Rice is globally the most important food crop and there is a dire need to feed the ever-increasing population by improving its productivity. It has been realised that diseases are the major ...impediment towards enhancing the productivity of this crop. Despite the advent of modern effective disease control measures such as use of chemicals, bioagents and resistant varieties; agronomic practices still play a vital role in disease management in rice. Optimum use of different agro-techniques can be exploited for efficient control of various devastating diseases like rice blast, sheath blight, bakanae and many more by providing a favourable environment to better crop survival. Besides, appropriate selection of a variety, use of quality seed, method of establishment, planting time, nutrient, water and weed management practices can be well exploited to control various diseases. This manuscript entails to review the work pertaining to use of agronomic practices for exploiting the potential of crop environment interaction through reduced disease infection and to bridge the yield gap for ensuring sustained food security.
Invasive alien species are currently considered as one of the dominant drivers of global environmental change. Till now, the majority of studies have focused on single or a few traits of alien ...species that facilitate their invasion. Also inclusion of all the traits which determine the transition of aliens along the different stages of invasion continuum (casual, naturalised and invasive) has remained largely overlooked. In this study, we collected a comprehensive trait dataset on 144 alien plant species of Kashmir Himalaya – a global biodiversity hotspot region. To test which traits of alien species, individually or in combination along with anthropogenic factors, determine their transition along the invasion continuum, we employed chi-square tests, boosted regression trees and phylogenetic methods. We found the perennial life span, longer residence time, greater number of introduced regions, and better seed dispersal mechanism were critical in determining the transition from casual to naturalised. The herbaceous growth form, therophyte Raunkiaer life-form, annual life span, achene fruit, longer residence time and broader introduced range were the species' traits determining transition from naturalised to invasive. Aliens introduced as ornamentals have more propensity to become naturalised; whereas aliens introduced unintentionally show overrepresentation at the invasive stage. Phylogeny alone showed mixed results indicating both clustering and dispersion; however, in combination with other traits, it plays a significant role in determining the stage of invasion. Overall, our study disentangles the individual and interactive roles of multiple traits that determine the transition of alien species' along the invasion continuum. Further, we foresee the potential applicability of our findings in designing robust invasion risk analysis protocols and stage-specific invasion management strategies in this Himalayan region, with learnings for elsewhere in the world.
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•Alien species' traits and anthropogenic factors that facilitate naturalisation and invasion success studied•Different sets of traits and factors determine transition along invasion continuum.•Ornamentals and unintentionally introduced aliens turn more naturalised and invasive, respectively.•Phylogeny, in combination with other traits, plays a significant role.•The study unravels the species' traits and anthropogenic factors aiding invasion, with wide management lessons.
In an age of anthropocene, shifting plant phenology is one of the most striking biological indicators of global environmental change. Majority of the studies reporting shifts in plant phenology are ...available from the North America and Europe and largely scarce from the developing world, including the Himalaya; and studies integrating multiple methodological approaches to investigate the climate-driven phenological shifts are too rare. Here, we report the shifts in spring flowering phenology of model plant species, Sternbergia vernalis in response to the changing climate in Kashmir Himalaya, by integrating decadal field observational records with long-term herbarium and dated-photograph data, and supported with experimental evidences. Our results revealed a significant increasing trend of 0.038, 0.016 and 0.023 °C/year in the annual mean maximum temperature (Tmax), mean minimum temperature (Tmin) and diurnal temperature range (DTR) respectively; but an insignificant decreasing trend in annual precipitation of −1.24 mm/year over the last four decades (1980–2019) in this Himalayan region. The flowering phenology of S. vernalis has significantly advanced by 11.8 days/°C and 27.8 days/°C increase in Tmax and Tmin respectively, indicating that the climate warming has led to substantial shifts in flowering phenology of the model plant species. We also observed a strong association of seasonal Tmax (December–February) and DTR on the early onset of spring flowering, however precipitation had no significant effect on the timing of flowering. The greenhouse experiment results further supported a significant effect of temperature in triggering the phenological shifts, wherein the model plant grown under different temperature treatments flowered 9–20 days earlier compared to the control. Our study showcases the integrated use of multiple methodological approaches for unravelling the long-term phenological shifts in response to climate change, and contributes in filling the knowledge gaps in the phenological research from the developing world in general and the Himalaya in particular.
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•We report shifts in spring flowering phenology driven by changing climate in the Himalaya.•Flowering advanced by 11.8 and 27.8 days/°C increase in Tmax and Tmin respectively.•Seasonal Tmax (December–February) and DTR strongly determined early onset of flowering.•Experimental evidence shows effect of warmer temperature in the phenological shifts.•Our study showcases the use of multiple methods in phenology research.
Climate warming-driven temporal shifts in phenology are widely recognised as the foremost footprint of global environmental change. In this regard, concerted research efforts are being made worldwide ...to monitor and assess the plant phenological responses to climate warming across species, ecosystems and seasons. Here, we present a global synthesis of the recent scientific literature to assess the progress made in this area of research. To achieve this, we conducted a systematic review by following PRISMA protocol, which involved rigorous screening of 9476 studies on the topic and finally selected 215 studies for data extraction. The results revealed that woody species, natural ecosystems and plant phenological responses in spring season have been predominantly studied, with the herbaceous species, agricultural ecosystems and other seasons grossly understudied. Majority of the studies reported phenological advancement (i.e., preponement) in spring, followed by also advancement in summer but delay in autumn. Methodology-wise, nearly two -third of the studies have employed direct observational approach, followed by herbarium-based and experimental approaches, with the latter covering least temporal depth. We found a steady increase in research on the topic over the last decade with a sharp increase since 2014. The global country-wide scientific output map highlights the huge geographical gaps in this area of research, particularly in the biodiversity-rich tropical regions of the developing world. Based on the findings of this global synthesis, we identify the current knowledge gaps and suggest future directions for this emerging area of research in an increasingly warming world.
Invasive alien species (IAS) are currently considered as one of the major causes of global environmental change. To manage the IAS, it is crucial to identify the different environmental and ...associated anthropogenic drivers that contribute to invasion of alien species in non-native regions. Although multiple drivers of invasion have been identified at a global scale, the relative roles of these are known to vary considerably at regional scales. Here, we investigate the role of key environmental and anthropogenic drivers in determining the diversity and distribution of selected invasive alien plant species in Kashmir Himalaya. We generated an extensive distribution dataset of these species through field sampling across the region and supplemented it with novel herbarium records. We also extracted data on the relevant environmental (climatic, soil and topographic) and anthropogenic drivers for the study region. The random forest model was employed to quantify the relative contribution of these drivers to determine the two common diversity metrics (species richness and abundance) of selected invasive alien plants. We found that soil water content followed by distance to city, the maximum air temperature, soil pH, soil temperature and human population density exerted the greatest influence on species richness of the invasive plants. Species abundance was significantly influenced by the maximum air temperature followed by soil temperature, distance to city, slope, soil pH and human population density. Overall, our findings help in disentangling the individual and interactive roles of multiple drivers of plant invasions, with wide-ranging implications for management in this Himalayan region and similar landscapes elsewhere.
•Invasive alien species are one of major causes of global environmental change.•Environmental and anthropogenic drivers of invasive plants in the Himalaya studied.•Soil water content and distance to city had greatest influence on species richness.•Maximum air temperature had greatest influence on invasive species abundance.•Our study disentangles individual and interactive roles of multiple drivers in plant invasions.
Experimental evidences in support of climate warming–driven phenological shifts are still scarce, particularly from the developing world. Here, we investigated the effect of experimental warming on ...flowering phenology of selected woody plants in Kashmir Himalaya. We selected the twigs of four congeneric pairs of temperate woody species (
Prunus
,
Populus
,
Ulmus
,
Viburnum
)—typical spring-flowering plants in the region. Using randomised block design, we monitored these winter dormant twigs in controlled growth chambers to study the effect of different temperature regimes (9, 17, 20 and 23 °C) and species identity on the patterns of phenological shifts. We observed a significant phenological shift in all the species showing preponement in the first flower out and senescence phases ranging from 0.56 to 3.0 and 0.77 to 4.04 days per degree increase in temperature, respectively. The duration of flowering phase in all the species showed a corresponding decrease along the gradient of increasing temperature, which was more driven by preponement of the flower senescence than the start of flowering. The patterns of phenological shifts were highly species-specific, and the magnitude of these shifts significantly varied in all the four pairs of congeneric species despite their phylogenetic similarity. Our study provides experimental support to the previous long-term observation and herbarium-based studies showing that the patterns of phenological shifts in response to global climate warming are likely to vary between species, even those belonging to same evolutionary stock. Our findings highlight that a one-size-fits-all strategy to manage the likely impacts of climate warming–induced phenological shifts will seldom succeed, and should instead be designed for the specific phenological responses of species and regions.
Worldwide, invasive alien species (IAS) cause significant ecological and economic impacts. To meet the Target-6 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework that deals with IAS, it is ...crucial to fill the geographical knowledge gaps in invasion research. Towards this end, making available inventories of IAS from data-deficient regions of the world merits urgent research attention. Here we present an integrated inventory of invasive alien flora of South Asia—the most populous region of the world. We assembled the inventory by reviewing 236 studies published from 1890 to 2022, supplemented with expert validation. The inventory comprises 241 invasive alien plant species (IAPS) with perennial lifespan (65%) and herbaceous life form (61%) as the dominant life history traits. The number of IAPS varies considerably across the seven countries in the region with the highest in India (185) followed by Bhutan (53), Sri Lanka (45), Bangladesh (39), Nepal (30), Pakistan (29) and the lowest in Maldives (15). We found the highest species’ similarity between India and Bhutan and the lowest between India and Maldives, thus highlighting the role of geographical proximity and connectivity in shaping a similar species pool. Southern America was the major contributor both at country level and across the region, thereby indicating that the tropical climate matching aids in the establishment and spread of alien species. Our study will fill existing data gaps in the global reports, foster further research on biological invasions in South Asia, and guide invasion policy formulation and management strategies within each country and much beyond the political boundaries across the region.
The causes of climate patchy rope in heat up temperature, change in precipitation, degree of utmost conditions occasions like melting of glaciers, polar ice-caps, mount in sea levels, etc. These ...impacts eventually fall our income by touching the rations we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe and the earth somewhere we live. Frequent impacts caused fitting to excessive exposure of heat waves such as round stroke, dehydration, cardiovascular, respiratory and neural comborbidities. Climate conversion alters the ecology of vectors and these vectors are capable of have in stock causal agents such as viruses, bacteria and protozoa from animals to humans. Malaria, tick-borne encephalitis, fair fever, plague, and dengue obtain lengthened their geographical ranges as their carriers migrated to privileged latitudes. Droughts canister take part in adverse property on being health, as they over and over again suggest itself in mishmash with other sit out conditions, such as warm waves, wildfires and dust storms. Reduced water quantity may cause decreased water flow during periods of drought, encouraging the development of pathogens which prefer dry, stagnant environments. Altering climatic situation know how to be attributed to mounting international temperatures, spread in the dimensions of ambient fill up fumes and changes in the announce motion as mutual together. Extreme season and climate-related actions are famous to set off fundamental infrastructure failures, lucrative harm and relocation of communities, ensuing in a quantity of health problems.
Endophytism is the phenomenon of mutualistic association of a plant with a microorganism wherein the microbe lives within the tissues of the plant without causing any symptoms of disease. In addition ...to being a treasured biological resource, endophytes play diverse indispensable functions in nature for plant growth, development, stress tolerance, and adaptation. Our understanding of endophytism and its ecological aspects are overtly limited, and we have only recently started to appreciate its essence. Endophytes may impact plant biology through the production of diverse chemical entities including, but not limited to, plant growth hormones and by modulating the gene expression of defense and other secondary metabolic pathways of the host. Studies have shown differential recruitment of endophytes in endophytic populations of plants growing in the same locations, indicating host specificity and that endophytes evolve in a coordinated fashion with the host plants. Endophytic technology can be employed for the efficient production of agricultural and economically important plants and plant products. The rational application of endophytes to manipulate the microbiota, intimately associated with plants, can help in enhancement of production of agricultural produce, increased production of key metabolites in medicinal and aromatic plants, as well as adaption to new bio-geographic regions through tolerance to various biotic and abiotic conditions. However, the potential of endophytic biology can be judiciously harnessed only when we obtain insight into the molecular mechanism of this unique mutualistic relationship. In this paper, we present a discussion on endophytes, endophytism, their significance, and diverse functions in nature as unraveled by the latest research to understand this universal natural phenomenon.
The use of personal protective equipment (PPE) during cotton harvesting is critical for securing better health for female cotton pickers in the developing countries where health facilities are not ...sufficiently available to the masses in the rural areas. Despite increasing the efforts in increasing awareness about the benefits of PPE among the farm workers, a vast majority of the farm workers including pickers don't use the PPE. The present study examines health impacts of cotton harvesting in Pakistani Punjab along with the factors affecting the use of PPE among the cotton pickers. Cross-sectional data collected from Vehari district is used. The study estimates health cost and the use of PPE among the young and elder cotton pickers. Headache, sleeplessness, cough, flue/fever, skin and eyes problems are reported by the young and elder cotton pickers. Personal protective equipment is rarely used during picking. However, the young pickers relatively adopt more PPE compared to the elder cotton pickers. Health cost of cotton picking is US$2.96 and 3.06 per season during the year for the young and elder cotton pickers, respectively. Results of logit model show that health cost, age, education below 8th grade, perception of temporary impact and health problems are important determinants of adopting PPE among the cotton pickers. The findings of the study conclude that the use of PPE can be realized through proper training and education of cotton pickers and farm workers.
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•Occupational hazards, health cost and the use of PPE are explored.•Commonly reported short-term health impacts are headache, flu/fever, cough and sleeplessness.•Health cost of cotton pickers is higher for the elder cotton pickers.•Although PPE are rarely used by the cotton pickers, the use among the elder cotton pickers is very low.
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