Ornamental plants
B. Kaviani; N. Negahdar
Abstract
IntroductionPoinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) from the family Euphorbiaceae is used as potted and cut flower and has great importance in floriculture industry. Appropriate application of nutrients and plant growth regulators has an important role in increasing the quantity and quality of crops. The ...
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IntroductionPoinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima) from the family Euphorbiaceae is used as potted and cut flower and has great importance in floriculture industry. Appropriate application of nutrients and plant growth regulators has an important role in increasing the quantity and quality of crops. The successful application of various nanoplatforms in medicine under in vitro conditions has generated some interest in agro-nanotechnology. This technology holds the promise of controlled release of agrochemicals and site-specific targeted delivery to improve efficient nutrient utilization and enhanced plant growth. Nanoencapsulation shows the benefit of more efficient use and safer handling of pesticides with less exposure to the environment. Thus, nanofertilizers can be substituted for conventional fertilizers. The role of iron in the activity of some enzymes such as catalase, peroxidase and cytochrome oxidase has been demonstrated. Iron is present as a cofactor in the structure of many enzymes. The results of some studies showed that in the absence of micro-nutrients elements, the activity of some antioxidant enzymes decreased, which resulted in increased sensitivity of plants to environmental stresses. The use of nano-iron fertilizer is an appropriate solution to remove this problem. Some growth retardants such as cycocel, paclobutrazol, bayleton and daminozide reduced the plant growth. Growth reduction in some ornamental plants enhances their overall quality and marketing. Cycocel is one of the most important growth retardants which inhibits gibberellin biosynthesis and activity in plant. Today, a range of artificially made growth-reducing compounds are used in the floriculture industry. The effect of plant growth retardants, depends on the time and method of application, concentration, species and varieties type, type of target organ and environmental and physiological conditions. Plant growth retardants reduce the division and elongation of stem cells. These compounds also reduce stem length and growth by having a negative effect on gibberellin structure. Therefore, the present study investigated the effect of different levels of nano-iron fertilizer and different concentrations of cycocel on growth and development of poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd.). Materials and Methods These experiments were carried out based on a randomized completely block design in three replications to evaluate the effect of various levels of nano iron chelated fertilizer and cycocel on growth parameters of Euphorbia pulcherrima. Cuttings with a height of 15 to 20 cm, each with 3 nodes, were prepared from the mother plant of poinsettia. Cuttings were placed in water within 24 hours for exudation of latex. Then, cuttings were planted in perlite for rooting. After rooting (60-65 days), cuttings were transferred into substrates including cocopeat, municipal compost and soil in ratio of 1:1:1. Poinsettia cuttings were grown in pots. Treatments include nano-iron fertilizer (0, 0.9, 1.8, 3.6 and 4.5 g.l–1) and cycocel (0, 500, 1000, 1500 and 3000 mg.l–1). Application of EDTA-based nano-iron chelate as foliar spray was performed on plants at the beginning of the experiment and 30 days later, as well as the use of cycocel 30 days after the start of the experiment as foliar spray. Stem height, internode length, node number, root length, root number, root volume, leaf number, leaf surface, leaf total chlorophyll content, iron content in leaf and the number and longevity of bracts were evaluated. Results and Discussion Results showed that the lowest plant height and the highest leaf number, root length, root volume, the number and longevity of bracts were obtained in treatments of 1.8 g.l–1 nano-iron chelate without or with the concentration of 1000 mg.l–1 cycocel. In some traits such as root volume and chlorophyll content, the minimum amount was calculated in the maximum of nano-iron chelate and cycocel concentrations. Suitable root characters were severely reduced through the use of 3000 mg.l–1 cycocel. Overall, the most suitable treatment, especially for reduction of stem height and enhancing some vegetative traits (such as leaf number) and flowering (such as bract longevity) was 1.8 g.l–1 nano-iron chelate along with 1000 mg.l–1 cycocel. Research has demonstrated that cycocel application reduces plant height in various species, including ornamental plants, as confirmed by this study. Furthermore, this study reveals a novel effect of cycocel: it alters the weight of both aerial and underground plant parts, alongside influencing leaf iron and chlorophyll content. Notably, plant growth retardants like cycocel are known to increase cytokinin content, which in turn can lead to elevated leaf chlorophyll levels.
Reza Rezaee; Faranak Naghilou
Abstract
Introduction: Persian walnut (Juglans regia L.) is an important nut crop in Iran and many parts of the world. One of the major challenges of growing walnut is planting of non-grafted walnut trees in orchards, which leads to the reduction of yield, quality and productivity of walnut orchards. Compared ...
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Introduction: Persian walnut (Juglans regia L.) is an important nut crop in Iran and many parts of the world. One of the major challenges of growing walnut is planting of non-grafted walnut trees in orchards, which leads to the reduction of yield, quality and productivity of walnut orchards. Compared to the other fruit trees, walnut grafting is difficult and even newly grafted walnut seedlings are vulnerable to fall or winter frost chilling, so that most of the seedlings are lost after subjecting to the cold winter. There are a few studies reporting successful grafting in outdoor conditions, however, final grafting take after winter has been usually ignored. Hence, increased walnut grafting success and improved tree growth after grafting through foliar nutrient application may lead to increased tolerance of chilling. Therefore, main goals of this research were to investigate the effect of some graft covers and role of foliar spray of calcium, boron and zinc on the reduction of frost damage in newly grafted seedlings under outdoor conditions.
Materials and methods: This research was conducted at agricultural research station, Khoy city, west Azerbaijan province, during 2012-2014. In the first experiment, three methods of grafting including cleft, bark and V-shaped, and two kinds of graft covers including moist sawdust and superabsorbent plus cotton wool were investigated in terms of grafting success and quality of seedlings. In the second experiment, effect of the three above-mentioned grafting methods and two levels of foliar spray including sequential spray of Ca (4 ppm), B and Zn (2%) (3 times during growth season) and control (no spray) were studied in terms of frost damage. The experiments conducted in factorial based on randomized complete block design with 10 trees in each plot. Data were collected 45 days after grafting take, final grafting take after one winter, subsequent scion growth length and diameter and concentration of Ca, B and Zn in the tissues of shoot tips as well as percentage of frost damage one year after grafting. The collected data were transformed by relevant methods and analyzed by GLM analysis using SPSS software.
Results and discussion: According to the results obtained from the first experiment, significant differences were observed among grafting methods and grafting covers in terms of grafting success and scion growth. Cleft grafting with the grafting take of 47.4% after 45 days was ranked as the best method, followed by bark and V-shaped grafting methods with 40.0 and 35.0 %, respectively. Meanwhile, V-shaped grafting method finally showed the highest grafting take with 46.6%. The effect of grafting type was also significant for scion shoot length and diameter, with the highest scion growth obtaining from bark grafting method. Regarding the effect of cover types, significant differences were found between the two types of covers, so that the highest grafting take (75.5%) obtained from moist sawdust cover compared to the lowest grafting take (11.1%) from super absorbent plus cotton wool cover. The increase found in grafting success by sawdust cover was in agreement with the previous reports. This increase can be attributed to the buffering action of sawdust in absorbing xylem sap, provision of moist and aerated conditions suitable for better callus formation and subsequent scion growth without any wood rot symptoms around the graft area. The results of the second part of the research also revealed that percentage of frost to dieback of shoots varied statistically among the three grafting methods. The lowest frost damage (17.5%) was related to the cleft followed by V-shaped grafting method (20.0%). The highest frost damage (24.6%) was observed on scion woods grafted by bark grafting method. Results related to foliar spray showed that spray of Ca, B and Zn caused a significant reduction in frost damage percentage. In the sprayed plots, the average of frost damage was only 11.6% compared to the control plot with the damage rate of 29.4%. Moreover, foliar spray statistically increased the concentration of related elements in vegetative tissues of scion.
Conclusion: Based on the results, using V-shaped, cleft and bark grating methods covered with moist sawdust were effective for the increase of graft success percentage. Spraying of young grafted trees with Ca, B and Zn was also effective to reduce frost damage and is thus recommended in walnut nurseries. Moreover, there was a significant interaction between grafting method and spraying treatments in terms of balanced scion growth and higher contents of mineral in scion tissues, indicating that choosing an appropriate method of grafting and spraying can be effective in the reduction of frost damage. In this study, the lowest frost injury was observed with cleft grafting and spraying treatments due to relatively reduced scion growth as well as higher content of minerals in scion tissues.
Mohammad Ali Askari; Mesbah Babalar; Marjan Sadat Hosseini; Majid Amani Beni
Abstract
The current study was conducted in order to evaluate the effect of Mono and Di-potassium phosphate combination (MDKP) on some quantitative and qualitative characteristics of Iranian pomegranate (CV. Malas-e-Saveh) in Pomegranate Research Center of Saveh city, in 2012. To adjust the pH of the solution, ...
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The current study was conducted in order to evaluate the effect of Mono and Di-potassium phosphate combination (MDKP) on some quantitative and qualitative characteristics of Iranian pomegranate (CV. Malas-e-Saveh) in Pomegranate Research Center of Saveh city, in 2012. To adjust the pH of the solution, the Mono Potassium Phosphate and Di-Potassium Phosphate combined with each other in the ratio of 1:3, and their combined effects (Mono and Di-potassium phosphate) were studied. This experiment was carried out based on randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four concentrations of MDKP (0, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.2%) at two stages (Full bloom stage and one month after full bloom) and three replications per treatment. The results showed that foliar spray at concentrations of 0.1% and 0.2% resulted in significant increase in yield per tree, fruit number, Titrable Acidity (TA) compared to control treatment, so that 0.1% spraying caused 12/16% increase in yield per tree and 9/17% enhancement in fruit number in comparison to control treatment. Furthermore, foliar spray brought about significant enhancement in aril juice and color intensity of extract in which the highest amount of aril juice and color intensity of extract was obtained in 0.2 % and 0.1 % treatments, respectively. Foliar spray at 0.2 % concentration resulted in the reduction of Total Soluble Solids/Titrable Acidity ratio by 10% compared to control treatment. In conclusion, the results of this study show that MDKP spray at 0.1 % concentration was more effective than other concentrations.
Soheila Kamari; Gholamali Peyvast; Mahmood Ghasemnejad
Abstract
Humic acid, which has hormone- like activity , not only enhances plant growth and nutrients uptake but also improve stress tolerance. To determine the effect of humic acid on the yield and vegetative characteristics of tomato an experiment was conducted with tomato cv. `Isabela` in 2008 in a plastic ...
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Humic acid, which has hormone- like activity , not only enhances plant growth and nutrients uptake but also improve stress tolerance. To determine the effect of humic acid on the yield and vegetative characteristics of tomato an experiment was conducted with tomato cv. `Isabela` in 2008 in a plastic tunnel at the Agriculture Faculty, Guilan University using randomized completely design with four treatments (0, 1, 2, 3 mg l-1 humic acid) and three replications. Humic acid was sprayed four times during the vegetation period with 10- day intervals after three weeks of planting. Results showed that humic acid could affect significantly (P
Samira Mataei; Mehdi Tajbakhsh; Reza Amirnia; Babak Abdollahi Mandoulakani
Abstract
In order to evaluate effects of iron, zinc and manganese, and the methods of applying them on yield and yield components of sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata), an experiment was performed as factorial based on randomized complete block design with four replications at the research farm of Urmia University. ...
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In order to evaluate effects of iron, zinc and manganese, and the methods of applying them on yield and yield components of sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata), an experiment was performed as factorial based on randomized complete block design with four replications at the research farm of Urmia University. Experimental factors were micronutrient fertilizers with four levels (control, iron, zinc and manganese) and micronutrient applying method with two levels (foliar and soil application). Soil application of micronutrients before sowing and foliar application of these elements in two stages (knee Stage and before tasseling stage) were applied. Results indicated that interaction between experimental factors on biological and protein yield and micronutrients use efficiency in grain yield was significant. Also, in micronutrients applying method, foliar application compared to soil application was caused increasing in grain yield, leaf chlorophyll, soluble sugars yield, sugar harvest index and micronutrients use efficiency in sugar yield. Applying three types of micronutrients were increased significantly leaf chlorophyll, grain soluble sugars yield and sugar harvest index compared to control .Grain harvest index was not affected by any of the experimental factors. Based on results, application of micronutrient elements enhance the quality and economic yield of sweet corn and foliar application of micronutrients was showed better results than soil application.
