SAC Research

Crop & Soil Systems Projects

Centre of Expertise Climate Change - Risk and Uncertainty Module

Central to Scotland’s Climate Change Delivery Plan (2009) are mitigation and adaptation through ecosystem services from the land-use sector. However, service provision will be regulated by, and have major implications for, Scotland's biodiversity. Management choices are required, as land units differ in their potential for service delivery, while the hazards (risks and vulnerability) from climate change will constrain management options. This project will quantify risks from, and trade-offs between, the effects of climate change on biodiversity and key ecosystem services: carbon sequestration; biomass fuel production; food security; and habitat provision for conservation. It will thus facilitate optimisation of ecosystem services and land-use (a need identified in the Draft Land Use Strategy for Scotland, Sept 2010) and will be in direct support of calls in Scotland’s Climate Change Adaptation Framework 2009 for „Provision of decision makers with skills and tools‟. Climate changes in general, and changing precipitation patterns in particular, will have direct impacts on the water environment that are of policy relevance and public importance. The inter-relationships between climate, land use, water resources and water quality are highly complex and uncertainties in climate and land use change could lead to difficulties in ascertaining even the direction of change of associated responses. Using probabilistic projections of climate and weather as a starting point, we will develop a water environment work programme covering rivers, lakes, and the coastal zones of Scotland, which will ultimately link to both the proposed Centre for Research Expertise in Water (CREW) and to the Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services module in this Workstream. The focus for this research programme will be to evaluate the significance of uncertainty in climate change alongside the range of other uncertainties inherent in model input data, model structure and model validation data. A key element, in collaboration with the Perceptions Module and the Adaptation and Mitigation Workstreams, will be an evaluation of the various attitudes of the public to the adoption of a precautionary approach in the absence of limited or contradictory scientific evidence. Many of the effects of climate change on agriculture and food in Scotland will be through direct impacts on crop and animal productivity and through indirect effects including changed pest and disease pressure and stressors related to environmental and system change. These interactions are biologically complex, causing similarly complex trade-offs. For crops and livestock, the prevalence of many major pathogens in Scotland will change and understanding their disease dynamics and spread will be key to future disease control strategies. Major fungal plant diseases, potato nematodes and parasitic nematodes of sheep such as Haemonchus contortus, will be studied. In the latter case, overall rates of diagnosis of haemonchosis have already risen significantly in the past 10-15 years, with presence on some 50% of Scottish sheep farms. Previous work has shown that climate change will have a favourable impact on some Scottish soils, enhancing their ability to grow crops. However, extreme events may perturb some of these impacts and cause additional stress to key categories of livestock. Key questions are: (i) how much does the climate have to change for these problems to become a major threat to the Scottish crop and livestock production, and (ii) in what time frame is this likely to occur? Recipe for Success states: “Scotland is food secure but global change can impact on us either directly or through impacts on our markets.” Price spikes, shifting availability of commodities, and the westernisation of diets worldwide, have already occurred and the trends will accelerate as extreme climate related events become more common inside and outside the UK. Many of the most serious societal and economic effects of climate change in Scotland will be – and have already been – experienced via indirect effects of changing climate and food demand in other parts of the world. The effect of food security on the population is strongly determined by socio-economic stratification, with different sectors of society being differentially impacted. Scotland needs to anticipate how national and international climate related effects on food will affect its population and economy in order to respond appropriately in terms of its own food production priorities, choices for land use and the marine environment, and protection of the health and wellbeing of the population. Climate change is also an opportunity for Scottish food related industries to innovate. Food production, consumption, population effects, and the links and trade-offs with other sectors are country specific. This work is designed to build upon and extend current UK knowledge and analysis of Food Security to the Scottish context. 1) a horizon scan and summary of current knowledge on climate related food issues (choices, consumption, access, effect of price spikes, availability, nutritional consequences, health impacts) with specific relevance to the Scottish context and Scottish policy; 2) a conceptual map/model of key cross sectoral linkages to food security in Scotland, a scoping assessment of critical points where the Scottish economy and population may be particularly susceptible to climate effects on food, an analysis of the effects on food of mitigation options, and identification of critical knowledge gaps; 3) an assessment of the potential consequences of climate related effects on food for the health and wellbeing of the Scottish population, broken down by socio-economic status; 4) an analysis of opportunities for the Scottish economy to innovate and exploit climate related influences on food.

Strategies for Quantifying and Controlling Free Living Nematode Populations and Consequent Damage by Tobacco Rattle Virus to Improve Potato Yield and Quality

1. Determination of molecular markers for TRV resistance. Two potato populations will be studied, the first a progeny of a cross between the cultivar Record, known from preliminary work at SCRI to have TRV resistance and the cultivar Wilja, known to be fully and systemically susceptible to TRV. The second population is the progeny of a cross between Pentland Dell and Wilja, the former is known to exhibit a severe 'spraing'/corky ring spot symptoms. Seed stocks of the 2 populations will be increased over a 2 year period to allow c.180 'F1' genotypes from each of the two populations to be phenotyped in replicated field trials, known to have a high level of viruliferous nematodes, over a minimum two year period. Following harvest, tubers will be sampled and tested for presence / absence of virus using proven Quantitative RT-PCR techniques. Tubers will be visually assessed for spraing symptoms. This screening of two diverse populations of genotypes (parental material and genotypes within derived populations) will almost certainly identify variation for the target resistance traits, which are key objectives of the project. Preliminary results from a pilot study gave strong indications of significant heritable factors for resistance, and for spraing susceptibility. 2. Development of molecular nematode and TRV diagnostics. DNA sequences will be analysed to determine which region best discriminates Paratrichodorus from Trichodorus. A species-specific primer for Pratylenchus penetrans will also be designed. Primers will be tested against target and non-target nematodes and in silico to ensure specificity. Quantitative PCR allows the creation of a calibration curve from which data on nematode population size can be estimated. To this end, samples will be seeded with known numbers of Paratrichodorus and Trichodorus sampled from, although not exclusively, project trial sites. This will test the sensitivity of the primers and determine their confidence limits. Assuming field material from project sites is available, the Pratylenchus penetrans primer will be validated and tested for sensitivity. Prior to deployment, validation by comparing quantification of Paratrichodorus and Trichodorus with traditional methods of diagnosis using light microscopy and virus bioassays is required. We will validate the TRV diagnostic against field-based samples generated within the project and also those routinely assessed by SCRI for a range of clients within the UK using traditional bait-plant methodology. 3. Field assessment of nematode and TRV damage and alternate FLN control strategies. The importance of direct root feeding damage on potato yield, quality and processing quality by Pratylenchus, (Para)Trichodorus and Longidorus, and the response of potatoes to a nematicide treatment will be studied in 6 field trials (Yorkshire, West Midlands, Scotland). Potato varietal resistance and tolerance to high pressure nematode and TRV loading will be assessed, by measuring yield and quality responses to nematicide across 4 trials (2 in Scotland, 2 in England) for 20 potato varieties (6 crisping, 6 processing, 6 fresh and 2 other control varieties). To evaluate alternative control strategies for managing FLN populations, a trial in Scotland and England, will assess the effectiveness of mustard 'biofumigant' crops, a nematode resistant oil radish variety, a TRV-resistant oil radish variety, application of shellfish waste as a soil amendment as a biofumigant, novel nematicides derived from mustard and chilli, terpenes, plant defence elicitors (harpin), and a standard nematicide

Improving the sustainability of phosphorus use in arable farming

Main objective: To develop profitable and sustainable farming systems that maximise the efficiency of utilization of soil and applied P by arable crops and minimise the impacts on the wider environment Individual objectives 1.To develop novel targeted fertiliser technologies and soil P acquisition strategies that will enable arable crops to be grown on soils of lower P status without sacrificing crop yield, crop quality or farm profits 2.To determine whether adoption of novel soil and fertiliser strategies on low P soils will lower P inputs, reduce emissions of P from land to water and lessen the impacts of farming on climate change

Minimising nitrous oxide intensities of arable crop products (MIN-NO)

1) To gauge the importance of and variability in N2O emissions associated with crop products at the ‘farm gate’, as retailed, and according to alternative LCA approaches. 2) To quantify N2O emissions associated with UK arable cropping, as affected by crop species and growing conditions (e.g. regional climate, soil type), and fertiliser use, crop yield and crop residue management. 3) To validate the DNDC model of N2O emissions under conditions typical of arable cropping in the UK. 4) To develop and recommend appropriate approaches and ‘smart’ N2O emission factors for use in GHG accounting procedures involving crop products, national IPCC Tier 2 methodology (relating to arable cropping) and the UK GHG inventory. 5) To develop financially optimised strategies for minimising N2O emissions from UK field cropping, to help minimise the GHG intensities of UK crop products, and to disseminate results from the project.

Fungicide Performance - Winter Wheat 2010-2013

1) Produce dose response curves for new and existing fungicides for the control of Septoria tritici, yellow rust, brown rust and powdery midew of winter wheat. 2) Compare the effective length of the spray window for each fungicide as indicated by relative performance ata a range of timings. 3) Compare parameters of fungicide dose response curves with those obtained by comparable methods in previous years, to detect and quantify shifts in activity caused by fungicide insensitivity.

Improved tools to rationalise and support stewardship programmes for SDHI fungicides to control cereal diseases in the UK

1. Characterisation and risk assessment studies of SDHI insensitive field isolates and lab-derived UV mutants. 2. Development of highly sensitive PCR-based genotyping assays for the detection of resistance conferring mutations 3. Measuring baseline sensitivity levels of pathogen populations in survey studies before and after fungicide applications. 4. Evaluating effectiveness of anti-resistance and/or disease management strategies in experimental and commercial field trials.

Legume supported cropping systems for Europe

This research project will design new legume-supported cropping systems that reduce the environmental impact of European agricultural systems. The research is designed to support public policy and related commercial objectives: reducing fossil energy inputs into agriculture, nitrogen emissions to the environment, the global environmental impact of European agriculture, increased economic competitiveness of legume crops in Europe, and the development of sustainable European agricultural production systems more generally. The purpose of the research is to inform decision-making across the range of actors that determine change in agricultural systems and supply chains and to enhance and facilitate access to supporting technologies.

Identifying Constraints in Increasing Yield Potential in Barley

It is envisaged that the project will have two main experimental approaches: 1. A detailed assessment of the effect of environment as affected by site and season on crop growth, resource capture and grain number determination in the reference crops to be established as part of RMIS project 5998. 2. Targeted, small scale field experiments to manipulate crop growth through agronomic approaches and variety choice to investigate the potential maximum grain number and the relationship between grain number and grain filling.

Novel approaches for the management of cabbage root fly

To develop a ‘push-pull’ management strategy for cabbage root fly based on the use of larval attractants and repellents for disrupting host-location by larvae. ii) Specific objectives o Confirm the identity of the chemicals in root exudates that are utilised by cabbage root fly larvae for host-plant location. o Identify several chemicals that are repellent to cabbage root fly larvae. o Study the behavioural response of larvae to identified attractants/repellents. o Evaluate the efficacy of larval attractants/repellents in reducing the impact of cabbage root fly on brassica plants in the glasshouse and the field. o Incorporate the use of larval attractant/repellent formulations into a pest management programme for cabbage root fly.

Control of ramularia leaf spot in a changing climate (CORACLE)

To improve scientific knowledge of Ramularia Leaf Spot (RLS) to apply it to developing robust control of the disease by integrated disease management, including resistant varieties, healthy seed and optimisation of fungicide applications. This will support barley production which is economically and environmentally sustainable despite an increasingly variable climate.