نشریه پژوهش های زعفران
سال سوم شماره 2 (پاییز و زمستان 1394)

Saffron is a native plant in eastern part of Iran that it is a perennial plant which can grow up to 5-7 years through its corms. Annually cow manure is added to the soil up to approximately 20-30 t.ha-1. The main aims of the present research were evaluate some physical and chemical properties of soil in saffron fields over than seven years. Fifty ha saffron fields were selected from Gezic region (is located in southern Khorasan province) in 2007. This experiment was conducted based on a completely randomomized design under six saffron ages as treatment (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 years) and eight replications. Organic matter percentage (%OM), particle organic matter (POM), mean weight diameter of aggregates (MWD), field capacity (FC) and permanent wilting point (PWP) water content, total nitrogen (%N) and available phosphorus (P) of soils were measured. The eesults revealed that soil %OM increased over the growing years. There was no significant increased for POM over the growing years. The MWD, FC and PWP were greater for 7-year fields as compared to 1-year fields. The total N and available phosphorus were higher in older fields.

Saffron has an important role in Iranian non-oil export. This product has different known and unknown attributes. In recent years, Iran has spent great effort to declare this product to global markets. But, Iran is the greatest saffron producer in the world, the global markets is in authority of Spain and Iran has an unknown position in global markets. On the other hand, lack of attention to systematic cultivation of saffron leads to reduction quality levels, decreasing production rate and finally decreasing profitability in Iran. Also, poor distribution and marketing and lack of full declaring Iranian saffron, internationally lose a large portion of global markets and finally decreasing a significant portion of added value. In this project, tried to present a comprehensive model to improve production, promote the quality and optimal use of this product and also gain more portions of global markets and earn more added values. Therefore all phases from pre-planting, cultivation, maintenance, harvesting, processing, sorting, packaging, distributing and marketing are studied and then offering applied solutions to improve yield.

Cropping pattern is considered as one of the most important parameters of water resources management. Determining the cropping pattern for an agricultural area has many unknowns’ variablrs. Cropping typing, of the cultureable, culture percentage, amont of the water requirement, employment, the profitability of each crop and the amount of available water resources are factors that have effective in determining the appropriate cropping pattern. This research aims were extend optimal model of plant pattern determined by heuristic model of shuffled frog leaping algorithm. For these purposes, economic and social factors of net income, job engagement and minimization of water use, crop production cost and virtual water trade amounts were used. The factor weights were calculated based on collected data by analytical heuristic processes method (AHP). Two different scenarios were performed based on the mentioned dimensionless parameters. In the first scenario, the results showed that saffron, cucurbits, cumin and vegetables had the most land area (by considering limitations), while in the second scenario (which was cultivated land area with more limitations) saffron and cucurbits with 34.8 and 32.5% of total cultivated area had highest cultivated area, respectively. Also, with respect to aridity of the region, water use in two suggestive scenarios compared to the basic crop pattern reduced by the amounts of 14 and 20%, respectively.

Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is a perennial and triploid- geophyte crop which can be maintained up to 8–10 years. During each season, saffron propagates exclusively by replacement corms produced from the mother corm after blooming. The new corms are formed above the old ones, so the crop density increases more and more. Therefore, the flower number and dry stigma yield of saffron are relatively low in the first year and increases to maximum in the fifth to sixth year after planting. The stigma yield of saffron largely depends on weather and soil conditions during replacement corms formation. Research activities have been conducted to developing the appropriate and new agronomic technologies can result in economic levels of production and improve the crop yield. The objective of this review article is to describe and discuss the phonological stages of saffron based on mother- replacement corms behaviors. In addition, relevant literature related to main factors affected the replacement corms behavior is reviewed.

Phenolic compounds in different organs of saffron plant specially corm has negative correlation with economical yield, but causes improvememt of qualitative characters.This research was conducted in 2008 and 2009 by sampling from saffron farms of Abrood village in TorbateHeydarieh. In this research relation of economical yield obtained with phenolic compounds of corms and rhizosphere. Ages of fields were 3, 5 and 7 years.The statistical procedure was factorial experiment as RCBD.Firs factor was times of sampling in four levels and second one was saffron organs including leaves and corms and its rhizosphere. Rates of dry matter accumulation, nitrogen rate of rhizosphere, corms and leaves and rate of phenolic compounds of rhizosphere, corms and leaves of saffeon with different replications and random samplings were assessed. By application of statistical procedures and their interaction were calculated. Results showed that effect of time of sampling was not significant on leaf phenolic compounds, but time of sampling was significant on nitrogen rate of leaves and on fresh and dry weight of leaves. Fieldm age had significant effect of economical yield and on fresh and dry weight of leaves. Relations between nitrogen, phenolic compounds and dry matter content of saffron are similar to other important crops.

In order to study the effects of climate change on saffron water requirement by using four climate projection models such as atmosphere-ocean coupled general circulation model (AOGCM), an experiment was conducted. Precipitation and temperature variables were developed by applying monthly climate model output as within the CCCSN. We spot 1992-2014 and 2014-2040 as base and future period, respectively. For CCCSN, data from five global climate models (GCMs) from the CGCM3T47 archive were selected that cover three ‘Representative Concentration Pathways’ (RCPs) scenarios. Potential evapotranspiration is estimated by thornthwaite method. The accuracy of models at base period was determined by evaluation criteria, such as the RMSE, R2. Results showed that accuracy of CGCM3T47 model on A1B scenario was higher than other AOGCM models which used on base term. Also, it illustrated that water requirement will rise in all capable regions of state on 2040. In universal, average of addition of water requirement is 67 mm in through state. In capital of state, Birjand will have maximum variations by 95 mm ascension for the year 2040. Also, pole of production saffron in state, qaen will have 40 mm ascension in saffron water requirement. Mean water requirement of saffron will be incremental process. Meanwhile the index of 425.52 mm for the year of 2014 to 487.61 mm for the year of 2040 will arrive.

Regarding the high amount of saffron production in Iran and especially in South Khorasan province and increasing need to forage production, optimum usage of saffron foliage residues could play an important role in the supply of partial forage needed for livestock in this province. This study was carried out to determine the chemical composition and ruminal dry matter (DM) degradability of saffron foliage residues treated with Pleurotus florida fungi using in situ and gas production techniques in Animal Nutrition Laboratory of University of Birjand with two treatment and based on t-test statistical analysis. For this, saffron foliage residues were harvested at late vegetation growth stage and treated with Pleurotus florida fungi. The results showed that treated saffron foliage residues contained lower content of DM, NDF and ADF, but higher CP than untreated residues (the DM, crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and ash content of untreated residues were 93.9, 6.6, 45.9, 38.0 and 5.2% of DM, and of treated residues were 67.7, 14.8, 28.2, 26.7 and 6.7% of DM, respectively). The DM ruminal degradability parameters of residues were significantly increased by Fungi treating. Treating of saffron residues also increased their gas production from DM potentially fermentable fraction (b), metabolisable energy, organic matter digestibility, and short chain fatty acids content. Treating saffron residues with Pleurotus florida improved their nutritional value.

Soil characteristics play an important role in plant growth and yield such as saffron. In order to evaluate the effect of soil physical and chemical characteristics on morphological criteria, corm and flower yield of saffron, an experiment was conducted during year 2014. Studied soil characteristics were texture, organic carbon (OC), total nitrogen (TN), available P and K, pH and electrical conductivity (EC). Examined saffron properties were corm dry weight, flower number, flower fresh weight and stigma dry weight. Multiple regression model was used to identify the relationship between soil variables (independent variables) and saffron yield variables (dependent variables). In addition, determining the most important factors of soil physicochemical properties which have effect on saffron yield criteria was done by stepwise regression analysis. The results showed the effect of different soil textures were significant (p≤0.01) on corm yield and flower yield of saffron. The highest and the lowest saffron yield were observed in sandy loam and clay textures, respectively. The maximum and the minimum coefficients of soil chemical criteria with stigma dry weight were calculated for available K (-0.573) and pH (0.0052). Soil chemical factors affecting stigma dry weight based on stepwise regression analysis determined were available K, available P, EC and TN contents of the soil. Correlation coefficients of regression models for soil characteristics with corm dry weight, flower number, flower fresh weight and stigma dry weight of saffron were computed with 0.84, 0.87, 0.90 and 0.89, respectively. There also were a positive and significant relationship between corm yield and flower yield of saffron.