Influence of ventilation and media on potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tuberization and its growth characteristics

Considering the most suitable relationship between ventilation and media in this study, two mixtures of perlite and coir (3:1, light and 1:3, heavy v/v) were applied to determine the growth characteristics var. Sante of potato plantlets. As potato has high potential in minituber production, different levels of supplemental aeration (0, 12.5, 25 and 75%, v/v/min) were compared for providing root oxygen demand and increasing potato minituber yield. Applying sufficient aeration led to significant increase in dry matter, number, size, quality of minituber and most of the growth parameters such as leaf area index (LAI), leaf area index duration (LAID), harvest index (HI) and root : shoot ratio. The results showed that by applying aeration at 25% (v/v/min), tuber yield was increased significantly up to 162% and increase in tuber number was predominant at the rate of 3678 tuber/m2. Desirable performance of aerated plant can be resulted from root oxygen demand of potato which is higher than normal ventilation in media. Heavy media was more responsive to aeration than light one. Thus, aeration at 25 and 12.5% (v/v/min) in heavy and light media respectively was considered as favorable level in rizo-sphere and had positive effect on tuberization

Characterization of indigenous populations of cannabis in Iran: a morphological and phenological study

Abstract Background Cannabis is a historically, culturally, and economically significant crop in human societies, owing to its versatile applications in both industry and medicine. Over many years, native cannabis populations have acclimated to the various environments found throughout Iran, resulting in rich genetic and phenotypic diversity. Examining phenotypic diversity within and between indigenous populations is crucial for effective plant breeding programs. This study aimed to classify indigenous cannabis populations in Iran to meet the needs of breeders and breeding programs in developing new cultivars. Results Here, we assessed phenotypic diversity in 25 indigenous populations based on 12 phenological and 14 morphological traits in male and female plants. The extent of heritability for each parameter was estimated in both genders, and relationships between quantitative and time-based traits were explored. Principal component analysis (PCA) identified traits influencing population distinctions. Overall, populations were broadly classified into early, medium, and late flowering groups. The highest extent of heritability of phenological traits was found in Start Flower Formation Time in Individuals (SFFI) for females (0.91) Flowering Time 50% in Individuals (50% of bracts formed) (FT50I) for males (0.98). Populations IR7385 and IR2845 exhibited the highest commercial index (60%). Among male plants, the highest extent of Relative Growth Rate (RGR) was observed in the IR2845 population (0.122 g.g− 1.day− 1). Finally, populations were clustered into seven groups according to the morphological traits in female and male plants. Conclusions Overall, significant phenotypic diversity was observed among indigenous populations, emphasizing the potential for various applications. Early-flowering populations, with their high RGR and Harvest Index (HI), were found as promising options for inclusion in breeding programs. The findings provide valuable insights into harnessing the genetic diversity of indigenous cannabis for diverse purposes

Antifungal Effects of <i>Zataria multiflora</i> Essential Oil on the Inhibitory Growth of some Postharvest Pathogenic Fungi

The present study aimed to determine minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum fungicidal concentration of the essential oil of Zataria multiflora to control Alternaria solani, Rhizoctonia solani, Rhizopus stolonifer, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus ochraceus and Aspergillus niger. The essential oil of Zataria multiflora was tested in vitro on PDA (malt extract agar medium) with eight concentrations: 0, 10, 50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900 and 1000 ppm. This investigation followed the completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. GC-MS evaluations of the essential oil revealed that thymol (35%), carvacrol (34%), cymene-p (9.89%), gamma-terpinene (5.88%) and alpha-pinene (4.22%) were the main compounds of Zataria multiflora oil. The results showed that the essential oil of Zataria multiflora has antifungal activity; the lowest inhibition (75%) was observed in the A. niger, while the highest inhibition (95.3%) was observed in A. solani. Minimum inhibitory concentration for A. solani, R. solani, R. stolonifer, A. flavus, A. ochraceus and A. niger was 200, 200, 200, 300, 300 and 200 ppm respectively. In addition, the present results showed that minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) for A. solani, R. solani, R .stolonifer, A. niger and A.ochraceus was 600, 400, 300, 900 and 700 ppm respectively and none of the tested concentrations were fatal for A. flavus. A. solani and R. solani showed a strong sensitivity to Zataria multiflora essential oil at all concentrations. Findings of the current study suggest that essential oils of Zataria multiflora could be used for control of postharvest phytopathogenic fungi on fruits or vegetables

Antifungal activity of Zataria multiflora essential oil-loaded solid lipid nanoparticles in-vitro condition

Objective(s): The aim of the present study was to prepare, characterize, and evaluate solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) containing Zataria multiflora essential oil (ZEO). Materials and Methods: In this study, Z. multiflora essential oil-loaded solid lipid nanoparticles (ZE-SLNs) were prepared to improve its efficiency in controlling some fungal pathogens. SLNs containing Z. multiflora essential oil were prepared by high shear homogenization and ultra sound technique. ZEO-SLNs contained 0.03% ZEO in 5% of lipid phase (Glyceryl monostearate-GMS and Precirol® ATO 5).Tween 80 and Poloxamer 188 (2.5% w/v) were used as surfactant in the aqueous phase. The antifungal efficacy of ZE-SLNs and ZEO was compared under in vitro conditions. Results:The particle size of ZE-SLNs was around 255.5±3 nm with PDI of 0.369±0.05 and zeta potential was about -37.8±0.8 mV. Encapsulation efficacy of ZE-SLNs in crystalline form was 84±0.92%. The results showed that the ZEO and ZE-SLNs had 54 and 79% inhibition on the growth of fungal pathogens, respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) under in vitro conditions for the ZEO on the fungal pathogens of Aspergillus ochraceus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, Alternaria solani, Rhizoctonia solani, and Rhizopus stolonifer was 300, 200, 300, 200, 200 and 200 ppm, respectively, for ZE-SLNs, it was 200, 200, 200, 100, 50 and 50 ppm. The antifungal efficacy of ZE-SLNs was significantly more than ZEO. Conclusion: Our results showed that the SLNs were suitable carriers for Z. multiflora essential oil in controlling the fungal pathogens and merits further investigation

The estimate of combining ability and heterosis for yield and yield components in tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.)

A study was conducted on a 10×10 diallel cross set of tomato including reciprocals to find out the extent of heterosis, combining ability for yield per plant (kg) and yield components (number of fruits per plant, individual fruit weight (g)) and locule number. Significant differences among genotypes were obtained for all of traits. The variances for general combining ability (GCA) and specific combining ability (SCA) were highly significant indicating the presence of additive as well as non-additive gene effects except the number of fruits per plant and relative magnitude of these variances indicated that additive gene effects were more prominent for all of the traits. The tomato genotype Mb3 proved to be the best general combiner for yield and number of fruits per plant

Antifungal Effects of <i>Zataria multiflora</i> Essential Oil on the Inhibitory Growth of some Postharvest Pathogenic Fungi

<p>The<strong> </strong>present study aimed to determine minimum inhibitory concentration and<em> </em>minimum fungicidal concentration of the essential oil of <em>Zataria</em> <em>multiflora<strong> </strong></em>to control <em>Alternaria solani, Rhizoctonia solani, Rhizopus</em> <em>stolonifer, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus ochraceus </em>and <em>Aspergillus niger. </em>The essential oil of <em>Zataria multiflora</em> was tested <em>in vitro </em>on PDA (malt extract agar medium) with eight concentrations: 0, 10, 50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900 and 1000 ppm. This investigation followed the completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. GC-MS evaluations of the essential oil revealed that thymol (35%), carvacrol (34%), cymene-p (9.89%), gamma-terpinene (5.88%) and alpha-pinene (4.22%) were the main compounds of <em>Zataria</em><em> multiflora<strong> </strong></em>oil. The results showed that the essential oil of <em>Zataria multiflora</em> has antifungal activity; the lowest inhibition (75%) was observed in the <em>A. niger</em>, while the highest inhibition (95.3%) was observed in <em>A. solani</em>.<em> </em>Minimum inhibitory concentration for <em>A. solani, R. solani, R. stolonifer, A. flavus, A. ochraceus </em>and<em> A. niger</em> was 200, 200, 200, 300, 300 and 200 ppm respectively. In addition, the present results showed that minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) for <em>A. solani, R. solani, R .stolonifer, A. niger</em> and <em>A.ochraceus</em> was 600, 400, 300, 900 and 700 ppm respectively and none of the tested concentrations were fatal for <em>A. flavus</em>.<em> A. solani </em>and<em> R. solani </em>showed a strong sensitivity to<em> Zataria multiflora</em> essential oil at all concentrations. Findings of the current study suggest that essential oils of <em>Zataria</em><em> multiflora</em> could be used for control of postharvest phytopathogenic fungi on fruits or vegetables.</p

The Investigation of Decontamination Effects of Ozone Gas on Microbial Load and Essential Oil of Several Medicinal Plants

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span><p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today, Ozone as a disinfectant method, without putting on the harmful effects on human and plant products, it is alternative common methods for disinfection of plant material. The research as a factorial experiment was conducted on the basis of randomized complete block design with three replications and the effects of Ozone gas on decreasing the microbial load of some important medicinal plants include: Peppermint (</span></span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Mentha piperita</span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">), Summer savory (</span></span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Satureja hortensis</span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">), Indian valerian(</span></span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Valeriana wallichii</span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">), Meliss (</span></span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Melissa officinalis</span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">) and Iranian thyme (</span></span><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Garamond Premr Pro&quot;; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Zataria multiflora</span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #211d1e; line-height: 115%; font-size: 10pt;">) were investigated. Medicinal plants leaves were treated with Ozone gas concentration 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9 ml/L at times of 10 and 30 then total count, coliform and mold and yeast of the samples were studied. The result showed that Ozone gas decreases microbial load of medicinal plants samples. But Ozone gas and Ozone gas in medicinal plants interaction effect had no effect on essential oil content. The lowest and the highest of microbial load were detected in samples treated with concentration of 0.9 ml/L of Ozone gas and control respectively. The highest and the lowest of microbial load were observed in Iranian thyme and Indian valerian respectively. Also result showed that Ozone gas treatment for 30 min had the greatest of effect in reducing the microbial load and 0.9 ml/L Ozone gas concentration had the lowest of microbial load. Results of this survey reflect that the use of Ozone as a method of disinfection for medicinal plants is a decontamination.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span

The Investigation of Decontamination Effects of Ozone Gas on Microbial Load and Essential Oil of Several Medicinal Plants

Today, Ozone as a disinfectant method, without putting on the harmful effects on human and plant products, it is alternative common methods for disinfection of plant material. The research as a factorial experiment was conducted on the basis of randomized complete block design with three replications and the effects of Ozone gas on decreasing the microbial load of some important medicinal plants include: Peppermint (Mentha piperita), Summer savory (Satureja hortensis), Indian valerian(Valeriana wallichii), Meliss (Melissa officinalis) and Iranian thyme (Zataria multiflora) were investigated. Medicinal plants leaves were treated with Ozone gas concentration 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9 ml/L at times of 10 and 30 then total count, coliform and mold and yeast of the samples were studied. The result showed that Ozone gas decreases microbial load of medicinal plants samples. But Ozone gas and Ozone gas in medicinal plants interaction effect had no effect on essential oil content. The lowest and the highest of microbial load were detected in samples treated with concentration of 0.9 ml/L of Ozone gas and control respectively. The highest and the lowest of microbial load were observed in Iranian thyme and Indian valerian respectively. Also result showed that Ozone gas treatment for 30 min had the greatest of effect in reducing the microbial load and 0.9 ml/L Ozone gas concentration had the lowest of microbial load. Results of this survey reflect that the use of Ozone as a method of disinfection for medicinal plants is a decontamination

Visual Quality and Morphological Responses of Rosemary Plants to UV-B Radiation and Salinity Stress

In order to understand the effects of ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation and salinity stress on visual quality and morphological parameters, one-year-old seedlings of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) were grown under three UV-B levels (0, 4.32, 6.05 kJ m-2 d-1) and four salinity regimes (Control, 50, 100 and 150 mM NaCl) under greenhouse conditions. Results showed that, enhanced UV-B radiation increased visual quality, growth index, plant biomass, shoot/root ratio, number of branches and leaves, leaf fresh and dry weight, leaf area index, specific leaf area, leaf thickness. UV-B radiation had no significant effect on root length, however, shoot height, length of axillary shoots, length of inter node, leaf area, leaf length and width and concentration of chlorophyll b were negatively impacted by UV-B radiation. On the other hand, salinity caused significant decrease in plant biomass, root length, shoot height, shoot/root ratio, length of axillary shoots, length of inter node, number of branches and leaf area, leaf area index, leaf length and width, leaf fresh and dry weight, specific leaf area and concentration of Photosynthetic pigments. But, number leaves and leaf thickness significantly increased under NaCl salinity treatments. Visual quality and growth index were hardly affected by increasing salinity until 100 mM, but declined clearly at 150 mM NaCl salinity. Interaction between UV-B irradiation and salinity showed that, pre-treatment with UV-B irradiation alleviated harmful effects of NaCl and improved visual quality rosemary plants

Physiological and Biochemical Changes Induced by UV-B Radiation in Rosemary Plants Grown Under Salinity Stress

Plants are exposed to solar ultraviolet radiation due to use of sunlight for photosynthesis. Additionally, salinity in soil or water influences the plant productivity and quality considerably. Moreover, when plants are simultaneously exposed to multiple stresses, one form of stress can affect the response to other stress. Particularly, it has been shown that they can benefit from dual tolerance as salinity and UV-B radiation are applied together. In order to understand the effects of UV-B radiation and salinity stress on some physiological and biochemical parameters, one-year-old cuttings of rosemary plants were grown under different levels of ultraviolet B radiation (0, 4.32 and 6.05 kJ m-2 d-1) and salinity stress (control, 50, 100 and 150 mM NaCl). The results showed that 4.32 kJ m-2 d-1 UV-B treatment significantly increased plant biomass up to 17.9% as compared to control. However, by increasing salinity to 150 mM, plant biomass significantly decreased up to 18.1%, as compared to control. Regardless of UV-B treatments, plants, grown under 100 mM salinity stress, had produced 2.8 times higher total phenolic compounds (TPC) and also have greater antioxidant activity (33.1%) in comparison to control. Both treatments, enhanced UV-B radiation and salinity stress, significantly increased the concentration of proline, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondealdehyde (MDA). In relation of total soluble sugar (TSS) and ion content, both treatments acted in an opposing manner. In turn, the enhanced UV-B radiation decreased concentration of TSS and the Na+ content in leaves, salinity stress increased the concentration of TSS, as well as the Na+ content in leaves and root. The plants grown under 150 mM salinity level accumulated 5.32 and 2.83 times higher Na+ ions in leaves and roots, respectively, than control. In addition, salinity significantly decreased the relative water content (RWC), photosynthetic pigments and K+ content in leaves and roots. The interaction between UV-B irradiation and salinity showed that the UV-B radiation improved the K+ content in leaves, RWC and membrane stability and consequently resulted in a better tolerance of rosemary to salinity