نشریه علوم باغبانی
سال سی و سوم شماره 1 (پیاپی 41، بهار 1398)

Water stress limits crop production throughout the world and contrary to other limiting factors (acidity, sodicity and salinity). It is highly variable within growing season and from year to year. Plants response to water deficit at morphological, anatomical and cellular levels by modifications allowing them to avoid stress or increase tolerance. When supply of water is limited, crop management practices that improve water stress resistance can benefit plant growth and improve water use efficiency.  Onion seed production has high requirements in inorganic fertilizers. The applied amount depends on the type and fertility status of the soil. The use of inorganic fertilizers is common in onion production. Onion is responsive to nitrogen fertilizer. The bulb refers to a fleshy structure serving as storage organ, and containing simple and sugars, sulfur, protein and nitrogen compound containing flavor precedents as well as a significant amount of water in the swollen cells producing the bulk of the bulb scales. In order to evaluate the effects of deficit irrigation, nitrogen levels and bulb size on seed yield and reproduction traits of onion (Allium cepa var. Ghooli gheseh), was conducted in Zanjan areas. In order to study the effects of nitrogen levels, bulb size and water tension at various growth stages on onion seed yield (Allium cepa var. Ghooli gheseh), an experiment was conducted in Zanjan University in 2014. The experiment was strip split plot with a randomized complete block design with three replications. Water tension was applied at the beginning of flowering, end of flowering, as well as the milking stage of seed by avoiding irrigation at those stages. The obtained seed yield was compared with that of control or treatment with normal irrigation (no water tension). The irrigation treatments including control were located on horizontal plots and vertical plots allocated to nitrogen levels (0, 75, 150 and 300 kg N ha-1) and bulb sizes (5-7 and 7-9 cm diameter). Traits such as days to inflorescence emergence, days to flowering, number of inflorescence per plant and seed yield were measured. All data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using SAS 9.3 software. When F test indicated statistical significance at P< 0.01 or P < 0.05, the least significant difference (LSD) was used to calculate the means. The effect of water tension on seed yield and days to seed ripening were significant at 1% probability level. Water tension at milking stage of seed, end of flowering and beginning of flowering reduced seed yield in comparison with the control and yield decreased by 10.5, 12 and 39.5%, respectively. The highest seed yield (659.4 kg ha-1) was obtained in the control. Although the main effect of nitrogen was not significant, application of 150 kg N/ha increased inflorescence diameter, percentage of fertile florets and seed yield about 5.6, 4.9 and 20%, respectively in comparison with the control (N0). Application of nitrogen up to 150 kg ha-1 significantly increased days to seed ripening. Days to inflorescence emergence, days to flowering, number of inflorescence per plant and seed yield were affected significantly by bulb size. In onions, many factors such as bulb weight, cultivars, spacing, date of planting, climate, soil, besides fertilizer application seem to affect seed yield and quality. Moreover, according to Mishra, (1994), applying nitrogen has been revealed to enhance the number of umbels per plant in onion. Based on Islam et al. (1998), the larger sets associated with the closest spacing resulted in the highest bulb yield. Smaller set with zero nitrogen level led to the maximum number of single bulbs. The closest spacing with 120 N/ha resulted in the highest bulb yield, as well. The highest bulb yield from the combination of larger sets and closest spacing was equal to 120 kg N/ha. Smaller sets and the closest spacing zero N level yielded the highest number of single bulbs. For onion seed production in climatic conditions similar to those in Zanjan areas, application of normal irrigation, bulb diameter of 7-9 cm and 150 kg N ha-1 are recommended.

Onion (Allium cepa L.) is a herbaceous, biennial, monocots and cross pollination and one of the most important vegetables around the world. This plant contains vitamin B, vitamin C, carbohydrates and a small amount of protein. Onions with substances such as fructans, flavonoids and organic sulfur has many medicinal properties. One of the factors increasing the onion growth is the application of a desirable quantity of foliar for the cultivation of this plant. With respect that nitrogen is one of the main ingredients of amino acid and chlorophyll, accelerating the rate of growth of this plant and increasing protein and activity of the plant, it is more effective for the plant. Nitrogen is a component of pigments, secondary metabolites and the main components of proteins and in other biological important biomolecules such as ATP and nucleic acids can also be found. Lack of nitrogen reduces the activity of nitrate reductase, nitrite reductase, glutamine synthetase, glutamate synthetase and glutamine dehydrogenase. The relevant application of fertilizer has positive effect on the soil quality but also on the preservation of nitrogen and other soil ingredients and decreases a need for the fertilizers. Phosphorus plays an important role in plant metabolism, such as root development, photosynthesis, nutrient transport within the plant, meiosis, growth and development of reproductive organs is responsible. In this regard, the use of micro-organisms will help to reduce the amount of phosphorus fertilizers is expensive. Biological fertilizer has an important role in the dissolution of some elements such as phosphorus can be influenced in combined with phosphorus fertilizer. Since in our country due to drastic changes in pH, the amount of soluble phosphorus in rhizosphere is limited. Therefore use of bio-fertilizers releasing phosphorus for a large extent can be balanced difficult to absorb this nutrient, and the absorption of other nutrients in plants is effective as a quantitative measure. Due to the importance of nutrition with bio-fertilizer and nitrogen fertilizer, its effects on yield and yield components of onion in city Malekan climatic conditions were evaluated. Therefore, in order to investigate the effect of nitrogen and bio-phosphate fertilizer on quantitative and qualitative characteristics Azarshahr red onion, factorial experiment in a randomized complete block design with three replications in two separate experiments were conducted in the crop year 2015-2016. First experiment included nitrogen fertilizer in three levels (0, 60 and 120 kg per hectare) and spraying bio-phosphate fertilizer (Barvar 2) on three levels (control, 1 and 2 per thousand) and the second experiment, nitrogen fertilizer at mentioned and inoculation seed with -bio-phosphate fertilizer (Barvar 2) in three levels (non-inoculated, 1 and 2 per thousand), respectively. Data from tests using SPSS software were analyzed and mean comparisons of data were performed using Duncan's multiple range test, finally required tables and charts using Excel software were drawn. The analysis of data variance at first experiment indicated that the effect of nitrogen on all of studied traits without sugar content and bio-phosphate fertilizer (Barvar 2) on the plant height, average weight onion, yield, sugar compounds and protein rate without amount of nitrate and chlorophyll index were significant. On the other hand, effect of nitrogen was not significant for the average weight of onion and chlorophyll index. The effect of 2-bio-phosphate on the average weight of onion and sugar ingredient was significant. In the first experiment, the highest performance bulbs (18/98 T/h), average bulb weight (127/51 g), plant height (50/96 cm) and chlorophyll index with 120 kg per hectare nitrogen and yield bulbs, average bulb weight, height and amount of protein in the foliar concentration of 2 per thousand phosphate fertilizer 2 was observed. In the second experiment, most of these traits obtained from 120 kg of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizer 2 inoculated seeds with a concentration of 2 per thousand, respectively. In this survey, the utilization of the fertilizing bio-phosphate (Barvar 2) through two ways as diffusing and inoculating of solution causes the height of bushes, average eight , function, glucose composition and level of protein of onion to be increased. But the use of the biological phosphate through diffusing significantly decreases the amount of the stored nitrate in onion. This is one of the main and effective factors in the consumer's health. Despite that the application of nitrogen increases the effectiveness of onion, the amount of nitrate increases accordingly. The concurrent application of nitrogen and the fertilizing bio-phosphate (Barvar 2) will have more effect on onion. In the meantime, the leaf-application of the fertilizing bio-phosphate (Barvar 2) inclines the increasing effectiveness of Nitrogen on the amount of Nitrate.

Information on nature and magnitude of present variability in a population is an important pre-requisite for starting any breeding program. Moreover, the knowledge about correlations among various characters and further partitioning them into direct and indirect effects is a rational approach to understanding such a relationship which is helpful for multiple trait selections. The present study was undertaken to determine the genetic variability and heritability of important economic characters, interrelationships among them and their direct and indirect effect on yield in Iranian onion landraces. Seeds of twenty landraces were planted using a randomized complete block design with three replications in East Azarbayjan Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center for two years. Thirty plants were selected at random in each plot to record the observations on yield/plant, leaf length, number of leaves/plant, bulb length, bulb diameter, number of centers, number of edible layers, bulb dry matter and shape index. Broad-sense heritability, expected genetic advance, genetic variability, correlation coefficient, and path coefficient analysis calculated. Analysis of variance showed significant effects for all studied traits. Therefore, sufficient genetic variability exists among the onion landraces.
The bulb yield per plant had the utmost phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variation (PCV and GCV) (27.81% and 24.27%, respectively). This shows the prevalence of greater genetic variability among the genotypes which offers good opportunities for crop improvement through selection. Medium PCV and GCV were displayed in bulb diameter, number of leaves/plant, leaf length, number of center and shape index. But number of edible layers and bulb dry matter showed low GCV and PCV indicating less scope of selection as they are under the influence of environment.
The estimates of phenotypic coefficients of variation were higher than their corresponding genotypic coefficients of variation for all the traits. That might be due to interaction of genotype with environment to the same degree or other denoting environmental factors influencing the expression of these traits. A high degree of disparity between PCV and GCV for most of the traits showed their susceptibility to environmental fluctuations.
In present study, the estimates of broad-sense heritability ranged from 16% for number of edible layers to 88% for shape index. Heritability estimates were very high for bulb diameter, leaf length, and number of centers and shape index, indicating the possibility of success in selection. Heritability estimates were relatively high for yield/plant, bulb length and number of leaves/plant. In addition, moderate heritability estimate was observed for bulb dry matter. On the other hand, low heritability estimates was also observed for number of edible layers indicating the limited scope for improvement of this trait through selection.
The expected genetic advance expressed as a percentage of the mean by selecting the top 5% of the accessions, varied between 1.6% for number of edible layers to 43.55% for yield/plant. Genetic advance as percentage of mean was maximum for yield/plant followed by number of centers, shape index, leaf length, bulb diameter, number of leaves/plant and bulb length. Genetic coefficient of variation, heritability, and genetic advance were high in yield/plant. Therefore, yield/plant could be useful basis for selection.
In most traits, the genotypic correlation coefficients were higher than the phenotypic correlation coefficients which indicated the inherent association among various characters independent of environmental influence.
Bulb-yield/plant showed significant positive correlation with leaf length, leaf number, bulb diameter and bulb length at phenotypic and genotypic levels. So, improvement of leaf length, leaf number, and bulb diameter and bulb length traits could improve the capacity of the plants to synthesize and translocate photosynthates to the bulb.
The path analysis showed that bulb diameter has the largest positive direct effect on bulb-yield/plant. The indirect effect of length of leaves on onion yield through bulb diameter was considerable. Accordingly, selection of plants with larger leaf length and bulb diameter could be suitable for breeding onion for higher yield. The presence of negligible residual effect (0.06) indicated that most of the important traits contributing to yield were included in the path analysis. Results showed that potential of onion landraces with high genetic diversity in selection for development of cultivars with favorable agronomic and market traits is high. The high genetic coefficient of variation, heritability, and genetic advance were found in yield/plant. Therefore, yield/plant could be useful basis of selection. In addition, the path analysis showed that selection of plants with larger leaf length and bulb diameter could be suitable for breeding onion for higher yield.

Transplant production is one of the most important commercial production of melon. Transplanting of seedlings with strong and healthy stems and roots will be successful. Environmental conditions, such as light, affect the proper growth of healthy transplants. The light provides the necessary energy for photosynthesis. Due to the stimulation of the activity of photosynthetic pigments and light receptor pigments, it can be expected that plant performance increase by improving the quality and quantity of light. High pressure sodium and fluorescent lamps are common artificial light sources in greenhouses but because of their high power consumption, heat generation and the light spectrum that the plant does not use, application of LED is taken into consideration. The production of specific spectrum of light and the possibility of spectral composition are advantages of LED lamps. The aim of this experiment was to investigate the effect of light quality and cultivar on some physiological and vegetative characteristics of two melon cultivar seedlings, Ghasri and Khatooni, which are among the most important melon cultivars in Iran. To investigate the effect of light quality and cultivar on vegetative characteristics of melon (Cucumis melo Gr. Inodorus) transplants, a research was conducted from April 4 to May 10, 2016 as split plot experiment in completely randomized design with five replications and the seedlings of Khatoonia and Ghasri cultivars were treated under different light quality include two combinations of blue and red spectrum with ratios of 15%B : 85%R , 30%B : 70%R, fluorescent lamp and HPS lamp. In order to set spectra combinations, LED lamps of Red (R625nm )  and Blue (B476nm)  were used. The 85%R: 15%B ratio was obtained through using of 340 R lamps plus 60 B lamps and the 70%R: 30%B ratio was obtained by the usage of 280 R lamps plus 120 B lamps on separate Plexiglass plate. Closed growth chambers without natural light were used. The size of LED growth chambers were 70×60×60 cm3 and the size of HPS lamp growth chamber was 120×60×60 cm3. The seeds were planted at a depth of 4 cm and were transplanted to growth chamber equipped with the desired light compounds. Light intensity was 65 mmol    and duration of light was 16 hours. Data was collected when transplant had four leaves. Emergence speed index, mean time for emergence of  transplants, fresh and dry weights of foliage and root, root volume, leaf area and thickness, leaf number, height, height to diameter ratio, stem caliper, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, chlorophyll total and carotenoids contents were measured. The result showed that the interaction effect of light quality and cultivar was significant on fresh and dry weights of foliage and root, root volume, leaf area and thickness, height to diameter ratio, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, chlorophyll total and carotenoids contents. The fresh and dry weights of foliage of Ghasri cultivar and fresh weight of root of Khatooni cultivar under 15%B: 85%R ratio, the dry weight and root volume of Ghasri cultivar under, 30%B: 70%R ratio, the chlorophyll a and carotenoids contents of Ghasri cultivar under, 30%B: 70%R ratio, the chlorophyll b and chlorophyll total contents of Khatooni cultivar under, 30%B: 70%R ratio were superior. The results of this study showed that the use of compounds of blue and red lights increased the dry matter and development of roots in studied plants. Proper dry matter and root development are important because they make the plant resistant to environmental stress. However, the effect of light quality was affected by the cultivar. For example, Ghasri cultivar showed the highest fresh and dry weights of foliage under 15%B: 85%R ratio and with the increase of blue light level, these two traits decrease significantly, but this results was not obtained in Khatooni cultivar. The results showed that the light quality affected leaf area and thickness of two cultivars in a different way. In Ghasri cultivar the highest leaf area and thickness were obtained under, 30%B: 70%R ratio. In Khatooni cultivar, under, 30%B: 70%R ratio, the highest leaf area and under fluorescent light, the highest leaf thickness were observed. The effect of blue light on the variation of leaf area among plants has been reported differently. The leaf area plays an important role in photosynthesis in plants and with its increase, photosynthesis and plant growth improved. The result showed that the interaction effect of light quality and cultivar was not significant on emergence speed index, mean time for emergence of transplants, leaf number, stem caliper and height. The highest emergence speed index and mean time for emergence of transplants were obtained under, 30%B: 70%R ratio without significant difference with 15%blue: 85%red ratio. Leaf number was lowest under HPS lamp and there is no significant difference in leaf number among 15%B: 85%R ratio, 30%B: 70%R ratio and fluorescent lamp. The highest stem caliper and lowest height were obtained under, 30%B: 70%R ratio. Interaction of phytochromes and cryptochromes due to different levels of blue and red lights lead to the formation of different concentrations of gibberellins and this affects the height of the plants. In some plants, increasing the amount of blue light leads to a decrease in the secretion of this hormone and as a result, plant heights are reduced. The results showed that the blue light had a positive effect on the increase of stem caliper and increasing transplant diameter has a positive effect on its establishment and development after their transfer  to the main planting site. The result showed that the application of the blue and red spectra compared to fluorescent and HPS lamps improved the quality of transplants growth. Improve or mitigate results and the performance in traits such as fresh and dry weights of foliage and root, root volume, leaf area and thickness, height to diameter ratio, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, chlorophyll total and carotenoids contents depend on  light quality and cultivar.

The salinity affliction of land constitutes a major threat amongst the various forms of soil degradation. Arbuscular mycorrhiza fungus can be useful as a bio-fertilizer in providing plant nutrition and reducing the effects of environmental stresses on plants. On the other hand, nitric oxide plays a role in many environmental and non-environmental stresses, including drought and salinity stresses. Liquorice (Glycyrrhiza globra Linn.), commonly known as Mulahatti and Yashtimadhu, is the highest priority value crop which can be successfully cultivated on salt-affected and degraded lands. It is a small perennial leguminous herb of the family Fabaceae (Papilionaceae) native to the Mediterranean region and central and southwest Asia, and cultivated in Italy, Russia, France, UK, USA, Germany, Spain, China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and north-western India. This research was carried out with the aim of investigating the effect of nitric oxide modification on coexistence with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus on some of the physiological traits of licorice under the salt stress of sodium chloride. This research was a factorial experiment based on completely randomized block design with three replications. Factors consisted of five levels of NaCl-salinity (0 as control, 50, 100, 150 and 200 mM), two levels of nitric oxide (0 and 0.2 mM) and two levels of mycorrhizal fungi (the presence and absence of mycorrhizal). To do this, 10 kg pot of pumice mixture and pumice (1 to 1 ratio) were poured into 60 plastic containers (30 x 20 cm; 10 L) and sterilized by alcohol. The seeds germinated in petri dishes after adequate growth, they were transferred to the pots (all seeds were germinated and grown in the same conditions). In each pot, five seedlings were cultured and irrigated with distilled water until a two-leaf stage. After that, the treatment was carried out by a Hoagland solution. Application of saline treatments and nitric oxide (from sodium nitroproced as nitric oxide source) was performed 45-days. Finally, after 60 days of planting, sampling was carried out to measure the physiological traits from the middle leaves of each pot, and after being placed in an aluminum foil with ice-containing flux, it was transferred to the laboratory and then transferred to 80 o C. The evaluated traits were leaf flavonoids by Swain (52) method, proline content by Bates et al. (6) method, MDA with Ohkawa et al. (40) method, CAT activity by Pereira et al. (44) method, POD activity by Korori (28) method and SOD activity by Giannopolitis and Reis (21) method. The data were analyzed by SPSS 22 (IBM SPSS Statistics 22.0) software application. The data was normalized and inferential statistics such as analysis of variance and mean comparison of treatments were calculated using Duncan's multiple range test. The results showed that the salinity stress had significant effect on flavonoid content, proline content, malondialdehyde rate and antioxidant activity of catalase, peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. Salinity had increased levels of malondialdehyde, proline content, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes (catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase). The coexistence of mycorrhiza fungus in combination with nitric oxide or alone reduced the number of flavonoids and increased proline content at each level of salinity stress. Nitric oxide had no significant effect on measured traits but was more effective in combination with Mycorrhiza fungi. In general, sodium chloride salinity stress had a negative effect on the physiological traits of liquorice, but the use of nitric oxide with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus reduced the negative effects of stress. In general, it can be said that the removal and decontamination of active oxygen species is an important part of salinity tolerance in plants. In the present study, salinity stresses have significantly increased the amount of MDA, which is an indicator of plant response to stress. In addition to salinity stress, nitric oxide stress has been induced to reduce the effects of high salt concentration on some of the indices, thus reducing nitric oxide in high concentrations of MDA. Application of saline treatment significantly increased the activity of the three antioxidant enzymes CAT, POD, and SOD. The results showed that salinity stress had a decreasing effect on studied traits, but the application of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus with nitric oxide reduced the negative effects of sodium chloride salinity stress on liquorice plant.

The major problem in apple well-known rootstocks is lack of protocols for fast propagation under in vitro condition. Nitric oxide (NO) has been received the great encouragement and more attention in the recent years for its key signaling role. Nitric oxide plays a vital role in the growth and development of plants, including stimulating the seed germination and seedlings growth as well as delaying in the senescence process.
In previous studies, the application of sodium nitroprusside (SNP), as NO-releasing agent, in combination with different plant hormones under in vitro conditions showed that, The application of 30 μM SNP significantly increased shoot multiplication (9.4 shoots per explant) and  the use of 100 μM SNP induced rhizogenesis (2.1 roots per explants) of apple micro cutting. Accordingly, the current study attempted to investigate the effects of SNP treatments in combination with NAA and BA on the regeneration of adventitious shoots and in combination with IBA and NAA on rhizogenesis of micro cuttings in MM111 and MM106 apple rootstocks, , under in vitro conditions. The current study was conducted to investigate the effects of SNP alone and in combination with different types of growth regulators (IBA, NAA and BA) on the morpho-physiological characteristics of Malling Merton 111 (MM111) and Malling Merton 106 (MM106) micro cuttings under in vitro conditions. MM111 and MM106 that growth under in vitro conditions were already used with about 2.5 cm length as the plant's sources. This research was carried out in the frame of two separate experiments (proliferation and rhizogenesis). For the proliferation, the MS medium supplemented with different concentrations of SNP (0.0, 2.96, 5.98, 8.94, 11.91 and 14.90 mg L-1) used as treatments. For the rhizogenesis, the ½ MS medium supplemented with different concentrations of SNP (0, 7.45, 14.90, 22/35 and 57.80 mg L-1) alone and  combined with 1 mg L-1 IBA and 0.01 mg L-1 NAA was used. In the first experiment, characteristics such as shoot length, number of shoots, total soluble proteins and carbohydrates content, peroxidase activity, carotenoids, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b as well as total chlorophyll content were measured. In the rhizogenesis experiment, root length, fresh and dry weight of roots, as desirable characteristics, were measured. In both experiments, the treatments were arranged in a completely randomized factorial design with four replicates. Four and three explants were used in each replication for proliferation and rhizogenesis experiments, respectively. In the proliferation experiment, the number of shoots under 5.98 mg L-1 SNP was significantly higher than other treatments. The experimental treatments did not have a significant effect on the shoots length. Since nitric oxide may play a role in cell division, so it participates in the regeneration of the lateral branches and caused their proliferation (11). The results showed that total chlorophyll and carbohydrate contents in MM106 rootstock were significantly higher than MM111. The highest total chlorophyll content  was observed in 5.98 and 14.90 mg L-1 SNP treatments and the maximum soluble carbohydrates was obtained in 2.96 mg L-1 SNP treatment. Shoot regeneration under SNP treatments had a relatively high correlation with the amount of soluble proteins and carbohydrates. In the rhizogenesis experiment, the root length at 5.98, 11.91 and 14.90 mg L-1 SNP treatments were significantly different from other treatments. The lowest root number was observed in the absence of SNP. The previous literature indicated that NO induces the CYCD3:1 gene and caused the expression of the anti-CDK inhibitor KPP2 gene at the onset of the formation of peripheral lateral root, and the genetic regulators of auxin-dependent cell cycle is directly related to NO. Also, our results showed that root fresh weight under 5.98 and 14.90 mg L-1 SNP treatments was significantly higher than other treatments, and the highest root dry weight was obtained in 5.98 mg L-1 SNP in comparison to other treatments. Based on the results it may be assumed that presence of SNP causes changes in the level of plant hormones at different stages of development, which is probably resulted in starting metabolic processes for root development and dry matter accumulation. Each trait showed a more favorable result at a specific concentration of SNP. However, proliferation under 5.96 mg L-1 SNP first increased then reduced. Application of SNP treatments had a positive effect on the measured traits e.g. shoot numbers, total soluble protein and carbohydrate contents, as well as fresh and dry weight of roots. In this experiment, the concentration of 5.98 mg L-1 SNP had the highest effect in term of shoot numbers, total soluble protein and carbohydrate contents, compared to other treatments. The apple rootstock MM106 showed the better performance to the plant growth regulators than MM111 rootstock. Overall, the present results indicated that SNP material, as a NO-releasing source, can physiologically be present in the plant in a way that can induce regeneration of plants and this potential depends on the genotype type.

  Sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) is a worldwide used vegetable, which is an excellent source of ascorbic acid and has high antioxidant capacity against oxidative damage caused by free radicals. Ascorbic acid (AsA) is a water-soluble vitamin that plays a key physiological role in scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS), and enzyme cofactor. In recent years, the application of exogenous AsA has received much attention for use as a biologically safe compound for postharvest quality maintenance of many horticulture crops. Calcium is an essential micronutrient that plays a vital role in maintains cell wall stability, integrity and determining the fruit quality. To our knowledge, however, little information is available regarding the effect of ascorbic acid and calcium lactate on pepper fruits. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the foliar application of ascorbic acid and calcium lactate on growth, yield and fruit quality of sweet peppers. To study the effect of foliar application of calcium lactate (Ca) and Ascorbic acid (AsA) on growth, yield and fruit quality of sweet pepper, the field experiment was carried out from June to September 2016 at Research farm of faculty of Agriculture, at the University of Zanjan, Iran. Pepper plants (cv. California Wonder) were cultivated by applying conventional farming practice for growing in open air conditions. 210 plants (30 plants for each treatment) were selected for uniform size and fruit load, and were sprayed three times (0, 15, 30 days after full bloom) with an aqueous solution containing different concentrations of Ca (0, 0.5, 1 and 1.5 g L-1) and AsA (100, 200 and 300 mg L-1). Each treatment was carried out with three replicates. Pepper fruit were harvested at commercial maturity stage, and transferred to the laboratory on the same day. Leaf area was recorded whit measurement leaf area (DELTA-T DEVICEC LTD, ENGLAND). After fruit harvested, plant length was measured. Fruit was weighted after harvest to determine mean fruit weight. The fruit number per plant and fruit yield per plant was measured to determine of total yield. The total yield expressed in kg ha–1. Flesh firmness was determined with penetrometer (model Mc Cormic FT 32), using an 8 mm penetrating tip. Results were expressed in kg cm-2. The pH values of solutions were monitored with pH meter. TSS was measured in the extract obtained from three fruit of each replicate with a digital refractometer Atago PR-101 (Atago Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) at 20◦C. Total ascorbic acid content was expressed as mg per 100 g of juice. Antioxidant activity was measured using the free radical scavenging activity (DPPH) and calculated according to the following formula:  RSA%= 100(Ac-As)/Ac. Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS software package v. 20.0 for Windows, and means comparison were separated by Duncan’s multiple range tests at p < 0.05. The results showed that foliar application of AsA had significant effects on growth and fruit yield. The highest fruit yield (897.1 g plant-1) was achieved at 300 mg L-1 AsA that had no significant difference with 200 mg L-1 AsA. Foliar application of AsA markedly increased vitamin C content, and also the highest value of total soluble solid (5.7 °B) was recorded from 300 mg L-1 AsA. Ca had no significant effects on growth and fruit yield but significantly improved fruit firmness. The highest fruit firmness (2.13 and 2.16 kg cm-1) was obtained from 1 and 1.5 g L-1 Ca. The maximum antioxidant activity was achieved with application of 300 mg L-1 AsA and 1.5 g L-1 Ca. The fresh sweet peppers were an important source of ascorbic acid for human consumption. AsA significantly increased the amount of vitamin C in the plum and sweet pepper fruits. Foliar treatment of Ca increased vitamin C content. Increasing vitamin C content in fruits after treatment with Ca could be related to inhibiting action of calcium on the activities of ascorbic acid oxidase that use ascorbate as a substrate. The results indicated that treatment of Ca produced fruits with higher firmness compared to control and other treatments. Firmness and resistance to softening can be increased by the addition of Ca, due to interaction of calcium with pectate acid in the cell wall to form calcium pectate and retarding polygalacturonase activity. Differences in the percentage of TSS content at the time of harvest indicated the AsA and Ca effects on carbohydrate accumulation in fruits, which had different potential on respiration rates and consequently storability of plants. The exogenous application of AsA and Ca in sweet pepper plants indicated that treatments had significant effects on ascorbic acid content of sweet peppers. The antioxidant activity has positive correlation with total phenolic content, flavonoids and content of ascorbic acid. The results of our research indicated that per-harvest foliar application of AsA increased plant growth, fruit number and weight. Also, AsA and Ca treatments improved fruit quality attributes including vitamin C, fruit firmness, TSS and antioxidant activity. These results suggest that AsA and Ca treatments, especially AsA 300 mg L-1 and Ca 1.5 g L-1, may be proposed to improve fruit quality.

Varieties of melons have long been the most important crops in Iran and have a special place in Iran's agricultural economy which is the third major producers in the world. Different types of melons belong to various botanical groups of Cucumis melo. Salinity stress is one of the limiting factors in the production of crops. Majority lands in Iran have arid and semi-arid conditions. The characteristics of these regions are high evaporation and low rainfall, which causes the accumulation of different salts in the surface layer of the earth. Salinity is one of the most important issues in the world, and millions of tons of salt are come annually from irrigation water into agricultural land. Therefore, many plants are encountered to saline soils. Grafting is developing as a new and effective way to increase the tolerance of plants to salinity in advanced countries. Several reports indicate that the rootstock type has a significant role in the resistance of the scion to environmental stresses. In the present study, salinity tolerance of two Iranian melon accessions (‘Garmak’ and ‘Samsouri’) were investigated based on eco-physiological traits, on three commercial rootstocks and a local variety of cucurbit, as well as comparing them with non-grafting plant of ‘Garmak’ and ‘Samsouri’,. This experiment was conducted as factorial in a completely randomized design with three factors including salinity stress (in three levels) and four rootstocks and two scions with three replications in greenhouse and field of the faculty of agriculture, Vali-e-Asr University of Rafsanjan, Iran. In this study, two melon accessions (‘Garmak’ and ‘Samsouri’) were grafted on commercial hybrids rootstocks (‘Ferro’, ‘Shintozwa’ and ‘Ergo’) and a local variety of bottle gourd and subjected to salinity treatments (0, 20 and 40 mM levels of sodium chloride) in the field. One month after adaptation of grafted plants, grafted and non-grafted plants were transferred to the field and salinity treatment (sodium chloride) was applied one week after planting in the field. The evaluated traits at the end of the experiment were: photosynthetic parameters (total chlorophyll, total carotenoids, photosynthetic efficiency index), relative water content, vascular pressure potential, proline and soluble sugars. The results showed that in salinity treatments, grafted plants were superior to non-grafted plants in studied traits. Differences were also observed between the tested rootstocks, so that the ‘Ergo’ hybrid was weaker in many features than other rootstocks and even non-grafted plants. The results showed that salinity increased the amount of proline and carotenoids in the leaf, which was lower in grafted than non-grafted plants. With increasing salinity, the pressure of vascular pressure decreased. This amount was lower in non-grafted than in plants grafted on ‘Ferro’ and ‘bottle gourd’. Also, the total chlorophyll content and relative water content of leaf decreased, which this reduction was higher in non-grafted plants. Among the traits mentioned, the best studied rootstocks were ‘Ferro’ and ‘Shintozwa’ that were better than other rootstocks as well as non-grafted plants. By increasing salinity, the soluble sugars of grafted plants on ‘Ferro’ and ‘bottle gourd’ decreased, but in grafted plants on ‘Shintozwa’ hybrid, increased salinity increased the soluble sugars content.
Conclusions The results of this study showed that salinity stress significantly reduced the relative water content of leaves, photosynthetic pigments and carotenoids. Salinity also increased the potency of vascular pressure potential and proline concentration. Compared to non-grafted plants, the negative effects of salinity stress on non-grafted plants were more prominent than grafted plants. Also, the amount of photosynthetic parameters in grafted plants decreased less than non-grafted plants. Comparing the two evaluated accessions, ‘Samsouri’ was more appropriate than stress conditions. Compared to non-grafted and grafted plants in non-stress conditions, the best rootstock was ‘Ferro’, which showed the best result for all traits except for proline content in both ‘Samsouri’ and ‘Garmak’. At a salinity level of 40 mM, the ‘Ferro’ and ‘Shintozwa’ were superior to other rootstocks, which showed satisfactory results in most traits. Also, due to the poor reaction of the grafted plants on the bottle gourd rootstock under salt stress conditions, it seems that this rootstock probably due to low compatibility is not a suitable rootstock for two evaluated accessions in the present study. Based on the findings of the present study, ‘Ferrero’ and Shintozwa’ in combination with ‘Samsouri’ and ‘Garmak’ showed more tolerance to salinity.

Nowadays, crop production methods are moving towards organic farming through reducing the use of chemicals in agriculture. The new generation of seaweed extracts, like Actiwave, could be a promising approach to achieve a part of this goal. Actiwave is a metabolic enhancer derived from a type of brown algae, called Ascophyllum nodosum, and contains compounds that play an important role in plant metabolism. The application of this product on various plants has often improved their vegetative and reproductive characteristics. One of the important problems in our agricultural lands is the presence of bicarbonate ion in soil (calcareous soils) or irrigation water, which increases pH around plant’s root followed by chlorosis between the veins in the young leaves resulting in a reduction or halt in plant growth. The induction of chlorosis in calcareous soils is attributed to iron deficiency due to reduction of iron absorption or availability. The use of biostimulants may help to improve plant growth under such conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of replacing iron chelates in nutrient solution with Actiwave in two optimal and alkaline pH and its effect on some of the vegetative and biochemical properties of two strawberry cultivars in a soil-less system. Strawberry seedlings of Camarosa and Salva cultivars were cultivated in pots containing coco-peat and perlite (1:1), followed by plant’s irrigation and nourishment through a plant nutritional program. The project was conducted in a factorial experiment (with two factors) based on a completely randomized design with three replications. The first factor was strawberry cultivar in two levels including Camarosa and Salva, and the second factor was iron treatment in four levels consisting of Hoagland nutrient solution containing iron chelate (pH=6), iron-free nutrient solution containing 0.25 ml/l Actiwave (pH=6), Hoagland nutrient solution containing iron chelate (pH=8), and iron-free nutrient solution containing 0.25 ml/l Actiwave (pH=8). Plants were fed for two months, at the end of which, the roots and shoot’s fresh and dry weight, chlorophylls a, b and total as well as carotenoids contents, catalase and ascorbate peroxidase  activities in fresh leaf samples and also total Fe and active Fe in dried leaf and root samples were measured. The results showed that the algae extract had a significant effect on all the measured parameters, so that fresh and dry weights of the aerial parts, fresh weight of the roots, as well as chlorophyll and active iron content of leaves in the treatment containing Actiwave with pH=6 was similar to the control plants. Evaluation of the activity of catalase and peroxidase enzymes in the leaf also showed that Actiwave application reduced iron deficiency stress in plants increasing the activity of these enzymes under such conditions. The reason behind these effects can be due to the Actiwave ingredient content, which includes betaine, alginates and kahydrin (derived from vitamin K). Since betaines have cytokine activity, they can increase root growth by increasing the amount of cell division. Increasing the chlorophyll content, which can be the result of reduced chlorophyll degradation, is probably due to the presence of betaines in the seaweed extract. In addition, the presence of kahydrin and alginic acid in Actiwave, with the acidification of the rhizosphere, stimulated the release of more ions around the roots, resulting in more ions received by the plant and increased their assimilation. As observed in this study, It has been proven that iron concentration in the leaf is not always an appropriate indicator for checking the state of iron in plants. Some studies attribute this to limiting the growth of young leaves and the accumulation of iron in tissues or inactivation of iron in tissues occurred through the process of alkalization in leaf apoplast. It is found that activity of catalase and ascorbate peroxidase containing iron and the iron extracted with hydrochloric acid are the most effective indices for checking the iron status in plants, and the concentration of the total iron is less important in this regard. According to the results of this study, algae extract was able to replace iron chelate in nutrient solution for growing strawberry, and so made it possible to produce this fruit by reducing the use of synthetic iron compounds. In other words, application of Actiwave instead of iron chelate is recommended in nutrient solution with pH=6.

Consumer’s demand for high valuable bioactive compounds have been increased in recent years.  Microgreen is a stage in the growth of vegetables that is popular among consumers for their high nutritional value. It can consider as young and tender edible seedling to enhance salad quality and safety. At the same time, it has been reported that microgreen can provide higher amount of phytonutrient (ascorbic acid, phenolics and carotenoids) and minerals. Hydroponics is defined as a system of growing plant in nutrient solution which could provide necessary micro- and macro-elements for early seedling growth. The use of hydroponic gardening by commercial growers is steadily increasing as the ability to control the growing factors while conserving space is of paramount importance to crop yields and commercial profits. It is also worth noting that hydroponic systems are good for the environment. As the water is recirculating, it is not being evaporated as readily or absorbed into the ground quickly. Therefore, it is important and valuable to study the growth of some common vegetable in hydroponics as microgreen in terms of higher bioactive compounds and minerals. The present study was conducted to evaluate two production systems (hydroponic and soil system) and also two growth stages (microgreen and mature) of 6 vegetable species (green basil, violet basil, lettuce, radish, dill and coriander). Different growth characteristics and bioactive compounds were measured as indices of yield and quality include: root dry/fresh weight, shoot dry/fresh weight, leaf area, ascorbic acid, total chlorophyll, carotenoids, phenolics, antioxidant activity and micro- and macro-nutrients in a factorial experiment based on completely randomized design with three replications. The weight of roots and shoots were measured at two stages during growth. Leaf area of vegetables were determined using a leaf area meter (CI-202, USA). Ascorbic acid determination was performed by 2, 6-dichlorophenolindophenol reagent. Chlorophyll, carotenoids, phenolics and antioxidant activity were tested spectrophotometric analysis. Samples of dry leaves were ground and dry-ashing at 550 °C for 4 h. The ashes were dissolved with 5 ml 2 N HCl and made up to 50 ml with distillated water. The concentrations of K were measured by flame photometry (Jenway, model PFP7). Analysis of Ca and P was carried out by titration and spectrophotometry (model T80 UV/VIS) , respectively. The Mg, Fe, Zn and Cu were identified by atomic absorption procedure. The results showed that growth characteristics of violet basil, green basil, lettuce, radish, dill and coriander were higher at the adult stage than microgreen stage. The results also showed that the growth characteristics of green basil, lettuce, radish, dill and coriander were higher in hydroponics than soil cultivation. Total chlorophyll content of violet basil, green basil, lettuce and dill were higher at microgreen stage than adult stage, while total chlorophyll content of leaf radish and dill plants were higher at the adult stage than microgreen stage. However, the chlorophyll content of the whole plants was higher in the conditions of soil cultivation than hydroponic conditions. Phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of lettuce, radish and coriander leaves were higher at microgreen stage than adult stage, while these traits were higher in adult stage than in microgreens in violet basil, green basil and dill. Vitamin C was also higher in all vegetables in the microgreen stage compared to the mature stage in both cultures except for dill and coriander. Mineral elements content was higher at microgreen stage than in the mature stage, except for zinc element. Based on the results of this experiment, it can be concluded that the production and cultivation of these six vegetables in the microgreen stage could be considered as a suitable method for high nutritional value.

Polyploidy plays an important role in creation of genetic variability. Polyploidy induction by mutagenic chemicals such as colchicine is considered to enhance the potential of secondary metabolites production in herbs breeding. Colchicine is the most effective chemicals used in the polyploidy induction studies. The effect of colchicine is to form cells with two or multiply number of chromosomes resulting in a lack of germination and death of a large number of plant samples.  Flow cytometry analysis and cytogenetic studies were effectively used to assess the ploidy levels for fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) plants. In the beginning of 90 decade, a new type of adsorption technique called solid-phase micro extraction (SPME) has been developed by Pawliszyn and co-workers. This method compared to the traditional techniques, offers many advantages such as the high sensitivity and reproducibility, does not require solvent, and combines extraction and pre-concentration in a single step without pre-treatment of samples. Moreover, it is a fast and inexpensive method, requires low sample volume and it can be easily automated. Solid-phase micro extraction (SPME) uses a fine rod (fused silica or metal) with a polymeric coating to extract organic compounds from their matrix and it directly transfer them into the gas chromatograph injector for thermal desorption and analysis (Kaykhaii, 2008). The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of colchicine treatment on ploidy levels and compare some of the morphological, physiological, cytogenetical, flow cytometric analysis and biochemical characteristics in diploid and tetraploid fenugreek plants. In order to investigate the effect of polyploidy induction by colchicine on Trigonella foenum-graecum medicinal species, an experiment was planned as a factorial completely randomized design with five concentrations of colchicine (0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.5%) for 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours. In this experiment the effect of colchicine was examined on the percentage of survival and tetraploidy of seed, root and terminal bud samples. Level of ploidy was identified in survival explants through root tip chromosome counting and flow cytometry of leaf samples. In addition to distinguish tetraploid from the diploids plants, morphological, physiological and biochemical characteristics were considered in treated plants. SAS and SPSS software programs were used to analysis of variance and comparison of means by Duncan's multiple test. Graphs were also drawn by EXCEL software. The analysis of variance showed that all characteristic factors for survival percent and mixoploidy percentage were statistically significant. Survival percentage was decreased with increasing of colchicine concentration and increased exposure time of colchicine-treated seed. After the observation of morphological changes, the samples were considered to assess the ploidy levels by flow cytometry system. Results showed that 0.5% colchicine concentration had the highest survival rate after control treatment for the terminal bud. The highest percentage of mixoploidy was also observed in treated terminal buds with 0.1 and 0.2% of colchicine concentrations. Morphological, physiological, cytogenetic, flow cytometric analysis and biochemical studies confirmed that terminal bud treatment with 0.2% colchicine for 72 hours is the most effective treatment to induce tetraploidy in fenugreek plant. The results of GC/MS also indicated an increase in secondary metabolites content, but traits including growth rate and plant height of tetraploid reduced compared to the diploid plants. Result of this study showed a significant increase in chlorophyll a, b and total chlorophyll contents of tetraploid plants, which were higher than the levels of diploid plants. Polyploidy induction using mutagenic chemicals is one of the methods to enhance the production of plant secondary metabolites. Colchicine is the most effective mutagenic chemical in inducing plant polyploidy. Although, flow cytometry is an expensive method, it is increasingly used for ploidy screening by analyzing of nuclear DNA content. In this study, both flow cytometry and chromosome microscopic examinations were used to test ploidy. The two methods were compared, and it was found that flow cytometry testing was fast and labor saving, especially in case of a large number of samples. Tetraploidy induction significantly affected different morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics of Trigonella foenum-graecum. These changes suggested that ploidy manipulation as a rapid and effective method for enhancing genetic diversity and metabolite production for this plant. SMPE method offers a number of practical advantages: smaller sample volume, simplicity of extraction and low cost, when compared to the other methods that are currently being used.

Assessment of genetic diversity in Mango can provide a platform to deepen our knowledge about its genetic background and determine the high quality genotypes for involving in the inbreeding programs. The high observed diversity among native landraces of mango can be used in breeding programs to produce better cultivars and utilization of these cultivars as donor parent to transfer desirable characteristics to high-bearing cultivars. Suitable mango cultivars to prepare rootstock and scion and resistant cultivars against diseases and the high yielding cultivars (with regards to alternate bearing in mango) can be recognized by better understanding of available germplasms. In the past two decades in southern Iran, the process of producing the grafted mango trees via seed culturing and grafting suitable cultivars (What has been registered such as Sindary and Langra and what has not been registered) on the seedlings has been accelerated. Therefore, studying the diversity of mango germplasms in these regions can be a good way to identify and distinguish these genotypes. In the present study, native genotypes of mango from Minab and Rudan counties (Hormozgan Province) were collected, which are mainly produced through seed and over time they have been propagated by vegetative methods based on the quality and taste and their diversity, was evaluated using morphological attributes and molecular markers. In this experiment, we studied genetic and morphological diversity of 39 mango genotypes collected from Minab and Rudan counties (Hormozgan province) using ISSR markers and morphological attributes. Morphological characteristics were assessed using IBPGR descriptor. DNA extraction was done using modified CTAB method. Similarity coefficient of ISSR markers was calculated by Jaccard’s procedure. Polymorphism information content (PIC) was calculated using PIC=2fi(1-fi) formula, where fi was frequency of the amplified bands and 1-fi was frequency of the null bands. In order to analyze morphological data SAS 9.1 software was used and the means were compared using LSD test. In addition, it was prepared a 0 and 1 matrix from morphological data and dendrogram of morphological attributes was designed using Jaccard’s similarity coefficient. The dendrogram inferred from morphological characters grouped all genotypes in eight main clades in which similarity of the dendrogram ranged from 0.12 to 0.83 with mean value of 0.54. The least similarity was observed between Almehtari and Charak, and the most similarity was observed among Moshk, AnaMG, Noghal and HalMG. Analysis of 21 morphological parameters in the studied genotypes demonstrated being of significant differences among these genotypes in terms of morphological attributes (except flower density and inflorescence shape). The ISSR primers produced totally 145 scorable bands that the highest and lowest polymorphism band were observed in MI808 (20 bands) and MI827 (6 bands) primers, respectively. Average of PIC was 0.450. The similarity for ISSR markers ranged from 0.31 to 0.90, in which the least similarity was observed between Majlesi and Charak. However, the highest similarity was observed between Gilasi and KalanMB genotypes. It was observed the differences among same genotypes grown in the various regions. In Rudan region in due to better quality of irrigation water as well as sufficient and proper availability to irrigation water, growth conditions for mango trees is better than Minab region. These differences between Rudan and Minab regions in viewpoint of growth conditions can be reason of morphological diversity among mango similar genotypes in both regions, which it has been caused to incompatibility of morphological and molecular markers. For this reason, the genotypes that are genetically similar to each other may have different morphological differences and/or two homonymous genotypes in two regions have significant genetic differences. For example, Clanfar Baziari genotype, which had high genetic similarity (0.90) with Gilasi genotype, had morphological similarity coefficient equal 0.37 together. However Gilasi genotype collected from Ahmadabad Minab had same ecological similarity with Baziari region. In other instant, genetic similarity coefficient of AnaMG genotype was 0.85 with ShozMD, while in these genotypes had 38% morphological similarity. Correlation coefficient between similarity matrix of ISSR and morphological markers was 0.336 and not significant. It seems that the observed high diversity among morphological attributes is intrinsically and stemming from mango propagation procedure in which mango genotypes highly diverged due to seed propagation. The high genetic diversity showed by morphological attributes was also corroborated by ISSR markers, indicating low environmentally influence-ability of the attributes.

Significant impact of green space in the beautification of urban space and creating attractive face for cities has caused to per capita of urban green space be introduced as an important factor in urban development, especially in metropolitan areas. Meanwhile, the important role of covert plants, especially lawn grasses, in creating green spaces has caused to add quickly the area of these beautiful plants in the cities. On the other, existence of plants with high water requirements between the lawn grasses, have created limitations in terms of water requirements supply. The grass planted in the country is mainly from imported seed types that are not so compatible with dry and semi-arid conditions in our country. Sometimes from this point of view, they create limitations in terms of water supply. Hence, given the limited water resources in Mashhad city and the grass surface area in this city (which is more than 400ha), attempts at the removal of this limitation are necessary. Thus, this research was done with aim of evaluating the effect of mixing different amounts of MSW compost with soil on some root properties of Tall Fescue native grass, under moisture stress conditions. The present study, was conducted in the form of two experiments, in research greenhouse of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in 2016. The first experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with four replications. The experimental treatments consisted of ten different levels of compost mixing with soil (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100 ton ha-1) and control treatment (agronomic soil without mixing compost). According to the results of the first experiment, three superior compost ingredients were selected and included in the second experiment. In the second experiment, these were considered, three values of 70, 80 and 90 tons of compost per hectare plus control (no compost consumption) as the first factor and three levels of moisture stress of 25, 50 and 100 percent of field capacity as intense stress, mild stress and non-stress, respectively as the second factor. They were compared in factorial pattern by a completely randomized design with four replications. So that, their effects should be investigated on some of the characteristics of the grass root of Tall fescue. The Results of the first experiment showed that the amounts of 70, 80 and 90 tons per hectare increased significantly the percentage and the rate of grass emergence due to increased fertility and higher water holding capacity and in these treatments, the positive effect of rising water holding capacity has been dominated on negative effect of electrical conductivity of the soil and this topic has led to an improvement in the percentage of grass emergence in these treatments. Furthermore, in the amounts of 70, 80 and 90 tons of compost per hectare, the bulk density of soil significantly decreased and the C/N ratio dramatically increased. In the second experiment, the interactions between different amounts of compost and drought stress levels were significant on all studied traits of grass root. So that, with increasing drought stress severity in different amounts of compost, characteristics of total length of root, volume of root and level of root would be increased and traits of drought weight of root and average thickness of root would be decreased. The results showed that in the treatment of 90 tons of compost per hectare, the plant has understood less level of the stress due to increased water holding capacity. Therefore, the lower part of the dry matter allocated to the development of roots. By increasing severe of drought stress characteristics of total length of root, volume of root and level of root were increased and traits of drought weight of root and average thickness of root were decreased, it seems that tall fescue grass cleverly has tried to deal with for confronting drought stress with target of increase the amount of moisture available for itself. Also, based on the findings of this study, application of 90 tons of compost per hectare significantly improved root studied traits for tall fescue grass in drought stress conditions. Therefore, using this amount of compost for tall fescue grass in low water conditions and occurrence of moisture stresses is recommended.