Ecotoxicology of Copper in Horticultural Soils: A Review

Nowadays, the world is facing the problem of environmental pollution because of the increase of man’s needs requires development in life activities, progress industrialization, transportation tools, enhancement of agriculture and exploitation of natural resources. Soil and water resources are extremely exposed to pollution from different aspects. Agrochemicals in particular, have created severe problems, since they release thousands of chemicals to the environment. Several studies on the effect of environmental pollutants on agroecosystem have been carried out. On the other hand, the importance of trace elements as environmental pollutants is well known and well documented in literature. Cu contamination to agricultural soils has been accelerated due to its wide and repeated use in agriculture and horticulture as fertilizers or fungicides to protect vines, citrus trees, and other fruit crops against fungus diseases. Applied Cu from different agrochemical sources to agroenvironment may be adsorbed and are transported to the groundwater table and pollute it besides polluting the soils. The use of Cu-based fungicides in vineyard soils is widely documented worldwide. It has been found that many countries contain concentrations in excess of 100 mg kg−1. Importance of study of transport of Cu arises due to the fact that Cu is absorbed in soils and also reaches the groundwater table, thus polluting both soil and ground water. It is often more important to be able to estimate the mobile fraction, the readily soluble fraction, the exchangeable fraction, or the plant available fraction of Cu content of a soil as a more direct indication of the likelihood of deleterious or toxic effects on soils and groundwater. Therefore, the aim of present work was to highlight the behavior and ecotoxicological effects of copper on horticultural soils

Ecotoxicology of Copper in Horticultural Soils: A Review

Nowadays, the world is facing the problem of environmental pollution because of the increase of man’s needs requires developmentin life activities, progress industrialization, transportation tools, enhancement of agriculture and exploitation of natural resources. Soil andwater resources are extremely exposed to pollution from different aspects. Agrochemicals in particular, have created severe problems, sincethey release thousands of chemicals to the environment. Several studies on the effect of environmental pollutants on agroecosystem have beencarried out. On the other hand, the importance of trace elements as environmental pollutants is well known and well documented in literature.Cu contamination to agricultural soils has been accelerated due to its wide and repeated use in agriculture and horticulture as fertilizers orfungicides to protect vines, citrus trees, and other fruit crops against fungus diseases. Applied Cu from different agrochemical sources to agroenvironment may be adsorbed and are transported to the groundwater table and pollute it besides polluting the soils. The use of Cu-basedfungicides in vineyard soils is widely documented worldwide. It has been found that many countries contain concentrations in excess of 100mg kg−1. Importance of study of transport of Cu arises due to the fact that Cu is absorbed in soils and also reaches the groundwater table,thus polluting both soil and ground water. It is often more important to be able to estimate the mobile fraction, the readily soluble fraction,the exchangeable fraction, or the plant available fraction of Cu content of a soil as a more direct indication of the likelihood of deleteriousor toxic effects on soils and groundwater. Therefore, the aim of present work was to highlight the behavior and ecotoxicological effects ofcopper on horticultural soils

Foliar Nutrition and Post-Harvest of Onion Seed: Effects of storage temperatures, storage period and foliar nutrition

The aim of onion bulb storage is to meet consumer demand for extended availability of onions whilst maintaining product quality.The principal biological factors leading to onion bulb deterioration are respiration, resumption of growth and pathogen attack. In onion bulbsa dormant period, when sprouting and rooting cannot be induced, is followed by a period of internal changes that prepare the bulb for breakingof dormancy and subsequent growth. Out of storage, the bulb then proceeds towards flowering and seed production.Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with12 commercial compounds on yield and yield components of onion seeds and storage The seed yield of each commercial compounds plotfrom previous experiment was divided into two groups, storage under room temperature and 5°C. Seeds transferred immediately after dryingto Increasing Export Competition of Some Vegetable Crops Project Laboratory located in Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University. The effectsof storage temperature, storage period and foliar with some commercial compounds on onion seed quality were considered. Storage in 5°C hadthe higher germination percentage than storage in room temperature. Results indicated that as storage period increased the germination percentdecreased. The treatment with boron or amica in the first season had the highest germination percentage. While, the treatment with union Zn,union feer, union Mn, boron, elga 600, caboron, amica, hummer or amino X had the highest germination percentage in the second season. Storagein 5°C resulted in higher moisture content than storage in room temperature. Regarding the effect of storage period on moisture content, the watercontent was significantly increased with prolongation of storage period. The lowest values of water content were recorded for treatments withunion feer, shams K or boron in the first season, and union feer, shams K, boron, magnesium, shetocare or hummer in the second one. Catalaseactivity was significantly decreased as storage period increased. The treatment with shams K, boron, shetocare or amino X had the highestcatalase activity in both seasons. Peroxidase activity was significantly decreased as storage period increased. Foliar application with boron had thehighest peroxidase activity in both seasons. Seed stored in room temperature had the higher malondialdehyde content than those stored in 5°C inthe second season. The malondialdehyde content increased as storage period increased. The treatment with magnesium, caboron and the controlin the first season, and the treatment with magnesium and the control in the second season had the highest malondialdehyde content

Effects of Foliar Nutrition on Onion Seed Storage under Controlled Atmosphere

Storage of fresh fruits and vegetables prolongs their usefulness. The principal goal of storage is to preserve the commodity inits most useable form for the consumer. The extension of storage life and the improvement of quality of fresh fruits and vegetables canbe supplied by harvesting at proper maturity, control of post-harvest diseases, chemical treatments, refrigeration, controlled and modifiedatmospheres. Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effectof spraying with 12 commercial compounds on onion seeds and storage under controlled atmosphere. The germination percentages were85.50, 86.85, 83.75 and 82.15 for CA1, CA2, CA3 and CA4, respectively. Water content of onion seeds was significantly increased withdecreasing storage temperature in all controlled atmospheres. Water content values were 4.48, 4.40, 4.55 and 4.54 for CA1, CA2, CA3 andCA4, respectively. There were significant decreases in water content with increasing exposure periods. The lowest water content was recordedfor the exposure periods of 120 and 240 days. Catalase and peroxidase activities were decreased with the decreasing of storage temperature,whereas malondialdehyde content was increased. The exposure for 120 days recorded the highest catalase activity. The highest value ofperoxidase (11.72) was recorded for CA2. Peroxidase activity increased as exposure period increased until 120 days and then decreased.Cold storage temperature (5°C) showed the highest malondialdehyde content followed by room temperature. The CA2 showed the lowestmalondialdehyde content compared with other controlled atmospheres. The exposure period of 120 days had the lowest malondialdehydecontent

Effect of Foliar Nutrition on Post-Harvest of Onion Seed under Sandy Soil and Saline Irrigation Water Conditions

Foliar application has been determined to be an effective nutrients delivery strategy in vegetable and fruits. The enhancement of vegetable and fruit yields affected by foliar nutrients application has been recognized in previously conducted studies with perennial tree crops. The efficiency of foliar nutrition is dependent on soil, climate, fertilizer and the amount of nitrogen used. There is no sufficient information concerning cooperation of foliar nutrition with all nutrients form as well as the rates of these nutrients fertilization in vegetableand fruit crops. Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with 12 commercial compounds on inflorescences diameter, flower stalk length, number of seed stem /plant, weight of 1000 seed, germination percentage, seed yield, moisture content, catalase , peroxidase activity and malondialdehyde content of onion seeds. The plantssprayed with union Zn, union Mn, union feer, shams k, elga 600, boron, and amino x had the highest vegetative growth parameter, germination percent and enzyme activity. The plants sprayed with union Zn, union feer, shams K, magnesium, caboron, hummer and amino X had the highest seed yield ha-1. The seeds were stored for one year to study the effect of different commercial compounds and storage temperatures on germination, moisture content and change in antioxidant enzymes activities of onion seeds during the storage period. Storage at cold temperature showed higher germination percent, moisture content and lower malondialdehyde content than storage at room temperature. The treatment with union Zn, union feer, union Mn, boron, elga 600, caboron, amica, hummer and amino x had the highest germination percent

Effects of Foliar Nutrition on Onion Seed Storage under Modified Atmosphere Packages

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) and controlled atmosphere storage techniques to reduce the oxygen around the food arelargely used for the preservation of fresh produce. There have been great technological advances in this area of preservation, particularly asit refers to improving the quality and shelf-stability of highly perishable food products, such as produce. Two successive winter seasons of2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with 12 commercial compounds ononion seeds storage under modified atmosphere packages. Germination percent of seeds decreased in 5°C than storage in room temperature.Germination percent of seeds was gradually decreased with increasing the storage period. Packaging treatments had a significant effect ongermination percent of seeds. All the packaging treatments had the higher germination percent than the paper package (control). The highestgermination percent after 12 months of storage was recorded for the treatment with non perforated polypropylene in room temperatureand polyethylene and non perforated polypropylene in 5°C. Catalase activity decreased with the prolongation of storage period. The nonperforated polypropylene package had the highest catalase activity. The treatment with non perforated polypropylene had the highest catalaseactivity after 12 months of storage in both room and 5°C temperatures. Peroxidase activity of seeds was gradually decreased with increasingthe storage period. The highest peroxidase activity after 12 months of storage was recorded in non perforated polypropylene in both storagetemperatures

Effect of Foliar Nutrition on Post-Harvest of Onion Seed under Sandy Soil and Saline Irrigation Water Conditions

Foliar application has been determined to be an effective nutrients delivery strategy in vegetable and fruits. The enhancement of vegetable and fruit yields affected by foliar nutrients application has been recognized in previously conducted studies with perennial tree crops. The efficiency of foliar nutrition is dependent on soil, climate, fertilizer and the amount of nitrogen used. There is no sufficient information concerning cooperation of foliar nutrition with all nutrients form as well as the rates of these nutrients fertilization in vegetableand fruit crops. Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with 12 commercial compounds on inflorescences diameter, flower stalk length, number of seed stem /plant, weight of 1000 seed, germination percentage, seed yield, moisture content, catalase , peroxidase activity and malondialdehyde content of onion seeds. The plantssprayed with union Zn, union Mn, union feer, shams k, elga 600, boron, and amino x had the highest vegetative growth parameter, germination percent and enzyme activity. The plants sprayed with union Zn, union feer, shams K, magnesium, caboron, hummer and amino X had the highest seed yield ha-1. The seeds were stored for one year to study the effect of different commercial compounds and storage temperatures on germination, moisture content and change in antioxidant enzymes activities of onion seeds during the storage period. Storage at cold temperature showed higher germination percent, moisture content and lower malondialdehyde content than storage at room temperature. The treatment with union Zn, union feer, union Mn, boron, elga 600, caboron, amica, hummer and amino x had the highest germination percent

Effects of Foliar Nutrition on Onion Seed Storage under Modified Atmosphere Packages

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) and controlled atmosphere storage techniques to reduce the oxygen around the food are largely used for the preservation of fresh produce. There have been great technological advances in this area of preservation, particularly as it refers to improving the quality and shelf-stability of highly perishable food products, such as produce. Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with 12 commercial compounds on onion seeds storage under modified atmosphere packages. Germination percent of seeds decreased in 5°C than storage in room temperature. Germination percent of seeds was gradually decreased with increasing the storage period. Packaging treatments had a significant effect on germination percent of seeds. All the packaging treatments had the higher germination percent than the paper package (control). The highest germination percent after 12 months of storage was recorded for the treatment with non perforated polypropylene in room temperature and polyethylene and non perforated polypropylene in 5°C. Catalase activity decreased with the prolongation of storage period. The non perforated polypropylene package had the highest catalase activity. The treatment with non perforated polypropylene had the highest catalase activity after 12 months of storage in both room and 5°C temperatures. Peroxidase activity of seeds was gradually decreased with increasing the storage period. The highest peroxidase activity after 12 months of storage was recorded in non perforated polypropylene in both storage temperatures

Effects of Foliar Nutrition on Onion Seed Storage under Controlled Atmosphere

Storage of fresh fruits and vegetables prolongs their usefulness. The principal goal of storage is to preserve the commodity in its most useable form for the consumer. The extension of storage life and the improvement of quality of fresh fruits and vegetables can be supplied by harvesting at proper maturity, control of post-harvest diseases, chemical treatments, refrigeration, controlled and modified atmospheres. Two successive winter seasons of 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 were conducted under sandy soil conditions to study the effect of spraying with 12 commercial compounds on onion seeds and storage under controlled atmosphere. The germination percentages were 85.50, 86.85, 83.75 and 82.15 for CA1, CA2, CA3 and CA4, respectively. Water content of onion seeds was significantly increased with decreasing storage temperature in all controlled atmospheres. Water content values were 4.48, 4.40, 4.55 and 4.54 for CA1, CA2, CA3 and CA4, respectively. There were significant decreases in water content with increasing exposure periods. The lowest water content was recordednfor the exposure periods of 120 and 240 days. Catalase and peroxidase activities were decreased with the decreasing of storage temperature, whereas malondialdehyde content was increased. The exposure for 120 days recorded the highest catalase activity. The highest value of peroxidase (11.72) was recorded for CA2. Peroxidase activity increased as exposure period increased until 120 days and then decreased. Cold storage temperature (5°C) showed the highest malondialdehyde content followed by room temperature. The CA2 showed the lowest malondialdehyde content compared with other controlled atmospheres. The exposure period of 120 days had the lowest malondialdehyde content