秸秆烟尘和灰烬中元素碳的稳定同位素组成

选取稻草、麦草和玉米秸秆各6个品种,进行室内模拟焚烧试验,用同位素质谱计测定了灰烬和烟尘中元素碳(EC)的同位素比值.结果表明,稻草明火和闷烧烟尘中EC的δ13C平均值分别是-28.3‰、-28.7‰,比稻草总碳分别轻2.7‰、3.0‰.麦草明火和闷烧烟尘中EC的δ13C平均值分别为-28.5‰、-28.0‰,比麦草总碳分别轻0.1‰、重0.4‰.玉米秸秆明火和闷烧烟尘中EC的δ13C平均值分别为-17.2‰、-13.6‰,比秸秆总碳分别轻3.4‰、重0.2‰.在稻草明火和闷烧灰烬中,EC的δ13C平均值分别是-27.5‰、-27.3‰,比稻草总碳分别轻1.8‰、1.6‰.在麦草的明火和闷烧灰烬中,EC的δ13C平均值分别为-27.4‰和-26.0‰,比麦草总碳分别重0.9‰和2.4‰.在玉米秸秆的明火和闷烧灰烬中,EC的δ13C平均值分别为-15.0‰和-14.8‰,比玉米秆总碳分别轻1.2‰和1.0‰.3类秸秆,尤其是稻草和玉米秸秆,其烟尘和灰烬中的EC均发生了明显的同位素分馏.其同位素组成对于识别和估算大气气溶胶中此类秸秆燃烧来源的EC有参考意义.     

氯代苯酚结构与农作物毒性关系的研究

卤代苯酚是一种环境污染物。本文通过水培发芽试验和幼苗土壤盆栽试验,研究了卤代苯酚系列污染物结构与冬小麦、萝卜、油菜等作物毒性的关系。结果表明,氯代苯酚系列污染物都可抑制他们的发芽和幼苗生长,其毒性都大于苯酚,并与浓度成显著性正相关。在浓度相同时,其毒性随苯环上氢原子被氯取代个数的增加而加大。在浓度和取代个数都相同时,不同取代部位的毒性不同,邻位取代毒性最大。不同农作物对它们的抗性不同;在取代个数、浓度和取代部位都相同时,小麦受害程度最轻,油菜最重。     

施用污泥堆肥对作物和土壤的影响

污泥中的有机质、营养成分可为农业生产提供重要的有机肥源,但污泥中的重金属是制约污泥农用的重要因素,为检验污泥堆肥施用后对作物及土壤的影响,文章对污泥与稻草或木屑堆肥的产品进行了盆栽试验研究。结果表明,污泥与稻草或木屑的堆肥作为肥料施用于萝卜(Brassicacampestris)和菜心(Brassicaparachinensis),产量明显提高,部分堆肥产品增产效果优于化肥,且后效明显。堆肥施用使土壤中有机质、各养分含量增加,微生物活动增强、数量增加,然而作物和土壤中的重金属含量也有不同程度的提高。     

CO2浓度增加对作物影响的研究动态

大气CO2浓度不断增加将以两种方式影响作物的代谢、生长发育和产量的形成：一是通过温室效应“加热”气候,改变降水类型,进而影响作物;二是浓度变化本身对作物生理过程的影响。介绍了国内外近年来在与CO2浓度有关的作物生理实验方面取得的进展及其主要结果。     

Spatial identification by satellite imagery of the crop–fallow rotation cycle in northern Laos

In the mountainous regions of northern Laos, shifting cultivation, or slash-and-burn agriculture, is widely practiced. However, the crop–fallow rotation cycle is becoming shorter owing to forest conservation policies and population pressure, causing loss of productivity that deleteriously affects farmers’ livelihoods in the region. To investigate regional land use conditions, we have developed a method of identifying the crop–fallow rotation cycle from Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper+ (ETM+) data. We assessed the impact of the identified cycle on plant production measured by Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). The study site was an area in Luang Prabang Province. Using eight TM and ETM+ images acquired annually from 1995 to 2003, except for 1998, when cloud-free data were not collected, we classified land use in each year as crop or fallow by the presence of vegetation in the late dry season. Conformity with fallow age determined by field investigation was 69.1%. The cultivation frequency from 1995 to 2002 showed that 77,000 ha (17.3% of the study site) had not been used for cropping during the period, but 41,000 ha (9.2%) had been used every year. Of the study site, 129,000 ha (29.1%) was cultivated one or two times, 83,000 ha (18.7%) was three or four times, and 54,000 ha (12.2%) was five or six times. The NDVI of crops in November did not provide sufficient evidence to prove the assumption that a longer fallow period would result in better crop yields. Instead, the regeneration of fallow vegetation was evidenced by the higher NDVI values after longer fallow. More than 8 years would be needed to reach the same NDVI as forest. From the produced maps indicating fallow age and cultivation frequency, we found that areas with high potential for regeneration decreased as cultivation frequency increased. Areas near rivers were intensively used, and fallow length was accordingly short. Low-potential areas were found in the western basin of the Mekong River. This spatial information can be used to detect areas where biomass productivity is at high risk of deteriorating. Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

The role of daytime cues in the development of magnetic orientation in a night-migrating bird

To assess the role of celestial rotation during daytime in the development of the magnetic compass course, pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca Pallas, Muscicapidae) were handraised in Latvia under various celestial and magnetic conditions. Tests were performed during autumn migration in the local geomagnetic field (50 000 nT, 73° inclination) in the absence of celestial cues. A group of birds that had never seen the sky showed a bimodal preference for the migratory southwest-northeast axis, whereas a second group that had been exposed to the natural sky from sunrise to sunset in the local geomagnetic field showed a unimodal preference for the seasonally appropriate southwesterly direction. A third group that had also been exposed to the daytime sky, but in the absence of magnetic compass information, also oriented bimodally along a southwest-northeast axis. These findings demonstrate that observing celestial rotation during daytime enables birds to choose the right end of the migratory axis for autumn migration at the Latvian test location. This transformation of axial behavior into appropriate migratory orientation, however, requires the birds to have simultaneous access to information on both celestial rotation and the geomagnetic field. Received: 19 September 1997 / Accepted after revision: 22 November 1997     

BIOECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR WASTEWATER REUSE IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION1

ABSTRACT: Urban wastewater can be a valuable source of water and plant nutrients for agricultural producers, particularly in arid regions. The scientific literature reveals cautious optimism concerning the biological, institutional, and economic viability of irrigating crops with secondary-treated effluent. A derived effluent demand function for agricultural producers near Tucson, Arizona, reveals a potential annual demand of 11,000 acre-feet under present price and proposed delivery system conditions. In this case, wastewater could be exchanged for ground water and both the urban and rural areas would gain.     

EFFECTS OF CROPPING SYSTEMS ON NO3-N LOSSES TO TILE DRAIN1

Abstract: Diverse cropping systems can have significant impacts on nutrient losses through tile drain systems and to surface water bodies (rivers and streams). Increased transport of nitrogen to water bodies can reduce dissolved oxygen and enrich the supply of nutrients, resulting in hypoxic zones. With the objective of reducing the transport of nutrients from agricultural watersheds, long term studies (1990 to 1998) were conducted in Iowa to investigate the impact of tillage, crop rotation, and N-management practices on NO₃-N leaching losses to tile drain water. Results of these studies indicated that continuous corn production systems required higher input of nitrogen fertilizers and resulted in significantly higher NO₃-N leaching losses compared to rotated corn in plots either fertilized with manure or urea ammonium nitrate. Also, rotated corn gave higher corn yields, 8 megagrams per hectare (Mg/ha) versus 6 Mg/ha, than continuous corn. The higher N application rates resulted in increased NO₃-N concentrations in tile water. A strip cropping system with alfalfa lowered NO₃-N concentrations in tile water to less than 10 mg/l. These studies indicated that better land use practices can reduce NO₃-N leaching losses to surface and ground water systems and will help in mitigating environmental concerns of the production agriculture.