Abbreviation (ISO4): Journal of Agriculture
Editor in chief: Shiyan QIAO
The study aims to learn the dynamic changes of fatty acid and protein accumulation during the maturation process of industrial hemp seeds, and to explore the interaction of related enzymes, fatty acids, proteins and other related components during its development. Taking industrial hemp variety ‘Geliexiya’ as the research object, the seeds were sampled at different stages of 6 days (S1), 12 days (S2), 18 days (S3) and 21 days (S4) after flowering, and the moisture content, hundred-grain weight, fatty acid content, protein content, FAS activity and GS activity were determined and analyzed. The results showed that the moisture content of industrial hemp seeds increased in the period of S1-S2 and decreased in the period of S2-S4; the hundred-grain weight increased in the period of S1-S4; the fatty acid content decreased in the period of S1-S2 and increased in the period of S2-S4; the protein content decreased in the period of S1-S2 and increased in the period of S2-S4; the FAS and LOX were significantly negatively correlated with the fatty acid content; NR, GS, GDH, and GOGAT were highly significantly positively correlated with protein. Among them, FAS showed the highest correlation with fatty acid content, and GS showed the highest correlation with protein content. The conclusion is that fatty acids and proteins in industrial hemp seeds are synergistically accumulated in the middle and late stages of maturation, and FAS and GS are the core enzymes that regulate the accumulation of the two. This study provides a theoretical basis for the breeding of new varieties of high oil and high protein industrial hemp and the optimization of cultivation techniques. In the future, the molecular regulation mechanism can be further analyzed in combination with multi-omics technology.
The paper aims to mitigate the adverse impacts of long-term and excessive use of forchlorfenuron (CPPU) on the kiwifruit industry. This experiment was conducted with 6-year-old ‘Taishan No.1’ kiwifruit as the test material to investigate the effects of reduced CPPU combined with brassinolide (BR) on the yield, fruit quality and storage performance of kiwifruit. Five treatments were set up, including young fruits soaked with 5 mg/L CPPU combined with 0.075, 0.15 and 0.3 mg/L BR, with clear water as the blank control and 10 mg/L CPPU solution as the reagent control. Fruits at physiological maturity were collected to determine the indicators including single fruit weight, firmness, titratable acid and soluble solids content, and the incidence of soft rot during fruit storage was statistically analyzed. The results showed that reduced CPPU combined with an appropriate concentration of BR could maintain a high yield of kiwifruit, and among them, the combination of 5 mg/L CPPU and 0.15 mg/L BR had significant effects in reducing the core cavity rate and malformed fruit rate, increasing the fruit soluble solids content and decreasing the incidence of soft rot during fruit storage. It is concluded that the combination of 5 mg/L CPPU and 0.15 mg/L BR is the optimal combination for improving the fruit quality and enhancing the storage resistance of ‘Taishan No.1’ kiwifruit.
To address the bottlenecks in RNAi-based control of Lepidoptera insects, such as nuclease degradation and low delivery efficiency due to the alkaline gut environment, this study systematically reviews the current applications and potential of different delivery carriers for mediating RNAi. Using a literature analysis approach, we summarize the structural characteristics, delivery mechanisms, and existing challenges in the biological control of lepidopteran pests of carriers such as bacteria, viruses, liposomes, and polymers. The advantages and limitations of each carrier in mediating RNAi for Lepidoptera insects are compared. The results indicate that live bacterial carriers are low-cost and can achieve up to 68% mortality in Plutella xylostella; viral carriers offer high transfection efficiency and protect RNA from degradation by midgut nucleases; liposomal carriers enhance cellular internalization via electrostatic interactions, increasing mortality in Chilo suppressalis to 32%; and polymer carriers (e.g., chitosan) exhibit strong stability, with spray application resulting in 100% mortality in Helicoverpa armigera and remaining active on leaf surfaces for up to 5 days. Through analysis, it is determined that various carriers enhance RNAi efficiency by preserving RNA integrity and improving cellular uptake. Among them, polymer-based carriers and biological carriers (e.g., endophytic and symbiotic bacteria) demonstrate outstanding potential for field applications. This study provides a carrier selection reference for green control of Lepidoptera pests and offers technical insights for the commercial development of RNAi-based bio-pesticides.
In order to screen for new pepper varieties suitable for planting in the ecological zone of central Henan, a comparative experiment was conducted on 16 pepper varieties in 2023. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted on the important agronomic traits of different pepper varieties. The results showed that for plant traits, the highest plant height was 132.3 cm in the pepper variety ‘Dongfu Changjiao No.1’. The pepper variety ‘Jinfu 1051’ had the thickest stem, reaching 1.80 cm, and ‘20-177’ had the largest leaf area of 230.1 cm2. Among the varieties tested, the heaviest single fruit weight was 142.0 g in variety ‘Jinfu 275’. The pepper variety ‘Xinjinfu 808’ had the lightest single fruit weight, reaching 77.3 g. ‘Gailiang Lyupi 175’ achieved the highest yield at 10.56 kg/m2, followed by 'Jinfu 1041' at 10.32 kg/m2. In terms of mature characteristics, the pepper varieties ‘Jinfu 175’, ‘Jinfu 275’, ‘Gailiang Jinfu 175’, ‘Lyupi 175’ and ’Dongfu Changjiao No.2’ could emerge after 9-10 days of sowing，and they were classified as early-maturing varieties. The correlation analysis results showed that there was a highly significant correlation between the main agronomic traits of pepper, such as fruit width and single fruit weight, leaf length and width, with correlation coefficients of 0.868 and 0.711, respectively. 16 pepper varieties were classified into 5 categories through cluster analysis. The long horn type ‘Gailiang Lyupi 175’ and the long sheep horn type ‘Jinfu 1041’ are selected as excellent pepper varieties with regional representativeness.
In order to clarify the rational application method of biochar-based fertilizer in tobacco agriculture and reveal its regulatory effect on the rhizosphere soil microecology of flue-cured tobacco, 'Yunyan 87' in Wushan tobacco area of Chongqing was used as the test variety in this study. Through the field randomized block experiment, the biochar-based fertilizer application group T and the non-fertilizer control group C were set up, with three replicates. Combined with 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing technology, the effects of biochar-based fertilizer (600 kg / hm2) on the bacterial community in the rhizosphere soil of flue-cured tobacco were analyzed. The results showed that after the application of biochar-based fertilizer, the number of bacterial OTUs in the rhizosphere soil of flue-cured tobacco increased, and the richness and diversity levels of soil bacteria were enhanced. Compared with the control, at the phylum level, the abundance of Chloroflexi and Acidobacteria increased after the application of biochar-based fertilizer. At the genus level, species abundance of Pseudomonas, Streptomyces, Rhodanobacter, Acidothermus and Actinospica in rhizosphere soil of flue-cured tobacco treated with biochar-based fertilizer were significantly different. Among them, the abundance of Pseudomonas and Acidothermus showed an increasing trend. Cluster analysis showed that significant differences in bacterial community composition between the treatment and control groups. A total of 82 significantly different bacterial species were found through LEfSe (LDA Effect Size) analysis. Among them, the abundance of 10 significantly different species increased after treatment with biochar-based fertilizer, such as Xanthobacteraceae and Intrasporangium, and most of them belong to beneficial and resistant bacterial categories. Therefore, the application of biochar-based fertilizer altered the bacterial community structure in the rhizosphere soil of flue-cured tobacco and improved the beneficial bacterial species in the rhizosphere soil. Future research may focus on the screening and identification of differential species, which will provide technical support for the rational use of biochar-based fertilizer to improve soil microbial environments in tobacco agricultural production.
Bio-organic fertilizers are green agricultural inputs that integrate the functional activity of microbial fertilizers with the soil-improving properties of organic matter. They show great potential in reducing chemical fertilizer use, improving nutrient use efficiency, and promoting sustainable agricultural development. This review systematically summarizes their core components (organic matter and functional microorganisms), multiple mechanisms of action (including improvement of soil physicochemical properties, promotion of crop growth, reshaping the rhizosphere microecology, and synergistic regulation between the rhizosphere and plant internal processes), as well as their applications in enhancing crop yield and quality, improving stress resistance, restoring degraded soils, and facilitating nutrient recycling. However, their large-scale application is still constrained by challenges such as unstable environmental adaptability of microbial inoculants, high production costs, delayed fertilizer effectiveness, and the lack of a well-established quality standard system. Future research should focus on the rational design of synthetic microbial communities, the synergistic mechanisms of microbe-organic-mineral interactions, and the development of intelligent and green production technologies. With strengthened policy support and full-chain regulatory systems, these challenges can be addressed, providing key technological support for achieving carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals and advancing the green transformation of agriculture.
Long-term peach cultivation depletes soil nutrients, reduces microbial activity, and decreases organic matter, thereby affecting fruit quality. A field experiment was conducted to explore the effects of soil conditioner application combined with fertilization and water management on soil properties, organic carbon fractions, microbial biomass C/N, water-stable aggregates, and peach quality. Six treatments were designed: no fertilization (CK), farmers’ conventional fertilization with regular water management (NPK+W), farmers’ conventional fertilization combined with optimized water and fertilizer management (NPK+MW), soil conditioner application with regular water management (BGA+W), soil conditioner application combined with optimized water and fertilizer management (BGA+MW), and a combined treatment of 50% soil conditioner + 50% conventional fertilizer with optimized water and fertilizer management (H-BGA+NPK+MW). The results showed that BGA+MW significantly reduced soil pH (6.96%-13.53% during fruit expansion; 7.08%-16.77% at maturity), and increased nitrate-N (15.2%-310.7%) and ammonium-N (236.1%-315.5%). H-BGA+NPK+MW decreased soil bulk density (10.69%-11.36% during expansion; 7.80% at maturity) and improved aggregate stability, with average weight diameter (MWD) and geometric mean diameter (GMD) increased by 32.3% and 100% (expansion) and 3.3% and 9.8% (maturity), respectively. Treatments enhanced organic carbon fractions and soil microbial biomass carbon. NPK+W increased soil organic carbon (SOC) by 31.77% compared with BGA+W during expansion, while H-BGA+NPK+MW showed the highest SOC at maturity. NPK+MW promoted microbial biomass carbon in expansion, and H-BGA+NPK+MW did in maturity. H-BGA+NPK+MW increased soluble solids, and BGA+MW increased soluble sugars. The BGA soil conditioner improves soil microbial activity, organic carbon fractions, and fruit quality in continuous cropping orchards, supporting sustainable production.
This study aims to elucidate the physiological mechanisms underlying heat tolerance,a key selective trait in the sea cucumber Apostichopusjaponicas, by examining dynamic changes in antioxidant, immune-related, and metabolic enzyme activities under varying heat shock temperatures, and by evaluating the thermal stability of the critical heat-tolerant enzyme malate dehydrogenase. Using a graded temperature elevation protocol for heat shock treatmentwith four geographical hybrid populations(WFD♀×RZ♂, WFD♀×YT♂, WFD♀×TS♂, WFD♀×WFD♂) and two early heat shock populations (blastocyst stage, big ear larvae stage) as materials, the enzymatic activities and thermal stability of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), pyruvate kinase (PK), and cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenase (cMDH) were systematically measured and analyzed in the body walls of juvenile sea cucumbers from different breeding populations. The results revealed that: (1) the WFD♀×RZ♂ population exhibited significantly higher SOD, CAT, PK, and cMDH activities compared to other hybrid combinations (P<0.05); (2) under heat stress conditions (34℃ and 36℃), individuals heat-shocked at the late auricularia stage showed significantly greater SOD, CAT, LDH, and cMDH activities than those treated at the blastula stage (P<0.05); (3) starting from the 5-minute time point post-heat treatment, the residual cMDH activity remained significantly higher in the late auricularia group than in the blastula group across all subsequent time points; (4) among the hybrid populations, the cMDH thermal stability in the WFD♀×YT♂ and WFD♀×RZ♂ groups was markedly superior to that in the other two populations. In summary, these findings indicate that the WFD♀×RZ♂ population and individuals exposed to heat shock at the late auricularia stage possess enhanced potential for heat tolerance. This study provides valuable theoretical insights and empirical data to support the screening of stress-resistant sea cucumber germplasm and the advancement of sustainable aquaculture practices.
To improve the forecasting and early-warning capability for hail weather in the main Nanguo pear production area of Anshan, hail occurrence records, Micaps data, NCEP reanalysis data, sounding observations, and Doppler radar data were comprehensively analyzed. Based on hail cases recorded from 2013 to 2022, a conceptual weather model was constructed using synoptic diagnostic methods, and key forecasting and warning indicators were established through systematic analysis of physical parameters and radar echo characteristics. The results show that hail events in the study area mainly occur from April to October, with the highest frequency observed between May to September. A pronounced diurnal variation is evident, with most hail events occurring during the afternoon hours from 12:00 to 17:00 local time. According to the relative influence of different synoptic systems, hail formation in the main production area is primarily associated with the northeast cold vortex pattern and with configurations involving the coupling of surface low pressure systems and upper-level troughs. Prior to hail occurrence, unstable atmospheric conditions are characterized by a K index of no less than 25℃. The Showalter index typically ranges from 1℃ to 2℃ in spring and autumn and from -1℃ to 1℃ in summer. The temperature difference between 850 hPa and 500 hPa generally exceeds 26℃. In terms of energy conditions, convective available potential energy is commonly greater than 500 J/kg. Dynamic conditions are marked by a 0-6 km vertical wind shear exceeding 12 m/s. The height of the 0℃ level is mainly distributed between 2 and 4 km, and it can exceed 4 km during July and August. Radar-based warning indicators include the appearance of linear echoes, V-shaped notches, and three-body scattering spikes, with echo intensities greater than 55 dBZ. In vertical cross-sections, the centroid height of strong echoes is higher than the -20℃ level, 50 dBZ echoes extend above the -20℃ isotherm, and the vertically integrated liquid water content reaches or exceeds 30 kg/m2. These indicators provide an important basis for operational hail forecasting and early warning in the Nanguo pear production region. Each indicator exhibits significant monthly variation characteristics, requiring comprehensive judgment in conjunction with seasonal context in practical applications. This study established a meteorological conceptual model and forecasting and early warning indicator system for hail weather in the main production area of Nanguo pear, providing a scientific basis and reference for hail early warning and hail prevention and disaster reduction work in this region.
This study utilized ensemble-averaged data from the CMIP6 global climate models to explore the impacts of future climate change on rice cultivation structures and major agricultural meteorological disasters in Hubei Province. Using statistical downscaling and bias correction methods, the evolution characteristics of agricultural heat resources, rice planting layout and major meteorological disasters in 1995-2014 ( base period ) and 2023-2100 ( short-term, medium-term and long-term ) were analyzed under SSP2-4.5 ( medium emission ) and SSP5-8.5 ( high emission ) scenarios. The results show that: (1) in the future, the agricultural heat resources in Hubei Province will increase significantly. In the SSP5-8.5 scenario, the long-term accumulated temperature of ≥10℃ will increase by 2313.1℃・d compared with the base period, the initial date of the boundary temperature will be advanced by 32.2 d, the final date will be delayed by 18.4 d, and the frost-free period will be extended by 60 d. (2) The layout of rice planting continues to be optimized, and the suitable area for double cropping rice extends from southeast Hubei and Jianghan Plain to northeast Hubei, Three Gorges Valley and northwest Hubei. The suitable coverage area of ratooning rice is expanding, and the suitable planting area of the whole province is basically realized in the long term, and the promotion potential of middle and late maturing high-yielding varieties is improved. (3) The risk of meteorological disasters showed the characteristics that the risk of cold damage was significantly reduced, and the long-term cold dew wind and spring cold damage days decreased by 18.8 d and 7.9 d compared with the base period; however, the risk of high temperature heat damage increased. In the SSP5-8.5 scenario, the number of severe high temperature days of middle rice ≥35℃ in the long term reached 29.1 d / a, and the risk of overwintering of pests and diseases increased. In the future, it is necessary to improve the adaptability of rice production in Hubei to climate change by adjusting planting layout, breeding high temperature resistant and disease-resistant varieties, strengthening green prevention and control and meteorological early warning.
Water storage irrigation is a method used in northern regions to store water during the off-season of farmland for the needs of crop planting and seedling growth in the following year. Precisely understanding the temporal and spatial changes of soil water and heat after water storage irrigation, and formulating appropriate water storage irrigation systems and soil moisture regulation measures such as cultivation and covering during the off-season for different planting patterns, is particularly important to enhance the water retention capacity of farmland and improve the water utilization efficiency of water storage irrigation. This paper sets different irrigation schemes and uses the HYDRUS-2D model to numerically simulate the changes in water and heat during water storage irrigation. It calculates the water utilization efficiency of different schemes and, based on the simulation results, recommends appropriate winter and spring water storage irrigation systems suitable for the local area. The results show that after delaying the winter irrigation time, water infiltration is slower, and soil moisture is mainly concentrated in the 0-30 cm soil layer. Winter water storage irrigation leads to a decrease in soil temperature, earlier soil freezing time, and deeper freezing depth, effectively reducing the evaporation loss of soil moisture. The earlier the water storage irrigation is carried out, the smaller the quota, and the ground temperature recovers faster, which is beneficial for crop sowing. The water storage irrigation quotas for winter and spring should not exceed 150 mm and 120 mm, respectively. The winter irrigation quota should be 120 mm, and the spring irrigation quota should be 90-120 mm.
To elucidate the research trajectory and developmental trends in the field of rural wellness, and to support the deepening of the Healthy China and Rural Revitalization strategies, this study aims to systematically analyze the evolution characteristics and cutting-edge dynamics in this field. Taking 491 articles from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) journal database from 2008 to 2024 as samples, CiteSpace software was used to conduct author/institution co-occurrence network analysis, keyword clustering, and burst analysis, generating visual maps. The results show that: (1) the number of published articles related to rural wellness in China has generally increased, with a three-stage leap in annual publication volume, and a burst of growth after 2018 (accounting for 88.59% of the total); (2) research institutions are independent and lack interdisciplinary connections, with an institution collaboration density of only 0.0027 (N=141, E=27), and weak interdisciplinary collaboration; (3) the frontier trend of research topics has shifted from macro to micro research, with burst strength revealing that hotspots have shifted from macro-level themes (e.g., "health and wellness tourism", burst strength=5.91, 2010-2018) to micro-level practical applications (e.g., "therapeutic landscape", burst strength= 4.51, 2023-2024). The current frontiers focus on the travel and residence elderly care service system, ecological design of health and wellness landscapes, and the industrial-spatial collaborative model of characteristic towns. It’s urgent to establish an interdisciplinary collaboration mechanism, a differentiated demand response system, and a high-quality health care environment construction technology system.
Sci-tech rewards play a pivotal role in motivating independent innovation and stimulating talent vitality. To fully leverage the motivational role of science societies awards in incentivizing young agricultural sci-tech talents, this paper analyzes the development and characteristics of China's social sci-tech awards, youth sci-tech awards, and agricultural youth sci-tech awards granted by scientific societies in China. Using the Youth Science and Technology Award of the China Association of Agricultural Science Societies as a case study, the paper examines issues such as significant regional disparities in the distribution of awardees between eastern and western regions, and notable differences in the number of recipients in traditional professional fields versus emerging interdisciplinary areas. It proposes recommendations for optimizing these reward mechanisms, including improving review policies, strengthening review mechanisms, enhancing supervision and management, and reinforcing follow-up services, to effectively stimulate the innovative vitality of young agricultural sci-tech talents.
ISSN 2095-4050 (Print)
Started from 2011
Published by: China Association of Agricultural Science Societies
