Feng Ge

Habitat management using flowering plants on rice bunds and field ridges surrounding rice paddies can enhance conservation biological control by supporting beneficial predatory insects. However, multi-year field evidence for sesame (Sesamum indicum) when deployed as these bund-side flowering strips, and there is no molecular gut-content confirmation that the key predatory mirid bug Cyrtorhinus lividipennis preys upon rice planthoppers pests under field conditions. Over a two-year field experiment, we compared rice paddies with sesame-planted bunds against control paddies without bunds. We surveyed major piercing-sucking pests (brown planthoppers Nilaparvata lugens, white-backed planthoppers Sogatella furcifera, leafhoppers, and thrips) and their primary predator C. lividipennis throughout different rice phenological growth stages. PCR-based laboratory digestion assays were used to quantify the detectability of N. lugens DNA in the gut of laboratory-reared and field-collected C. lividipennis. Sesame-planted bunds significantly increased natural-enemy abundance (C. lividipennis) and reduced planthoppers, leafhopper, and thrips densities. Treatment effects varied by rice stage, with suppression mainly occurring from booting/heading to grain filling and no significant differences at tillering, and effects at maturity were weak. In the laboratory, N. lugens DNA detection declined from 68.75% at 0 h to 0% at 16 h after feeding. In the field, 37.5% of C. lividipennis from sesame-bund paddies tested positive for N. lugens DNA. These findings provide field and molecular evidence that sesame-planted bunds conserve C. lividipennis and contribute to suppression of piercing-sucking rice pests, supporting their use as an auxiliary habitat-management tactic in rice integrated pest management.

Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson (Apiaceae) is a well-known insectary plant in farmlands. Its vegetative and flowering stages can promote the migration of natural enemies. However, the arrival of natural enemies in crop fields often lags behind the establishment of pest populations. As gibberellin can accelerate plant growth and flowering, we investigated whether gibberellin treatment could advance the recruitment of natural enemies by altering the phenology of C. monnieri. Field experiments were conducted in 2021 and 2022 to evaluate the effects of different gibberellin concentrations on plant phenology, growth traits, and natural-enemy abundance. For field validation, C. monnieri strips established in wheat fields were treated with water or 50 mg/L gibberellin. The 50 mg/L treatment advanced the onset of flowering by 21 days and the first detection of natural enemies on C. monnieri by 14 days in 2021 and 20 days in 2022. It also significantly increased natural-enemy abundance on C. monnieri in 2022. In wheat fields, the same treatment resulted in earlier detection and significantly greater abundance of natural enemies in 2022. The earlier detection of natural enemies was temporally consistent with the advancement of flowering. These findings indicate that manipulating the flowering phenology of insectary plants may improve the timing of natural-enemy establishment and strengthen conservation biological control.

Intercropping flowering plants is an ecofriendly and sustainable orchard management practice, yet its effects on multiple ecosystem services remain poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a two-year field experiment using four species of intercropped flowering plants, including Sechuangzi Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson (Apiaceae), Japanese catnip Schizonepeta tenuifolia Briq. (Lamiaceae), rapeseed Brassica napus L. (Brassicaceae), and hairy vetch Vicia villosa Roth. (Fabaceae), in an apple orchard. We selected 22 ecosystem service indicators to establish a comprehensive framework for assessing orchard ecosystem services. In 2020, 19 indicators differed significantly between intercropped flowering plant plots and clean-tillage control plots, while 18 indicators showed significant differences in 2021. The ecosystem service indicators were grouped into six composite multifunctional indicators representing pollination, pest control, habitat provisioning, food provisioning, nutrient cycling, and carbon stock, all of which showed significant enhancement in flowering plant plots compared with the controls. Crucially, these six composite indices demonstrated synergistic interactions, with no trade-offs observed. Compared to clean-tillage control plots, total ecosystem services in 2020 increased by 228% in C. monnieri plots, 222% in B. napus plots, 217% in V. villosa plots, and 126% in S. tenuifolia plots; in 2021, the increases were 248%, 214%, 209%, and 115%, respectively. Overall, these results suggest that intercropping selected flowering plants can improve multiple measured ecosystem service indicators in apple orchards. This practice may provide a promising orchard-floor management strategy for enhancing ecosystem service multifunctionality under the conditions of this two-year field experiment.

Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson is a species of Umbelliferae plants, and it is one of China’s traditional medicinal herbs, widely distributed in China owing to its strong adaptability in fields. In this article, the research progress on the taxonomy, distribution, cultivation techniques, active components, analysis methods, antibacterial and insecticidal properties, and ecological applications of C. monnieri was reviewed. The main active components in C. monnieri are coumarins (mainly osthole) and volatile compounds, exhibiting multiple pharmacological effects, e.g., anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-tumor, and immune-regulating effects. Some modern analytical techniques (e.g., HPLC, GC-MS, and UPLC-QTOF-MS) have enabled more precise detection and quality control of these chemical components in C. monnieri. The specific active constituents in C. monnieri (e.g., coumarins and volatile components) exhibit significant inhibitory effects against various pathogenic fungi and insect pests. Simultaneously, the resources provided during its flowering stage (e.g., pollen and nectar) and the specific volatiles released can repel herbivorous insect pests while attracting natural enemies, such as ladybugs, lacewings, and hoverflies, thereby enhancing ecological control of insect pests in farmland through a “push–pull” strategy. Additionally, C. monnieri has the ability to accumulate heavy metals, e.g., Zn and Cu, indicating its potential value for ecological restoration in agroecosystems. Overall, C. monnieri has medicinal, ecological, and economic value. Future research should focus on regulating active-component synthesis, improving our understanding of ecological mechanisms, and developing standardized cultivation systems to enhance the applications of C. monnieri in modernized traditional Chinese medicine and green agriculture production.

As a member of the Apiaceae family, Cnidium monnieri holds significant medicinal and ecological value. It is highly regarded not only for its rich content of pharmacologically active coumarins but also for its role in sustainable pest control by preserving natural predator populations. Despite its importance, comprehensive genomic data for this species have been limited. In this study, we present a gapless, telomere-to-telomere genome assembly of C. monnieri. The final assembly has a total size of 1.13 Gb, organized into 10 distinct chromosomes. Evaluation metrics confirm the assembly's exceptional precision and continuity, with telomeric repeats successfully anchored at all 20 chromosomal ends. We annotated 39,218 protein-coding genes and characterized the repeat landscape, which is dominated by long terminal repeat retrotransposons (51.45%). We then reconstructed the phylogeny of Apiaceae and found that C. monnieri is sister to Peucedanum praeruptorum and Saposhnikovia divaricata. Comparative synteny analyses revealed that species with 11 chromosomes retain an ancestral conserved Apiaceae karyotype, whereas the 10-chromosome C. monnieri exhibits substantial lineage-specific interchromosomal rearrangements. Our study provides a high-quality genomic resource to support future studies in C. monnieri research and sheds light on chromosome evolution within the Apiaceae.

Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson is a species of Umbelliferae plants, and it is one of China's traditional medicinal herbs, widely distributing in China owing to its strong adaptability in fields. In this article, the research progress on the taxonomy, distribution, cultivation techniques, active components and the analysis methods, antibacterial and insecticidal properties, and ecological applications of C. monnieri were reviewed. The main active components in C. monnieri are coumarins (mainly osthole) and volatile compounds, exhibiting multiple pharmacological activities, e.g., anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant, anti-tumor, and immune-regulating effects. Some modern analytical techniques (e.g., HPLC, GC-MS, and UPLC-QTOF-MS) have enabled more precise detection and quality control of these chemical components in C. monnieri. The specific active constituents in C. monnieri (e.g., coumarins and volatile components) exhibite significant inhibitory effects against various pathogenic fungi and insect pests. Simultaneously, the resources provided during its flowering stage (e.g., pollen and nectar) and the specific volatiles it releases can attract natural enemies, such as ladybugs, lacewings, and hoverflies, thereby enhancing ecological control of insect pests in farmland through a "push-pull" strategy. Additionally, C. monnieri has the ability to accumulate heavy metals, e.g., Zn and Cu, indicating its potentially valuable for ecological restoration in agroecosystem. Overall, C. monnieri has medicinal, ecological, and economic values. Future research should focus on regulating the active component synthesis, understanding ecological mechanisms, and developing standardized cultivation systems to enhance its application in modernized traditional Chinese medicine and green agriculture production.

Cnidium monnieri is a valuable functional plant with significant potential for green pest control. However, its large-scale application is limited by its low and uneven seed germination in fields. To determine the factors that affect the germination of C. monnieri seeds, we examined its seed viability, germination percentage and germination speed index (GSI) after seed-coat treatments, water permeability, and the types and activity of endogenous inhibitory substances in C. monnieri seeds. The results indicated that the seed viability of C. monnieri is 95%, but the germination percentage was relatively low (12.60%). Seed coat removal significantly enhanced both the germination percentage and the GSI, but had no significant effect on water absorption rate. Moreover, ethyl acetate extracts completely inhibited the seed germination of the control non-dormant Brassica rapa subsp. rapa, while diethyl ether extracts showed moderate suppression, and petroleum ether extracts exhibited the weakest effect. And the three endogenous inhibitory substances, i.e., dibutyl phthalate, 2,6-di-tert-butylphenol, and 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol significantly reduced the seed germination, seedling height and root length of B. rapa, indicating their high inhibitory efficiency on seed germination. Our study demonstrates that the mechanical barrier of the seed coat and the presence of potent endogenous germination inhibitory substances are the key factors influencing the germination of C. monnieri seeds. These findings provide a theoretical basis for promoting seed germination of C. monnieri, which enhance its application value as functional plant for green pest control.

Ensuring future food security represents a significant challenge for humanity. Wheat pests and diseases are emerging threats to global food security. However, the key factors contributing to the uneven distribution of pests and diseases remain largely unknown due to insufficient observational data from major crop-producing regions. Here, on the basis of a unique historical dataset with more than 600 statistical records, we found an increased occurrence of wheat pests and diseases in China during 2000–2018. Various pests and diseases have largely different responses to climate change, crop simplification, agricultural activities and economic development. Rising temperatures expanded the distribution range of wheat mites while reducing the prevalence of underground pests. Increased precipitation decreased the incidence of aphids, wheat mites, wheat midge, and underground pests, while promoting the spread of wheat scab. Effective irrigation suppressed wheat mites, underground pests, and wheat rust, whereas fertilizer application reduced aphids, wheat midge, and wheat scab but significantly increased wheat mites and wheat rust. Gross domestic product (GDP) increased incidence of wheat midge; aging population increased percentage of occurrence area of aphids, wheat scab and wheat powdery mildew. Crop simplification significantly increased the occurrence of underground pests and wheat powdery mildew, and was strongly correlated with increased pesticide use, which in turn was associated with higher pest and disease incidence. Furthermore, rising temperatures and the overall increase in pest and disease occurrence exacerbated wheat yield losses, whereas effective irrigation mitigated these losses by suppressing pests and diseases. These observational findings emphasize the critical role of appropriate irrigation strategies in mitigating the increasing risks of pests and diseases under climate change, thereby supporting global food security.

Semiaphis heraclei Takahashi (Hemiptera: Aphididae) serves as a vital resource for natural enemies from functional plant Cnidium monnieri (L.) Cusson (Apiaceae), playing a crucial role in ecological dynamics. Endosymbionts influence the performance of their hosts. Here, we determined the communities of facultative endosymbionts in aphids from Lonicera japonica Thunb. (Caprifoliaceae), Apium graveolens L. (Apiaceae), and C. monnieri and assessed the performance of four aphid clones. The infection rates of Serratia symbiotica Moran (Gammaproteobacteria: Enterobacteriaceae) and Regiella insecticola Moran (Enterobacteriales: Enterobacteriaceae) reached 100%. Notably, the infection rates of Spiroplasma and Rickettsia varied across host plants. Fitness assessment revealed that aphids performed better on their natal hosts, exhibiting shorter nymphal development times and higher fecundity. S. symbiotica had contrasting effects on aphids based on their origin. It prolonged the development duration and decreased the intrinsic rate of increase (r_m), net reproductive rate (R₀), and finite rate of increase (λ) in aphids collected from plant A. graveolens. However, for aphids collected from plant C. monnieri, it shortened the doubling time (DT) and improved r_m, R₀, and λ, while prolonging the mean generation time. Our studies are the first to investigate the infection status and role of facultative endosymbionts in aphid S. heraclei, extending the documented effects of plant diversity to fluctuations in the infection rate, with potentially far-reaching consequences for related endosymbionts’ ecosystem processes.

The present study aims to investigate the impact of long-term apple production and orchard management practices on soil quality in gneiss mountainous regions. The microbial community (as measured by phospholipid fatty acid analysis) and soil physicochemical properties (bulk density, organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) were determined in soil samples collected from apple plantations of various ages (0-, 8-, 22-, 29-, and 36-year) in Gangdi Village, Xingtai, China. The soil samples were collected from depths of 0–20, 20–40, and 40–60 cm. The findings of the present study demonstrate that with increasing duration of apple cultivation, the soil bulk density and porosity decreased and increased, respectively. Initially, the content of soil nutrients such as organic matter, nitrogen, and phosphorus increased, eventually stabilizing, accompanied by a decline in pH. The soil microbial biomass significantly increased, accompanied by discernible alterations in the composition of the microbial community. Organic matter was found to be the primary factor influencing the structure and diversity of microbial communities. It is evident from forward analysis that the soil Gram-negative and actinomycete communities were predominantly influenced by soil pH, bulk density, and total phosphorus. In contrast, the Gram-positive and eukaryote communities were less affected by soil environmental factors. Notably, the soil bacterial community presented a greater degree of sensitivity to the duration of apple cultivation than did the fungal community. A marked vertical difference in the soil quality indicators was evident, with the increase in surface soil quality exceeding that of deeper soil depths.