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Oncideres saga (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), a neotropical and common twig girdler, occurs in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. This insect has economic importance due to damages caused to trees used in urban afforestation and commercial plantations. The control of this insect group depends, exclusively, on periodic inspections to remove and burn infested branches in tree crops. Here, Corrêa et al describe the laying pattern of O. saga and the morphology of its eggs on a girdled branch of Inga edulis Mart. (Fabaceae).

Viability of cocoa cultivation in French Guiana – a modeling approach Description of the subject. The cultivation of cocoa trees in French Guiana is currently experiencing a renewed level of interest and activity. A suitable framework is therefore needed to study the viability of this emerging area of cultivation. Objectives. To carry out an assessment of the technico-economic viability of cocoa cultivation and the processing of its products. Method. The costs and benefits of two different cropping systems and three types of end products were modeled. Results. The cropping system installed after partial forest clearing requires less labor and cash flow than the system based on association with banana, which allows a return on investment before the maturity of cocoa production. In order to be viable, cropping systems whose sole purpose is the production of fermented and dried beans would require yields of approximately 1 ton ha-1 and floor prices often above € 10,000 t-1. Such a result questions the feasibility of these systems. If beans were processed into cocoa sticks or chocolate, economic viability would be more easily acquired, but this would require investments that are not necessarily compatible with the cash flow of farms currently involved in cocoa farming. Conclusions. These results highlight the need to (re)consider in French overseas regions: (i) the nature and use of species associated with cocoa trees; (ii) the status of the cocoa tree as the main crop (or not) on farms; (iii) the diversification of cocoa products making it possible to feed several markets; (iv) the collective organization of the emerging sector to support production and processing; (v) technical and financial support (e.g.: CAP aid) for farmers embarking on cocoa farming.

The chemical mechanism of the acid cleavage of proanthocyanidins (PAs) has been known for decades but has yet to be optimized. Therefore, we optimized this process in Byrsonima crassifolia, Euterpe oleracea and Inga edulis extracts using the response surface methodology and assessed the effect of hydrochloric acid concentration (0.3–3.7 N), time (39–291 min), and temperature (56–98 °C) on the following response variables: PAs reduction, astringency reduction, antioxidant capacity/total polyphenols (TEAC/TP) ratio, and cyanidin content. The response variables were maximized when cleavage was performed with 3 N HCl at 88 °C for 165 min. Under these conditions, the mean PAs value and astringency in the three extracts decreased by 91% and 75%, respectively, the TEAC/TP ratio remained unchanged after treatment (p > 0.05), and the increase in cyanidin confirmed the occurrence of cleavage. Thus, the results suggest that acid cleavage efficiently minimizes undesirable technological PAs characteristics, expanding the industrial applications.

Slash-and-mulch agroforestry systems can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by mulching the vegetation instead of burning it. This mulch layer then contains greater stocks of organic material than after burning, making it a potential source of N2O and CH4 efflux during decomposition. We examined N2O and CH4 efflux from slash-and-mulch AFS using a two-way factorial design: with and without P + K fertilization, and with and without a nitrogen-fixing tree (Inga edulis). We hypothesized that inclusion of N-fixing trees would increase N2O efflux and that CH4 efflux would increase due to increased soil moisture with mulching. We measured trace gas fluxes prior to the end of Rotation 1, and after mulching to begin Rotation 2. N2O efflux increased with I. edulis during the year prior to, but not after, mulching. No differences by treatment were detected for CH4 efflux before or after mulching. Site conversion from secondary forest to Rotation 2 resulted in a 130% increase in N2O efflux and a 430% decrease in CH4 efflux. The CO2e increase of 2,400 kg ha−1 was an order of magnitude less than estimated releases of trace gases from burning (38,400 kg ha−1). For both N2O and CH4, land disturbance during mulching led to larger changes in trace gas fluxes than either P + K fertilization or inclusion of the N-fixer. The order-of-magnitude estimates of trace gas release as CO2e from mulching and the addition of N-fixers appears to be less than that from burning alone.

Studies aiming alleviating the effect of drought on plants have increased, and the use of seaweed extract has been a sustainable and promising management for stress tolerance. Thus, this work aimed to evaluate the role of Ascophyllum nodosum seaweed extract (ANE) in Inga edulis Mart. (Fabaceae) seedlings under drought and post-stress. The seedlings were cultivated under: 1) control (daily irrigation), 2) drought by water restriction – WR (irrigation suspension), 3) WR + 15 mL L−1 ANE, 4) WR + 30 mL L−1 ANE, and 5) WR + 45 mL L−1 ANE, and evaluated in two periods: i) SWD—when the seedlings showed symptoms of water deficit, and ii) REC: recovery (post-stress)—resumption of irrigation for 60 days. The application of 45 mL ANE contributed to the nitrogen content of seedlings under drought and post-stress. The order of nutritional requirement was similar for nitrogen, calcium, and magnesium, but phosphorus and potassium varied according to the evaluation periods under drought. The application of 30 and 45 mL L−1 ANE contributed in the post-stress, favoring the quantum yield of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) in response to the higher nutrient content in plant tissue, reflecting on growth in the REC. ANE increased proline content during SWD and promoted an efficient recovery. The application of 30 and 45 mL ANE contributes to induction of stress tolerance in I. edulis seedlings under drought and it favors recovery of plants in the post-stress due to phenotypic plasticity, which becomes a promising management for this species.

Plant diversity can enhance natural pest control in agriculture by providing resources and conditions that are not regularly available in conventional crops to natural enemies of crop pests. Extrafloral nectar-producing plants, for example, might cause reduction of pest densities on neighboring plants because the nectar can increase the performance of natural enemies. Coffee agroforestry systems often contain extrafloral-nectar-producing Inga spp. trees that serve several purposes. Recent studies suggest that they attract and arrest a diversity of natural enemies that contribute to the control of coffee pests. Mites from the Phytoseiid family are key natural enemies of coffee pest mites, but no study has investigated whether Inga extrafloral nectar increases the performance of predatory mites in coffee ecosystems. Thus, here, we assessed whether the extrafloral nectar of Inga edulis Mart. (Fabaceae) can be considered a suitable nutritional resource for the predatory mite Amblyseius herbicolus (Chant), one of the most abundant phytoseiids in coffee crops. We found that feeding on extrafloral nectar allows for development and survival, but not reproduction, of A. herbicolus . Whereas individuals that fed on a diet of nectar during their immature development could subsequently only oviposit after having fed on a pollen diet, individuals that had developed on pollen stopped ovipositing when fed nectar. Our findings suggest that interplanted Inga trees can help to conserve populations of predatory mites in crop ecosystems through the provision of nectar and may boost biological control services. Future research should investigate the effects of extrafloral nectar-producing trees on coffee pest control by these predatory mites.

We describe the characterization of IETI, the first trypsin inhibitor purified from Inga edulis, a tree widely distributed in Brazil. Two-step chromatography was used to purify IETI, a protein composed of a single peptide chain of 19,685.10 Da. Amino-terminal sequencing revealed that IETI shows homology with the Kunitz family, as substantiated by its physical–chemical features, such as its thermal (up to 70 °C) and wide-range pH stability (from 2 to 10), and the value of its dissociation constant (6.2 nM). IETI contains a single reactive site for trypsin, maintained by a disulfide bridge; in the presence of DTT, its inhibitory activity was reduced in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. IETI presented activity against Candida ssp., including C. buinensis and C. tropicalis. IETI inhibitory activity triggered yeast membrane permeability, affecting cell viability, thus providing support for the use of IETI in further studies for the control of fungal infections.

Planting native tree seedlings is the predominant restoration strategy for accelerating forest succession on degraded lands. Planting tree \"islands\" is less costly and labor intensive than establishing larger plantations and simulates the nucleation process of succession. Assessing the role of island size in attracting seed dispersers, the potential of islands to expand through enhanced seed deposition, and the effect of planting arrangements on seed dispersal by birds and bats informs restoration design. Determining the relative importance of local restoration approach vs. landscape-level factors (amount of surrounding forest cover) helps prioritize methods and locations for restoration. We tested how three restoration approaches affect the arrival of forest seeds at 11 experimental sites spread across a gradient of surrounding forest cover in a 100-km 2 area of southern Costa Rica. Each site had three 50 × 50 m treatments: (1) control (natural regeneration), (2) island (planting tree seedlings in patches of three sizes: 16 m 2 , 64 m 2 , and 144 m 2 ), and (3) plantation (planting entire area). Four tree species were used in planting ( Terminalia amazonia , Vochysia guatemalensis , Erythrina poeppigiana , and Inga edulis ). Seed rain was measured for 18 months beginning ∼2 years after planting. Plantations received the most zoochorous tree seeds (266.1 ± 64.5 seeds·m −2 ·yr −1 [mean ± SE]), islands were intermediate (210.4 ± 52.7 seeds·m −2 ·yr −1 ), and controls were lowest (87.1 ± 13.9 seeds·m −2 ·yr −1 ). Greater tree seed deposition in the plantations was due to birds (0.51 ± 0.18 seeds·m −2 ·d −1 ), not bats (0.07 ± 0.03 seeds·m −2 ·d −1 ). Seed rain was primarily small-seeded, early-successional species. Large and medium islands received twice as many zoochorous tree seeds as small islands and areas away from island edges, suggesting there is a minimum island size necessary to increase seed deposition and that seed rain outside of planted areas is strongly reduced. Planting design was more important for seed deposition than amount of forest cover within the surrounding 100- and 500-m radius areas. Establishing plantations and large islands facilitates the arrival of early-successional tree seeds and represents a broadly applicable strategy for increasing seed rain on abandoned agricultural lands. However, more intensive restoration approaches may be necessary for establishment of dispersal-limited species.

Gravel mining destroys the soil structures, with consequent losses in biodiversity and other ecosystem services, such as nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration and regulation of the hydrological cycle. In this context, planting with native species can be an effective method to restore the ecosystems functioning and structure after mining. A restoration study was conducted to evaluate the influence of different planting pit volumes and soil cover on the development of four Fabaceae tree species in an area degraded by gravel mining in the eastern Amazon, Brazil. Two types of ground cover and two pit sizes were assessed: soil covered with coconut fiber blanket and small pit (T1); soil covered with Eucalyptus forestry residues and small pit (T2); small pit filled with 160 dm−3 with Eucalyptus forestry residues (T3) large pit filled with 320 dm−3 of Eucalyptus forestry residues (T4). Periodic Annual Increment (PAI) was calculated 1.3 years after planting for total height (PAIHt) and diameter (PAIDBH) as well as the survival percentage. All four evaluated species showed mean PAIHt ranging from 160.75 to 279.26 cm year−1, in which T2 and T4 provided the best performances. Clitoria fairchildiana showed the highest mean PAIDBH value at T2 and statistically differed from T1 and T4. On the other hand, there were no significant differences in the other tested species. Survival percentages were greater than 90% for C. fairchildiana, Inga edulis and Inga thibaidiana. Although there was not a clear pattern in relation to the applied treatments, the Eucalyptus forestry residues such as soil cover and large planting pits were more efficient in relation to the increments in growth, diameter and survival of the species used in the initial planting to restore ecosystems degraded by gravel mining. Such results can be applied in future forest restoration projects in the Amazon and other tropical regions.

Piato, Kevin, Cristian Subía, François Lefort, Jimmy Pico, Darío Calderón, and Lindsey Norgrove. 2022. \"No Reduction in Yield of Young Robusta Coffee When Grown under Shade Trees in Ecuadorian Amazonia\"