Research@Lincoln

Research@Lincoln is an open access institutional repository collecting the research produced by Lincoln University staff and students. You may also be interested in Data@Lincoln or Lincoln University Living Heritage.

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Recent Submissions

  • ItemRestricted
    Exploring pea soaking water as alternative to synthetic fertilizer: Growth and microbial analysis of pea and tomato plants
    (Nature Research, 2026-03-18) Serventi, Luca; Huang, C; Hofmann, Rainer
    Synthetic fertilizers deplete soil microbiome. Organic fertilizers lack specific nutrients for plant growth. A fertilizer that delivers essential nutrients to plants without deteriorating soil is lacking. This study investigated the viability of using pea soaking water (PSW) as substitute for synthetic fertilizers to enhance the growth of pea and tomato plants. Traits included plant growth stages, shoot and root weight, estimated chlorophyll content, and soil microbial populations. Pea plants exhibited consistent growth stages and rates of development across treatments, whereas tomato plants displayed treatment-dependent growth variations and differences in rates of development. Synthetic fertilizer (NPK) and PSW treatments increased shoot weight and chlorophyll content in both pea and tomato plants, compared with their controls. Interestingly, PSW produced comparable shoot growth to synthetic fertilizer in both crops. Root weights were similar in response to both fertilizer treatments in tomato but only increased in response to synthetic fertilizer in pea plants. Soil microbial analysis highlighted differences in Lactobacillus amount with soil supporting pea plants having higher bacteria counts. Notably, Lactobacillus amounts were reduced by 48% in the synthetic fertilizer treatment, but not by PSW, compared with the control, for tomatoes only. These findings suggest that PSW is a potential alternative to synthetic fertilizer to sustainably support plant growth. Replacement of synthetic fertilizer with PSW could reduce the environmental impact of agriculture by promoting healthy soil microbiota and preventing eutrophication, as well as reducing reliance on fertilizers. Further research is needed to explore its effect on crop yield, and applicability across crop species, field, and environmental conditions
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    Getting the measure of nature: The inconspicuous geopolitics of environmental measurement
    (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2020-02-03) Blue, B; Tadaki, Marc
    Measurements of the biophysical environment are an often overlooked yet fundamental component of geopolitical discourse. While generally considered a ‘scientific’ domain, measurements are fundamentally entangled with socially situated claims regarding what is, what might be, and what should be. Yet measurement is also distinctively more-than-social. Measures are not credible unless they can be directly related to the biophysical environment they purport to describe. This chapter explores this dual character of measurement as expressed through two episodes in which ‘good condition’ for freshwater has been articulated, measured and contested in scientific and public policy arenas. We show how measures for river health crystallize inconspicuous ideals about desired natures, and how instituting biophysical objectives for ‘swimmability’ can narrow the scope of public debate regarding environmental quality and distributive justice. An analytical focus on ecological measurement offers a valuable lens for geopolitical enquiry, providing the opportunity to investigate the processes through which environmental discourses are deployed, stabilized and potentially challenged
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    The prospect of AI-enhanced agile marketing: Boosting marketing ROI through customer engagement and sales performance
    (Emerald Group Publishing Ltd., 2026-05-04) Pu, Luoxi; Radics, Robert; Umar, Muhammad; Jeremiah, Faith; Quan, Zhi
    Purpose Given the fast-paced integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in marketing practices, this study aims to investigate how AI-enhanced marketing agility influences marketing ROI through customer engagement and sales performance in Chinese e-commerce SMEs. Design/methodology/approach Drawing from dynamic capabilities theory (DCT) and the resource-based view (RBV), and using survey data from 317 marketing managers and executives, we combined partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis and artificial neural networks (ANN) to validate our theoretical framework. Findings We examined how AI can enhance the established dimensions of marketing agility, revealing distinct operational mechanisms and value-creation pathways: AI enables marketing agility to operate through parallel dual-mediation pathways, i.e. simultaneously enhancing customer engagement and sales performance, an uncommon phenomenon under traditional resource constraints. Originality/value While previous literature has established that marketing agility enhances firm performance, this study's novelty lies in the “parallel dual mediation” framework, which extends our understanding previously confined by assumed resource trade-offs. Also, AI-enhanced agility exhibits both autonomous operation and synergistic integration, which refines linear capability–performance assumptions. These findings offer practitioners valuable insights and caveats on leveraging AI technology to enhance marketing performance.
  • ItemOpen Access
    Looking at the past to prepare ahead: Adapting Red Clover for future New Zealand climates
    (New Zealand Grassland Association, 2025-11-07) Heslop, AD; Griffiths, AG; Hofmann, RW; Jahufer, MZZ; Ford, JL; Larking, AC; Ashby, R; Hefer, CA; O’connor, J
    Developing adaptive, resilient pastural cultivars is crucial for maintaining New Zealand’s (NZ) highly productive farming sector. With growing challenges from climate change, including heat and extreme rainfall, identifying genetic material that provides resilience is vital. Wild populations, shaped by their local environmental pressures and isolation, hold unique gene makeups that can help develop climate-adaptive cultivars. In this study, we examined the genetic response of 92 internationally geographically diverse red clover populations to their source bioclimatic environments using partial redundancy analysis. The aim was to identify bioclimatic variables driving environmental adaptation and the resulting DNA variants (outlier single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)) associated with adaptation. Calculation of adaptive indices and genomic offset values enabled us to predict the suitability of these populations to future NZ environments. We found that Annual mean diurnal range, Isothermality (variance in daily temperature relative to annual variation), Mean temperature of the wettest quarter, and Precipitation seasonality underpinned adaptive genetic variation. Forty-two outlier SNPs strongly associated with key bioclimatic variables show potential as markers for climate-resilient breeding. Mapping adaptive indices and genomic offset values to NZ’s current and predicted future climates showed the genetic diversity captured in these germplasm populations could help develop future-proofed adaptive cultivars.
  • ItemOpen Access
    The isotopic signatures of nitrous oxide produced by eukaryotic and prokaryotic phototrophs
    (Copernicus Publications, 2025-05-28) Plouviez, M; Sperlich, P; Guieysse, B; Clough, Tim; Peethambaran, R; Wells, Naomi
    Prokaryotic and eukaryotic microscopic phototrophs ('microalgae') can synthesize the potent greenhouse gas and ozone depleting pollutant nitrous oxide (N₂O). However, we do not know how much microalgae contribute to aquatic N₂O emissions because these organisms co-occur with prolific N₂O producers like denitrifying and nitrifying bacteria. Here we demonstrate for the first time that microalgae produce distinct N₂O isotopic signatures that will enable us to fill this knowledge gap. The eukaryotes Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Chlorella vulgaris, and the prokaryote Microcystis aeruginosa synthesized N2O 265–755 nmol·g-DW-1·h-1 when in darkness and supplied with 10 mM nitrite (NO₂-). The N₂O isotopic composition (δ15N, δ18O, and site preference, SP) of each species was determined using a modified off-axis integrated-cavity-output spectroscopy analyser with an offline sample purification and homogenisation system. The SP values differed between eukaryotic and prokaryotic algae (25.8 ± 0.3 ‰ and 24.1 ± 0.2 ‰ for C. reinhardtii and C. vulgaris, respectively vs 2.1 ± 3.0 ‰ for M. aeruginosa), as did bulk isotope values. Both values differ from SP produced by denitrifiers. This first characterization of the N₂O isotopic fingerprints of microscopic phototrophs suggests that SP-N₂O could be used to untangle algal, bacterial, and fungal N₂O production pathways. As the presence of microalgae could influence N₂O dynamics in aquatic ecosystems, field monitoring is also needed to establish the occurrence and significance of microalgal N₂O synthesis under relevant conditions
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