Oxford University Press (OUP)Acta Medica Okayama0032-07812026Disrupted FLOWERING LOCUS C alleles from weedy radish enhance the florigenic potential of rootstocks for graft-mediated floral induction in Brassicaceaepcag119ENKoMotokiGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversitySakiKobayashiGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityKazusaNishimuraGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityYuKinoshitaGraduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto UniversityMakotoKashimaFaculty of Science, Department of Biomolecular Science, Toho UniversityKoichiroUshijimaGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityMunetakaHosokawaFaculty of Agriculture, Kindai UniversityGraft-mediated floral induction is a classical yet promising breeding technique that accelerates seed production and shortens generation time in crops. However, its application remains limited to a few species because floral induction is often unstable. Even among florally induced rootstocks, grafted scions can differ in their flowering response depending on rootstock genotype, but the genetic basis of this variation remains unclear. Here, using a Brassicaceae grafting model, we investigated two early-bolting radish (Raphanus sativus) accessions differing in their ability to induce flowering. We focused on a significant difference in FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) expression between these accessions and identified two quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with FT levels. Transcriptomic and genomic analyses revealed that both QTLs harbored previously unreported disrupted alleles of FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) homologs, key floral repressors involved in vernalization, which showed reduced expression and produced defective transcripts. Grafting experiments demonstrated that these disrupted FLC alleles enhanced floral induction, with RsFLC1 having a major effect. Our results indicate that the FT expression threshold required for graft-mediated floral induction is higher than that for rootstock flowering itself and that this threshold is reached when FLC-mediated repression is substantially reduced. These alleles were inferred to have originated from weedy radish (Raphanus raphanistrum), likely contributing to early flowering in disturbed environments. This study suggests that exploring genetic variations in FT expression is an effective strategy to develop highly florigenic rootstocks, thereby broadening the application of graft-mediated floral induction in crop breeding.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.American Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama0018-53456182024Shoot-to-Root Ratio Serves as an Early Practical Indicator of Tipburn Risk in Lisianthus [Eustoma grandiflorum (Raf.) Shinn.] Seedlings18841891ENNethoneSambaFaculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fukushima UniversityKurehaIkiFukushima Prefectural Iwaki Agriculture and Forestry OfficeTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityMinoriHikawa-EndoGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityYokoMiyamaFaculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fukushima University, Fukushima, 960-1296, Japan; and The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Iwate UniversityTipburn is a calcium-related physiological disorder that reduces lisianthus seedling quality, yet the factors underlying cultivar differences remain unclear. This study evaluated 10 lisianthus cultivars to determine whether the shoot-to-root (S/R) ratio and key physiological traits influence tipburn susceptibility. Seedlings were grown in a closed production system with restricted root volume and once-daily irrigation to enhance symptom expression. The S/R ratio varied significantly among cultivars (2.82–4.02) and was strongly correlated with tipburn incidence (r = 0.744, P < 0.05) and severity (r = 0.706, P < 0.05). Cultivars with higher S/R ratios exhibited greater tipburn, whereas those with lower ratios showed little to no symptoms. Diurnal measurements of transpiration, stomatal conductance, leaf temperature, and electron transport rate revealed cultivar-specific physiological patterns; however, midday transpiration showed only a weak association with tipburn. These results indicate that biomass allocation, rather than physiological activity alone, is the primary factor governing tipburn susceptibility. The S/R ratio represents a simple and practical indicator for identifying high-risk cultivars in nursery production. Future studies should investigate the roles of calcium transport, developmental stage, and irrigation management in mitigating tipburn occurrence.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.Elsevier BVActa Medica Okayama0304-42383612026Far-red-enriched ultra-long-day conditions induce constitutive FT expression and rapid flowering in radish rootstocks, promoting graft-mediated floral induction in Brassicaceae crops114818ENKoMotokiGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityNamiKakitaSchool of agriculture, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental, Life and Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityEfficient floral induction is essential for breeding and seed production in Brassicaceae crops, particularly for late-bolting cultivars and plant-vernalization–type species such as cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.), which require substantial time and labor for artificial flower induction. A graft-mediated floral induction method was recently developed for cabbage, enabling flowering without vernalization treatment by grafting cabbage scions onto radish (Raphanus sativus L.) rootstocks. Although high expression of florigen gene FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) in the rootstocks is a key determinant of success, environmental conditions capable of inducing strong FT expression in radish have remained unclear. Here, we demonstrate that a far-red-enriched ultra-long-day photoperiod (ULD-FR) markedly upregulates expression of radish FT homolog RsFTa and greatly enhances graft-mediated floral induction in cabbage. Under the ULD-FR condition, RsFTa expression remained constitutively high throughout the day, with daily transcript abundance increasing more than tenfold compared with standard high red/far-red (R/FR) ratio long-day conditions that employed fluorescent lamps. FT protein accumulation in cabbage scions grafted onto radish rootstocks was also strongly elevated, resulting in rapid flowering approximately 30 days after grafting. ULD-FR also promoted flowering in rapid-cycling Brassica rapa and B. oleracea accessions, and induced flowering in a vernalization-requiring R. sativus cultivar without low temperature treatment, suggesting that the response may be broadly conserved across Brassicaceae. Because ULD-FR can be implemented using standard lighting equipment by adding an FR light source, it presents potential utility as a versatile tool for breeding-related applications, including generation advancement and flowering synchronization among divergent accessions.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部附属山陽圏フィールド科学センターActa Medica Okayama0910-8742462024序iiENNo potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.American Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama0018-53456122026Interactive Effects of Maximum Daytime and Minimum Nighttime Temperatures on Spinach Growth and Physiological Characteristics444451ENNethoneSambaFaculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fukushima UniversityHisaoAkasakaThe United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Iwate University, Iwate, 020-8550, Japan; and Iwate Agricultural Research Center, Kenpoku Agricultural Research InstituteKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityMinoriHikawa-EndoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYokoMiyamaFaculty of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Fukushima University, Fukushima, 960-1296, Japan; and The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Iwate UniversityHigh temperatures restrict spinach growth, and the plant’s growth and physiological responses to heat remain poorly understood. It remains unclear whether high daytime or elevated nighttime temperatures have a more negative impact on spinach growth. In addition, the interaction effect of maximum daytime and minimum nighttime temperatures on spinach growth remains unknown. This study was conducted to address these issues. Spinach was grown in controlled environments under four temperature treatments: 30 and 20 °C (T30/20), 30 and 25 °C (T30/25), 35 and 20 °C (T35/20), and 35 and 25 °C (T35/25). These treatments represent the maximum daytime temperature and minimum nighttime temperature, respectively, and were maintained for 45 days. Plant growth characteristics were monitored, and the physiological responses to temperature regimes were assessed. The results show that compared with T30/20, dry matter production decreased by 15.4% with increased nighttime temperature (T30/25), decreased by 42.3% with increased daytime temperature (T35/20), and decreased by 57.7% when both daytime and nighttime temperatures were increased (T35/25). However, there was no statistically significant interaction effect (P > 0.05) between daytime maximum and nighttime minimum temperatures on plant biomass production variables. In comparison with T30/20, the T35/25 treatment increased significantly plant stomatal conductance, stomatal apertures, transpiration rate, and leaf temperature during heat waves. The T35/25 treatment also decreased the quantum efficiency in light compared with the other treatments. Plant biomass production did not improve with the T35/20 and T35/25 treatments, likely as a result of a decoupling of photosynthesis and stomatal conductance during heat waves. Overall, these results reveal that maximum daytime and minimum nighttime temperatures exert additive effects on spinach growth.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.Japanese Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama2189-01029442025Effects of Intermittent Low-temperature Storage Duration and Cycle on the Bolting and Flowering of Delphinium elatum in Summer522529ENMikaKawaiGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityMiwaFukuyasuGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto UniversityYoshikuniKitamuraGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental, Life, Natural Science and Technology, Okayama UniversityEarly-bolting in summer is a major problem when growing delphinium seedlings in summer to produce cut flowers that will be shipped in autumn and winter. In this study, an intermittent low-temperature storage (ILTS) treatment that induces flower bud differentiation in strawberry and prevents rosette formation in Eustoma significantly increased the Delphinium elatum cut flower length. Moreover, ILTS was as effective as growing seedlings under cool conditions at preventing early-bolting. We analyzed the effects of six ILTS treatments that differed regarding the treatment temperature (5 and 10°C) and treatment cycle (3 days/3 days, 6 days/6 days, and 12 days/12 days; ambient conditions/cool and dark). Cut flowers were significantly longer with the 6 days/6 days treatment at 10°C than for the control treatment. Furthermore, repeating the ILTS treatment cycle (6 days ambient conditions/6 days at 10°C) a total of four times produced high-quality cut flowers regardless of the cultivar. Therefore, this ILTS treatment may be ideal for preventing early-bolting in D. elatum.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.Japanese Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama2189-01029412025Development of an AI-based Image Analysis System to Calculate the Visit Duration of a Green Blow Fly on a Strawberry Flower6472ENHirokiTaniguchiGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYukiTsukudaSchool of Agriculture Okayama UniversityKoMotokiGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityPollinator insects are required to pollinate flowers in the production of some fruits and vegetables, and strawberries fall into this category. However, the function of pollinators has not been clarified by quantitative metrics such as the duration of pollinator visits needed by flowers. Due to the long activity time of pollinators (approximately 10-h), it is not easy to observe the visitation characteristics manually. Therefore, we developed software for evaluating pollinator performance using two types of artificial intelligence (AI), YOLOv4, which is an object detection AI, and VGG16, which is an image classifier AI. In this study, we used Phaenicia sericata Meigen (green blow fly) as the strawberry pollinator. The software program can automatically estimate the visit duration of a fly on a flower from video clips. First, the position of the flower is identified using YOLO, and the identified location is cropped. Next, the cropped image is classified by VGG16 to determine if the fly is on the flower. Finally, the results are saved in CSV and HTML format. The program processed 10 h of video (collected from 07:00 h to 17:00 h) taken under actual growing conditions to estimate the visit durations of flies on flowers. The recognition accuracy was approximately 97%, with an average difference of 550 s. The software was run on a small computer board (the Jetson Nano), indicating that it can easily be used without a complicated AI configuration. This means that the software can be used immediately by distributing pre-configured disk images. When the software was run on the Jetson Nano, it took approximately 11 min to estimate one day of 2-h video. It is therefore clear that the visit duration of a fly on a flower can be estimated much faster than by manually checking videos. Furthermore, this system can estimate the visit durations of pollinators to other flowers by changing the YOLO and VGG16 model files.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.Japanese Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama2189-01029342024Elucidation of Low-temperature Regulated Flavone Synthesis in Dahlia Variabilis and its Effects on Flower Color335343ENEdnaK. MuthamiaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKojiNaitoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityHiromasaOkadaFaculty of Agriculture, Shinshu UniversityYukinoKarasawaFaculty of Agriculture, Shinshu UniversityTokuyuKikumuraFaculty of Agriculture, Shinshu UniversityTakuyaNaraFaculty of Agriculture, Shinshu UniversityYasunoriHamauzuFaculty of Agriculture, Shinshu UniversityKoMotokiGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYoshikuniKitamuraGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityDahlia (Dahlia variabilis) flower colors are diverse and are determined by the accumulation of flavonoids. Cultivars with dark red flowers accumulate more anthocyanins in their petals. Flower color changes such as color fading often occur in some cultivars. In this study, low minimum temperature regulated flower color fading and flavonoid synthesis in dahlia ‘Nessho’ were investigated. The pigment contents and expression levels of flavonoid biosynthesis genes were investigated in detail under several growing environments in which color fading occurs. Flavones accumulate more in color-faded orange flowers than in dark red ray florets. The expression analysis of the anthocyanin synthesis pathway genes indicated that the upregulation of flavone synthase (DvFNS) gene expression correlated with the high accumulation of flavones in color-faded petals. DvFNS expression was also detected in young leaves, and the expression level was higher in winter than in summer. Seasonal changes in DvFNS expression in young leaves significantly correlated with color fading in petals. The change in DvFNS expression in young unexpanded leaves of relatively high-sensitive plants was significantly higher than that of low-sensitive plants before and after treatment under inductive conditions. In conclusion, low-temperature-inducible changes in the flavonoid accumulation in petals was suggested to reflect a change in DvFNS expression occurring in the meristem prior to flower bud formation. This temporal DvFNS expression in young unexpanded leaves of ‘Nessho’ dahlia could be an insight for the selection and breeding of non-color fading plants.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551132024Effect of seed cold PEG-priming and subsequent long storage on germination, growth and flowering of Eustoma grandiflorum（Raf.）Shinn ʻExe Lavenderʼ710ENThao ThuPhanGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKeigoFukushimaHiroshima Prefectural Technology Research Institute, Agricultural Technology Research CenterYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityCold wet treatment is frequently applied to Eustoma seeds to enhance the bolting rate of plants grown under high temperatures. Our previous study indicated that cold PEG‒primed Eustoma seeds could maintain their germination rate and bolting rate even after being re‒dried for 30days and grown under high temperatures. The present study aimed to investigate whether prolonged storage after cold PEG‒priming affect the germination, growth, and flowering of Eustoma ‘Exe Lavender’ seedling. Seeds were initially cold‒primed with water or PEG‒6000 at ‒1.5 MPa for 5 weeks at 10°C in the dark and were then subjected to re‒drying and storage for 30, 60, 90 and 360days at 10°C. After 360days of storage, cold PEG‒primed seeds germinated earlier and more effectively than cold hydro‒primed seeds. Compared to the results after 30days of storage, plants grown from 360days exhibited similar bolting rate, days to bolting, bolting node and flowering rate, cut flower length and number of flower node. These results suggest that ‘Exe Lavender’ seeds can germinate and develop well even after 360days of storage and under high temperature conditions when subjected to cold PEG‒6000 treatment.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.Japanese Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama2189-01029112022Fasciation in Strawberry Floral Organs and Possible Implications for Floral Transition5867ENNguyenThi CamGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityNaomichiSunagawaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityMihoSesumiGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityYoshikuniKitamuraGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Okayama UniversityFasciation in strawberry is characterized by an enlarged and flattened receptacle, clustering of flowers, and altered inflorescence architecture. However, the developmental process of fasciated flowers remains obscure. In this study, the fasciation incidence and developmental process in the primary fruit and inflorescence architecture were evaluated and compared for the non-susceptible cultivars, ‘Nyoho’ and ‘Sagahonoka’ and one of the most susceptible cultivars, ‘Ai-Berry’. The severity and frequency of flower and inflorescence fasciation was clearly greater in the vigorously growing large plants of ‘Ai-Berry’ compared to small plants and large plants of the other two cultivars. In ‘Ai-Berry’, the deformation of the large shoot apical meristem (SAM) into an oval shape was the initial symptom observed before and during floral transition. Such oval-shaped SAMs often differentiated two or more leaf primordia almost at the same time, which then developed into divided multiple vegetative SAMs before floral transition and linearly-fasciated SAMs during floral transition, respectively. The development of fasciation symptoms was observed after downregulation of FaTFL1. Although inflorescence or receptacle fasciation could be controlled when early and rapid floral induction was achieved by intermittent low-temperature treatment, severe fasciation was observed in late-flowered plants which were either not responsive or not subjected to this treatment. These results indicate that fasciation of floral organs may be triggered and develop during floral transition and that temperature fluctuations around boundary values between floral inhibition to induction may cause a half-finished or slowly processed floral transition and finally result in severe fasciation in vigorously growing ‘Ai-Berry’ plants.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.The Japanese Society for Horticultural ScienceActa Medica Okayama218901028912020Effect of Defoliation on Blossom-end Rot Incidence and Calcium Transport into Fruit of Tomato Cultivars Under Moderate Water Stress2229ENAnnah KhatenjeIndecheGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityThe translocation of calcium (Ca) within the tomato plant and the causes of Ca deficiency, a factor associated with blossom-end rot (BER) in fruit, are still a matter of conjecture. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of defoliation on BER incidence and Ca transport into different size tomato fruit cultivars. Four experiments were conducted. The start and end dates for each experiment were; 14 March–2 May, 22 July–23 August, 30 August–7 October 2017, and 20 May–25 June 2018, for experiments 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. Five tomato cultivars including one large (‘Momotaro fight (MF)’, ≥ 200 g), three medium (‘Lui 60 (L60)’, ‘Tio cook (TC)’, and ‘Cindy sweet (CS)’, 30–80 g), and one small (‘Pepe (PP)’, ≤ 20 g) fruit cultivars, respectively, were grown under moderate water stress controlled by a combination of root zone restriction and solar mediated fertigation. Leaf area of plants was reduced by 20–30% by removing alternate leaflets on all leaves. Defoliation significantly reduced BER in all experiments. In experiment 4, no BER was observed in defoliated plants of L60 and PP, and in MF and TC, BER incidence decreased to a quarter of the control. Defoliation increased the fruit growth rate (FGR) in experiment 1, in which the temperature was the lowest, by a ratio of 1.42 and by 1.39 in experiment 4, in which the radiation was strongest and day length longest. Defoliation increased the rate of daily Ca transport into fruit (CTR) in MF, L60, TC, CS, and PP by average ratios of 1.64, 1.55, 1.35, 1.30, and 1.13, respectively. The increase in CTR in defoliated plants was highest in experiment 4 with a ratio of 1.68 followed by 1.37, 1.33, and 1.28 in experiments 1, 3, and 2, respectively. Defoliation increased both FGR and CTR and there were significant linear relationships between them. However, the degree of increase was larger in CTR than that in FGR, especially in the BER-sensitive large fruit cultivar MF, and defoliation increased the total Ca concentration in fruit accordingly. We conclude that under moderate water stress by root zone restriction and certain other BER inductive conditions, defoliation could be a promising approach to reduce BER incidence by improving Ca nutrition in susceptible large fruit cultivars.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551092020Defoliating to 12-15 leaves increases calcium concentration and decreases blossom-end rot incidence in fruit of tomato plant grown under moderate water stress2127ENAnnah Khatenje IndecheGraduate school of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate school of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityDaisukeMiyajiField Science CenterTanjuroGotoGraduate school of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate school of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University The objectives of this study were to (i) determine the optimum number of whole leaves to retain on a tomato plant for effective blossom-end rot (BER) management and (ii) explore the relationship between shoot calcium (Ca) and fruit Ca in non-defoliated plants in two different sized fruit cultivars, a large-fruited cultivar ‘Momotaro fight’ and a medium-fruited cultivar ‘Cindy sweet’. Treatments involved maintaining 18, 15 and 12 leaves on a plant. All lateral shoots were removed regularly throughout the growing period except the shoot closest to the flowering truss in the 18-leaf treatment. At the length of 10cm, these shoots were sampled for real time Ca determination using a hand held Ca2+ meter. In the plants defoliated to 18 leaves, BER was higher in ‘Momotaro fight’ at 10% compared to 2% in ‘Cindy sweet’. Fruit growth rate was significantly increased by defoliation in ‘Momotaro fight’, however no significant difference was observed among treatments in ‘Cindy sweet’. Defoliating to 12 leaves increased daily Ca transport rate by 59% and 37% in ‘Momotaro fight’ and ‘Cindy sweet’, respectively. Defoliating to 12 leaves increased the water-soluble Ca concentration in the distal part of fruit by 34% and 14% in ‘Momotaro fight’ and ‘Cindy sweet’, respectively. In the plants defoliated to 18 leaves where only old yellowish leaves were removed, a significant steady decrease was observed in the concentration of water soluble Ca in the distal part of fruit with increase in truss order. There was a significant linear relationship between water-soluble Ca concentration in the distal part of the fruit and Ca concentration in the lateral shoot of plants defoliated to 18 leaves. We conclude that under moderate water stress by root zone restriction and also certain other BER inductive conditions, defoliation to 12–15 leaves on a tomato plant should be a promising approach for decreasing BER incidence in susceptible large fruit cultivars.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551082019B（ホウ素）欠乏処理がイチゴのチップバーンおよび受精不良果発生に及ぼす影響513ENMihoSesumiGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceYuichiYoshidaGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceAkariKinjoGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceKeiHidakaAsahi Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd.)TanjuroGotoGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate school of Environmental and Life ScienceBoron (B) is an essential micro element for plants and plays important roles in the synthesis and functions of cell wall. B deficiency has been reported as one of the causes of fruit malformation in strawberries. We investigated the effect of B deficiency on flower and fruit development of forced strawberries for two cropping seasons (2015-2017). In the second season, B was resupplied for B-deficient plants and we investigated changes in fruit development. When B-free nutrient solutions were supplied, tip burn began to occur in newly emerging leaves and calyx 2 to 3 months later, and fruit malformation including seedy or only partly developed fruits with undeveloped achenes occurred frequently. However, these deficient symptoms were quickly disappeared by supplying B containing nutrient solutions. In conclusion, B nutrition is closely related to the occurrence of fruit malformation through fertility of pollen and pistils, and also development of receptacle tissue in strawberries. It should be possible to reduce fruit malformation in strawberries by proper control of B nutrition.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551062017Variations in capsaicinoid contents in the chili pepper (Capsicum baccatum) and its non-pungent accessions2732ENYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityMotohitoHaraGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityThe chili pepper (Capsicum) is both an important spice and fresh vegetable worldwide. C. baccatum is a lesser known domesticated species that is native to the Andean region. Fruit traits such as color, shape, and pungency markedly vary in this species. C. baccatum has potential as a bioresource for future chili pepper breeding programs. Although extensive studies have been conducted on the pungency of C. annuum, that of C. baccatum has not been examined in as much detail. In the present study, capsaicinoid contents were analyzed in 36 C. baccatum accessions. Capsaicinoid contents ranged between 0 and 4,258 μg/gDW. Furthermore, a negative relationship was observed between capsaicinoid contents and fruit weights. Although the pungency of C. baccatum is regarded as low-mild, very few non-pungent accessions were detected ; only one non-pungent accession (‘Kaleidoscope’) was identified among the C. baccatum accessions examined. In order to validate the stability of non-pungency in the accession, capsaicinoid contents were determined at different harvest dates, along with other accessions with different pungencies. Although capsaicinoid contents in other C. baccatum accessions changed with the picking date, capsaicinoid was not detected in ‘Kaleidoscope’ at any date. The non-pungent accession reported here may be useful for future C. baccatum pepper breeding programs.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551062017処理開始時期がトレイ育苗したイチゴ‘女峰’に対する 間欠冷蔵処理の効果発現に及ぼす影響2125ENAkariKinjoaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityAtsushiHanadaGraduate School of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama UniversityYuichiYoshidaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityTanjuroGotoGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityKen-ichiroYasubaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityYoshiyukiTanakaGraduate School of Environmental and life Science, Okayama UniversityAtsukoYoshidaNozomi Farm Co. Intermittent low temperature storage is expected to be a new artificial flower-inducing treatment and becoming to be a practical procedure as it does not require expensive equipment or much energy cost. Tray-grown ‘Nyoho’ plants were placed in a refrigerator (15°C, in the dark) for 3 days and then transferred to a further outdoor shelter for 3 days. Plants were transferred at noon and this cycle was repeated twice (3D/3D). Such 3D/3D treatments were begun on August 22, 25, 28, 31, and September 3and the effectiveness on flowering was determined for 2 years. Both in 2012 and 2013, treatments begun before August 28 were less effective compared to the treatments begun on August 28 or later. Continuous 6 days of 15°C storage (6D) was effective to some extent, but 6D from August 25 was apparently less effective compared to those begun later. Both in intermittent and continuous treatments for ‘Nyoho’, it was confirmed that any flower-inducing effect became relatively small and unstable when the treatments were begun before 28 August in Okayama.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部附属山陽圏フィールド科学センターActa Medica Okayama0910-8742372015間欠冷蔵処理回数がイチゴ‘女峰’の開花に及ぼす影響1720ENNo potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部附属山陽圏フィールド科学センターActa Medica Okayama0910-8742372015挿し苗時期，苗の大きさとクラウンの深さがイチゴ‘さちのか’ の花芽分化と開花に及ぼす影響916ENNo potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.岡山大学農学部Acta Medica Okayama2186-77551042015施設栽培における潜熱利用に関するコンピュータ利用技術の開発4953ENKen-ichiroYasuba In protected horticulture, cooling techniques with latent heat has been effective for improving the growth of various kinds of plants in the summer season. It was necessary to understand special knowledge of the VETH diagrammatic
drawing for effective operation of cooling with latent heat. In order to obtain the information from VETH diagrammatic drawing, it was necessary to perform a lot of calculations. It was difficult to obtain such information simply. So, a device and software were developed for getting
effective information in order to manage cooling of latent heat. The developed device and software were run on the Ubiquitous Environment Control System (UECS). The rules for controlling the environment of UECS was were set up on
a web site, and an information communication technique was used for controlling the environment. The developed ventilation calculated node gathered the necessary information from the other nodes via LAN automatically. The node calculated valuable information for cooling with
latent heat, including the ventilation rate, and sent the calculated values, after entering the constant parameters using an http server, which was installed in the node. The developed software was run on a personal computer. The software could be used after describing various information
for calculating ventilation rate and evaporation rate at the setting file. It calculated these values, and users were shown the data using graphs and text files. As a result, we could get
effective information concerning cooling latent heat fairly easily by using of the developed node and the software.No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.