Žydrė Kadžiulienė - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Žydrė Kadžiulienė

Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B — Soil & Plant Science, 2015

Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment

This study aimed to evaluate wild ecotypes, breeding lines and varieties of Dactylis glomerata (D... more This study aimed to evaluate wild ecotypes, breeding lines and varieties of Dactylis glomerata (DG), Festuca arundinacea (FA) and Phalaris arundinacea (PA) collections, clarifying their productivity and chemical value as a renewable energy source for methane production. The tests involved germplasm collections of 21 (DG), 13 (FA) and 10 (PA) commercial varieties from different countries and wild ecotypes, collected in natural or semi-natural habitats in Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine and other neighbouring states. According to the average 2-year DM yield per plant, PA and DG were essentially (P<0.05) more productive species (163.3 g and 160.1 g) compared with FA (141.6 g). Superior accessions were selected from each species according to the average annual DM yield: variety Aukštuolė for DG, Navas DS for FA and Palaton for PA. Their average annual DM yield per plant (sum of 3 cuts) was 203.9 g, 198.0 g and 191.1 g, respectively, and it was significantly higher compared with the averag...

Field and laboratory investigations were done at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture (LIA) an... more Field and laboratory investigations were done at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture (LIA) and Joniskelis Research Station of LIA, Lithuania. The aim of the study was to compare the soil organic carbon (SOC) as well as carbon of mobile humic acids (MHA) contents in the differently used agricultural soils. The data of SOC and MHA investigated in four different field experiments are discussed in this article. In the Experiment 1 the study investigated two soil tillage systems: conventional and sustainable (factor A) and crop rotations with different structure of winter crops (0−100%) (factor B) on a Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol at the Joniskelis Research Station of LIA. The field Experiment 2 compared the influence of long-term legume swards on SOC and MHA in an Epicalcari-Endohypogleic Cambisol. In the Experiment 3 the treat-ments of factor A involved 7 different swards and the treatments of factor B of this experiment involved frequent and less frequent grazing. Five past...

Dirvožemio ėminiai surinkti ekspediciniu būdu Vakarų Žemaitijoje 2007 metų pavasarį. Pagrindinis ... more Dirvožemio ėminiai surinkti ekspediciniu būdu Vakarų Žemaitijoje 2007 metų pavasarį. Pagrindinis šių tyrimų tikslas -įvertinti dirvožemio anglies bei su ja susijusių elementų pokyčius, jų tarpusavio santykius, istoriškai skirtingai susiklosčiusiose žemėnaudose. Cheminėms analizėms dirvožemio mėginiai sumalti ultracentrifūginiu malūnu ZM 200 su 0,2 mm sietu. Anglies (C), azoto (N), sieros (S) kiekiai nustatyti naudojant automatinį analizatorių Vario EL III; Pspektrofotometriškai su Carry 50 (VARIAN, Vokietija). Dirvožemio organinė medžiaga perskaičiuota iš organinės anglies naudojant vidutinį koeficientą 1,724. Dirvožemio 0-30 cm sluoksnyje buvo nuo 1,312 iki 2,830 % C. Dirvožemio organinė medžiaga skirtingose žemėnaudose rasta nuo 2,05 % buvusios senos kaimavietės dabar agrariniams tikslams nenaudojamame dirvožemyje Paleičiuose iki 4,61-4,67 % sukultūrintame senos agrarinės būklės dirvožemyje Nikėlų kaime. Buvusios senos kaimavietės dirvožemyje nustatyta azoto (N) 0,093 %, o gerai sukultūrintame -0,189 %. Kaimavietės dirvožemyje C:N rodiklis buvo 14,1; vadinamosios jaunos agrarinės būklės teritorijoje Palendriuose -10,8-11,0; gerai sukultūrintame senos agrarizacijos dirvožemyje -14,7-15,0; brandžiame Kalniškės -Jurgaičių miške, esančiame greta sukultūrinto dirvožemio, -15,9; natūraliame neliestame Kūlinų miško dirvožemyje -22,9. Jaunos agrarizacijos teritorijų dirvožemiai pasižymėjo mažesniu C:N, negu ilgą laiką kultūrinami dirvožemiai. Iš esmės daugiau sieros buvo žemdirbystei naudojamuose dirvožemiuose, ypač senos agrarizacijos teritorijose, palyginus su natūraliais. Miško dirvožemyje N:S 0-30 cm sluoksnyje buvo 9,8; natūraliame dirvožemyje, kuriame sieros buvo labai mažai -15,5. C:S svyravo plačiose ribose: nuo 156 miške iki 219 dvidešimt penkerių metų sėtame žolyne ir 268 -natūraliame brandžiame miške. Agrarinėse žemėnaudose C:S rodiklis buvo iš esmės mažesnis, palyginus su natūraliomis. Fosforo (P) kiekis taip pat iš esmės skyrėsi natūraliame ir sukultūrintame dirvožemiuose. Mažiausias P kiekis buvo miško dirvožemyje (0,023-0,035 %), o sukultūrintame šis rodiklis buvo du kartus didesnis -0,070 %. Fosforo ir azoto dalis organinėje medžiagoje jaunos agrarizacijos teritorijos buvo pastebimai didesnė, negu senos agrarizacijos, o pati mažiausia -natūraliame miško dirvožemyje.

Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment

To assess the possibility to associate cereals with legumes as an alternative double-cropping sys... more To assess the possibility to associate cereals with legumes as an alternative double-cropping system for supplying biological N to cereals, an experiment was conducted in Lithuania in 2003/2005. Winter wheat was direct-drilled into pea stubble, white and red clovers and the control plots conventionally drilled after ploughing in barley and pea stubble, white and red clover, and perennial ryegrass. While the winter wheat yield in double- cropping system was reduced by 50% or more when compared to the control plots sown conventionally, a significant positive effect of N amount in winter wheat grain yield was observed in the double-cropping. During the winter wheat growing stage, the concentration of soil Nmin in the autumn and spring varied depending on the preceding crops and sowing method. A positive correlation was found between the soil Nmin and the wheat grain yield. A significantly higher total biological N was accumulated in the soil in double-cropping system clover-winter whea...

1 Lietuvos žemdirbystės institutas Akademija, Kėdainių rajonas El. p. jonas.slepetys@lzi.lt 2 Lie... more 1 Lietuvos žemdirbystės institutas Akademija, Kėdainių rajonas El. p. jonas.slepetys@lzi.lt 2 Lietuvos sodininkystės ir daržininkystės institutas Babtai, Kauno rajonas

The aim of this study was to estimate the response of different agricultural plants to elevated C... more The aim of this study was to estimate the response of different agricultural plants to elevated CO 2 and temperature and to check a hypothesis that current ambient CO 2 concentration is a limiting factor for growth of most agricultural species. Experiments were conducted in the chambers with a controlled climate. Seven most common agricultural crops and one weed species fat hen (Chenopodium album L.) were selected for the investigation. Dry over-ground biomass, concentration of chlorophylls and carotenoids were evaluated at the end of the experiments. The over-ground biomass of all investigated species significantly increased along with an increase in CO 2 concentrations and for most species the greatest biomass accumulation was observed at 700-1500 ppm. Response of fat hen biomass accumulation to elevated CO 2 concentration was comparatively small and statistically insignificant, indicating that for this species current CO 2 concentration is not a limiting factor. Analysis of the results on integrated impact of elevated CO 2 (700 ppm) and temperature (+4ºC) on the growth of investigated plants showed that the plant response is highly species specific. Tomato and soybean, which are considered the greatest warmth-loving plants under local climate conditions, produced the highest amount of biomass at elevated both CO 2 and temperature. For other investigated species, no positive interaction between CO 2 and temperature was detected and differences in biomass formation under elevated CO 2 alone and elevated both CO 2 and temperature ere not statistically significant.

Agronomy Journal, 2014

ABSTRACT Experiments were constructed to investigate effects of pea [Pisum sativum L. (Partim)] a... more ABSTRACT Experiments were constructed to investigate effects of pea [Pisum sativum L. (Partim)] and spring cereal intercrops on annual weed suppression and grain yield in an organic farming system. Pea, spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L. emend. Fiori et Paol.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), oat (Avena sativa L.), and triticale (× Triticosecale Wittm.) were sown as sole crops and as intercrops at a 50:50 proportion of grain legume and spring cereal seeds relative to sole crop rates. The density of wheat, oat, and triticale sole crops was significantly higher compared with intercrops with pea. All investigated intercrops were significantly denser than the sole pea crop. Low height was observed in pea and barley sole crops and intercrops. Mostly weed number and mass were not significantly different between sole cereal and intercrops. Crop density was more effected by suppression than weed height. Where crops were sparser, increases in weed density and mass corresponded to a significant decline in grain yield. In the pea– cereal intercrop, where pea accounted for 20.3 to 35.2% of the total plant number, cereals exhibited the greatest weed suppression ability, productive stem number and height being the main factors responsible for this.

Ekologija, 2008

The sensitivity of agricultural crops and weed to the impact of ozone and UV-B radiation was eval... more The sensitivity of agricultural crops and weed to the impact of ozone and UV-B radiation was evaluated according to changes in their dry biomass and concentration of photosynthetic pigments. Pisum sativum L., Raphanus sativus L. and Phleum pretense L. were most sensitive to the impact of ozone in current climatic conditions (350 ppm of CO2 and 21 °C day/14 °C night temperatures). The sensitivity of all test crops to the impact of ozone decreased significantly under warmer climatic conditions -700 ppm of CO2 and 25 °C day/19 °C night temperatures. Pisum sativum L. and Chenopodium album L. appeared to be most sensitive to the impact of UV-B radiation under current climatic conditions. Changes in the sensitivity of plants to the impact of UV-B radiation under warmer climatic conditions were not as pronounced as those for ozone, and were highly species-dependent. Sensitivity to the impact of UV-B radiation under warmer climatic conditions decreased for Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. and Chenopodium album L. and increased for Raphanus sativus L. and Phleum pretense L.

Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, 2014

ABSTRACT The research was aimed to investigate the energy biomass productivity and biogas product... more ABSTRACT The research was aimed to investigate the energy biomass productivity and biogas production from silage of different perennial grasses with evaluation of greenhouse gas emissions through the entire process from biomass cultivation to processing. The experiments with perennial grasses-cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.), tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Scherb.) and reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) were carried out at Institute of Agriculture, Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry in 2008-2010. The swards were grown in an Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol (CMg-n-w-can), which contained: organic carbon-1.61-1.75%, available P-145-224 mg kg-1and K-128-158 mg kg-1, soil pH ranging between 6.7-7.0. The three perennial grass species with varying yields of biomass were used to ensure a steady operation of the selected biogas plant of 500 kWeelectric power. The different quantities of biomass feedstock and varying energy input are required for such biogas plant. Therefore all data correspond to a biogas cogeneration plant of 500 kWe electric power. Required land area for the same amount of energy produced depends on species of perennial grasses, rates of fertilization and number of cuts. These results mainly depended on the biomass productivity and biogas yield from dry mass. Biomass yield from dry matter in the first year of use of tall fescue cut twice per vegetation season was higher compared to that cut three times, while cocksfoot and reed canary grass yielded better cut three times compared to cut twice. The highest yield was obtained in tall fescue swards cut twice and fertilized with N180. The total balance of greenhouse gas emissions showed their mitigation and ranged from 0.206 to 0.298 kg CO2eq kWh-1. © 2014, Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture. All right reserved.

Journal of Ecology, 2007

1 Ecological and agronomic research suggests that increased crop diversity in speciespoor intensi... more 1 Ecological and agronomic research suggests that increased crop diversity in speciespoor intensive systems may improve their provision of ecosystem services. Such general predictions can have critical importance for worldwide food production and agricultural practice but are largely untested at higher levels of diversity. 2 We propose new methodology for the design and analysis of experiments to quantify diversity-function relationships. Our methodology can quantify the relative strength of inter-specific interactions that contribute to a functional response, and can disentangle the separate contributions of species richness and relative abundance. 3 Applying our methodology to data from a common experiment at 28 European sites, we show that the above-ground biomass of four-species mixtures (two legumes and two grasses) in intensive grassland systems was consistently greater than that expected from monoculture performance, even at high productivity levels. The magnitude of this effect generally resulted in transgressive overyielding. 4 A combined analysis of first-year results across sites showed that the additional performance of mixtures was driven by the number and strength of pairwise inter-specific interactions and the evenness of the community. In general, all pairwise interactions contributed equally to the additional performance of mixtures; the grass-grass and legume-legume interactions were as strong as those between grasses and legumes. 5 The combined analysis across geographical and temporal scales in our study provides a generality of interpretation of our results that would not have been possible from individual site analyses or experimentation at a single site. 6 Our four-species agricultural grassland communities have proved a simple yet relevant model system for experimentation and development of methodology in diversity-function research. Our study establishes that principles derived from biodiversity research in extensive, semi-natural grassland systems are applicable in intensively managed grasslands with agricultural plant species.

Agronomy Research, 2009

Weeds were investigated in the stands of field pea (Pisum sativum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.... more Weeds were investigated in the stands of field pea (Pisum sativum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), oat (Avena sativa L.) and triticale (Triticale hexaploide Lart.) grown as pure and as mixtures at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture. Results revealed that annuals dominated in the weed flora composition (7-19 species) while perennials were more recessive (2-11 weed species). The total weed number was higher by 1.3-1.6 fold in the peas stand compared to the weed number in peas-cereals stands. In barley, wheat, oat and triticale stands the number of weeds was significantly lower than that for peas. Cereals and their mixtures with peas had the best suppressing ability compared to peas investigated. The dry mass of weeds in the peas stand was essentially higher than in the other stands of crops. The effect of pea mixtures with cereals crops on weed mass was similar as compared to that of pure cereals crops.

Land use systems in …, 2004

A common experiment was established in 39 sites in Europe, Australia and Canada within Working Gr... more A common experiment was established in 39 sites in Europe, Australia and Canada within Working Group 2 of COST action 852 to (1) assess the benefits of grass/legume mixtures over monocultures, (2) test their stability and (3) evaluate the consistency of the observed ...

Biogas production is the optimal way to utilize organic materials or energy crops and produce bio... more Biogas production is the optimal way to utilize organic materials or energy crops and produce bioenergy. In many countries the number of biogas plants is increasing. The growth of biogas production directly influences the generation of digestate. An experiment on cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) fertilized with mineral fertilizer and digestate was conducted to evaluate the yield and chemical composition of cocksfoot biomass after five years of digestate application. The average results of the experiment suggest that within five years of sward use higher rates of nitrogen present in the digestate increased the biomass yield. The swards fertilized with mineral fertilizer N360 produced the same biomass yield as those fertilized with N180. The chemical and structural biomass components varied due to the influence of type and rate of fertilizers.

Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section B — Soil & Plant Science, 2015

Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment

This study aimed to evaluate wild ecotypes, breeding lines and varieties of Dactylis glomerata (D... more This study aimed to evaluate wild ecotypes, breeding lines and varieties of Dactylis glomerata (DG), Festuca arundinacea (FA) and Phalaris arundinacea (PA) collections, clarifying their productivity and chemical value as a renewable energy source for methane production. The tests involved germplasm collections of 21 (DG), 13 (FA) and 10 (PA) commercial varieties from different countries and wild ecotypes, collected in natural or semi-natural habitats in Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine and other neighbouring states. According to the average 2-year DM yield per plant, PA and DG were essentially (P<0.05) more productive species (163.3 g and 160.1 g) compared with FA (141.6 g). Superior accessions were selected from each species according to the average annual DM yield: variety Aukštuolė for DG, Navas DS for FA and Palaton for PA. Their average annual DM yield per plant (sum of 3 cuts) was 203.9 g, 198.0 g and 191.1 g, respectively, and it was significantly higher compared with the averag...

Field and laboratory investigations were done at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture (LIA) an... more Field and laboratory investigations were done at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture (LIA) and Joniskelis Research Station of LIA, Lithuania. The aim of the study was to compare the soil organic carbon (SOC) as well as carbon of mobile humic acids (MHA) contents in the differently used agricultural soils. The data of SOC and MHA investigated in four different field experiments are discussed in this article. In the Experiment 1 the study investigated two soil tillage systems: conventional and sustainable (factor A) and crop rotations with different structure of winter crops (0−100%) (factor B) on a Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol at the Joniskelis Research Station of LIA. The field Experiment 2 compared the influence of long-term legume swards on SOC and MHA in an Epicalcari-Endohypogleic Cambisol. In the Experiment 3 the treat-ments of factor A involved 7 different swards and the treatments of factor B of this experiment involved frequent and less frequent grazing. Five past...

Dirvožemio ėminiai surinkti ekspediciniu būdu Vakarų Žemaitijoje 2007 metų pavasarį. Pagrindinis ... more Dirvožemio ėminiai surinkti ekspediciniu būdu Vakarų Žemaitijoje 2007 metų pavasarį. Pagrindinis šių tyrimų tikslas -įvertinti dirvožemio anglies bei su ja susijusių elementų pokyčius, jų tarpusavio santykius, istoriškai skirtingai susiklosčiusiose žemėnaudose. Cheminėms analizėms dirvožemio mėginiai sumalti ultracentrifūginiu malūnu ZM 200 su 0,2 mm sietu. Anglies (C), azoto (N), sieros (S) kiekiai nustatyti naudojant automatinį analizatorių Vario EL III; Pspektrofotometriškai su Carry 50 (VARIAN, Vokietija). Dirvožemio organinė medžiaga perskaičiuota iš organinės anglies naudojant vidutinį koeficientą 1,724. Dirvožemio 0-30 cm sluoksnyje buvo nuo 1,312 iki 2,830 % C. Dirvožemio organinė medžiaga skirtingose žemėnaudose rasta nuo 2,05 % buvusios senos kaimavietės dabar agrariniams tikslams nenaudojamame dirvožemyje Paleičiuose iki 4,61-4,67 % sukultūrintame senos agrarinės būklės dirvožemyje Nikėlų kaime. Buvusios senos kaimavietės dirvožemyje nustatyta azoto (N) 0,093 %, o gerai sukultūrintame -0,189 %. Kaimavietės dirvožemyje C:N rodiklis buvo 14,1; vadinamosios jaunos agrarinės būklės teritorijoje Palendriuose -10,8-11,0; gerai sukultūrintame senos agrarizacijos dirvožemyje -14,7-15,0; brandžiame Kalniškės -Jurgaičių miške, esančiame greta sukultūrinto dirvožemio, -15,9; natūraliame neliestame Kūlinų miško dirvožemyje -22,9. Jaunos agrarizacijos teritorijų dirvožemiai pasižymėjo mažesniu C:N, negu ilgą laiką kultūrinami dirvožemiai. Iš esmės daugiau sieros buvo žemdirbystei naudojamuose dirvožemiuose, ypač senos agrarizacijos teritorijose, palyginus su natūraliais. Miško dirvožemyje N:S 0-30 cm sluoksnyje buvo 9,8; natūraliame dirvožemyje, kuriame sieros buvo labai mažai -15,5. C:S svyravo plačiose ribose: nuo 156 miške iki 219 dvidešimt penkerių metų sėtame žolyne ir 268 -natūraliame brandžiame miške. Agrarinėse žemėnaudose C:S rodiklis buvo iš esmės mažesnis, palyginus su natūraliomis. Fosforo (P) kiekis taip pat iš esmės skyrėsi natūraliame ir sukultūrintame dirvožemiuose. Mažiausias P kiekis buvo miško dirvožemyje (0,023-0,035 %), o sukultūrintame šis rodiklis buvo du kartus didesnis -0,070 %. Fosforo ir azoto dalis organinėje medžiagoje jaunos agrarizacijos teritorijos buvo pastebimai didesnė, negu senos agrarizacijos, o pati mažiausia -natūraliame miško dirvožemyje.

Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment

To assess the possibility to associate cereals with legumes as an alternative double-cropping sys... more To assess the possibility to associate cereals with legumes as an alternative double-cropping system for supplying biological N to cereals, an experiment was conducted in Lithuania in 2003/2005. Winter wheat was direct-drilled into pea stubble, white and red clovers and the control plots conventionally drilled after ploughing in barley and pea stubble, white and red clover, and perennial ryegrass. While the winter wheat yield in double- cropping system was reduced by 50% or more when compared to the control plots sown conventionally, a significant positive effect of N amount in winter wheat grain yield was observed in the double-cropping. During the winter wheat growing stage, the concentration of soil Nmin in the autumn and spring varied depending on the preceding crops and sowing method. A positive correlation was found between the soil Nmin and the wheat grain yield. A significantly higher total biological N was accumulated in the soil in double-cropping system clover-winter whea...

1 Lietuvos žemdirbystės institutas Akademija, Kėdainių rajonas El. p. jonas.slepetys@lzi.lt 2 Lie... more 1 Lietuvos žemdirbystės institutas Akademija, Kėdainių rajonas El. p. jonas.slepetys@lzi.lt 2 Lietuvos sodininkystės ir daržininkystės institutas Babtai, Kauno rajonas

The aim of this study was to estimate the response of different agricultural plants to elevated C... more The aim of this study was to estimate the response of different agricultural plants to elevated CO 2 and temperature and to check a hypothesis that current ambient CO 2 concentration is a limiting factor for growth of most agricultural species. Experiments were conducted in the chambers with a controlled climate. Seven most common agricultural crops and one weed species fat hen (Chenopodium album L.) were selected for the investigation. Dry over-ground biomass, concentration of chlorophylls and carotenoids were evaluated at the end of the experiments. The over-ground biomass of all investigated species significantly increased along with an increase in CO 2 concentrations and for most species the greatest biomass accumulation was observed at 700-1500 ppm. Response of fat hen biomass accumulation to elevated CO 2 concentration was comparatively small and statistically insignificant, indicating that for this species current CO 2 concentration is not a limiting factor. Analysis of the results on integrated impact of elevated CO 2 (700 ppm) and temperature (+4ºC) on the growth of investigated plants showed that the plant response is highly species specific. Tomato and soybean, which are considered the greatest warmth-loving plants under local climate conditions, produced the highest amount of biomass at elevated both CO 2 and temperature. For other investigated species, no positive interaction between CO 2 and temperature was detected and differences in biomass formation under elevated CO 2 alone and elevated both CO 2 and temperature ere not statistically significant.

Agronomy Journal, 2014

ABSTRACT Experiments were constructed to investigate effects of pea [Pisum sativum L. (Partim)] a... more ABSTRACT Experiments were constructed to investigate effects of pea [Pisum sativum L. (Partim)] and spring cereal intercrops on annual weed suppression and grain yield in an organic farming system. Pea, spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L. emend. Fiori et Paol.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), oat (Avena sativa L.), and triticale (× Triticosecale Wittm.) were sown as sole crops and as intercrops at a 50:50 proportion of grain legume and spring cereal seeds relative to sole crop rates. The density of wheat, oat, and triticale sole crops was significantly higher compared with intercrops with pea. All investigated intercrops were significantly denser than the sole pea crop. Low height was observed in pea and barley sole crops and intercrops. Mostly weed number and mass were not significantly different between sole cereal and intercrops. Crop density was more effected by suppression than weed height. Where crops were sparser, increases in weed density and mass corresponded to a significant decline in grain yield. In the pea– cereal intercrop, where pea accounted for 20.3 to 35.2% of the total plant number, cereals exhibited the greatest weed suppression ability, productive stem number and height being the main factors responsible for this.

Ekologija, 2008

The sensitivity of agricultural crops and weed to the impact of ozone and UV-B radiation was eval... more The sensitivity of agricultural crops and weed to the impact of ozone and UV-B radiation was evaluated according to changes in their dry biomass and concentration of photosynthetic pigments. Pisum sativum L., Raphanus sativus L. and Phleum pretense L. were most sensitive to the impact of ozone in current climatic conditions (350 ppm of CO2 and 21 °C day/14 °C night temperatures). The sensitivity of all test crops to the impact of ozone decreased significantly under warmer climatic conditions -700 ppm of CO2 and 25 °C day/19 °C night temperatures. Pisum sativum L. and Chenopodium album L. appeared to be most sensitive to the impact of UV-B radiation under current climatic conditions. Changes in the sensitivity of plants to the impact of UV-B radiation under warmer climatic conditions were not as pronounced as those for ozone, and were highly species-dependent. Sensitivity to the impact of UV-B radiation under warmer climatic conditions decreased for Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. and Chenopodium album L. and increased for Raphanus sativus L. and Phleum pretense L.

Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, 2014

ABSTRACT The research was aimed to investigate the energy biomass productivity and biogas product... more ABSTRACT The research was aimed to investigate the energy biomass productivity and biogas production from silage of different perennial grasses with evaluation of greenhouse gas emissions through the entire process from biomass cultivation to processing. The experiments with perennial grasses-cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.), tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Scherb.) and reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) were carried out at Institute of Agriculture, Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry in 2008-2010. The swards were grown in an Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol (CMg-n-w-can), which contained: organic carbon-1.61-1.75%, available P-145-224 mg kg-1and K-128-158 mg kg-1, soil pH ranging between 6.7-7.0. The three perennial grass species with varying yields of biomass were used to ensure a steady operation of the selected biogas plant of 500 kWeelectric power. The different quantities of biomass feedstock and varying energy input are required for such biogas plant. Therefore all data correspond to a biogas cogeneration plant of 500 kWe electric power. Required land area for the same amount of energy produced depends on species of perennial grasses, rates of fertilization and number of cuts. These results mainly depended on the biomass productivity and biogas yield from dry mass. Biomass yield from dry matter in the first year of use of tall fescue cut twice per vegetation season was higher compared to that cut three times, while cocksfoot and reed canary grass yielded better cut three times compared to cut twice. The highest yield was obtained in tall fescue swards cut twice and fertilized with N180. The total balance of greenhouse gas emissions showed their mitigation and ranged from 0.206 to 0.298 kg CO2eq kWh-1. © 2014, Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture. All right reserved.

Journal of Ecology, 2007

1 Ecological and agronomic research suggests that increased crop diversity in speciespoor intensi... more 1 Ecological and agronomic research suggests that increased crop diversity in speciespoor intensive systems may improve their provision of ecosystem services. Such general predictions can have critical importance for worldwide food production and agricultural practice but are largely untested at higher levels of diversity. 2 We propose new methodology for the design and analysis of experiments to quantify diversity-function relationships. Our methodology can quantify the relative strength of inter-specific interactions that contribute to a functional response, and can disentangle the separate contributions of species richness and relative abundance. 3 Applying our methodology to data from a common experiment at 28 European sites, we show that the above-ground biomass of four-species mixtures (two legumes and two grasses) in intensive grassland systems was consistently greater than that expected from monoculture performance, even at high productivity levels. The magnitude of this effect generally resulted in transgressive overyielding. 4 A combined analysis of first-year results across sites showed that the additional performance of mixtures was driven by the number and strength of pairwise inter-specific interactions and the evenness of the community. In general, all pairwise interactions contributed equally to the additional performance of mixtures; the grass-grass and legume-legume interactions were as strong as those between grasses and legumes. 5 The combined analysis across geographical and temporal scales in our study provides a generality of interpretation of our results that would not have been possible from individual site analyses or experimentation at a single site. 6 Our four-species agricultural grassland communities have proved a simple yet relevant model system for experimentation and development of methodology in diversity-function research. Our study establishes that principles derived from biodiversity research in extensive, semi-natural grassland systems are applicable in intensively managed grasslands with agricultural plant species.

Agronomy Research, 2009

Weeds were investigated in the stands of field pea (Pisum sativum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.... more Weeds were investigated in the stands of field pea (Pisum sativum L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), oat (Avena sativa L.) and triticale (Triticale hexaploide Lart.) grown as pure and as mixtures at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture. Results revealed that annuals dominated in the weed flora composition (7-19 species) while perennials were more recessive (2-11 weed species). The total weed number was higher by 1.3-1.6 fold in the peas stand compared to the weed number in peas-cereals stands. In barley, wheat, oat and triticale stands the number of weeds was significantly lower than that for peas. Cereals and their mixtures with peas had the best suppressing ability compared to peas investigated. The dry mass of weeds in the peas stand was essentially higher than in the other stands of crops. The effect of pea mixtures with cereals crops on weed mass was similar as compared to that of pure cereals crops.

Land use systems in …, 2004

A common experiment was established in 39 sites in Europe, Australia and Canada within Working Gr... more A common experiment was established in 39 sites in Europe, Australia and Canada within Working Group 2 of COST action 852 to (1) assess the benefits of grass/legume mixtures over monocultures, (2) test their stability and (3) evaluate the consistency of the observed ...

Biogas production is the optimal way to utilize organic materials or energy crops and produce bio... more Biogas production is the optimal way to utilize organic materials or energy crops and produce bioenergy. In many countries the number of biogas plants is increasing. The growth of biogas production directly influences the generation of digestate. An experiment on cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) fertilized with mineral fertilizer and digestate was conducted to evaluate the yield and chemical composition of cocksfoot biomass after five years of digestate application. The average results of the experiment suggest that within five years of sward use higher rates of nitrogen present in the digestate increased the biomass yield. The swards fertilized with mineral fertilizer N360 produced the same biomass yield as those fertilized with N180. The chemical and structural biomass components varied due to the influence of type and rate of fertilizers.