فصلنامه گیاه و زیست بوم
پیاپی 42 (بهار 1394)

In an attempt to investigate the impact of the integrated management of nitrogen fertilizer and cattle manure and their interaction effectson tuber yield and dry and fresh weight of the leaves, stems, and shoots in potato (Solanumtuberosum L.), a factorial experiment in a randomized complete block design with three replications was conducted in April 2008 in the research field of the Islamic Azad University, Roudehen Branch (located inKoliac region).The treatments includedthe nitrogen fertilizer at three levels (50, 100, and 150 Kg h-1) and the cattle manure at four levels (5, 10, 15, and 20 ton h-1). The results indicated that the separate application of the nitrogen fertilizer and cattle manure, in all of the sampling times, significantly impacted the (dry and fresh) weight of the leaves, the stems, and the shoots. Additionally, in most of the sampling times, the interaction effects of the integrated use of these two types of fertilizers significantly affected most of the aforementioned qualities. The separate use of the cattle manure and the nitrogen fertilizer along with their interaction effects also left a very significant impact on the tuber yield. The maximum tuber yield in this experiment (36.8 tons ha-1) was obtained by combining 20 tons of cattle manure with 150 kg of the nitrogen fertilizer per hectare.

Given the limitations of the soil application of micronutrients (such as fixation and the residual effects), spraying or foliar feeding is an effective way for compensating the nutritional need of the plants to the micronutrients. In an attempt to explore the impact of zinc sulfate and manganese sulfate spraying on yield and the agronomic characteristics of canola varieties (Brassica napus L.) in paddy, a factorial experiment following a randomized complete block design with three replications was carried out in the research field of the Rice Research Institute of Rasht in 2009. The factors in this study included the application of micronutrients at four levels (zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate, combined use of zinc and manganese sulfates, and their zero application) and the varieties at three levels (Hyola 401, Hyola 308, and RGS006). The results indicated that micronutrient fertilizer had a significant effect on the plant height, the number of pods per plant, the length of the pods in the main and side stems, the number of seeds in the pods, 1000 seed weight, seed yield, harvest index, and oil yield. The varieties significantly affected the plant height, the number of pods in the plant, the number of seeds in the pod, 1000 seed weight, and seed and oil yield. However, the interaction effect of the experiment treatments was only significant in the number of pods in the plant, the number of seeds in the pod, and oil percentage. The results revealed that the number of pods in the plant and the number of seeds in the pod were the highest in the treatment of the combined use of zinc and manganese sulfates in Hyola401 variety. The maximum amount of oil yield was obtained from the combined use of zinc and manganese sulfates Hyola401 with an average of 1146 kg per hectare.

In an attempt to investigate the possibility of intercropping maize (Zea mays L.) with radish (Raphanussativu) and its impact on controlling the weeds, an experiment was carried out in the research field of the Islamic Azad University, Shahr-e Rey branch, in 2009. The study followed the split plot randomized complete block design and had3 replications. The experimental treatments included weeds factors (weed free and weed infest) as the main factor and 6 pure stand and intercropping planting densities (maize 100%(C), radish 100%(R), maize 100% + radish 100% (CR), maize 100% + radish 50% (Cr), maize 50% + radish 100%(cR), and maize 50% + radish 50%(cr)) as the sub-factor. The yield characteristics of the maize and radish along with the physiological growth indices such as leaf area index (LAI), harvest index (HI), and land equivalent ratio (LER) were measured in this study. The results indicated that there was no significant difference between weed free and weed infest with respect to most of the yield traits,illustrating that the weeds were controlled in the intercropping cultivation. In addition, there was a significant difference between pure and intercropping cultivations of the maize and radish across different treatments of the intercropping planting density. Maize 100% (C) and radish 100%(R) treatments had a higher yield in most of the measured traits of the maize compared to the other treatments. Furthermore, the yield characteristics of the radish indicated that the radish 100%(R) treatment was better than the others. The amount of LER was higher than one in all of the intercropping cultivation treatments which highlights the usefulness of this method of planting over the pure one. The highest proportion of land equivalent ratio belonged to the maize 100% and 100% radish treatments with an average of 2.47. Drawing on the results and in an attempt to enhance the productivity of the land, the maize 100% and radish 100% treatments are recommended for planting inShahr-e Rey region.

Toevaluate the effect of inoculation of bacteria Pseudomonas and Azotobacter on seed germination and seedling growth ofTakii and Little Ball varieties of Marigold (Calendula officinalis L.), an experiment with organic agriculture aims was carried out in 2009. The seeds were sterilized by NaClO1% andbacteria solutions were diluted with water at a ratio of 1 to 5. The seeds were then inoculated with the treatments. The experiment included the following treatments: the seeds inoculated with Pseudomonas putida strain 1, P. Putida strain 2, Azotobacterchroococcumstrain 1, A. chroococcum strain 2 and some of their combinations. The inoculated seeds were kept in germinator with 24˚С temperature and 16h light for 3 weeks. During this period, the seeds were irrigated with distilled water and the required factors were recorded on a daily basis. The evaluated traits included: the percentage and rate of germination, wet and dry weight of the plantlet, the length of the shootlet, rootlet, and plantlet, and the vigor index.Results indicated that the application of P. Putida strain 2 was more effective forthe rate and percentage of germination on Calendula seeds than the other treatments. According to the results, the application of two strains ofA. chroococcumon Takii variety increased the length of rootlet and plantlet significantly. Furthermore, analyzing the interaction effect and the impact of the varieties, it was observed that the Takii V. was best variety in almost indices rather than Little Ball V. and can be effective and useful for better germination and growth of the plantlet.

This experiment was carried out to identify the compounds in the oil extracted from the essence of Artemisia annuaL. leaves during the vegetation and flowering stages. The leaves were collected from Ramsar region in Mazandaran province during the summer of 2010. The essential oil of each part of the plant was collected by hydro-distillation, using a Clevenger apparatus. The obtained oils were analyzed by means of GC and GC/MS. The chemical compounds of the oil wereidentified through MS spectroscopy and comparing the indices with authentic resources. On the basis of the results, 16 and 14 chemical compounds were respectively identified in the essences obtained at the flowering and vegetation stages. The most significant compounds were Champhor and α- pinene, respectively obtained from the flowering and vegetation stages.β –pinene, α –campholenaland, 4-terpineol, linoleoylchloride, cubenol, and Germacrene-D compounds were observed in the flowering stage of the plant, whereas the α-humulene, 1,5-dimethyl-1, 5-cycle, α-cadinen-octadiene and diethylcarbinol compounds were obtained from the vegetative stage.

This study was carried outin the protected area of Bagh-e Shadi to investigate the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of pistachio tree (Pistaciaatlantica). The fixed-area-plots sampling method was applied in this study. A total of 76 circular plots were harvested in the protected and grazed areas and the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the trees such as the number of trees per hectare, the height, thetree canopy per hectare, the diameter at breast height, the regeneration, pest-stroke, and head-dryness were recorded. The results indicated that the regenerations in the closed and grazed areas were 51.02 and 0.18 in each hectare, respectively. The canopy per hectareof the pistachio tree in the closed and grazed areas was respectively 423.35 and 305.53 square meters.The average number of pistachio trees per hectare in the closed and grazed areaswas 64.34 and 15.72, respectively. The average height of pistachio trees in the closed and grazed areas was 6/6 and 5/02 meters. The maximum, minimum, and average amounts of the diameter at breast height in the closed area were 108.28, 13.37, and 41.79 cm, respectively. These amounts were respectively 107.32, 13.69, and 34.69 cm for the grazed area. The average number of pest-stroken and head-dry pistachio trees in each hectare was 7.21 and 14.57 for the closed area and 16.86 and 6.29 for the grazed area.

The ecological properties of Stipagrostispennata (Trin.) De Winter,across the sandy dunes in the desert, have been studied in the present experiment. For so doing, the habitats of this plant across Rig-Boland deserts of Aran andBidgol were identified. Afterwards, its ecological traits such as: the elevation range, topography, climate, soil structure, accompanied plant species, the quality of the presence of the species in the vegetation, root system, phenology, and the natural propagation of the plant were examined. The obtained results indicated that plant’s habitats are extended in the form of spots across the slopes of the active and running sandy dunes. The major habitats of this desert plant are located in an elevation range of 750 to 1150 m above the sea level. The average annual rainfall in the habitats of S. pennataranged from 80 to 120 mm. This plant grows in relatively deep soils, with sandy soil texture, 7.5 to 8.5 pH, and an electrical conductivity of 0.4 to 5.1 ds/m. The canopy cover percentage of this species in the habitat is 3.1 to 6.2% and the average of the basis density per hectare ranges from 468 to 937. The vegetative growth and flowering stages of the plant respectively begin in mid-February and mid-April. The seeds of the plant ripen and fallat the end of June. The propagation inthe plant takes place by means of the seeds and the formation of numerous aerial leaps at the collar of the plant. The most prominent accompanying plant species in the habitats of S. pennata include: Cyperuseremicus grasslands, different species of Calligonum L., and Smirnoviaturkestana. On the basis of the results, it can be concluded that Stipagrostispennata (Trin.) De Winter is a psammophyte and desert plant that plays an important role in maintaining and stabilizingthe unstable sandy soils and providing forage for livestock in winter pastures.

In order to determine the best cultivation method for barely (Hordeumvulgare), an experiment was carried out in a randomized complete block design with 3 replications and 4 treatments (hill planting, hand spraying, cultivation in-depth, and linear) in the research field of Payam-e Noor University, Ardakan branch, in 2008. The traits such as the length of the main cluster and the sub-cluster, the number of seeds in the main spike and sub-spike, grain weight in the main spike and sub-spike, the biomass, the plant height and the yield were measured.A comparison of the trait means indicated that the maximum amount of seed yield and biomass belonged to the hill planting cultivation method which did not significantly differ with the cultivation in in-depth method. The maximum amount of cluster and sub-cluster lengths, the number of seeds in the main spike and sub-spike belonged to the cultivation in in-depth method and the minimum amount of all traits was for the hand spraying cultivation method. Considering the significance of seed yield for human beings and animals, the best cultivation method appears to be hill planting to increase forage and reduce the possible expenses.

Persian Artemisia with the scientific name of Artemisia persica is one of the most aromatic species of Artemisia in Iran. The aim of this investigationis to explore the habitat conditions and vegetation characteristics of A. persicain Lorestan province. The natural habitats of this species were identified during 3 years (2003-2005) in different regions of Lorestan province. The climatic data were collected from the nearest weather stations to the habitats of A. persica. The random-systematic method of sampling was followed and some of the quantitative parameters of the vegetation such as: the canopy cover and the density were measured. Some soil parameters such as texture, pH, EC, potassium, organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus were determined. The annual phenology and the vegetative/reproductive stages of A. persicawere recorded for 3 years. The results indicated that the habitats of A. persicainin Lorestanprovince are spread between the latitudes of 34° 46ʹ 01″ N to 33° 50 61″ N and the longitudes of 48° 51ʹ 43″ E to 48° 10ʹ 43″ E, on the mainly northern slopes (30-60%) of the great Garin mountain range with an altitude of 1850-3600 m. The maximum amount of A. persica density (5600 stand per ha) was observed in Higrehregion and the plants in Islamabad region had the largest aerial canopy cover (39/6 cm)and the highest yield (80 kg ha-1). Persian Artemisia mainly grows on light textured soils (sandy or sandy loam) with low salinity and low alkalinity. The annual growth of A. persicabegins with the appearance of the first leaf buds in early April and the flowering starts with the first flower buds mainly in the early July and reaches its peak in the early August.