title: The microbiome of perennial ryegrass Lolium perenne L.

authors: Prout, Bernadette

subjects: Perennial ryegrass

abstract: Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is the most critical agricultural plant supporting New Zealand’s intensive pasture-based dairy industry. A substantial body of research exists on the physiology, genetics, and management of perennial ryegrass; however, the perennial ryegrass microbiome has not yet been investigated in detail. Poor persisting perennial ryegrass pastures are ongoing in some areas of the country. Microbiome research has already targeted one pasture persistence problem by applying Epichloë endophytes to combat invertebrate pest herbivory. The success of Epichloë encourages future research to explore additional microorganism applications to mitigate other significant contributors to poor pasture persistence, such as drought and water stress. This study explores the bacterial and fungal communities associated with the perennial ryegrass cultivar/Epichloë combination, One50 AR37. In total, 80 samples were collected from plots across four different New Zealand farming regions during April/May 2021 and examined alongside spatial, environmental, and host-plant-related metadata. Cultivation-independent methods, including DNA extraction, 16S and ITS rRNA gene PCR amplicon sequencing analysis (via amplicon sequence variants - ASVs), were used to characterise the perennial ryegrass bacterial and fungal communities. The below-ground (bulk soil, rhizosphere, and root endosphere) compared to the aboveground (shoot endosphere and phyllosphere) perennial ryegrass microbiome habitats represented significantly different ecological niches, correlating to differences in ASV richness, alpha and beta diversity, and the relative abundance of dominant genera. This study demonstrated evidence that the perennial ryegrass microbiome is strongly influenced by farming location and management practices. The large proportion of unique, site-specific taxa found at each farming location holds the potential to explain differences in pasture productivity and persistence. Location differences indicate that future microbiome research should compare ryegrass pastures on a regional basis rather than extrapolating the results to all New Zealand farming locations. A core microbiome was not identified in the current study; however, there is evidence for a wider functional selection of taxa across the individual microbiome habitats. Future studies should incorporate metagenomic sequencing to better understand the functional microbiome trends rather than solely focusing on taxa composition. This study provides the foundation for future perennial ryegrass research as it confirms the general trends and common taxa associated with the five microbiome habitats of this important pasture plant. Future pasture persistence research should compare the microbiome of high producing / persistent ryegrass pastures with low-producing ryegrass pastures whilst controlling as many variables as possible. Bacteria of interest, such as Bacillus and Pseudomonas, should be explored in greater detail at the species level and isolated and applied in manipulative trials to assess the effects on ryegrass production and persistence.

text: The microbiome of perennial ryegrass Lolium perenne L. Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is the most critical agricultural plant supporting New Zealand’s intensive pasture-based dairy industry. A substantial body of research exists on the physiology, genetics, and management of perennial ryegrass; however, the perennial ryegrass microbiome has not yet been investigated in detail. Poor persisting perennial ryegrass pastures are ongoing in some areas of the country. Microbiome research has already targeted one pasture persistence problem by applying Epichloë endophytes to combat invertebrate pest herbivory. The success of Epichloë encourages future research to explore additional microorganism applications to mitigate other significant contributors to poor pasture persistence, such as drought and water stress. This study explores the bacterial and fungal communities associated with the perennial ryegrass cultivar/Epichloë combination, One50 AR37. In total, 80 samples were collected from plots across four different New Zealand farming regions during April/May 2021 and examined alongside spatial, environmental, and host-plant-related metadata. Cultivation-independent methods, including DNA extraction, 16S and ITS rRNA gene PCR amplicon sequencing analysis (via amplicon sequence variants - ASVs), were used to characterise the perennial ryegrass bacterial and fungal communities. The below-ground (bulk soil, rhizosphere, and root endosphere) compared to the aboveground (shoot endosphere and phyllosphere) perennial ryegrass microbiome habitats represented significantly different ecological niches, correlating to differences in ASV richness, alpha and beta diversity, and the relative abundance of dominant genera. This study demonstrated evidence that the perennial ryegrass microbiome is strongly influenced by farming location and management practices. The large proportion of unique, site-specific taxa found at each farming location holds the potential to explain differences in pasture productivity and persistence. Location differences indicate that future microbiome research should compare ryegrass pastures on a regional basis rather than extrapolating the results to all New Zealand farming locations. A core microbiome was not identified in the current study; however, there is evidence for a wider functional selection of taxa across the individual microbiome habitats. Future studies should incorporate metagenomic sequencing to better understand the functional microbiome trends rather than solely focusing on taxa composition. This study provides the foundation for future perennial ryegrass research as it confirms the general trends and common taxa associated with the five microbiome habitats of this important pasture plant. Future pasture persistence research should compare the microbiome of high producing / persistent ryegrass pastures with low-producing ryegrass pastures whilst controlling as many variables as possible. Bacteria of interest, such as Bacillus and Pseudomonas, should be explored in greater detail at the species level and isolated and applied in manipulative trials to assess the effects on ryegrass production and persistence.

year: 2022

title: The purpose of doing practical science activities in urban and rural secondary schools in Solomon Islands

authors: Giano, Ellison

subjects: practical science activities

abstract: Internationally many science educators have argued that science teachers should ensure that their students have opportunities to engage with and take part in practical work, in order to better understand natural phenomena and learn how science tries to understand and explain these. However, there is ongoing debate about the specific purpose of carrying out practical science activities. Some research suggests that if practical investigations are not prepared well enough, they may not have much impact on improving students’ learning about science. This research study involved two secondary science teachers teaching Form 2 science in urban secondary schools and two from rural. The overarching aim was to explore the science teachers’ perceptions about the purpose of doing practical science activities in secondary schools. The study was conducted in two phases. First, based on the interpretive paradigm qualitative data was generated using semi-structured interview of each teacher. In the second phase the teachers involved in a photo elicitation process where each teacher took photographs of examples of practical science activities they organized for their students. This was followed by a second round of interviews where the teachers told the stories about the photographs they have taken. The data was then analyzed using the grounded theory method. The findings suggest that these teachers saw the purposes of doing practical science activities was to apply theoretical knowledge they learned about in class, develop thinking and process skills, motivate students and raise their interest in science. However, the teachers were not able to articulate the rationale behind doing practical science activities and did not identify it as an important aspect of science. The findings also noted the science syllabus and assessment, impact of access to science resources, training, time and class size as enablers and constraints which science teachers encounter in planning and organizing practical science activities. The findings also showed that there were differences between science teachers in urban and rural secondary schools on how they plan and organize practical science activities. The differences in how schools and science departments were equipped meant that teachers were resourceful and made use of their immediate environment when materials were scarce however they felt that ‘lab’ is best.

text: The purpose of doing practical science activities in urban and rural secondary schools in Solomon Islands Internationally many science educators have argued that science teachers should ensure that their students have opportunities to engage with and take part in practical work, in order to better understand natural phenomena and learn how science tries to understand and explain these. However, there is ongoing debate about the specific purpose of carrying out practical science activities. Some research suggests that if practical investigations are not prepared well enough, they may not have much impact on improving students’ learning about science. This research study involved two secondary science teachers teaching Form 2 science in urban secondary schools and two from rural. The overarching aim was to explore the science teachers’ perceptions about the purpose of doing practical science activities in secondary schools. The study was conducted in two phases. First, based on the interpretive paradigm qualitative data was generated using semi-structured interview of each teacher. In the second phase the teachers involved in a photo elicitation process where each teacher took photographs of examples of practical science activities they organized for their students. This was followed by a second round of interviews where the teachers told the stories about the photographs they have taken. The data was then analyzed using the grounded theory method. The findings suggest that these teachers saw the purposes of doing practical science activities was to apply theoretical knowledge they learned about in class, develop thinking and process skills, motivate students and raise their interest in science. However, the teachers were not able to articulate the rationale behind doing practical science activities and did not identify it as an important aspect of science. The findings also noted the science syllabus and assessment, impact of access to science resources, training, time and class size as enablers and constraints which science teachers encounter in planning and organizing practical science activities. The findings also showed that there were differences between science teachers in urban and rural secondary schools on how they plan and organize practical science activities. The differences in how schools and science departments were equipped meant that teachers were resourceful and made use of their immediate environment when materials were scarce however they felt that ‘lab’ is best.

year: 2011

title: Renewal and resistance: Moko in contemporary New Zealand

authors: Nikora, Linda Waimarie

subjects: maori

abstract: Moko is still here, contrary to the widely held belief that the art and custom of moko-Maori skin adornment-had vanished from New Zealand communities. Over the last two decades an increasingly visible number of Maori have revived and renewed the practice, taking colour into their skin. As an indigenous people, re-taking moko confronts and refutes the myth of a 'dying race'. It calls on Maori to recommit to strong Maori identities, customs and traditions and challenges the viewer to re-examine their social representations of moko and moko wearers. This paper reports the resistance strategies of a group of 83 moko wearers. Strategies include (1) educating, representing and reconstructing; (2) invalidating and minimizing representations; (3) building and enhancing social networks; and (4) securing cultural identity and pride. They reflect the celebration of cultural resilience.

text: Renewal and resistance: Moko in contemporary New Zealand Moko is still here, contrary to the widely held belief that the art and custom of moko-Maori skin adornment-had vanished from New Zealand communities. Over the last two decades an increasingly visible number of Maori have revived and renewed the practice, taking colour into their skin. As an indigenous people, re-taking moko confronts and refutes the myth of a 'dying race'. It calls on Maori to recommit to strong Maori identities, customs and traditions and challenges the viewer to re-examine their social representations of moko and moko wearers. This paper reports the resistance strategies of a group of 83 moko wearers. Strategies include (1) educating, representing and reconstructing; (2) invalidating and minimizing representations; (3) building and enhancing social networks; and (4) securing cultural identity and pride. They reflect the celebration of cultural resilience.

year: 2007