Effects of water and nitrogen on growth and relative competitive ability of introduced versus native C_(4)grass species in the semi-arid Loess Plateau of China

Switchgrass is an introduced C_(4)grass in the semi-arid Loess Plateau of China,but there is a lack of information to assess its ecological invasive risk.In this study,Old World bluestems(native C_(4)grass)and switchgrass were sowed at five mixture ratios(8:0,6:2,4:4,2:6 and 0:8)under two soil water levels(80%field capacity(FC)and 40%FC)and two nitrogen(N)treatments(0 and 100 mg N/kg dry soil,termed N0-unfertilized and N1-fertilized treatments,respectively)in a pot experiment in 2012.Biomass,root morphological traits and relative competitive abilities of these two species were analyzed.Results showed that biomass of both species was significantly greater under 80%FC or N fertilization,and switchgrass had a relatively larger root:shoot ratio(RSR).Total root length(TRL)and root surface area(RSA)of switchgrass were significantly higher under 80%FC irrespective of N treatment,while those of Old World bluestems were only significantly higher under N fertilization.N had no significant effect on TRL and RSA of switchgrass,while RSA of Old World bluestems significantly increased under 80%FC and N fertilization.Under 40%FC and N0-unfertilized treatment,the aggressivity of Old World bluestems was larger than zero at 2:6 and 4:4 mixture ratios of two species,whereas it was close to zero at 6:2 mixture ratio.Root competitive ability of switchgrass significantly increased under 80%FC or N fertilization.The aggressivity of Old World bluestems was negative at 6:2 mixture ratio under 80%FC and N fertilization,while it was positive at 2:6 mixture ratio.Switchgrass may become more aggressive when N deposition or rainfall increases,while a proper mixture ratio with appropriate water and N management could help with grassland management in the semi-arid Loess Plateau.

Modeling Climate Change Impacts on the US Agricultural Exports

Climate change is expected to have substantial effects on agricultural productivity worldwide. However, these impacts will differ across commodities, locations and time periods. As a result, landowners will see changes in relative returns that are likely to induce modifications in production practices and land allocation. In addition, regional variations in impacts can alter relative competitiveness across countries and lead to adjustments in international trade patterns. Thus in climate change impact studies it is likely useful to account for worldwide productivity effects. In this study, we investigate the implications of considering rest of world climate impacts on projections of the US agricultural exports. We chose to focus on the US because it is one of the largest agricultural exporters. To conduct our analyses, we consider four alternative climate scenarios, both with and without rest of world climate change impacts. Our results show that considering/ignoring rest of world climate impacts causes significant changes in the US production and exports projections. Thus we feel climate change impact studies should account not only for climate impacts in the country of focus but also on productivity in the rest of the world in order to capture effects on commodity markets and trade potential.

Experimental study of cross-section ratios in the collisions of C^(q+) and O^(q+) (q=1-4) on atomic helium in strong-interaction region

We have measured the cross-section ratios of helium induced by Cq＋ and Oq＋ （q = 1-4） in an energy range from 20 keV/amu to 500 keV/amu, and obtained the two-dimensional spectra by employing the coincidence method combined with the MPA-3 data acquisition system. Hence, we obtain the ratios of total single-ionization cross-sections （SI, SC, SLSI, and DLSI）, total double-ionization cross-sections （DI, DC, TI, SLDI, and DLDI） and cross-sections of every process （SI, SC, SLSI, DLSI, DI, DC, TI, SLDI, and DLDI）, which induce the single-ionization and double-ionization, to the total cross sections respectively. The competitive relations between the reaction-channels and the experimental data law of each reaction-channel are revealed explicitly, and the qualitative explanations involved in those results are also presented accordingly.

Drought may be beneficial to the competitive advantage of Amaranthus spinosus

Drought can affect the growth and soil enzyme activities of invasive alien plants(IAPs).It is imperative to evaluate the competitive advantage of IAPs compared with that of the native species and the activities of soil enzymes under drought.This study aimed to evaluate the competitive advantage of the IAP Amaranthus spinosus that originated from tropical America compared with the native Chinese species A.tricolor and the activities of soil enzymes under drought.A competitive co-culture of A.spinosus and A.tricolor was established using a planting basin experiment.The two species were treated with different levels of drought,i.e.(i)the control;(ii)a light level of drought and(iii)a heavy level of drought.The functional traits,osmotic adjustment and the activities of antioxidant enzymes of the two species,as well as soil pH and electrical conductivity,contents of soil microbial biomass carbon and the activities of soil enzymes were determined.The relative competition intensity and relative dominance of A.spinosus were greater than those of A.tricolor under drought.Drought may provide an advantage to the competitive advantage of A.spinosus.Soil water-soluble salt content and sucrose hydrolytic power of A.spinosus were greater than those of A.tricolor under drought.The ability of A.spinosus to grow in soil with higher levels of water-soluble salt contents and sucrose hydrolytic power under drought may aid in its acquisition and utilization of nutrients.