This chapter examines the latest advancements in the field of biofuel research and development. The main sources used in the production of biofuels are various raw materials such as energy crops, agricultural and forest wastes, algae and waste oils. The environmental impacts of biofuels are addressed, highlighting their positive aspects, such as the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and the decrease in fossil fuel dependency, alongside potential negative impacts on land use, water consumption, and biodiversity. The sustainability of biofuel production is assessed based on criteria such as its economic feasibility, social acceptability, and environmental protection. Finally, international and national policies supporting the development of biofuels are examined, discussing how these policies either promote or hinder the production and use of biofuels. The role of biofuels in achieving climate change targets and the challenges of balancing food security with energy needs are also emphasized. This book chapter addresses the contribution of biofuels to a sustainable energy future from a holistic perspective, examining various factors and their interconnections.

The Amaryllidaceae family is significant, as it includes ornamental and medicinal species. The most common genera found in the Mediterranean are Allium, Galanthus, Leucojum, Narcissus, Pancratium, and Sternbergia. Allium, the largest genus in the Amaryllidaceae family, is distributed in the Mediterranean, Asia, Europe, and North America. The genus Galanthus comprises 19 species native to Europe and Asia. Both Allium and Galanthus are rich in alkaloids and are economically important worldwide. In conclusion, this chapter emphasises the importance of cultivating these species and their endemism rate in Türkiye.

The Iridaceae family, with 92 genera, is distributed globally, and the family is more common in the southern hemisphere. The main genera are gladiolus, iris, sisyrinchium, crocus, romulea, geissorhiza, babiana, and hesperantha. These genera are important for phytochemical extracts and ornamental value. The Crocus and Gladiolus are mentioned in this chapter. Crocus is a genus of plants that grows naturally in a variety of environments. Türkiye has the largest diversity of Crocus, with more than 80 different species, but they can also be found in regions ranging from Western Europe and North Western Africa to Western China. Gladiolus is currently one of the most significant bulbous ornamental flowers in the world. There are 11 taxa of Gladiolus found in Türkiye. Most of the taxa prevailing in nature are in danger of extinction. Identification of these taxa and their cultivation and protection are important for the genetic pool. This chapter underlines the cultivation of Crocus sativus and Gladiolus cultivation.

Liliacea family consists of 15 genera, which are distributed in the Northern Hemisphere and Eurasia. Fritillaria and Tulip are the most famous genera known all over the world. Fritillaria and Tulipa are the most common ornamental plants. Fritillaria is also valued for its chemical components and is used in conventional medicine. Protection of the wild genus of Fritillaria and Tulip is important for new germplasm against some of the important pests and diseases of these plants. Fritillaria and Tulip cultivation, especially fritillaria cultivation and its development, is important to prevent collection from nature. In this chapter, their taxa in Türkiye, as well as their importance and cultivation, are discussed.

Geophytes, the specialised stems, are classified as true bulbs, onion bulbs, tubers, corms, and rhizomes. Their scientific exploration heightened attention due to their economic and evolutionary significance. Their morphology and cultivation methods show a wide diversity all over the world. Depending on species and genera, their environmental requirements show differences. Improving cultivation practices and conservation efforts for geophytes is important due to anthropogenic pressure. By recognizing the value of geophytes and implementing effective conservation measures, we can safeguard these botanical treasures for future generations.

Nanoparticles have unique properties and are used in fertilizers. Seed priming can improve seed germination and seedling growth. Various nanoparticles are used in seed germination and the growth of various plant species and varieties. This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of TiO2 nanoparticles on plant morphology when applied to leaves at different growth stages of sunflower and used as seed priming material. Before the field experiment, the seeds were soaked in 20 mg/L TiO2 for 8 hours at 21 +/- 1 degrees C. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design using three times replicated doses of 0 (control) and 20 mg L-1 TiO2 treatments to seeds, and at different growth stages. Plant height reached its highest level with TiO2 treatments to seeds in both years. The maximum seed yield was observed in TiO2 treatments for seeds in the first year of the experiment. Results revealed that seed priming with TiO2 and 20 mg L-1 TiO2 at the V-4 stage is the most effective stage on sunflower growth.

Soil temperature is an important factor in seed germination especially low soil temperature causes retarded and unsynchronized germination, emergence and seedling growth. These issues are causing the seedlings vulnerable to diseases and weed infestation during stand establishment of hemp. This study includes different seed priming agents (water, -0.8 MPa PEG 6000, 50 mMol thiamine and 10 mMol mannitol). These priming agents were controlled under different temperatures (10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 °C) to evaluate their potential for promoting germination and seedling growth. Results revealed that seed treatment gave accelerated mean germination time, increase emergence percentage at lower temperatures. Seed pre-treatments also promoted shoot length in all temperatures. However root length promoting effects of seed pre-treatments were more evident at 10, 15 and 20 °C. Seedling fresh and dry weight reached maximum values at 20 °C with water, thiamine and mannitol treatments. Chlorophyll and leaf proline content reached their higher values at 20, 25 and 30 °C. Overcoming temperature stress and promoting germination is important for hemp development. It was concluded that hemp seeds primed with water, thiamine, and mannitol had the highest biomass values for low, optimum, and high temperatures in this paper that makes these seed treatments suitable for hemp plants that could come across low or high temperatures during germination and early growth stages.

Poppy is a minor agronomic field crop that is cultivated under a UN license. It is known for its alkaloids and seeds, and, rarely, for the latter’s use in ethnomedicine. Changing climate conditions could lead to the need for alternate areas for poppy cultivation in Türkiye. This experiment was conducted in Ankara, which is not a poppy production area. The morphological characteristics and oil characteristics of 19 Turkish poppy genotypes were determined over two years. According to the results, the emergence time was between 10 and 22 days, the flowering time ranged from 197 to 214 days, while the harvest maturation time was between 250 and 269 days. The plant height varied from 75.8 to 97.5 cm, the weight of 1000 seeds ranged from 305.0 to 428.0 mg, and the weight of the seeds per plant was between 2.95 and 5.78 g. Furthermore, the yield ranged from 100.7 to 202.3 kg da−1, the fat content was between 38.8 and 44.1%, and the protein content ranged from 15.9 to 18.4%. The linoleic acid content ranged from 66.77% to 75.60%, the oleic acid content ranged from 10.78% to 19.46%, and the palmitic acid content ranged from 8.38% to 9.90%. The highest yield in Ankara was obtained from the Çelikoğlu cultivar.

Aromatic and medicinal plant species having small seeds have field emergence problems due to low nutrient supply. Therefore, Pimpinella anisum seeds were hydro and osmoprimed with 100 mM MgCl2, CaCl2, and ZnCl2, for 2, 4, and 8 h each to compare their growth attributes during germination and seedling establishment stages. Nontreated seeds were used as control. Both hydro and osmo primed seeds were dried for 48 h before, they were sown in plastic trays in growth room conditions to see the impact of treatments on seedling emergence and growth. The maximum root length (12.90 cm), fresh weight (256.30 mg plant−1), and mean emergence time (MET) were recorded from 8 h MgCl2 primed seeds. Similarly, the maximum (97.50, and 98.00%) emergence percentage was observed using 8 h MgCl2 primed seeds and nontreated seeds (control treatment). The evaluation of parameters like chlorophyll contents and electrical conductivity showed the 8 h MgCl2 priming as the optimum treatment. The evaluation of parameters like chlorophyll contents and electrical conductivity showed the 8 h MgCl2 priming as the optimum treatment. The result suggests MgCl2 priming worked synergistically and improved seedling growth attributes under greenhouse conditions. The chlorophyll content ranged 25.94–35.69 SPAD unit. The highest chlorophyll content was obtained from the seedlings obtained from 4 h CaCl2 treatment, which were statistically similar to the chlorophyll contents of the seedlings obtained after 8 h MgCl2 treatment and nontreated seeds (control treatment). All other treatments showed inhibition in the chlorophyll contents and growth attributes of the seedlings. In conclusion, MgCl2 osmopriming treatments were significantly promotive and better compared to hydro-priming and osmopriming treatments including control treatment in terms of anise seeds germination and emergence.

Seed germination and seedling emergence is the main step of cultivation and improving them could yield high performance in the field. Improved seedling emergence means less sensitivity to biotic and abiotic stress factors. It is possible to enhance seedling emergence via different technologies. Nanoparticles are one of the improving technology and their impact on crop cultivation are improving day by day. The seeds of hybrid-snack type cultivar Ahmetbey and for seed treatment agent TiO₂ nanoparticles were used in this experiment. This study was conducted to observe the impact of seed treatment with different titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles (NPs) concentrations (6, 12, and 24 mg Lˉ¹) with dimensions of 20-50 nm during 8 hours on the emergence and seedling growth performance of snack-type sunflower cultivar Ahmetbey. Four replicates of 50 seeds in each treatment were sown in plastic trays 4 cm deep and placed in a growth chamber at 20 ± 2 °C 45 μM photons m-² s-¹ light for 16 h. Mean emergence time (MET), emergence percentage, seedling vigor, root-to-shoot length ratio, shoot length, and root length seedling fresh and dry weight were measured. Emergence percentage, shoot length, root length, and fresh and dry weight of seedlings increased with TiO₂ NPs treatments. The results revealed that 8-hour priming with water has a low impact on seeds of cv. Ahmetbey compared to any treatment of TiO₂ NPs. In conclusion, it is proved that the improving effects of 8 hour priming of sunflower seeds with TiO₂ NPs solutions on sunflower seedling emergence.

Salinity is an increasing constraint in crop production.This abiotic stress has an impact on the life cycle of all plant species.It is well established that seed germination is vulnerable to soil salinity at a sowing depth of 1-5 cm.This study was conducted to investigate the impacts of NaCl on the germination performance of 10 exotic safflower lines (PI 248366, PI 243070, PI 237538, PI 613516, PI 601166, PI 613517, PI 613529, PI 250604, PI 613514, and PI 613460).Electrical conductivity (EC) values of NaCl solutions were 5, 10, 20, and 30 dS mˉ¹.Safflower lines were germinated with different NaCl treatments by measuring different morphologic parameters.The observations showed that seedling growth parameters were inhibited especially at 20 and 30 dS mˉ¹ NaCl treatments.It is clear that lines PI 248366 and PI 613516 had less diversity for the dry matter under dissimilar NaCl doses especially for 5 and 10 dS mˉ¹, which were the signs of their tolerance to salinity.

Sulphur is vital in crop life from germination to harvest and its impact on cultivation is undeniable. Its extinction causes several physiological problems in crops and makes them more vulnerable to biotic and abiotic stresses. Nigella sativa (black cumin) is mostly cultivated for its seeds. They are rich in fatty acids, essential oils, alkaloids and saponins. Two years experiment was conducted to investigate different sulphur fertilizers doses on black cumin growth parameters and oil yield. Different doses of sulphur (0, 1, 2 and 3 kg S da−1) were used in form of ammonium sulphate to black cumin. Different sulphur dose treatments especially 1 kg S da−1 had a significant impact on plant height, number of branches plant−1, number of seeds pod−1, seed weight pod−1, 1000 seed weight, seed protein content, yield, and oleic acid contents of oil. Application of black cumin with the optimum amount of sulphur in soil with high pH helped plants to adsorb sulphate easily and lead to an increase in black cumin yield. The most effective dose was determined as 1 kg S da−1 for black cumin cultivation in clay loam soils and climate conditions of Ankara in Central Anatolia.

Priming fresh and naturally aged canola seeds with different substances and observing the seed germination properties are involved in this work. Fresh seeds and aged seeds of canola cv. “süzer” were treated with distilled water, -0.8 MPa polyethylene glycol (PEG) 6000 and 50 mM thiamine for 8 hours. Storage of canola seeds showed the loss of germination capacity compared to fresh seeds. Present findings indicate that priming can improve germination and germination speed both in fresh and aged seeds of canola. Germination percentage increased in aged seeds with distilled water priming and thiamine priming. Mean germination times were lower in the primed seeds. Seedling growth didn’t improve with priming in both ages. It was concluded that germination performance improvement of aged seeds is possible with suitable priming.

Salinity diminishes germination, inhibits and delays emergence and prevents seedling growth of linseed. Some genotypes or varieties less affected from salinity while the others affected seriously. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of KCl, CaCl2 and MgCl2 levels (0, 10 and 20 dS m-1) on germination and seedling growth of 7 linseed genotypes by screening germination, emergence and seedling characteristics. The results of the germination test showed that all lines germinated. Emergency tests indicated that at 20 dS m-1 KCl level line 193 and line 114 did not emerged and at 20 dS m-1 MgCl2 level line 104 did not emerged. Furthermore line 194 at 20 dS m-1 KCl and 20 dS m-1 CaCl2 levels emerged but died after and line 193 and 114 also emerged at 20 dS m-1 CaCl2 and 20 dS m-1 MgCl2 level respectively and died after. Screening of cultivars under salinity precisely showed the diversity among genotypes and demonstrated that lines 215, 87 and 89 had superiority over others.

The study presents the in vitro potential of preconditioned plumular apices explants of peanut for shoot regeneration. Mature embryo explants were isolated and preconditioned for 10 days on MS medium with 10 and 20 mg/l BAP (6-Benzylaminopurine) followed by postconditioning of isolated plumular apices postconditioned on MS medium enriched with 0.25-2.0 mg/l BAP singly or with 0.25 mg/l NAA (1-Naphthaleneacetic acid). Preconditioning of explants using 20 mg/l BAP was found to be more regenerative to induce 4.38 shoots with shorter shoots (0.75 cm) compared to 3.50 shoots and shoot length of 1.25 cm when preconditioned with 20 mg/l BAP. Number of shoots per explants ranged 2.30-5.36 and 3.17-6.0 respectively on explants preconditioned with 10 and 20 mg/l BAP and postconditioned on 0.25-2.0 mg/l BAP -0, 0.25 mg/l NAA with shoot length in range of 1.01-2.30 cm and 0.74-1.80 cm, respectively. Maximum number of shoots (6.0) with stunted shoots (0.74 cm) were recorded from 20 mg/l preconditioning followed by culture on medium containing provided with 1.0 mg/l BAP+0.25 mg/l NAA. Irrespective of preconditioning treatments, minimum number of shoots per explants but relatively longer shoots were scored on MS medium provided with 0.25 mg/l BAP+0.25 mg/l NAA. Regenerated shoots were successfully rooted using 0.25-1.0 mg/l IBA. They were transferred to pots containing peat moss that resulted in successful acclimatization of in vitro regenerated plantlets at room temperature.

Excess of boron in soil and irrigation water is a se rious constrain to crop production in many areas of the World as well as in Turkey. A pot experiment was carri ed out with to screen safflower cultivars in order t o investigate the effects of boron toxicity stress on early growth and ions composition. Three safflower c ultivars (Carthamus tinctorius cv. Balci, Yenice, Remzi Bey) were grown in pots cont aining alkaline and potassium rich soil, additionally supplemented with 0, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 and 128 mg kg –1 boron. Chlorophyll content of all cultivars decreased with excessive bo ron levels. Plant height, shoot fresh and dry weight significantly increased at 4 mg kg –1 boron level followed by sharp decline with the other tr atments. Boron content of cultivars increased and the highest amou nt was observed at 128 mg kg –1 boron level. Sodium content of all cultivars gradually increased with in crease in B concentration. Whereas, potassium and c lcium content reduced with increased B. Phosphorus co ntent of all cultivars were least at 128 mg kg boro n level. Results revealed that cv. balci appeared to tolerant to boron in soil up to 32 mg kg –1 and can be recommended for growing and breeding material for boron rich soils of Central Anatolia.

Excess of boron in soil and irrigation water is a serious constrain to crop production in many areas of the World as well as in Turkey. A pot experiment was carried out with to screen safflower cultivars in order to investigate the effects of boron toxicity stress on early growth and ions composition. Three safflower cultivars (Carthamus tinctorius cv. Balci, Yenice, Remzi Bey) were grown in pots containing alkaline and potassium rich soil, additionally supplemented with 0, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 and 128 mg kg(-1) boron. Chlorophyll content of all cultivars decreased with excessive boron levels. Plant height, shoot fresh and dry weight significantly increased at 4 mg kg(-1) boron level followed by sharp decline with the other treatments. Boron content of cultivars increased and the highest amount was observed at 128 mg kg(-1) boron level. Sodium content of all cultivars gradually increased with increase in B concentration. Whereas, potassium and calcium content reduced with increased B. Phosphorus content of all cultivars were least at 128 mg kg boron level. Results revealed that cv. balci appeared to tolerant to boron in soil up to 32 mg kg(-1) and can be recommended for growing and breeding material for boron rich soils of Central Anatolia.

High salinity level in soil or irrigation water limits the plant growth and yield due to altering the metabolic processes, enzymes contents and activities. Peanut is sensitive plant to salinity and salinity level above EC of 8 dS m(-1) which hindered the germination rate and plant growth. In vitro screening method using plant tissue culture techniques could be employed to identify salt tolerance of explant, cultivar or plant without exposing to soil or climate. In this study, preconditioned plumular apices explants were cultured on agar solidified MS medium suplemented with 1.0 mg l(-1) BAP and 5-20 pS cm(-1) salinity level of NaCl and KCl for two months. 100% callus induction and shoot regeneration frequency was recorded along with browning or necrosis on callus or regnerated shoots on all mediums irrespective of salty type or concentration. Increased salt concentrations significally inhibited the number of shoots and shoot length compared to control. Regenerated shoots (<= 0.5 cm) were rooted on rooting medium enriched with 0.25-2.0 mg l(-1) IBA or 1.0 mg l(-1) IBA with 0.15-0.6% sucrose concentrations. Rooted plantlets were successfully acclimatized in the pots containing peat moss or coarse sand: peat moss soil mix (1:1) in the growth room. Results revealed that preconditioned plumular explants can be used for modern biotechnological techniques like in vitro selection or genetic transformation studies.