Drought stress is one of the most critical constraints limiting crop productivity worldwide, particularly under increasing water scarcity driven by climate change. In this study, the effects of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) on green bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) under varying irrigation regimes were evaluated, and their responses were further analyzed using machine learning (ML) approaches. A greenhouse experiment was conducted using four irrigation levels (I100, I80, I60, and I40) and three bacterial treatments, including Stenotrophomonas rhizophila EU.2B33 (R2), Bacillus marisflavi EU.18 (R1), and their combination (R3). Severe water deficit (I40) reduced shoot and root biomass by approximately 40

Fungal strains play a pivotal role in laboratory-based biological research, yet their long-term preservation remains a methodological challenge. This review critically evaluates the major preservation strategies applied in laboratory settings, including soil/sand storage, agar-based techniques, silica gel, sterile water, organic substrata, low and ultra-low temperature approaches, and cotton ball methods. Rather than simply listing these techniques, the article synthesizes comparative insights, highlighting how each method influences strain viability, genetic stability, and ease of application. Key findings emphasize that while low-temperature methods ensure long-term genetic fidelity, simpler approaches such as sterile water or soil/sand are more cost-effective but less reliable for extended preservation. By outlining the advantages, limitations, and practical considerations of each method, this review provides researchers with a clear framework to select preservation strategies tailored to their experimental needs and resource availability.

Bitkilerde, uyartılmış haploid üretimi (in vitro veya in vivo), bitki ıslahı ve genetik araştırmalarındaki önemli potansiyel uygulamaları nedeniyle giderek artan bir ilgi görmektedir. Bu strateji, androjenik veya ginegenik yolla nesiller boyunca geleneksel kendilemenin aksine, double haploidy yoluyla homozigot bitkilerin hızlı üretimini sağlar. Haploidi tipik olarak tohum gelişiminin başlangıcında başlar ve mayoz, döllenme, gamet entegrasyonu ve kromozomal bütünlüğün korunması sırasında kritik roller oynayan, baba veya anne ait birkaç önemli gen tarafından kontrol edilmektedir. Bunun yanında haploid uyartımını etkileyen çevre ve yetiştircilik koşulları, in virto koşullar ve uyartım ortamları ile de önemli keşifler yapılmıştır. Elde edilen bilgiler, verimli haploidler üreten veya uyartan hatların geliştirilmesine yol açmıştır. Bununla birlikte, bu faktörlerin altında yatan moleküler ve genetik mekanizmalar önemli ölçüde farklılık gösterir ve bu da bitkiler için yaygın olarak uygulanabilir haploid indüksiyon sistemleri oluşturmayı zorlaştırmaktadır. Bu bölüm, androjenik ve ginegenik haploid uyartımındaki son keşifleri/ gelişmeleri ve bunu etkileyen faktörleri özetlemekte ve ebeveyn faktör manipülasyonunun uygulanması yoluyla verimli haploid uyartıcı sistemleri daha da geliştirmek için mevcut anlayışlarını ve işlevselliklerini incelemektedir.

Objective: Research into different levels of salt tolerance in tomato varieties is important for agricultural production. In this study, the salt tolerance of cultivated, wild, and their hybrid tomato genotypes was investigated under hydroponic conditions.Material and Methods: The plant material included two commercial cultivars, ten wild species (Solanum pimpinellifolium and S. habrochaites) and their hybrids. The plants were grown for 30 days under control (1.0 dS m⁻¹) and saline (10.0 dS m⁻¹) conditions. Principal component and correlation analyses were applied to determine their salt tolerance.Results: Salt stress affected the fresh and dry weights of shoots and roots, especially in cultivars. Under salt stress conditions, genotype SP-4 had the tallest plants and the best chlorophyll index. The highest root volume was observed in SC2121xSP-2 hybrids. Instead of leaf K/Na ratio, genotype SP-1 had the highest value (0.57), while the lowest values were found in cultivars. Under salt stress, the highest leaf Ca content was found in genotype SH-4 (2.17%) and the lowest in genotype H2274 (0.70%). In terms of root Ca content, genotype SH-2 had the highest value under salt stress (1.79%). In stressed plants, Na levels were higher in cultivated plants and lower in wild and hybrid combinations. In contrast, Ca and K levels were higher in wild lines and hybrid combinations and lower in cultivated plants.

Hailstorms are extreme weather events that severely damage plants and reduce crop yields. Traditional hail simulations often use leaf defoliation to assess plant damage, but hail damage is typically classified into several categories. In this study, we simulated eight hail scenarios on tomato plants using water-absorbed and frozen pumice stones of various sizes and quantities to replicate real hail. These simulations were conducted at four developmental stages of the tomato plant. We calculated 62 vegetation indices before and after each simulation. The percentage of hail damage was then estimated using six machine learning regression models and five feature selection methods, including correlation, ReliefF, LASSO, Random Forest Feature Importance (RFFI), and Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE). The combination of RFE and the Random Forest model provided the most accurate estimates, with a Pearson correlation coefficient (R) of 0.9019, a mean absolute error (MAE) of 4.7287, and a root mean square error (RMSE) of 5.6991.

Chrysanthemum, a member of the Asteraceae family, is an important ornamental plant cultivated worldwide. Despite being propagated by green cuttings, plant losses occur during vegetative propagation. To enhance root formation and ensure high-quality root development in chrysanthemums propagated by cuttings, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) applications are utilized. In this study, the effect of different PGPR bacterial formulations, whose presence of the IAA (indole acetic acid) gene was detected through PCR (polymerase chain reaction) analyses, on the rooting performance of garden-type chrysanthemum cuttings was investigated. Rhizobacteria with the presence of the IAA gene was activated, and three different bacterial formulations were prepared: Formulation 1 (a mixture of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus megaterium), Formulation 2 (Bacillus cereus), and Formulation 3 (a mixture of Pseudomonas putida and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia). These formulations were applied to chrysanthemum green cuttings by immersion. The results revealed that rhizobacteria applications had positive effects on rooting and seedling quality of chrysanthemum green cuttings. Significant increases were observed in rooting rate, root length, seedling height, seedling leaf number, and seedling fresh weight compared to the control group. Rhizobacteria applications from different species resulted in a 40–50

We aimed to investigate the rootstock effects on plant growth performance and root nutrient contents and uptake of pepper inbred line (IL) based on the physiological and morphological response mechanisms. Four IL were grafted with two rootstocks, and ungrafted scions were used as control plants. As a result, among grafted and control plants substantial (p < 0.001) variances were found in morphological, physiological parameters and K, Ca, Mg, Mn and Zn composition. Significantly a higher leaf area, rootstock and scion diameter, shoot fresh and dry biomasses was found in IL 'ER & Uuml; 1227' grafted with 'Scarface', significantly higher Ca and Mn composition were found in '21H-1-2' grafted with 'Scarface'; however, significantly higher root fresh-dry biomasses and Zn composition was recorded in 'ER & Uuml; 1227' grafted onto '46 KB F1' rootstock. 'Scarface' rootstock performed better than the '46 KB F1' rootstock; thus, it is advised as the best rootstock genotype with wide scion compatibility. As conclusion, vigorous rootstocks which could be illustrated beside an effective nutrient uptake, perform key functions in the enhancement of plant growth performance and root nutrient contents.

In recent years, excessive nitrogen (N) fertilizer application has adversely affected the ecosystem. Additionally, inefficient fertilizer use can diminish soil fertility and result in the loss of organic matter. Limiting access to N fertilizer leads to increased prices, which consequently results in reduced crop productivity. Developing/breeding nitrogen-efficient plants is another strategy to enhance N uptake and efficiency in crops. The aim of this study was to assess the genotypic differences of 27 double haploid (DH) melon genotypes under low nitrogen (0.3 mM) conditions based on biomass parameters in hydroponic growth conditions. Significant differences were determined among the genotypes in all the parameters investigated. At low nitrogen levels, the highest stem fresh weight was recorded in genotypes C19 (48.53 g/plant) and D10 (42.57 g/plant), while the highest leaf fresh weight was observed in genotypes C8 (51.57 g/plant) and C19 (51.37 g/plant). In plants subjected to low N, the highest stem dry weight was found in genotypes E13 and C19, whereas the lowest was recorded in genotypesB9 and C5 with 2.10 g/plant. Under low nitrogen conditions, genotypes I7 and CA7 exhibited the highest root fresh and dry weights, respectively. The average shoot/root ratio of melon genotypes under low nitrogen conditions was 1.40, with the highest ratio in genotype B5 (2.69) and the lowest in genotype I7 (0.76). Melon genotypes had an average root length of 4000.92 cm under low nitrogen conditions, with genotype I7 having the longest root with 8194.43 cm and genotype B5 having the shortest root with 1795.34 cm. Under low nitrogen stress, genotypes displayed significant variation in plant growth. In terms of shoot fresh weight, there was a two-fold difference between susceptible and tolerant genotypes, while for root fresh weight, the difference was four-fold. This indicates that tolerance to nitrogen is attributed to changes in the root system rather than the shoot system.

Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is one of the most intensively grown vegetables in the world due to their economic significance and high nutritional value. The multiple objectives of this study were (i) to isolate and identify Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola (Psp), Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli (Xap) and P. syringae pv. syringae (Pss) on bean plants cultivated in different regions of Türkiye; (ii) to evaluate the resistance of bean genotypes to representative strains of Psp, Xap, and Pss; and (iii) to characterize the resistance mechanisms involved in the resistance of bean genotypes through biochemical, histochemical, and microscopic studies. Bacterial pathogens were identified by biochemical, Microbial Identification System (MIS), and serological (ELISA) tests. The results showed the prevalence of Psp, Xap, and Pss strains in bean plants cultivated in the Central Anatolia, Aegean, Marmara and Mediterranean regions of Türkiye. The disease reactions of bean genotypes to bacterial strains from different regions were determined. Accumulation of reactive oxygen species (H2O2) and secondary metabolites such as lignin, phenolics, callose, and phytoalexins, which are among the plant resistance mechanisms that play a key role in preventing pathogen development, were revealed by histochemical and biochemical analyses in bean genotypes during compatible and incompatible interactions. Cells of bean plants resistant or tolerant to the tested bacterial species activated defense mechanisms—such as phytoalexin synthesis and the accumulation of H₂O₂, lignin, callose, and phenolics in the cell walls—during incompatible interactions. A strong correlation was observed between resistance and these mechanisms, which were rapid and extensive in incompatible interactions compared to compatible interactions. Incorporating these results into breeding programs could accelerate the development of bean cultivars with durable resistance to bacterial blight disease agents.

Underutilized crops have considerable cultural, culinary, and historical value but lack widespread cultivation or extensive research. With these gaps in commercialization efforts, maximizing available information is crucial for breeding adapted and improved cultivars, conserving genetic resources, and, ultimately, promoting broader adoption. Crop ontologies provide a framework for describing a crop's relevant attributes by standardizing data collection protocols across various research endeavors. These ontologies enhance the value of the broader pool of genetic resources and facilitate greater interoperability among collaborative conservation and improvement efforts. To maximize impact, a crop ontology should prioritize the inclusion of traits from markets, cultures, and regions with connections to the given crop. The bottle gourd [Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standl.] is an underutilized, under-researched crop originating in Africa, but has regional significance across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. We developed a crop ontology for bottle gourds via literature reviews using 35 previous characterization studies from 10 countries, related cucurbit ontologies, and multisite and multiyear collaborative phenotyping efforts with Kasetsart University (Thailand), the US Department of Agriculture National Plant Germplasm System (United States), Cornell University (United States), and the University of Erciyes Melikgazi Kayseri-Turkiye (Turkey). The crop ontology emphasizes traits important for localized use and includes 300 traits that describe vegetative, floral, fruit, and seed phenotypes critical to horticultural variation and culturally diverse uses. Furthermore, our bottle gourd ontology provides a foundation for future conservation and improvement efforts, as well as a framework for creating ontologies that could be applied to other underutilized crops.

Heavy metal contamination in agricultural soils disrupts plant growth and metabolism. Although zinc (Zn) is a necessary element, concentrations above 50 ppm can be toxic to plants. Grafting has emerged as a potential strategy to mitigate heavy metal stress by enhancing tolerance, reducing translocation to edible plant parts, and maintaining crop productivity. In this study, cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) was grafted onto Cremna F1, Maximus F1, and TZ148 F1 rootstocks and evaluated under four Zn conditions (Zn-deficient 0 ppm, 10 ppm, 50 ppm, and control with 0.05 ppm Zn) in a hydroponic system. Grafted plants exhibited significant improvements, including a 21.5

In evaluations conducted under high and low nitrogen conditions, the morphological and physiological performance of pepper genotypes was compared across tissue culture and hydroponic systems. Under low nitrogen conditions, most genotypes showed similar rankings in both systems, indicating stable and environment-independent genotypic responses. Notably, 21 H-1-1, ERÜ 462, and ERÜ 457 consistently performed well across all traits, whereas 24-H-6, 29-H-10, and ERÜ 1248 ranked among the lowest-performing genotypes. In contrast, under high nitrogen conditions, genotypic performance varied more strongly depending on the cultivation system. Genotypes grown in tissue culture showed greater biomass accumulation and nitrogen uptake. While 21 H-1-1, ERÜ 462, and ERÜ 457 were among the top performers in tissue culture, their counterparts in hydroponic culture exhibited relatively lower performance. This indicates that system-specific effects play a more prominent role under high nitrogen supply. Considering both nitrogen levels, 21 H-1-1 and ERÜ 462 emerged as promising candidates for breeding programs due to their high nitrogen use efficiency and consistent performance across multiple environments. If a low-cost selection approach is desired, preliminary selection under low nitrogen conditions using tissue culture may be sufficient and effective for genotype differentiation.

In this study, the response of Besni pepper (Capsicum annuum L), one of the local varieties of Turkey, to anther culture was determined. A total of 26 Besni pepper genotypes and 3 control cultivars were examined for their response to anther culture. One hundred and fifty anthers from each pepper genotype were cultured under in vitro conditions. A significant difference (0.0%-45.3%) was found among the genotypes in terms of response to anther culture. The highest embryo formation rate was found in genotype B11 with 45.3% (63 embryos) and the highest transformation rate to plant was found in genotype B15 with 30 plants (68%). Compared to control varieties, Besni pepper genotypes produced significantly more embryos. All genotypes except two out of 26 genotypes used produced more or less (1-68) embryos. B4, B10, B11, B12, B15, and G6 genotypes produced more than 25% of embryos and were separated from the control and other genotypes. The average embryo formation rate of the genotypes collected from Besni and Gölbaşı districts was 13% and 7%, respectively, while the embryo formation rate of the control varieties was only 0.2%. It was concluded that the Besni pepper population was highly responsive to androgenetic haploid. The highly responsive genotypes that form high embryos such as B4, B10, B11, B12, B15, and G6 have the potential to be used in developing new breeding lines and in studies investigating the genetics of anther culture.

Globally, salinity has a devastating effect on plant yield and quality. The breeding of salt-tolerant varieties/rootstocks is crucial to reducing these effects. This study involved 35 hybrid rootstock candidates, their female and male parent lines, 9 genotypes (Lagenaria siceraria). In hydroponic conditions, rootstock candidates were evaluated for the biomass, physicochemical parameters in leaf and root tissues under control [1.8 dS m−1] and saline [10 dS m−1] conditions. Salt stress reduced shoot dry weight by 63

Members of the Cucurbitaceae family, which includes species with quite different characteristics, have been used for food, medicine, and ornamental purposes for a long time. However, most plant diseases and pests cause yield and quality losses in cucurbits, and one of the most important of these diseases is zucchini yellow mosaic virus (ZYMV), which one of the most common potyviruses worldwide and causes serious yield losses in cucurbit production worldwide. Zucchini Yellow Mosaic Virus shows symptoms such as yellowing, mottling, curling, deformation, mosaic, shortening and thickening of the internodes, and may also cause loss of yield and quality. As widely known, there is no effective chemical control of viral diseases, and the use of resistant or tolerant varieties is the most effective solution. In this study, 92 watermelon genotypes, 14 zucchinis (pumpkin seeds) and 29 ornamental pumpkins collected from different parts of Türkiye were tested against ZYMV. Symptoms of ZYMV in different watermelon genotypes and pumpkins were observed for 21 days. Genotypes showing systemic infection after inoculation were evaluated on a scale of 0-5. Also, RT-PCR studies were carried out on selecting nine symptomless control plants, seven ZYMV-sensitive genotypes showing 5-scale value, one genotype with 1-scale value considered tolerant, and one genotype belongs to C. lanatus var. citroides. According to the results, it was determined that some watermelon and ornamental pumpkin genotypes could be considered as tolerant. Watermelon, which was having accession number PI560016, was found resistant to Turkish local strain of ZYMV. Although different susceptibility levels were detected between watermelon genotypes, all pumpkin genotypes were discovered to be susceptible to the Turkish local strain of ZYMV.

Çalışmada Türkiye’nin farklı bölgelerinden temin edilen kıl, sivri ve dolma biber saf hatların ve farklı biber anaçlarının büyüme, bitkisel gelişim ve yaprak fizyolojik özelliklerinin belirlenmesidir. Çalışma sonucunda güçlü kök yapısına olanlar ve zayıf gelişen saf hatlar belirlenerek, bir sonraki çalışmada güçlü kök yapısına sahip olanlar üzerine zayıf gelişen saf hatların aşılanması ile güçlü köklerin bitkisel gelişim üzerindeki etkisi test edilmiştir. Çalışma Erciyes Üniversitesi, Ziraat Fakültesi Bahçe Bitkileri Bölümü’ne ait olan serada 3 tekrarlı olarak 8 L’lik plastik kovalarda sürekli hava sirkülasyonunun sağlandığı besin çözeltisinde yapılmış; kıl biber , sivri ve dolmalık biber saf hatları ve farklı biber anaçları tarama-seçim testine tabii tutulmuştur. Bitkilerde vejetatif aksam (gövde+yaprak) ve kök yaş ağırlıkları, kök/gövde oranı, ana gövde uzunluğu, yan dal ve yaprak sayısı, yaprak alanı, fotosentez ve yaprak klorofil içeriği belirlenmiştir. Çalışmanın sonuçlarına göre, biber saf hatları arasından 29H-1 yaprak klorofil içeriği, kök/gövde oranı ve kök yaş ağırlığı gibi parametreler bakımından istatistiki olarak en iyi sonucu verirken, 33H-1-2 ise fotosentez ve yaprak klorofil içeriği (SPAD) bakımından istatistiki olarak en iyi neticeleri vermiştir. Anaç adayları arasından Güçlü F1 anacı fotosentez, yaprak klorofil içeriği, ana gövde uzunluğu ve kök/gövde oranı gibi parametreler bakımından istatistiki olarak en iyi sonucu verirken, Yaocali F1 anacı ise vejetatif aksam (gövde+yaprak) ve kök yaş ağırlığı gibi parametreler bakımından istatistiki olarak en iyi neticeleri vermiştir.

This study was conducted to determine salt-tolerance levels of different pepper genotypes and to determine of correlation the efficiency of in vitro and hydroponic culture salt-testing procedures. For this purposes, 7 different pepper genotypes were subjected to control (0 mM) and 5 different NaCl levels 50, 100, 125, 150 mM in in vitro and hydroponic culture to determine salt-tolerance. Different pepper genotypes exhibited different responses to different NaCl doses and significant correlations were observed between in vitro and hydroponic culture testing for some of the investigated parameters. In vitro germination had the significant correlation with Shoot Fresh Weight (0.80) and Root Dry Weight (0.85). On the other hand, in vitro plant height highly correlated with hydroponic NaCl testing parameters and had the highest correlation with Root Dried Weight (0.71). There were also high correlations between in vitro root length and hydroponic NaCl testing parameters such Shoot Fresh Weight (0,84), Root Dry Weight (0.85) and Leaf Area (0.77). Present findings proved that in vitro salt-testing was a simple and cheap method. Thus, it could be preferred by the breeders just to get reliable outcomes in a short time.

This study was conducted in Erciyes University Agricultural Research and Application Land in 2020 to determine the effects of organic and chemical fertilizers applied from the base to the Yedikule lettuce plant on plant yield and plant chlorophyll content. In the study, solid worm manure (100 kg da-1) was preferred as organic fertilizer, while 15 - 15 - 15 compound bottom fertilizer was preferred as chemical fertilizer. Seedlings of lettuce plants were planted with 16 plants in each plot, with a row spacing of 25 cm and a spacing of 50 cm between rows. In the study, the chlorophyll content of plant leaves (SPAD) was examined, as well as the yield parameters of plant height (cm), plant width (cm) and plant fresh weight (g/plant). As a result of the examination, it was determined that chemical fertilizer application had a positive effect on the fresh weight of the plant, and organic fertilizer application had a positive effect on the chlorophyll content.