مجله تولید گیاهان زراعی
سال شانزدهم شماره 2 (تابستان 1402)

Water is the most significant limiting factor for sugar beet cultivation in Iran. Autumn sowing of sugar beet in dry climates like Iran consumes less water compared to spring sowing and can be a more suitable option for taking advantage of autumn and winter rains and dealing with the water shortage crisis. It seems that the transfer of sugar beet cultivation from spring to autumn will cause that in addition to consuming much less water in this type of cultivation and increasing the efficiency of water consumption, it will have a significant economic benefit for farmers and will spread quickly. But autumn sowing is facing problems in many areas. Therefore, the current research was conducted to investigate the effect of winter sowing on the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of sugar beet. The experiment was conducted in the form of a randomized complete block design with four replications on 11 early maturity sugar beet cultivars at Jovein, Torbat-Jam, and Moghan agricultural research stations for one, two, and three crop years, respectively. In order to study the effect of genotype-environment interaction and to identify genotypes with general and specific stability, AMMI and MTSI stability analysis methods were used. The combined analysis of variance results based on the AMMI model confirmed the significant effect of the main effects of environment and cultivar at the one percent probability level. The interaction between them also showed a statistically significant difference at the one percent probability level. The analysis of the multiplicative effects of the AMMI model confirmed that the first two components are significant at the one percent probability level and together explain 75.20% of the interaction variation. The bi-plot obtained from the mean white sugar yield and the first principal component of the interaction confirmed the superiority of FDIR19B4028 and Modex cultivars due to their high white sugar yield and stability. According to the bi-plot results obtained from the first two components, there was no appreciable specific adaptability between cultivars with Moghan environment in 2021 and 2020, but on the other hand, a very high specific adaptability was observed between Moghan environment in 2019 with Modex cultivar, Torbat-Jam in 2021 and 2020 respectively with Asia and SVZD2019 cultivars, and Jovein with SVZC2019 cultivar. Cadmus cultivar has general adaptability because it is somewhat close to the origin of the coordinates. Based on the results of the MTSI index, SVZD2019 was ranked first, and FDIR19B4028, Dravus, and FDIR19B3021 were placed in the next ranks of the most ideal sustainable cultivars in terms of all studied traits. In general, four cultivars of SVZD2019, FDIR19B4028, Dravus and FDIR19B3021 are recommended for winter cultivation. The obtained results show that the development of winter sugar beet sowing is certainly one of the important strategies for using seasonal rains and saving water consumption; In this regard, in the winter sowing of sugar beet, choosing the suitable cultivar plays a very vital role, so that it affects most of the quantitative and qualitative characteristics.

The camelina plant is a little-known plant Brassicaceae family. Camelina is an example of renewable vegetable oil that is considered a sustainable energy source. Seed yield and oil quality are the most obvious breeding objectives in the Brassicaceae family, while seed yield in agricultural plants, as their most complex trait, is influenced by a large number of physiological processes and the measurable expression is manifested in the physiological and morphological characteristics of the plant. Therefore, the analysis of physiological (growth) indicators is considered essential to understanding and interpreting changes in plant performance in response to environmental conditions. However, there is very limited information on the comparison of growth and functional traits of Camelina genotypes in the country. Therefore, the objective of this study was to compare the effects of physiological characteristics of 40 double haploid Camelina lines in the country.

In this study, 40 Camelina genotypes in terms of physiological traits and yield including leaf area index, crop growth rate, relative growth rate, net assimilation rate, specific leaf area, grain yield and oil yield were compared in a randomized complete block design with three replications in the research farm of Faculty of Agricultural Technology (Aburaihan), the University of Tehran, Pakdasht in 2020. It is worth mentioning that for measurement of the traits studied, the Soheil cultivar, which has long been grown both in the test area and in other parts of the country and is considered one of the well-known and widespread cultivar in the country, is considered as a control and other lines were compared with Soheil cultivar.

The results of the present study showed a significant difference between the Camelina lines in terms of physiological growth characteristics, the differences eventually led to significant differences in seed yield and thus had an impact on seed yield and oil content. This theme also shows and confirms the high and differential roles of genotype on camelina yield. In general, the results of this research showed that there is a positive correlation between the seed yield of camelina with the crop growth rate and the net assimilation rate, and there is a negative correlation with the specific leaf area at the 5% probability level. So, line 134 with the maximum leaf area index (2.34), and line 110 with the maximum growth rate (14.49) and net assimilation rate (8.13 g/m2 per day), in terms of the final grain yield were identified as the superior lines with 3178 and 3120 kg/ha, respectively. Also, the specific leaf area, which is directly related to the amount of light loss, was higher in low-yield genotypes than in lines 134 and 110.

The results of the present study showed the direct effect of seed yield on camelina oil yield. So that the greater compatibility of lines 110 and 134 with the studied culture environment has increased the dry matter accumulation and seed yield in the mentioned lines by increasing the plant growth rate and as a result has brought about a significant increase in seed oil yield in these lines. Since the purpose of cultivating Camelina oilseeds is, in addition to the seed harvest, to obtain oil of adequate quantity and quality, we can consider lines 134 and 110 as a whole as superior and promising double haploid lines, compatible with the climate conditions of the region.

A proper understanding of crop yield and corresponding water consumption is important to reach the sustainable agriculture. Water footprint (WF) is one of the indicators for describing water consumption and water use efficiency so that its accurate estimation in different climates and cropping systems (i.e. rainfed and irrigated) could be effective in managing water resources. WF consists of four components included green water, blue water, gray water, and white water. The magnitude of WF and its components is notably affected by deferent factors such as soil type, climate, and water management practices. Accordingly, the current study aimed to assess water footprint and its components in various irrigated and rainfed wheat agro-ecosystems of Iran. In the current study, water footprints and its components (blue, green, gray, and white waters) were simulated for irrigated and rainfed wheat agro-ecosystems in six locations in Iran (Ardebil, Hamedan, Sanandaj, Tabriz, Urmia, and Zanjan) during the 37-year period (1980-2016) using APSIM (Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator) crop model. To do this, four inputs for the crop model including crop characteristics (i.e. genetic coefficients), climatic data (i.e. maximum and minimum temperatures, rainfall, and solar radiation), soil characteristics (i.e. soil water content at wilting point and field capacity, saturation water content and bulk density), and management practices (i.e. sowing date, nitrogen fertilizer, irrigation, and etc.) were gathered to run the crop model. Outputs from the model were used to estimate WF components. The outputs included grain yield, cumulative net irrigation, and evapotranspiration in irrigated and rainfed systems, respectively. The results showed that grain yield and total WF were 2.4 t ha-1 and 1498 m3 t-1 for rainfed, and 5.7 t ha-1 and 1393 m3 t-1 for irrigated systems. The magnitude of WF was not only associated with type of cropping system (i.e. irrigated and rainfed) but also strongly region-dependent. Shifting from rainfed wheat cultivation to irrigated one increased WF of +15.2, +14.6, +28.1 % for Tabriz, Urmia, and Zanjan and decreased WF of -5.94, -9.03, and -9.12 % for Ardebil, Hamedan, and Sanandaj, respectively. In irrigated wheat systems, the shrare of green, blue, gray, and white waters in total WF simulated by 32.3, 24.2, 20.9, and 22.6 %, respectively. However, in rainfed wheat systems, the shrare of green and gray waters in total WF estimated by 90.3 and 9.60 %, respectively. The findings of the current research showed that shifting from irrigated to rainfed cultivation of wheat in some areas of northwestern Iran (i.e. Ardebil, Hamedan, and Sanandaj) could lead to a significant reduction in blue water consumption (less irrigation) and subsequently increase sustainability in these areas.

Ellagic acid is a natural polyphenol compound, and different concentrations and ways of using it cause different reactions in plants. This research was conducted to investigate the effect of ellagic acid and seed quality on the phenological stages and yield of soybeans.

The factorial experiment was designed and implemented in a randomized complete block design in three replications in the agricultural years of 2019 and 2020 in the research farm of the Faculty of Agriculture, Shahrood University of Technology. In this experiment, the initial quality of the seed was considered in two levels (normal seed and aged seed) and ellagic acid in four levels (zero, priming, foliar spraying and combined application of priming and foliar spraying with a concentration of 50 mg/liter). Accelerated aging test was used to apply aging and for this purpose, the seeds were kept for 72 hours at a temperature of 41°C and a relative humidity of 95%. Seed priming was done with a concentration of 50 mg/liter of ellagic acid, following the principles of seed aeration for six hours. The spraying treatment was done early in the morning and at the beginning of flowering (R1) and in favorable environmental conditions.

The results showed that accelerated aging in the first and second year of the experiment, respectively, caused a decrease in the final emergence percentage of seedling in the field by 30.93 and 29.93% compared to the control. In the first and second year, the normal seed priming test with ellagic acid increased the final emergence percentage of field by 16.33 and 12.67 percent, respectively. The final emergence percentage of the field in the first and second year of the experiment in aged seeds that were primed with ellagic acid was improved by 14.33 and 8.33%, respectively, compared to the control. Accelerated aging caused a significant decrease in germination rate by 37.66% compared to the control. The final emergemce percentage of seeds that were primed with ellagic acid increased by 18.75% compared to the non-application of this substance. In this experiment, accelerated aging caused a delay in the occurrence of phenological traits in soybean plants. The use of ellagic acid as priming and the combined use of priming and spraying could increase the rate of occurrence of phenological traits to a significant level. Applying accelerated aging in the first and second year of the experiment caused a decrease of 25.85 and 28.78 percent of seed yield, respectively. The use of ellagic acid in the form of priming, foliar spraying and the combined use of priming and foliar spraying increased the seed yield by 23.59, 23.23 and 55.48%, respectively, compared to the control.

The use of ellagic acid as priming and the combination of priming and spraying can be suggested to accelerate the occurrence of phenological traits in soybeans. In this study, the application of ellagic acid as priming worked better than foliar spraying. It is recommended to use priming and ellagic acid solution to improve soybean yield under normal and aging conditions.

Salinity is one of the most important environmental stresses that reduce the ‎growth and yield of crop plants. Application of biofertilizers increases yield and the resistance of plants ‎against various environmental stresses, such as salinity. Also, zinc plays an important role in protein ‎metabolism, photosynthetic activity and some physiological traits crop plants. Zinc deficiency is ‎recognized as a critical problem in‏ ‏plants, especially grown on saline conditions with high pH values. But, ‎recent researches have shown that a small amount of nutrients, particularly Zn applied by foliar spraying ‎can affect ability of plants to salinity stress. Silicon is also a complementary micronutrient for biological ‎systems and has an important physiological role in increasing resistance of plants against various ‎environmental stresses. The aim of this research was to investigate Azosperlium and nanoparticles (zinc ‎and silicon) effects on yield and some physiological traits of triticale under salinity stress.‎ This experiment was conducted as factorial based on randomized complete ‎design with three replications in greenhouse research of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, ‎University of Mohaghegh Ardabili during 2022. Factors experimental were included salinity stress at three ‎levels (no application of salinity as control, application of 60, 120 mM salinity) by NaCl, application of ‎plant growth promoting rhizobacteria at two levels (no seed inoculation as control and seed inoculation ‎with Azospirillium) and foliar application of nanoparticles at four levels (foliar application with water as ‎control, foliar application of 0.8 g.L-1 nano Zn oxide, foliar application 50 mg.L-1 nano silicon, combined ‎foliar application of 0.4 g.L-1 of nano zn oxide and 25 mg.L-1 of nano silicon). ‎ The results showed that application of Azospirlium and foliar application of nano zn-silicon ‎oxide under no salinity condition increased chlorophyll index (49.24%), relative water content (59.82%), ‎stomata conductivity (57.6%), maximum fluorescence (52.77%), variable fluorescence (136.09%), ‎quantum yield (54.24%) and grain yield (47.23%) in comparison with of no application of PGPR and ‎nanoparticles under salinity 120 mM. But electrical conductivity and minimum fluorescence (54.6 and ‎‎49.15% respectively) decreased in comparison with no application of PGPR and nanoparticles under the ‎same of salinity level.‎ The results of this study showed that application of Azospirlium and foliar application of ‎nano Zn-silcon oxide can increase the grain yield of triticale at salinity mM due to improving fluorescence ‎indices and some physiological traits such as stomata conductivity, chlorophyll index and relative water ‎content. Therefore, application of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria and nanoparticles (Zn and Si) can ‎be suggested as an effective method for moderate the effects of salinity stress.‎

Wheat, as one of the most important crops, occupies about 20% of the world's cultivated area. In the FAO report, more than 90% of Iran is classified as arid and semi-arid. The impact of drought stress on crops is devastating every year, resulting in yield losses of 17%. It is therefore of high importance to research to improve crop resilience to drought stress and minimize water losses in agriculture. Accordingly, four advanced tolerant and sensitive bread wheat genotypes against drought stress were studied regarding yield and other physiological, morphological, and phenological traits under normal and water deficit conditions during the flowering stage. The objective was to discover the main causes of stress tolerance or sensitivity from different aspects of the studied genotypes. To explore the effect of moisture stress at flowering stage, four genotypes were investigated as the main factor (A) by factorial experiment based on the randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications under the normal and moisture stress conditions at flowering stage as the sub-factor (B) in the research field. The results of analysis of variance showed a significant difference at least at 5% probability level between genotypes and drought stress levels according to most studied traits. Based on the results from the comparison of means of traits, the high tolerance of Eroum cultivar to drought stress was due to the higher increase in MDA and H2O2 and lower decrease in traits of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll content, carotenoid content, 1000-seed weight and plant height. Also, the Mihan cultivar was more tolerant to drought stress because of the higher increase of proline, carotenoid, POX, CAT, peduncle length and number of days to 50% flowering and the lower decrease in the number of grains per spike due to drought stress. The results of biplot analysis based on the principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the flag leaf area, vegetative growth rate, number of fertilizer tillers, grain yield, number of grains per spike, 1000-seed weight, CAT, proline, POX, MDA and carotenoid play a decisive role in genotype discrimination under the normal and stress conditions. The results of path analysis showed that the vegetative growth rate, total chlorophyll content, chlorophyll a content and plant height, due to significant direct effects, and also the MDA, proline content and peduncle length, chlorophyll a concentration, chlorophyll b concentration, carotenoid content, total chlorophyll concentration, length of grain filling period and vegetative growth rate, due to the greater correlation with grain yield, can be used as suitable indicators for the selection of tolerance genotypes. According to the mean comparison, causality, and biplot analyses, the high yield of the Arum genotype under normal and water stress conditions can be explained by total protein, vegetative growth rate, grain filling rate, 1000- grain weight, grain filling period, grains number in spike, fertile tillers number, plant height, and malondialdehyde. Whereas, the high yield of the Mihan genotype under both normal and moisture deficit conditions can be attributed to vegetative growth rate, 1000 grain weight, flag leaf area, grain filling period, grains number in spike, fertile tillers number, plant height, total chlorophyll concentration, chlorophyll a and b concentration, peduncle length, carotenoid content, and proline content.

In order to improve soil fertility, increase the capacity to hold water and nutrients in the soil, as well as improve the growth and yield of plants, the use of different organic fertilizers in the soil has great importance due to the problem of lack of organic matter in most soils of Iran. However, organic fertilizers alone are not able to meet the needs of plants and are not sufficiently available to farmers. On the other hand, the high consumption of chemical fertilizers causes environmental pollution and increases production costs. Therefore, in order to efficiently and effectively use organic and chemical fertilizers and achieve sustainable agriculture, combined use of organic and chemical fertilizers is recommended. Considering the effect of heat stress at the end of the season on the reduction of wheat production in Khuzestan, as well as the effect of reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and increasing the use of organic and biological fertilizers on the health of agricultural ecosystems, this experiment aims to investigate the effect of combined use of nitrogen chemical fertilizer with sugarcane residue compost and the application of growth promoting bacteria (PGPR) in late season heat conditions on the growth and yield of wheat were designed and implemented. This research was carried out in order to investigate the response of Chamran 2 wheat yield and yield components to combined use of nitrogen chemical fertilizer with sugarcane residue compost and growth promoting bacteria under the effect of late season heat stress. The experiment was carried out in the form of split-split plots in the form of a basic design of randomized complete blocks with three replications in the crop year of 2021-2022 in the research farm of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan. The experimental factors include three planting dates on December 1, December 20 and December 10 in the main plots; Six levels of combined use of nitrogen chemical fertilizer (urea) with organic fertilizer, sugarcane residue compost, including control (without chemical and organic fertilizer), 100% chemical fertilizer, 75% chemical fertilizer+ 25% organic fertilizer, 50% chemical fertilizer+ 50% organic fertilizer, 25% chemical fertilizer+ 75% organic fertilizer and 100% organic fertilizer in sub-plots and two levels of application and non-application of growth promoting bacteria (PGPR) in sub-plots. Each sub-plot was 3 meters long and 2 meters wide (with an area of 6 square meters) and included 10 crop lines at a distance of 20 cm from each other. The distance between the main and sub plots was half a meter and the distance between the blocks was considered to be two meters. After harvest maturity, the plants were harvested and the desired traits were measured. Analysis of variance showed that the effect of sowing date and the combined use of chemical fertilizer with organic fertilizer of sugarcane residue compost were significant on all measured traits. Also, the effect of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria was significant on all the measured traits except harvest index. Mean comparison showed that the highest grain yield (5663 kg/ha) was in the sowing date of 1 December and the use of 50% chemical fertilizer+ 50% organic fertilizer and the lowest grain yield (1155 kg/ha) was in the planting date of 10 December and no use of chemical and organic fertilizers. In general, the delay in planting and the occurrence of heat stress at the end of the season caused a decrease in grain yield, but in different planting dates, the combined use of 50% chemical fertilizer+ 50% organic fertilizer increased wheat grain yield.

Beans are one of the most important legumes in many developing countries as one of the sources of human protein. Drought stress is also one of the factors limiting the growth and production of plants in arid and semi-arid regions, which has reduced the yield of plants, especially legumes. The use of antitranspirants is an effective tool in regulating transpiration with the aim of preserving water in the plant. The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of antitranspirants in the condition of irrigation cut off on seed yield and some physiological characteristics of Kosha cultivar pinto beans. The study was carried out in the form of split plots based on a randomized complete block design with three replications in the two crop years of 2019 and 2020 in agricultural lands located in Khoi city. Experimental treatments include irrigation at two levels; Normal irrigation (irrigation according to local custom) and irrigation cut off at the stage of filling the seeds in the main plots and spraying antitranspirants on eight levels in the sub plots included: salicylic acid (0.5%), phenyl mercuric acetate (100 μM), gibberellic acid (150 μM), cytovit (2%), chitosan (0.5%), castor oil (6%), gum arabic (0.5%) and distilled water (control). The traits measured in the experiment included plant height, number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, hundred seed weight, seed yield, biological yield, seed protein percentage, relative water content and proline content. The results showed that the cut off Irrigation had a significant effect on the number of pods per plant, hundred seed weight, seed yield, biological yield, protein percentage, relative water content and proline content of bean leaves. antitranspirants also had a significant effect on all traits except for the number of seeds in pods. The interaction effect of irrigation withholding and antitranspirants was significant in the number of seeds in the pod and the percentage of seed protein. The triple interaction of year, irrigation cut off and antitranspirants on the number of pods per plant and hundred seed weight was significant. In the condition of irrigation cut off, antitranspirants increased the seed yield and the highest seed yield was obtained in the salicylic acid treatment, which increased by 41.1% compared to the control treatment. It seems that by applying a stage of irrigation restriction and consumption of antitranspirants in the areas that faced with the problem of water deficit at the end of the growing season, by improving some morpho-physiological characteristics such as reducing the amount of proline and increasing the relative moisture content of leaves and biological function, it is possible to effectively the slope decreased the yield of pinto beans under drought stress conditions. Therefore, in areas with water deficit, especially due to the simultaneous limitation of water resources, peak consumption in other agricultural products, which causes psychological pressure on to deal with the problem of water deficit, using antitranspirants as an efficient tool and removing a irrigation phase at the end of the growing season can partially compensated for the the reduction of damage caused by water deficit.

The health of the food products in different systems is important in terms of the presence of residues of toxins and chemicals and their effect on human health and the environment. Excessive use of chemical fertilizers is one of the main problems of today's agriculture. Organic cultivation of edible and agricultural plants has positive effects on human health (1). The amount of soil organic matter is considered one of the important indicators of soil quality and strongly affects the physical, chemical and biological properties of soil (2). One of the main goals of sustainable agriculture is the use of organic fertilizers in agricultural ecosystems with the aim of reducing the use of chemical fertilizers. Using organic fertilizers instead of chemical fertilizers is effective in ensuring human health and protecting the environment. As a natural substitute for chemical fertilizers, organic fertilizers have a positive and undeniable role in sustainable soil management and ultimately the sustainability of agricultural systems (3). The use of renewable natural fertilizers with biological origin is very important in maintaining the structure, biological activity, water exchange and storage capacity and finally improving the physical and chemical structure of the soil. Today, the most important principle for achieving soil fertility and proper plant nutrition in organic agriculture is the use of organic and biological inputs instead of chemical fertilizers (4). In order to investigate the effect of organic fertilizers on yield traits of Satureja spicigera in Kermanshah rainfed conditions, a factorial completely randomized design with three replications conducted in Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center of Kermanshah, in 2017-2019. The main factor was three fertilizer treatments including rotten cow manure, enriched straw and field soil (control) and the sub factor was two harvesting (two crop years). The fertilizer treatments applied to Satureja spicigera (savory) plantation in 3×4 m2 plots and in rows with a distance of 50×50 cm. In two agricultural years, morphologic and yield traits including plant height, crown area, plant fresh weight and dry weight of the plant were measured then the fresh yield and dry yield were calculated. Essential oils were extracted from 100 g dried plants based on British pharmacopeia (1993) by Clevenger system. Essential oils were drained by Na2So4, were weighed and EO percentage (w/w) and EO yield (kgha-1) were calculated. Data were statistically evaluated by SPSS (ver. 26) and Minitab (ver. 16) Software’s. The highest fresh yield (2708.49 kgha-1), dry yield (1348.88 kgha-1), EO yield (47.03 kgha-1), plant fresh weight (67.71 g) and the plant dry weight (33.72 g) were obtained in rotten cow manure× second year harvesting. The highest percentage of essential oil (3.70%) was obtained in the treatment of cow manure× first year harvesting. In the PC analysis, the traits of plant fresh weight, plant dry weight; fresh yield, dry yield and EO yield were shown the highest relation to treatment of cow manure and the highest values for them were obtained in treatment of cow manure. The traits of plant height, crown area, plant large and small diameter were had the maximum relation with the enriched straw treatment. None of the examined traits showed a significant positive or negative relationship with the field soil treatment (control).