The objectives of this study were to investigate the allelopathic effects of sesame extracts of on seed germination of moso bamboo, and to isolate and identify the potential allelochemicals. A factorial design with three organs (root, stem and leaf) and five concentrations (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 mg mL⁻¹) was carried out. Seeds of moso bamboo were soaked in sesame extracts to investigate their germination and growth. The allelochemicals were isolated and identified using the high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) system. The germination indices of the same organ decreased with the increase of extract concentrations, while the mean germination time increased, picking at the concentration of 100 mg mL⁻¹. The radicle length and plumule length decreased, while the ratio of radicle length to plumule length increased. The allelopathy inhibition effect increased with the increase of extract concentrations, and it was significantly higher at the concentration of 100 mg mL⁻¹ than that of 25 mg mL⁻¹. The synthesis effect increased with the increase of extract concentrations, and it was significantly higher in leaf than root and stem. Chemical analyses identified 9 allelochemicals species (mostly phenolics and alkaloids) in the aqueous extracts. These results indicated that aqueous extracts of sesame caused the delay in seed germination and growth of moso bamboo, and phenolics and alkaloids in the aqueous extracts maybe the major reasons for the observed inhibition effects of sesame.

Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis (Carrière) J.Houz.) is famous for its fast growth and biomass accumulation, as well as high annual output for timber and bamboo shoots. Organic mulches are widely used to improve shoots’ production in moso bamboo forests. However, continuous mulching management may cause bamboo forest degradation and affect sustainable development. The objective of this study was to identify the degradation mechanism and to provide a theoretical basis for recovery. A complete randomized block design with four treatments was conducted, including mulching for one year (M1), two years (M2), three years (M3) and no-mulching management (NM). Soil nutrient contents, enzyme activities and microbial biomass were determined. With the increase of mulching years, the soil pH value gradually reduced, causing soil acidification, but the content of soil organic matter was inclined to ascend. Soil total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and total potassium (TK) contents showed an increasing trend, and they were significantly higher in mulching stands than those in NM (p < 0.05). Contents of soil available nutrients (AN, AP and AK) increased, then decreased with the increase of mulching years and peaked in M1. With the increase of mulching years, the soil stoichiometry ratio (C/N, C/P and N/P) gradually increased. Soil invertase, urease and acid phosphatase activities presented a single-peak curve and reached the maximum within one year after mulching. Total microbial biomass and that of individual groups changed greatly after mulching. Soil microbial biomass increased first and then decreased, and it was the largest in M1. The fungi:bacteria ratio decreased in the first year and then began to rise, while the aerobic:anaerobic ratio showed the opposite trend. According to the overall results, M3 leads to soil acidification, imbalance of the nutrients’ proportion, abnormal enzyme activity and change of soil microbial flora, and rotated mulching management (mulching one year and then recuperating one year) should be recommended in practice.

The root of Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis (Carrière) J. Houz.) develops extremely rapidly at seedling phase and is highly sensitive to water content in soil, but its response patterns and adaptation strategies of its root to drought are little known. The aim of this study was to investigate the response of root morphology and architecture of Moso bamboo to drought at seedling phase and then to explore the drought adaptation strategies of its root. One-year-old potted seedlings of Moso bamboo were planted under three drought treatments (control, moderate drought and severe drought) for three months. Seedling growth, specific root length (SRL), root architecture (fractal dimension (FD), root branching angle (RBA) and root topological index (TI)) and non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrations in roots were measured every month. The results are as follows: (i) The dry weight of root and shoot decreased significantly under drought stress. (ii) The SRL decreased under drought stress in the early duration (the first month), and then increased in the late duration (the third month). Both FD and RBA decreased, while TI and the concentrations of NSCs increased under drought stress. (iii) The NSC concentrations were positively correlated with SRL and TI, but exhibited an inverse relationship to FD and RBA. Our results indicated that Moso bamboo seedlings formed a “steeper, simpler, expensive (low SRL and high TI)” root architecture to adapt to a short-term drought (one month), and formed a “cheaper (high SRL)” root to adapt to a long-term drought (three months). Increase of NSC concentrations supported the root architecture plasticity to some extent.

In this study, bamboo laminated lumber for furniture was coated with waterborne acrylic paints. The effects of different environmental conditions (including temperature, humidity and wind speed) on the drying rate and performance of the waterborne paint film were investigated. Then, the drying process was optimized using the response surface methodology, and the curve model of drying rate was established, which can provide a theoretical basis for the drying process of the waterborne paint film for furniture. The results showed that the drying rate of the paint film changed with the drying condition. With an increase in temperature, the drying rate increased, and the surface and solid drying time of the film decreased. Meanwhile, with an increase in humidity, the drying rate decreased and the surface and solid drying time increased. Moreover, the wind speed can influence the drying rate, but the wind speed does not significantly affect the surface and solid drying time. The adhesion and hardness of the paint film were unaffected by the environmental conditions, but the wear resistance of the paint film was affected by the environmental conditions. Based on the response surface optimisation, the fastest drying rate was realised at a temperature of 55 °C, humidity of 25% and wind speed of 1 m/s, and the optimal wear resistance was realised at a temperature of 47 °C, humidity of 38% and wind speed of 1 m/s. The paint film drying rate reached the maximum value in 2 min and tended to remain constant after the film was completely dried.

Bamboo-fungus agroforestry management is an ecological model of sustainable production of moso bamboo forest, and Stropharia rugosoannulata has been widely planted in moso bamboo forest. However, little attention has been paid to soil fauna community in bamboo-fungus agroforestry system. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the response of soil fauna communities to agroforestry management, and to explore the relationships between soil fauna communities and soil properties. An experiment with 0, 1, 2 and 3 years of planting was carried out in an existing moso bamboo forest. The community composition of soil meso- and micro-fauna was investigated, and the soil properties were determined. Results showed that a total of 2968 individuals of soil meso- and micro-fauna, belonging to 8 classes and 13 groups were detected. The group number and density of soil fauna was highest right and then decreased. Planting Stropharia rugosoannulata in moso bamboo forest increased the density of dominant groups, but did not change its composition. Shannon-Weiner diversity index (H), Margalef richness index (D) and Density-Group diversity index (DG) were the highest one year after planting the fungus, while Simpson dominance index (C) was the lowest in the meantime. Contents of soil moisture (SMC), organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and total potassium (TK) increased first and then decreased with the increase of planting years, peaking at 1 year after planting, while the pH value continued to increase. Responses of soil fauna community were associated with soil physicochemical properties. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that SOM was the main environmental factor driving the variation of soil fauna community, followed by TP and TN. In conclusion, planting Stropharia rugosoannulata in moso bamboo increased the diversity and abundance of soil fauna communities due to its contribution to abundance of organic matter and supply of nutrients.