Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants of Boyer Ahmad and Dena regions in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer Ahmad province, Iran

Background and aims: The current paper aimed to collect and document the information about medicinal plants of Boyer Ahmad and Dena regions and their applications by indigenous inhabitants. Methods: The field surveys were carried out from March 2015 to September 2016 under supervision of local people. Collected plant specimens were identified to species level using Flora of Iran and Flora Iranica. Subsequently, information including scientific names, local names, parts used, method of preparation, medicinal effects, growth forms, and chorotypes for 71 species were recorded. Results: Medicinal plants belonged to 62 genera and 29 families. Apiaceae (14.08%) and Lamiaceae (14.08%) had the most number of species among other families. Based on Raunkier method, hemicryptophytes with 42.25% is the highest growth form and the most common chorotype was Irano-Turanian type (70.42%). The most used parts are aerial parts (40/85%),‎ and the most common mode of preparation was infusion (24%). The results of this study indicate that local people in Boyer Ahmad and Dena regions have used all collected plants for medicinal, food and sanitary purposes and their knowledge about identification of plants and their habitats, medicinal and edible properties is extensive. Conclusions: Native knowledge leads to obtaining valuable information including medicinal properties of plants, usable parts, time of growth, best time for harvesting and areas which have growing potential. Therefore, it is vital to investigate the native knowledge about medicinal plants in various regions of Iran

Investigation of Different Grazing Intensities on Rangeland Production Quality and Quantity and Soil Carbon in Khabr Rangelands of Baft

IntroductionRangeland provides numerous ecosystem goods and services. Most rangeland management decisions focus on forage production, and this can lead to the loss of other rangeland ecosystem services. One of those services is carbon sequestration, the removal of carbon dioxide from the Earth's atmosphere and its storage in the ground. Rangeland, which covers approximately half of terrestrial ecosystems, is one of the most important sinks for atmospheric carbon dioxide. Photosynthesis, respiration and decomposition are the main processes in the ecosystem that determine how carbon is stored in the soil. Anthropogenic activities like livestock grazing can significantly alter soil carbon storage. Unfortunately, human activities have resulted in lower soil carbon and increased global climate change. Livestock grazing is one of the most significant factors affecting the structure and functioning of ecosystems. Grazing livestock can affect the amount of carbon in the soil through reduced vegetation cover, altered species composition, soil degradation, urination and defecation. On the other hand, changes in the quantity and quality of forage production by livestock grazing have a strong effect on the welfare of the beneficiaries. Consequently, knowledge of the relationship between forage production and other ecosystem goods and services such as soil carbon is essential to the sustainability of ecosystems. It is important to study the quantity and quality changes in rangeland production in relation to different livestock grazing intensities on soil carbon. However, this information can assist range managers in providing techniques to promote soil carbon storage. The purpose of the study is 1) to determine annual forage production in rangelands at different grazing intensities, 2) to study the quality of rangeland forages produced, 3) to assess soil carbon content at different grazing intensities, and 4) to assess the relationship between rangeland production and soil carbon content at different grazing intensities. Material and MethodsA rangeland adjacent to Khabr National Park in Kerman province was selected as the study area. The study area is shrub- dominated species Artemisia aucheri Boiss. Three sites with different grazing intensities (for example, exclosure, high grazing and moderate grazing) were sampled. At each site, three 100m transects with 50m intervals were set up. Ten quadrats were randomly assigned to each transect. For each quadrat, the species met were recorded and their number of individuals and the amount of forage produced were measured. The annual forage production (forage quantity) was measured using the clip and weigh method. To determine forage quality, crude protein, acid detergent fibre (ADF), dry matter digestion and metabolizable energy were estimated for each species. Additionally, a soil sample was taken from each of the quadrats. The samples were air-dried and sieved with a 2 mm sieve. The organic carbon of the soil samples was determined through wet oxidation with Walkley-Black chromic acid. Then, the species importance index (IVI) was estimated using relative frequency (Fr), relative density (Dr) and relative dominance (Dor). One-way ANOVA and LSD were used to compare different grazing intensities in terms of soil carbon, annual production, crude protein, ADF and metabolizable energy. Pearson's correlation was used to examine the relationship between soil carbon and annual production with the qualitative attributes of production, ie. The primary component analysis (PCA) was used to identify the most important species in terms of production at the three sites with different grazing intensities (exclosure, high grazing and moderate grazing). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to identify the most important species in terms of production at the three sites with differing grazing intensities (exclosure, high grazing and moderate grazing). Results and DiscussionThe quantity and quality of forage has been reduced in the livestock grazing sites. The study area has a long history of cattle grazing, which has significantly altered the composition of the vegetation. About 26% of the exclosure site species had been removed from the plant composition of medium pasture sites, most of which are appetizing species. Although the amount of organic carbon in the soil increased at the exclosure site, it was not significantly different from grazing sites. Therefore, despite the improvement in forage quality and quantity, soil organic carbon had shown a lower reaction to the exclosure. Due to the presence of acceptable species, there was a positive relationship between forage quantity and quality at the exclosure site. Although A. aucheri was still dominant shrub species in the site with medium grazing intensity, there was no significant relationship between forage quantity and quality due to the decrease of palatable species. With the increase in the number of non-platable species in the high grazing site, there was a significant negative relationship between forage quantity and quality. There was a positive and meaningful relationship between soil carbon and the amount and quality of forage at the exclos site. The relationship between soil carbon and forage quantity and quality was not significant on grazing sites because of a change in plant composition. In the sites under grazing, palatable forbs such as Tragopogon jesdianus Boiss. and Lathyrus annuus L. were not observed and perennial grasses were significantly reduced. It should be noted that forage production of forbs has not changed much on the site with average grazing compared to the exclosure site. Perennials, especially woody plants, were severely reduced at the site with high grazing intensity. There were no bushes observed at that location. Annual grasses had increased in the site with heavy browsing. As perennials decrease, space and resources become available for the invasion of annual plants, especially annual grasses. Therefore, Bromus tectorum L. had the highest forage production in the   high grazing area. In terms of crude protein, the high grazing area had low quality forage. Since livestock grazing and subsequent changes in plant composition do not greatly impact soil carbon, livestock management can contribute to the improvement of plant composition and forage production at this site. Taking into account the impact of grassland management on other ecosystem functions, it is suggested to explore the relationship between the amount of production and other functions of quality rangeland ecosystems in order to sustainably manage rangeland ecosystems

Phytoremediation of Contaminated Soils to Sludge of Oil Reservoirs using Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC.

Oil contaminated soil is a vital threat to the environment. The aim of the present research was to investigate the total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH), and heavy metals of nickel and vanadium reduction using Prosopis juliflora, under different treatments of biochar and compost in pots. One-year-old P. juliflora seedlings were planted in pots containing oil sludge. The pots included 1 and 2% of compost and biochar. Furthermore, two control treatments including with and without P. juliflora were used for the study. This study was conducted in the complete randomized plot sampling with three replications. After six months, soil samples were taken from the pots and transferred to the laboratory. Then, the concentration of TPH, nickel, and vanadium was determined. The results indicated that the least TPH belonged to the compost 2% treatment (10.63 ppm), which was significantly different compared with other studied treatments. The highest value belonged to the control treatment without P. juliflora (22.57 ppm). The highest value of vanadium belonged to the control treatment (69.50 mg/kg). Compost 2% had the least values of vanadium (47.66 mg/kg). Comparison between treatments showed no significant differences among compost 1% (117.17 mg/kg), compost 2% (118.00 mg/kg), and biochar 2% (116.67 mg/kg). The highest reduction of nickel was observed within the mentioned treatments. Therefore, using biochar and compost can improve the phytoremediation capacity of P. juliflora

An efficient estimation of crop performance in sheep fescue (Festuca ovina L.) using artificial neural network and regression models

Abstract Festuca ovina L. (sheep fescue), a perennial grass plant found in mountainous regions, is important from both an ecological and economic viewpoint. However, the variability of biological yield of sheep fescue due to its reliance on different characteristics makes it difficult to accurately prediction using classic modeling techniques. In this study, machine learning methods and multiple regression models (linear and non-linear) are used to investigate the interdependence of various morphological and physiological characteristics on accurate prediction of the biological yield (BY) of sheep fescue. Principal components analysis and stepwise regression were used to select six agronomic parameters i.e. thousand seed weight (TSW), relative water content (RWC), canopy cover (CC), leaf area index, number of florescence, and viability (VA), while the output variable was BY. To optimized the artificial neural network (ANN) structure, different transfer functions and training algorithms, different number of neurons in each layer, different number of hidden layers and training iteration were tested. The accuracy of the models and algorithms is analyzed by root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), and determination coefficient (R2). According to the findings, ANN models were more accurate than regression models. The ANN model with two hidden layers (i.e. structure of 6–4–8–1) which had RMSE, MAE and R2 scores of 0.087, 0.065 and 0.96, respectively, was discovered as the best model for predicting the BY. In addition, result of the sensitivity analysis showed TSW, RWC and CC, in that order, were the variables most important for high-quality BY estimation in both models regardless of input combination. Finally, the paper concludes that early flowering sheep fescue genotypes with long maturation and great TSW must be regarded as the most suitable model for increasing BY in breeding projects

Determining Effective Environmental Factors in the Distribution of Endangered Endemic Medicinal Plant Species Using the BMLR Model: The Example of Wild Celery (<i>Kelussia odoratissima</i> Mozaff., Apiaceae) in Zagros (Iran)

Kelussia odoratissima Mozaff. is a medicinal species native to Iran. The goal of this research was to determine the environmental factors important for the distribution of K. doratissima in Iran using BMLR modeling. Six random transects were established throughout the species’ habitat, and 220 quadrats with an area of 4 m2 were plotted. The canopy cover percentages of K. doratissima were estimated in each quadrat. Topographic factors, including elevation, slope, and aspect maps, were generated by creating DEM images. Land use, land evaluation, evaporation, temperature, and precipitation maps of the area were created accordingly. The data collected from the experiments were analyzed using the Minitab and R statistical packages. To determine the effect of the studied factors in the distribution of K. doratissima, we ran a set of backward multiple linear regressions. The results showed that the effects of evaporation, elevation, and slope were significant in the species’ distribution, with elevation having a positive effect and evaporation and slope showing negative effects. Further, elevation had the highest effect on distribution (greatest absolute value of beta at 9.660). The next most significant factors in the plant’s distribution were evaporation (beta = 8.282) and slope (beta = 0.807), respectively