Chapagain Tejendra, Good Allen
Department of Plant Agriculture, University of Guelph, Guelph ON, Canada.
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton AB, Canada.
Front Plant Sci. 2015 Nov 17;6:990. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2015.00990. eCollection 2015.
Improving crop yields are essential to meet the increasing pressure of global food demands. The loss of high quality land, the slowing in annual yield increases of major cereals, increasing fertilizer use, and the effect of this on the environment all indicate that we need to develop new strategies to increase grain yields with less impact on the environment. One strategy that could help address this concern is by narrowing the yield gaps of major crops using improved genetics and management. The objective of this study was to determine wheat (Triticum spp. L.), barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), and canola (Brassica napus L.) yields and production gaps in Alberta. We used 10 years of data (2005-2014) to understand yield variability and input efficiency at a farmers' specified level of management, and the yield potential under optimal management to suggest appropriate pathways for closing yield gaps. Significant management gaps were observed between attainable and actual yields of rainfed wheat (24%), barley (25%), and canola (30%). In addition, genetic gaps (i.e., gaps due to genetic selection) in wheat, barley, and canola were 18, 12, and 5%, respectively. Genetic selection with optimal crop management could increase yields of wheat, barley, and canola significantly, with estimated yield gains of 3.42, 1.92, and 1.65 million tons, respectively, each year under rainfed conditions in Alberta. This paper identifies yield gaps and offers suggestions to improve efficiency in crop production.
提高作物产量对于应对全球粮食需求不断增加的压力至关重要。优质土地的流失、主要谷物年产量增长的放缓、化肥使用量的增加以及这对环境的影响都表明，我们需要制定新的策略，以在对环境影响较小的情况下提高谷物产量。一种有助于解决这一问题的策略是通过改良遗传学和管理方法来缩小主要作物的产量差距。本研究的目的是确定艾伯塔省小麦（Triticum spp. L.）、大麦（Hordeum vulgare L.）和油菜（Brassica napus L.）的产量及生产差距。我们利用10年的数据（2005 - 2014年）来了解农民指定管理水平下的产量变异性和投入效率，以及最佳管理条件下的产量潜力，以提出缩小产量差距的合适途径。在雨养小麦、大麦和油菜的可实现产量与实际产量之间观察到显著的管理差距，分别为24%、25%和30%。此外，小麦、大麦和油菜的遗传差距（即由于遗传选择导致的差距）分别为18%、12%和5%。在艾伯塔省雨养条件下，采用最佳作物管理的遗传选择可显著提高小麦、大麦和油菜的产量，估计每年分别增产342万吨、192万吨和165万吨。本文确定了产量差距，并提出了提高作物生产效率的建议。
