomic management and system design and provide evidence for system level light use efficiency in intercropping.