In this study, the effects of heat-moisture treatment (boiling or steaming for 45 min) prior to hot air drying (70 o C for 8 h) on water activity (Aw), moisture (MC), Brix, color, and texture of dried sweet potato slices were investigated to identify the best pretreatment condition for producing dried sweet potato with the best eating quality. Dried sweet potato slices pretreated by boiling (BL) showed significantly lower Aw, MC, and hardness while Brix was significantly higher than with steaming (ST) treatment. There were no significant differences for the color, springiness, cohesiveness, gumminess, and brittleness indexes. At 8 h drying, the Aw, MC, Brix, and hardness of the BL and ST samples were 0.81 and 0.82, 19.71% and 25.53%, 53.80% and 49.40%, and 20.49 kg/cm 2 and 31.98 kg/ cm 2 , respectively. This information will be useful for manufacturers in the production of dried sweet potato slices. These findings provide evidence of the feasibility of heat-moisture treatments in the production of dried sweet potato.

As the hangover relieving drink market has been expanded, there have been efforts to produce traditional drinks that can be easily taken through reducing material costs after finding materials with high alcohol-degrading activity from agricultural products and manufacturing drinks in a way to produce sikhye. Studies were made to know quality, the ability to relieve hangover and preference of drinks for which seven kinds of agricultural products, including shiitake mushrooms, were added in the forms of fresh juice, extracts and powder. Farm products showed the highest acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) when they were added in the form of powder before saccharification and shiitake mushrooms showed the highest enzyme activity when they were added in the form of powder. When added in the form of powder, people showed the lowest preference except when radish and hericium erinaceum were added. When bear puree was added to a mixture of powdered shiitake mushrooms, radish, bean sprouts and dadagi cucumber, enzyme activity got higher and people showed higher preference. An experiment of animal behaviors showed that the mixture had a high ability to relieve hangover in one or two hours after 10% or 40% alcohol was orally administered to mice due to long traveling distance of mice.

This study was conducted to investigate the anti-bacterial effect of chlorine dioxide (ClO2) on extending thevase life of Gerbera jamesonii ‘Jenny’ which was first bredin Korea in 2012. Compared to commercialized biocides,ClO2 had been proved significantly effective for extendingthe vase life of cut gerbera flowers, equally with sodiumhypochlorite, silver nitrate, and 8-hydroxyquinoline sulfate.No bacteria were detected in the vase solutions treated withClO2 and these commercialized biocides on day 6 aftertreatment. But there were no significant differences on thevase life among the three ClO2 concentrations: 2, 5, and10μL•L−1. The ClO2 concentrations were rapidly decreasedon day 2 after treatment regardless of peduncle existence.Nevertheless, the antibacterial effect of ClO2 was main-tained up to day 6, indicating that the initial antibacterialeffect of ClO2 was a key factor for extending the vase life inthe gerbera flowers. The study results verified the antibacte-rial effect of ClO2 on prolonging the vase life of Gerberajamesonii ‘Jenny’ and demonstrated that appropriate ClO2application can prolong the postharvest life of cut gerberasvia its antimicrobial effect.

Currently, flies are used to pollinate Welsh onion for seed production. However, the use of flies for pollination has caused problems in Welsh onion seed production due to sanitation issues, smell, and the difficulty of feeding the flies. Therefore, we investigated the effects of pollination with bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), flies (e.g., houseflies, flesh flies, blue bottle flies), mason bees (Osmia cornifrons), honeybees (Apis mellifera) and blowflies (Lucilia illustris) in a small net screen house (2.2m×1.7m×2.5m) for onion seed production. Although the number of flies was about three times than that of other insect pollinators, fies and bumblebees showed equivalent pollination ratios, but the remaining three insect species showed lower values. For the percentage of seed set per umbel, the number of seeds per flower and umbel, bumblebees and flies showed similar results. These results showed that pollination by bumblebees can be used as an alternative approach in breeding Welsh onion. An analysis of the most appropriate colony of bumblebees for use as pollinators for breeding Welsh onion in a small net screen house showed that colony of fifty to eighty bees was the most efficient level. The visiting time on the flower and spending time from a flower to another flower of B. terrestris worker on small net screen house was 2.2 seconds and 1.8 seconds, respectively.

Jeon-Nam province has the largest number of managed honey bee(Apis cerana) colonies before 2009 years ago, which produce the highest quantity of honey in the Korea; however, almost colony were collapsed by Sacbrood Virus(SBV) in jeon-nam apiaries. We thus conducted a molecular survey of honey bee RNA viruses, Nosema microsporidia, Foul broods and fungal disease(Chalk brood and Stone brood) associated with environmental conditions in apiaries and differential A. cerana hives in Joun-nam province. We found the presence of black queen cell virus (BQCV), Israel Acute Paralysis Virus and Nosema apis. Sacbrood virus(SBV) was detected in the tested samples. Our results demonstrate that honey bee RNA viruses and N. apis are present in joen-nam province apiaries, and some might be related environment conditions(temperature and moisture).

To increase the fruit quality and productivity of the apricot, 2 species of insects, Apis mellifer, and Bombus terrestris were used for pollination in apricot field in Yeongcheon province. This study was conducted using 3 kinds of methods for pollination effect, natural condition, net-house treatment and control method. Also this experiment carried out in 2 places, vinyl-house and field condition. In case of field treatment of Apis mellifera, heating lamp experiment was added in net-house to find out the reason for harmful efficacy of low temperature early in the spring. Species of apricot, Mangum, was used in this experiment. A number of foraging activity of Apis mellifera and Bombus terrestris in vinyl-house showed higher than in field condition. But after stoping heating, showed low efficacy after showing peak in 1 PM. In field, Apis mellifera showed peak of foraging activity from 1 to 3PM, heating lamp experiment of field condition showed peak in 3 PM and then lowest tendency to evening suddenly. The fruit set rate of Apis mellifera and Bombus terrestris in vinyl-house showed higher with 92% and 89% respectively than control with 83%. In field, heating lamp treatment of Apis melliferawas was highest with 28% compared to Bombus terrestris with 25% and control with 15%. This results suppose that apricot in field was to be harmed by low temperature and frost in blooming time early in spring

We investigated nesting and foraging behavior of Korean mason bees, Osmia cornifrons Radoszkowski, during apple orchard pollination. When O. cornifrons was nesting, the oviposit and store pollens were taken an average 118.54±15.88 second and constructing cell partition was an average 109.33±62.09 second. At foraging, collecting pollens was timed at an average 699.89±81.87 second, and carrying mud was measured an average 464.88±151.17 second. Nesting and foraging behavior of O. cornifrons were influenced by weather conditions, especially, temperature, luminance and wind. When the luminance was more than 20,000lux and temperature was more than 20℃, O. cornifrons was more actively nesting and foraging. But, nesting and foraging of O. cornifrons were rapidly dropped when the wind blew at the speed more than 5m/s. The correlation analysis showed that foraging behavior is weak positive correlation with luminance, temperature and nesting. On the other hand, there is negative correlation between wind and the behavior of O. cornifrons. The most effective factor was luminance among the factors affecting the weather condition by regression analysis. Therefore, if weather conditions is low luminance, low temperature and strong wind, it will be better not to use O. cornifrons during apple pollination.

The average ratio of the daily UV-B to total solar (75) irradiance at Busan (35.23˚N, 129.07˚E) in Korea is found as 0.11%. There is also a high exponential relationship between hourly UV-B and total solar irradiance: UV-B=exp (a× (75-b))(R2=0.9 0.93). The daily variation of total ozone is compared with the UV-B irradiance at Pohang (36.03˚N, 129.40˚E) in Korea using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) data during the period of May to July in 2005. The total ozone (TO) has been maintained to a decreasing trend since 1979, which leading to a negative correlation with the ground-level UV-B irradiance doting the given period of cloudless day: UV-B=239.23-0.056 TO (R2=0.5 0.52). The statistical predictions of daily total ozone are analyzed by using the data of the Brewer spectrophotometer and TOMS in East Asia including the Korean peninsula. The long-term monthly averages of total ozone using the multiplicative seasonal AutoRegressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model are used to predict the hourly mean UV-B irradiance by interpolating the daily mean total ozone far the predicting period. We also can predict the next day's total ozone by using regression models based on the present day's total ozone by TOMS and the next day's predicted maximum air temperature by the Meteorological Mesoscale Model 5 (MM5). These predicted and observed total ozone amounts are used to input data of the parameterization model (PM) of hourly UV-B irradiance. The PM of UV-B irradiance is based on the main parameters such as cloudiness, solar zenith angle, total ozone, opacity of aerosols, altitude, and surface albedo. The input data for the model requires daily total ozone, hourly amount and type of cloud, visibility and air pressure. To simplify cloud effects in the model, the constant cloud transmittance are used. For example, the correlation coefficient of the PM using these cloud transmissivities is shown high in more than 0.91 for cloudy days in Busan, and the relative mean bias error (RMBE) and the relative root mean square error (RRMSE) are less than 21% and 27%, respectively. In this study, the daily variations of calculated and predicted UV-B irradiance are presented in high correlation coefficients of more than 0.86 at each monitoring site of the Korean peninsula as well as East Asia. The RMBE is within 10% of the mean measured hourly irradiance, and the RRMSE is within 15% for hourly irradiance, respectively. Although errors are present in cloud amounts and total ozone, the results are still acceptable.