Medicinal Plants
Saeid Shiukhy Soqanloo; Mohammad Ali Gholami; Yousef Ghasemi
Abstract
IntroductionConfronting the crisis of water scarcity and the looming challenge of dwindling water resources is undeniably a grave concern. Consequently, the focus of agricultural science researchers has shifted towards the utilization of wastewater. One of the notable advantages of incorporating wastewater ...
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IntroductionConfronting the crisis of water scarcity and the looming challenge of dwindling water resources is undeniably a grave concern. Consequently, the focus of agricultural science researchers has shifted towards the utilization of wastewater. One of the notable advantages of incorporating wastewater in agriculture is the potential to curtail the expenses associated with procuring irrigation water and employing chemical fertilizers. Materials and MethodsSari has a longitude and latitude of 53°01′ E and 36°33′ N, respectively, and its weather conditions are humid according to De-marten's climate classification. Its elevation is 21 above sea level and average annual temperature and precipitation, are17.9 ºC and 650 mm, respectively). In order to evaluate the effect of water stress and urban wastewater on the concentration of heavy metals, yield and some characteristics of basil, an experiment in a factorial format based on a completely randomized design with experimental treatments including; The first factor is the source of irrigation (I): [treated wastewater (TWW) and well water (WW)], and the second factor is water stress (S): [the lowest stress (S1, S2), medium stress (S3, S4) and severe stress (S5, S6)] were performed in three replications at the research farm of Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (SANRU), Iran. Finally, the obtained data were analyzed using ANOVA of SAS9.2, and the SNK post hoc test was employed to compare treatment means. Results and DiscussionBased on the findings, Irrigation with wastewater increased plant height, stem diameter, fresh and dry weight compared to irrigation with well water. So that the highest plant height, stem diameter, wet and dry weight were related to irrigation with wastewater with 44.3 cm, 3.1 mm, 8.5 and 3.3 g, respectively. Also, the effect of using treated wastewater on chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and carotenoids was significant (P ≤ 0.01). while it did not have significant effect on flavonoid, phenol and antioxidant activity. In the lowest stress, especially the S1 level, the amount of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, carotenoid, flavonoid, phenol and antioxidant activity compared to the S6 level decreased by 63.3, 32.8, 40.7, 45.8, 46.3, 55.5, and 9.8%, respectively. while the highest amount of plant height, fresh weight, dry weight and stem diameter at the S1 level was observed with 48.6 cm, 11.5 g, 3.51 g and 3.4 mm, respectively. The result shown that the Pb and Cd concentration in basil under irrigation with wastewater was 3.4 and 2.5 mg.kg-1, respectively, which increased by 13 and 9% compared to well water. Water stress affected the Pb and Cd concentration, but the Cr and Ni concentration did not change significantly. The highest Pb and Cd concentration was related to high stress level S5 and medium stress level S4 and the lowest level was observed in the lowest stress levels (S1 and S2). Also, the results showed that the Pb and Cd concentration was affected by the interaction effect of irrigation source and water stress. Thus, the highest Pb concentration was observed in irrigation with wastewater and water stress levels S4 and S5 with 3.41 and 3.40 mg.kg-1, respectively, and the lowest was related to irrigation with well water and water stress level S1 with 2.2 mg.kg-1. The highest Cd concentration was related to irrigation with wastewater and stress levels S4 and S5 with 2.6 and 2.5 mg/kg, respectively, and the lowest amount were observed in well water irrigation and stress levels S1 and S2, with 1.51 and 1.50 mg.kg-1, respectively. while the Cr and Ni concentrations did not significant. ConclusionBased on the findings of this research, irrigation with treated wastewater and application of water stress had significant effect on the morphological and phytochemical characteristics of basil. while the use of treated wastewater was ineffective on the biochemical characteristics of basil and only water stress conditions affected their levels. The Pb and Cd concentration in basil increased under the influence of irrigation with wastewater and water stress levels. But this increase was lower than the standards authorized reported by the researchers and did not cause much concern. the results shown that the water stress levels S4 and S5 can be considered appropriate in water efficiency and recommend the use of treated wastewater in basil irrigation considering the authorized standards.
Kamran Ghasemi; Seied Mostafa Emadi; Yousef Ghasemi
Abstract
Introduction: Broccoli is one of the valuable vegetables among brassicas which has received great attention throughout the world and is cultivated both in soil and soilless culture. Currently, we face restriction in high quality of the soils and water resources as two essential inputs in agriculture. ...
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Introduction: Broccoli is one of the valuable vegetables among brassicas which has received great attention throughout the world and is cultivated both in soil and soilless culture. Currently, we face restriction in high quality of the soils and water resources as two essential inputs in agriculture. Like other parts of the world, Iran is losing hundred hectares of its arable and fertile land annually due to salinity, alkalinity and waterlogging. One of the important strategies to overcome these adverse conditions is soilless culture systems. Among the different methods of soilless culture, substrate culture is more common and cheaper than others. Different kinds of organic and inorganic substances are used in soilless culture system, but the optimum mixture of growing medium is still a challenging issue. Physical and chemical characteristics of growing media can potentially affect the yield and product quality in direct and indirect ways. A good medium for soilless culture should have easy drainage, appropriate aeration, high water holding capacity and low price, as well as no weed seeds and pathogens. Therefore, this research was aimed to evaluate different prevalent growing media in broccoli soilless culture system.
Materials and Methods: This experiment was conducted as an outdoor soilless culture system in outdoor hydroponic site in Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Recourses University (SANRU). To begin with, broccoli seeds were sown in transplanting tray, and after five weeks, the developed transplants were cultivated in growing bags in a soilless system. In this work, different mixtures of culture media were evaluated for yield component and mineral elements of broccoli. Ten kinds of different media comprising of cocopeat, perlite, sand, sawdust, sand+sawdust, sand+vermicompost, cocopeat+perlite, cocopeat+LECA, cocopeat+ pumice, and cocopeat+perlite+ vermicompost were compared in completely randomized design with tree replications. At the end of the growing season, vegetative growth and yield components of broccoli were measured. The macro nutrients including nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (k), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca) and sulfur (S) were then analyzed in the harvested broccoli. Four important micro elements such as Iron (Fe), cooper (Cu), boron (B) and zinc (Zn) were measured as well. A statistical analysis was performed using analysis of variance in Statistical Analysis System (SAS) software (version 9.1) and means were compared using Duncan’s multiple range test at 0.05 and 0.01 probability levels.
Results and Discussion: According to the results, culture medium showed no significant effect on plant height, dry matter and the number of auxiliary heads, while it significantly affected diameter and weight of main head (p≤0.01). The highest head diameter was seen in sand+vermicompost mixture which had no significant difference from cocopeat, cocopeat+LECA, and prlite+cocopeat+vemicompost. The mixture of sand+vermicompost resulted in the heaviest broccoli heads that were significantly greater than all other growing media used in the experiment. Since vermicompost contains some mineral elements like calcium, magnesium and phosphorus and some growth stimulators as well, mixing this substrate with sand can create an appropriate and ideal culture for root growth and development. Pure perlite and sawdust media contributed to the lowest yield with no significant differences from each other. The macro and micro nutrients of broccoli head were not significantly affected by growing medium, except for nitrogen and zinc. The highest concentration of nitrogen in broccoli head was recorded for pure perlite and sawdust which was significantly more than other media. The highest zinc concentration in broccoli head was observed in Sawdust medium (p≤0.05). A significant negative correlation was observed between plant height and three main macro nutrients (N, P and K). The negative correlation between some macro nutrients and plant growth can be related to the excessive amount of these elements in nutrient solution. Positive and significant correlation was also seen among plant height, head diameter and head weight. In other word, the tallest plants could produce bigger and heavier head.
Conclusion: Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that a mixture of organic and inorganic substances can be better than a single substance medium. On the other hand, our results showed that role of medium substances and composition is not as important as nutrient solution, so an appropriate nutrient solution with a proper rate can potentially provide all plant's needs regardless of media composition.
Kambiz Mashayekhi; Hossein Sadeghi; Vahid Akbarpour; Sadegh Atashi; Yousef Ghasemi; Seyyed Javad Mousavizadeh
Abstract
Carbohydrate flow between vegetative and reproductive parts of trees is one of the determining factors of yield and fruit quality. Therefore, it varies during different times of growth season. The aim of this study was to investigate the carbohydrate content variation during growth season between leaf ...
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Carbohydrate flow between vegetative and reproductive parts of trees is one of the determining factors of yield and fruit quality. Therefore, it varies during different times of growth season. The aim of this study was to investigate the carbohydrate content variation during growth season between leaf and fruit of nectarine. So, eight nectarine trees cv. Red Gold selected randomly in the orchard and after labeling two of them combined and four replications achieved for laboratory tests. Results indicated that the highest fresh (9.3 g) and dry (3.3 g) weight of the leaves recorded at the last harvesting stage. Fresh to dry weight ratio showed a descending trend than can be indicated this fact that leaf biomass is low at primary harvesting stages and increased gradually. Chlorophyll a, b and ab reached to the highest content at the last harvesting stage. Total sugar content showed an ascending trend at second and third harvesting stages and decreased at final harvesting stage. Fruit chlorophyll content also decreased by maturation and fruit ripening; while, anthocyanin content showed an ascending trend. Fruit total sugar content decreased by third stage, two weeks after pit hardening, but increased at the final harvesting stage. Sucrose content variations show a higher value at primary stages of fruit growth in comparison with next stages and decreased by final stages. Total sugar increased at the fourth stage to third harvesting stage.
