Iranian Journal of Field Crops Research
Year:2021 | Volume:19 | Issue:1|Papers Count:7

Introduction: In Iran, clover is the second most important forage crop after alfalfa (Medicago sativa) and is cultivated on a surface of about 70, 000 hectares. Yield improvement of this plant could be achieved through autumn cultivation. Iran is still one of the main centers for the diversity of clover species, there is not much information about freezing tolerance of native species of this important plant. Since freezing stress is one of the most important winter stresses which causes severe damage to the plant cells and tissues and ultimately plant death, evaluation of freezing tolerance of this crop could help to determination of the best planting date in order to achieve the highest yield. The aim of this study was to evaluate the freezing tolerance of four clover species through assessment of plant survival and re-growth after freezing stress. Materials and Methods: In order to study growth criteria of four clover species after freezing stress in controlled conditions, an experiment was conducted in 2012-13 in Faculty of agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Treatments were arranged as factorial based on Completely Randomized Design with four replications. Factors were included of planting dates (late September and late October), clover species (red clover T. pratense, white clover T. repense, Persian clover T. resupinatum (autumn species) and crimson clover T. incarnatum (spring species) and freezing temperatures (0 (control),-3,-6,-9,-12,-15,-18,-21º, C). Survival percentage, LT50 according to Survival (LT50su), leaf area, Reduced 50% Leaf Area Temperature (RLAT50), dry weight and Reduced Dry Matter Temperature 50 (RDMT50) were measured after three weeks re-growth. Results and Discussion: Results indicated that survival percentage was significantly affected by interaction of planting date, species and freezing temperatures. In both planting dates, crimson and white species showed a good survival till-15°, C while they were killed as temperature was more decreased to-18°, C. In first planting date, two species of red and Persian clover had 50 and 42% survival, but were killed in this temperature in the second planting date. The lowest LT50su in autumn (red, white and Persian) and spring (crimson) species was found in first and second planting dates, respectively indicating higher freezing tolerance in crimson species at second planting date and a better acclimation of autumn species at first planting date which led to a higher survival compared to spring species. Leaf area was significantly affected by planting date, species and freezing temperatures at the end of the recovery period. In first planting date, decreasing temperature from zero to-18°, C caused reduction of 98 and 48% of leaf area in red and Persian species while no plant of white and crimson species was survived in this condition. In second planting date, leaf area was decreased about 6, 33 and 2% as temperature decreased from zero to-15°, C while leaf area of Persian species, not only was not decreased, but also increased by about 12%. The lowest and highest RLAT50 were observed in Persian and red species. Interaction of planting date and species on RDMT50 was significant in a way that in delayed planting date, RDMT50 was increased in red, Persian and crimson species while it was decreased in white species. Conclusions: Red and Persian species showed higher freezing tolerance according to indices of survival percentage and LT50su. The highest recovery ability of plants based on leaf area per plant, RLAT50, plant dry matter and RDMT50 was found for second planting date. Also annual species of Persian and crimson had lower RLAT50 and RDMT50 and higher freezing tolerance compared to perennial species of red and white clover.

Introduction: Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L. ) is an annual and C4 plant that belongs to the family of Portulacaceae that is tolerant to drought and salt stresses which contains high amounts of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidant vitamins. Adaptation to both dry and saline conditions makes Purslane a prime candidate as a vegetable in areas with dry conditions and salty soils, often present together where land is irrigated. Purslane seeds provide nutritional value and have beneficial health effects on the body, especially in preventing cardiovascular, cancer, and hypertension (high blood pressure) diseases, because it contains omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and other nutrients like antioxidants, tocopherols, and dietary fiber. Nitrogen is a key element in soil fertility and crop production. Recently, attention to the soil quality and health has increased, especially for sustainable production of medicinal crops. Thus, using natural and on-farm inputs has been considered, to produce healthy food especially in developed countries. Achieve this goal needs organic fertilizers. Given the importance of Purslane as a medicinal plant and the fact that there is no detailed information about the nitrogen requirement for this plant, this study was conducted to evaluate the effect of organic, biological and chemical fertilizers on yield, yield components and percent oil of common Purslane (Portulaca oleracea L. ) in Birjand, Iran. Materials and Methods: This research was carried out during two growing seasons (2014/2015 and 2015/2016) at the research farm of Birjand University. In this experiment, the treatments were a combination of four sources of nitrogen supply, including cow manure, vermicompost, chemical fertilizer (NPK) and control (without any fertilizer), as well as four types of biofertilizers including nitroxin (including Azotobacter and Azospirilum), Mycorrhiza (Glomus intraradices), Biosulfur (including Thiobacillus with sulfur) and control (without any fertilizer) on Purslane in a factorial design based on randomized complete blocks design with three replications. The studied characteristics were performed separately in each harvest. From each plot, ten plants were randomly selected, and plant height and SPAD index were measured. Five plants were randomly selected from each plot, and yield components, including the number of capsules per plant, number of seeds per capsule, 1000-seed weight, biological yield, and harvest index, were calculated. The grain yield was performed when yellowing of 70% of the capsules. The oil percentage was measured by Soxhlet method. Oil yield was calculated by multiplying grain yield by oil percentage. Statistical analysis was performed using Minitab 17 software. LSD test was used at the 5% probability level to compare the means. Results and Discussion: The results showed that the effect of organic and chemical fertilizers on all studied traits (except harvest index) was significant. The highest plant height (49. 24 cm), number of capsules per plant (351. 23 capsules) and 1000-seed weight (0. 41 g) was related to NPK treatment. The highest chlorophyll index (34. 27), seed number per capsule (45. 4) and seed oil percentage (14. 6) was related to vermicompost treatment. Also, the highest grain yield (1959. 29 kg. ha-1 ), biomass yield (9782. 43 kg. ha-1 ) and oil yield (277. 68 kg. ha-1 ) were obtained from NPK treatment, while no significant differences were observed between NPK fertilizer and cow manure. The effect of biofertilizer on number of capsules per plant, number of seeds per capsule, 1000-grain weight and oil content was significant, but the effect on the other traits was not significant. The highest number of capsules per plant (355. 38 capsules) and 1000 seed weight (0. 41 g) was related to mycorrhiza treatment, but the highest number of seeds per capsule (43) and oil percentage (14. 6) were related to biosulfur treatment. The interaction of two studied factors (different nitrogen sources and biofertilizers) on plant height, chlorophyll index, capsule number per plant, biomass yield, harvest index and oil percentage were significant. The maximum biomass yield was obtained of the interaction between NPK and Nitroxin (10670. 1 kg. ha-1 ), and the interaction between NPK and biosolfur (10306. 7 kg. ha-1 ). The maximum percentage of oil was obtained of control and biosolfur treatments (15. 4%). Conclusions: Based on the results of this study, it is recommended to replace cow manure with NPK fertilizer to minimize the application of chemical inputs and maximize production of purslane seed and oil in Birjand.

Introduction: Iran with mean annual precipitation of 240 mm is considered located in arid zones of the world. Water deficit reduces plant growth and development by affecting various physiological and biochemical processes. Methanol foliar application is a method which increases crop CO2 fixation in unit area. Recent investigation showed that C3 crops yield, and growth increased via methanol spray and methanol may act as C source for these crops. Generally, the major role of this substance is to prevent negative effects of stresses on crops via reduction of photo respiration. The application of organic matters, such as humic substances have inhibitory effects of drought stress by improving the physical and chemical properties of soils, increasing soil water retention and providing the nutrients during plant growth. The objective of the present study was to examine the possibility of increasing water use efficiency and tolerance to water deficit stress by using humic acid and methanol foliar application and also influence of methanol and humic acid application on yield and yield components of Cichorium intybus L. under water deficit stress in Birjand, Iran. Materials and Methods: This research was carried out as factorial split-plot layout based on randomized complete block design with three replications in the research farm of Islamic Azad University of Birjand, Iran in 2015. In this research, irrigation interval was considered as main factor with three levels (irrigation after 70, 140 and 210 mm cumulative evaporation from evaporation pan class A), the factorial of methanol spray at two levels (0 and 21 % V/V) and humic acid at two levels (0 and 10 L. ha-1 ) were considered as sub factor. The texture of the soil in research farm was loam with the pH of 8. 2, electrical conductivity of 3. 23 dS. m-1 whose organic carbon, total N, P, and K content was 0. 3%, 0. 033%, 6. 8 mg. kg-1-1 and 133 mg. kg at the depth of 0-30 cm, respectively. All data were analyzed by MSTAT-C statistical software and means were compared by Duncan’, s Multiple Range Test at 5% level. Results and Discussion: The results showed that irrigation after 210 mm cumulative evaporation compared to irrigation after 70 mm of cumulative evaporation significantly reduced stem diameter, branch number of main stem and 1000-grain weight by 30. 6, 46 and 35. 5%, respectively. The means comparison showed that 21% V/V methanol spray significantly increased 1000-grain weight by 15. 3%. Also, application of 10 L. ha-1 humic acid significantly increased stem diameter, aken number per plant, seed number per plant, 1000-seed weight and water use efficiency by 16. 7, 8. 9, 10. 6, 13. 2 and 14. 3 % respectively as compared with no application of humic acid treatment. Means comparison of interaction between irrigation and methanol revealed that the highest seed yield (57. 2 g. m-2 ) and biological yield (423. 4 g. m-2 ) were produced under the treatment of irrigation after 70 mm cumulative evaporation with methanol spray. It seems that although methanol application at irrigation intervals after 70 and 140 mm accumulation evaporation from the evaporation pan increased seed and biological yield but methanol application in severe water deficit stress conditions (irrigation interval of after 210 mm cumulative evaporation) probably due to the reduction in stomatal conductance and absorption, has not been able to change dramatically these traits. Also, means comparison of interaction between irrigation and humic acid indicated that highest seed yield (55. 5 g. m-2 ) and biological yield (415. 1 g. m-2 ) were produced under the treatment of irrigation after 70 mm cumulative evaporation with humic acid application. Increasing of low water stress in vegetative growth stage reduces the absorption of water and nutrients, chlorophyll content and relative humidity of leaves, thus decreased vegetative growth, leaf photosynthesis and production of assimilate but humic acid application significantly increases chlorophyll index and relative humidity of leaves. Hence the result of these positive effects of humic acid application was the improvement of yield components and seed and biological yields of chicory, even under conditions of water deficit stress. Moreover, means comparison of interaction between irrigation and methanol showed that the highest water use efficiency for seed production (66. 7 g. m-3 ) belonged to treatment of irrigation after 140 mm of cumulative evaporation and methanol application. Conclusions: Overall, results of this study showed that treatment of irrigation after 70 mm cumulative evaporation with humic acid application or methanol spray could be suggested for chicory cultivation in Birjand, Iran.

Introduction: Increasing population growth along with the lack of freshwater resources have necessitated the use of unconventional water resources in agriculture, as the largest fresh water consumer, especially in the arid and semiarid areas. Application of suitable irrigation management with saline water can reduce the yield loss caused by salinity. Saline farming is based on the cultivation of crops and plant varieties that can tolerate high levels of salinity. Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Wild. ) is a genetically diverse Andean grain crop that has earned special attention worldwide due to its nutritional and health benefits and its ability to adapt to contrasting environments, including nutrient-poor and saline soils and drought stressed marginal agro-ecosystems. Drought and salinity are the abiotic stresses most studied in quinoa. Cultivation of salinity resistant cultivars, such as Quinoa plant is one of the techniques to use saline water. The results of Jamali and Ansari (2019) showed that irrigation with saline water during all the growth stages of quinoa plants (Titicaca cv) significantly decreases grain yield and 1000 kernel weights by 20. 8% and 20. 0 %, respectively. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of conjunctive moderation of saline water in irrigation of Quinoa plants (Chenopodium quinoa Wild. ). Materials and Methods: Research station is located in northeast of Iran at 36°,16' N latitude and 59°,38' E longitude with 958. 0 meters height from sea level. In this study, six irrigation treatments including well water (1. 23 dS. m-1, control treatment (W)), saline water (15 dS. m-1, SW), alternative saline water and freshwater (ASW), mixture of 50: 50 saline and freshwater (7. 2 dS. m-1, MSW), fixed partial root-zone salinity-stress (FPRS), and alternative partial root-zone salinity-stress (APRS) were evaluated on some growth parameters, yield, and physical productivity of water in Quinoa (CV. Titicaca) production. The research was done based on completely randomized design, including three replications as pot planting in the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, at greenhouse conditions, during 2018-2019. The seeds of Quinoa were planted at a depth of 1. 5 centimeter in silty clay soil of each pot and were irrigated with well water. Physical and chemical properties of irrigation water and soil were determined before experiment. The collected data analyzed using statistical software of SAS (Ver. 9. 0) and the means were compared using LSD test at 5 % probability. Results and Discussion: The results showed that, different irrigation moderation had a significant impact on physical productivity of water, harvest index, panicle length, plant height, stem diameter, panicle weight, and grain yield at 1% (P<0. 01), but this treatment was significant at 5% (P<0. 05) on branches number, panicle width, panicle number, and 1000 kernel weights. The maximum reduction in physical productivity of water was observed in plants receiving SW treatment (15 dS. m-1 NaCl). Notable increases of 23. 1%, 19. 2%, 3. 8%, and 19. 2% in the 1000 kernel weight, 25%, 23. 4%, 2. 7%, and 18. 9% grain yield and 25%, 12. 5%, 3. 8%, and 25% physical water productivity in Quinoa (c. v. NSRCQ) production were observed when plants were grown under applying ASW, MSW, FPRS, and APRS moderation, compared with SW moderation. Conclusions: Whilst comparing with control treatments (W), the lowest decreases of 19. 4%, 23. 5%, and 23. 1% were noted respectively in grain yield, 1000 kernel weights, and physical water productivity exposed to ASW treatment. The NSRCQ cultivar showed the highest potential for yield and growing under saline conditions (ASW and APRS moderation). Morphological and yield responses of Quinoa (c. v. NSRCQ) to all treatments (moderation saline water), under greenhouse conditions, showed that quinoa has wide plasticity and tolerance to salinity stress. Due to the lack of water resources and increasing population growth, it is recommended to use unconventional water (for exp. saline water) and cultivation of crop varieties (for exp. Quinoa) that can tolerate high levels of salinity, especially in the arid and semiarid areas.

Introduction: Potato (Solanum tuberosum L. ) as a drought sensitive crop is one of the main sources of human nutrition in different countries and it is cultivated almost all over the world. It is predicted that among the 25 studied countries, the decline in potato yield in Iran between 2040 and 2069 will be 13. 3% for drought-adapted cultivars and 48. 3% for non-drought-adapted cultivars. Annually 164. 4 thousand hectares of agricultural lands in Iran are allocated to potato cultivation with a yield of 32. 4 t ha-1. Nowadays, plant biology is experiencing great advances in studies related to the complex behavior of higher plants, and stress memory is one of these progresses. Stress memory involves the accumulation of signaling proteins or transcription factors and epigenetic mechanisms in plants that leads to an improvement in the stress response when plants are exposed to a subsequent stress event. “, Stress memory”,in plants is also an essential feature of “, intelligent”,behavior and can be investigated at different levels. Materials and Methods: In order to investigate the effect of drought stress on yield and yield components of four potato cultivars, a study was conducted in 2020 in Rozveh Agricultural Research Station, Chadegan city. Half of the required seed tubers were obtained from the previous year's experiment. The treatments were laid out in a split plot arrangement in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Main plots included two irrigation treatments (100% and 75% of the field capacity) and sub-plots included four potato cultivars (Agria, Marfona, Atousa, and Anousha). Each plot consisted of four rows with four m length and 75 cm × 25 cm of plant density. At harvest time, two meters of the middle rows of each plot were used to estimate yield and yield components. Stress tolerance index and water use efficiency were investigated in this study. SAS software (version 9. 1) was used to analyze the data and Duncan's multi-domain comparison method (5%) was used to compare the means. Results and Discussion: The effect of irrigation treatment on total yield, marketable and non-marketable yield, and on water use efficiency was statistically significant at the level of 1% and 5%, respectively. The effects of interaction between irrigation treatment and cultivar on total yield was significant at 5% probability level, and on non-marketable yield, marketable yield, and water use efficiency were significant at 1% probability level. The total yield in 8 experimental treatments under full irrigation conditions ranged from 30 to 39 t ha-1. In full irrigation conditions, Agria was the only cultivar that produced a significantly higher yield than other cultivars. Among the non-resistant cultivars, Atousa and Anousha cultivars experienced a greater yield decline of 40% and 39%, respectively, than Agria and Marfona cultivars. In drought stress conditions, two resistant cultivars, Atousa and Anousha, had the highest yield compared to other cultivars and the lowest yield compared to adequate water supply conditions (only 8. 5% yield loss). Drought-resistant Atousa and Anousha cultivars with water use efficiency of 7. 1 and 7. 6 kg m-3, respectively, compared to the non-stress condition (6. 1 and 6. 2 kg m-3, respectively) had significant superiority. Conclusions: The results indicated that not only drought tolerance is different in different potato cultivars but also stress memory is different in different cultivars. The use of tubers that have been exposed to drought stress (drought tolerant) during previous growth stages can affect plant behavior in the current growth. According to the results, it seems that in some cultivars, "stress memory" can be used to moderate the effects of stress in subsequent cultures.

Introduction: Rice (Oryza sativa L. ) is one of the three major food crops worldwide. Approximately 50% of the world’, s population uses rice as a staple food. Silica and zinc among nutrients play a key role in improving plant nutrition and increasing rice growth, so that a lack of these elements reduces growth and consequently reduces yield. Also fortifying rice with silicon and zinc can correct deficiencies of these elements in humans who consume rice. Materials and Methods: This experiment was conducted as factorial based on a randomized complete block design with three replications at the private farm located in Babol (North of Iran) during the years 2017-18 and 2018-19. Measured values of electrical conductivity, soil acidity, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, available potassium, zinc content and soil texture for the first and second years were 2. 33 dS m-1 -1 and 1. 27 dS m, 7. 48 and 7. 26, 3. 27 % and 2. 16 %, 0. 32 % and 0. 21 %, 11 mg kg-1 -1 and 6 mg kg-1, 320 mg kg -1 and 238 mg kg-1, 0. 96 mg kg-1 and 0. 89 mg kg, Clay and Clay, respectively. The treatment included three levels of foliar application (Potassium silicate, Silicon nanoxide, and Zinc nanoxide) as the first factor and five levels of developmental stages (T1: beginning of tillering + middle of tillering + late of tillering + end of panicle emergence, T2: middle of tillering + late of tillering + end of panicle emergence, T3: late of tillering + end of panicle emergence, T4: late of tillering and T5: end of panicle emergence) as the second factor. Results and Discussion: The results showed that none of the studied traits were affected by the year. Maximum grain yield was obtained by foliar application silicon nanoxide (7733 kg ha-1 ) and zinc nanoxide -1 (7498 kg ha ), which was, respectively, due to increasing the total number of spikelets and the percentage of filled spikelets (1420. 0 spikelets and 95. 53%, respectively) and increasing the total number of tillers and 1000grain weight (19. 73 tillers and 26. 80 g, respectively). The highest grain yield (7716, 7700 and 7492 kg. ha-1 ) and the percentage of filled spikelets (94. 83, 94. 72 and 93. 89%) were obtained under T1, T2 and T3 treatments, respectively. By foliar application of silicon nanoxide and zinc nanoxide, the highest biological yield (19213 and 18986 kg ha-1, respectively) and, the highest grain silica concentration (3. 13%) and grain zinc concentration -1 (15. 97 mg kg ) were recorded. The minimum 1000-grain weight (24. 11 and 24. 00 g), the maximum total number of spikelets per panicle (143. 1 and 143. 2 spikelets) and the highest concentration of grain silica (3. 00 and 2. 97%) were obtained under T1 and T2 treatments, respectively. However, the highest total number of tillers per hill and the highest number of grain were obtained under T1 and T2 treatments, respectively. The interaction between treatments showed that the maximum total number of spikelets per panicle was obtained by foliar application of potassium silicate under T1 treatment (151. 5 spikelets) and foliar application of silicon nanoxide under T2 treatment (153. 3 spikelets). Also, the highest concentrations of silica and zinc in grain were obtained by foliar application of silicon nanoxide under T1 treatment (3. 97%) and zinc nanoxide under T2 treatment (21. 67 mg kg-1 ), respectively. Conclusions: According to the results of this study, we found that grain yield increases with the application of nanoparticles as well as foliar application during crop growth and development. In order to enrich rice grains, foliar application of nanoparticles in the middle of tillering, late of tillering and end of panicle emergence is also necessary.

Introduction: Water limitation can damage pigments and plastids, reduce chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, rate and grain filling period. One approach to improve the water stress problem is the use of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and Mycorrhiza. The PGPR are a group of rhizosphere colonizing bacteria that produces substances to increase the growth of plants, synthesize different phytohormones, including auxin, cytokinin, and gibberellin, synthesize enzymes that can modulate plant growth and development. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) symbiosis is considered a valuable component in most agricultural systems due to their role in plant nutrition and soil health. Silicon (Si) is considered as quasi-essential for plant growth and development, and alleviates toxic effects caused by various environmental stresses in plants. So, it seems that application of nano silicon and biofertilizer can improve wheat yield under water limitation conditions. Materials and Methods: In order to study the effect of nano silicon and bio-fertilizer on yield and grain filling components of wheat in different irrigation levels, a factorial experiment was conducted based on randomized complete block design with three replications at the research farm of faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili in during 2018-2019. The experimental factors were included irrigation in three levels (full irrigation as control, moderate water limitation or irrigation withholding at 50% of heading stage,severe water limitation or irrigation withholding at 50% of booting stage) based on codes 55 and 43 of the BBCH scale, foliar application of nano silicon (foliar application with water as control, 30, and 60 mg L-1 ) and bio-fertilizer (no application as control, mycorrhiza application, both application of flavobacterium and pseudomonas, both application of flavobacterium and pseudomonas with mycorrhiza). Mycorrhiza fungi (mosseae) was purchased from the Zist Fanavar Turan corporation and soils were treated based on method of Gianinazzi et al. (2001). Psedomunas and flovobacterium were isolated from the rhizospheres of wheat by Research Institute of Soil and Water, Tehran, Iran. A two part linear model was used to quantifying the grain filling parameters. In this study, total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a, b, carotenoid, grain filling components and yield of wheat were investigated. Grain dry weight and number were used to calculate the average grain weight for each sample. Total duration of grain filling was determined for each treatment combination by fitting a bilinear model: Effective grain filling duration (EGFD) was calculated from the below equation: EGFD = the highest grain weight (g)/rate of grain filling (g day-1 ). Results and Discussion: Means comparison showed that highest grain filling rate (3. 04 mg day-1 ), grain filling period (37 day), effective grain filling period (30. 44 day) and grain yield (4593 kg ha-1 ) were obtained at foliar application of 30 -1 mg L nano silicon, both application of flavobacterium and pseudomonas with mycorrhiza under normal irrigation. Also, maximum of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll and carotenoid content (2. 04, 0. 93, 2. 87 and 9. 89 mg g-1-1 FW respectively) were obtained at foliar application of 60 mg L-1 nano silicon in seed inoculation with flavobacterium and pseudomonas under normal irrigation. Maximum of volume and root dry weight were obtained at foliar application 60 mg L-1 nano silicon and mycorrhiza application fungi under normal irrigation. The highest leaf area index was obtained at both applications of flavobacterium and pseudomonas with mycorrhiza, foliar application 30 mg L-1 nano silicon under normal irrigation. Conclusions: Generally, it seems that application of bio-fertilizers and nano silicon can be recommended as appropriate management factors for increasing grain yield and grain filling components of wheat under water limitation conditions.