Investigation of the effect of different levels of vermicompost and leaf soil on some geranium (Pelargonium spp.) characteristics under drought stress

Today, due to the reduction of groundwater aquifers and the problem of water shortage, one of the most important measures in agriculture is the production of droughtresistant ornamental plants and the identification of the most important composition of planting media to increase drought resistance in different plants. This study was performed as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized block design with 14 treatments to evaluate the effect of drought stress in the presence of organic substrates in geranium planting under controlled conditions in the greenhouse. The treatments used included 100% sandy loam soil as a control, 3 levels (25, 50, 75%) of vermicompost and 3 levels (25, 50, 75%) of leaf soil with loam soil without stress and drought stress. Drought stress was applied in half of the pots once every 10 days. Finally, in order to investigate the effect of drought stress in the presence of organic culture medium on geranium, traits such as petal anthocyanin, catalase, leaf number, shoot length, flower diameter and flower longevity were evaluated. The results showed that drought stress significantly reduced all traits except catalase. On the other hand, 50% vermicompost + 50% loam soil moderates the effect of drought on the growth of geranium to a large extent and it can be introduced as a suitable culture medium in dehydrated conditions.