改性异氰酸酯稻草刨花板的吸湿特性

在实验室压制的改性异氰酸酯稻草刨花板,采用室温水浸法,揭示板子在高湿环境中的尺寸稳定性以及吸湿行为,探讨密度(0.60、0.75、0.90g/cm3)、施胶量(3％、4％、5％)和石蜡含量(0、1％、1.75％、2.5％、3.75％)对板子湿性能的影响。结果表明,稻草刨花板具有明显的湿膨胀行为,该过程受到密度和施胶量的影响。石蜡的施加,对板材的力学性能没有明显的影响,但有效地控制了尺寸的变化。吸着饱和点SSP是刨花板吸湿变形的临界含水率。

硼氢化钠还原对褐腐木质素结构特征的影响

采用FTIR、UV-Visible、NMR和GPC分析手段研究了褐腐木质素被NaBH4还原前后的化学结构变化。FTIR表明褐腐木质素还原后1 677 cm-1处与苯环共轭的羰基峰消失,1 715 cm-1处非共轭羰基峰强度减弱,1 509和1 603 cm-1处苯环骨架振动吸收峰强度变化很小;UV表明褐腐木质素还原后位于288 nm的最强吸收峰和300～400nm区域的吸收强度降低;1H NMR表明褐腐木质素还原后甲氧基和酚羟基数量减少,醇羟基数量增加,褐腐木质素芳香环和结构单元联接键上的氢质子数增加;GPC表明褐腐木质素还原后分子量分布向高分子区域扩展,数均和重均分子量增大,分子量分布明显变宽。NaBH4在碱性环境中可以将褐腐木质素中的共轭羰基完全还原为羟基,非共轭羰基部分还原为羟基,其侧链结构部分被改变,苯环结构稳定,褐腐木质素在还原过程中发生了缩合反应。

Scale Effect of Climate and Soil Texture on Soil Organic Carbon in the Uplands of Northeast China

Understanding how spatial scale influences commonly-observed effects of climate and soil texture on soil organic carbon （SOC） storage is important for accurately estimating the SOC pool at different scales. The relationships among climate factors, soil texture and SOC density at the regional, provincial, city, and county scales were evaluated at both the soil surface （0-20 cm） and throughout the soil profile （0-100 cm） in the Northeast China uplands. We examined 1 022 profiles obtained from the Second National Soil Survey of China. The results indicated that the relationships between climate factors and SOC density generally weakened with decreasing spatial scale. The provincial scale was optimal to assess the relationship between climate factors and SOC density because regional differences among provinces were covered up at the regional scale. However, the relationship between soil texture and SOC density had no obvious trend with increasing scale and changed with temperature. There were great differences in the impacts of climate factors and soil texture on SOC density at different scales. Climate factors had a larger effect on SOC density than soil texture at the regional scale. Similar trends were seen in Heilongjiang and eastern Inner Mongolia at the provincial scale. But, soil texture had a greater effect on SOC density compared with climate factors in Jilin and Liaoning. At the city and county scales, the influence of soil texture on SOC density was more important than climate factors.

ZIF-67@Cellulose nanofiber hybrid membrane with controlled porosity for use as Li-ion battery separator

Zeolitic imidazolate framework-67(ZIF-67) was synthesized on the surface of cellulose nanofibers(CNFs)in methonal to address the problems of unhomogeneous pore size and pore distribution of pure CNF membrane.A combination of Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy(EDS),X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) and X-ray powder diffraction(XRD) patterns were used to determine the successful synthesis of ZIF-67@CNFs.The size of the ZIF-67 particles and pore size of the ZIF-67@CNF membrane were50-200 nm and 150-350 nm, respectively.The prepared ZIF-67@CNF membrane exhibited excellent thermal stability,lower thermal shrinkage and high surface wettability.The discharge capacity retention of the Li-ion batteries(LIBs) made with ZIF-67@CNF,glass fiber(GF),CNF and commercial polymer membranes after 100 th cycle at 0.5 C rate were 88.41%,86.22%,83.27%,and 81.03%,respectively.LIBs with ZIF-67@CNF membrane exhibited a better rate capability than these with other membranes.No damage of porous structure or peel-off of ZIF-67 was observed in the SEM images of ZIF-67@CNF membrane after100 th cycle.The improved cycling performance,rate capability,and good electrochemical stability implied that ZIF-67@CNFs membrane can be considered as a good alternative LIB separator.

Function of Soils in Regulating Rainwater in Southern China: Impacts of Land Uses and Soils

One of the most important functions of soils is to regulate rainwater and mitigate flooding and associated damages; this function can be estimated by the rainwater regulation ratio （η）, i.e., percent of regulated rainwater. Fifteen experimental plots were set up on the hills in Yingtan of Jiangxi Province, southern China. These plots were under three land use patterns, cultivated cropland, noncultivated land, and orchard interplanted with cash crops. With aid of an artificial rainfall simulator and Guelph method, rainfall, runoff, soil infiltration, and so on were measured in situ. Results showed that the orchard interplanted with cash crops was more effective in regulating rainwater than the other two land use patterns. When the maximum infiltration intensity was three times higher than the observed mean,η was higher than 70% for all plots. 77 was related to land use, slope gradient, and soil properties such as soil infiltration, organic carbon, bulk density, and texture. There is still more room to improve capacity of rainwater drainage （underground percolation） than that of rainwater storage in soils. Therefore, enhancing soil permeability is vital to improve the rainwater regulation efficiency in soils.

Low Co-Cultivation Temperature at 20°C Resulted in the Reproducible Maximum Increase in Both the Fresh Weight Yield and Stable Expression of GUS Activity after <i>Agrobacterium tumefaciens</i>-Mediated Transformation of Tobacco Leaf Disks

The importance of controlled temperature during the four-days co-cultivation period was evaluated under the most physiologically relevant conditions for Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L. cv. Xanthi (nn, Smith)) leaf disks. We compared the effect of temperatures ranging from 15°C, 18°C, 20°C, 22°C to 25°C on the stable expression of β-glucuronidase (GUS) activity of 14 days old hygromycin-selected leaf disks, and on the increase in the fresh weight yield of 28 days old kanamycin-selected calli. The highest average of GUS activity was obtained at 20°C among the five temperatures tested although the difference between the 18°C and 20°C treatment was not statistically significant. The GUS activity at 15°C was statistically lower than those at 18°C and 20°C. The GUS activity in 22°C treatment was an intermediate between the highest (18/20°C) and second highest averages (15°C), and was not statistically significantly different. The lowest average of GUS activity was observed at 25°C. The highest increase in the plate average of fresh weight yield was obtained at 20°C among the five temperature tested. The 20°C treatment was statistically significantly better than the 15°C and 18°C treatments. The 20°C co-cultivation treatment resulted in the higher FW yield than 22°C and 25°C even though the differences were not statistically significant. In conclusion, low co-cultivation temperature at 20°C resulted in the reproducible maximum increase in both the fresh weight yield and stable expression of GUS activity after transformation of tobacco leaf disks.

A Model for Estimating Total Forest Coverage with Ground-Based Digital Photography

Vegetation fractional coverage (VFC) is one of the key indicators of vegetation distribution. In the work a measurement-based model was developed to derive total forest VFC (TG) as well as the VFC of trees (T) and shrub-grasses (G) separately in a subtropical forest area in Nanjing, China. Both upward and downward photographs were taken with a digital camera in 72 quadrats (10 m × 10 m each). Fifteen models were established and validated. Models jointly using both T and G performed better than those using the T and G separately. The best model, TG = T + G- 1.134 × T × G- 0.025 (R2 = 0.9115, P < 0.01, root mean squared error = 0.0789), is recommended for application. This model provides a good way to obtain total forest VFC values through taking tree and shrub-grass photos on ground below tree canopy rather than above tree canopy.

Efficacy of Bacillus subtilis MBI 600 Against Sheath Blight Caused by Rhizoctonia solani and on Growth and Yield of Rice

Rice sheath blight disease （ShB）, caused by Rhizoctonia solani, gives rise to significant grain yield losses. The present study evaluated the efficacy of Integral, the commercial liquid formulation of Bacillus subtilis strain MBI 600, against rice ShB and for plant growth promotion. In greenhouse studies, four log concentrations of Integral （from 2.2×10^6 to 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL） were used as seed treatment （ST）. After 25 d, seedlings were dipped （SD） into Integral prior to transplanting. At 30 d after transplanting （DAT）, leaf sheaths were inoculated with immature sclerotia of the pathogen. At 45 DAT, a foliar spray （FS） with Integral was applied to some treatments. The fungicide control was 50% carbendazim at 1.0 g/L, and a nontreated control was also included. Overall, there were 10 treatments, each with five replications. ShB severity was rated at 52 DAT, and seedling height and number of tillers per plant were rated at 60 DAT. In 2009, two field trials evaluated Integral at 2.2×10^8 and 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL. Integral was applied as ST, and seedlings were produced in a nursery bed. After 32 d, seedlings were treated with Integral as SD and transplanted into 10 m^2 blocks. Foliar sprays were given at 45 and 60 DAT. There were seven treatments, each with eight replications arranged as a factorial randomized complete block design. At 20 DAT, the plots were broadcast inoculated with R. solani produced on rice grains. Seedling height before transplanting, ShB severity at 90 DAT, and grain yield at harvest were recorded. Integral at 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL provided significant increase of seedling heights over other treatments under greenhouse conditions. The Integral treatments of ST ＋ SD ＋ FS at 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL significantly suppressed ShB over other treatments. In field studies, Integral provided significant increase of seedling height in nursery, and number of tillers per plant, compared with the control. ShB severity was significantly suppressed with higher concentrations of Integral compared to lower concentrations. Grain yield were the highest at an Integral concentration of 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL. Overall, Integral significantly reduced ShB severity, enhanced seedling growth, number of tillers per plant and grain yield as ST ＋ SD ＋ FS at the concentration of 2.2×10^9 cfu/mL under the conditions evaluated.

Occurrence of Toxigenic Clostridium difficile in Louisiana Oysters (<i>Crassostrea virginica</i>) and Environmental Waters

Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) was generally considered as a hospital-associated disease;however, recent community-acquired CDI has raised the concerns regarding the transmission of the pathogen through environmental sources. Limited data are available regarding the presence of C. difficile in food and water. In this study, oysters (Crassostrea virginica) and the harvest water collected from the commercial harvesting areas along the Louisiana Gulf Coast as well as the influent and effluent of a municipal treatment plant in New Orleans, LA were analyzed for toxigenic C. difficile. The bacterium was isolated from 47.37% (9/19) of oysters and 37.5% (3/8) of harvest water samples. Toxigenic C. difficile were also detected in all the wastewater influent and effluent samples. All the isolates harbored the gene tcdB encoding the virulence factor toxin B. Further PCR-ribotyping showed that the C. difficile isolated from the oysters and harvest water differed from the wastewater isolates. However, similar ribotypes were found in oysters and the surrounding harvest water. We found that oysters growing in contaminated water could bioaccumulate toxigenic C. difficile and pose a health risks by serving as a vehicle for the transmission of the pathogen to humans.

Studying the Ecological Benefits of <i>Spartina</i>Grass Species and Use of a Mathematical Model (Pick’s Theorem) for Historical Documentation and Future Restoration of Hypoxic Marshlands

Coastal erosion, subsidence, salt water intrusion, and hypoxia are forces that impact Louisiana and beyond. The objective of this research was to determine the extent of land loss due to erosion and establish the best Spartina (S.) species to ameliorate the coast. Using graph theory in the Geometer’s Sketch Pad program, progressive land loss from Isles Dernieres was determined from 1853 to 2005. This was accomplished using Pick’s Theorem (A = I + B/2 - 1), where A = total land area, I = interior intersections, and B = boundary intersections. The analysis indicated that there had been more than ninety percent land loss from 1853 to 2005. Additionally, four plants from each Spartina species (alterniflora, patens, and spartinae) were planted and flooded in four containers, respectively, filled with potting soil, and a non-vegetated control was included in this same manner. Dissolved oxygen was measured three times a week under three different temperature regimes, twenty-two, thirty, and ten degrees Celsius, respectively. This resulted in the control group diffusing the most oxygen at twenty-two degrees Celsius, the S. alterniflora diffusing the most oxygen at thirty degrees Celsius, and all the species diffusing statistically similar oxygen levels at ten degrees Celsius. After six months of flooded conditions, penetration and subsidence were measured. The vegetated soils required the greatest penetration forces and subsided the least. Oxygen diffusion is dependent on plant species and temperature. The penetration and subsidence results also support the conclusion that plants can reduce land loss and preserve the coastline.

Quantitation of Pesticide Residue in Water and Food in Louisiana, USA

Pesticides can remain in the environment for decades and contaminate surface water that is used for irrigation of produce. This study examined pesticide residues in some surface waters and foods in Louisiana. Samples of 8 foods (tomato, corn, rice, blueberry, cucumber, cabbage, wheat and melon) and 35 surface waters were studied using a QuEChERS extraction method for food samples and liquid-liquid extraction method for the water samples. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to analyze water and food samples. Nine pesticides were detected in the surface water samples and 5 in the food samples. Pesticides detected in foods were below FDA tolerance limit but 0.18 ppm cypermethrin found in tomato was within 90% of the FDA limit (0.2 ppm). Four water samples had atrazine levels that were above the FDA limit for potable water. This study suggests the need to intermittently monitor pesticide contamination in our food and water.

Ecological Restoration Zones within the Monkey River Area (Belize) Using Community Grown Nurseries to Produce Plants for Riparian Strips

Agricultural runoff near watersheds causes severe pollution of estuaries that can cause severe detrimental effects. The purpose of this experiment is to determine the most effective riparian strip combination to reduce offsite runoff and pollution. Three combinations of riparian strips were tested by simulating runoff in a greenhouse environment with drip irrigation. Results of elements in leaf tissues, effluent volume, and effluent element concentrations showed that the riparian strips with a combination of grass and trees was the most successful. If the detailed plan provided by this experiment for growing and planting a riparian strip near Monkey River is installed, then it can be concluded that the riparian strip will reduce nutrient runoff and help prevent erosion.

Fungal endophytes in green coffee seeds

Green coffee seeds from Colombia, Guatemala, India, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Puerto Rico and Vietnam were sampled for the presence of fungal endophytes. Stions of surface sterilized seeds were plated on yeast malt agar, and fungal growth was isolated for subsequent DNA extraction and sequencing. Several fungal genera were isolated, including Acremonium, Aspergillus, Eurotium, Fusarium, Gibberella, Penicillium, Pseudozyma and an undescribed clavicipitaceous species. The biological activities that these fungi might be playing in coffee seeds remain unknown, but in other plants some of the genera isolated have been reported to protect against plant pathogens.

Lead Phytoremediation in Contaminated Soils Using Ornamental Landscape Plants

Lead (Pb) in the urban environment can have a negative effect on human health, especially children’s health. Reducing elevated Pb exposure in the home landscape is essential. The purpose of this study was to determine which ornamental groundcover landscape plants uptake Pb from contaminated soil. Plants for both shade and sun were selected. Plants for shade [Brake fern (Pteris vittata), Asian Jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum), “Big Blue” Liriope (Liriope muscari), and St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum)] and sun [Variegated Liriope (Liriope muscari “Variegata”), Asian Jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum), Asparagus Fern (Asparagus setaceus), and Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon)] adapted landscape groundcover plants successfully assimilated Pb grown in soil containing 250 ppm and 500 ppm Pb concentrations. Additionally, soil movement at both 25 mph and 50 mph wind speed was significantly different, with increased soil movement at 50 mph. Therefore, it was determined that landscape plants adapted to both sun and shade can help remove Pb from contaminated soils and stabilize soil particles reducing the movement of soil and be aesthetically pleasing.

Influence of Rice Residue Management Techniques and Weed Control Treatments on Soil Available Plant Nutrients in Rice-Wheat Cropping System

Rice-wheat is the predominant cropping system of fertile soils of Indian, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal falling in the alluvial Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP). Management of rice residues produced after the harvest of rice crop and before sowing of the next wheat crop is a big challenge in that area. Mostly farmers burn rice residues assuming it low profile fodder and of little use. Burning of rice residues deprives the fields from many plant nutrients as they are lost during burning along with environmental pollutions and other issues. A field study was conducted for two consecutive years at the experimental area of the Department of Agronomy, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana (India) to assess the impact of different rice residue management techniques and weed control treatments in wheat on soil available plant nutrients in rice-wheat cropping system. The experiment was laid out in split plot design with three replications. In main plots, five rice residue management treatments viz., no rice residue, rice residue 5 t·ha-1 (surface), rice residue 6 t·ha-1 (surface), rice residue 7 t·ha-1 (surface) and rice residue 5 t·ha-1 (incorporation) were settled and in sub plots, four weed control treatments i.e. clodinafop 60 t·ha-1, sulfosulfuron 25 t·ha-1, mesosulfuron + iodosulfuron 12 t·ha-1 and control (unweeded) were arranged. Results of the study revealed that surface application as well as incorporation of rice residues improved the organic carbon and NPK status than no rice residues. Among the residue management practices, incorporation of rice residues 5 t·ha-1 significantly improved the soil organic carbon, available nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium than no rice residue treatment in the 0 - 15 soil layer during both the years. Same trend was observed for 15 - 30 cm soil layer but differences were less wide than 0 - 15 cm soil layer. Among the weed control treatments, organic carbon was not significantly influenced. Herbicide treated plots registered significantly higher available nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium than control (unweeded) treatment in the 0 - 15 cm soil layer during both the years.

Trends in Starch and Sucrose Content among Sweet Sorghum Genotypes and Implications for Sucrose and Ethanol Production

Sweet sorghum has been suggested as a feedstock into the sugarcane mills for sucrose production in Zimbabwe and Swaziland. Sweet sorghum is widely grown by subsistence farmers and matures in 3 to 6 months in February, March and April, before sugarcane harvesting begins. Sweet sorghum has low sucrose content that is difficult to extract during processing. The hypothesis of the study was that sweet sorghum was a potential feedstock to sugarcane mills for the production of sugar and ethanol. The objective of this study was to investigate the trends in starch and sucrose content of four sweet sorghum genotypes namely M337, M81-E, Theis and Topper, and evaluate the potential of sweet sorghum as a feed stock for sugar and ethanol production. The sorghum juice was collected on August 10, August 24, September 8, September 18 and October 2, 2006 and starch and sucrose content were determined. There were significant （P 〈 0.001） genotypes by sampling date interaction effects. Both starch and sucrose content increased with crop sampling date. Genotypes M337 and Theis were late maturing for sucrose content compared to M81-E and Topper. All genotypes except M337 produced no significant increase in starch after 101DAP. Trends in sucrose and starch content were similar, indicating the reason sucrose was difficult to extract from sweet sorghum. The impact of this study would be boosting the incomes of small scale growers who would be subcontracted by the sugar mills to produce sweet sorghum as a feedstock to the mills before sugarcane matures.

Tetracycline-Based Binary Ti Vectors pLSU with Efficient Cloning by the Gateway Technology for <i>Agrobacterium tumefaciens</i>-Mediated Transformation of Higher Plants

We constructed small high-yielding binary Ti vectors with a bacterial tetracycline resistance gene to facilitate efficient cloning afforded by the Gateway Technology (Invitrogen) for Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of higher plants. The Gateway Technology vectors are kanamycin-based, thus tetracycline-based destination and expression vectors are easily selected for the antibiotic resistance in the Escherichia coli media. We reduced the size of the tetracycline resistance gene TetC from pBR322 to 1468 bp containing 1191 bp of the coding region, 93 bp of 5’-upstream, and 184 bp 3’-downstream region. The final size of binary Ti vector skeleton pLSU11 is 5034 bp. pLSU12 and 13 have the kanamycin resistance NPTII gene as a plant-selectable marker. pLSU13?and 15 contain the hygromycin resistance HPH gene as a selection marker. pLSU13 and 15 also have the β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene in addition to the plant selection marker. We also constructed a mobilizable version of tetracycline-based binary Ti vector pLSU16 in which the mob function of ColE1 replicon was maintained for mobilization of the binary vector from E. coli to A. tumefaciens by tri-parental mating. The final size of binary Ti vector skeleton pLSU16 is 5580 bp. New tetracycline- based binary Ti vectors pLSU12 were found as effective as kanamycin-based vector pLSU2 in promoting a 10-fold increase in fresh weight yield of kanamycin-resistant calli after A. tumefaciens-mediated transformation of tobacco leaf discs. Using the Gateway Technology we introduced the plant-expressible GUSgene to the T-DNA of binary Ti vector pLSU12. Expression of the β-glucuronidase enzyme activity was demonstrated by histochemical staining of the GUS activity in transformed tobacco leaf discs.

Review: Plant Binary Vectors of Ti Plasmid in <i>Agrobacterium tumefaciens</i>with a Broad Host-Range Replicon of pRK2, pRi, pSa or pVS1

This review chronicles the development of the plant binary vectors of Ti plasmid in Agrobacterium tumefaciens during the last 30 years. A binary vector strategy was designed in 1983 to separate the T-DNA region in a small plasmid from the virulence genes in avirulent T-DNA-less Ti plasmid. The small plant vectors with the T-DNA region have been simply now called binary Ti vectors. A binary Ti vector consist of a broad host-range replicon for propagation in A. tumeraciens, an antibiotic resistance gene for bacterial selection and the T-DNA region that would be transferred to the plant genome via the bacterial virulence machinery. The T-DNA region delimited by the right and left border sequences contains an antibiotic resistance gene for plant selection, reporter gene, and/or any genes of interest. The ColEI replicon was also added to the plasmid backbone to enhance the propagation in Escherichia coli. A general trend in the binary vector development has been to increase the plasmid stability during a long co-cultivation period of A. tumefaciens with the target host plant tissues. A second trend is to understand the molecular mechanism of broad host-range replication, and to use it to reduce the size of plasmid for ease in cloning and for higher plasmid yield in E. coli. The broad host-range replicon of VS1 was shown to be a choice of replicon over those of pRK2, pRi and pSA because of the superior stability and of small well-defined replicon. Newly developed plant binary vectors pLSU has the small size of plasmid backbone (4566 bp) consisting of VS1 replicon (2654 bp), ColE1 replicon (715 bp), a bacterial kanamycin (999 bp) or tetracycline resistance gene, and the T-DNA region (152 bp).

Review: Plant Genome Editing Targeted by RNA-Guided DNA Endonuclease CRISPR/Cas9

This review chronicles the development of the research on CRISPR/Cas9 (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat/CRISPR associated protein 9) during the last 30 years from the discovery of CRISPR sequence, of biological significance and of the molecular mechanism for adaptive bacterial immunity. It describes recent works on structural and functional diversity of CRISPR/Cas systems, and on three-dimensional structure-based improvements of on-target specificity of CRISPR/Cas9 and Cpf1 endonucleases. The review ends with the application of CRISPR/Cas9 to targeted editing of plant genomes. Importantly, plant commodities modified by CRISPR-Cas9 have not been considered as genetically modified organisms (GMO) as long as foreign DNAs from plant pests were not introduced, according to the recent determination by the USDA.

Effect of Planting Density, Irrigation Regimes, and Maize Hybrids with Varying Ear Size on Yield, and Aflatoxin and Fumonisin Contamination Levels

Corn (maize, Zea mays L.) hybrids expressing the flexibility trait in ear size (number of kernels per ear) are marketed for ability to give higher yields under adverse conditions. Altered kernel number is associated with altered number of silk, a major route for infection of kernels by aflatoxin-producing fungi such as Aspergillus flavus. The effect of plant density and irrigation level on yield and accumulation of aflatoxins and fumonisins in harvested grain was compared in a fixed-ear hybrid (Pioneer 33K81), a semi-flexible ear hybrid (Pioneer 3223) and a flexible ear hybrid (Golden Acres 8460) over a range of seeding densities (49,400, 61,750, 74,700, 86,450, and 98,800 seeds·ha–1) in non-irrigated, moderately-irrigated (6.4 cm soil water deficit) and well-irrigated plots (3.8 cm soil water deficit), during three years with variable rainfall. Irrigation increased yields in all hybrids, but in the absence of irrigation, yields were highest with the semi-flexible ear trait hybrid. In general, the hybrid with the flexible ear trait had lower optimal seeding densities than the other hybrids for each soil water regime. In general, kernel number was least affected by seeding density in the hybrid with fixed-ear trait compared to the semi- and flexible ear hybrids. The lowest levels of aflatoxin and of fumonisin contamination in harvested grain were associated with the flexible ear trait at all rainfall and irrigation levels, but there was no evidence that reducing stress by lowering seeding density reduced mycotoxin contamination. Inoculation with A. flavus resulted in much higher levels of aflatoxin and significantly higher levels of fumonisin contamination in grain of all hybrids under most conditions of rainfall and irrigation, suggesting that factors that promote A. flavus infection can affect production of both mycotoxins.