As predators of phytophagous insects and potential vectors of pathogens, ground beetles (Carabidae) are vital in agroecosystems. In this work, their interaction with entomopathogenic fungi and bacteria is presented to highlight the dual role of ground beetles as biocontrol agents and pathogen vectors. This includes understanding how disease propagation and dispersion in multitrophic complexes interact with parasitism, predation, and competition. Integrated pest management (IPM) strategies that consider the potential ofground beetles are evaluated in terms of their ability to enhance biological control methods. The current state of knowledge regarding the long-term ecological consequences and the function of these strategies as vectors of organisms, however, limits their scope. This work underscores the necessity of understanding multitrophic interactions to inform the integration of ground beetles into pest control strategies.
Halophyte plants, which thrive in saline environments (non-competitive agriculture areas), have garnered significant attention in recent years due to their potential as a rich source of bioactive compounds. These plants have evolved unique mechanisms to tolerate high salt concentrations, and in the process, they have accumulated a diverse array of secondary metabolites that are chemically and economically significant. Researchers have identified a wide range of bioactive compounds from halophytes, including phenolic compounds, terpenoids, alkaloids, and polysaccharides, each with their own distinct biological activities. These specialized metabolites often serve as osmoprotectants, antioxidants, and signalling molecules in the plants, conferring their characteristic resilience to high-salinity environments. This review synthesizes and examines the academic literature on secondary metabolites generated by halophyte plants.
The paper presents a case study for evaluating the productivity of permanent grasslands of Festuco rubrae-Agrostetum and Nardo-Festucetum rubrae fallax, from Codru-Moma Mountains, based on floristic relev & eacute;es. Following the floristic study and the assessment of the participation weight of the component species in each type of grassland, the production of green mass and animal load was determined for each type of grassland studied. Among the studied plant associations, the highest productivity was found in Trifolio-Lolietum perennis Krippelov & aacute; 1967, with productions of 18.15 t/ha of green mass and a capacity of 1.59 livestock/ha, Festuco rubrae-Agrostetum capillaris Horvat 1951 with productions of 11.64 t/ha of green mass and a capacity of 1.02 livestock/ha loading with animals. The lowest productions were evaluated in the grasslands of Nardo-Festucetum rubrae fallax, with productions of 3.86 t/ha of green mass and a capacity of 0.37 livestock/ha. The data provided by the present study are useful in characterizing the pastoral quality of these grasslands in the context of the improvement and rational use of the pastoral fund.
Heavy metals pollution is a global issue in the whole word. All soils contain heavy metals, but their concentrations usually are very low. According to the literature, bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) is used as adsorbent of heavy metals from soil. The study was achieved in Copsa Mic & abreve; area, known for a long time in the top of the most polluted cities in Europe, due to the emissions from two factories. In article it is described the correlation between total forms and DTPA extractable forms and concentrations in Lotus corniculatus plants of cadmium, lead, copper and zinc. In conclusion, cadmium was most easily absorbed of Lotus corniculatus, while lead was identified as having the lowest accumulation in Lotus corniculatus, so it can be used for the removal of some heavy metals from soil.
Different types of composts have gained attention for their potential applications in sustainable agriculture and for their inhibitory effects against plant pathogens. This study investigates the suppressive effects of lavender compost extracts on common plant and soil pathogens and evaluates the composts' microbial composition. Pathogenic fungi, including Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Fusarium oxysporum, Botrytis cinerea, and Alternaria alternata, were subjected to in vitro assays with varying concentrations of the extracts. The results revealed inhibitory effects due to compost microbiota; several fungal genera (Aspergillus, Penicillium, Trichoderma) and bacteria were detected. Microbial analysis of the compost extracts indicated the presence of beneficial microorganisms, such as Trichoderma spp., which may contribute to plant pathogen suppression. These findings suggest that lavender compost extracts can be a natural, eco-friendly alternative for managing plant pathogens and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Further studies regarding the mechanisms underlying their biocontrol properties are recommended.
The considered demeanor of the yield structure development of Darmi cotton variety during long researches periods grown in two types of soil. The influence of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization on cotton under conditions on pellic vertisoil and meadow-cinnamon experiment in cotton Darmi variety during the period 2012-2020 was studied. Treatments were: N-0; N-8; N-16; P-0; P-8. The numbers of 24 plot of land was design. With contents of mineral nitrogen in soil and phosphorus fertilization at rates P-8 - P-16 was obtained total. During the researches period were studied development phases budding, flowering and ripening, as well as the content of nitrogen and phopshor elements in cotton Darmi variety.
Barley is an important food and industrial crop in Romania and the choice of varieties is one of the most important decisions in the barley crop management because it greatly improves the production obtained in the ecological farming system and not only that. The aim of this study was to compare how some barley varieties differ in physiological traits and yield under organic farming conditions. This study was conducted in three different area from Romania throughout 2023-2024 winter wheat season. In one of the three localities the soil is acidic so another goal was to highlight the genetic variability among barley genotypes, to identify barley genotypes tolerant to acid soils using stress indices and to assess the association among stress indices as well as grain yield. The results showed that in the three location, the chlorophyl content, the height of plants, leaf area index and dry matter were highly variable. The grain yields were positively correlated with chlorophyll content and biomass, at a significance level of 0.01. Assessment of acid soil stress indices was also found to be promising in identifying tolerant genotypes with good yield potential. Based on these results, high-yield barley varieties may be choise to be cultivated under organic agriculture under climate change conditions from Romania.
Wheat production is given by the possibilities of optimizing the interaction between ecological, technological and economic factors. The final production and quality of wheat is affected by pedoclimatic conditions and can be optimized and stabilized by respecting the sowing date associated with other important technological links. In general, the efficient strategy for obtaining maximum production is established by knowing the characteristics of the variety and the optimal time for applying technological highlights, and these must be adapted to the crop area. This article presents the results of research showing the effect of sowing time on the production and quality of winter wheat grains. Shifting the sowing time to an early date (September 25) or a late date (November 1) results in reduced yields. The results revealed that wheat planted on October-10 and October-25 produced higher spike length, 1000-grain weight, plant height and grain yield with a comparable number of tillers and number of grains per spike. It is recommended to plant wheat between October-10 to October-25 to attain higher grain yield.
Erisiphe pisi (de Candolle) is the pathogen that causes powdery mildew in peas, one of the most important fungal diseases. The objective of the research was to estimate the level of the powdery mildew attack in the Alvesta and Nicoleta pea genotypes, under the experimental conditions at ARDS Pite & scedil;ti-Albota, in the period 2023-2024. The effect of azoxystrobin and azoxystrobin + difenoconazole molecules in controlling the pathogen was determined. The frequency (F %), intensity (I %), degree of attack (G.A %) of the disease and effectiveness (E %) of the treatments were calculated. The results showed that the azoxystrobin + difenoconazole variant had the lowest attack degree 1.47%, followed by the azoxystrobin variant with 2.26% in the Alvesta genotype. In the Nicoleta variety, higher values of the degree of attack were recorded compared to the Alvesta variety. The effectiveness had the highest value, of 82.92%, when applying the azoxystrobin + difenoconazole treatment, for the Alvesta genotype.
Anthracnose, a drastic fungal disease caused by Colletotrichum spp. is a significant constraint to chilli production all over the world, resulting in substantial yield losses across all major chilli-producing areas. Management of plant diseases using biocontrol agents is one of the best methodologies that may reduce the use of synthetic chemical based formulations. A total of fifteen rhizospheric bacteria were isolated from chilli fields. Preliminary morphological identification was done followed by scanning electronic microscope and then subjected for biochemical characterization. Antagonistic activities of all isolates were evaluated in vitro against Colletotrichum jasminigenum SPTD17. Based on the morphological and biochemical characterization six isolates categorized to Bacillus, two Lysinibacillus, one Paenibacillus, five Pseudomonas and one Acinetobacter genera were identified. Seven isolates (PS1, PS4, PS6, PS8, PS9, PS10 and PS11) showed strongest antagonistic activity and more than 80% zone of inhibition against Colletotrichum jasminigenum SPTD17. The results of this study suggest that chilli rhizosphere bacterial diversity can be resource for biocontrol of chilli anthracnose pathogens; further research may encourage the molecular characterization and PGRP applications of rhizospheric bacterial biocontrols.
Maize (Zea mays L.) is the most widely produced food crop globally, providing essential nutrition for both humans and livestock, while also being an important raw material for industrial processes. However, factors such as climatic conditions and fertilization practices significantly affect maize yields. To address these challenges, this study explores the impact of short-term application of organic and mineral fertilizers on maize grain yield and its components. The field trial was conducted at the Moara Domneasc & abreve; Research and Development Station for Agronomy (RDSA) belonging to USAMV Bucharest, Romania, on a preluvosoil. Manure compost was applied in three doses (15 t/ha, 30 t/ha, and 60 t/ha), either alone or in combination with NPK complex fertilizers (20:20:0). Yield components and total production were evaluated prior to harvest, with results showing significant differences between treatments compared to the control (soil).
The aim of the study is to determine the genetic system controlling traits related to productivity in durum wheat and to identify the parents and their correct usage for achieving optimal results. A diallel cross without reciprocals was conducted with five modern durum wheat varieties at the Field Crops Institute-Chirpan. The inheritance of traits involves incomplete, complete and overdominance. Productivity tillering, spikelets number per spike and grain weight per spike are controlled by a simply additive-dominant genetic system with epistasis from complementary type. For the traits: plant height, spike length, and thousand kernel weight, the inheritance control is accomplished by a simply additive-dominant genetic system. All traits increased by accumulation of dominant genes, except productivity tillering. Complexly breeding valuable genotype with more dominant gene simultaneously several traits are the variety Progress. It can be successfully used to improve the traits related to productivity in durum wheat breeding programs.
In recent decades, the intensity of chemical use in agriculture has increased significantly, which threatens food security, contributes to the accumulation of toxic chemicals in the environment, leading to the destruction of beneficial organisms (entomophages) and soil microflora, and thus disrupting the balance of the ecosystem. Agroecology and organic farming have become priority topics integrated into the scientific and technological approach to sustainable agriculture. The inclusion of legumes in crop rotation can contribute to the restoration of soil fertility and phyto-improvement of saline soils in the southern region of Ukraine, desalination being possible due to natural drainage and carbonic acid root secretion. In addition, the root system of these plant species enriches the soil with nitrogen and improves its structure. This article presents the results obtained in afield experiment with 3 species ofperennial and biennial forage legumes, under different technological conditions with the aim of: i) evaluating the phenological evolution and biological characteristics of the growth and development of the studied plants; ii) investigating the impact of their cultivation on the ecological state of the soil and iii) determining the optimal parameters regarding the production obtained under different cultivation conditions.
The present paper presents the experimental results established upon combined application of algal biofertilizers from the genus Nostoc, the species Nostoc gelatinosum Schousboe ex Bornet & Flahault, N. punctiforme (K & uuml;tzing) Hariot and N. linckia Bornet ex Bornet & Flahault to the cultivation of Echinacea purpurea (L) Moench. The obtained results demonstrated that the application of these biofertilizers had a significant positive effect on several phenological and morphological parameters of the plants. An acceleration of the phenological phases of development was found, with a reduction of the vegetation period by up to 7 days in the variants with the application of algal biofertilizers. Also, a significant increase in leaf area, plant length and biomass production was observed in E. purpurea plants treated with algal biofertilizers compared to controls. The best results were obtained when applying a dose of 30 kg/ha of algal biofertilizer from the genus Nostoc. These results suggest that algal fertilizers from the genus Nostoc can be used as an ecological and efficient alternative for increasing the production of Echinacea purpurea crops. (L) Moench. in the specific conditions of the Republic of Moldova.
One of the most important factors determining productivity is the photosynthesis process. The work aimed at to find the chlorophyll content in leaves of maize hybrids from two vegetation groups. Maize hybrids FAO 500-599 (Kneja 560, Kneja 564, Kneja 570A, Kneja 572 and KWS Camillo), and FAO 600-699 (Kneja 648, Kneja 649, Kneja 650A, Kneja 650 andKneja 683) were tested infield conditions and no irrigation. Chlorophyll 'a' and chlorophyll 'b'were determined in green leaf samples 60 DAS. The total chlorophyll a+b and chlorophyll 'a' to chlorophyll 'b' ratio was calculated. Generally, the values for chlorophyll concentration were found higher for the maize hybrids FAO 600-699 group. The exceeding compared to FAO 500-599 group was for chlorophyll 'a' by 12.53%, for chlorophyll 'b' by 9.38% and for total chlorophyll by 11.47%, respectively. The chlorophyll 'a' to chlorophyll 'b' ratio was relatively similar for the hybrids from two groups. It was concluded the highest total chlorophyll concentration in maize hybrids was found in Kneja 648 (5.39 mg/g) and Kneja 560 (4.49 mg/g).
Nutrients play a vital role in wheat production, both macro-and micronutrients being necessary for plants. Each nutrient has its own character and is involved in various metabolic processes of the life of wheat plants, that is why the influence of each cannot be clearly delineated. The purpose of the research is to present the yield results obtained atARDS Caracal in the 2023-2024 agricultural year, for three Romanian wheat varieties (Glosa, Otilia and Carom), cultivated after different preceding crops (rape, peas, sunflower), using four different fertilization schemes. The obtained yields highlight the fact that each of the links in the technological scheme influences, to some extent, the quantity and quality of wheat production. Amidst prolonged soil droughts both in the fall of 2023 and in the spring-summer of 2024, the application of gradual-release inputs, doubled by biostimulants, managed to provide production increases of up to 22%, compared to the control variants. The results confirm that inputs play an essential role in increasing soil fertility, in full correlation with the fertilizers type, but also with the timing of their application.
Maize grains accumulate nitrogen (N), especially in the form of storage proteins, correlated to zeins and starch content. Digestate, a new bio-based fertilizer rich in essential nutrients, is an effective alternative for mineral fertilizers. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of digestate application on chemical properties and maize grain yield. Field experiment was established during year 2018 on eight different fertilization treatments: control treatment without fertilization, mineral fertilizer (MF), liquid cattle manure, solid fraction of digestate (SFD), liquid fraction of digestate (LFD), digestate, a mixture of MF+SFD, a mixture of MF+LFD. Nitrogen content in grains was positively correlated with proteins (99.93%) and zein (73.91%) content. In addition, the results showed that only the LFD and digestate treatments had a positive correlation between the N content in the grains and the starch content. Statistically higher grain yield was observed onMF (13.1 t ha(-1)), MF+SFD (11.2 t ha(-1)) and MF+LFD (12.2 t ha(-1)) treatments compared to others. Digestate showed positive effect on chemical properties of the maize grain.
Genotype selection is a key requirement for high yields in wheat crop management; higher yields can only be realized with good genetic potential. The performance of different varieties is also influenced by the environment, and it is important to understand that no genotype is perfect in all growing areas. To assess the behavior of 24 winter wheat content and test weight, a study was conducted over two consecutive growing seasons at ARDS Turda, under two different amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied, and it has been investigated whether there is any connection between each of these traits. The experimental factors and their interactions had a different influence on the studied traits. The growing season and the nitrogen fertilization had a highly significant effect on yield, protein content and test weight. The genotype had a highly significant effect on all the studied traits. Thousand kernel weight in comparison with the other traits studied was strongly influenced by the genotype and less by the growing season and nitrogen fertilization.
Bulgaria is known for its wealth of medicinal plants. The diversity that exists ecologically is a prerequisite for the collection and cultivation of various species and forms with a high content of biologically active substances. The country therefore has centuries-old traditions relating to the collection, cultivation, processing and marketing of medicinal plants. More than 250 species are used in official medicine and are very well accepted in both the domestic and foreign markets. The collection of medicinal and aromatic plants in the National Genebank in IPGR-Sadovo, Bulgaria is represented totally by of 484 specimens of which 210 are annuals, 66 perennials, 26 bulbous flowers and 182 medicinal specimens, mainly wild.
To explore optimal agronomic practices for maximizing rapeseed productivity and quality under specific environmental conditions, a field experiment was conducted during the 2022-2023 agricultural year in Jucu, Cluj County. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of two critical factors influencing crop performance (sowing date and row spacing) on the yield and quality of the rapeseed hybrid PT 275. Using a randomized split-plot design with three replications, the experiment tested three sowing dates (August 20, August 30, and September 10) and three row spacings (25 cm, 37.5 cm, and 50 cm). Yield data and quality indicators were assessed at the end of the growing season to determine the influence of the experimental variables, using standardized laboratory methods. The results revealed that sowing date significantly impacted yield, with August30 emerging as the most favorable, achieving the highest yield of 3900 kg/ha, while narrower row spacings (25 cm and 37.5 cm) significantly outperformed wider spacing (50 cm). Delayed sowing (September 10) increased oil content but reduced yield, highlighting a trade-off between productivity and quality. While the genetic characteristics of the hybrid were the primary determinant of quality, the study highlighted significant variations in quality indicators associated with the technological factors examined. These findings provide actionable insights for optimizing rapeseed cultivation under temperate continental climates.
