The spike weight contribution of the photosynthetic area above the upper internode in a winter wheat under different nitrogen and mulching regimes

Besides leaves, non-foliar green organs such as stem and spike are also considered photosynthetic organs. To assess the photosynthetic contributions of these organs, the correlations between these photosynthetic areas and single-spike weight were investigated in a winter wheat(Triticum aestivum L.) under four nitrogen and mulching treatments: N120,N150, N195, and N195 + M. Two-year repeated field experiments were conducted on the Loess Plateau of China. Non-foliar photosynthetic area, grain-filling ratio and duration,grain yield, and in particular, single-spike weight, were measured, recorded and analyzed.Under the N195 + M treatment, plants showed the largest area of photosynthetic organs(flag leaf and non-foliar organs) and the highest grain yield and single spike weight. Singlespike weight was positively correlated with the areas of all examined non-foliar photosynthetic organs, in particular with the area above the flag leaf node(R^2= 0.761*)and the area above the exposed part of the peduncle(EXP)(R^2= 0.800**). In addition, singlespike weight was highly correlated with average grain-filling ratio(R^2= 0.993**), whereas it was less highly correlated with grain-filling duration(R^2= 0.533). The morphological traits of non-foliar photosynthetic organs were also more highly correlated with average grainfilling ratio than with average grain-filling duration. The significant correlation between each of the morphological traits(area, length and width) of EXP and single-spike weight indicates that morphological traits of EXP are important in determining spike weight in the Loess Plateau environment.

Winter wheat yield improvement by genetic gain across different provinces in China

The replacement of winter wheat varieties has contributed significantly to yield improvement worldwide,with remarkable progress in China.Drawing on two sets of data,production yield from the National Bureau of Statistics of China and experimental yield from literature,this study aims to(1)illustrate the increasing patterns of production yield among different provinces from 1978 to 2018 in China,(2)explore the genetic gain in yield and yield relevant traits through the variety replacement based on experimental yield from 1937 to 2016 in China,and(3)compare the yield gap between experimental yield and production yield.The results show that both the production and experimental yields significantly increased along with the variety replacement.The national annual yield increase ratio for the production yield was 1.67%from 1978 to 2018,varying from 0.96%in Sichuan Province to 2.78%in Hebei Province;such ratio for the experimental yield was 1.13%from 1937 to 2016.The yield gap between experimental and production yields decreased from the 1970s to the 2010s.This study reveals significant increases in some yield components consequent to variety replacement,including thousand-grain weight,kernel number per spike,and grain number per square meter;however,no change is shown in spike number per square meter.The biomass and harvest index consistently and significantly increased,whereas the plant height decreased significantly.

Dynamic Characteristics and Influencing Factors of Groundwater Level in Qianyang County

The dynamic characteristics and influencing factors of groundwater level in Qianyang County were analyzed.The results showed that in the south bank of the Qianhe River,the change of groundwater level was mainly affected by precipitation,and the response of the groundwater level to the change of precipitation was one year later.The groundwater level presented a downward trend on the whole.In the north bank of the Qianhe River,the supply source of the groundwater level included precipitation and hydrology,and the groundwater level showed a rising trend on the whole.In the plain area,there was a sudden change in the groundwater level under the control of human activities.In a word,the main factors influencing the groundwater level in various geological conditions were different,so there were great differences between various regions in the dynamic characteristics of the groundwater level in Qianyang County.

Changing Trend and Mutation Analysis of Number of Fog and Haze Days in Baoji City during 1981-2013

Based on data of number of fog and haze days in Baoji City from 1981 to 2013,the changing trends and mutation of number of fog and haze days in Baoji over the past 33 years were analyzed by using trend coefficient,tendency rate,linear regression analysis,anomaly percentage,Mann-Kendall mutation test and sliding t test.The results showed that during the 33 years,the number of fog and haze days in Baoji declined by 16.253d/10 a,and there was a cyclical turbulence every 6,15 or 28years.The frequency of fog and haze weather was the highest in winter,followed by spring and autumn,while it was the lowest in summer.According to the anomaly percentage of the number of fog and haze days in 12 months during 1981-2013,the anomaly percentage changed most greatly in July,followed by September,October,April,May,June,August,February and March,but it fluctuated less greatly in January.The number of fog and haze days from 1981 to 2013had obvious mutation trends in a single year and a single season,and mutation types are different.

Major elements in the Holocene loess-paleosol sequence in the upper reaches of the Weihe River valley,China

Palaeohydmlogical investigations were carried out in the Guchuan Basin in the upper reaches of the Weihe River valley, China. A set of palaeoflood slackwater deposits （SWDs） was found interbedded in the Holocene Ioess-paleosol sequence at the Guchuanzhen site （GCZ）. These palaeoflood SWDs were studied by field observations and laboratory analyses including concentrations of chemical elements and optically stimulated luminescence （OSL） dating. The results showed that the palaeoflood SWDs were the result of the secondary separations of the surface soil and weathered soil layers during the process of water transport and deposition, and without obvious weathering during soil development. These extraordinary flood events were dated back to 3,200-3,000 a B.P. with the OSL method and checked by archaeological dating of the human remains retrieved from the profile. These extraordinary flood events were therefore considered as regional expression of known climatic events and demonstrated the climatic instability in the Holocene. This result is important for understanding the effects of global climate change on the dynamics of river systems.

Rock-magnetic characteristics and mechanisms of the Titel loess-paleosol sequence in northern Serbia since late Middle Pleistocene

The changing pattern of magnetic characteristics in eastern European loess deposits is the most similar across the world to that of the Chinese Loess Plateau,both of which are dominated by the strength of pedogenesis.Hence a systematical study to the rock magnetism of eastern European loess is not only helpful for understanding the paleoclimatic information preserved by themselves,but also beneficial for promoting the cognition of the pedogenic mechanism in loess records.In this study,a detailed rock-magnetic analysis of seventy loess/paleosol samples,taken from the Titel Loess Plateau in northern Serbia,is carried out for a better understanding of the magnetic records since late Middle Pleistocene.The results provide us some implications.First,the magnetic susceptibility values of the paleosols in the Titel loess-paleosol sequence are generally less than 100×10^(-8)m^(3)kg^(-1),significantly lower than those of the loess sections in the Chinese Loess Plateau,even though they are under similar climatic conditions.However,the behaviors of the parameters related to the distributions of magnetic particles in these two regions are similar.The difference in the contents of ferrimagnetic minerals is the leading reason that caused the difference in their magnetic characteristics,but the mechanism is still open to study.Second,based on the analysis of thermomagnetic curves,a gradually increasing trend of the relative contents of maghemite over the last four glacial-interglacial cycles is identified.The realization of thermally unstable maghemite from Chinese loess leads us to speculate that the long-term increasing trend of the relative contents of maghemite in Titel loess-paleosol sequence likely is a mineralogical response to the progressive enhancement of continental climate in the Pannonian Basin since the Middle Pleistocene.

Recharge sources and chemical composition types of groundwater and lake in the Badain Jaran Desert, northwestern China

Based on the analysis of ion chemical composition of lake water and shallow groundwater in the Badain Jaran Desert, this paper discussed the characteristics of ion chemical composition, spatial variation of lake water, and possible supply sources of lake water and groundwater in the desert areas. The results show that the pH, salinity, TDS and electrical conductivity of the lake water are greater than those of groundwater. The ion contents of water samples are dominated by Na^＋ and Cl^-. Most of the higher salinity lakes are Na （K）-CI-（SO4） type, and a few of low salinity lakes belong to the Na-（Mg）-（Ca）-Cl-（SO4）-（HCO3） type. Most of the groundwater is Na-（Ca）-（Mg）-Cl-（SO4）-（HCO3） type, attributed to subsaline lake, and only a few present the Na-Cl-SO4 type, flowing under saline lake. The pH, salinity, TDS and electrical conductivity in the southeastern lakes are relatively low, and there are slightly alkaline lakes. The pH, salinity, TDS and electrical conductivity in the northern lakes are much greater than those of the southeastern lakes, and the northern lakes are moderately alkaline and saline ones. In the southeastern part of the Badain Jaran Desert, the ion chemical characteristics of the lake water from south to north show a changing trend of subsaline →saline→hypersaline. The changing trend of chemical compositions of ions in recent 9 years indicates that most of the ion contents have a shade of reduction in Boritaolegai, Badain, Nuoertu and Huhejilin lakes, which state clearly that the amount of fresh water supply is increasing in the 9-year period. The ion chemical composition of the lake water reveals that the flow direction of lake water is from southeast to northwest in the Badain Jaran Desert. The ion chemical composition, moisture content of sand layer water level height and hierarchical cluster analysis of the lake water and groundwater demonstrate that the lake water is mainly supplied by local rainfall and infiltration of precipitation in Yabulai Mountains and Heishantou Mountain, and the supply from the Qilian Mountains is almost impossible.

Formation and Movement of Groundwater in the Thick Loess-Palaeosol Sequences of the Chinese Loess Plateau

Permeability and water-bearing space are important hydrological characteristics of the loess strata. In this study a systematic experiment was conducted to measure the magnetic susceptibility, grain size, porosity, and infiltration rate of the loess and palaeosol layers on a loess tableland of the central Chinese Loess Plateau, in order to investigate the differences in hydrological conditions between the loess and palaeosol layers. The magnetic susceptibility of the loess layer was lower than that of the palaeosol layer, but the average quasi-steady infiltration rate was about 0.31 mm min^(-1) higher, the coarse silt and very fine sand contents were about7.1% greater, and the porosity was about 5.7% higher. These differences were mainly due to pedogenesis, which was affected by the Quaternary climate. The pedogenesis differences between the loess and palaeosol layers resulted in hydrological property differences in terms of permeability and water-bearing space. The loess layer had a higher permeability and more water-bearing space than the palaeosol layer, which meant that the loess layer is more likely to form aquifers and the palaeosol layer is more prone to form aquitards.The groundwater in the loess strata had a multilayered characteristic, which depended on the relative impermeability of palaeosol layer and the alternate deposition of loess-palaeosol layers. The hydrological characteristics of the loess strata demonstrated that the Quaternary climate had an important control function on the formation and movement of groundwater. This knowledge provides a reliable theoretical basis for water resource development and utilization on the Chinese Loess Plateau, and this study extends the application of Quaternary climate change theory to hydrological systems in loess deposits.

A tree-ring-based reconstruction of the Yimin River annual runoff in the Hulun Buir region,Inner Mongolia,for the past 135 years

Based on the relationships between the regional tree-ring chronology(RC) of moisture-sensitive Pinus sylvestris var.mongolica and the monthly mean maximum temperature,annual precipitation and annual runoff,a reconstruction of the runoff of the Yimin River was performed for the period 1868-2002.The model was stable and could explain 52.2% of the variance for the calibration period of 1956-2002.During the past 135 years,21 extremely dry years and 19 extremely wet years occurred.These years represented 15.6% and 14.1% of the total study period,respectively.Six severe drought events lasting two years or more occurred in 1950-1951,1986-1987,1905-1909,1926-1928,1968-1969 and 1919-1920.Four wetter events occurred during 1954-1959,1932-1934,1939-1940 and 1990-1991.Comparisons with other tree-ring-based streamflow reconstructions or chronologies for surrounding areas supplied a high degree of confidence in our reconstruction.Power spectrum and wavelet analyses suggested that the reconstructed annual runoff variation in the Hulun Buir region and surrounding area could be associated with large-scale atmospheric-oceanic variability,such as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation(PDO) and El Ni o-Southern Oscillation(ENSO),and sunspot activity.

Late Holocene hydroclimatic variations and possible forcing mechanisms over the eastern Central Asia

Hydroclimatic variations over the eastern Central Asia are highly sensitive to changes in hemispheric-scale atmospheric circulation systems. To fully understand the long-term variability and relationship between hydroclimate and atmospheric circulation system, we present a high-resolution lascustrine record of late Holocene hydroclimate from Lake Sayram, Central Tianshan Mountains, China, based on the total organic carbon, total nitrogen, and carbonate contents, carbon/nitrogen ratios, and grain size. Our results reveal four periods of substantially increased precipitation at the interval of 4000–3780, 3590–3210, 2800–2160, and 890–280 cal yr BP, and one period of slightly increased precipitation from 1700–1370 cal yr BP. These wetter periods broadly coincide with those identified in other records from the mid-latitude Westerlies-dominated eastern Central Asia, including the northern Tibetan Plateau. As such, a similar hydroclimatic pattern existed over this entire region during the late Holocene. Based on a close similarity of our record with reconstruction of North Atlantic Oscillation indices and solar irradiance, we propose that decreased solar irradiance and southern migration of the entire circum-North Atlantic circulation system, particularly the main pathway of the mid-latitude Westerlies, significantly influenced hydroclimate in eastern Central Asia during the late Holocene. Finally, the inferred precipitation at Lake Sayram has increased markedly over the past 100 years, although this potential future changes in hydroclimate in Central Asia need for further investigation.

1368-1911年宝鸡地区旱涝灾害链的时空演变特征分析（英文）

Based on the collation and statistical analysis of flood and drought information in Baoji area from 1368 to 1911, and in the context of climate change, we investigated the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of drought and flood disaster chains in this area during the Ming and Qing dynasties using the methods of moving average, cumulative anomaly and wavelet analysis. The results are as follows:(1) We found a total of 297 drought and flood events from 1368 to 1911 in Baoji. Among these events, droughts and floods occurred separately 191 and 106 times, which accounted for 64.31% and 35.69% of the total events, respectively.(2) We observed distinct characteristics of flood and drought events in Baoji in different phases. The climate was relatively dry from 1368 to 1644. A fluctuant climate phase with both floods and droughts occurred from 1645 to 1804. The climate was relatively wet from 1805 to 1911. Moreover, we observed a pattern of alternating dry and wet periods from 1368 to 1911. In addition, 3 oscillation periods of drought and flood events occurred around 70 a, 110 a and 170 a, which corresponded to sunspot cycles.(3) We also observed an obvious spatial difference in drought and flood events in Baoji. The northern and eastern parts of Weihe River basin were regions with both frequent droughts and floods.(4) The sequential appearance of drought and flood disaster chains in Baoji from 1368 to 1911 was in response to global climate change. Since the 1760s, global climatic deterioration has frequently led to extreme drought and flood events.