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Altered winter conditions impair plant development and yield in oilseed rape

Klatt, B. K. LU orcid ; de La Vega, B. and Smith, H. G. LU (2021) In Journal of Agriculture and Food Research 5.
Abstract

The demand for agricultural products is expected to increase as a result of population growth, changed diets and demands for bioenergy. At the same time, agricultural yields in many regions are expected to be negatively impacted by climate change. Here we show, how altered winter conditions in combination with an extreme weather event impact reproductive development and yield of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.). Winter oilseed rape plants were grown for twelve weeks in climate chambers simulating three winter treatments, control (2–4 °C), shorter winter (6 weeks at 2–4 °C and 6 weeks at 10–12 °C) and warm winter (10–12 °C). During seed maturation, a thunderstorm with heavy winds and rain had a drastic negative effect on yield. We... (More)

The demand for agricultural products is expected to increase as a result of population growth, changed diets and demands for bioenergy. At the same time, agricultural yields in many regions are expected to be negatively impacted by climate change. Here we show, how altered winter conditions in combination with an extreme weather event impact reproductive development and yield of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.). Winter oilseed rape plants were grown for twelve weeks in climate chambers simulating three winter treatments, control (2–4 °C), shorter winter (6 weeks at 2–4 °C and 6 weeks at 10–12 °C) and warm winter (10–12 °C). During seed maturation, a thunderstorm with heavy winds and rain had a drastic negative effect on yield. We capitalized on this, presenting yields after a combination of altered winter conditions and an extreme weather event. Both warmer and shorter winters reduced the production of flowers and axillary shoots and thereby decreased yield compared with control winter conditions. Both treatments significantly differed from controls, but the effect was particularly strong for the warm winter treatment. The extreme weather event had strong negative effects on yield but effects from the winter treatments remained qualitatively similar. Our findings reveal detrimental effects of altered winter conditions in combination with extreme weather events on the development and production of oilseed rape, which suggests that climate change may have negative consequences for the production of winter crops in many regions of the world.

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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Agricultural production, Climate change, Plant development, Temperature sensitivity, Winter crops
in
Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
volume
5
article number
100160
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85106261347
ISSN
2666-1543
DOI
10.1016/j.jafr.2021.100160
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
7c89bd77-77a2-4882-973f-7567eb04c2af
date added to LUP
2021-12-23 11:30:04
date last changed
2024-03-23 16:25:58
@article{7c89bd77-77a2-4882-973f-7567eb04c2af,
  abstract     = {{<p>The demand for agricultural products is expected to increase as a result of population growth, changed diets and demands for bioenergy. At the same time, agricultural yields in many regions are expected to be negatively impacted by climate change. Here we show, how altered winter conditions in combination with an extreme weather event impact reproductive development and yield of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.). Winter oilseed rape plants were grown for twelve weeks in climate chambers simulating three winter treatments, control (2–4 °C), shorter winter (6 weeks at 2–4 °C and 6 weeks at 10–12 °C) and warm winter (10–12 °C). During seed maturation, a thunderstorm with heavy winds and rain had a drastic negative effect on yield. We capitalized on this, presenting yields after a combination of altered winter conditions and an extreme weather event. Both warmer and shorter winters reduced the production of flowers and axillary shoots and thereby decreased yield compared with control winter conditions. Both treatments significantly differed from controls, but the effect was particularly strong for the warm winter treatment. The extreme weather event had strong negative effects on yield but effects from the winter treatments remained qualitatively similar. Our findings reveal detrimental effects of altered winter conditions in combination with extreme weather events on the development and production of oilseed rape, which suggests that climate change may have negative consequences for the production of winter crops in many regions of the world.</p>}},
  author       = {{Klatt, B. K. and de La Vega, B. and Smith, H. G.}},
  issn         = {{2666-1543}},
  keywords     = {{Agricultural production; Climate change; Plant development; Temperature sensitivity; Winter crops}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Journal of Agriculture and Food Research}},
  title        = {{Altered winter conditions impair plant development and yield in oilseed rape}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2021.100160}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.jafr.2021.100160}},
  volume       = {{5}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}