Selenium as a Protective Agent against Pests: A Review

The aim of the present review is to summarize selenium’s connection to pests. Phytopharmaceuticals for pest control, which increase the pollution in the environment, are still widely used nowadays regardless of their negative characteristics. The use of trace elements, including selenium, can be an alternative method of pest control. Selenium can repel pests, reduce their growth, or cause toxic effects while having a positive effect on the growth of plants. In conclusion, accumulated selenium protects plants against aphids, weevils, cabbage loopers, cabbage root flies, beetles, caterpillars, and crickets due to both deterrence and toxicity

An Alternative Source of Biopesticides and Improvement in Their Formulation—Recent Advances

Plant protection in contemporary agriculture requires intensive pesticide application. Their use has enabled the increase in yields, simplifying cultivation systems and crop protection strategies, through successful control of harmful organisms. However, it has led to the accumulation of pesticides in agricultural products and the environment, contaminating the ecosystem and causing adverse health effects. Therefore, finding new possibilities for plant protection and effective control of pests without consequences for humans and the environment is imperative for agricultural production. The most important alternatives to the use of chemical plant protection products are biopesticides. However, in order to increase their application and availability, it is necessary to improve efficacy and stability through new active substances and improved formulations. This paper represents an overview of the recent knowledge in the field of biopesticides and discusses the possibilities of the use of some new active substances and the improvement of formulations

Selenium induced lower respiratory potential in Glycine max (L.) Merr

ABSTRACT Effect of selenium (Se) was studied in soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) cv. Olna in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Se was added to plants as foliary spraying. Quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII) and respiratory potential measured as ETS activity of mitochondria were measured two times in the growing season. Respiratory potential was higher in young plants compared to mature plants. Se induced the lowering of respiratory potential. Addition of Se had no effect on quantum yield of photosystem II

Advances in Alternative Measures in Plant Protection

Food production, along with the constant demand for higher yields, is an imperative of contemporary agricultural production [...

Environmental assessment of freshwater ecosystems of the Sava River watershed and Cerkniško Lake, Slovenia, using the bioindicator species <i>Fontinalis antipyretica</i>: insights from stable isotopes and selected elements

<p>Ten locations in the Notranjska region, Slovenia, with different land use in the catchment (town, village and agricultural areas), including reference points with different geological composition considered as unpolluted sites, were sampled for water and aquatic moss to evaluate environmental assessment in fresh water systems of the Sava River watershed. Samples of fresh water and <i>Fontinalis antipyretica</i> were taken in all four seasons during the years 2010 and 2012. The water chemistry of the investigated locations was dominated by , while concentrations of seasonally ranged from 2.1 to 6.4 mg L⁻¹ and at one of the reference sites did not exceed 1.3 mg L⁻¹. δ¹³C_DIC values seasonally ranged from −13.3 to −8.1 ‰ and indicated waters dominated by degradation of organic matter and dissolution of carbonates. δ¹³C_plant values of <i>F. antipyretica</i> seasonally ranged from −45 to −32.9 ‰ and of δ¹⁵N_plant from −0.2 to 6.5 ‰. The higher δ¹⁵N value of 6.5 ‰ found in <i>F. antipyretica</i> was related to agricultural activity in the watershed. The content of minor and trace elements in <i>F. antipyretica</i> ranged from 4–38 µg g⁻¹ for Ni, 17–105 µg g⁻¹ for Zn, 2–28 µg g⁻¹ for Pb, 0.26–1.95 µg g⁻¹ for Cd, 4–27 µg g⁻¹ for Cu, 4–49 µg g⁻¹ for Cr, 1–6 µg g⁻¹ for As and 0.33–3.24 µg g⁻¹ for Se. The most polluted watershed was the Pšata stream (agricultural area, cattle farm with the highest concentration of nitrate in water) also with highest values for Ni, Cr, Pb, Zn and As.</p