Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2022
Authors
Kirsten Tørresen Jukka Salonen Lars Olav Brandsæter Björn Ringselle Marian M. Weigel Eliyeh Ganji Bärbel GerowittAbstract
Book of Abstracts p. 213: The perennial creeping weeds Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop., Sonchus arvensis L. and Elymus repens (L.) Gould cause large problems in agricultural production in northern Europe. The management of these species is difficult in organic farming, but easier in conventional farming using herbicides. We collected and analysed literature on the response of these weed species to management practices in order to find knowledge gaps. C. arvense and E. repens are more studied compared to S. arvensis. Both C. arvense and E. repens have recently been the subjects of extended reviews. Elymus repens, a rhizomatous grass, is vulnerable to disturbance and competition due to weak seasonal dormancy, shallow creeping rhizomes and short-lived and low-spreading seeds. Tillage and mowing can effectively control E. repens, but efficacy varies between clones, seasons and treatment frequencies. Combined effects of direct control and competition from main crop/subsidiary crop merit further research. Cirsium arvense and S. arvensis are dicot species with creeping roots, with C. arvense roots being situated deeper in the soil than S. arvensis and both having deeper roots than the rhizomes of E. repens. Cirsium arvense can sprout from the intact root system even below the plough layer. Spring tillage has been shown to control C. arvense better than autumn tillage, and horizontal root cutter (prototype) have promising results on this species. Sonchus arvensis sprouts mainly in spring and summer thus indicating seasonal dormancy. Therefore, spring tillage controls S. arvensis better than autumn tillage. The effect of competition from main crop and subsidiary crops needs further investigation. While E. repens and C. arvense can be significantly controlled by a simple mechanical control strategy alone (repeated tillage and deep root disturbance, respectively), S. arvensis must be managed by a combination of different non-chemical methods. Identified gaps focus on the deep root system and sexual reproduction (C. arvense), the link between disturbance, competition, withering and dormancy in roots (S. arvensis), and the long-term effect of different integrated weed management strategies on the population dynamics (E. repens). We conclude that more research on all three species is needed, especially on the less studied S. arvensis. Keywords: Couch grass, creeping thistle, perennial sow-thistle, mechanical control, crop competition, cover crop, subsidiary crop Acknowledgements: This research was part of the project “AC/DC-weeds- Applying and Combining Disturbance and Competition for an agro-ecological management of creeping perennial weeds” funded within the ERA-Net Cofund SusCrop/EU Horizon 2020, Grant no. 771134.
Authors
Bärbel Gerowitt Sabine Andert Lars Olav Brandsæter Jesper Rasmussen Marie-Helene Robin Jukka Salonen Kirsten Tørresen Han ZhangAbstract
Creeping perennial weeds are widely distributed on arable fields. The common control practices are intensive inversion tillage and chemical herbicides. However, these methods are under pressure as they negatively affect non-target species and the environment. The objective of the SusCrop-ERA-NET funded European project ‘AC/DC-weeds’ is to implement agroecological management for creeping perennials in arable farming. Focusing on three important perennial species in central and northern Europe (Sonchus arvensis, Cirsium arvense and Elymus repens), the project addresses these species using and combining different methods. In research, the existing information is checked for the contribution to knowledge. New experimental approaches focus research gaps on biology as well as tools and technologies to enable an agro-ecological management. Paying attention to the needs of farming should raise the probability for a practised agro-ecological management of creeping perennials.
Authors
Elizabeth Tettey Owusu Fordjour Aidoo Linda Arhin Ritter Atoundem Guimapi Fred Kormla Ablormeti Frank Dampare Richard Ampadu-Ameyaw Jeffet Ekow Cobbah Yayra Afram Frank Kwarteng Ndede YankeyAbstract
Coconut production is significantly constrained by a wide variety of pests. Anecdotal evidence also suggests that management of these pests is influenced by gender differences. Therefore, there was a need to assess farmers' knowledge about coconut pests, farm-level pest management strategies, and institutions offering training to farmers to develop an ecologically sound management strategy. To achieve this research need, we surveyed six coconut-growing districts, three each from the Western and Central Regions of Ghana, using face-to-face interviews, discussions, and direct observations. In addition, a multistage sampling technique was used to sample the coconut farmers. The sample population for each town was determined using a proportional to population size approach. The sample population was randomly drawn from each town/village using a sampling frame based on the agricultural sector records. The results showed that a majority of the farmers mentioned Oryctes monoceros as the most important coconut pest. Significantly more females than males mentioned weaver birds in their plantations (P = 0.035). The number of women who did not mention any of the pests was significantly higher than that of men (P = 0.007). There was a significant difference between male and female farmers who used indigenous knowledge (i.e., knowledge accumulated by an indigenous [local] population over generations of living in a certain area) (P = 0.018) for pest management. However, pest management strategies did not vary in the Central Region. Our results showed a significant difference between male and female farmers who did not use any of the management strategies, suggesting that future studies and training should consider gender in developing sustainable pest management strategies for the pests.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Benjamin Fuchs Kari Saikkonen Marjo Helander Ye Tian Baoru Yang Marica T. Engström Juha-Pekka Salminen Anne MuolaAbstract
Conventional agricultural practices favoring the use of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) increase the risk of GBH residues ending up in animal feed, feces, and, eventually, manure. The use of poultry manure as organic fertilizer in the circular food economy increases the unintentional introduction of GBH residues into horticultural and agricultural systems, with reportedly negative effects on the growth and reproduction of crop plants. To understand the potential lasting effects of exposure to GBH residues via organic manure fertilizers, we studied strawberry (Fragaria x vescana) plant performance, yield quantity, biochemistry, folivory, phytochemistry, and soil elemental composition the year after exposure to GBH. Although plants exposed to GBH residues via manure fertilizer were, on average, 23% smaller in the year of exposure, they were able to compensate for their growth during the following growing season. Interestingly, GBH residue exposure in the previous growing season led to a trend in altered plant size preferences of folivores during the following growing season. Furthermore, the plants that had been exposed to GBH residues in the previous growing season produced 20% heavier fruits with an altered composition of phenolic compounds compared to non-exposed plants. Our results indicate that GBHs introduced via manure fertilizer following circular economy practices in one year can have effects on perennial crop plants in the following year, although GBH residues in soil have largely vanished.
Authors
Anne MuolaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
In this study, we investigated if a steam treatment program used to produce disease-free strawberry transplants has the potential to also eliminate strawberry mite (Phytonemus pallidus) and two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae). Crowns of strawberry plants collected in a commercial field, containing young, folded leaves with all life stages of P. pallidus, and strawberry leaf discs on water agar with T. urticae with non-diapausing adult females and eggs from a laboratory rearing, were exposed to warm aerated steam in a steam cabinet in a series of four experimental runs over 2 years. The steam treatments constituted of a 1-h pre-treatment with 37 °C steam followed by a 1-h recovery period at 21–25 °C, and then a main steam treatment at 44 °C for either 2, 4 (both P. pallidus and T. urticae) or 6 h (the more heat tolerant T. urticae only). After steaming, the plant material with P. pallidus or T. urticae were incubated at 21–25 °C until survival was assessed after 1–6 days, depending on the mite species and life-stage. Non-steamed plant material with mites was used as controls. The 4-h treatment killed all P. pallidus eggs, larvae and adults, and the 2-h treatment killed all individuals in all three stages except for one egg in one of the runs. There were no or minor effects of the steam treatments on T. urticae adult and egg survival. Based on these results, the tested steam treatments may be used to eliminate the strawberry mite but not the two-spotted spider mite from strawberry planting material.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Harvest Weed Seed Control (HWSC) systems are used to collect and/or kill weed seeds retained on the weed plants at crop harvest. The effect of HWSC methods depends on the weeds seed retention at harvest. Therefore, delay in crop harvest reduces the efficiency of HWSC. In 2018, we studied the seed production and shedding pattern of Alopecurus myosuroides in a semi-field experiment in Taastrup, Denmark, to find the seed shedding time range of this species. In 2017 and 2018, we also followed the seed shedding pattern of A. myosuroides in a wheat field. Seeds of A. myosuroides were planted in pots in a greenhouse with a constant temperature of 5°C. In December 2017, the seedlings were transplanted in a box (120 × 80 cm2) located outdoor. In spring 2018, the number of plants was reduced to 14 providing a space of 685 cm2 for each plant. We surrounded each plant with a porous net to collect the seeds. The nets were checked once a week to record the beginning of the seed shedding period. Hereafter, seeds were collected weekly using a portable vacuum cleaner. Plants in the box started seed shedding in the second week of June and seed shedding continued for 12 weeks (end of August). In the wheat field, A. myosuroides plants surrounded by a net started to shed seeds in the third week of June and continued until wheat harvest on 31 July in 2017 and in the second week of July and continued until wheat harvest on 15 August in 2018. We found a significant difference between the weekly number of shed seeds in all three experiments (P
Authors
Maryam Mirahmad Shahrzad Mohseni Ozra Tabatabaei-Malazy Fataneh Esmaeili Sudabeh Alatab Roodabeh Bahramsoltani Hanieh-Sadat Ejtahed Husseyn Qulami Zahra Bitarafan Babak Arjmand Elahe NazeriAbstract
Background Inflammation is a double-edged sword in the pathophysiology of chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The global rise in the prevalence of T2DM in one hand, and poor disease control with currently-available treatments on the other hand, along with an increased tendency towards the use of natural products make scientists seek herbal medicines for the management of diabetes and its complications by reducing C-reactive protein (CRP) as an inflammatory marker. Purpose To systematically review the literature to identify the efficacy of various medicinal plants with antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties considering their effect on CRP in animal models of T2DM. Study design systematic review. Methods Electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Cochran Library were searched using the search terms “herbal medicine”, “diabetes”, “c-reactive protein”, “antioxidants” till August 2021. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory animal Experimentation (SYRCLE's) tool. The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO with an ID number CRD42020207190. A manual search to detect any articles not found in the databases was also made. The identified studies were then critically reviewed and relevant data were extracted and summarized. Results Among total of 9904 primarily-retrieved articles, twenty-three experimental studies were finally included. Our data indicated that numerous herbal medicines, compared to placebo or hypoglycemic medications, are effective in treatment of diabetes and its complications through decreasing CRP concentrations and oxidative stresses levels. Medicinal plants including Psidium guajava L., Punica granatum L., Ginkgo biloba L., Punica granatum L., Dianthus superbusn L.. Moreover, Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms, Curcuma longa L., Azadirachta indica A. Juss., Morus alba L., and Ficus racemosa L. demonstrated potential neuroprotective effects in animal models of diabetes. Conclusion Hypoglycemic medicinal plants discussed in this review seem to be promising regulators of CRP, and oxidative stress. Thus, these plants are suitable candidates for management of diabetes’ complications. Nevertheless, further high-quality in vivo studies and clinical trials are required to confirm these effects.