Fulltext search in archive

The objective of the paper was to analyse the influence of dairy cow management technology, milking method, predipping and summer grazing on the contamination of cow's raw milk by mesophilic (TBC), psychrotrophic (PBC), lipolytic (PLiBC) and proteolytic (PPrBC) bacteria. The values of TBC, PBC, PLiBC and PPrBC in bulk milk samples were determined by the culture method according to IDF standards. Investigations were carried out in nine stables of seven dairy farms from January 2005 to June 2006. Summer grazing has the most marked influence on the values of studied parameters. Farms with summer grazing had a lower microbial contamination of milk compared to farms without grazing and the difference was statistically highly significant in all studied parameters (P < 0.001). A positive effect of predipping on a reduction in the values of milk microbial contamination was proved while the difference between farms with predipping and those without it was on a significance leve lP < 0.05 to 0.001 except PLiBC. A comparison of the influence of dairy cow management technology indicated the lowest values of all microbiological indicators in loose cubicle littered housing, higher values were determined in stanchion littered housing and the highest in loose slatted-floor housing. A statistical difference between the technologies was proved mainly in TBC (P < 0.001). Farms with milking in milking parlours had a lower microbial contamination of milk compared to farms that used the in-stall milking pipeline system but the difference was statistically significant only in TBC (P < 0.05).

A new parallel plate capacitance sensor was built consisting of two metal sheets. The sensor - a capacitor and the whole oscillating circuit was driven at 27 MHz frequency. Dynamic laboratory experiments were performed with grass from a natural meadow in order to evaluate the possibility of the forage mass flow determination by means of this sensor. The results revealed a relatively strong linear relationship between the feed rates of the wet forage crop material passing through the sensor between its plates and the measured capacitance sensor circuit output frequency. The coefficients of determination (R²) varied from 0.9 to 0.96. Further improvement of the electronic circuit connection and further investigation of the sensor can be recommended.

The root-plant ratio is one of the important parameters for planting stock quality. We suppose that the ratio is one of the driving variables for the growth performance of new plantation in the forest. The study summarises data on the volume of major parts of 4 years old wild cherry trees. An allometric analysis of different parts of plants in relation to the growth performance of wild cherry trees was done. The results show a close positive relationship between the volume of the whole root system and aboveground biomass. The same is true of the fine root proportion in the root system. Data also document that the efficiency of root system is not decreasing during the root development - at least in the investigated period. The same results were obtained for fine root efficiency. Data confirm the importance of the root-plant ratio for the growth performance of new plantation in the forest provided that harmful factors are not at a limiting level.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the growth potential of Carpathian birch (Betula carpatica W. et K.) at an environmentally harsh mountain site and a response of this species to altered soil chemistry after dolomitic limestone and basalt grit applications. The Carpathian birch proved to be a suitable species for the replanting of extreme acidic mountain sites. This birch shows a low mortality rate, grows well in the clear-felled patches and soon forms a cover which is necessary for the reintroducing of more sensitive tree species. The application of dolomitic limestone and basalt grit resulted in the slower growth of Carpathian birch plantations. Liming raised soil reaction, sum of exchangeable bases, base saturation, cation exchange capacity and reduced exchangeable Al content. On the other hand, liming decreased an amount of oxidizable soil organic matter and negatively affected soil N, exchangeable P and K. Basalt grit increased exchangeable P and K contents and raised soil reaction, however only slightly. The influence of basalt grit on the sum of exchangeable bases, base saturation and cation exchange capacity was also less pronounced compared to liming. Basalt grit elevated the proportion of exchangeable aluminium and reduced the content of soil N.

In order to achieve success on the domestic and foreign markets, the producers and distributors should know the customers´ behavior and possibilities how to positively affect it for their advantage. The consumers carry out many shopping decisions every day. Most of the big sellers study these decisions in order to know what, where, when, how, how much or how many and why the customers buy. The marketers have to know how the consumers will react to different marketing programmes used by the company. The communication media such as information carriers are objective decision of the individual advertising sponsors. This paper shows the volume of financial means invested by the advertising sponsors, production groups as well as the analysis of the food advertising market and the following survey of the biggest food advertisers in the Slovak Republic.

This study provides new data on Dutch elm disease in the Czech Republic. Ophiostoma novo-ulmi is reported for the first time in the area of the Czech Republic, as well as both subspecies ssp. novo-ulmi (indigenous in the area of the Ukraine and Moldavia), and ssp. Americana indigenous in North America. The majority of the recorded strains belonged to O. n.-u. ssp. novo-ulmi, while O. n.-u. ssp. Americana and hybrids of these two subspecies were found less frequently. On the other hand, Ophiostoma ulmi was not found at all in the investigated samples. Identification on the subspecies level was performed by methods of molecular biology, i.e. PCR and RFLP of gene regions cu and col1.

In ornamental gardening, Spiraea × vanhouttei is a frequently planted spirea species in the Czech Republic. In 2003, there arose a suspicion of possible occurrence of fire blight caused by Erwinia amylovora on spirea shrubs in Prague and its environs. This suspicion was disproved for a certainty. The absence of the fire blight pathogen in symptomatic spirea plants stimulates a further effort to tackle the problem of a cause of conspicuous fire blight-like symptoms or inflorescence blast occurring on some spirea shrubs. The subject of this paper is: (i) to describe symptoms, incidence and severity of inflorescence blast, bud and flower abnormalities occurring in Spiraea × vanhouttei shrubs; (ii) to find out differences in the occurrence of blasted inflorescences between Spiraea species and cultivars with the intention of verifying the hypothesis that the blast inflorescence and sterility of some spirea species are associated with hybrid species. Symptoms of inflorescence blast are every growing season. No seed is produced by blasted inflorescences. Besides inflorescence blast, aborted floral buds appeared sporadically on a small scale. Spirea species were split into four categories according to the incidence of blasted inflorescences. Out of 52 species evaluated, 10% showed no or scarce incidence, 52% medium incidence, 27% high incidence and 11% very high incidence. The scarce incidence of blasted inflorescences was connected with the high seed production. And vice versa, very high incidence of blighted inflorescences was closely connected with no or low seed production or with high incidence of sterility. Fifteen out of the evaluated spirea species are the result of hybridization. These hybrids occur in each of the four categories of spirea species distinguished by the incidence of blasted inflorescence. However, it is remarkable that the highest incidence of hybrid spireas occurs in the category with the highest incidence of blasted inflorescence (83.33%). In the remaining three categories of spirea species, the proportion of hybrids ranged from 18 to 21%. It might indicate some connection of spirea hybrids with sterility.

The aim of this research was to determine the slaughter yield, proximate composition, and flesh colour of cultivated and wild perch (Perca fluviatilis). The study material was composed of fish obtained from intense fattening on formulated feed (age 1+, mean body weight (BW 116 g)) and wild specimens caught in a lake (age 3+, BW 119 g). The biometric traits of the two groups of fish did not differ with regard to body weight, total length (Lt), body length (Lc), or condition coefficient (P > 0.01). The cultivated perch had both higher maximum body height (H) and relative body profile (Rp) (P ≤ 0.01). The cultivated perch has a significantly lower slaughter yield (P ≤ 0.01). This dependence stems from the heavier viscera, which included more perivisceral fat and larger liver. Cultivated perch had significantly higher values of the viscerosomatic (VSI; 12.0 vs. 6.4), hepatosomatic (HSI; 1.9 vs. 1.7), and perivisceral fat (IPF; 7.0 vs. 1.2) indices. The analysis of the proximate composition of fillets from wild and cultivated perch indicated that the ratios of protein, fat, water were significantly different (P ≤ 0.01). The higher content of dry matter in the cultivated perch was a result of higher fat and protein contents. The fillets of the two groups of perch differed with regard to the saturation of green and yellow pigment; the cultivated perch exhibited lower values of parameter a* and higher values of parameter b* (P ≤ 0.01).

The reserve root nutrients influence the overwintering, regrowth, yield, and persistence of alfalfa plants. The total amount of the root reserves is considered more important than their concentration. One of the factors which can affect the reserve content can be the soil compaction. The aim of this study is to clarify the effect of the soil compaction on the reserve root nutrients in relation to the stand density and the amount of the root biomass. In this experiment, the stand density ranged from 28 to 112 plants per m². The average soil bulk density in the uncompacted and compacted variants was found to be 1.38 and 1.52 g/cm³, respectively. In spring and autumn periods, the root samples were taken from an area of 0.25 m² (the depth 150 mm) in four replications. The number of plants, the root weight, and the concentrations of starch, saccharose, fructose, and crude protein were assessed in each plot. The total amount of the root reserves was calculated from the determined concentrations and the weights of roots of each sample. A higher soil compaction reduced significantly the stand density, root weight, total amount of all nutrients as well as the starch and crude protein concentrations. The concentration of the soluble non-structural saccharides was identical to or increased over that in the compacted variant. The negative significant effect of a higher soil compaction on the root weight and, consequently, on the total amount of all reserve root nutrients was explained by the changes in the stand density. When the root weight effect was excluded, the compacted variant provided a significantly lower density and crude protein amount and concentration. The significant effect of density on the reserve nutrients was explained by changes in the root weight.

Humans should behave in such a way that they will not endanger the existence of other living entities. After all, human activities affected the tree species composition and wildlife living conditions. Humans are now responsible for the preservation of delicate equilibrium in nature. Two localities were chosen for the research of game damage caused to standing trees - shooting areas Lužánky and Červený jelen, both situated in the vicinity of Jindřichův Hradec in South Bohemia. Seasonal character of tree-damage origin as well as its relation to the chemical content of spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.) and pine (Pinus sylvestris [L.]) bark were investigated. This area is typical of high game stock; trees are damaged by browsing and bark stripping. Particular advice for game management with respect to minimizing tree damage is presented. The data set of chemical bark analyses was statistically evaluated by t- and F-test and significant differences in element contents were detected between damaged and undamaged pine bark for N-substances (P = 0.003309), Ca (P = 0.001460), P (P = 0.004343), Mg (P = 0.001419) and K (P = 0.016290). Humans have influenced many changes in the distribution of different animal and plant species. Among others they are responsible for the altered species composition. Typically the extinction of large predators produces changes in food chains. In forest stands influenced by human activities the reasonable game management and the regulation of game stock seems to be one of the main tools in forest protection.

Significance of a short-time survival test for the prediction of quality parameters of sperm obtained by gradient centrifugation was evaluated from an aspect of their functional resistance. Frozen semen samples from 27 bulls before and after separation were assessed by a 120-min survival test. The evaluation of morphological examination of ejaculates was carried out using the SASMO computer program. Statistically significant interrelationship between sperm quality parameters in the initial insemination doses, the amounts of obtained sperm after separation and their functional and vital resistance in the survival test was documented.

The paper presents the results of the research projects with their applications in enterprise practice, in the sphere of strategic control of enterprise management focused on the methods of decision-making enabling an enterprise to respond to changes in the entrepreneurial environment. Rapid changes, principally in the external environment, require the business management to select new approaches and methods of decision-making and to have a well conceived algorithm enabling a flexible response to customers' wishes using findings of knowledge management. The paper presents the results of applying the methods of BSG and SPACE analysis, namely during the years 1998-2006. The sphere of business of the company is also analysed using the correlation-table analysis method. All actions are focused on obtaining and maintaining the competitive advantage of the firm.

In 2005, the first screening tests to confirm the presence of potato stolbur phytoplasma in hemipterans by the PCR method were carried out to determine the spectrum of possible vector species for further analyses. Potato stolbur phytoplasma was confirmed in two out of five tested individuals of Hyalesthes obsoletus and in one mixed sample (10 individuals) from 17 tested samples of Lygus spp. As far as we know this is the first occurrence of potato stolbur phytoplasma in Hyalesthes obsoletus and Lygus spp. confirmed by the PCR method in the Czech Republic.

The influence of N-S fertilizers on the copper content in the inter oilseed rape plants was studied in field experiments. The evaluation involved two treatments of a single rate for the first spring fertilizer application with 100 kg N/ha in the AN treatment (nitrochalk) and 100 kg N/ha + 50 kg S/ha in the ANS treatment (ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulphate). A positive influence of the ANS fertilizer on the copper contents in different parts of plants was determined. The highest Cu concentrations were determined in the leaves and inflorescences, the lowest ones occurred in the stem. The concentration of Cu ranged within the interval of 1.56-8.75 mg Cu/kg of dry matter depending on the growth period and the part of the plant. No differences in copper content were determined in the seeds of individual treatment. The highest uptake in the above-ground parts of the plants was recorded in the green pod period and amounted to 57.4 g Cu/ha for the ANS treatment.

The aim of this study was to determine the influence of MHS-genotype and feeding regime on the growth and development of muscle and fatty tissue in the whole body as well as in hams of hybrid pigs. The experiment was carried out on 72 barrows that were divided into 4 groups regarding the MHS-genotype (NN and Nn) and feeding regime (standard and intensive). Data necessary to determine the volume of examined tissues were obtained by means of magnetic resonance tomography. During the fattening period there were no statistically significant differences between pig groups with respect to total lean content of the body although the feeding regime effect in the finishing fattening phase was on the margin of statistical significance (P = 0.057). Differences between investigated groups with respect to the lean content in hams were not significant either. Results of this research lead to a conclusion that different feeding regimes and MHS genetic status of pigs do not have a significant influence on the growth of muscle and fatty tissue in hams.

Tree vigour, occurrence of mildew and scab, yields, yield efficiency, fruit weight, flesh firmness and soluble solids content of apple trees on M 9 rootstock were monitored between 1998-2005 in 42 commercial orchards situated in all the major growing regions of the Czech Republic. Altogether 50 cultivars were included into the evaluation. The characteristics of newly bred or newly introduced cultivars were compared to the cultivars of standard assortment such as Gloster, Golden Delicious, Idared, Jonagold, Melrose, Rubín and Šampion. The group of late ripening cultivars imported from France (Baujade, Early Smith, Granny Smith and Red Winter) proved to be unsuitable for climatic conditions of the Czech Republic. Cultivars of the Rubín group (Bohemia, Gold Bohemia) showed a better quality of fruits than the cultivars of the Jonagold group, but were significantly inferior regarding yields and yield efficiency. The cultivars Rucla, Pinova and Rubinstep seemed to be potential competitors of Jonagold or Rubín; their fruit quality is similar to Rubín, and their yield efficiency is comparable to that of Jonagold. Topaz, which is resistant to scab and has recently spread in the Czech Republic, is specific for its early yield and a very good productivity observed in a majority of the orchards. In addition, characteristics of other evaluated cultivars and their potential prospects for growing in the Czech Republic are briefly discussed.

The paper presents the results of relatively long-term research focused on spoil bank revitalization pro-cesses in the North Bohemian Brown Coal Basin after the first three years of observations. The biological activity of soil (namely catalase and phosphatase activity), indicators of basal and potential soil respiration, ammonification and growth, development and nutrition status of forest plantations were selected as indicators of this revitalization process. These parameters were determined in five localities of different age of reclamation where different technological approaches and tree species compositions were used. The results confirm the distinct time dependence of revitalization processes. From the aspect of biological activity older reclamations are close to natural forest soil. The enrichment of top soil layer with organic matter before the plantation (by ploughing in cellulose fibres and peat addition) increased some parameters of soil biological activity. The positive amelioration effect of black alder (Alnus glutinosa) was also confirmed.

This article presents a review of data and results of investigations from the period 1958-2006 regarding the occurrence of insects of the genus Cephalcia Panzer (Hymenoptera, Pamphiliidae) in Norway spruce stands of the Beskidy Mountains (Western Carpathians, southern Poland). Currently, eight species are known for the area: C. abietis, C. alashanica, C. alpina, C. annulicornis, C. arvensis, C. erythrogaster, C. fulva and C. masuttii. Information regarding each species is given, with details on identification, local occurrence and importance.

The objective of this study was to probe the relationship between prevalence of selected principal mastitis pathogens and somatic cell counts in bulk tank milk samples. The sources of milk contamination were evaluated. The samples were collected from 298 dairy herds (with approximately 32 000 dairy cows). Only 48.3% of the bulk tank milk samples were free of contamination of pathogens of interest. Approximately 38.9% of the milk samples were contaminated with only one, 12.4% with two and 0.3% with three pathogens. The arithmetic mean of logarithmically transformed data of bulk tank milk somatic cell count rise in order: pathogen free, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus uberis, Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus (5.381; 5.413; 5.495; 5.518; 5.563, respectively). The arithmetic mean differences between bulk tank milk somatic cell counts in pathogen-free and single-pathogen contaminated samples have revealed a significance for the Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus groups (P < 0.01). Using binary logistic regression, a statistically highly significant relationship (P < 0.001) has been found between the number of contaminations of bulk tank milk samples with mastitis pathogens and bulk tank milk somatic cell counts. The relationship allows the determination of the probability of finding relevant mastitis pathogens in bulk tank milk samples with different levels of bulk tank milk SCC. A 63% probability can be defined at a cell count level of 400 000/ml and 20% at a cell count level of 100 000/ml. Analysis may reveal the potential sources of the bulk tank milk sample contamination, i.e. infected mammary glands or the environment. The presence of high levels of contamination along with a low bulk tank SCC may suggest an environmental source of contamination. The study clarified that a potential source of bulk tank milk contamination by relevant pathogens (the environment or the mammary gland) may be elucidated and the probability of the contamination of bulk tank milk samples with mastitis pathogens predicted by the analysis of relationship between the bulk tank milk somatic cell counts and the number of mastitis pathogen contaminations.

Land market has started to develop extremely in the Czech Republic since 2002. The annual sale and purchase of estates represented 0.2% of the total land resources between 1993-2001. The sale and the purchase have represented 2.9% of total land resources after 2002 and especially after the EU accession of the Czech Republic. These values of sale are the highest from the EU countries. On the other side, land prices decreased slightly in comparison with the prices before the EU accession. Prices of agricultural land are significantly lower than in the EU 15.

The effects of phosphate solubilizing bacterium (Bacillus FS-3) application on phosphorus contents of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) plant, growing performance and phosphorus forms in soil were evaluated under greenhouse condition. Five different phosphorus fertilizer treatments (normal superphosphate, triple superphosphate, di-ammonium phosphate, phosphoric acid, and rock phosphate) with and without bacterium (Bacillus FS-3) were applied in pots as 344 kg P/ha. Basal fertilizers were applied to all the pots as 180 kg N/ha (NH₄NO₃ 33% N), 100 kg K/ha (K₂SO₄ 50% K₂O). The results obtained showed that phosphorus availability from soil increased with phosphate solubilizing bacterium (PSB) application. The amount of plant available form of soil phosphorus fraction (resin-Pi + NaHCO₃-Pi + NaHCO₃-Po + NaOH-Pi + NaOH-Po) increased with PSB application. In all fertilizer types, bacteria application converted approximately 20% of less available phosphorus into labile forms. Statistically significant differences were obtained in shoot and root dry weight of tomato plants treated with PSB application. In all of the fertilizers, plant shoot and root weight and P uptake were greater with PSB applications than without PSB. The highest shoot-root dry weight and P uptake of plant were determined in triple superphosphate (TSP) with PSB application treatment. The data in the present study suggest that the application of PSB (FS-3) may increase the availability of soluble phosphate by dissolving the inorganic forms of phosphate and that bacterial strain tested in this study has a potential to be used as a bio-fertilizer in sustainable and organic agriculture.

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is the most prevalent Fusarium toxin in Czech wheat samples and therefore forecasting this mycotoxin is a potentially useful tool to prevent it from entering into food chain. The data about DON content in wheat grain, weather conditions during the growing season and cultivation practices from two field experiments conducted in 2002-2005 were used for the development of neural network model designed for DON content prediction. The winning neural network is based on five input variables: a categorial variable - preceding crop, and continuous variables - average April temperature, sum of April precipitation, average temperature 5 days prior to anthesis, sum of precipitation 5 days prior to anthesis. The most important input parameters are the preceding crop and sum of precipitation 5 days prior to anthesis. The weather conditions in April, which are important for inoculum formation on crop debris are also of important contribution to the model. The weather conditions during May and 5 days after anthesis play only an insignificant role for the DON content in grain. The effect of soil cultivation was found inferior for model function as well. The correlation between observed and predicted data using the neural network model reached the coefficient R² = 0.87.

The freezing point (FP) was established in 48 bulk tank samples of raw and 48 samples of pasteurized goat milk that were collected in the course of lactation. Alongside, non-fat solids (NFS) content was monitored. Milk freezing point measurements were carried out using the thermistor cryoscope method in compliance with the standard CTS 570538 (1998). The mean freezing point of raw milk was found to be in an interval of -0.5513 ± 0.0046°C, variation ranged from -0.5466°C to -0.5567°C, with higher values in the spring months and a drop at the end of lactation. FP corresponded to the NFS content. The average freezing point of goat milk heat-treated on the farm to the temperature of 72°C over a period of 20 s was -0.5488 ± 0.0046°C, pasteurisation brought an average increase in FP by 0.0025°C.

This paper presents detailed data on the biomass and element pools of six sample trees in the catchments of Plešné andČertovoLakes. Diameters and heights of the sample trees ranged from 28.0 to 63.7 cm and from 14.1 to 38.7 m. The age of the sample trees ranged from 84 to 177 years. Total biomass of the sample trees was in the range of 239.4 kg to 2,932.3 kg. Variation of total biomass between the sample trees was a consequence of the tree biometric data (height and dbh) and age differences. The proportion of stem wood and bark ranged from 63.5 to 69.5%, and from 4.6 to 7.2%, respectively. The proportion of foliage and fine branches ranged from 4.3 to 8.4%, and from 0.7 to 1.9%, respectively. The proportion of branch wood and bark ranged from 2.2 to 6.5%, and from 0.8 to 2.2%, respectively. Mean concentrations of C in different tree components were quite similar. Except C and compared to the other elements, N had the highest mean concentrations in tree components in all cases. Concentrations of P, Ca, Mg, and K showed similar patterns. Generally the highest concentrations of these elements were found in foliage, fine branches, fine roots and bark of stem and branches. Fe, Na, Al and Mn showed the lowest mean concentrations in tree components for all the analyzed elements. The total element pools per tree were highly variable because of the differences in total biomass between the individual trees. Generally, stem wood and bark, foliage, and roots contained the highest proportion of the elements. But there were differences between individual elements. Concerning the important nutrients, while the highest proportion of Ca and Mg was contained in stem wood and bark, the highest proportion of P was contained in foliage. The foliage contained a relatively high proportion of P and K, but a relatively low proportion of Ca and Mg.

This article describes the problem of forest reclamation of settling basins after industrial processing of manganese ore and pyritic shale at the age of 20-30 years. Soil properties of anthropogenic soil (overlaid layers, deposited sediments), nutrition state of assimilation organs, vitality of aboveground organs of tree species were investigated by instant visual evaluation using recommended macromorphological criteria and architecture of the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) root system.

The contribution demonstrates gynaecomastia in an adult, noncastrated tom-cat, caused by an antiandrogenic preparation Androcur tablets (Schering AG, BRD), administrated at the dose of 5 mg/day for one week. Two months after the treatment, the enlargement of all mammary glands was apparent and one month later (i.e. three months after the end of drug administration) the mammary chains reached the size of 30 × 15 × 20 cm. The general health state of the animal was altered due to the conspicuous enlargement and inflammation of mammary glands. Radical mastectomy was done under general anaesthesia using Isoflurane Rhone-Poulenc inh. The weight of the extirpated mammary chains was 1.75 kg. The healing of operative wounds and convalescence occurred without complications. Fibroepithelial hyperplasia of mammary glands was diagnosed histologically.

Management of natural resources in the context of sustainable development can be defined as the economic management of natural resources to allow their perpetual and undiminished supply. At the same time, use of the local natural resources should contribute to the economic and social development of the local community. It is vitally important to emphasize the role of local participation and knowledge. Experience, understanding, and expertise need to be assessed to help to determine the most effective roles for local individuals within the sustainable natural resource project. This assessment and its implications for the economy, community and protection of natural resources at the state, regional and local levels are a subject for case study.

This paper presents the results of a three-year research on the effect of perforated polyethylene foil and polypropylene fibre covering at various lengths of plant cover period (2 and 3 weeks after plant emergence) on the assimilation leaf area of early potato cultivars. In the case of plant covering for 2 weeks after emergence the assimilation leaf area and leaf area index (LAI) at the moment of cover removal were on average 2 times higher than in the cultivation without covering; at the 3-week period of plant covering they were almost 1.7 times higher. A higher favourable effect of covering was obtained in the year with the lowest air temperature in May. The use of the covers at that time increased the assimilation leaf area and LAI 2.5 times and 3 times, respectively. The research showed no significant effect of the type of cover used on the assimilation leaf area and LAI; however, the specific leaf area (SLA) was higher with the use of polypropylene fibre.

A total of thirty-four Czech Fleckvieh (CF), Charolais (CH) and Charolais × Czech Fleckvieh (CH × CF) bulls with an average weight of 284 kg were included in the experiment and fed ad libitum two mixed diets: MS (based on maize silage) and LCS (based on legume-cereal and lucerne silages) with different concentrations of dietary energy until slaughter at the target live weight of 600 kg. The CF bulls consumed more dry matter (DM) of feed daily than the CH bulls (P < 0.05) and gained weight less efficiently than the CH × CF and CH animals (P < 0.01) during the entire experiment. The killing-out percentage was lower in the CF than in the CH × CF and CH (P < 0.05). The CH bulls received a higher score for carcass conformation and a lower score for carcass fatness (P < 0.01) than the CF bulls, had lower proportions of kidney and cod fat (P < 0.01) than the CH × CF and CF bulls, and produced the highest percentage of high-priced meat (P < 0.05) and the lowest percentage of separable fat (P < 0.001). The bulls on the MS diet were younger than the others at the end of the experiment (P < 0.01), gained weight more rapidly (P < 0.001), consumed less DM (P < 0.001) daily, utilized nutrients more efficiently over the entire experimental period (P < 0.001), and had a higher proportion of internal fat than the LCS bulls. It can be concluded that purebred CH bulls were superior to the other breed groups in most of the traits observed. The intensive diet based on maize silage increased average daily gains, reduced the time needed to achieve the target slaughter weight, and improved the feed efficiency of bulls.

This study was aimed at monitoring the relative and absolute stand heterogeneity of total carbon, total nitrogen and C/N ratio in Ah-Ae-Btg-Bt horizons of Gleyic Luvisol on one mountain meadow divided into two study plots: one moderately (once a season) mown (plant community of the Nardo-Callunetea class) and one abandoned for about 12 years (plant community of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea class). The heterogeneities were evaluated more than 2 months after the mowing of the moderately mown meadow at the end of July 2005. Relative stand heterogeneity was expressed using coefficient of variation (CV), absolute stand heterogeneity using the differences between maximum and minimum value. When both meadows were taken into account, the relative stand heterogeneity of total carbon in individual horizons was < 65%, < 73% (total nitrogen), and < 93% (C/N). Lower relative and absolute stand heterogeneity of these parameters was mostly on the abandoned meadow. Relatively higher differences of stand heterogeneity between the meadows were evident in deeper parts of the soil (horizon Btg) and the lowest mainly in horizon Ah (or Bt). The accelerated accumulation of dead organic matter in the autumn caused the natural difference of these inputs not to be substantially eliminated by the presence or absence of mowing. Accelerated eluviation of organic compounds of higher nitrogen content significantly (P < 0.05) decreased the C/N ratio in the Bt horizon (n = 6-8) of the abandoned meadow.