BACKGROUND AND AIMS Improving phosphorus (P) nutrient efficiency in Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass) is likely to result in considerable economic and ecological benefits. To date, research into the molecular and biochemical response of perennial ryegrass to P deficiency has been limited, particularly in relation to the early response mechanisms. This study aimed to identify molecular mechani...

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) represent natural DNA sequence variation. They can be used for various applications including the construction of high-density genetic maps, analysis of genetic variability, genome-wide association studies, and map-based cloning. Here we report on transcriptome sequencing in the two forage grasses, meadow fescue ( Huds.) and Italian ryegrass ( Lam.), and i...

Type 1 allergic reactions, such as hay fever and allergic asthma, triggered by grass pollen allergens are a global health problem that affects approximately 20% of the population in cool, temperate climates. Ryegrass is the dominant source of allergens because of its prodigious production of airborne pollen. Lol p 5 is the major allergenic protein of ryegrass pollen, judging from the fact that ...

The genus Alyssum (Brassicaceae) contains Ni hyperaccumulators (50), many of which can achieve 30 g kg(-1) Ni in dry leaf. Some Alyssum hyperaccumulators are viable candidates for commercial Ni phytoremediation and phytomining technologies. It is not known whether these species secrete organic and/or amino acids into the rhizosphere to solubilize Ni, or can make use of such acids within the soi...

Selenium (Se) is able to defend human and animal cells against UV(B) stress. Higher plants are generally considered not to require Se but to have a low tolerance to it. However, recently it has been demonstrated that Se is able to protect also plants against UV-induced oxidative stress and even to promote the growth of plants subjected to high-energy light. In the present study the effects of S...

Studies were conducted to determine the utility of overseeding endophyte enhanced varieties of perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne L., into existing stands of Kentucky bluegrass, Poa pratensis L., to manage bluegrass billbug, Sphenophorus parvulus Gyllenhal, larval populations and their damage. Two commercial varieties of endophyte enhanced perennial ryegrass (Repell II and Triple Play) were ove...

Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is widely used for forage production in both permanent and temporary grassland systems. To increase yields in perennial ryegrass, recent breeding efforts have been focused on strategies to more efficiently exploit heterosis by hybrid breeding. Cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) is a widely applied mechanism to control pollination for commercial hybrid seed p...

Increasing the total lipid concentration and modifying the fatty acid profile in forage may increase energy intake and productivity of animals and improve the attributes of meat and milk for human health. To predict the outcome of modifying these traits in ryegrass, 3 groups of weaned lambs (n=15 per treatment) grazed ryegrass (4% total lipid) and received twice-daily oral doses of oil at 0, 28...

Herbicide resistance in annual ryegrass across southern Australia is currently a major issue for grain producers. Currently annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum Gaudin) has evolved resistance to all post-emergent herbicides that can be used to control it in cereal crops and to the pre-emergent herbicide trifluralin. No new herbicide modes of action for the control of annual ryegrass have been market...

Ground covers were tested for 3 consecutive yr for their effect on Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica Newman (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), abundance and behavior in a blueberry planting. Alsike clover (Trifolium hybridum L.), buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), and bare ground were compared within row-middles for their effect on abundance of adult fema...