farhad habibzadeh

Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii) is a perennial and woody shrub that grows in different regions of Iran and the world. The Berberidaceae family has a high potential in food and pharmaceutical industries due to its antioxidant, antimicrobial and anticancer activities. Elicitors are biotic or abiotic stimulators that can induce responses in plants. Abiotic elicitors are used to increase secondary metabolites in plants. Nanoparticles have minimum dimensions between one and 100 nanometers, which have specific physical and chemical properties. Like many nanoparticles, zinc oxide and cerium dioxide nanoparticles are toxic to living organisms. The mechanism of toxicity of nanoparticles is generally contributed to the induction of oxidative stress which lead to the formation of free radicals. Nanoparticles of zinc oxide and cerium dioxide can increase the antioxidant capacity of plants by stimulating oxidative stress. 

In order to study the changes in the physiological and biochemical characteristics of Japanese barberry under the influence of abiotic elicitors, an experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with three replications in the greenhouse and laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources of Imam Khomeini International University in 2019. Treatments were included zinc oxide elicitors (0.1 g/L) and cerium dioxide nanoparticles (0.0002 g/L) and control (no elicitor). In this research, the amounts of protein, antioxidant enzymes and photosynthetic pigments in tissues of Japanese barberry were measured. Data analysis was done with SAS 9.1.3 statistical software. Comparison of means was done with Duncan's multiple range test and graphs were drawn using Excel software. 

The results of the data analysis of variance showed that the effect of treatment with cerium dioxide and zinc oxide nanoparticle elicitors on the amount of leaf protein, antioxidant activity and also the amount of photosynthetic pigments was significant. Comparison of the means showed that these two elicitors increased the leaf protein content by 26.2% and 12.4%, respectively, compared to the control, but they did not have a significant effect on the root protein content. Cerium dioxide decreased the activity of guaiacol peroxidase enzyme by 77.1% in the root; But in leaves, the activity of this enzyme increased by 134.8% due to treatment with zinc oxide. The highest activity of leaf superoxide dismutase enzyme (25.2% increase compared to control) was related to zinc oxide treatment. The lowest content of catalase enzyme in leaves and roots was obtained with cerium dioxide and zinc oxide. Zinc oxide increased the activity of leaf ascorbate peroxidase enzyme by 111.8%; In the root, the highest and lowest activity levels of this enzyme were obtained in the control and cerium dioxide treatments, respectively. Both elicitors significantly increased the leaf peroxidase enzyme activity compared to the control (128.6% and 157.1%, respectively); However, only the treatment with zinc oxide caused a significant increase of 25.5% in the activity of this enzyme in the root. The highest activity of glutathione reductase enzyme in leaf and root was observed in zinc oxide treatment (23.3% and 12.5% increase compared to control). Nano zinc oxide increased the amount of total chlorophyll and carotenoid in the leaves compared to the control by 93.4 and 67.5%, respectively. 

It was concluded that zinc oxide nanoparticles elicitor had the greatest effect in increasing the amount of photosynthetic pigments and enzyme activity. By using this elicitor in Japanese barberry culture, the amount of antioxidant enzymes can be increased and the extract can be used as a strong antioxidant in pharmaceutical products.
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Japanese barberry or ornamental barberry (Berberis thunbergii) belongs to the Berberidaceae family. This family have several properties, including antioxidant, antimicrobial and anticancer activities. The healing properties of barberry have been known and studied for thousands of years. In order to study the changes in the physiological-biochemical characteristics of Japanese barberry under the influence of abiotic elicitors, an experiment was conducted in the form of a completely randomized design in the greenhouse and laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources of Imam Khomeini International University in 2018-2019. The treatments included methyl jasmonate elicitors, salicylic acid, titanium dioxide and no elicitor (control) in four replications. In this research, the amount of leaf photosynthetic pigments and antioxidant enzymes of leaf and root tissues of Japanese barberry plant were extracted and measured. The results showed that the effect of the experimental treatments on the amount of photosynthetic leaf pigments and antioxidant enzymes in the two studied tissues was significant at the 1% probability level. Comparison of the means showed that salicylic acid treatment increased the amount of chlorophyll a and total leaf chlorophyll compared to the control by 20.9% and 21.3%, respectively. Salicylic acid and methyl jasmonate increased 29.9 and 19.1 percent of carotenoid content in leaves, respectively, compared to the control. The highest protein content of the root was produced with the use of salicylic acid, which increased by 38.6% compared to the control. The activity of catalase enzyme in the root increased by salicylic acid and titanium dioxide elicitors by 76.8 and 52.2%, respectively, compared to the control. In leaves, salicylic acid and methyl jasmonate elicitors increased catalase enzyme activity by 104.1% and 57.1%, respectively. From this research, it was concluded that salicylic acid had the greatest effect in increasing the amount of pigments and the activity of antioxidant enzymes of the Japanese barberry plant, which can be used for medicinal products.

In the current research, the simultaneous application of 0, 5 and 10 tons per hectare of vermicompost organic fertilizer and biochar on growth and grain yield of Camelina sativa as a factorial experiment based on a randomized complete block design with three replications in East Azarbaijan province (crop year 2020-2021) was evaluated. The highest oil yield (1073 kg/ha) was obtained in the application of 10 tons of vermicompost and 10 tons of biochar per hectare, which increased the yield of camelina oil by 18.8% compared to the control. This increase was due to the increase in oil content (38.27%) and grain yield (2805 kg / ha). The highest harvest index in the treatment of 10 tons of vermicompost per hectare + 10 tons of biochar per hectare, the highest biological yield in the treatment of 10 tons of vermicompost per hectare + 5 tons of biochar per hectare and the highest number of seeds per silique were obtained in 5 tons of vermicompost per hectare + 10 tons of biochar per hectare. Increasing the number of siliques per plant and the number of seeds per silique by using biochar and vermicompost ramped up the grain yield. In this study, the use of 5 tons of biochar and 10 tons of vermicompost reduced the amount of saturated fatty acids (42%), but, at the some time, the amount of polymeric unsaturated fatty acids was increased (7.27%). According to the results, the application of 10 tons per hectare of vermicompost and biochar is recommended to improve economic yield of camelina plant under rainfed conditions, and considering the highest grain and oil yield was obtained at the highest level of fertilizer used, so additional research is recommended to determine the best level of fertilizer.

In order to investigate the quantitative and qualitative response of three sesame cultivars (Sesamum indicum L.) to different irrigation and fertilizer treatments, an experiment was conducted in the research farm of Karaj Seed and Plant Breeding Institute during 2016 and 2017. The experiment was performed as split-factorial plots in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Irrigation treatments at two levels including low irrigation regime (irrigation after 80% of usable soil moisture) and full irrigation (irrigation after 40% of usable soil moisture) in main and factorial plots with different amounts of nitrogen (0, 60 and 120 kg N ha-1) and sesame cultivars (Oltan, Dashtestan 2 and Naz single-branched) were placed in subplots. The results showed that in full irrigation conditions, application of 120 kg N ha-1 increased sesame seed yield by 83% compared to non-application. In contrast, this increase in yield in response to the application of nitrogen in low irrigation treatment was 40%. In general, the results showed that in full irrigation treatment, the use of nitrogen fertilizer for all three cultivars can be justified. Maximum grain yield was obtained in Oltan (1106 kg ha-1), Dashtestan 2 (1012 kg ha-1) and Naz single-branched (634 kg ha-1) cultivars with 115, 117 and 100 kg N ha-1, respectively. In contrast, in conditions of low irrigation, in none of the cultivars, grain yield higher than 500 kg N ha-1 was not achieved even with high amounts of nitrogen (60 and 120 kg N ha-1).

Among oilseeds, sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is known as the queen of oilseeds due to its significant amount of antioxidant compounds, essential amino acids and unsaturated fatty acids. Among the necessary managements to achieve maximum crop production, the selection of cultivar, density and planting pattern could be mentioned. Different sesame cultivars have various growth characteristics (for example, branching) and each of them is suitable for a planting method with a certain density. The aim of this study was to evaluate the planting pattern and suitable density for two sesame cultivars.

In this study, the effect of planting pattern (single or double row(s) on ridges), plant density (20, 30 and 40 plants m-2) and sesame cultivars (Oltan and Naz Tak Shakheh) based on factorial experiment in a randomized complete blocks design were evaluated in three replications during 2019 and 2020 in Karaj region. Plant height, grain yield and yield components, dry matter yield, harvest index and oil percentage and yield were evaluated. Statistical analyzes were performed using SAS software and LSD test was used to compare the main means and slicing was used to compare the means of interactions.

Analysis of variance showed that effect of planting pattern factor on plant height and dry matter yield, plant density factor on all traits (except 1000-seed weight) and cultivar factor on all traits (except harvest index) were significant. Comparison of means showed that the mean of plant height in planting pattern of double rows on ridges (126 cm) was significantly higher. Among the yield components, the number of capsules per plant at densities of 30 and 40 plants m-2 (57 and 60, respectively) were the highest, which were statistically significant compared to the density of 20 plants m-2 (50). The number of seeds per capsule at the density of 20 plants m-2 was the highest (58) which showed a statistically significant difference compared to the other two densities. Among the studied densities, the highest grain yield (993 kg ha-1) was obtained from the density of 40 plants m-2 and the lowest grain yield (798 kg ha-2) was obtained from the density of 20 plants m-2. Among the two studied cultivars, Oltan cultivar had the highest yield and grain yield components which showed a statistically significant difference compared to Naz Tak Shakheh. The highest oil yield was produced by Oltan cultivar in each of the densities of 30 and 40 plants m-2, which statistically did not show a significant difference in planting pattern of single or double row(s) on ridges.

This study showed that Oltan cultivar is recommended in planting pattern of single row on ridges and in density of 30 plants m-2 for Karaj region.

Salinity stress is one of the most important abiotic stresses that restricts the growth of crops. In order to group the rice genotypes resulting from crossing of improved cultivars at salinity stress conditions, a factorial experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications under greenhouse conditions at Sari agricultural sciences and Natural Resources University in 2018. The treatments in the experiment included salinity stress factor at three levels (control, 4 and 8 dS/m) and nine rice genotypes. The different genotypes were grouped based on stress tolerance indices. The results showed that salinity stress reduced grain yield in all genotypes. The highest reduction in grain yield was related to salinity of 8 dS/m in all genotypes. Cluster analysis showed that a good variation between the studied genotypes in terms of stress tolerance indices at the salinity of 4 and 8 dS/m. Based on the results of tolerance indices the Jelodar × Danesh genotype had the highest value in terms of tolerance indices in both salinity conditions of 4 and 8 dS/m and was recognized as a tolerant genotype. Also, the genotype Danesh × Parto, in salinity of 4 dS/m and Danesh genotype in salinity of 8 dS/m, were known as susceptible genotype.

Water stress is one of the most important environmental stresses that reduces the growth and yield of crops. Organic fertilizers such as compost and mineral compounds such as zeolite can reduce the negative impact of water stress on plants. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of irrigation levels (irrigation after depletion of 25, 50 and 75% of field capacity (FC)) and compost treatments (control, 4 ton ha-1, 8 ton ha-1, 4 ton ha-1 compost +10 ton ha-1zeolite and 8 ton ha-1 compost +10 ton ha-1 zeolite) on yield and some physiological traits of quinoa. This study was done in three replications and split plot experiment based on a randomized complete block design at the research farm of Azarbijan shahid Madany University in 2019. In this study, water stress reduced seed yield, minimum seed yield was obtained in irrigation after depleting 75% of FC (2024 kg ha-1), which was 29.8% less than the control. This reduction was partly due to a decrease in the 1000-seed weight. Among enriched compost with zeolite treatments, application of 8 ton ha-1compost, application of 4 ton ha-1compost + 10 ton ha-1 zeolite and application of 8 ton ha-1 compost + 10 ton ha-1 zeolite had a significant effect and increased this trait by 28.9, 36.2 and 32.9%, respectively. Enriched compost with zeolite increased grain yield by increasing the number and weight of seeds. Due to the economic importance of grain yield and quality characteristics and overall plant growth, application of 4 ton ha-1compost + 10 ton ha-1 zeolite can optimally increase grain yield in both low water and full irrigation conditions.

Cumin (Cumin cyminum L.) the only cumin crop in Iran, which is rich in secondary metabolites has great economic value and is. In order to evaluate the effect of foliar application of growth stimulant of pluramin and bioxa on this plant, a field study was conducted as a factorial experiment in a randomized complete block design with four replications in the research farm of Shahid Madani University of Azerbaijan in 2017- 2018. Experimental factors included foliar application of pluramin at the concentrations of 0, 2.5 and 5 g.l-1 and bioxa at the levels of 0, 5 and 10 ml.l-1. The essential oil was extracted using hydro-distillation method in Clevenger apparatus and analyzed by GC/MS. The effect of foliar application of pluramin on 1000-seed weight, number of seeds per umbel and essential oil yield and the effect of foliar application of bioxa on plant height, number of seeds per umbel and content and yield of essential oil were significant. The interaction of experimental factors on the number of seeds per umbel, content and yield of essential oil was significant. Comparison of means showed that the highest content and yield of essential oil with a significant difference belonged to the foliar application of 10 ml.l-1 bioxa; after that, spraying 2.5 g.l-1 of pluramin produced the highest content of essential oil. The major compounds identified in all treatments included 3-carn-10-al, para-cement, p-comic aldehyde, gamma-terpinene, beta-pinene and 2-carn-10-al. The highest essential oil yield was obtained from foliar application of 10 ml.l-1 bioxa, which was significantly different from the other levels of foliar application. That is, simultaneous foliar application increased this compound. The highest amount of para-cymene, gamma-terpinene and beta-pinene was obtained by spraying 10 ml.l-1 bioxa and the lowest amount of these compounds were obtained by spraying 5 g.l-1 pluramin and 5 ml.l-1 bioxa. Overall, the results showed that foliar application of growth stimulants of pluramin and bioxa can improve the yield and composition of cumin essential oil under the rainfed conditions.

In dry regions, root systems play a major role in controlling plant growth and yield, thanks to their importance in water absorption. In order to investigate the effect of irrigation regimes on root and shoot traits of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) genotypes, a field experiment has been conducted in Karaj, at Seed and Plant Improvement Institute, during 2017 and 2018. A factorial experiment has been laid out in a completely-randomized design with four replications. This study deals with five genotypes of sesame in two irrigation regimes, including full and low (drought stress) irrigation treatments in terms of root and shoot-related traits. Results show that there have been significant differences between genotypes and irrigation regimes for root and shoot traits. In all genotypes, root length density is higher in full irrigation treatment as well as the upper soil layer (0 to 30 cm deep), compared to stress treatment. In addition, under drought stress conditions root depth increases (by 30% in average) in all genotypes. In contrast, root dry weight has decreased in Dashtestan 2 (15 %), Darab 1 (16 %), and Naz (22 %), and increased in Oltan (1 %), USA-ns 96 (7 %), and Sodan 94 (10 ) genotypes. On the other hand, the highest amount of shoot dry weight belongs to the USA-ns 96 genotype (39 g), and the lowest to Naz cultivar (22 g). Finally, results show that USA-ns 96 genotype, being superior in terms of root characteristics such as root depth and root length density compared to other genotypes, in addition to having more shoot dry weight, show the least dry weight loss under stress conditions.

To evaluate the relationship between traits and response of sesame cultivars in terms of quantitative and qualitative yields and water use efficiency to different irrigation regimes (full and low irrigation conditions), a split plot field experiment was based on randomized complete block design with three replications in 2016. In this experiment, two factors including irrigation regimes (main factor) and sesame cultivars (sub factor) were examined. Irrigation regimes in two levels, including irrigation after depletion of 40% and 80% of soil available water (full and low irrigation, respectively) in the main plots and six sesame cultivars in sub plots were considered. The results showed that low irrigation stress reduced most of the traits (except grain protein percentage and water use efficiency). Among the studied traits under low irrigation condition, grain yield and nitrogen use efficiency showed the highest reduction (60%) and among the studied cultivars, Oltan and Dashtestan had the highest yield under the full irrigation conditions. These cultivars also had the highest capsule number, number of grain per capsule, 1000-grain weight and water and nitrogen use efficiency. None of the studied cultivars had desirable performance under the low irrigation conditions. Under both full and low irrigation conditions, the oil percentage had a positive and significant correlation with 1000-grain weight. Therefore, trying to increase the weight of the grains can lead to produce cultivars with high oil percentage.

More than 90% of the total oil consumed in the country is imported abroad. Therefore, the development of oilseed cultivation and research programs in this field should be considered. Water deficit stress is one of the most important environmental stresses that has limited the successful production of crops, especially in dry and semi-arid regions. Sesame is one of the most important seed economical products that has good compatibility with dry and semi-arid regions such as Iran. Since yield is a bit complicated trait and controlled by a large number of genes, the effect of each gene is small and environmental factors can have a great effect on it. Therefore, identifying yield components that have more inheritance than yield and, on the other hand, have high correlation with it, can increase the efficiency of selection. So in breeding programs, it is important to examine the components of yield and how they affect each other to achieve high yield. One of the methods for analyzing the components of yield is stepwise regression. In this method, traits that have the greatest share in explaining the variation of yield are distinguished among a large number of traits. Identifying the appropriate and effective traits of yield can be the basis for selection in breeding programs and can be used to increase grain yield.

This research was conducted as split plot based on a randomized complete block design with three replications in the research field of seed and plant improvement institute, agricultural research, education and extension organization of Karaj, in summer of 2016. Two factors including irrigation regimes (as main factor) and cultivars (as sub factor) were investigated. Two irrigation regimes including irrigation after 40% soil moisture utilization in soil (no stress) and irrigation after 80% moisture utilization in soil (low irrigation stress) in main plots and 6 sesame cultivars named Halil, Dashtestan 2, Darab 1, Oltan, Yellow White and Naz tak shakheh in sub plots were considered. Correlation analysis, stepwise regression, principal components analysis and path analysis were used to analyze the components of yield. Correlation analysis, stepwise regression and path analysis were performed using SPSS software version 23, principal components analysis and two-dimensional diagram (bi-plot) with Minitab software version 17. The measured traits included seed yield, dry weight of plant, height, secondary branches number, number of capsules per plant, number of seeds per capsule, 1000 seed weight, seed oil percentage, oil yield, seed protein percentage and seed protein yield.

In non-stress and stress conditions, the highest positive and significant correlation was observed between seed yield and oil yield. In non-stress condition, seed number per capsule and number of capsules in the plant and seed oil percentage were the most effective positive variables on seed yield. 1000 seed weight had the most direct positive effect on seed oil percentage. In stress condition, seed protein percentage and secondary branches number had the highest negative effects on seed yield, respectively. Seed protein percentage had the most direct positive effect on oil percentage. The main components analysis showed that in non-stress condition, seed yield, capsule number, oil yield and protein yield had high correlation with the first component and 51.1% of the variation was explained. Based on this component, Oltan and Dashtestan cultivars were better in terms of seed, oil and protein yield than other cultivars. In stress condition, seed yield, oil yield and protein yield had high correlation with the first component and explained 37.5% of the variation. Halil, Oltan and Yellow White cultivars were not desirable on the basis of this component, which was the component of seed, oil and protein yield.

The growing demands of consumers for edible seed oils containing high unsaturated fatty acid and antioxidant content have resulted in considerable efforts to investigate plants as possible sources of oils and nuts. In this research, the amount of fatty acid compositions, total flavonoid, phenol and antioxidant properties of Pistacia atlantica and Pistacia khinjuk were evaluated. The kernel oil content of P. atlantica and P. khinjuk were 24.33 ± 0.333% and 31.00 ± 0.577%, respectively. Palmitic acid, Stearic acid, Oleic acid, Linoleic acid, and Palmitoleic acid were the main components in the oil of the two Pistacia species. The results showed that unsaturated fatty acids accounted for approximately 77.65% and 74.87% of total fatty acids in P. atlantica and P. khinjuk, respectively. The two Pistacia species were rich in phenolic compounds (130.77± 3.11 and 126.91± 4.41 mg quercetin/100 g oil) and had high antioxidant properties (4.545± 0.655 and 15.733± 0.689 mg/g oil) in P. atlantica and P. khinjuk, respectively. Oil content and Oleic acid of the two species of Pistacia are shown/known to be higher than some other edible oils. This research showed that the kernel oil of the two species of Pistacia have the same value in terms of quality, taste and natural antioxidant qualities with other edible oils.

In order to study the effect of various amounts of nitrogen (N) and zeolite (clinoptilolite) on the yield of winter canola (Brassica napuse L.) and nitrogen leaching, in a light soil, a field experiment was conducted in the research farm of Tarbiat Modares University, on 2012-2013. The experiment was conducted as factorial trial in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The experimental factors contain zeolite (0, 3, 6 and 9 t.ha-1) and nitrogen (90, 180 and 270 kg ha-1 in urea form). The result showed that the highest grain yield (2452 kg/ha) obtained from N270Z9 treatment and N90Z0 produce the lowest grain yield (1569 kg/ha). Moreover using 270 kg N/ha without zeolite (N270Z0) has the highest amount of N leaching (142 kg/ha). Zeolite application has significant effect on the reduction of N leaching in each N level. It could be concluded that a combined application of zeolite (9 t.ha-1) and chemical N (270 kg ha-1) for canola production is recommended to ensure an acceptable yield and for environmental protection from excess N leaching.

Drought stress is one of the most substantial environmental stresses affecting agricultural productivity around the world and may result in considerable yield reduction. The human population is expected to increase to over 8 billion by the year 2020. Therefore, providing adequate food and preventing crop yield reduction is essential. Plant breeding can solve this problem to some extent. Evaluating yield components and their inter-relationships as well as detecting suitable selection indices are very important in the safflower breeding program. The multivariate statistical analysis can provide more insights into the deep structure of data and traits’ relationships
  In order to study the relationships between yield components of eight genotypes of safflowerunder normal irrigationand drought stress conditions and determine the high yield genotypes, a split-plot experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications in the research field of Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin. Irrigation regime included normal irrigation(irrigation after 60 mm evaporation from class A pan evaporation) and drought stress (watering until 50% flowering similar to normal irrigationand 50% flowering to maturity and irrigation after 100 mm evaporation from class A pan evaporation) were considered as main plots. Eight genotypes, including Kuseh Local, Sina, Isfahan Local, Mexican 88, Faraman, Soffeh, Goldasht, and Mexican 11 were used too.
  The analysis of the variance showed that the irrigation effect was significant for traits 1000 grain weight, flower weight, harvest index, and grain yield. There were significant differences among the genotypes for most of the measured traits, except boll diameter, boll number per plant, relative water content, and relative water loss. Plant height, shoot number, boll number, stem diameter, chlorophyll value, flower weight, biological yield, and harvest index positively correlated with the grain yield in both normal irrigation and drought stress conditions. Based on the results of stepwise regression and path analysis, biological yield and harvest index in both normal irrigation and drought stress conditions had the greatest effect on grain yield. Due to the high correlation between yield and harvest index and biological yield under stress conditions, the selection of varieties with high harvest index and biological yield can be very effective in achieving maximum yield under stress conditions. Factor analysis revealed that 4 factors accounted for approximately 82% variance changes in both normal irrigation and drought stress conditions. These factors were called yield, seed, boll size, and leaf water, respectively under normal irrigation, andplant vigor, yield, seed, boll size, and leaf water, respectively under drought stress conditions. Based on the seed yield factor and the biplot display, Faraman, Mahali Isfahan, Sina, and Mahali Kuseh were determined as high yield genotypes both in normal and drought stress conditions.
  Grain yield is a quantitative trait with a low broad sense heritability. Therefore, identifying the traits correlated with grain yield is a suitable strategy for the improvement and the indirect selection of grain yield. Stepwise regression and path analysis are efficient and useful statistical approaches for reaching the above aim. According to the results, the traits of the harvest index and biomass were recognized as the best suitable traits for indirect grain yield selection under normal and drought stress conditions.

Intercropping can be considered as one of the ways to increase yield and sustainability of production per unit area. Also, medicinal plants play an important role in human health in the world. Many people in different countries of the world tend to use these drugs. The need for these plants is increasing due to the production of herbal medicines and cosmetics in the national and international markets. Therefore, improve quality of natural medicinal plants is an absolute necessity. In order to improvement of soil fertility and hyssop (Hyssopus Officinalis) guality by biological nitrogen fixation with bacteria is known by lentil (Lens culinaris), the experiment was conducted to evaluate the different combinations of intercropping hyssop and lentil. The experiment was performed in 2016, based on randomized complete block design with three replications in the Research Field of Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran. The experimental treatments includes: pure culture of hyssop (A), pure culture of lentil (B), 100% hyssop + 25% lentil (C), 100% hyssop + 50% lentil (D), 100% lentil + 25% hyssop (E) and 100% lentil + 50% hyssop (F). The results of this study showed that the highest dry weight of hyssop per unit area was obtained from its pure culture (A) and 100% hyssop + 25% lentil (C). The highest content of hyssop essential oil (without statistical difference) was obtained from 100% hyssop + 25% lentil (C) and 100% hyssop + 50% lentil (D). Means comparison of hyssop essential oil yield per unit area showed that the pure culture of hyssop (A) and 100% hyssop + 25% lentil (C) had the maximum amounts without statistical difference. The yield of lentil in its solecropping treatment showed the highest value, which showed a significant difference with different intercropping treatment. The lowest yield of lentil per unit area was obtained from treatment C (25% lentil + 100% hyssop), which showed a significant difference with other treatments. Also, the results of mean comparisons showed that D treatment (100%hyssop + 50%lentil) had the highest 1000-grain weight, which was subjected to B (sole cropping of lentil) and C (25% lentil + 100% hyssop) treatments in the same statistical group. Comparison of mean values showed that sole cropping (A) and 100% lentils + 25% hyssop (E) had the highest leaf nitrogen content and lentil solecropping (B) had the highest nitrogen content in lentil seed.The comparison of Land Equivalent Ratio (LER) showed that all mixing ratios of hyssop and lentil (with the exception of 100% lentil + 50% hyssop - F) had the LER>1 which shows the lead of intercropping to pure culture. It should be noted that treatments C (100% hyssop + 25% lentil) and D (100% hyssop + 50% lentil) had the highest LER. Overall, the results showed that the intercropping of hyssop and lentil could stabilize the production by improving the use of resources. Also it could be significantly effective by reducing the consumption of chemical inputs with nitrogen fixation towards the ecological production of medicinal plants.

In order to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers in hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis L.) production, an investigation was conducted in the research farm of Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin, Iran, in 2016. This study was carried out as a factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design with two factors and three replications. The experimental factors consisted of different planting patterns (factor A) on two levels including sole culture of plant and additive intercropping of 100% hyssop + 50% lentil and application of chemical fertilizers (factor B) on two levels including non-application and application of NPK. Essential oil of plant in flowering stage was obtained by distillation ( Clevenger apparatus), nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents, the plant extract was obtained by maceration method, phenolic and flavonoid contents by colorimetric method and DPPH radical scavenging and total antioxidant activity were measured by DPPH assay. The results were showed that all the traits were significantly affected by the treatments , The oil yield, phenolic and flavonoid content and total antioxidant activity were significantly stronger in intercropping + fertilizer application in compared to other treatments. In the other hand, secondary metabolites, such as phenolic, flavonoid, and essential oil are the defense system of plant, which were increased by competition between hyssop and lentil (as a stressor) and the antioxidant properties also increased due to the increase in phenolic and flavonoids content.

Among oilseeds that have a good compatibility with the climatic conditions of the Iran, safflower has a special place due to the drought and salinity resistance and also because of having the different spring and autumn varieties. Environmental stresses are the main factors reducing growth and crop yield. Among the environmental stresses, water stress is the main risks for the successful production of crops in Iran and the world. One of the most important applications of nanotechnology in various agricultural fields, especially regarding to the water and soil, is the application of nano-fertilizers to nourish plants. Iron is one the micro elements in plant nutrition. In the condition of iron deficiency, the amount of photosynthetic pigments such as chlorophyll content decreases.
To evaluate the effect of foliar spraying of nano-iron oxide on yield and some important agronomic traits of safflower genotypes at the low water stress conditions, an experiment was carried out in split factorial based on randomized complete block design with three replications in 2016 at the research farm of Imam Khomeini International University. The main factors include irrigation on two levels (full irrigation and water stress in the flowering stage) and nano-iron oxide spraying on two levels (application and non-application of nano-iron oxide) and sub-factor included 10 genotypes of safflower (Golmehr, Padideh, Goldasht, Sofeh, Mexican88, Sina, Mexican11, Isfahan mahali, Faraman and Kuseh).
The effect of irrigation on plant height, seed number in boll, boll number in plant and seed yield were significant. The interactions among all factors were also significant on plant height, main stem diameter, subsidiary branches number, seed number in boll, boll number in plant and seed yield. Mexican88 genotype had the maximum seed yield (499.5 gr. m2) in the conditions of non-stress and foliar application of nano-iron oxide. The highest boll number in plant (22) was observed in the genotype Sina in non-stress conditions and foliar application of nano-iron oxide. In conditions of non-stress and applying nano-iron oxide, genotype Sina had the highest plant height (74.33 cm) and was not significantly different from Kuseh, Sofeh, Golmehr and Isfahan mahali genotypes (73.6, 71.43, 69.2 and 68.5 cm, respectively). The effect of fertilizer was significant only on the subsidiary branches number. Mexican 88 genotype had the greatest subsidiary branches number at the conditions of stress and applying nano-iron oxide.
The study showed that, regarding to the most traits, Mexican 88 and Kuseh genotypes were suitable for planting in both conditions of stress and non-stress.