Journal Description
Agriculture
Agriculture
is an international, scientific peer-reviewed open access journal published monthly online by MDPI.
- Open Access— free for readers, with article processing charges (APC) paid by authors or their institutions.
- High Visibility: indexed within Scopus, SCIE (Web of Science), PubAg, AGRIS, RePEc, and other databases.
- Journal Rank: JCR - Q1 (Agronomy) / CiteScore - Q2 (Plant Science)
- Rapid Publication: manuscripts are peer-reviewed and a first decision is provided to authors approximately 17.7 days after submission; acceptance to publication is undertaken in 2.4 days (median values for papers published in this journal in the second half of 2023).
- Recognition of Reviewers: reviewers who provide timely, thorough peer-review reports receive vouchers entitling them to a discount on the APC of their next publication in any MDPI journal, in appreciation of the work done.
- Companion journals for Agriculture include: Poultry, Grasses and Crops.
Impact Factor:
3.6 (2022);
5-Year Impact Factor:
3.6 (2022)
Latest Articles
Isolation of Bacillus velezensis from Silage and Its Effect on Aerobic Stability and In Vitro Methane Production of Whole-Plant Corn Silage
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 830; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060830 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
Once a silo has been opened, the silage inside will face challenges such as aerobic deterioration, rot, and contamination. Biocontrol bacteria, as a kind of biological antiseptic, are highly effective and natural and are gaining increasing attention. This study aimed to screen a
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Once a silo has been opened, the silage inside will face challenges such as aerobic deterioration, rot, and contamination. Biocontrol bacteria, as a kind of biological antiseptic, are highly effective and natural and are gaining increasing attention. This study aimed to screen a strain with anti-microbial activity against silage spoilage microorganisms and examine its effects on the fermentation quality, aerobic stability, in vitro digestion, and methane production of silage. Lactic acid bacteria, pathogenic and rot-causing microorganisms, were used as indicators to screen the strains for putrefactive silage. The bacteriostatic spectrum, growth performance, and tolerance to the silage environment of the strain were tested. A strain named D-2 was screened from rotten whole-plant corn silage and identified as Bacillus velezensis through physiological and biochemical tests as well as 16S rDNA sequencing. This study found that D-2 exhibits antibacterial effects on several microorganisms, including Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enteritidis, Aspergillus niger, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Fusarium oxysporum, and Fusarium graminearum. However, it has no adverse effect on Lactobacillus reuteri, Enterococcus faecium, or Lactobacillus casei. D-2 can attain a stable stage within 10 h and withstand temperatures of up to 70 °C. Moreover, this study found that D-2 had a high survival rate of over 97% after 48 h in a lactic acid environment with pH 4. Freshly chopped whole-plant corn was inoculated without or with D-2 and ensiled for 60 days. The results show that D-2 inoculations increase the content of water-soluble carbohydrates, acetic acid, and propionic acid in the silage and decrease the number of yeasts and molds, the NH4+-N/TN ratio, and the pH. We also found that fermenting whole-plant corn with D-2 significantly increased the in vitro digestibility and the propionic acid content, while also significantly inhibiting methane production. After being exposed to air for 10 days, D-2 can still effectively reduce the total number of yeasts and molds, prevent the decrease in lactic acid bacteria, and inhibit the increase in the pH and NH4+-N/TN ratio of silage products. Overall, D-2 is resistant to pathogenic and rot-causing microorganisms, allowing for easy adaptation to silage production conditions. D-2 can effectively improve aerobic stability and reduce losses in the nutritional value of silage, indicating possible applications for the prevention of silage rot and methane production.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Silage Preparation, Processing and Efficient Utilization)
Open AccessArticle
Temporal and Spatial Variation of Agricultural and Pastoral Production in the Eastern Section of the Agro-Pastoral Transitional Zone in Northern China
by
Yajing Zhang, Ruifang Hao and Yu Qin
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 829; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060829 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
The agro-pastoral transitional zone in northern China is an important agricultural and pastoral production base. This study focuses on the eastern section of the agro-pastoral transitional zone in northern China. Combined with spatio-temporal analysis, stepwise regression, and gray relation analysis, we analyzed the
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The agro-pastoral transitional zone in northern China is an important agricultural and pastoral production base. This study focuses on the eastern section of the agro-pastoral transitional zone in northern China. Combined with spatio-temporal analysis, stepwise regression, and gray relation analysis, we analyzed the average annual growth rate, spatio-temporal changes, and influencing factors of agricultural and pastoral production in the study area during 2000–2020. The results show that, in the past 20 years, the agricultural and pastoral production of the 50 municipal districts and counties has significantly changed, among which the agricultural production of 38 municipal districts and counties has shown an extremely significant increase. Generally, the growth rate of agricultural production is higher than that of pastoral production. Agricultural and pastoral production in the study area is influenced by socio-economic and land use/cover factors, with an average correlation degree of 0.79 and 0.88, respectively. Climate change affects agricultural production in agricultural counties, with a correlation degree of 0.85. The results of this research provide valuable insights into understanding the long-term temporal and spatial changes in agricultural and pastoral production and help to develop sound agriculture and pastoral management practices in the eastern section of the agro-pastoral transitional zone in Northern China.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Agricultural Systems and Management)
Open AccessArticle
Effect of Mycorrhizal Symbiosis on the Development of the Canary Island Tomato Variety “Manzana Negra” under Abiotic Stress Conditions
by
Alexis Hernández-Dorta, María del Carmen Jaizme-Vega and Domingo Ríos-Mesa
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 828; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060828 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
Tomato production in the Canary Islands has significantly decreased in recent years due to the presence of parasites and pathogens, poor-quality irrigation water, lack of infrastructure modernization, and increased competition. To address this issue, local varieties with better agro-climatic adaptation and organoleptic characteristics
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Tomato production in the Canary Islands has significantly decreased in recent years due to the presence of parasites and pathogens, poor-quality irrigation water, lack of infrastructure modernization, and increased competition. To address this issue, local varieties with better agro-climatic adaptation and organoleptic characteristics have been cultivated. These varieties show their maximum potential under an agro-ecological cultivation system, where the beneficial micro-organisms of the rhizosphere (in general) and mycorrhizal fungi (in particular) have a positive influence on their development, especially when the plants are subjected to biotic or abiotic stresses. Irrigation water in Canary Islands tomato cultivation comes from groundwater sources with moderate levels of sodium and chlorides or sodium and bicarbonates. This study evaluated the response of mycorrizal plants of the local tomato variety “Manzana Negra” under abiotic stress conditions due to the presence of chlorides and bicarbonates. Two tests were carried out with mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal plants. In the first one, 0, 75, and 150 mM NaCl solutions were applied. In the second, the nutrient solution was enriched with sodium bicarbonate at doses of 0, 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, and 12.5 mM. Presence of native mycorrhizae improved the growth and nutrition of plants affected by irrigation with saline and alkaline water containing chloride and sodium carbonate. Symbiosis produced statistically significant increases in all plant-development-related variables (stem length and diameter; fresh and dry weight) in all bicarbonate concentrations. However, the results with the application of sodium chloride do not seem to indicate a positive interaction in most of the analytical parameters at 150 mM NaCl concentration. The mycorrhizal inoculation with local fungi can be interesting in the production of seedlings of this tomato variety in situations of moderate salinity, especially under bicarbonate stress conditions.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Crop Production)
Open AccessArticle
Different Effects of Irrigation Water Salinity and Leaching Fractions on Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) Cultivation in Soilless Culture
by
Hatice Gürgülü and Mehmet Ali Ul
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 827; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060827 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is one of the most important vegetables cultivated under greenhouse conditions in Turkey. Salinity problems are experienced in both the soil and irrigation water in agricultural areas. For this reason, soilless cultivation in greenhouses is increasing and important,
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Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is one of the most important vegetables cultivated under greenhouse conditions in Turkey. Salinity problems are experienced in both the soil and irrigation water in agricultural areas. For this reason, soilless cultivation in greenhouses is increasing and important, meaning that salinity control must be conducted more effectively. The increase in soilless agriculture practices and salinity problems should be investigated and studies should be carried out to propose solutions to the problems experienced. In this study, the effects of different salinity levels and leaching fractions on the plant growth, yield, quality and water consumption of pepper grown in soilless cultures were determined. The experiment was carried out over four growing periods across two years. The adopted experimental design was a randomized split-plot design with three replications. Pepper plants were grown in a perlite and cocopeat mixture in 144 pots. The volume of the pots was 8 L and the pots were filled with a mixture of 4 L of perlite and 4 L of cocopeat. The plants were fed with a complete nutrient solution and their EC levels were used as the control treatment (S1: the EC value of the control was 1.4–1.5 dS m−1). The electrical conductivities of the solution in the other three treatments were increased to 2 (S2), 4 (S3) and 6 (S4) dS m−1 above the control by adding NaCl. We attempted to achieve two different leaching fractions (LR: leaching ratio) by means of weekly measurements, with 15–20% (LR1) or 35–40% (LR2) being applied at each salinity level. According to our results, there was no significant difference between the leaching fractions with respect to yield in any of the four growing seasons, but the yield decreased with the increase in salinity. The difference between the salinity level treatments and their interactions between the subjects was generally significant for the production periods.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Salt Stress on Crop Production)
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Open AccessArticle
Design and Experiment of Toggle Lever-Type Potato Picker
by
Kailiang Lu, Shengshi Xie, Xiuzhi Gai and Xinjie Ji
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 826; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060826 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
To address the issues of significant soil blockage and high potato damage rates in current potato picking machines, this study developed a toggle lever-type potato picker designed to minimize potato damage and improve operational efficiency. Design calculations were performed for the picker components,
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To address the issues of significant soil blockage and high potato damage rates in current potato picking machines, this study developed a toggle lever-type potato picker designed to minimize potato damage and improve operational efficiency. Design calculations were performed for the picker components, and kinematic analyses were conducted for the toggle lever. Single-factor experiments were carried out to determine the variation in performance parameters of the potato picker under different experimental conditions. Discrete element simulations were performed to measure the peak soil height before the pick-up shovel and the peak force on potatoes during the pick-up process. A Box–Behnken response surface experiment was conducted using toggle lever speed, machine forward speed, and shovel angle as experiments factors. Subsequently, an analysis of variance was performed, and a mathematical regression model was established based on the experiments results. The findings revealed that at a toggle lever speed of 50 r/min, machine forward speed of 0.9 m/s, and shovel angle of 19°; the potato leakage rate was 2.32%, and the potato damage rate was 2.72%, thereby meeting the requirements stipulated by potato mechanized picking technology regulations.
Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Agricultural Technology)
Open AccessArticle
Screening Lactic Acid Bacteria Strains for Their Tolerance to Increased Osmotic Pressure and Their Suitability to Ensile High Dry Matter Forages
by
Siriwan D. Martens, Wolfgang Wagner, Mariana Schneider, Klaus Hünting, Susanne Ohl and Christof Löffler
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 825; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060825 (registering DOI) - 25 May 2024
Abstract
Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) should not only survive, but also perform under increased osmotic pressure in the process of ensiling, which results from the best practice of wilting forage. Simple laboratory protocols are needed to select suitable LAB strains as inoculants for high
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Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) should not only survive, but also perform under increased osmotic pressure in the process of ensiling, which results from the best practice of wilting forage. Simple laboratory protocols are needed to select suitable LAB strains as inoculants for high dry matter (DM) conditions. The aim of this study was to simulate conditions of high osmolality without inducing salt stress and to select a suitable indicator of LAB performance. For that, an MRS medium was enriched with increasing concentrations of glucose and fructose plus a maximum of 28 g KCl/L until achieving an osmolality of 2.4 osmol/kg. Both, growth in the inoculated medium and pH decline, were then compared to the LAB performance in the basic medium. The latter was clearly delayed in the new medium. Finally, the method was validated by comparing the pH of small-scale grass silages of 30–35 and 45–49% target DM after 3–5 days of ensiling to the pH values of the microbiological growth medium. The pH levels of treatments with the homofermentative LAB were clearly attributable to the dry matter or the sugar concentration, respectively. The developed liquid growth medium sufficiently approximates high DM conditions to select for the osmotolerant homofermentative LAB.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Silage Preparation, Processing and Efficient Utilization)
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Open AccessArticle
Exploring Resistant Sources of Chickpea against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris in Dryland Areas
by
Hamid Hatami Maleki, Hamid Reza Pouralibaba, Roghayeh Ghiasi, Farshid Mahmodi, Naser Sabaghnia, Soheila Samadi, Hossein Zeinalzadeh-Tabrizi, Younes Rezaee Danesh, Beatrice Farda and Marika Pellegrini
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 824; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060824 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Fusarium wilt is a fungal disease that has a significant impact on chickpeas worldwide. This study examined the response of 58 chickpea genotypes to Fusarium wilt. The experiment was conducted over two growing seasons at the Sararoud and Maragheh research stations at the
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Fusarium wilt is a fungal disease that has a significant impact on chickpeas worldwide. This study examined the response of 58 chickpea genotypes to Fusarium wilt. The experiment was conducted over two growing seasons at the Sararoud and Maragheh research stations at the Drylands Agricultural Research Institute of Iran. Genotype resistance was screened through wilt incidence records and nonparametric stability statistic evaluation. The identified resistant genotypes were then evaluated in the greenhouse for their response to four isolates of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris (races 1/BC, 2, 4, and 6). Out of 58 genotypes, 32 exhibited moderate resistance, while 24 showed strong resistance abilities. Under warmer conditions, disease severity was higher, with scores at the Sararoud location being higher than those at the Maragheh location. Of the total genotypes across all locations and years, 41.4% were resistant, 55.17% were moderately resistant, 1.72% were susceptible, and 1.72% were highly susceptible. The nonparametric stability measures S(1), S(2), and S(3) identified FLIP 05-42C and FLIP 05-43C as stable and resistant genotypes. The study found that Azad/Hashem K3 was stable based on the non-parametric stability measure S(6). Other resistant genotypes were identified using stability parameters NP(1), NP(3), and NP(4), while FLIP 05-104C was identified by NP(2). The genotypes selected by nonparametric stability parameters showed resistance against at least two Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris races. The screening method and nonparametric stability statistics used in this study were effective in identifying sources of resistance to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris.
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(This article belongs to the Section Crop Protection, Diseases, Pests and Weeds)
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Open AccessArticle
Model and Parameter Adaptive MPC Path Tracking Control Study of Rear-Wheel-Steering Agricultural Machinery
by
Meng Wang, Changhe Niu, Zifan Wang, Yongxin Jiang, Jianming Jian and Xiuying Tang
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 823; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060823 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
To further enhance the precision and the adaptability of path tracking control, and considering that most of the research is focused on front-wheel steering, an adaptive parametric model predictive control (MPC) was proposed for rear-wheel-steering agricultural machinery. Firstly, the kinematic and dynamic models
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To further enhance the precision and the adaptability of path tracking control, and considering that most of the research is focused on front-wheel steering, an adaptive parametric model predictive control (MPC) was proposed for rear-wheel-steering agricultural machinery. Firstly, the kinematic and dynamic models of rear-wheel-steering agricultural machinery were established. Secondly, the influence laws of curvature and velocity on the prediction horizon Np, control horizon Nc, and preview value Npre were obtained by simulating and analyzing the factors influencing the MPC tracking effect. The results revealed that raising Npre can improve curve tracking performance. Np was correlated negatively with the curvature change, whereas Nc and Npre were positively connected. Np, Nc, and Npre were correlated positively with the velocity change. Then, the parameters for self-adaptation of Np, Nc, and Npre were accomplished via fuzzy control (FC), and particle swarm optimization (PSO) was utilized to optimize the three parameters to determine the optimal parameter combination. Finally, simulation and comparative analysis were conducted to assess the tracking effects of the manual tuning MPC, the FC_MPC, and the PSO_MPC under U-shaped and complex curve paths. The results indicated that there was no significant difference and all three methods achieved better tracking effects under no disturbance, with the mean absolute value of lateral error ≤0.18 cm, standard deviation ≤0.37 cm, maximum deviation of U-shaped path <2.38 cm, and maximum deviation of complex curve path <3.15 cm. The mean absolute value of heading error was ≤0.0096 rad, the standard deviation was ≤0.0091 rad, and the maximum deviation was <0.0325 rad, indicating that manual tuning can find optimal parameters, but with high uncertainty and low efficiency. However, FC_MPC and PSO_MPC have better adaptability and tracking performance compared to the manual tuning MPC with fixed horizons under variable-speed disturbance and are more able to meet the actual needs of agricultural machinery operations.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Intelligent Agricultural Machinery and Robots: Embracing Technological Advancements for a Sustainable and Highly Efficient Agricultural Future)
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Open AccessArticle
Performance Optimization and Experimental Study of Small-Scale Potato-Grading Device
by
Haohao Zhao, Weigang Deng, Shengshi Xie and Zexin Zhao
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 822; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060822 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Traditional potato grading in China relies mostly on manual sorting, which is labor-intensive, time-consuming, costly, and inefficient. To enhance the operational performance of potato-grading devices, this paper focuses on optimizing the slide rail structure, which is the key component of a self-developed first-generation
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Traditional potato grading in China relies mostly on manual sorting, which is labor-intensive, time-consuming, costly, and inefficient. To enhance the operational performance of potato-grading devices, this paper focuses on optimizing the slide rail structure, which is the key component of a self-developed first-generation potato-grading device. A five-factor, three-level orthogonal experiment was designed, with the experimental factors being the height of the horizontal slide rail, angle of the first-stage inclined slide, angle of the second-stage inclined rail, chain horizontal movement speed, and conveyor belt speed. The indoor experiments were conducted using grading accuracy and grading efficiency as the experimental indicators. On the basis of the analysis of the orthogonal experiment results, two relatively optimal solutions were obtained, and validation experiments were conducted. The validation results show that when the height of the horizontal slide rail was 185 mm, the angle of the first-stage inclined rail was 4°, the angle of the second-stage inclined rail was 2.5°, the horizontal movement speed of the chain was 700 mm/s, and the movement speed of the conveyor belt was 275.60 mm/s, the performance of the movable rotating plate (MRP)-type grading device for potatoes reached its optimum. At this point, the grading accuracy was 94.88%, and the grading efficiency was 13.9477 t/h. Compared with the first-generation grading device, the optimized grading device achieved an improvement of 3.84% in grading accuracy and 12.94% in grading efficiency. The research methodology provided in this paper serves as a reference for the performance optimization of potato-grading devices.
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(This article belongs to the Section Agricultural Technology)
Open AccessArticle
Management of Rust in Wheat Using IPM Principles and Alternative Products
by
Lise Nistrup Jørgensen, Niels Matzen, Rebekka Leitzke, Jane E. Thomas, Aoife O’Driscoll, Bettina Klocke, Claude Maumene, Ida Lindell, Kerstin Wahlquist, Līga Zemeca, Marcos Barberena Apesteguia, Biango Randazzo, Svetlana Slikova and Sarah Holdgate
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 821; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060821 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Overall, there is a major wish that European farmers implement integrated pest management (IPM), particularly to reduce dependence on pesticides. In the European Rustwatch project, partners conducted nineteen trials across nine different countries during 2020 and 2021 to investigate different IPM strategies, focusing
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Overall, there is a major wish that European farmers implement integrated pest management (IPM), particularly to reduce dependence on pesticides. In the European Rustwatch project, partners conducted nineteen trials across nine different countries during 2020 and 2021 to investigate different IPM strategies, focusing on controlling rust diseases in winter wheat. The trials included the use of varieties with contrasting levels of resistance, variety mixtures, reduced fungicide rates, thresholds, and Decision Support Systems (DSSs), and testing alternative products to fungicides. Sixteen trials developed yellow rust (Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici) infections, and six trials developed brown rust (Puccinia triticina) infections. Resistant varieties proved highly effective in keeping down yellow rust infection, and variety mixtures also effectively reduced infection levels and stabilized yields. Rust was fully controlled using 25% of standard fungicide rates, even under high disease pressure. Using DSSs provided sufficient control of rust diseases and resulted in competitive net economic returns due to fewer fungicide applications. The alternative products tested included two biological control agents and four alternative chemistries, which all gave inferior and insufficient control against rust compared with chemical fungicides. The trial work demonstrated that there are good and reliable options for including IPM into disease control in wheat.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Management of Crop Diseases and Pests)
Open AccessArticle
APEIOU Integration for Enhanced YOLOV7: Achieving Efficient Plant Disease Detection
by
Yun Zhao, Chengqiang Lin, Na Wu and Xing Xu
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 820; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060820 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Plant diseases can severely hamper plant growth and yield. Currently, these diseases often manifest diverse symptoms, characterized by small targets and high quantities. However, existing algorithms inadequately address these challenges. Therefore, this paper proposes improving plant disease detection by enhancing a YOLOV7-based model.
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Plant diseases can severely hamper plant growth and yield. Currently, these diseases often manifest diverse symptoms, characterized by small targets and high quantities. However, existing algorithms inadequately address these challenges. Therefore, this paper proposes improving plant disease detection by enhancing a YOLOV7-based model. Initially, we strengthen multi-scale feature fusion using the fourth prediction layer. Subsequently, we reduce model parameters and the computational load with the DW-ELAN structure, followed by optimizing the downsampling process using the improved SPD-MP module. Additionally, we enhance the Soft-SimAM attention mechanism to prioritize crucial feature components and suppress irrelevant information. To distinguish overlapping predicted and actual bounding box centroids, we propose the APEIOU loss function and refine the offset formula and grid matching strategy, significantly increasing positive samples. We train the improved model using transfer learning. The experimental results show significant enhancements: the mAP, F1 score, Recall, and Precision are 96.75%, 0.94, 89.69%, and 97.64%, respectively. Compared to the original YOLOV7, the improvements are 5.79%, 7.00%, 9.43%, and 3.30%. The enhanced model outperforms the original, enabling the more precise detection of plant diseases.
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(This article belongs to the Section Crop Protection, Diseases, Pests and Weeds)
Open AccessArticle
MOLO-SLAM: A Semantic SLAM for Accurate Removal of Dynamic Objects in Agricultural Environments
by
Jinhong Lv, Beihuo Yao, Haijun Guo, Changlun Gao, Weibin Wu, Junlin Li, Shunli Sun and Qing Luo
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 819; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060819 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Visual simultaneous localization and mapping (VSLAM) is a foundational technology that enables robots to achieve fully autonomous locomotion, exploration, inspection, and more within complex environments. Its applicability also extends significantly to agricultural settings. While numerous impressive VSLAM systems have emerged, a majority of
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Visual simultaneous localization and mapping (VSLAM) is a foundational technology that enables robots to achieve fully autonomous locomotion, exploration, inspection, and more within complex environments. Its applicability also extends significantly to agricultural settings. While numerous impressive VSLAM systems have emerged, a majority of them rely on static world assumptions. This reliance constrains their use in real dynamic scenarios and leads to increased instability when applied to agricultural contexts. To address the problem of detecting and eliminating slow dynamic objects in outdoor forest and tea garden agricultural scenarios, this paper presents a dynamic VSLAM innovation called MOLO-SLAM (mask ORB label optimization SLAM). MOLO-SLAM merges the ORBSLAM2 framework with the Mask-RCNN instance segmentation network, utilizing masks and bounding boxes to enhance the accuracy and cleanliness of 3D point clouds. Additionally, we used the BundleFusion reconstruction algorithm for 3D mesh model reconstruction. By comparing our algorithm with various dynamic VSLAM algorithms on the TUM and KITTI datasets, the results demonstrate significant improvements, with enhancements of up to 97.72%, 98.51%, and 28.07% relative to the original ORBSLAM2 on the three datasets. This showcases the outstanding advantages of our algorithm.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Image Processing in Agricultural Applications)
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Soil Organic Carbon Dynamics in the Long-Term Field Experiments with Contrasting Crop Rotations
by
Tomáš Šimon, Mikuláš Madaras, Markéta Mayerová and Eva Kunzová
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 818; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060818 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Trends in soil organic carbon (SOC) were analyzed in the soils from the oldest Czech long-term field experiment, the Prague-Ruzyně Long-Term Fertilizer Experiment, conducted on Haplic Luvisol since 1955. The aim of the work was to compare the long-term dynamics of SOC in
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Trends in soil organic carbon (SOC) were analyzed in the soils from the oldest Czech long-term field experiment, the Prague-Ruzyně Long-Term Fertilizer Experiment, conducted on Haplic Luvisol since 1955. The aim of the work was to compare the long-term dynamics of SOC in contrasting crop rotations and different fertilization regimes. The trial design includes two crop rotations (CR): simple CR with two-year rotation of sugar beet and spring wheat, and multi-crop rotation (MCR) with nine crops. Four fertilization treatments were chosen for SOC analysis: unfertilized control, only mineral fertilization (NPK), farmyard manure application (FYM), as well as FYM and NPK application. SOC content was significantly affected by both fertilization and crop rotation practices. In the simple CR, both the unfertilized control and the NPK treatment exhibited a consistent decline in SOC content over the study period, with percentages decreasing from an initial 1.33% in 1955 to 1.15% and 1.14%, respectively. Although the FYM and FYM + NPK treatments showed an increase in SOC content in the 1990s, a gradual decline was recorded in the last two decades. This decrease was not observed in MCR: positive C balances were recorded in all treatments within MCR, with the largest increase in SOC stock occurring when NPK was combined with FYM. In contrast, over the last decade, C balances have decreased in simple CR for all treatments except FYM. This trend coincides with changes in the local climate, particularly rising temperatures. The results indicate that diversified crop rotations and FYM fertilization are effective in mitigating the negative impacts of changing environmental conditions on SOC stocks.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil Management for Sustainable Agriculture)
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Nitrogen Fertiliser Effects on Grain Anthocyanin and γ-Oryzanol Biosynthesis in Black Rice
by
Manisha Thapa, Lei Liu, Bronwyn J. Barkla, Tobias Kretzschmar, Suzy Y. Rogiers and Terry J. Rose
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 817; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060817 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
Accumulation of phytochemicals in vegetative tissue under nitrogen (N) stress as an adaptive strategy has been investigated in various crops, but the effect of applied N on grain phytochemicals is poorly understood. This study investigated the effect of applied N on the biosynthesis
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Accumulation of phytochemicals in vegetative tissue under nitrogen (N) stress as an adaptive strategy has been investigated in various crops, but the effect of applied N on grain phytochemicals is poorly understood. This study investigated the effect of applied N on the biosynthesis and accumulation of rice (Oryza sativa L.) grain anthocyanin and γ-oryzanol under different ultraviolet-B (UV-B) conditions in a controlled pot trial using two distinct black rice genotypes. The response of grain anthocyanin and γ-oryzanol content to applied N was genotype-dependent but was not altered by UV-B conditions. Applied N increased grain anthocyanin and decreased γ-oryzanol content in genotype SCU212 but had no significant effect in genotype SCU254. The expression of the OsKala3 regulatory gene was significantly upregulated in response to applied N in SCU212, while the expressions of OsKala4 and OsTTG1 were unchanged. The expression of all three regulatory genes was not significantly affected in SCU254 with applied N. Key anthocyanin biosynthesis genes were upregulated in grain by N application, which indicates that the common increase in anthocyanin in vegetative tissues under N deprivation does not hold true for reproductive tissues. Hence, any future approach to target higher content of these key phytochemicals in grains should be genotype-focused.
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(This article belongs to the Section Crop Production)
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Vibration Response of Metal Plate and Shell Structure under Multi-Source Excitation with Welding and Bolt Connection
by
Zhexuan Ding, Zhong Tang, Ben Zhang and Zhao Ding
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 816; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060816 - 24 May 2024
Abstract
There are many excitation sources and complex vibration environments in combine harvesters. The coupling and superposition of different vibration signals on the plate and shell seriously affect the working parts of the body. This also reduces the reliability of the whole machine. At
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There are many excitation sources and complex vibration environments in combine harvesters. The coupling and superposition of different vibration signals on the plate and shell seriously affect the working parts of the body. This also reduces the reliability of the whole machine. At present, domestic and foreign research on existing harvesters mainly focuses on harvesting performance, with less research on vibration characteristics. Therefore, in this paper, the vibration response of the metal plate–shell under the two connection modes of bolt connection and welding is studied, in order to optimize the design and structure of the plate–shell structure of the combine harvester and improve the overall performance. First, the welded and bolted plates are numerically modeled using Hypermesh pre-processing functions. Then, the boundary conditions are simulated by continuous variable stiffness elastic constraint experiments. Finally, the intrinsic vibration dynamic model of the four-sided simply supported plate and four-sided solidly supported plate is established using the modal superposition method. By analyzing the modal frequencies and vibration patterns, the following results are obtained. The connection method between the plate and the frame has a significant impact on the inherent vibration characteristics of the plate. The bolt connection will make the plate’s intrinsic vibration frequency higher than that of the welding method, but the effect on the plate’s intrinsic vibration pattern is more minor. At the same time, in order to verify the accuracy of the model, the actual modal vibration patterns and frequencies of the same proportion of plates in the modal test are compared with the results of modal vibration patterns and frequencies obtained by Ansys. The errors of the two dynamic model analytical methods are within 1% and 3%, respectively. This result verifies the accuracy of the dynamic model of the metal plate and shell structure under different connection methods.
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(This article belongs to the Section Agricultural Technology)
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Damping Optimization Method of Combine Harvester Frame Undergoing Multi-Source Excitation
by
Bangzhui Wang, Shuren Chen, Guoqiang Wang, Zhong Tang and Hantao Ding
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 815; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060815 - 23 May 2024
Abstract
The complex mechanical system of a rice combine harvester not only has various excitation sources, but also, the vibration transmission path between each working device and the vibration contribution characteristics to the frame are not clear, so it is difficult to perform a
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The complex mechanical system of a rice combine harvester not only has various excitation sources, but also, the vibration transmission path between each working device and the vibration contribution characteristics to the frame are not clear, so it is difficult to perform a reduction vibration design for the sharp vibration of the rice combine harvester frame. Therefore, based on the comparison and improvement of multiple classical transfer path analysis methods, this paper analyzed the vibration transfer characteristics and transfer characteristics of each harvester by the discrete time matrix method and operating path method. In the Experimental section, through the vibration characteristic experiment firstly, this paper obtained the power spectrum variation and the most needed optimized path in the transmission path of each device under each operating condition. Secondly, through frame simulation analysis under the exciting force, we obtained the vibration damping areas that needs to be optimized. Finally, the damping optimization experiment connected with the vibration characteristic experiment, and the excitation force simulation analysis was performed. The results of the damping optimization experiment displayed that the maximum change value of the vibration acceleration of the cutting table decreased from 7.862 m·s−2 to 3.522 m·s−2, decreasing by 55.2%, and the peak amplitude of the multipoint test in the cab was 5.4, 5.3, 1.7 and 2.0 μm, respectively, which was significantly reduced, so the optimization effect was significant. This study provides theoretical support for the vibration reduction optimization of a rice combine harvester frame.
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(This article belongs to the Section Agricultural Technology)
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Economic Implications of Government Flood Control Policy: A Case of Rice in Japan
by
Shinichi Kurihara, Yuki Yano and Atsushi Maruyama
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 814; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060814 - 23 May 2024
Abstract
Japan’s susceptibility to and severity of floods have necessitated flood control policies by the government. “Overflowing flood control”, in which the floods due to torrential rains are systematically diverted to agricultural lands in the upper to middle reaches, is one of them. More
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Japan’s susceptibility to and severity of floods have necessitated flood control policies by the government. “Overflowing flood control”, in which the floods due to torrential rains are systematically diverted to agricultural lands in the upper to middle reaches, is one of them. More information is needed on the public assessment of the overflowing flood control policy, and this research seeks to bridge this gap. Data evaluating rice affected by the policy were collected from a random nth-price auction using a developed online system. The sample consisted of 47 consumers living in the downstream areas of the Edogawa River, one of Japan’s first-class, or prime, rivers. Data on their attitudes toward the policy were collected with a questionnaire. Multiple ordered probit models are used for regression analysis. The results show that the sample respondents were willing to pay an average of JPY 1578 for 5 kg of rice, slightly higher than the national average rice production cost, and that 36% of the sample agreed with the flood control policy, which is positively associated with large families or owning many assets.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agricultural Economics of Climate-Smart Practices)
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Research on a Low-Cost High-Precision Positioning System for Orchard Mowers
by
Ke Fei, Chaodong Mai, Runpeng Jiang, Ye Zeng, Zhe Ma, Jiamin Cai and Jun Li
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 813; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060813 - 23 May 2024
Abstract
To regulate the energy flow in orchard ecosystems and maintain the environment, weeding has become a necessary measure for fruit farmers, and the use of automated mowers can help reduce labor costs and improve the economic efficiency of orchards. However, due to the
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To regulate the energy flow in orchard ecosystems and maintain the environment, weeding has become a necessary measure for fruit farmers, and the use of automated mowers can help reduce labor costs and improve the economic efficiency of orchards. However, due to the complexity of the geographic and spatial environment of the orchard, in particular, the loose and undulating road surface, the interference of satellite signals by large trees, etc., which decreases the positioning accuracy and stability of the positioning system of the mower, and the high cost of the sensor also affect the popularization of intelligent mowers for these applications. To address the above problems, this paper constructs a positioning system through a low-cost global navigation satellite system (GNSS), inertial measurement unit (IMU), and odometry, and utilizes the Kalman filter algorithm based on the error state for a combined GNSS/IMU positioning so that the inertial navigation system can maintain a more accurate positioning when the GNSS signals are poor. Considering the side-slip and error accumulation problems of the odometry of the traction mower, the combined GNSS/IMU positioning information is used to optimize the odometry model and improve the navigation and positioning accuracy. To reduce the measurement error of the IMU and the problem of error accumulation, this paper utilizes the nonholonomic constraint (NHC) of a lawn mower to suppress the dispersion of IMU measurement errors and constructs periodic and nonperiodic zero-velocity updating (ZUPT) strategies in combination with the travel paths of lawn mower navigation operations in the region to update the IMU data to improve the positioning accuracy and stability of the positioning system. The experiments show that the average error of the constructed positioning system is controlled within 0.15 m, the maximum error is maintained at approximately 0.3 m, and the positioning system constructed by using low-cost sensors can achieve a positioning accuracy similar to that of the differential global navigation satellite system (DGNSS), which is beneficial for the promotion and application of intelligent mowers in orchards.
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(This article belongs to the Section Digital Agriculture)
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Evidence of Allelopathy among Selected Moss Species with Lettuce and Radish
by
Nikolina A. Matić, Marija V. Ćosić, Djordje P. Božović, Silvia Poponessi, Sara D. Pavkov, Michal Goga, Milorad M. Vujičić, Aneta D. Sabovljević and Marko S. Sabovljević
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 812; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060812 - 23 May 2024
Abstract
There is limited evidence on bryophyte-tracheophyte allelopathic interactions. Even less is known about such relationships among commercially important plants and mosses. With the aim of screening such interactions, various extract concentrations of nine different mosses were tested on the seed germination and seedlings,
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There is limited evidence on bryophyte-tracheophyte allelopathic interactions. Even less is known about such relationships among commercially important plants and mosses. With the aim of screening such interactions, various extract concentrations of nine different mosses were tested on the seed germination and seedlings, i.e., hypocotyl elongation and total chlorophyll content of lettuce and radish. The allelopathic effects are documented to be pairwise (moss-vegetable) and species-specific. Based on the results, the extracts of Leucodon sciuroides and Dicranum polysetum are not harmful to lettuce and radish. Lower extract concentrations of Leucodon sciuroides and Ctenidium molluscum have a positive effect on lettuce development, while those of Thuidium delicatulum, Ctenidium molluscum, and Dicranum polysetum showed to be effective on radish. Further, negative effects were noticed when applying higher extract concentration of Abietinella abietina, Isothecium alopecuroides, Dicranum polysetum, and Racomitrium elongatum to lettuce and Isothecium alopecuroides to radish. The dataset presented in this study offers numerous possibilities for further target pest/vegetable type applications since some of the moss extracts are shown to be positive, negative, or indifferent to the tested features in lettuce and radish.
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(This article belongs to the Section Crop Production)
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Research on a Variable Universe Control Method and the Performance of Large Sprayer Active Suspension Based on an Artificial Fish Swarm Algorithm–Back Propagation Fuzzy Neural Network
by
Fan Yang, Lei Liu, Yanan Zhang, Yuefeng Du, Enrong Mao, Zhongxiang Zhu and Zhen Li
Agriculture 2024, 14(6), 811; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14060811 - 23 May 2024
Abstract
In view of the typical requirements of large high-clearance sprayers, such as those operating in poor road conditions for farmland plant protection and at high operation speeds, reducing the vibration of sprayer suspension systems has become a research hotspot. In this study, the
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In view of the typical requirements of large high-clearance sprayers, such as those operating in poor road conditions for farmland plant protection and at high operation speeds, reducing the vibration of sprayer suspension systems has become a research hotspot. In this study, the hydro-pneumatic suspension (HPS) of large high-clearance sprayers was taken as the object, and a variable universe T-S fuzzy controller with real vehicle vibration data as input was proposed to control suspension motion in real time. Different from traditional semi-active suspension, based on the characteristics of variable universe extension factors, a training method combining the artificial fish swarm algorithm and the back propagation algorithm was used to establish a fuzzy neural network controller with precise input to optimize the variable universe. Then, the time-domain and frequency-domain response characteristics of HPS were analyzed by simulating the special road conditions typical of farmland. Finally, the field performance of the sprayer equipped with the new controller was tested. The results show that the error rate of the AFSA-BP algorithm in training the FNN could be reduced to 3.9%, and compared with a passive suspension system, the T-S fuzzy controller improved the effects of spring mass acceleration, pitch angle acceleration, and roll angle acceleration by 18.3%, 23.3%, and 27.7%, respectively, verifying the effectiveness and engineering practicality of the active controller in this study.
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(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Planting to Harvesting: The Role of Agricultural Machinery in Crop Cultivation)
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