Field experiments were conducted during three consecutive growing seasons (2007/08, 2008/09 and 2009/10) with four winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars - 'Bogatka', 'Kris', 'Satyna' and 'Tonacja' - grown on fields with a three-field crop rotation (winter triticale, spring barley, winter wheat) and in a four-field crop rotation experiment (spring wheat, spring cereals, winter rapeseed, winter wheat). After the harvest, kernels were surface disinfected with 2% NaOCl and then analysed for the internal infection by different species of Fusarium. Fusaria were isolated on Czapek-Dox iprodione dichloran agar medium and identified on the basis of macro- and micro-morphology on potato dextrose agar and synthetic nutrient agar media. The total wheat grain infection by Fusarium depended mainly on relative humidity (RH) and a rainfall during the flowering stage. Intensive rainfall and high RH in 2009 and 2010 in the period meant the proportions of infected kernels by the fungi were much higher than those in 2008 (lack of precipitation during anthesis). Weather conditions during the post-anthesis period changed the species composition of Fusarium communities internally colonising winter wheat grain. The cultivars significantly varied in the proportion of infected kernels by Fusarium spp. The growing season and type of crop rotation had a distinct effect on species composition of Fusarium communities colonising the grain inside. A trend of a higher percentage of the colonised kernels by the fungi in the grain from the systems using more fertilisers and pesticides as well as the buried straw could be perceived. The most frequent species in the grain were F. avenaceum, F. tricinctum and F. poae in 2008, and F. avenaceum, F. graminearum, F. tricinctum and F. poae in 2009 and 2010. The contents of deoxynivalenol and zearalenon in the grain were correlated with the percentage of kernels colonised by F. graminearum and were the highest in 2009 in the grain from the four-field crop rotation. The content of T-2/HT-2 toxins was the highest in 2010 in grain from the three-field crop rotation and it was correlated with the isolation frequency of F. langsethiae.

The fate of cadmium in soil is influenced to a great extent by microbial activity. Microorganisms were compared with abiotic soil components for their ability to sorb Cd from a liquid medium. When the same amount (on a dry weight basis) of bacterial cells (Serratia marcescens and Paracoccus sp.), clay (montmorillonite), or sand was separately incubated in 0.05 M phosphate buffer, pH 7.2, containing 10 ppm of Cd (10 jig/ml), bacterial cells removed the largest quantity of Cd. Dead

No abstract

Bentonite has been recognized as a very good material for the improvement of coarse textured soils. In microplot experiment, of a sandy soil deprived of the humus layer was enriched in 1973 with waste bentonite at the rates of 0, 3, 6 and 12 kg m-2. Until 2002, the microplots were planted with different crops and regularly enriched with mineral and organic fertilizers. Since 2003, the microplots were left barren. In 2009, determinations of several features of the soils (in 5-30, 30-55 and 55-80 cm layers) showed that the historical amendment of the sandy soil with bentonite (especially its highest dose) ensured significantly higher contents of water, organic C, clay, silt and a sand fraction with particle diameter <0.1 mm in 5-30 cm layer. Proportions of non-dispersible clay in the total clay of bentonite soils in the two upper soil layers were significantly lower than those of the control soil. A significant increase in the penetrometer resistance was observed in 40-58 cm layers of the control soil and the soil with 3 kg m-2 bentonite amendment, contrary to the soils with two highest bentonite doses.

Colonization of wheat grain by Fusaria in two crop management systems varying in intensity of production technology The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of two cropping systems (intensive and integrated) on infection level of winter and spring wheat kernels by Fusarium species. Field experiments were conducted with winter wheat ‘Tonacja’ and spring wheat ‘Bombona’ during two consecutive growing seasons (2007/2008 and 2008/2009 - winter wheat, and 2008 and 2009 - spring wheat). A rainfall level in 2009 from the last decade of May to the first decade of July was 2.5-times higher than that in 2008. After the harvest, kernels were surface disinfected with 1.5% NaOCl solution for 2 min and then analysed for the infection level by different species of Fusarium. Fusaria were isolated on CZID medium and identified on the basis of macro - and micro-morphology on three media (PDA, SNA and a medium containing tannin). Our results demonstrate that the wheat grain infection by Fusarium depended mainly on a rainfall level. The intensive cropping system was more conducive to the grain infection by fusaria in comparison to the integrated one. The most frequent species were F. avenaceum in 2008, and F. graminearum, F. avenaceum and F. poae in 2009.