نشریه بوم شناسی کشاورزی
سال چهاردهم شماره 3 (پاییز 1401)

Diversification through the use of intercropping systems is known to enhance stability. Intercropping is potentially able to reduce pests and weeds, increase the system production and increase the exploitation of available environmental resources, compared to monocultures. Ronald and Charles (2012), stated that weeds biomass decreased in the intercropping of maize and squash, due to squash ghosting on weeds. They also reported that the intercropping of pelargoniums (Pelargonium sp.) and mint (Mentha arvensis L.) decreased weed growth and biomass.

This experiment was conducted in 2014-2015 growing season based on a randomized complete block design with three replications at Agricultural Research Station, Faculty of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Experimental treatments were 1 row lettuce + 1 row alyssum (1:1), 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2), 3 row lettuce + 3 row alyssum (3:3), monocultures of lettuce and alyssum. Alyssum transplants were sown on 08/04/2015 and lettuce transplants were sown on 21/04/2015 in rows with a distance of 50 cm. During the growing season, composition of weed species together with weed density and dry matter were measure at 2 time in randomly sampled 0.6×0.6 m quadrates. Using the species frequency Margalef richness index and several diversity indices including Shannon- Weiner and Simpson’s index and species evenness were calculated for each treatment.

At first and second sampling, the highest density of weeds was observed in 2 row Lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) with 282.4 and 122.03 plant per square meter, respectively. The lowest density of weeds was observed through the first and the second sampling, respectively, in Lettuce monoculture with 111.11 plant per square meter and in 1 row lettuce + 1 row alyssum (1:1) with 41.66 plant per square meter, respectively. In the first sampling, highest and lowest the Shannon-Wiener diversity index were observed in 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) and 3 row lettuce + 3 row alyssum (3:3) with 0.53 and 0.35, respectively. In the second sampling, highest and lowest the Shannon-Wiener diversity index were observed, in 1 row lettuce + 1 row alyssum (1:1) and 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) with 0.37 and 0.12, respectively. Also, in the first sampling, highest and lowest the Simpson’s diversity index were observed, in 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) and 3 row lettuce + 3 row alyssum (3:3) with 0.66 and 0.44, respectively. In the second sampling, highest and lowest the Simpson’s diversity index were observed, in 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) and alyssum monoculture with 0.46 and 0.05, respectively. In the first sampling, highest and lowest the Shannon-Wiener evenness index were observed, in 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) and 3 row lettuce + 3 row alyssum (3:3) with 0.41 and 0.25, respectively. In the second sampling, highest and lowest the Shannon-Wiener evenness index were observed in lettuce monoculture and 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum (2:2) with 0.31 and 0.11, respectively. In the first sampling, highest and lowest the Margalef richness index were observed, in lettuce monoculture and 3 row lettuce + 3 row alyssum (3:3) with 1.48 and 0.98, respectively. In the second sampling, highest and lowest the Margalef richness index in 1 row lettuce + 1 row alyssum (1:1) and alyssum monoculture with 1.63 and 0.53, respectively.

The results showed that the ecological characteristics of ecosystems such as diversity and density of weeds were affected by row intercropping patterns. In almost all cases except Margalef species richness index, intercropping 2 row lettuce + 2 row alyssum was better compared to other patterns of cropping. It can be concluded that the most important advantage of intercropping is stability of canopy structure in terms of weeds and crop population and therefore enhancing the competition ability of the crops.

Introduction :           

The ecological footprint (EF) is an area of biologically productive land capable of meeting all human needs (food, clothing, and construction) and accommodating their production waste. Therefore, application of ecological footprint in combination with social and economic impact assessment can provide the basis for measuring triple sustainability indices (social, economic and ecological). Universities around the world are amongst the institutions that are increasingly focusing on promoting sustainability, and often use ecological footprints as a good indicator for measuring their sustainability. Universities are considered to be one of the largest consumers of paper, energy and water, and because they utilize these resources for education and research activities, it is expected that a sustainable university should have minimized adverse environmental, economic, social and health impacts and help society moving towards a sustainable life style. However, ecological footprint of Iranian universities is not documented. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to calculate the ecological footprint of students of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad as the third biggest university of the country.

Materials and Methods:                  

In this study, EF on the campus of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (FUM) was calculated by using two standard international methods including Ecological Footprint Network (EFN) Questionnaire and Ecological Footprint Analysis (EFA). In EFN method the questionnaire designed by Global Footprint Network was used. In EFA method, the university information (consumption of energy, food, and construction) was obtained from the relevant departments and finally, the total footprint was calculated using the standard EF accounting method.

Results and Discussion:                                                

The results showed that total ecological footprint of the campus was 1.51 g/ha, which is less than reported values for the world (2.80) and national (3.20) footprints. This is due to the fact that students use public transportation services and produce less waste. On the other hand, due to the recycling of a significant amount of waste produced at the university, the energy footprint of university students has decreased, which has ultimately reduced the total footprint of students compared to the national and global levels. The EF in this study consists of three components i.e. energy, food, and build up. Among the components, food with 57.3% had the highest share of total footprint and therefore had the most significant impact on increasing the total EF. After the food footprint, the energy with 0.35 g ha (23%), had the highest share of total footprint. While the Build up with 19.7 g ha, had the least significant impact on increasing the total EF. There was no difference between the EF of males and females students. However, the footprint of bachlor students was higher than Msc and PhD students. Architecture students had the most (1.77), while theology students had the lowest EF (1.30 g/ha). Finally, the results of the present study show that Ecological Footprint is one of the appropriate indicators for measuring the sustainability of universities and can help managers and decision makers in universities to move towards sustainability goals.

 Conclusion :                                                                                

The EF is an accurate index for evaluation of environmental sustainability, and since reconsideration of the current lifestyles should be started from academic societies, planning for a detailed accounting of EF for university campuses over the country is required.

The continuation of agricultural operations, based on conventional ploughing along with removal or burning of plant residues, can lead to soil degradation and erosion. Taking into account the increase in environmental pollution, the exploitation of new technologies in the direction of sustainable agriculture should be taken seriously. Along with conservation tillage, maintaining or adding plant residues, especially wheat mulch, on the soil surface can also be emphasized. Increased yield, stimulated soil microbial activity, improved soil structure and reduced water erosion are among the beneficial consequences of wheat residues on the soil.Determining the effects of crop residue and tillage systems on productivity is essential for sustainable land management. Therefore, the current experiment was carried out with the aim of investigating the effect of different tillage systems and wheat residue levels on growth indicators, yield and yield components of wheat.

In order to study the effect of tillage systems and residue management on yield and yield components of wheat, a field study was conducted as a split block experiment in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Experiment was implemented at experimental site of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran in 2013 growing season to evaluate the impact of tillage systems and wheat residue application on growth parameters, yield and yield components of wheat. For this purpose, four different tillage systems (disk, mouldboard plough + disk, sweep plough + disk and chisel plough + disk) as were employed vertical factor in combination with five different crop residue applications (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% wheat residue) as horizontal factor. Number of ear per plant, seed number per ear and plant, 1000 seed weight, grain and biological yields of wheat were determined. Experimental data were analysed considering the analysis of variance using SAS 9.3. In order to determine the statistical differences between treatments, the least significant difference (LSD) was performed at level of P ≤ 0.05.

According to the results, the highest leaf area index and crop growth rate of wheat were observed in 167 and 151 days after sowing. These times were equal to beginning of seed filling. Chisel plough + disk tillage system increased leaf area index and crop growth rate by 14 and 21%, respectively compared with mouldboard plough + disk tillage system. In addition, the lowest and the highest ear number per plant and seed yield were observed when disk and chisel plough + disk tillage systems were applied, respectively. In general, the chisel system creates relatively deep furrows in the soil, but unlike the mouldboard plough, it does not cause overturning. As a result, at the same time as a decrease in the loss of moisture and nutrients, slight changes in the soil structure are caused.The results showed that by increasing wheat residues up to 75%, the leaf area index and plant growth rate considerably increased. For example, at the level of 75%, these traits were registered up to 35 and 60%, respectively, more than the control treatment. Moreover, ear number per plant and seed yield was significantly increased with increasing crop residue application. In a general statement, providing as much organic matter and nutrients as possible is considered one of the main benefits of applying wheat residues on the soil surface. Hence, an increase in the leaf area index, growth rate, and seed yield of wheat following the application of straw residues may be due to the gradual decay of plant residues during the growing season and subsequently the availability of nutrients required for plant growth. 

Application of wheat residue along with reduced tillage (based on disk and chisel plough) as an ecological approach can be recommended in arid and semi-arid regions of Iran to increase wheat yield and promote sustainable production.

 Rice, as the second most strategic crop, is the most important cereal after wheat. In Iran, rice is so essential that people consume it as part of their main meal at least once a day. Due to the increase in consumption inputs in conventional paddy systems, chemical control of rice diseases and consequently increase in consumption costs, irreparable environmental damage of these systems, always adds to the need to pay attention to alternative systems. Prediction of agricultural energy output and environmental impacts play the most important role in conservation of environment as well as energy management. A wide range of methods tapping into environmental performances related to agricultural activities have been proposed, among which the known life cycle assessment (LCA) method is deemed mostly employed. As a standard method which aims for holistic evaluation of the environmental resources and impact, LCA measures the process of a product's entire life cycle, or in other words, the analysis of the possible environmental impacts any product bears during their life would be assessed by LCA.

 This research was conducted in rice fields located in Mazandaran province in Babol, Fereydounkenar, and Amol counties as the main rice paddy center of Mazandaran province, in 2019 cropping season. Each of the systems was examined in terms of energy components and environmental impacts. In this study, to classify and quantify the environmental effects of rice production in various cropping systems using LCA method and also the energy components and energy efficiency in these systems are addressed. Therefore, in order to evaluate the emission of greenhouse gases and energy in paddy fields, the required information was randomly collected some farms through direct interviews with the rice growers of Mazandaran. In this regard, the sample size is calculated by using Cochran's formula.

 The findings of this study showed that the maximum amount of input energy equal to 60225.42 MJ / ha in conventional systems and the minimum values of 18662.14 MJ / ha were allocated to the organic system. Diesel fuel input energy had the largest share of total input energy. The highest energy efficiency of 0.17 kg per MJ and energy ratio of 2.57 was allocated to the organic system. Also, the evaluation of life cycle in rice production showed that in the global warming group of environmental impact by CML2 baseline method, for each ton of paddy produced in conventional, low-input and organic systems, respectively, about 2408.90, / 85.90, respectively. 1777 and 7993/1193 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent to the atmosphere are released. Direct emissions from on-farm activities in all three studied systems have played a major role in increasing global warming. The source of these pollutants is the combustion of diesel used in agricultural implements and machinery, as well as the emission of nitrogen dioxide, nitrogen oxides and other nitrogenous compounds resulting from the use of nitrogen fertilizer.

 According to the results of this research work, from the environmental perspective, organic system has highly the best potential of being recommended following by low external input system in order to reach environmentally friendly agriculture as sustainable cultural operations in comparison with conventional cultivation practices. Farther, the results showed that the conventional system had the highest amount of total emissions and then the low input system is in the next position. Obviously, the organic system is the most environmentally friendly system and the conventional system has the highest amount of emissions. In order to give a broader evaluation of the organic and some low input systems, studies on such issues should be highly continued.

Sustainability of production in agricultural lands is directly related to soil fertility management. In this regard, the application of livestock manure is a very important method in improving soil fertility without adversely affecting the environment. Although the efficiency of these manures could be sustained for several growing seasons, however their efficiency at the first year is principally more important due to the direct relationship with the production of that year. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of source and amount of manure on the growth and production of thyme.

The experiment was performed as a split plot design in time and in the form of a randomized complete block with three replications at the model cultivation site of medicinal plants of Koohrang Agriculture-Jahad in 2018 and 2019. Experimental treatments were included three levels of poultry manure (100, 143 and 250 kg N/ ha; PM100, PM143, PM250), three levels of sheep manure (100, 143 and 250 kg N/ ha; SM100, SM143, SM250)), three levels of cattle manure (100, 143 and 250 kg N/ ha; CM100, CM143, CM250) and chemical fertilizer (CF) and no fertilizer application (C) as positive and negative controls, respectively, which in two cutting were compared. The measured traits were includedphotosynthetic pigments, leaf area index, aerial biomass, essential oil content and essential oil yield. Data was analyzed by SAS software and means were compared by LSD test.

In both cuttings, the amount of chlorophyll a in plots received medium and high level of animal manures were similar to plot received chemical fertilizer. Except to CM250 treatment, chlorophyll b in all manure treatments were similar to CF treatment. In the first cutting, the leaf area index in PM250, SM143 and SM250 treatments had a significant advantage compared to CF treatment, but in the second cutting, manure treatments (except SM100) did not show a significant difference comparing to CF treatment. Thyme biomass obtained from PM250, SM143 and SM250  treatments had a significant advantage compared to CF treatment in the first cutting, but in the second cutting, there was no significant difference among manures and CF treatments. In the first cut, the essential oil content of medium and high levels of poultry manure and also high levels of sheep and cattle manures were significantly higher than the CF treatment. However, in the second cutting, the amount of essential oil under all levels of poultry manure and medium and high levels of sheep and cattle manures were higher than the CF treatment. In the first cutting, the essential oil yield of medium and high levels of poultry and sheep manures and high level of cattle manure were higher than that the CF treatment, but in the second cutting, only high level of poultry manure had a significant advantage in comparison with CF treatment. The fertilizer application efficiency regarding to biomass production was similar for all fertilizer treatments, except SM143. The highest fertilizer use efficiency in the production of essential oil was obtained with SM143 and PM143, respectively.

Applying a medium amount of sheep manure could be more effective in the crop ecosystem due to its superior efficiency in comparison with other levels of this fertilizer and other studied animal manure and chemical fertilizers. However, if the essential oil yield of the thyme be the gold of the farmer, the high level of poultry manure has priority over the balanced level of sheep manure, although the efficiency of this level of poultry manure is 35% lower than the balanced level of sheep manure. Therefore, in addition to producing the essential oils, the efficiency of fertilizers could be also considered as an important factor, regarding to achieving the sustainable aspects in the medicinal plants ecosystems.

Today, agriculture faced various challenges, such as the inadequate of agricultural products for growing human needs, in the other words, step down of food security, reduction of productivity, economic justification, the competitiveness of agriculture, etc. On the other hand, the excessive use of agricultural inputs, especially water, fertilizers and pesticides, excessive pressure on natural resources along with the consequences of climate change has affected the sustainability and stability of agroecosystems. Intercropping as the agricultural practice of growing two or more species in the same farm at the same time has been emphasized by many researchers around the world as one of the ecological approaches for crop production as an effective technique for achieving sustainable agricultural goals. Therefore, the objective of this research was to agronomic and economic evaluation of intercropping patterns of three different crops.

To comparing sole cropping and intercropping systems of barley, fenugreek and garlic, a field experiment was conducted in 2016-17 at the Research Farm of Gonabad University based on a randomized complete block design with three replications. Experimental treatments consisted of sole cropping of barley, fenugreek and garlic; and 4 replacement intercropping series as barley + fenugreek, barley + garlic, fenugreek + garlic, and barley + fenugreek + garlic. Studied traits included of dry forage yield, plant height, 1000-seed weight, biological yield, seed yield, and harvest index in barley, dry forage yield, plant height, pod number per plant, seed number per pod, 1000-seed weight, and seed yield in fenugreek, plant height, leaf number per plant, clove length, clove diameter, clove number per plant, and bulb yield of garlic. In this research, intercropping advantage indexes included land equivalent ratio (LER), actual yield loss (AYL), system productivity index (SPI), intercropping advantage (IA) and relative value total (RVT) were calculated. Analyses of variance were carried out at P≤0.05, using SAS 9.1 software. The means were compared using the Duncan's multiple range test.

The results indicated that the highest values of dry forage yield (8523 kg.ha-1), seed yield (3494 kg.ha-1) and biological yield (14111 kg.ha-1) of barley were achieved from the sole cropping system. Among intercropping treatments, the highest dry forage yield (6109 kg.ha-1) achieved from barley + fenugreek. While, the highest seed yield (2709 kg.ha-1) and biological yield (11081 kg.ha-1) obtained from barley + garlic intercropping. There was no significant difference between sole cropping and intercropping systems about yield components as the plant height, 1000-seed weight, and harvest index of barley. The plant height, number of pod per plant and number of seed per pod showed the highest value in sole cropping system, although there was no significant difference between sole cropping with fenugreek + garlic intercropping. The seed yield (1145 kg.ha-1) and dry forage yield (5100 kg.ha-1) of fenugreek in sole cropping were significantly higher than intercropping patterns. The garlic +fenugreek intercropping treatment with 4090 kg.ha-1 dry forage yield, and 569 kg.ha-1 seed yield had the highest values among intercropping patterns. Yield components of garlic included the plant height, number of leaf per plant, clove length and diameter, and number of clove in plant had the highest value in sole cropping however, there was no significant difference between sole cropping and fenugreek + garlic intercropping. The highest value of bulb yield (7194 kg.ha-1) was obtained from sole cropping and garlic + fenugreek intercropping with the value of 3381 kg.ha-1 ranked in second place. Among intercropping advantage indexes, the highest value of land equivalent ratio (1.16), actual yield increase (0.30), and system productivity (8414) achieved from barley + garlic intercropping system. The highest value of intercropping advantage (0.02) and relative value total (1.27) obtained from fenugreek + garlic and barley + fenugreek, respectively.

According to our findings, intercropping systems of barley + fenugreek and fenugreek + garlic can be selected as an appropriate approach for planting these crops to producing more forage than sole cropping. The results also indicate the better utilization of barley from intercropping advantages than other species and its competitive superiority in the use of environmental resources and economic yield enhancement. Based on the findings of this research, intercropping of barley with garlic and fenugreek is an appropriate approach for increase of land use efficiency and economic profitability that in overall, among cropping systems, barley-garlic intercropping system had more advantage. 

Following climate change, drought stress has become the most important limiting factor for crop production and. Plants become under dry when the water available to the roots is limited or the water loss through transpiration is very high. Decreased photosynthetic active radiation absorption, impaired light consumption efficiency and reduced harvest index are the most important factors reducing yield in soil moisture deficit conditions. On the other hand, the adverse effects of the use of chemical drugs in recent years have led to much attention to the cultivation of medicinal plants, which with the increase in their use requires the development of cultivation, management and proper planning. Bio-fertilizers as an alternative in some cases and in most cases as a complement to chemical fertilizers can help to ensure the sustainability of agricultural production systems.

 The study was aimed to evaluate the effect of nitroxin biological fertilizer on ecotypes of black cumin under drought stress. The experiment was conducted as a split-split plot with three replicates at Ilam University during growing season of in 2018. Drought stress levels including no stress (Irrigation based on 100% of plant water needs), moderate stress (Irrigation based on 50% of plant water needs) and severe stress (Irrigation based on 35% of plant water needs) as main plot, nitroxin fertilizer treatments including no nitroxin (control) and application of 1 liter ha-1 nitroxin as sub plot and ecotype treatments including Neyshabour, Mashhad, Semirom and Isfahan Sub-plots were considered as sub-plots. Measured traits included plant height, number of sub-branches, yield, grain yield components (number of follicle and number of seeds per follicle), relative leaf water content, ion leakage and photosynthetic pigments.

 The results showed that the main effect of drought stress, nitroxin and ecotype on all treats were significant (p≤0/01). The highest plant height and the first sub-branch height of Mashhad ecotype were obtained under Irrigation based on 100% of plant water needs conditions under moderate stress. The highest number of branches per-plant of Neyshabur ecotype was obtained under nitroxin under drought stress conditions. The highest number of capsules per plant was obtained from Mashhad ecotype treatment with no nitroxin and Irrigation based on 100% of plant water needs. The highest number of seeds in main capsule, seed yield and harvest index were obtained from Semirom ecotype under nitroxin under Irrigation based on 50% of plant water needs. The highest biological yield was obtained in Isfahan ecotype, nitroxin consumption and Irrigation based on 50% of plant water needs.The results of this study showed that drought stress caused a significant reduction (p≤0.01) in the values of chlorophyll a, b and total chlorophyll traits and relative moisture content of leaves Meanwhile, the use of nitroxin biological fertilizer in most cases improved these traits in different ecotypes, which can be due to the positive effects of biological fertilizer in helping to better absorb water and nutrients under drought stress and reduce the negative effects of water deficiency on Physiological traits of the plant.

 Since better absorption of nutrients depends on the existence of an extensive root system, it seems that the lack of expansion of the plant root system under drought stress and the lack of use of chemical fertilizers, the ground for the activity of microorganisms. This has led to the improvement of the root system and consequently better absorption of water and nutrients needed by the plant in conditions of moisture stress. In general, the results of this study indicate that the application of biological fertilizers may have had a positive effect on improving the yield and quantitative properties of the herbicide under drought stress conditions, however, this issue needs further investigation. From the results it can be concluded that moderate drought stress can be applied in weather conditions Ilam province in addition to reducing water consumption will lead to better outcomes.

Water stress is one of the most important factors in reducing the yield of agricultural products worldwide. If the stress is intensive and continuous, plant growth and productivity are severely diminished. Water superabsorbent polymer can absorb and retain extremely large amounts of a liquid relative to its own mass. They have a wide range of applications because of their high water absorbing capacity, biodegradability and low cost.Humic acid is an organic compound that is derived from the decomposition of organic matter and contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. This acid plays a key role in increasing the fertility of the soil and feeding the plant when added to the plant, in helps to increase its growth through its effect to photosynthesis, respiration, increase the plants resistance to harsh environmental conditions and stimulates many of the vital interactions within the plant.Salicylic acid, a naturally occurring plant hormone, acts as an important signaling molecule and enhances tolerance of treated plants against biotic stresses. Salicylic acid also has a vital role in plant growth, ion uptake, and nutrient transport within the plant.Factor analysis is a technique that is used to reduce a large number of variables into fewer numbers of factors. This technique extracts maximum common variance from all variables and puts them into a common score.

In order to evaluate the effects of different irrigation levels and nutritional treatments and determining factors affecting water use efficiency of maize (Zea mays L.), a split plots experiment based on RCBD design with three replications was conducted during 2015-16 growing season, at Research Field of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. Irrigation levels in two levels (50 and 100% of water requirement) and nutritional treatments in five levels (1- Nitrogen+Superabsorbent, 2- Superabsorbent+Humic acid+Salicylic acid, 3- Humic acid+Salicylic acid+Nitrogen, 4- Humic acid+ Salicylic acid+Nitrogen+Superabsorbent and 5- Control) assigned to main and sub plots, respectively.

The results showed that all of the nutritional treatments affected water use efficiency, but in both conditions of 50 and 100% of water requirement, the highest water use efficiency were obtained in treatment of Humic acid+Salicylic acid+Nitrogen+Superabsorbent. The highest seed yield (17542 kg.ha-1) observed in treatment of nitrogen+superabsorbent+humic acid+Salicylic acid and supply 100% of water requirement and the lowest seed yield (12515 kg.ha-1) obtained in treatment of control and supply 50% of water requirement. Factor analysis results showed that variables analyzed to two factors. First factor included 51% of variables variance, respectively. First factor included variables of seed yield, biological yield, plant height, leaf area index, crop growth rate and soil nitrogen, phosphorous and pH and variables of seed weight per plant, soil EC and water use efficiency were in second factor. In first factor, important variables such as soil nitrogen, phosphorous were included, so this factor describe soil conditions and second factor which had the highest impact on water use efficiency was called as water use efficiency factor. In a research reported that application of water superabsorbent increased seed yield of maize compared to control. In another research, the highest seed yield of maize obtained in treatment of simultaneous application of 120 kg.ha-1 water superabsorbent and 8 kg.ha-1 humic acid. Application of salicylic acid and humic acid enhanced seed yield of maize 24.5 and 24.2% compared to control, respectively.

In general, based on results of this research, it seems simultaneous application of nitrogen and ecological inputs can improve yield, growth characteristics and water use efficiency. Factor analysis and high correlation among variables in same group showed that with change of variables that are in same group of water use efficiency, can increased water use efficiency and decreased damages of drought stress.

milk thistle (Silybum marianum) is one of the most popular medicinal plants of most developed countries. In the past, milk thistle leaves has been used to treat biliary and gastrointestinal diseases. It has valuable effects on the prevention and treatment of long-term complications of diabetes, renal failure and nerve cell disorders. Silibinin is the most important flavonoid in the plant that plays an important role in prostate cancer treatment. Humic Materials are part of the organic matter of humus soils resulting from the physical, chemical and microbiological deformation or homophication of biomolecules in the soil. This study aims at investigating the effect of organic and biological fertilizers including humic acid, vermicompost and two species of mycorrhizal fungi on physiological and morphological traits of Silybum marianum.

This study was conducted in the spring in Gorgan. This study was conducted as factorial experiments using Completely Randomized Design (CRD). Treatments included four levels of vermicompost (0, 25, 50, and 75%), four levels of humic acid fertilizer (0, 25, 50 and 75 mg / L) and two species of mycorrhizal fungi (Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices). Yield, 1000 - grain weight, leaf area, capitule number, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, carotenoids, soluble sugars and protein were measured in the plant. All measurements were carried out in three replications, and mean comparisons were made through the Duncan test (P<0.05) using SPSS-22 software package.

The results of data analysis of variance showed that all the studied properties are affected by the interaction of the applied treatments. The highest Silybum marianum yield was obtained in Glomus mosseae third level vermicompost and first humic acid level equal to 2296 kg / ha. Also, the lowest grain yield was obtained in the control treatment (435 kg / ha). The reason for the increase in yield can be attributed to the supply of nutrients, water supply and improving the respiratory status of the plant due to the use of organic and biological fertilizers. Also, the presence of mycorrhiza fungi and vermicompost has improved the physical condition of the soil and increased the ability of the plant to use soil water. The highest leaf area (3.96 cm2) was observed in the fourth level of humic acid (75 mg / L) and vermicompost (75%) in both types of Glomus mosseae and Glomus intraradices. The highest amount of total chlorophyll in the plant (15.26 mg / g fresh weight) was related to humic acid 50 g / l + mycorrhizal fungus Glomus mosseae at 25% vermicompost level. Mycorrhizal fungus improves nitrogen uptake, which plays a key role in plant chlorophyll structure. On the other hand, nitrogen is the most important element in protein synthesis, which is in favorable condition with the increase of mycorrhizal fungus and leads to an increase in the amount of protein and soluble sugar. The results have shown that use of humic acid has positive effects on the studied plant characteristics. The highest protein (3.65 mg / wet weight) was obtained in the third level of humic acid and Glomus intraradices and the lowest protein (0.92 mg /wet weight) in control treatment.

The use of organic compounds as fertilizer improves the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil. Also increases plant growth by providing the plant with the necessary elements. In general, the results showed that the use of organic and bio-fertilizers can improve the status of Silybum marianum and these compounds can reduce the use of chemical fertilizers to prevent the adverse effects of these fertilizers on human health and the environment.

Medicinal plants are used in all civilizations and cultures are one of the most essential defensive lines to protect human health and fight human diseases in the world. From the distant past to now, the plants have long been considered as a source of renewable medicines.Perilla (Perilla frutescens var. crispa)is an annual plant native to East Asian, which used as a medicinal plant due to the presence of active metabolite, especially rosmarinic acid. The medicinal organs used in this plant are its leaves and flowering branches. Growth, drug yield, as well as quantity and quality of secondary metabolites of medicinal plants are affected by ecological factors. The present study was conducted to evaluate the agro-morphological and phytochemical traits of Purple Perilla grown in three different locations of Sari, Rasht, and north of Tehran.

 The experiment was conducted as a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Purple Perilla  were planted as seedlings in early spring in the trial field with the density of 25×50 cm (inter-plant space × inter-row space) in three locations including Sari, Rasht, and north of Tehran in 2018. Plants were harvested at the flowering stage in late September. Argo-morphological and phytochemical traits including plant height, inflorescence length, number of branches, stem diameter, internode length, leaf length, leaf width, plant fresh weight, stem fresh weight, leaf fresh weight, flowers fresh weight, plant dry weight, leaf dry weight, flower dry weight, total phenolics and flavonoids as well as rosmarinic acid content were measured. The total phenolic contents of extracts of Perilla plants were determined according to the method of Ciocalteus Reagent (FCR) Folinthe aluminum chloride method was used for the determination of the total flavonoid content of the extracts. The rosmarinic acid content was estimated with method HPLC. Data set were subjected to variance analysis using SPSS statistical software (version 19). Also, Duncan’s multiple range test was used to compare treatment means at P<0.05.

 Results of variance analysis showed that almost all morphological traits (except stem fresh weight, plant dry weight, and plant fresh weight) and all phytochemical traits were significantly (P<0.05) influenced by locations. Mean comparisons of the effect of different locations for morphological traits showed that the maximum plant height (137.67 cm), leaf length (15.28 cm), fresh weight of leaf (108.3 g), dry weight of leaf (41.63 g) were observed in Sari, while the minimum plant height (87.34 cm), leaf length (10.8 cm), fresh weight of leaf (69.74 g), dry weight of leaf (26.13 g) were detected in north of Tehran. The Rasht had the highest flower fresh weight, flower dry weight, and number of branches with an average of 108.67 g, 25.99 g, and 33, respectively. The lowest flower fresh weight, flower dry weight, and number of branches were observed in the north of Tehran with an average of 47.07, 12.71, and 22 g, respectively. The results revealed that the highest internode length, inflorescence length, and leaf width belonged to the Sari with an average of 9.12, 13.17, and 98.8 mm, respectively, while the Rasht had the lowest internode length, inflorescence length, and leaf width with an average of 6.28, 9.8, and 6.97 mm, respectively. Also, the maximum and minimum stem diameter were observed in the north of Tehran and Sari (8.95 and 7.65 mm), respectively. Mean comparisons of the effect of different locations for phytochemical traits showed that the maximum total phenolic contents and rosmarinic acid produced in the Rasht with an average of 49.03 and 52.20 (mg/ g dry matter), respectively, while the Sari had the maximum flavonoids content (14.8 mg/ g dry matter).

 Drug yield (leaf and flower fraction) of the plants grown in Sari, Rasht, and north of Tehran was 41.63, 32.05, 26.13 and 12.71, 25.99, 18.47, respectively The highest total phenolics (49.027 mg/ g dry matter) and rosmarinic acid content (46.99 mg/ g dry matter) were observed in Rasht region, while the highest total flavonoids was observed in Sari (14.8 mg/ g dry matter).  In terms of argo-morphological and phytochemical traits, Sari and Rasht were suitable places for the growth of purple perilla.

Cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants has had long a special rank in the traditional agricultural systems of Iran and these systems have played an important role in creating diversity and sustainability. Management of soil nutrients using organic fertilizers is among major pillars of sustainable agriculture. Peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) is a medicinal plant, which proper nutrition and absorption of mineral elements play an important role in increasing its quantitative and qualitative performance. The high cost of fertilizers in farming systems, soil pollution and degradation of soil are factors that caused to full use of available renewable nutrient sources of plant (organic and biological) with optimal application of fertilizers in order to maintain fertility, structure, biological activity, exchange capacity and water-holding capacity of the water in soil. The global approach to balance nutrition and the production of medicinal plants, towards the use of sustainable agricultural systems and the use of management methods, such as application of biofertilizers, is improvement the quantitative and qualitative performance of these plants. So, the use of natural inputs such as organic and biological fertilizers seems to be a good way to move towards a sustainable production system. Accordingly, due to the possible effect of organic fertilizers such as biochar and vermicompost and biological fertilizers like mycorrhizal fungi and plant growth-promoting bacteria on the quantity and quality of peppermint essential oil, this research was carried out under organic conditions.

The present research was conducted as factorial layout based on a randomized complete block design in three replications at Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University in 2017. The experimental site is located at 36º 39ʹ42ʺ N latitude and 53º03´54ʺ E longitude with -11 m above sea level. Soil samples were taken from depths of 0-30 cm before land preparation. Treatment consisted biochar on two level (0 and 10 ton ha-1) and organic and biological fertilizers on five level (no fertilizer, vermicompost (10 ton ha-1), Pseudomonas fluorescens, Azotobacter and Arbuscular mycorrhizal (Glomus mosseae, G. intradices and G. etunicatum. Weeds and pests were controlled mechanically or by hand and no herbicides or pesticides were used. The measured properties also included the pepermint yield, essential oil and essential oil compounds.

The results of analysis of variance showed that the simple effects of biochar and organic and biological fertilizers had a significant effect on the shoot fresh weight at 1% of probability level, while the interaction effect of experimental treatments on this trait did not have significant effect. According to the results, application of 10 ton ha-1 of biochar, caused a 42.96% increase in shoot fresh weight compared to no application. In the study of the simple effect of organic and biological fertilizers on shoot fresh weight, the results showed that the highest and lowest ones were obtained with mycorrhiza application and control (no application of organic and biological fertilizers) with an average of 667.95 and 418.08 g m-2, respectively. The highest shoot dry weight with an average of 89.08 g m-2 was associated with the combined use of biochar and mycorrhiza and the lowest one belonged to the control (no application of biochar and organic and biological fertilizers) with an average of 61.76 g m-2. The results also showed that the interaction of biochar and organic and biological fertilizers on essential oil compounds such as Menthone, Menthol, α-Pinene, Cineol-1,8, iso Menthone, Pulegone, Piperitone oxide, Menthyl acetate and Menthofuran was significant.

In general, the results showed that the use of biochar and biological and organic fertilizers can be effective in both the quality and quantity of peppermint essential oil, when the highest percentage of essential oil and the most peppermint essential oil compounds were obtained in treatments with application of biochar and biological and organic fertilizers. Where, the use of the bacterium Azobacter and Pseudomonas with biochar had the greatest effect on the quality of peppermint essential oil, especially in Menthol and Menton compounds. Finally, it can be concluded that the combined use of biochar with biological fertilizers has a significant impact on the quantitative and qualitative increase of peppermint essential oil in ecological or low input agricultural.

 Food security has been the most important human concern on the planet. Food security and future changes in food prices and crop development undeniably depend on the average yield of crops. Rice is the second largest crop in terms of area under cultivation and provides food for more than half of the world's population. Due to the importance of rice production, it is important to monitor its production on a large scale. Remote sensing and geostatistical methods play an important role in spatial and temporal evaluation of climatic, soil, living factors and management methods. The study of the amount of yield obtained in province of Guilan can provide appropriate information in advancing/pursuing goals such as the study of the amount of yield gap in this region; therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the yield of rice using two methods of geostatistics and remote sensing approach in 2016 and 2017 in Guilan province.

 In this study, different methods of preparing vegetation map to determine rice yield map were evaluated. To compare methods based on satellite-imagery and geostatistical procedure-models to estimate the rice yield of rice cultivated lands in Guilan province, a study was conducted in the 2016 and 2017. For field operations, 320 fields were surveyed to record grain yield (of total 238,000 hectares of rice-grown fields) during the physiological maturity stage. In this study, 33 statistical procedure-models were used to interpolate the amount of grain yield and then the accuracy of interpolation methods were evaluated using various statistical criteria. Satellite-imagery based methods using Landsat 8 satellite Operational Land Imager (OLI) sensor images related to the dates of June 18, August 9, August 21 in 2016, and July 23, August 8 in 2017 and the images of the Sentinel-2 satellite on June 30 and September 13, 2017, were used. Eight satellite-derived vegetation indices were calculated and the relationship between them and the yield variable was extracted using the regression relationship, and the yield map was prepared and evaluated. By fitting the peak logistics model between yield values and vegetation indices and selecting the superior index, the yield map was prepared with the help of remote sensing and the obtained yield maps were compared with different statistical criteria.

 The results of the evaluation of geostatistical interpolation methods showed the superiority of the ordinary stable kriging procedure-model over other models. In this study, the RVI vegetation index was selected as the superior index to predict actual yield throughout the Guilan Province. Comparison of geostatistical procedure-models and satellite-imagery oriented models based on the determination coefficient of regressed equations and root mean square error (RMSE) to estimate grain yield in Guilan province showed that both procedures had acceptable accuracy, however, due to the ability of remote sensing to distinguish the pointwise optical reflection of phenomena and to predict yield with high spatial resolution, this method achieved higher accuracy in yield estimating.

 Comparison of geostatistical and remote sensing methods in predicting farm yield indicated that the remote sensing method was more accurate. Early harvest forecasting based on the information extracted from this study showed that the use of image / images obtained in June and August and OLI sensor of Landsat-8 satellite in Guilan province can be used as a basis for forecasting the yield of this plant in the coming years. Such studies in Guilan province, by considering the share of Guilan province in the country's rice supply, will play an effective role in managerial decisions regarding rice supply and demand at the macro level. The results also showed that sampling in the study area based on a regular (systematic) spatial pattern can increase the accuracy of geostatistical methods in estimation of regional yield. The results of this project can provide suitable basic information for other studies such as yield gap, the reasons behind it, the relationship between land suitability and the obtained yield and forecasting and estimating yield in different time periods.