MOHAMMED A.J. and A.S.A. AL-JANABI
SUMMARY
The existent research aimed to study the effects of irrigation with liquefied water, saline-well water, and foliar application of aspartic and ascorbic acids on the chemical properties of grafted orange seedlings in the years 2020–2021 at the Horticulture and Forestry Division, Najaf Agriculture Directorate, Iraq. The main plot was the irrigation water (liquefied and saline-well water). Meanwhile, foliar application of aspartic acid (0, 100, and 150 mg.L-1) and ascorbic acid (0, 4000 mg.L-1) served as the second and third factors in subplots. Compared with the saline-well water, regular liquefied water had a significant positive impact on the improvement of chemical traits, i.e., the liquefied water attained the highest rate of nitrogen content in leaves (2.600%) compared with the saline-well water (2.239%). Ascorbic acid (4000 mg.L-1) also had a significant effect on the leaf’s contents, providing the highest percentage of phosphorus (0.4060%) and reduced sodium (0.5277%) compared with the control in the leaves of orange seedlings. The saline-well water with no addition of ascorbic acid (control) provided the highest average content of the amino acid proline (132.2 μg.g-1 fresh weight) in the sweet orange leaves compared with the other treatments and their interactions. Sweet orange seedlings with foliar application of aspartic and ascorbic acids authenticated that the peroxidase activity rate appeared more effective than all other treatments and the control.
Keywords: Sweet orange transplants, liquefied water, saline-well water, aspartic and ascorbic acids
Key findings: Salinity impacts agriculture, thus the need to induce crop plants with salt tolerance to sustain their economic output. Antioxidants, such as, aspartic and ascorbic acids, have auxinic action and a synergistic effect on salinity tolerance and plant growth.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.25
M.T. CAASI-LIT and A.M.D. MARMETO
SUMMARY
Philippine traditional maize has long existed for hundreds of years, facing and coping with continuous threats of different pests and diseases, with Asian corn borer and fall armyworm as the most damaging insect pests. Developing resistant varieties can employ rich genetic resources, as these varieties may have likely adapted to these biotic stresses. The development of ACB-resistant varieties proved successful with the Bt corn introduction; however, the attempt to breed for resistance to FAW is still underway. The two insect pests belong under the same Order, and cross-resistance between these pests may be possible. In this study, several traditional maize varieties underwent screening for resistance to ACB and FAW through larval survival on leaf-feeding assay. Among the accessions observed, three variants of APN 0120 (Silangan) and three other traditional maize (APN 0397, APN 0913, APN 0938) showed intermediate to high resistance toward FAW leaf damage. Few of these resistant varieties showed negative to Bt introgression. The most notable is the variant SI of APN 0120, with high resistance to ACB and FAW and low larval weight, without the presence of Bt. A previous report stated the original collection of this accession have potential ACB resistance, although Bt-introgressed. On the other hand, APN 0397 (Lagkitan), introgressed with Bt Cry1Ab, expressed dual resistance to ACB and FAW, too. It elucidates the reaction and potential of previously screened ACB-resistant varieties against FAW and the efficiency of Cry1Ab against FAW. It also demonstrates the potential of the traditional maize as source of germplasm to be explored to promote the utilization of open-pollinated varieties with inherent insect resistance. Moreover, this paper establishes massrearing procedures and laboratory techniques for effective fall armyworm-resistance screening using excised leaf method.
Keywords: Asian corn borer, bioassay technique, fall armyworm, host plant resistance, insect resistance, Philippine traditional maize
Key findings: Eight variants of Philippine traditional maize APN 0120 and two other conventional varieties showed potential resistance to ACB leaf feeding. In addition, three APN 120 variants and three more traditional maize exhibited possible fall armyworm leaf-feeding resistance. Dual resistance to both insect pests took notice on a few entries.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.24
A.S. AL-BAYATI and H.H. MAJEED
SUMMARY
This current research proceeded during the growing season of 2021 at the Al-Nakhil Station, Al-Najaf Governorate, Iraq, to evaluate the response of hybrid tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) ‘OULA F1’ to foliar application of organic fertilizers NP and calcium. The first factor included spraying phosphorous and nitrogen with three concentrations (0, 1, and 2 ml.L-1), while the second consisted of calcium spray with three different concentrations (0, 1.25, and 2.5 ml.L-1). The experiment was setup according to the randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications in a factorial arrangement. The results showed that the organic fertilizer rich in phosphorus at a concentration of 2 ml.L-1 significantly improved the traits, i.e., plant height (49.98 cm), leaf number (34.80 leaves.plant1), leaf area (3775.90 cm2.plant-1), shoot dry weight (156.70 g.plant-1), and leaf content of total chlorophyll (183.19 mg.l00g-1 FW) in comparison with the control treatment. Also, the same concentration of phosphorus revealed superiority in the percentage of N, P, K, and Ca in tomato leaves and fruit yield per plant (1.79%, 0.71%, 2.23%, 1.69%, and 2.89% kg.plant-1, respectively), compared with the control treatment. Moreover, the results further revealed that the organic calcium fertilizer at a concentration of 2.5 ml L-1 realized the highest averages for plant height, leaf number, leaf area, shoot dry weight, leaf N percent, leaf P percent, leaf K percent, and fruit yield per plant by 52.39 cm, 35.27 leaves.plant-1, 3850.20 cm2.plant-1, 175.73 g.plant-1, 1.74%, 0.70%, 2.17%, and 3.12 kg.plant-1, respectively. The foliar application of calcium at a concentration of 1.25 ml.L-1 provided the maximum total chlorophyll (175.03 mg.l00g-1 FW) and Ca (1.74%) in the leaves.
Keywords: Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), organic fertilizer, phosphorus and nitrogen, calcium, total chlorophyll, growth and yield traits
Key findings: Results showed that the foliar application of organic fertilizers rich in phosphorus and nitrogen (2 ml.L-1) and calcium (2.5 ml.L-1), individually or in combination, have significantly improved most of the growth and yield traits in the hybrid tomato.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.23
H.S. JAAFAR, A.A. ABD, and A.S. AL-BAYATI
SUMMARY
The latest study aimed to assess the response of the broad bean to the magnetically-treated irrigation water and foliar application of nano-seaweed extract for growth and productivity traits. This experiment took place during the growing season of 2020–2021 under field conditions at Al-Najaf Governorate, Iraq. Turkish broad bean cultivar ‘Luz-de-otono’ was grown in a split-plot design by two factors with three replicates. The main plots received magnetized irrigation water with three diverse intensities (zero, 1000, and 2000 Gauss), while the nano-seaweed extract with three concentrations (0, 1, and 2 ml.L-1) in the subplots. On average, the magnetization treatment at 2000 Gauss attained significant improvement in the growth and morphological traits (plant height, branch number per plant, leaf number, leaf area, and total leaf chlorophyll content) and yield traits (pod number, pod weight, plant yield, and total yield), compared with the control that gave the lowest values. Nanoseaweed foliar application at 2 ml.L-1 also revealed a significant increase and improvement in the same growth, morphological, and yield-related traits aforementioned, compared with the control treatment that gave the minimum values. Correspondingly, the interaction between both factors (magnetization intensity 2000 Gauss + Seaweed at 2 ml.L-1) also showed significant effects and provided the highest averages of plant height (36.05 cm), branch number per plant (7.04 branch.plant-1), leaf number (72.19 leaves.plant-1), leaf area (3775.88 cm2.plant-1), and total leaf chlorophyll content (45.47 mg.100 g-1 FW) and yield traits: pod number (19.11 pods.plant-1), pod weight (26.87 g), plant yield (513.49 g), and total yield (11.61 t.ha-1), compared with the control treatment.
Keywords: Broad bean (Vicia faba L.), magnetized irrigation water, nano-seaweed extract, control, growth and morphological traits, yield-related variables
Key findings: Irrigation water at magnetization intensity (2000 Gauss) and the exogenous application of nano-seaweed extract at 2 ml.L-1 individually and in combination have significantly enhanced the growth and yield traits in broad beans (Vicia faba L.).
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.22
F.R. HAMED, H.E.M. ISMAIL, M.F. ABO EL-MAATI, and E.M. DESOKY
SUMMARY
The vermicompost and exogenous plant extracts as a foliar application can provide as an alternative means to enhance the growth and yield of leafy vegetable crops under low-fertility soil conditions. The objectives of the recent study sought to characterize the effect of vermicompost tea in combining some natural plant extracts to enhance the growth and yield of the lettuce plant. A study on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) took place during two successive seasons, in 2018–2019 and 2019–2020, using foliar spray— vermicompost-tea rates in combination with rosemary leaf extract (RLE) and eucalyptus buds extract (EBE). It sought to determine the effects on growth, yield, and some physiological and biochemical traits of lettuce (cv. ‘Dark Green’) grown on sandy soil with drip irrigation. The experiment employed the split-plot design, with four rates of vermicompost tea (0%, 5%, 10%, and 20%) as main plots and three plant extract levels (without, RLE, and EBE) as subplots. The vermicompost tea and plant extracts increased the growth characteristics, photochemical activity, photosynthetic pigments, relative water content, membrane stability index, excised leaf water retention, vitamins C and E, and total soluble solids in lettuce plants compared with the untreated control plots. The interaction and combined application of vermicompost tea (20%) and RLE proved most effective in enhancing the growth and yield traits and physio-biochemical properties in lettuce. Therefore, the integrative application of vermicompost tea (20%) with RLE comes highly recommended for growing lettuce in sandy soil conditions.
Keywords: Vermicompost tea, rosemary leaf extract, eucalyptus buds extract, chlorophyll a and b, carotenoids, vitamins C and E, total soluble solids
Key findings: The combined application of vermicompost tea (20%) and rosemary leaf extract proved the most effective treatment to enhance growth and yield traits and physio-biochemical properties in lettuce under sandy soil conditions.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.21
B.A.A. AL-YASARI and M.N.H. AL-YASARI
SUMMARY
A field experiment on a local peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) cultivar transpired in the spring season of 2021 at the Al-Hussainiya region, Holy Kerbala, Iraq (Latitude: 32.6160; Longitude: 44.0249). The completed study aimed to determine peanut response to weed control, foliar application of nano-zinc, and their interaction in growth, yield, and quality traits. The experiment laid out in a split-plot design with two factors (weed control and nano-zinc foliar application) had three replications. The nano-zinc concentrations (0, 50, and 100 mg L-1) occupied the main plots, with the weed control treatments kept in sub-plots. Weed control included the control (T0 – no weed control), manual hoeing (T1), and weed control with pre-emergence (pre-em) herbicides, i.e., Trifluralin (T2) and Pendimethalin (T3), and post-emergence (post-em) herbicides, viz., Oxyfluorfen (T4) and Clethodim (T5). The results showed that post-em herbicide Oxyfluorfen gave superior enhancement on the vegetative dry weight, pods per plant, seeds per plant, total pod yield, protein, and zinc in the seeds with increased values of 52.0%, 265.1%, 254.5%, 211.9%, 13.2%, and 25.5%, respectively, compared with the control treatment. Nano-zinc (100 mg L-1) foliar application led to a significant increase in the above traits with increased rates of 2.5%, 21.2%, 40.6%, 7.4%, 8.2%, and 89.2%, respectively, compared with the control. The interaction between both factors showed significant superiority compared with no weeding and separate application of weed control combined with chemical herbicides and nano-zinc application. The interaction between the post-em weed management (Oxyfluorfen) and nano-zinc (100 mg L-1) application showed highly superior compared with other treatments in the studied traits.
Keywords: Arachis hypogaea L., nano-zinc foliar, manual and chemical weed control, herbicides, trifluralin, pendimethalin, oxyfluorfen, clethodim, protein and zinc content, growth and yield traits
Key findings: Peanut traits gained a significant and sustainable improvement in growth, yield, and quality from the post-em (Oxyfluorfen) weed management and nano-zinc (100 mg L-1) foliar application.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.20
S.M.A. ALSHADIWI and S.H.A. ALRUBAIEE
SUMMARY
The progressive study on oat (Avena sativa L.) transpired during the crop season of 2021–2022 at the Agricultural Research Station, College of Agriculture, University of Basrah, Iraq. The study aimed to determine the effects of amino acids foliar application on two oat cultivars. Experimenting with a randomized complete block design included a split-plot arrangement. Two oat cultivars (Shafa and Genzania) grown and placed in secondary plates received seven treatments of three different amino acids (Control – No amino acid, 50 and 100 mg L-1 of L-Tryptophan, 50 and 100 mg L-1 of L-Glycine, and 50 and 100 mg L-1 of L-Lysine). The results revealed that oat cultivars and amino acid treatments differed significantly for most of the studied traits. The amino acid foliar application treatment of LTryptophan at the rate of 50 mg L-1 showed significant superiority, which boosted and provided the highest rate of flag leaf area, chlorophyll content, crop growth rate, and green fodder yield. However, the cultivar Shafa exhibited superiority for flag leaf area, chlorophyll content, and the green and dry fodder yield, with increased values of 7.15 cm2, 8.11 µg cm-3, and 8.01% and 5.61% t ha-1, respectively.
Keywords: Oats (Avena sativa L.), amino acids, L-Tryptophan, L-Glycine, L-Lysine, oat growth traits
Key findings: The oat cultivars and amino acid treatments differed significantly for most growth traits. Oat cultivar ‘Shafa’ and foliar application of amino acid L-Tryptophan (50 mg L-1) showed significant superiority for growth traits.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.19
A.A.A. ELNAGAR, E.M. ZEIDAN, A.A. ABDUL-GALIL, and A.A-G. ALI
SUMMARY
Ameliorating peanut production is a requirement to cope with the abrupt climate change and burgeoning population. Seed treatment is vital for enhancing and sustaining peanut production, particularly in semiarid environments. The latest study aimed to evaluate the impact of different seed treatments on the agronomic and quality of three high-yielding peanut cultivars: Giza-6, North Carolina (N.C.), and Aramanch. The applied seed treatments include Rhizobium inoculation, moringa leaf extract, vitavax, and gypsum versus untreated control. The evaluated peanut cultivars significantly varied in their results for agronomic and quality traits. The cultivar Giza-6, followed by Aramanch, proved the best displaying the highest number of seeds per pod, number of pods per plant, 100-seed weight, number of branches per plant, shelling percentage, biological yield, pod yield, seed yield, oil yield, and protein yield. The applied seed treatments substantially enhanced peanut yield traits, oil, and protein content of peanuts with the superiority of Rhizobium inoculation, gypsum, and moringa extract. These treatments effectively reinforced peanut growth, positively reflected in the yield and quality traits. Subsequently, integrating the seed treatments, particularly Rhizobium inoculation, gypsum, and moringa extract, with high-yielding cultivars, such as Giza-6 and Aramanch, confirmed a helpful approach to enhancing and sustaining peanut production in arid environments.
Keywords: yield traits, oil content, crude protein, interaction effect, heatmap, and hierarchical clustering
Key findings: The assessed peanut cultivars exhibited significant differences in all agronomic and quality traits, with Giza-6 and Aramanch proving superior. The applied seed treatments enriched peanut yield traits, oil, and protein content of peanuts, with the superiority of Rhizobium inoculation, gypsum, and moringa extract.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.18
N. FATIMA, A. SAEED, A. SHAKEEL, and F.S. AWAN
SUMMARY
Salinity consists of critical abiotic stress adversely affecting tomato growth and development. Given the increase in saline areas, breeders endeavor to develop crops that can tolerate salinity. It indicates the importance of genotypes that can grow in salt-affected soil to cope with the problem. This study focused on identifying salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive genotypes using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). This study used a two-factor factorial under a complete randomized design, with three replications and three levels (T0 = control, T1 = 6 dS/m, T2 = 12 dS/m) of salt (NaCl) treatment. Data collection ensued at the seedling stage. Data for various morphological and biochemical attributes were recorded and subjected to analysis of variance and PCA to check the variation in germplasm and identification of suitable genotypes. Analysis of variance showed significant results for all attributes indicating the presence of variability in germplasm. Using PCA identified tolerant and non-tolerant tomato genotypes. Based on the results obtained from PCA analysis, genotypes AUT-318, CLN-2498A, 17884, Picendanto, 17260, 17256, 17263, and 17266 showed as salt tolerant, whereas the 19903, 19908, Target-66, H-24, 17255, Nadir, and Peelo displayed as salt-sensitive genotypes. Selected genotypes suit further use for the development of breeding material.
Keywords: Tomato germplasm, salinity, principal component analysis, osmolytes, screening, selection
Key findings: Based on results obtained from the analysis, the genotypes AUT-318, CLN-2498-A, 17884, Picendanto, 17260, 17256, 17263, and 17266 proved salt-tolerant. These selected genotypes suit future use for salt-tolerant varieties and hybrid development.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.17
S.A. ALMUKHTAR
SUMMARY
The study for improving the multiplication and rooting systems of Gardenia jasminoides cv. veitchii ensued in 2020–2021 at the Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture, University of Kerbala, Kerbala, Iraq. The first experiment comprised multiplication, using Benzyl adenine (BA) at the concentrations of 0, 2, 4, and 6 mg L-1 and licorice extract at the concentrations of 0, 1, 2, and 3 g L-1. The second experiment involved the rooting system, including cultivation of gardenia, shoots on MS media with different formulations, i.e., MS media with half strength of basal salts, and a) IBA (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 mg L-1), b) licorice extract concentrations ( 0, 1, 2, 3 g L-1), MS medium with the full strength of basal salts, c) IBA (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 mg L-1), and d) licorice extract (0.1, 2, 3 g L-1). The results showed the superiority of benzyl adenine (4 mg L-1) in achieving the highest number of shoots per plant, and the concentration of 2 mg L-1 showed superior in giving the maximum shoot length and the number of leaves per plant. The licorice extract (2 g L-1) achieved the highest number of shoots per plant, while the concentration of 3 gm L-1 proved superior in reaching the maximum shoot length and number of leaves per plant. The Indole 3-butyric acid- IBA (1 mg L-1) revealed the highest rooting percentage, root length, and root dry weight, with IBA (2 mg L-1) being the highest root number. Also, licorice extract (3 g L-1) supplemented to the media with half strength of basal salts displayed superior rooting percentage, root length, and root dry weight.
Keywords: plant growth regulators, licorice extract, micropropagation, Gardenia veitchii, in vitro
Key findings: Benzyl adenine – BA (4 mg L-1) produced the maximum number of shoots per plant, and BA at 2 mg L-1 generated the most number of leaves and shoot length. Adding 2 g L-1 of licorice extract yielded the highest number of shoots plant-1, with licorice at the 3 g m L-1 producing more leaves and shoot length. The IBA (1 mg L-1) had the highest rooting percentage, length, and dry weight. In half-strength salt media plus licorice extract at the 3 g L-1 increased the number of roots, root length, and dry weight.
Date published: December 2022
DOI: http://doi.org/10.54910/sabrao2022.54.5.16