Accurate cotton boll identification and boll number estimation from UAV imagery are essential for large-scale yield prediction and precision management, yet severe leaf occlusion and complex canopy backgrounds often hinder robust performance. Here, UAV RGB images were acquired 3 days before defoliant application and at 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 days after defoliation. Cotton bolls were extracted using Mahalanobis distance, a support vector machine, and a neural network. Boll number was then estimated using an improved random forest model with multi-feature fusion. Across all defoliation stages, the NN produced the most accurate and stable boll extraction, achieving a maximum Kappa of 0.914, an overall accuracy of 95.77%, and an F1 score of 0.96. Extraction accuracy increased rapidly from 3 to 9 days after application and stabilized from 12 to 18 days. For boll number estimation, fusing the boll pixel ratio with color indices and texture features improved accuracy and consistency over time; the best performance was obtained at 18 days after application (R2 = 0.7264; rRMSE = 4.9%). Overall, imagery acquired 15–18 days after defoliation provided the most reliable estimation window, supporting operational pre-harvest assessment and harvest-timing decisions.

Low forage productivity of natural grasslands remains a major limitation for sustainable livestock production in the forest–steppe zone of Northern Kazakhstan, highlighting the need for high-yield, locally adapted forage systems. This study evaluated nine forage agrophytocenoses, including perennial grasses and legume–grass mixtures, established in 2024 and assessed over two growing seasons on leached chernozem soils. Plant height, stand density, and biomass yields were quantified at optimal harvest stages, with statistical differences tested using one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD (p < 0.05). Legume-containing agrophytocenoses consistently outperformed natural grass cover and grass monocultures in canopy development and biomass accumulation. The highest productivity was achieved in Lolium multiflorum + Medicago sativa (I+A), Medicago sativa + Festuca arundinacea (A+TF), and Onobrychis viciifolia + Festulolium + Phleum pratense (S+F+T), reaching up to ~19.66 t ha−1 green biomass and ~5.24 t ha−1 dry matter. In contrast, Agropyron cristatum monoculture yielded minimally during establishment, while ryegrass mixtures with annuals declined in the second year. Optimized legume–grass agrophytocenoses represent the most productive and agronomically reliable strategy to enhance forage supply and improve environmental resilience in Northern Kazakhstan.

Teff [Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter] is attracting growing interest in Europe due to its nutritional qualities, gluten-free nature, and drought tolerance; however, its cultivation is hindered by its limited yield potential and the lack of authorised herbicides. This study evaluated chemical and mechanical weed-control strategies using two sowing methods to identify effective and sustainable solutions under central Italian conditions. Two field trials were conducted in 2023 and 2024 using a randomised block design. Post-emergence herbicides and mechanical control (split-hoe and finger-weeder) were assessed for weed suppression, crop selectivity, biomass production, and grain yield, comparing broadcast and wide-row sowing. The results showed that chemical control was the most effective option. The florasulam + fluroxypyr + pyroxsulam mixture achieved a nearly complete weed suppression with only mild and temporary phytotoxicity. Mechanical control provided a moderate and variable efficacy. The sowing pattern significantly influenced the crop performance: broadcast sowing reduced the weed competition and resulted in higher yields, whereas wide-row sowing led to a higher weed density and lower productivity. Despite the varying levels of infestation between years, teff maintained a remarkable competitive ability, with untreated plots often achieving acceptable yields. Integrating selective herbicides with appropriate sowing practices supports the development of efficient and sustainable weed-management strategies for teff cultivation.

The application of leguminous green manure (GM) can enhance the soil inorganic phosphorus (Pi) pool, offering considerable benefits for crop cultivation in slightly and moderately saline-alkali soils. To optimize its agronomic potential, systematic and science-based fertilization strategies are required. In this study, we researched the changes in the content, movement distance, and accumulation of Pi fractions at the GM microsites in coastal saline-alkali soils of differing salinity levels (slightly vs. moderately) following the application of Sesbania GM at two rates (30 and 60 t ha−1) over 14- and 28-day incubation periods. The results indicated that GM application significantly (p < 0.05) increased the accumulation of all Pi fractions—including aluminum-bound phosphorus (Al-P), iron-bound phosphorus (Fe-P), occluded phosphorus (O-P), and forms of calcium-bound Pi (Ca-P: Ca2-P, Ca8-P, and Ca10-P)—at the manure microsite, with the magnitude of increase declining with distance from the manure site. Further analysis revealed positive correlations between GM rate, two incubation periods and Pi-fraction movement distance, indicating that the observed effects were significantly influenced by incubation period, GM rate, and soil salinity-alkalinity. While temporal dynamics governed the rates of Pi movement and transformation, elevated salinity-alkalinity partially inhibited these processes. This study provides practical insights for improving GM utilization efficiency on saline-alkali soils. These results support optimized GM application to enhance P efficiency and reduce fertilizer reliance in saline systems.

Weed management is crucial for the sustainable production of rice (Oryza sativa L.), although herbicides such as Imazamox (IZX) can persist in soils, posing risks to soils and water resources. This two-year study evaluated the effects of soil physicochemical properties under different irrigation and tillage practices, with and without compost derived from olive mill waste, on IZX behavior. The treatments implemented were as follows: no-tillage and sprinkler (NT-S), conventional tillage and sprinkler (T-S), conventional tillage and flooding (T-F), and the corresponding regimes with compost amendment (NT-SC, T-SC, and T-FC). Sorption–desorption, dissipation, and leaching of the herbicide were assessed. The IZX adsorption was lower under soil collected from sprinkler irrigation, especially in NT-S, while compost reduced the adsorption under T-SC and T-FC. Dissipation was faster in NT-S and T-S soils, in which the half-life of IZX declined up to 30% relative to T-F. Furthermore, compost further accelerated herbicide dissipation, correlating with higher organic carbon content and microbial activity. The IZX losses via leaching were significantly reduced in soils irrigated by sprinkler in combination with compost, with values ≤ 48.5% of the IZX applied. These results indicate that the irrigation regime and organic amendment strongly influence soil physicochemical properties, then influencing the environmental fate of IZX. Integrated management using sprinkler irrigation and compost can mitigate IZX persistence and leaching, improve soil health, and reduce the risk of water contamination, representing a sustainable strategy for rice cultivation.

To identify adaptive cultivation strategies for strong-gluten winter wheat under conditions of increasing autumn temperatures and changing precipitation patterns in the Huang–Huai–Hai region, a field experiment was conducted with cultivars Jimai 44 and Zhongmai 578. Field experiments were conducted during the 2023–2024 and 2024–2025 growing seasons, using three sowing dates (T2–T4, 20 October to 3 November) in the first year and four sowing dates (T1–T4, 13 October to 3 November) in the second year, each combined with three seeding rates (M1–M3) that were increased by 52.5 kg ha−1 for every 7-day delay in sowing. This design evaluated how sowing date and seeding rate regulate photosynthesis, dry matter dynamics, and yield. The results showed that post-anthesis dry-matter accumulation, harvest index, grain number per unit area, and grain yield responded quadratically to delayed sowing and increased seeding rate. Delayed sowing increased flag-leaf SPAD but reduced dry matter at anthesis and maturity, pre-anthesis translocation, spike number, and thousand-kernel weight. Higher seeding rate decreased SPAD, net photosynthetic rate, grains per spike, and kernel weight. The T2M2 treatment optimized canopy structure, enhanced photosynthesis, maintained efficient dry matter production and partitioning, and balanced yield components, achieving the highest grain yield. Although severe delays in sowing reduced yield, increasing the seeding rate under late sowing compensated for the reduced spike number and mitigated yield losses. The T2M2 combination and the late-sowing with the incremental-seeding technique offer practical strategies for climate-resilient, high-yield wheat production in the region.

Aquilegia oxysepala is a characteristic wildflower of Northeast China, which has great application potential owing to its unique floral morphology and strong adaptability. The R2R3-MYB is one of the largest transcription factor families and has important roles in anthocyanin biosynthesis. A total of 90 AoMYBs were identified from A. oxysepala and divided into 29 subfamilies via phylogenetic analysis. Using bioinformatics methods, a systematic analysis was conducted on the physicochemical properties, gene structures, conserved motifs, and other characteristics of these genes. Based on the transcriptomic data of A. oxysepala and A. oxysepala f. pallidiflora across different floral developmental stages, 32 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) belonging to the R2R3-MYB family were screened, and their expression patterns were analyzed. The results indicated that AoMYB32 and AoMYB34 were significantly upregulated only at the pre-anthesis stage (PrA) in A. oxysepala, whereas their expression levels remained relatively low in A. oxysepala f. pallidiflora during the same stage. Correlation network analysis indicated that AoMYB34 was positively correlated with six functional genes associated with anthocyanin synthesis, namely PAL-2, C4H, 4CL, CHS, F3′5′H, and ANS. Reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) validation revealed that AoMYB32 and AoMYB34 exhibited significant upregulation at the PrA stage in A. oxysepala, while their expression showed no obvious fluctuations across the entire flowering period in A. oxysepala f. pallidiflora. In summary, it is postulated that AoMYB32 and AoMYB34 are candidate genes associated with flower color variation formation of A. oxysepala. This study provides a theoretical basis and genetic resources for deciphering the mechanism of flower color formation and facilitating flower color improvement breeding in A. oxysepala.

In Alberta, extreme weather events, such as hailstorms, have negative impacts on agriculture. Previous studies have found that potato crop yield and quality losses from hail are dependent on both the severity and the timing of the event. It has also been demonstrated that biostimulant products can positively impact crop yields by increasing plant growth and stress resistance. In the current study, we examined whether the application of biostimulants lessens the negative impacts of simulated hailstorms on potato growth. Potato plants were defoliated at three timepoints during the growing season. Tuber yield was reduced by ~25–40%, depending on at which timepoint the plants were defoliated, and specific gravity declined for plants defoliated later in the growing season. The overall fry color increased for plants defoliated earlier in the growing season, as did the incidence of sugar ends. The application of biostimulant products prior to defoliation lessened the impact of defoliation in terms of both overall yield and tuber processing quality. Tuber yields for defoliated plants treated with biostimulants were ~12–60% higher, depending on the defoliated/treatment timepoint, compared to defoliated control plants. Specific gravity was increased for defoliated plants treated with biostimulants at later timepoints. The overall fry color and incidence of dark ends decreased for defoliated plants treated with biostimulants at early timepoints. Defoliation early in the growing season, around tuber initiation, had the most negative impact on both tuber quality and yield, and treatment with biostimulants had the greatest impact on reducing yield and quality losses when applied at this timepoint.

Mitigating climate change necessitates a thorough understanding of soil organic carbon (SOC) decomposition and its response to warming. The overuse of synthetic fertilizers can alter SOC composition and affect carbon cycling, potentially changing the temperature sensitivity (Q10) of SOC decomposition. This study evaluated the Q10 of SOC decomposition after long-term (37-year) excessive fertilization in a loess soil. Four treatments were compared: control (no nutrient input, CK); recommended rates of synthetic nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilizers (CFr); excessive rates of N and P fertilizers (CFh); and CFh plus organic manure (MCFh). The Q10 of SOC decomposition was investigated via an incubation experiment at temperatures of 15 °C, 25 °C and 35 °C within 63 days. Compared with CFr, long-term CFh and MCFh significantly increased SOC contents by 14% and 67%, and this increase was driven primarily by rises in mineral-associated organic carbon (MOC) of 28% and 62% and particulate organic carbon (POC) of 32% and 79%, respectively, under CFh and MCFh. While CFh and MCFh did not change the SOC composition, they increased the proportions of fine POC (fPOC) to SOC by 10% and 91%, and the ratio of light POC to SOC by 78% and 143%, respectively. Q10 values ranged from 2.18 to 3.00 across all treatments, with a mean of 2.64. Both CFh and MCFh drastically enhanced the Q10 values by 38% and 25% compared with CFr at 15–25 °C. However, MCFh significantly decreased the Q10 value by 31% relative to CFr at 25–35 °C. Partial least squares path modeling showed that soil physicochemical properties and labile carbon fractions differed significantly among treatments, with physical properties regulating labile carbon fractions. Fertilization significantly increased the Q10 value at 15–25 °C owing to increased proportion of labile carbon fractions and decreased labile carbon content. Our results suggest that SOC gains from continuous addition of synthetic fertilizers are vulnerable to loss under warming. However, this loss could be alleviated by incorporation of organic manure. Thus, integration of organic manure into nutrient management practices could be an efficient way to counteract warming-induced SOC decomposition.

Soil electrical conductivity (EC) and aggregate-size distribution are critical indicators of soil salinity risk, structural integrity, and overall soil health. We assessed the status of these properties in 188 wheat plots across nine European pedoclimatic zones to quantify the influence of climate and agricultural management. Most soils (~88%) were non-saline, 9% slightly saline, and 3% moderately saline, with the highest salinity in Mediterranean regions. EC was generally lower under organic management, reflecting higher soil organic carbon, improved porosity, and enhanced cation retention. Soils were dominated by small macroaggregates (250–2000 µm) and large microaggregates (53–250 µm), together accounting for an average of 73% of total aggregates. Climate was the primary determinant of both EC and aggregate distribution, with drier and warmer conditions promoting salinization and smaller aggregate sizes, whereas wetter conditions favored macroaggregate formation. Agricultural management had a secondary but context-dependent effect, particularly on soil aggregation, with organic farming, integrated organomineral fertilization, crop residue incorporation, and legume rotations enhancing macroaggregate formation, especially in low-SOC soils. These results indicate that pedoclimatic conditions largely shape soil salinity and structure, but adopting targeted, site-specific management practices can sustain soil health and mitigate risks related to salinity and structure, particularly under projected climate change.