Debbie Sparkes

Contact

• workRoom 330 South Laboratory
  Sutton Bonington Campus
  Sutton Bonington
  Leicestershire
  LE12 5RD
  UK
• work0115 951 6074
• fax0115 951 6060
• debbie.sparkes@nottingham.ac.uk

Research Summary

My research interests fall within two main areas; crop physiology and sustainable agriculture. Current and recent research includes:

• Exploiting resource use efficiency and resilience of ancient wheat species. A combination of early domestication of crop plants and modern plant breeding has led to reduced genetic diversity in crop species compared to their wild progenitors making them more susceptible to biotic and abiotic stresses. This narrow gene pool makes it difficult to select for crop varieties that perform well in harsh environments. Landraces and progenitors of modern genotypes could provide the genetic diversity required to maintain genetic progress of crops such as wheat. Preliminary data indicates that spelt has a higher radiation use efficiency than bread wheat, and that emmer may have a higher water use efficiency. This project will test the preliminary data collected to date by repeating the evaluation of the ancient wheat species in terms of radiation capture and conversion (fractional interception, biomass production, radiation use efficiency, harvest index and grain yield) to see whether these trends are consistent across seasons and growing conditions. The experiment will compare spelt, einkorn and emmer with a range of elite varieties of wheat currently in use in the UK. In addition, water use efficiency, N uptake efficiency and N utilisation efficiency will be examined. The experiment will be established on organically managed land and also repeated on conventional land with the use of nitrogenous fertilisers, pesticides etc., to see whether this changes the relative performance of the species.

• Bioenergy from wheat straw. Wheat straw represents a potential source of biomass for the production of liquid transportation fuels to replace petrol. However, wheat needs to be optimised for several key parameters to make this process more effective. A wide range of wheat germplasm (elite cultivars, advanced breeding lines, mutant populations) is available and these will be characterised for biomass production, partitioning between grain and straw, and cell wall deconstruction and subsequent fermentation to ethanol. This will be carried out as both field experiments and glasshouse screens in 2009/10 and 2010/11. Rapid assessment measures will be developed in the same experiments to identify traits correlated with these three important parameters and to determine which could then be used to select for more efficient biofuel production.

Selected Publications

• SPARKES, D.L. and KING, M., 2008. Disentangling the effects of PAR and R:FR on lodging associated characters of wheat Annals of Applied Biology. 152, 1-9
• SPARKES, D.L, BERRY, P.M. and KING, M., 2008. Effect of shade on root characters associated with lodging Annals of Applied Biology. 152, 389-395
• GAJU, O., REYNOLDS, M.P., SPARKES, D.L. and FOULKES, M.J., 2009. Relationships between large-spike phenotypes, grain number and yield potential in spring wheat Crop Science. 49(3), 961-973
• ATKINSON, B.S., SPARKES, D.L. and MOONEY, S.J., 2009. The impact of soil structure on the establishment of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) European Journal of Agronomy. 30(4), 243-257

• View all publications

• FRASER, R, BOGAARD, A, HEATON, T, CHARLES, M, JONES, G, CHRISTENSEN, BT, HALSTEAD, P, MERBACH, I, POULTON, PR, SPARKES, D and STYRING, A, 2011. Manuring and stable nitrogen isotope ratios in cereals and pulses: towards a new archaeobotanical approach to the inference of land use and dietary practices Journal of Archaelogical Science. 38, 2790-2804
• SPARKES DL, 2010. Are ‘ancient wheat species’ more adapted to hostile environments than modern bread wheat? South African Journal of Plant and Soil. 27, 331-333
• GAJU, O., REYNOLDS, M.P., SPARKES, D.L. and FOULKES, M.J., 2009. Relationships between large-spike phenotypes, grain number and yield potential in spring wheat Crop Science. 49(3), 961-973
• ATKINSON, B.S., SPARKES, D.L. and MOONEY, S.J., 2009. The impact of soil structure on the establishment of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) European Journal of Agronomy. 30(4), 243-257
• ATKINSON, B.S., SPARKES, D.L. and MOONEY, S.J., 2009. Effect of seedbed cultivation and soil macrostructure on the establishment of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) Soil and Tillage Research. 103(2), 291-301
• MALNOU, C.S., JAGGARD, K.W. and SPARKES, D.L., 2008. Nitrogen fertilizer and the efficiency of the sugar beet crop in late summer European Journal of Agronomy. 28(1), 47-56
• SPARKES, D.L, BERRY, P.M. and KING, M., 2008. Effect of shade on root characters associated with lodging Annals of Applied Biology. 152, 389-395
• SPARKES, D.L. and KING, M., 2008. Disentangling the effects of PAR and R:FR on lodging associated characters of wheat Annals of Applied Biology. 152, 1-9
• NYARKO, G., ALDERSON, P.G., CRAIGON, J., MURCHIE, E. and SPARKES, D.L., 2008. Comparison of cell membrane thermostability and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters for the determination of heat tolerance in ten cabbage lines Journal of Horticultural Science and Biotechnology. 83, 678-682
• ATKINSON, B.S., SPARKES, D.L. and MOONEY, S.J., 2007. Using selected soil physical properties of seedbeds to predict crop establishment Soil and Tillage Research. 97, 218-228
• ROLLETT, A and WILSON, P. AND SPARKES, D.L., 2007. The Economic Legacy of Stockless Organic Conversion Strategies Biological Agriculture and Horticulture. 25(2), 103-122
• NYARKO, G, ALDERSON, P.G, CRAIGON, J and SPARKES, D.L., 2007. Induction and generation of flowering plants in cabbage by seed vernalization, gibberellic acid and ratooning Journal of Horticultural Science and Biotechnology. 82, 346-350
• ATKINSON, BS, SPARKES, DL and MOONEY, SJ, 2007. Using Selected Soil Physical Properties Of Seedbeds To Predict Crop Establishment Soil & Tillage Research. 97(2), 218-228
• WILSON, P AND SPARKES, D.L., 2007. Carbon Footprint of Weed Control In: British Crop Production Conference, Peterborough 31st October, 2007.
• ROLLETT, A.J., SPARKES, D.L. and WILSON, P., 2007. The legacy of stockless organic conversion strategies Annals of Applied Biology. 150(1), 107-113
• SPARKES, D., WILSON, P. and ROLLETT, A., 2006. Investigating the long term impact of organic conversion strategies
• MALNOU, C. S., JAGGARD, K. W. and SPARKES, D. L., 2006. A canopy approach to nitrogen fertilizer recommendations for the sugar beet crop European Journal of Agronomy. VOL 25(NUMBER 3), 254-263
• SPARKES, D.L., HOLME, S.J. and GAJU, O., 2006. Does light quality initiate tiller death in wheat? European Journal of Agronomy. 24(3), 212-217
• MWALE, S. S., AZAM-ALI, S. N. and SPARKES, D. L., 2005. Can the PR1 capacitance probe replace the neutron probe for routine soil-water measurement? Soil Use and Management. VOL 21(NUMB 3), 340-347
• GIBBONS, J.M., SPARKES, D.L., WILSON, P. and RAMSDEN, S.J., 2005. Modelling optimal strategies for decreasing nitrate loss with variation in weather - a farm-level approach Agricultural Systems. 83(2), 113-134
• HUXHAM, S.K., SPARKES, D.L. and WILSON, P., 2005. The effect of conversion strategy on the yield of the first organic crop Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment. 106(4), 345-357
• WHALEY, J. M., KIRBY, E. J., SPINK, J. H., FOULKES, M. J. and SPARKES, D. L., 2004. Frost damage to winter wheat in the UK: the effect of plant population density European Journal of Agronomy. VOL 21(NUMBER 1), 105-115
• HUXHAM, S.K., WILSON, P. and SPARKES, D.L., 2004. Economic analysis of conversion strategies for stockless organic production Biological Agriculture and Horticulture. 22(3), 289-303
• SPARKES, D.L., WILSON, P. and HUXHAM, S.K., 2003. Organic Conversion Strategies for Stockless Farming. Final Report submitted to HGCA Project 2313
• MALNOU,C.S., JAGGARD,K.W. and SPARKES,D.L, 2003. A canopy approach to nitrogen recommendations for the sugarbeet crop. Zuckerindustrie. 128(9), 673-678
• SPARKES, D.L., 2003. Growth and development: Applications to field crops. In: Encyclopedia of Applied Plant Sciences 595
• BERRY, P.M., STERLING, M., BAKER, C.J., SPINK, J. and SPARKES, D.L., 2003. A calibrated model of wheat lodging compared with field measurements Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 119(3-4), 167-180
• HUXHAM, S.K., SPARKES, D.L. and WILSON, P., 2002. Organic conversion strategies for stockless farming systems In: Proceedings of the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference. 51-52
• RAMSDEN, S.J., GIBBONS, J., SPARKES, D.L. and WILSON, P., 2001. Predicting the Response of Farming Systems to Strategies for Controling Nitrogen Loss. Project number NT1844 submitted to DEFRA, October 2001.
• WHALEY, J. M., SPARKES, D. L., FOULKES, M. J., SPINK, J. H., SEMERE, T. and SCOTT, R. K., 2000. The physiological response of winter wheat to reductions in plant density Annals of Applied Biology. VOL 137(PART 2), 165-177
• SPINK, J. H., SEMERE, T., SPARKES, D. L., WHALEY, J. M., FOULKES, M. J., CLARE, R. W. and SCOTT, R. K., 2000. Effect of sowing date on the optimum plant density of winter wheat Annals of Applied Biology. VOL 137(PART 2), 179-188
• SYLVESTER-BRADLEY, R., LORD, E., SPARKES, D. L., SCOTT, R. K., WILTSHIRE, J. J. J. and ORSON, J., 1999. An analysis of the potential of precision farming in Northern Europe Soil Use and Management. VOL 15(NUMBER 1), 1-8
• SPARKES, D. L., RAMSDEN, S. J., JAGGARD, K. W. and SCOTT, R. K., 1998. The case for headland set-aside: consideration of whole-farm gross margins and grain production on two farms with contrasting rotations Annals of Applied Biology. VOL 133(NUMBER 2), 245-256
• SPARKES, D. L., JAGGARD, K. W., RAMSDEN, S. J. and SCOTT, R. K., 1998. The effect of field margins on the yield of sugar beet and cereal crops Annals of Applied Biology. VOL 132(NUMBER 1), 129-142
• SPARKES, D.L., JAGGARD, K.W., RAMSDEM, S.J. and SCOTT, R.K., 1998. The case for headland set-aside in sugar beet rotations. In: Proceedings of the 61st Congress of the International Institute for Beet Research International Institute for Beet Research, Brussels, Belgium. 35-44
• BULLARD, M.J. and SPARKES, D.L., 1997. Biological N fixation in wheat: an assessment of the potential of the diazotrophic bacterium <i>Azorhizobium caulinodans</i> for UK cereal production. In: MAFF Final Project Report STO 142 18
• SPARKES, D.L., JAGGARD, K.W., RAMSDEN, S.J. and SCOTT, R.K., 1996. Headland set-aside in sugar beet rotations British Sugar Beet Review. 64(3), Dec-14