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Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass

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A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Grassland and Pasture Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2024 | Viewed by 7763

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yuefei Xu

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Guest Editor

College of Grassland Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: mechanism of stress tolerance in turfgrass under low-light stress

Dr. Kehua Wang

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Guest Editor

College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Interests: turfgrass physiology and molecular biology; turfgrass management; weed management

Dr. Jing Zhang

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Guest Editor

College of Agro-Grassland Science, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
Interests: mechanisms of senescence and stress tolerance in grass species

Dr. Chao Xia

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Guest Editor

State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730020, China
Interests: interaction between fungi and host grasses under stresses

Dr. Tieyuan Liu

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Guest Editor

College of Grassland Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
Interests: function of rhizosphere microbiome under drought or salt stress

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Forage and turfgrass currently play an important role in agricultural development and environmental protection. Plants are challenged by abiotic stress and biotic stress, such as drought, waterlogging, cold, heat, salinity, shade, and heavy metals, as well as pathogens, pests and weeds. The negative effects of abiotic and biotic stresses bring about changes in plant metabolism, growth, and development, in extreme cases leading to plant death.

In this Special Issue, we seek to publish original high-quality research relating to all aspects of stress biology, including studies:

1) providing fundamental insights into the understanding of responses of forage and turfgrass to abiotic and biotic stresses;

2) elucidating mechanisms underlying the resistance/tolerance of forage and turfgrass to abiotic and biotic stresses;

3) using biotechnological and other strategies to improve the resistance/tolerance of forage and turfgrass to abiotic and biotic stresses.

Topics studied in this journal include physiology, molecular biology, genomics, microbiology, pathology, gene editing, resistance breeding, biotechnology, and ecology.

Dr. Yuefei Xu
Dr. Kehua Wang
Dr. Jing Zhang
Dr. Chao Xia
Dr. Tieyuan Liu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

abiotic and biotic stresses
forage and turfgrass
genomics
metabolites
microbiology
molecular biology
photosynthesis
physiology response
phytohormone
signal transduction

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 5174 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Annual Weeds Suppression and Oat Forage Yield Responses to Crop Density Management in an Oat-Cultivated Grassland: A Case Study in Eastern China

by Wei Tang, Ziguang Li, Haipeng Guo, Boyu Chen, Tingru Wang, Fuhong Miao, Chao Yang, Wangdan Xiong and Juan Sun

Agronomy 2024, 14(3), 583; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14030583 - 14 Mar 2024

Viewed by 846

Abstract

Although weeds can be inhibited by high planting densities, canopy shading, elemental balance and soil microbial recruitment are not yet adequately considered when measuring competitive effects on weed control. The effects of oat (Avena sativa) planting density (60 to 600 plants m⁻²) on the biomass and shoot element balance of oat and weeds were evaluated in a field experiment. The shift in the microbial community of the dominant weed species was examined in a pot experiment by growing the weed alone and in competition with 360 oat plants m⁻² (recommended planting density) under greenhouse conditions. Increasing oat planting density beyond 360 plants m⁻² did not improve oat forage yield or weed suppression. Compared to 60 plants m⁻², the biomass of broadleaf and grass weeds decreased by 1122% and 111%, respectively, at a density of 360 plants m⁻², while oat forage biomass increased by 60% and leaf area index by 24%. The improved canopy properties suppressed competing weeds through increased shading. Typically, the C:N and C:P ratios of shoots of Echinochloa crus-galli and Digitaria sanguinalis were higher than those of Portulaca oleracea and Chenopodium album. At high planting densities, E. crus-galli and D. sanguinalis exhibited high P contents and low N:P ratios, suggesting a limited supply of N nutrients for growth. Soil bacterial community assay showed that the composition of microbial communities of the two grass weeds were shaped by the presence of oat competition, which also considerably depleted several important functional microbes associated with nutrient cycling in the weeds’ rhizosphere. These results highlight that increased crop density significantly improves the crop competitive advantage over weeds through increased shading, reduced elemental balance, and beneficial microorganisms of weeds, thereby reducing the need for herbicides or physical weed control in oat cropping system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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21 pages, 3890 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Epichloë bromicola Enhances Elymus dahucirus Plant Growth and Antioxidant Capacity under Cadmium Stress

by Qian Shi, Wayne R. Simpson, Yuling Li, Chengti Xu, Kejia De and Xiuzhang Li

Agronomy 2024, 14(2), 365; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14020365 - 12 Feb 2024

Viewed by 795

Abstract

Elymus dahucirus is an essential plant for ecological restoration in fragile ecological areas and mining area restoration. As lawn grass, it can quickly cover soil and prevent soil erosion, so it is commonly used as a pioneer grass for lawn greening and slope protection. In recent years, with the development of mineral resources, Qinghai–Tibet Plateau soil is facing the threat of heavy metal cadmium (Cd) pollution. E. dahuricus can host the filamentous fungus Epichloë bromicola. To make better use of the advantages that Epichloë bring to host plants to alleviate heavy metal pollution in soil, plant growth and antioxidant capacity effects on E. bromicola infected (E+) and uninfected (E−) E. dahuricus were determined under Cd stress. During Cd treatment, plant growth was decreased by Cd stress, while E+ plants exhibited equal or better growth compared to E− plants. Cd treatment induces a proline and antioxidant enzyme burst in infected plants, while malondialdehyde (MDA) increases. E. bromicola improved plant growth and antioxidant capacity. E. dahuricus breeding strategies could use the information here in efforts to improve the performance of E. dahuricus in both environmental protection and agronomic contexts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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17 pages, 9549 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Combined Cold and Drought Stress-Induced Response of Photosynthesis and Osmotic Adjustment in Elymus nutans Griseb.

by Bowen Liu, Ruijia Wang, Jiongjiong Gong, Tianqi Zhu, Si Long, Huan Guo, Tieyuan Liu, Peizhi Yang and Yuefei Xu

Agronomy 2023, 13(9), 2368; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13092368 - 12 Sep 2023

Viewed by 985

Abstract

Elymus nutans Griseb. is a dominant forage in the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau. However, the combined cold and drought (CD) stress is a major problem inhibiting its growth, development, and yield. Here, the responses of morphological, photosynthetic, osmoregulation levels, and signal transduction under cold, drought, and CD stress were explored. Both cold- and drought-stressed plants showed varying degrees of damage. In addition, CD stress led to more severe damage than single stress, especially in total biomass, photosynthetic capacity, and electron transfer efficiency. The total biomass, net photosynthetic rate, and maximal quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII) photochemistry reduced by 61.47%, 95.80%, and 16.06% in comparison with the control, respectively. Meanwhile, CD stress was accompanied by lower chlorophyll contents, down-regulated expression level of key photosynthetic enzymes (EnRbcS, EnRbcL, and EnRCA), stomatal closure, disrupted chloroplast ultrastructure, and reduced starch content. Furthermore, CD stress induced some adaptability responses in cold- and drought-tolerant E. nutans seedlings. The combined stress provoked alterations in both cold- and drought-related transcription factors and responsive genes. EnCBF12, EnCBF9, EnCBF14, and EnCOR14α were significantly up-regulated under cold or drought stress, and the transcript level of EnCBF3 and EnCBF12 was even 2.94 and 12.59 times higher than control under CD treatment, which indicated the key role of transcription factors activation in coping with CD stress. In addition, the content of soluble sugar, reducing sugar, proline, glycine betaine, and other osmolytes was significantly improved under CD stress. Therefore, we demonstrated that exposure to CD stress led to severe morphological and photosynthetic damage and revealed the acclimation to the cold and drought stress combination via osmotic adjustment and transcription factors activation in the Tibetan wild E. nutans. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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17 pages, 2191 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Study of the Effect of Mowing and Drying on the Lipid Composition of Grass Leaves in Permafrost Ecosystems

by Vasiliy V. Nokhsorov, Lyubov V. Dudareva, Natalia V. Semenova and Klim A. Petrov

Agronomy 2023, 13(9), 2252; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13092252 - 27 Aug 2023

Viewed by 994

Abstract

Mowing the plant shoots under hot, sunny, and dry conditions severely traumatizes the entire vegetative body, and the overall life cycle of the plant is altered. The purpose of the present research was to investigate the effects of mowing and drying on lipids, fatty acids (FA), sterols, and the systemic responses in leaves of plant material at three time points (24 h, 72 h, and leaves of new shoots after traumatic mowing in summer (1 July) and those subjected to cold hardening by autumn temperatures in September (aftergrass)) were analyzed for the first time. The leaves of five species of herbaceous plants growing in permafrost ecosystems were analyzed by HPTLC and GC-MS. It was established that fatty acids in the tissues of aftergrass leaves were characterized by higher values of the n-6/n-3 ratio than in summer grasses. It was demonstrated that exposure of leaves for 72 h in natural conditions in summer and at low temperatures in autumn in leaves of aftergrass resulted in significant changes in the composition of membrane phospholipids. The obtained findings indicate that leaves of aftergrass are the most valuable plant raw material in terms of FAs and phytosterols content compared to hay mowed in summer. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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16 pages, 5144 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Comparative Study on the Morpho-Physiological Responses of White Clover Cultivars with Different Leaf Types to Water Deficiency

by Xueying Zhao, Zhi Tian, Lintao Cheng, Jia Jiang, Yujiao Liu, Lizhi Liu, Chunxu You, Xun Liu, Fuchun Xie, Ligang Qin and Yajun Chen

Agronomy 2023, 13(7), 1859; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13071859 - 14 Jul 2023

Viewed by 1035

Abstract

White clover (Trifolium repens L.) is one of the legume herbages with high feed quality, but it is sensitive to water deficiency. The objectives of this study were to compare morpho-physiological responses to drought stress and post-drought recovery in four-leafed white clover cultivars. Under well-watered conditions, drought stress (3 d, 6 d, 9 d and 12 d), and rehydration, the relative water content (RWC), membrane lipid permeability, osmoregulatory substances, photosynthetic characteristics and stomatal features of Chinese native Longping No.1 (LP, small-leafed) and three introduced cultivars, namely Pudi (PD, small-leafed), Rivendel (RD, medium-leafed) and Koala (KL, large-leafed), were evaluated. Results showed that small-leafed white clover maintained higher RWC and better membrane stability and osmotic regulation with increased drought intensities, compared to the medium-leafed and large-leafed cultivars. Following rewatering, small-leafed white clover recovered more rapidly with all of the parameters than the other cultivars. The increase of drought stress intensity led to the decline of net photosynthetic rate (Pn), transpiration rate (Tr) and stomatal conductance (Cs). However, the decreased range of Pn, Tr and Cs in the small-leafed white clover was significantly smaller than that in the medium-leafed and large-leafed white clovers. Meanwhile, the small-leafed white clover showed a smaller size and higher density of stoma either under normal or drought conditions than the intermediate- and large-leafed cultivars. Taken together, the results indicated that the adaptability of small-leafed white clover to drought stresses and post-drought recovery was better than that of medium-leafed and large-leafed white clovers. The study will provide better insights into the mechanism of drought response and recovery potential in different white clover cultivars. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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15 pages, 7243 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi and Diazotrophic Diversity and Community Composition Responses to Soybean Genotypes from Different Maturity Groups

by Mandi Wu, Shengzhican Li, Jie Bai, Kezhen Wang, Yang Qu, Mingxiu Long, Peizhi Yang, Tianming Hu and Shubin He

Agronomy 2023, 13(7), 1713; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13071713 - 26 Jun 2023

Viewed by 846

Abstract

Soybeans can simultaneously form tripartite symbiotic associations with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and diazotrophs. However, no studies have explored whether soybean genotypes differing in their maturity groups (MGs) may have implications for the recruitment of rhizosphere soil AMF and diazotrophs. We investigated the diversity and community compositions of AMF and diazotrophs in three soybean genotypes differing in their maturity groups (MG) using high-throughput sequencing. The soybean MGs were MG1.4, MG2.2, and MG3.8, representing early, standard, and late maturity, respectively, for the study region. Soil chemical properties and yield-related traits were determined, and co-occurrence network patterns and drivers were also analyzed. The results obtained demonstrated that AMF richness and diversity were relatively stable in the three soybean genotypes, but noticeable differences were observed in diazotrophs, with late maturity being significantly higher than early maturity. However, there were differences in AMF and diazotrophic composition among different MG genotypes, and the changes in the proportion of dominant species in the community were necessarily related to MG genotypes. Co-occurrence network analysis showed that the positive correlation between AMF and diazotrophs gradually decreased in earlier MG genotypes than in the other later MG genotypes. The results of the structural equation model analysis showed that soil organic carbon, AMF, diversity of soil nutrients, and extracellular enzyme activities were important factors driving soybean yield change, with organic carbon accounting for more than 80% of the pathways analyzed. These results suggest that soybean genotype selection based on MG plays an important role in recruiting both AMF and diazotrophic communities, and in comparison to AMF, diazotrophs are more responsive to the different MG genotypes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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15 pages, 918 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Compensatory Yield Responses of Young Native Warm-Season Grass Stands to Seasonal Changes in Harvest Frequencies

by Vitalis W. Temu, Laban K. Rutto and Maru K. Kering

Agronomy 2022, 12(11), 2761; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12112761 - 06 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1190

Abstract

Defoliation management can significantly affect subsequent grassland’s forage productivity and sustainability. To assess the type and persistence of native warm-season grass (NWSG) yield responses to changes in defoliation intensity, a five-year harvest trial was conducted, in a randomized complete block design, at Virginia State University’s research farm. Yield responses of newly established indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans L.). Nash, big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii Vitman), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) and eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides L.) stands to second-year changes in harvest regimes were monitored. In 2012, seedlings of these native grasses were transplanted in clean-tilled plots, with 16 plants in each pot. The field was not irrigated, but broadleaf weeds were manually controlled, and all plots were mowed in August and mid-November of 2013. Starting June 2014, each plot had three harvest-strips assigned to single, two, or three cuts per year from early June to mid-October using a plot-harvester; forage weights were recorded. Based on the recorded fresh and oven-dry sample weights, plot forage DM yields were estimated. Cumulative forage biomass of all three-cut strips flipped to single-cut increased by ≥30% and >50% for big bluestem. The second-year single-cut yields also outperformed those cut thrice since the first year by 22–51%. The second-year biomass increases from single-cut strips that were cut thrice in the first year demonstrated that flipping-triggered compensatory yield responses overshadowed the first- year losses in plant vigor. The compensatory yield increases continued to, but not beyond, the third year and varied between species. The yield responses also showed that magnitudes of defoliation management–triggered NWSG growth responses depend more on growing conditions during the recovery period than its actual duration. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Stress Biology of Forage and Turfgrass)

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