Seasonal effect on rooting behaviour of important bamboo species byculm cuttings

We investigated the influence of season on the rooting be- haviour of eight important bamboo species viz., Bambusa balcooa, B. bambos, B. nutans, B. tuMa, B. vulgaris, Dendrocalamus giganteus, D. hamiltonii and D. strictus. We collected 2-3 node culm cuttings in three growing seasons viz. spring （March）, summer （June） and rainy （August） from superior candidate plus clumps （CPCs） centralized in the germplasm garden. Cuttings were placed horizontally in sand and were provided with intermittent misting at regular intervals. Bamboo species exhibited differential rhizogenesis behavior in different seasons. The study reveals significant variation in sprouting and rooting behaviour in different bamboo species. B. bambos had maximum rooting （78.89%）, followed by B. vulgaris （74.44%）. In general, the potential of different bamboo species for rooting was found to be in the order： B. bambos 〉 B. vulgaris 〉 B. balcooa 〉 D. hamiltonii 〉 B. tulda 〉 D. strictus 〉 D. giganteus 〉B. nutans. The maximum rooting was recorded in spring （56.67%）, which was closely followed by summer （54.58%）. In winter season, minimum rooting （36.67%） was observed. The interaction effect of species x season was also significant on sprouting and rooting pa- rameters. In B. balcooa, B. nutans, B. vulgaris, D. hamiltonii and D. strictus, cuttings collected in summer season showed maximum sprouting and rooting, whereas, B. bambos, B. tulda and D. giganteus had maximum rooting in spring. The maximum number of roots developed per cutting was observed in B. tulda （43.8） during spring season.

Silicon and plant nutrition—dynamics,mechanisms of transport and role of silicon solubilizer microbiomes in sustainable agriculture:A review

Silicon(Si)is the second most abundant element in the Earth’s crust and has numerous roles in both soils and plants,although it is inaccessible to plants in its native state(insoluble silicate minerals).This inaccessibility can lead to insufficiency,which induces anomalies in plant growth and development.Specifically,Si alleviates various biotic and abiotic stresses in plants by enhancing tolerance mechanisms at different stages of uptake/deposition as a monosilicic acid.Exclusive utilization of conventional Si fertilizers to boost agricultural productivity in an attempt to meet the world’s ever-increasing food demand may result in surface and groundwater pollution,waterway eutrophication,soil fertility depletion,and accumulation of hazardous elements such as arsenic in soil.By addressing the drawbacks of chemical fertilizers,this review emphasizes an environmentally friendly alternative,namely,Si-solubilizing microorganisms(SSMs),as bioinoculants to liberate soluble Si and thus making it available to plants.A deep understanding of recent advances in the functional diversity,colonization patterns,modes of action,role in biogeochemical cycling,and plant stress tolerance of SSMs and their implementation in Si-based agrowaste management through the fabrication of nanoparticles,could help to establish a reliable tool for economically and environmentally sustainable agriculture.From this perspective,in this review,we comprehensively summarize the latest methodologies for the isolation,screening,and characterization of SSMs and Si solubilization mechanisms,including ligands(divalent cations),acids(inorganic and organic),alkali(nucleophilic attack),extracellular polysaccharides,and factors affecting them,as well as Si-mediated regulation of gene expression involved in Si uptake,transportation,and mineralization.We have critically revised the role of SSMs according to the current literature.The contributions of SSMs to biofertilization are still being explored;hence,we also discuss trajectories for future research in relation to SSM-mediated increases in bioavailable Si.This will create new strategies to reduce the use of agrochemicals,improve plant health,and help us to globally gravitate towards more sustainable agricultural practices,based on the concept of a circular economy.

Role of beneficial microbial gene pool in mitigating salt/nutrient stress of plants in saline soils through underground phytostimulating signalling molecules

Soil salinity diminishes soil health and reduces crop yield,which is becoming a major global concern.Salinity stress is one of the primary stresses,leading to several other secondary stresses that restrict plant growth and soil fertility.The major secondary stresses induced in plants under saline-alkaline conditions include osmotic stress,nutrient limitation,and ionic stress,all of which negatively impact overall plant growth.Under stressed conditions,certain beneficial soil microflora are known to have evolved phytostimulating mechanisms,such as the synthesis of osmoprotectants,siderophores,1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid(ACC)deaminase activity,phosphate solubilization,and hormone production,which enhance plant growth and development while mitigating nutrient stress.Beneficial soil-borne bacterial species such as Bacillus,Pseudomonas,and Klebsiella and fungal strains such as Trichoderma,Aspergillus,Penicillium,Alternaria,and Fusarium also aid in reducing salinity stress.Phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms also assist in nutrient acquisition via both enzymatic and non-enzymatic processes.In the case of enzymatic processes,they produce different enzymes such as alkaline phosphatases and phytases,whereas non-enzymatic processes produce organic acids such as gluconic,citric,malic,and oxalic acids.The native halotolerant/halophilic soil microbial gene pool with multifunctional traits and stress-induced gene expression can be developed as suitable bio-inoculants to enhance stress tolerance and optimize plant growth in saline soils.

In-situ observation and transport modelling of arsenic in Gangetic plain,India

The focus of this study is to investigate the arsenic movement and impacts on the residual concentrations on groundwater pollution load.The Gangetic plain area in the Ballia,Uttar Pradesh is selected as study area,which is also reported to extreme arsenic pollution in soil-water system.A modelling approach is developed to assess the arsenic flux in partially saturated zone using data of soil texture,soil hydraulic properties and stratigraphy.Soil type,slope,and land-use cover is considered for estimating the transient flux at the top boundary from daily precipitation and evapotranspiration data of the study area.Solute transport in the subsurface is predicted by the mass transfer equation,which is derived by integrating Darcy's law with the equation of mass balance.The arsenic profiles of varying hydrogeological conditions associated with different locations in the study area are presented as breakthrough curves.The results shows that the arsenic transport is dominated by the advective flux and strongly depends on the soilmoisture flow conditions.Which may increases the arsenic load to underlaying groundwater resources.The simulated results suggest that mobility plays a vital role arsenic transport as well as on adsorbed arsenic concentration in subsurface.Likewise,the adsorption isotherms show that the high peak curve for Bairai and low at Sikarderpur.A higher pollution risk is observed in the Belthara Road,whereas a lower vulnerability is computed in the north and northeast regions.This study can help in strategising sustainable groundwater management and protection planning of identified regions of India.

Dietary synbiotic supplementation improves the growth performance,body antioxidant pool,serum biochemistry,meat quality,and lipid oxidative stability in broiler chickens

The present study investigated the effects of Lactobacillus acidophilus(LBA)and mannan-oligosaccharides(MOS)supplementation on the production performance,serum biochemistry,antioxidant profile,health indices,meat quality,and lipid oxidative stability of broiler chicken.A total of 252 commercial broiler chickens at 1 d old of uniform body weight were randomly allocated to 6 maize-soybean-based dietary treatments:T1(control diet),T2(antibiotic bacitracin methylene di-salicylate[BMD]at 20 mg/kg diet),T3(MOS at 0.1%+LBA at 10^6 CFU/g feed),T4(MOS at 0.1%+LBA at 10^7 CFU/g feed),T5(MOS at 0.2%+LBA at10^6 CFU/g feed),and T6(MOS at 0.2%+LBA at 10^7 CFU/g feed).Each treatment was assigned to 6 replicates of 7 birds.The samples for meat quality and serum biochemistry analysis were taken from 12 birds per treatment(2 birds/replicate).The results revealed better(P<0.01)growth performance and production efficiency of birds fed either T5 or T6 diet compared to control or BMD supplemented diet and BMD-supplemented birds superseded the control birds.Higher(P<0.01)serum and liver antioxidant enzyme activities,meat antioxidant capacity(2,2-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid[ABTS]and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl[DPPH]assays),serum total protein,high-density lipoproteins(HDL)cholesterol(P<0.05),and globulin levels(P<0.01)were observed in birds fed either T5 or T6 diet compared to control or BMD supplemented birds,whereas,lower lipid oxidation(P<0.01),cardiac risk ratio,atherogenic coefficient,atherogenic index of plasma,serum glucose,triglyceride,total cholesterol levels(P<0.01),and serum albumin-to-globulin ratio(P<0.05)were observed in the chickens.The pH of meat from birds fed T4,T5 or T6 diet was lower(P<0.01)compared to control and other treatments.The extract release volume(ERV),water holding capacity(WHC),and protein content of meat were higher(P<0.05)in birds fed either T5 or T6 diet compared to control or BMD supplemented birds.Thus,it was concluded that the supplementation of 0.2%MOS along with LBA at 10^6 CFU/g is optimum for better growth performance,serum biochemistry,antioxidant profile,health indices,meat quality,and lipid oxidative stability of broiler chickens.

A COMPUTATIONAL METHOD FOR FUZZY TIME SERIES FORECASTING BASED ON DIFFERENCE PARAMETERS

Present study proposes a method for fuzzy time series forecasting based on difference parameters.The developed method has been presented in a form of simple computational algorithm.It utilizes various difference parameters being implemented on current state for forecasting the next state values to accommodate the possible vagueness in the data in an efficient way.The developed model has been simulated on the historical student enrollments data of University of Alabama and the obtained forecasted values have been compared with the existing methods to show its superiority.Further,the developed model has also been implemented in forecasting the movement of market prices of share of State Bank of India(SBI)at Bombay Stock Exchange(BSE),India.