New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts
A new procedure for evaluating lucerne genotypes for semi-arid land
in west China
Liu Hui Xia
Guo Zheng Gang*
Wang Suo Ming
Zhang Zi He
Wang Yan Rong
Key Laboratory of Grassland
Agro-Ecosystem Ministry of Agriculture
College of Pastoral Agricultural Science and Technology
Lanzhou University
Lanzhou City 730020, The People’s Republic of China
*Author for correspondence.
Abstract This trial was conducted to assess the
suitability of one local and eight introduced lucerne (Medicago
sativa) cultivars to seasonally dry conditions in the semi-arid
region of west China. The foliage yield, root biomass, decline in plant
density and proline accumulation in leaf were significantly different
between the nine lucerne cultivars after two dry seasons.
‘Ameristand201’ and ‘Algonquin’ cultivars performed well based on
foliage yield. Root biomass of ‘Ameristand201’ and ‘Sandili’ was
significantly greater than that of the other seven cultivars.
‘Ameristand201’ was the best cultivar in drought resistance, with
higher proline accumulation in its plant leaves. ‘Sandili’ and
‘Longdong’ cultivars both had good persistence and a low decline in
plant density with time. Adopting the Analytical Hierarchy Process, a
new procedure for evaluating lucerne genotypes for semi-arid land was
proposed by combining these indicators based on experts’ and farmers’
suggestions. The suitability of the nine cultivars decreased in the
order: ‘Ameristand201’, ‘Sandili’, ‘Algonquin’, ‘Amerigraze401’,
‘Defi’, ‘Goldenempress’, ‘Derby’, ‘Sitel’, and ‘Longdong’. This study
indicated that ‘Ameristand201’ and ‘Sandili’ were the cultivars most
suitable for sowing in the semi-arid regions of west China.
Keywords lucerne cultivars; drought resistance; Medicago
sativa; semi-arid environment; soil conservation; suitability
A04010; 5
Received 29 January 2004; accepted 11 November 2004; Online publication
date 21 March 200
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 2005, Vol. 48:
109–116
0028–8233/05/4801–0109 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2005
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