Evaluation and analysis of intraspecific competition in maize: A case study on plant density experiment

Intraspecific competition is a common phenomenon in agricultural production,and maize is one of the most sensitive grass species to intraspecific competition due to its low tillering ability.This study evaluated and analyzed intraspecific competition in maize,and screened competitive indices that could be used to evaluate intraspecific competition in a maize population.A 2-year field experiment was conducted using the maize hybrid Zhongdan 2 at 12 plant densities ranging from 1.5 to 18.0 plants（pl）m-2.The results showed that the response of single-plant grain yield and dry matter at harvest to increased plant density decreased exponentially and that the harvest index decreased linearly.The response of population-level grain yield to plant density was curvilinear,producing a maximum value at the optimum population density.However,the yielddensity equation agreed well with the Steinhart-Hart equation curves,but not with the quadratic equation curves reported by most previous studies.Competitive indices are used to evaluate competition in a plant population or plant species.The present results show that competitive intensity（CI）and absolute severity of competition（ASC）increased with increasing plant density;however,relative yield（RY）and relative reproductive efficiency（RReff）decreased.The different responses of these indices reflect different aspects of competition.According to the analysis of CI,ASC,RY,and RReff,higher CI and ASC values indicate higher intraspecific competition,whereas higher RY and RReff values indirectly reflect lower intraspecific competition.These competitive indices evaluate not only the intraspecific competitive intensity under different plant densities of the same cultivar but also those of different cultivars under the same plant density.However,some overlap exists in the calculations of ASC,CI,and RY,so one could simply select any one of these indices to evaluate intraspecific competition in a maize population.In conclusion,the present study provides a method to evaluate intraspecific competition in maize populations,which may be beneficial for breeding high-yield maize varieties in the future.

Competition effects in an afrotemperate forest

Background： Information about competition responses is mainly available for monospecific stands or mixed stands with a small number of species. Studies on complex multi-species and highly structured forest ecosystems are scarce. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to quantify competition effects and analyse competition responses in a species-diverse afrotemperate forest in South Africa, based on an observational study with mapped tree positions and long-term diameter increment records. Methods： The sensitivity to competition was analysed for individual species and involved the calculation of the slope of the linear relation between the value of a competition index （CI） and diameter growth as a measure of sensitivity. In a next step different competition indices were combined and tree diameters were grouped in three classes as surrogates for canopy status and ontogenetic stage. Results： Five competition indices were found to be effective in showing sensitivity to competition for a number of canopy and sub-canopy species. Significant linear regressions were fitted for 18 of a total of 25 species. Species reactions varied significantly in their sensitivity to the different CIs. The indices were classified as belonging to two groups, those that responded more to local crowding and those that are more sensitive to overtopping, which revealed species-specific sensitivities to both factors. The analysis based on diameter classes revealed that species clearly changed their sensitivity to crowding or overtopping depending on diameter. Canopy and sub-canopy species showed distinct differences in their reactions. Conclusions： The application of multiple CIs brought novel insights relating to the dynamics of afrotemperate forests. The response patterns to different competition indices that focus on crowding and overtopping are varied and tree diameter dependent, indicating that oversimplified assumptions are not warranted in the interpretation of Cl- growth relations.