مجله پژوهش های حبوبات ایران
سال یازدهم شماره 2 (پیاپی 22، پاییز و زمستان 1399)

Mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) as one of the most important beans, has 20-25% protein and is a protein supplier that is needed by humans and plays an important role in this regard. Increasing yield per unit area is one of the most important factors for increasing production. Planting pattern and plant density per unit area are two important factors affecting the growth and yield of plants. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of these parameters on growth and yield characteristics of mung bean under Baghmalek weather conditions

In order to evaluate the effect of plant density and planting pattern on growth and yield characteristics of mung bean under Baghmalek weather conditions, an experiment was carried out as factorial in a randomized complete block design. The studied factors includ, planting density in three levels of 20, 28 and 36 seeds per square meter, and the second factor include, hand scattering of seeds (control), between row distances of 15 cm and 30 cm. In hand scattering of seeds (control) (traditional) and row planting, the seeds were cultivated manually and uniformly in different amounts according to the plant densities. Field preparation included plowing, disks and leveling. After preparation of the field, nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers were mixed with the disk machine at a depth of 15 cm. Nitrogen from the source of urea (46%) was 80 kg nitrogen per hectare, 50% before planting, 25% in stem elongation and 25% in flowering stage and phosphorus fertilizer from the source of triple superphosphate at a rate of 100 kg/ha P (48%) was used. Statistical analysis was performed using SAS 9.2 and comparing of the means was based on Duncan method at 5% probability level.

The results showed that planting pattern with 30 cm spacing compared to hand scattering of seeds improved yield, number of seeds per plant, seeds per pod, pods per plant, 1000-grain weight and plant height. The maximum plant height as 81 cm was obtained from a row planting pattern with a spacing of 30 cm and 28 plants per square meter and the minimum height with an average of 65 cm from density 36 plants per square meter. The maximum grain yield with 2317 kg/ha was obtained from row pattern with 30 cm distance and density of 36 seed per square meter. The minimum grain yield with 1027 kg/ha belonged to hand scattering of seeds and density of 20 seed per square meter.Increasing of 1000-grain weight and number of plants per unit area was the main cause for increasing of grain yield. In other words, the reason for increasing yields in more densities can be attributed to the greater number of plants per unit area and 1000-grain weight. The highest biological yield as 5784 kg/ha was observed from the row planting pattern with a row spacing of 30 cm and a density of 36 plants per square meter, and the lowest biological yield was 3174 kg/ha and a density of 20 plants per square meter. The increase in biological yield at 36 plants per square meter was higher than the density of 20 and 28 plants per square meter due to increase in plant number and also increase in dry matter production per unit area. The maximum percentage of harvest index with an average of 40% was belonged to the interaction of row planting pattern with a distance of 30 cm and density of 28 and 36 plants per square meter.

In general, the results of the experiment showed that in all three planting patterns, the lowest height, number of pods per plant, seeds per pod and seeds per plant were obtained at 36 plants per square meter. The maximum grain yield was obtained at 36 plant density per square meter and the row planting pattern with a distance of 30 cm by 2317.5 kg/ha and the lowest was obtained by 1027.5 kg/ha at a density of 20 plants per square meter and hand scattering of seeds (control). Therefore, this combination of planting pattern and plant density in region can be suggested for optimal use of environmental conditions and maximum grain yield.

It has been predicted that the population of the world will reach up to 9 billion people until middle of current century so to meet the demands for food, it is necessary to supply more by developing sustainable agriculture and ecological intensification of food production to avoid disadvantages of conventional agriculture. Intercropping is one of the sustainable agriculture strategies that has been proven that causes more use of available resources by intercropped species. It is one of the key strategies of sustainable agriculture because of its efficiency in using of the resources like nitrogen, light and water and improving vulnerability of crops against diseases and pests. Pulses are very valuable for agroecosystems and human health, because of many advantages like high protein content and nutritional values and symbiotic fixation of nitrogen. So, an experiment was conducted in order to study of yield characteristics of black-eyed pea (BEP), the pinto bean (PB), kidney bean (KB) and green bean (GB) as bean ecotypes affected by intercropping with cucumber and partial land equivalent ratio (LER) of the beans.

The experiment was held during growing season 2015-16 in the experimental field of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad based on a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with six and eight treatments (for different studied indices) and three replications. Treatments included sole culture of BEP, PB, KB and GB and their 1:1 ratio in replacement intercropping with cucumber. The plots had five 120-cm sized width and 6×3 meter dimensions. The gaps between the plots and the blocks were one and two meters, respectively. The studied indices included the number of sub-branches per plant, stem length, number and weight of seeds per pod, numbers and weights of pods and seeds per plant, shrub and plant [dry] weights, 100-seed weight, biological and economic yields and harvest index for seeds of grain bean ecotypes (including BEP, PB and KB), and for GB, studied indices included the number of seeds per plant, 100-seed weight and economic yield (total weight of harvested green pods per ha). Partial LER of the studied plants was calculated and finally statistical analysis of data and drawing the figures done using SAS v.9.2 and MS Excel 2016 respectively. Duncan’s multiple range test (DMRT) also used for comparing the means at probability level of %5.

The results showed that except the number of sub-branches per plant, there were significant differences between the treatments for all other studied indices. The highest stem length was recorded in sole culture of BEP that was significantly different compared with other treatments but there was no significant difference between sole culture and intercropping treatments of PB and KB. Competition for interception of light may cause this result for BEP. Number and weight of seeds per pod and numbers and weights of pods and seeds per plant were higher in intercropping treatments of the plants in comparison of their sole culture. Many other studies like results of Noorbakhsh et al, (2015) and Khalaf (2016) support our findings. 100-seed weight was different between the plants but no significant difference was observed between intercropping and sole culture of each plant. It seems that 100-seed weight is a genetic property that not be affected by intercropping. The biological and economic yield of the bean ecotypes were significantly higher in their sole culture compared with their intercropping due to lower plant density in intercropping but by considering the results of partial LER calculation, it concludes that intercropping was more useful for all studied plants. The highest value of partial LER (0.69) was calculated in GB and the lowest one was recorded to KB. The economic part of GB was its green pods, so its partial LER was higher than another studied plants in comparison of other plants that their seeds form their economic yield. Similar to 100-seed weight, the harvest index was statistically different between the bean ecotypes but it was similar between sole culture and intercropping treatments of each plant because of parallel trends of variations of biological and economic yields of the plants.

Based on the results, intercropping of BEP, PB, KB and GB with cucumber is benefit for ecological intensification of production of the studied pulses. So, it can be suggested as an efficient strategy for sustainable development of food production.

Vetch is one of the legume family that is widely cultivated as a cover crop, reduce erosion, and increase soil fertility. Drought stress that occurs during the reproductive growth period, adversely affects yield and yield components. Supplementary irrigation can be efficient technique to cope with the limited water availability and to stabilize the crop yields. Biological fertilizers such as mycorrhizal fungi, Azotobacter and Thiobacillus spp < /em> play an important role in sustainable agriculture. The mycorrhizal symbiosis with plants causes changes in plant water relations and thus improve drought resistance or tolerance in the host plant. Azotobacter has the potentiality to produce different types of amino acids, plant growth hormones, antifungal antibiotics, and siderophore and has a unique ability of atmospheric nitrogen fixation in the soil. The application of sulfur coupled with Thiobacillus spp renders alkali soils fit for cultivation of crops. The formation of sulphuric acid by Thiobacillus spp in soil increases the level of soluble P, K, Ca, Mg, Al and Mn ion. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effect of biofertilizers treatment on yield and some quality traits of Vetch (Vicia sativa) under Agroforestry system.

This factorial experiment was performed as a complete randomized block design with three replications at Urmia University in two years (2016 and 2017). Experimental treatments included once supplemental irrigation and dry farming as the first factor and application of biofertilizers at eight levels {Control (non-application of fertilizer), Mycorrhizal fungus (Rhizophagus intraradices), Azotobacter, Thiobacillus spp, Azotobacter + Mycorrhiza (R. intraradices), Thiobacillus spp + Mycorrhiza (R. intraradices), Azotobacter + Thiobacillus spp, Azotobacter + Thiobacillus spp + Mycorrhizal fungus (R. intraradices)} were the second factor. Supplementary irrigation treatment was applied at the flowering stage (10%) for two years. Vetch plants were harvested on 25-27th of June in two years. At harvest, from each treatment ten plants were taken randomly and plant height, pod per plant, seed per plant, 100 grain weight, were recorded. Whole plot was harvested for determination of seed yield. The analysis of variance for the two-year data was performed using GLM procedure (SAS 9.1.3, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA) as combined over years. The effects of irrigation regimes, the application of biofertilizers and interactions of these two factors were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and means were compared using Duncan's Multiple Range Test (DMRT) (P≤ 0.05).

The results showed that supplementary irrigation increased the number of pods per plant and forage calcium content. But the highest rate and efficiency of photosynthetic materials remobilization and forage protein content were obtained in farming condition. Also, the number of pods per plant, the percentage of calcium and protein content of forage increased significantly due to the application of biological fertilizers. Thus, the combined application of mycorrhizal + Azotobacter treatment increased the number of pods per plant, and protein content of forage by 15.55% and 18.88%, respectively, as compared to the Control. While the highest rate and efficiency of photosynthetic materials remobilization were obtained in non-biofertilizer treatment (control). Supplementary irrigated vetch plants under combined application of mycorrhiza and Azotobacter, due to the having maximum amount of root colonization (63.45%) and relative water content (69.50%), had the highest number of seeds per plant (204.94) and 100 seed weight (4.47 g), which resulted in maximum seed yield (187.32 g/m2). Generally, the results of the experiment showed that in rainfed conditions, the amount of remobilization of photosynthetic materials increased. Subsequently, in this situation, the efficiency of the remobilization and also the remobilization share in grain filling increased, which probably reduced the filling time of the seeds. Thus, increase in the filling speed of the seeds, can partly compensate for the reduction of the material's transfer time to the seed. In the absence of water stress, more material is transferred to the seeds and the final weight of the seeds increases, and consequently the final yield of the seeds increases.

Application of dual inoculation of mycorrhiza and Azotobacter could improve the uptake of yield and yield components in vetch under Agroforestry system. Therefore, according to the findings of this research, the combined use of biological fertilizers to increase yield and maintain long-term production in an agroforestry system under rain-fed conditions can be desirable for sustainable agriculture.

Cowpea (Leguminosae: Papilionoidae) represents the main food legume and a versatile crop in tropical region. It is drought tolerant and could perform better growth in warm climates. It is most popular in the semi-arid regions of the tropics where other food legumes are available. This crop has been described as the major source of dietary protein in tropical and subtropical regions of the world especially where animal protein consumptions are low. Efforts made to maximize yield, is largely hampered by adverse effect of abiotic stress such as salinity and drought. These effects cause a huge loss due to low yield and failure of the crop to establish in some cases. Alternative approach towards efficient and cost effective means of production of cowpea in the tropical regions is very desirable. Pre-sowing hardening seed treatment is an easy, low cost and low risk technique and also an alternative approach recently used to overcome the effect of abiotic stresses in agricultural production. Increased germination rate and uniformity have been attributed to metabolic repair during imbibition, buildup of germination enhancing metabolites, osmotic adjustment, and, for seeds that are not redried after treatment, a simple reduction in imbibition lag time. The beneficial effects of priming have also been demonstrated for many field crops such as wheat, sugar beet, maize, soybean and sunflower. The main objective was to assess the physiological effect of Indole 3acetic acid (IAA) and gibberellic acid (GA3) on germination and seedling growth of cowpea.

This experiment was carried out at the Seed Testing Laboratory, Department of Seed Science & Technology, at the Shoushtar University in Iran, with an objective to determine the rate of seed germination and seedling growth which influenced by various concentrations of growth regulators in cowpea (Vigna sinensis L.). Seeds of cowpea were obtained from the International Institute of Agriculture (IITA), Safiabad Research Station., Ahvaz, Iran. Before the start of experiment, seeds were surface sterilized in 1% sodium hypochlorite solution for 3 min, then rinsed with sterilized water and air-dried. Moisture content of seed was determined by using oven at 103 C for 12 hrs and was found 12% as recommended value. Different concentrations of the growth substances prepared in the laboratory were transferred from the reagent bottles into 50mls conical flasks which were clearly labelled according to the concentration of the growth substances to be used in the soaking treatment. The seeds were soaked in the various concentrations of 20, 40 and 60 ppm of GA3 and IAA with a separate control set. These were soaked for 6 or 12 hours in the above concentrations and only double distilled water for the control set. The seeds were sown on moist filter papers in 9cm well labelled petri dishes.

Emergence rate, root shoot lengths, seedling biomass are all important contributors of seed vigor. Higher emergence rate is the main foundation, which ensures an improvement of overall seedling performance. Seed germination rate varied significantly among the duration and hormone treatment (p < 0.05). The results showed significant increase in the rate of germination for seeds presoaked in the distilled water when compared with various hormones concentrations. Maximum increase of up to about 25 and 71% in compare to presoaked GA3 and IAA was observed. The soaking period of 12 hrs decreased the germination rate and uniformity emergence significantly in respect to 6 hrs treatment. Substantial variation on germination and other aspects were found between treatments. The seeds treated with GA3 showed better performance, in compare with IAA treatments. In comparison, concentrations of GA3 did not show any difference in respect of all measured traits which meant the higher concentration was as good as the lower concentration. Germination rate under the treatments of IAA at all concentrations recorded maximum by 12 hrs soaking. It was observed that for germination enhancement, distilled water was best suited, but in case of plumule length and uniformity emergence, did not show any significant effect with GA3. When the two hormones were compared, gibberellic acid (GA3) was observed more effective and responsive to the regulation of radicle and plumule elongation.

The findings of this study revealed that cowpea germination and early seedling growth were promoted by pre-sowing hardening treatments in distilled water. The lower concentration of hormones (20 ppm) was found to be more effective in inducing germination rate, total dry weight and uniformity emergence. Generally, treatment of water priming for 6 hours in the laboratory and in the field was the superior treatment in terms of the predominant criteria measured in bean; therefore, it is presented as the best combination of treatment in this study.

Pulses have great contribution in human nutrition and agriculture due to having high protein content (nearly 2-fold more than cereals) and ability to biological nitrogen fixation. Pulses cultivation in dry lands requires some management issues like using superabsorbent and best nutrition managements in dry farming conditions. Superabsorbent are materials that absorb and hold water several times more than their weight, therefore they could increase plant available water and consequently could increase plant water potential. Due to importance of polymers in improving soil water holding capacity, present study was conducted with the aim of study the effect of phosphate Barvar-2 biofertilizer, iron nano-chelate and superabsorbent on qualitative and quantitative yield of chickpea (Cicer arientinum L.) under dry farming conditions.

Present study was conducted during 2015-2016 cropping year in a land located in Pole-Hero village, Khorram Abad town. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of phosphate Barvar-2 biofertilizer, iron nano-chelate and superabsorbent on qualitative and quantitative yield of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) under dry farming conditions. The study was conducted as factorial based on completely randomized design with three factors and three replications. The first factor was superabsorbent at two levels including S1 (without application) and S2 (80 kg/ha), the second factor was iron nano-chelate in three levels including F1 (foliar application of distilled water), F2 (1/1000) and F3 (2/1000) and third factor was phosphate Barvar-2 in two levels including B1 (non-application) and B2 (100 g/ha). At the end of growth season traits including sheath per plant, grain per plant, 100-grain weight were measured. Biological yield and grain yield, harvest index and grain protein percent (using NIR device) were measured, as well. Data were analyzed using MSTAT-C and mean comparisons were conducted via Duncan multiple range test and graphs were plotted using Excel software.

Results of mean comparisons of the triple effects of treatments showed that there were significant differences between treatments in terms of grain yield and yield components, leaf chlorophyll index, grain protein yield (excluding harvest index and 100-grain weight). Superabsorbent via maintaining soil moisture and preventing nitrogen leaching, iron nano-chelate via providing iron required for nitrogen metabolism and phosphate Barvar-2 through affecting nitrogen fixation caused increase in grain protein and chickpea chlorophyll index. It can also be stated that co-application of superabsorbent and foliar application of iron nano-chelate and phosphate Barvar-2 through alleviating the decrease in soil moisture and keeping soil water and providing sufficient nutrients by increasing secondary branches and spikes number per plant and grain number per plant could increase grain yield. The highest and lowest grain yield obtained in S2F3B2 and S1F1B1 treatments by 1623 and 950 kg/ha, respectively. According to the results, S2F2B2, S2F3B2, S1F3B2 and S1F2B2 had no significant difference in terms of grain yield and the highest and lowest grain yield by 1623 and 950 kg/ha obtained in S2F3B2 (superabsorbent, iron nano-chelate foliar application 2/1000 and phosphate Barvar-2) and S1F1B1 (control), respectively. Results showed that highest grain protein content by 21.86 percent was related to S2F3B2 (superabsorbent, iron nano-chelate foliar application 2/1000 and phosphate Barvar-2) and the lowest content was in S1F1B1 by 19.36 percent. The role of combined application of treatments in the study could be attributed to increase in water availability in soil and consequently higher water holding capacity in plant tissues, especially leaf tissues. This causes increase in plant photosynthetic ability and consequently grain protein yield which is a function of grain yield.

Foliar application of iron nan-chelate and also phosphate Barvar-2 biofertilizer and superabsorbent significantly affected qualitative and quantitative traits of chickpea such as grain yield, biological yield, leaf chlorophyll and grain protein content and highest levels of studied treatments (S2F2B2) resulted to highest amounts of studied traits. It could be said that application of treatments, in addition to alleviating drought stress and reducing application of chemical phosphorous fertilizers, resulted to increase in qualitative and quantitative traits and decreasing environmental pollution and increase in some nutrients concentration in soil.

Drought is one of the most important environmental stresses and is one of the most common causes of plant growth retardation and yields, and usually decreases the productivity of plants along with other environmental stresses, including salinity and heat. One of the reasons that environmental stresses such as drought, reduces growth and plant photosynthesis ability, is a disturbance in the balance between the production of free oxygen radicals and the protective mechanisms that remedy these radicals which results in the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), induction of oxidative stress, damage to proteins, membrane lipids, and other cellular components. Under adverse environmental conditions, the role of antioxidant defense system in protecting cellular membranes and other growing organs against oxidative damage seems to be very important. Brassinosteroids (BRs) comprise a group of steroidal hormones that have been implicated in a wide range of physiological responses in plants, including stem elongation, growth of pollen tubes, ethylene biosynthesis, proton pump activation, the regulation of gene expression, activation of enzymes, response to different stresses, nucleic acid and protein synthesis, and photosynthesis. In addition, BRs can protect against damage from stresses such as drought, salinity, and high temperature by activating various mechanisms in plants and increasing the activity of enzymatic antioxidants such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and glutathione reductase. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of increasing the activity of some antioxidant enzymes, nitrate reductase, photosynthetic pigments, and finally, the seed yield of common beans with the use of Epibrassinolide under drought stress conditions.

A split factorial experiment was conducted based on randomized complete block design with three replications at the research farm of Faculty of Agriculture, the University of Zanjan during the 2016-2017 cropping season. In this experiment, two irrigation conditions included optimal irrigation and drought stress were applied to main plots and two common bean genotypes including Kusha cultivar and COS16 genotype, and four levels of brassinosteroid including of no-application (control), two, four, and six μM were allocated to subplots as factorial. Drought stress was applied at the flowering stage, and common bean plants were sprayed with brassinosteroid (Epibrassinolide) simultaneously with drought stress. In this study, the activity of catalase, guaiacol peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase, nitrate reductase, chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, and seed yield were studied.

The results showed that drought stress increased the activity of catalase, guaiacol peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase by 38.89%, 84.09%, 40.46%, and 27.37% in contrast with the optimal irrigation, respectively. The highest activity of catalase, guaiacol peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase were obtained using different concentrations of Epibrassinolide under drought stress conditions. The application of 2, 4, and 6 μM of Epibrassinolide in drought stress conditions increased by 73.33%, 86.67%, and 113.33% in the catalase activity, increased by 56.36%, 71.82%, and 62.73% in the guaiacol peroxidase activity, increased by 12.82%, 46.15%, and 13.46% in the ascorbate peroxidase activity, and increased by 29.15%, 41.49%, and 47.11% in the superoxide dismutase activity in comparison with non-application of this hormone. It has been reported that the use of BRs significantly improves plant drought tolerance and reduces the accumulation of reactive oxygen species by increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes. It has been reported that the application of BRs increased the antioxidant enzymes activity in maize, tomato, mustard, soybean, and barley. Also, nitrate reductase activity increased by using of Epibrassinolide, which can enhance plant tolerance to environmental stress. The highest activity of nitrate reductase was obtained by application of 4 μM of Epibrassinolide, which did not show any significant difference with other concentrations. Improvement in the activity of nitrate reductase can be attributed to the effect of BRs on translation or transcription of nitrate reductase, or nitrate absorption at the membrane surface. In optimal irrigation conditions, the use of different concentrations of Epibrassinolide has a slight increase in the contents of chlorophyll a, b, and total, and the use of 4 μM of this hormone resulted in the highest increase in the above traits compared to non-application of the hormone. However, under drought stress conditions, this increase was significant, and the use of 2 μM of this hormone resulted in the highest increase in the above traits compared to non-application of the hormone. In other words, the use of Epibrassinolide in drought stress conditions caused a higher increase in chlorophyll a, b, and total contents relative to optimal irrigation conditions. Application of Epibrassinolide increased the seed yield in both common bean genotypes by increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes, nitrate reductase, and chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. The highest seed yield was obtained by application of 2 μM of Epibrassinolide with an average of 2068.2 kg/ha. Among the studied genotypes, the Kusha cultivar in optimal irrigation conditions (with an average of 3025.45 kg/ha) had the highest seed yield and the COS16 genotype in drought stress conditions (with an average of 980.89 kg/ha) had the lowest seed yield.

In general, the use of Epibrassinolide can be suggested as a solution to increase drought stress tolerance and enhance the growth and seed yield of common beans under optimal irrigation and drought stress conditions. In addition, the achievement of comprehensive information on the positive effects of Epibrassinolide requires a study of this hormone in different weather conditions and with other different bean genotypes.

Two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) is one of the most important damaging pests to bean farms. In order to reduce these damages, farmers are forced to spray their fields several times. One of the best methods to reduce pest damages is using of resistant cultivars. In addition to tolerance to the pests and reduction of spraying and consequently reduction of environmental pollutions, this method can also have benenefit of higher yield. In this research,bean cultivars resistance to two- spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) in field conditions evaluated.

In order to study and evaluate resistance of eight cultivars (including: Sadri, Shokufa, Akhtar, Khomein, Dorsa, Kusha, Darakhshan and Pak) and two lines (21191 and 31169) of bean to two-spotted spider mite during two successive farming years of 2015 and 2016. An experiment was conducted in the form of split plots design in time, in National Research Bean Center of Khomein city. This experiment was performed by observational method with leaves’, stems’, pods’ and bushes infestation to two-spotted spider mite and comparing them with the control and the evaluation of their yields. The statistical population included 10 genotypes of bean. This experiment was carried out in four replications in a field with a size of 23 × 26 m in a split plot arrangement based on a randomized complete block design. Ten genotypes were tested against two-spotted spider mite on leaf, stem, pods, plant, and their grain yield by spray treatment. In each plot, 30 samples were prepared. The data were analyzed by SAS software. The comparison of the mean of infestation of the cultivars and the sampling time by Duncan's test and the comparison of the mean yield by Tukey HSD test was performed.

Infestation in the stems of bean began in two consecutive years on 12 August every year and peaked on the 22 of August. The highest amount of stem infestation in two years was related to Darakhshan cultivar and Dorsa and Line 21191 had the least infestation in this regard. Infestation in pods of beans began in year 2015 on 26th of August and in 2016 year on the 21st of August. But in two consecutive years, the peak of pod infestation was on 16th of September. Darakhshan, Sadri, Khomein cultivars were identified as susceptible cultivars to the mite and the cultivars Dorsa, Kusha and Line 21191 as more resistant cultivars in this regard. Beginning of infestation in bushes in both years was 20 September and the peak of them occurred on 30 September. Results showed that the amount of infestation of experimental cultivars and lines to two-spotted spider mite was significantly different. These differences were related to the beginning of infestation and yield. Means comparison showed that Darakhshan, Akhtar and Khomein were sensitive to the pest but line 21191 and Kusha cultivar as chiti bean cultivars, Dorsa as a White bean cultivar, and line 31169 as a Red bean have more resistance to two-spotted spider mite and have acceptable yield in comparison with other experimental cultivars. The combined analysis of the data two yearly showed that the effect of year on the grain yield was significant, which was probably due to the uneven atmospheric rainfall, exposure to light, or under the influence of environmental stresses over two years. Also, the interaction of year and cultivar was not significant that it is showed the same response of the cultivars to the pest in the two years of the experiment.

In general, the results of the present study showed that Dorsa, Kusha and line of 21191, as compared to Darakhshan, Chiti of Khomein, showed more resistance to the populations of two-spotted spider mite in field conditions that the most important causes of these results cases such as genotype, vegetation type and date of mite infestation can be attributed. Therefore, in order to prevent continuous spraying in bean fields and to obtain optimum yield, it is recommended that the line 21191 (introduced in 2016 as Ghaffar cultivar) and Dorsa and Kusha cultivars to be used. Also, Dorsa cultivar as white bean cultivar, line 21191 (Ghaffar cultivar) as chiti’s bean, and line 31169 (which was introduced as Yaghut ​​cultivar in 2016) as a red bean, resistant cultivars to two-spotted spider mite was designated in this study. So this research can be very helpful and efficient for improving yield and reducing the use of pesticides in the bean fields.

Chickpea is one of the most important sources of protein in human diet. The significance of salinity resistant genotypes for growth and development has been recognized in saline environments. Recognition of salin resistant genotypes is an important and economical goal to improve chickpea performance in saline soils. Under salinity stress, destruct chloroplast structure and decreases photosynthetic pigments. Osmotic regulations induced by changes in nitrogen metabolisms in via formation of prolin. Prolin, as a osmosis regulator between cytoplasm and vacoel, by preventing denaturation of protein structures, protects cellular structure against free radicals. Calcium is an essential element to improvement of injurey of salinity stress in plant. Calcium is substitute other cations in plasma membrane. Plasma membrane is strongly sensitive to salinity stress specialy while the the calcium concentration is low. Studies show that the ion accumulation site in saline tolerant plants is vacuoles. Due to ameliorative role of calcium in saline stress, the present study was conducted to investigate the response of common chickpea cultivars to different concentrations of Na+ and Ca2+ ions in flowering stage.

In order to investigate the effect of calcium on amelioration of salinity damage, a factorial experiment as completely randomized design with three replications was conducted by five sodium chloride )0, 3, 6, 9, 12 dS/m( and two calcium sulfate levels )0 and 5 mM) in phytotron condition in Research Center for Plant Sciences, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Each experimental unit was a pot with 2 liter that contain mix of soil garden and silt. After 6 weeks plants were extracted and morphological traits such as plant height, leaf area, root length, dry weight of shoot, leaf and root, root area and physiological traits such as SPAD number, membrane stability, leaf relative water content, and biochemical traits such as Sodium, potassium and calcium, proline were measured. Data analysis was performed by Mstat-C and used Duncan's multiple domain test (P <0.05) to compare means.

The results showed that salinity significantly increased the sodium and proline contains of leaves and roots. Na+ concentration in 9 dS/m salinity, significantly decreased in both cultivars. Also, salinity increased the potassium content of leaf and calcium content of root and shoot. Leaves potassium content under 9-12 dS/ m salinity, calcium only under 12 dS/m salinity and root calcium content under 9 to 12 dS/m compared to control significantly decreased. Studies have shown in high salinity concentrations, the caspary ring can not inhibit the arrival of sodium ions into the tissues plant and ends with leaves through the unilateral flow of wood. In toxic contaminants of Na+, the glutamateligase enzyme activity increases to convert glutamine to proline. In saline environments, application of calcium is required to synthesis of osmotic protection compounds such as proline, to biochemical compatibility of plant. Salinity increases proline product and decreases the synthesis of chlorophyll precursor. Also, chlorophyll content decreases due to increased chlorophylase activity. The SPAD number and the membrane stability index significantly decreased at 6 to 12 dS/m salinity. In both cultivar, amilorateing effect of calcium under lower salinites (less than 6 dS/m) was higher than the high levels of salinity. For Jam cultivars, the use of calcium sulfate significantly increased the membrane stability index compared to control (no calcium application) in all salinity levels. In salt stress conditions, the capacity of water absorption in plant decreases and gradually salt accumulates in plant environment. Research has shown that salinity decreases the photosynthesis by reducing stomatal conductance. In this way, salinity stress usally increase number and dimensions of stomata per leaf area. The results of means comparison showed that plant height under 6-12 dS/m salinites, significantly decreased compared to control. The cause of less plant growth in high concentrations of Na+ is joint effects of osmotic stress, ion toxicity and nutrient concentrations, which limits the amount of available water of the plant and reduces root water absorption.

Salinity has a great effect on the growth of crops such as chickpea. High concentrations of Na+ reduced the growth of both chickpea cultivars (Jam and Pirooz) by increasing the permeability of the membrane. Calcium treatment in lower salinity levels could improved the relative growth of the plants and it is belive that calcium acts as a moderator salinity leveles.

Pulses play an important role in human nutrition. Among the pulses, chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is the valuable food in terms of carbohydrates and protein. Chickpea with more than 8 million tons per year ranks third crop in the world. It is planting in 48 countries with more than 12.11 million hectares. The aim of any breeding program working for unpredictable and rainfed environments is to develop varieties with high and stable yields. Breeders take advantage of the selection for several traits to achieve maximum economic yield. The selection of genotypes based on indices using yield components was used by breeders for a long time. Breeders were believed that obtaining a linear function of traits or selection index could lead the selection of genotypes with better genetic values but including economic weights in this function have been expressed by many researchers. Simultaneous selection using characteristics with important and heritable economic values is more effective. Crop yield is a function of multiple interrelated variables and cannot be defined only by a single-variable equation. One of the most effective method is boundary lines that was introduced by Feiziasl et al, (2003 and 2010) for the first time to determine the optimum levels of plant (dryland wheat) characteristics and yield stability analysis. In this paper, “Boundary Lines” and averaging methods and PCA are used to determine optimum levels for some traits of dryland chickpea in cold areas, Iran.

More than 8000 data for each trait were collected from national and international trials conducted in Dryland Agricultural Research Institute (DARI) experimental stations in Maragheh, Kurdestan, Zanjan, Uromieh and Ardabil from 1996- 2016. The traits were days to flowering, days to physiological maturity, grain filling period, plant height, 100 seed weight and grain yield. The Excel software was used to develop a scatter diagram showing therelationship between each trait with grain yield in each location. Two methods were used to determine the optimum value for a given trait. One is based on the boundary lines method where the maximum grain yield and the optimum value for the trait considered coincide with the crossing point of the two boundary lines. “Boundary Lines” method was used to determine the maximum limit for each trait. The scatter diagram is surrounded by two regression lines, one on the left and the other on the right called boundary lines. Then Maximum yield was obtained at the intersection of both boundary lines. The other approach, called averaging method, is based on subdividing the data into two groups: high and low yielding groups.

The boundary lines method determined the optimum levels for days to flowering, days to physiological maturity, grain filling duration, plant height and 100 seed weight which were 56.2 days for spring and 89.2 days for autumn, 89.4 days for spring and 120.8 days for autumn, 33.1 days, 29.8 centimeters and 34.0 grams, respectively. By averaging of high yielding group method, optimum values for days to flowering, days to physiological maturity, duration grain filling duration, plant height and 100 seed weight characteristics were 75.6 days, 108.8 days, 37.7 days, 30.2 centimeters, and 26.0 grams, respectively. The optimum values for plant height and 100 seed weight were almost the same in both methods while for other traits optimum levels were so different. Principle component analysis (PCA) show that, the most important traits to select high yielding chickpea varieties were days to flowering, days to physiological maturity, and plant height. These methods could help breeders to determine the range of optimum value for traits determining the adaptation of genotypes to a given environment. Boundary lines method is more reliable to determine of characteristic’s optimum levels in comparison with the averaging method.

It can be concluded that, determining the optimum levels of some dryland chickpea characteristics were closely equivalent in boundary lines and averaging methods while, for some characteristics, the estimated optimum levels by these methods were so different. Because boundary lines method is considered the data distribution process and gap data in databank, therefore, its estimations for the optimum levels of the characteristics are more accurate and reliable than the averaging of the high yielding group.

Drought is the most important stress factor that affects agricultural production in the arid and semiarid areas and reduce crop production. Iran is a country with a warm and dry climate that more than 85% of it located in arid and semi-arid areas. Improving the water use efficiency through agronomic management is one of the most effective and low cost approches for water management in the agricultural fields. The main objective of this study was to investigate the growth and yield response of kidney bean to deficit irrigation with the aim of increasing water use efficiency. In addition, the other objective of this study was to determine the desired level of nitrogen fertilizer at each level of water stress that make improve water uses efficiency.

In order to study the effect of irrigation and nitrogen fertilizer on yield and water use efficiency of kidney bean, an experiment was conducted as a randomized complete block design with a split plot arrangement of tratment in 2016 in Saveh, Iran. The deficit irrigation treatments as a main plot were irrigation at 40% of soil moisture depletion (non-stress treatment), irrigation at 50% of soil moisture deplation and at 60% of soil moisture deplation. The irrgation at 40% soil moisture depletion was considered as an acceptable moisture discharge rate for achieving maximum yield and other irrigation treatments considered as deficit irrigation. Sub-plot was included nitrogen fertilizer application rate at 0 (control), 25, 50 and 100% of maximum nitrogen requirement of dry bean plant. The middle two rows of 60 cm length were harvested for seed yield and LAI determination. At harvest time, a sub-sample of 10 plants were sampled from each plot to determine the number of pods per plantand seeds per pod.Biomass was obtained by drying plants at 70◦C. After drying and threshing, grain yield was determined.

The results showed that drought stress under irrigation after 60% soil moisture depletion decreased leaf area index, dry matter, seed number per unit area and finally kidney bean seed yield. However, mild stress treatment (50% soil moisture deplation) had a significant decrease in seed number per unit area and seed yield compared to optimal irrigation treatment. Furthermore, water use efficiency in kidney bean was increased at both levels of deficit irrigation compared to the full irrigation treatment. The results also showed that growth and yield traits and water use efficiency of kidney bean improved with nitrogen fertilizer application compare to no nitrogen application. The results also showed that the response of seed yield to nitrogen fertilizer was dependent on the amount of applied irrigation water in different irrigation regimes. At irrigation regime by 40% soil moisture depletion, seed yield of kidney bean increased by 11, 16 and 13% with nitrogen application rates of 50, 100 and 200 kg ha-1, respectively. While, seed yield was increased by 9, 14 and 10% with nitrogen application rates of 50, 100 and 200 kg ha-1, respectively, when kidney bean plants irrigated at 60% soil moisture depletion. The water use efficiency of kidney bean had no significant differences between 100 and 200 kg N ha-1. However, the N application rate less than 100 N ha-1 caused a significant reduction in water use efficiency of kidney bean plant. The regression analysis also showed that the responses of seed yield and water use efficiency to nitrogen fertilizer application rate at all irrigation levels were quadratic, and this quadratic response explaind 99 % of varion in these traits.

The results showed that the irrigation of kidney bean at 50% soil moisture depletion compared to irrigation at 40% soil moisture depletion could increase water use efficiency without any significant reduction in seed yield. The irrigation at 50% soil moisture depletion saved irrigation water about 270 m-3 ha-1 compared to the irrigation at 40% soil moisture depletion. We also concluded that the application of 50 % of maximum nitrogen requirement for bean plant could produce maximum seed yield and water use efficiency in all irrigation regimes.

Chickpea is one of the most important pulses in the world and it plays a key role in feeding of people in Iran. Iran is one of the original centers of chickpea. This plant has a significant genetic diversity and has favorable conditions for breeding and introducing new cultivars in Iran. According to FAO reports (2014), the average grain yield of chickpea in Iran with a cultivated area of 565 thousand hectares and an average yield of 557 kg per hectare is very low compared to the average of the major countries producing chickpeas. In order to solve this problem, identification of the initial variety of lines and cultivars to start the program is of particular importance. In fact, three factors of heredity, high diversity and severity of selection are effective factors in increasing the response to selection. In this regard, there are various methods for estimating genetic variation in plant species, one of the most important of these methods is multivariate analysis. It is necessary to use these methods for the classification of germplasm and the analysis of the genetic relationships existing between the modifying materials. Among the various methods of multivariate analysis, the principal component analysis, factor analysis, cluster analysis and decomposition function analysis are among the most important of these methods. In fact, one of the important goals of an outbreak is to select the best genotypes. In order to achieve this goal, the studied population should have a significant variation in terms of the characteristics studied, which knowledge of this diversity requires evaluation of the germplasm.

This study included 20 chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) promising lines were planted in a randomized complete block design with three replications in 2013 growing season. To evaluate the diversity of lines based on important agro-morphological traits and to achieve the desired goals, various statistical methods including principal component analysis, factor analysis, cluster analysis and decomposition function analysis were used. Genotypic coefficient of variance (GCV) and phenotype coefficient of variance (PCV) using genotype variance and phenotype variance, respectively, were calculated. All calculations and statistical analyzes such as component analysis, cluster analysis, and decomposition function analysis were performed using SPSS and Minitab software.

The lowest and the highest coefficient of genotypic changes were related to day physiology (2.66%) and 100-seed weight (49.76%). The results showed that the three main first components explained 76% of the total variance of the traits totally. The first and second components were named as "component of grain yield increase" and "vegetative growth component". The results of factor analysis were consistent with the results of the principal component analysis. In order to cluster the studied lines and for their grouping based on the studied traits, Ward method and Pearson’s square distance matrix were used. According to the cluster analysis, the genotypes were located in three distinct groups, so that the second and third clusters had the highest genetic distance and they were recognized as “yield clusters" and "vegetative growth cluster", respectively. Therefore, crossing between the two above mentioned-groups, will result to high artificial diversity in the future generations. According to the cluster analysis, the lines were divided into three separate clusters. Discriminant function analysis confirmed the cluster grouping completely. In a study, nineteen chickpea lines and five genotypes of wild chickpea (Cicer veticulatum) were classified into three distinct groups using cluster analysis, so that wild-type genotypes in one group and two lines of cropping lines were grouped separately from other lines. Ganjali et al, (2009), applied the multivariate bi-plot analysis to evaluate the variation in chickpea germplasm for drought resistance.

There was a remarkable genetic diversity for the current germplasm, therefore existence a high level of genetic diversity and a remarkable GVC for the trait of 100-seed weight indicating that this trait can be used as a suitable character for yield improvement in the germplasm and under this experiment conditions. Finally, selection for high levels of biomass, pod number per plant and seed number per plant, and a low amount of main branches number, will increase the grain yield in the future breeding program.

Intercropping is an old cropping practices, possibly as old as the settled agriculture, and is widespread especially in low-input cropping systems. One of the most popular intercropping practices is the cultivation of certain annual legumes with cereals. Intercropping of two or more crop species not only improves yield on a given land area by making more efficient use of the available growth resources but also enhances biological activities in the soil and suppresses weeds, pests and diseases. Intercropping of barley and chickpea improves the use of plant growth resources, i.e. species do not compete precisely for the same niches.Relay intercropping refers to a cropping system in which the lifecycle of one crop overlaps that of another crop. Usually the second crop is planted after the first crop has reached its reproductive stage of growth but before it is ready for harvest. The purpose of this experiment was to detect the most suitable intercropping system and appropriate planting dates for chickpea and barley for sustainable production of these plants under water stress conditions at late growing season.

An experiment was carried out as a factorial split plot based on randomized complete block design with three replications at College of Agriculture and Natural Resources of Darab, Shiraz University during 2017-2018 growing season. The cropping systems included of two factors. The main plot was two water regimes including cutting off irrigation at the beginning of milk development stage and normal irrigation. Sub plot was 8 relay intercropping ratios as additive series consisted of monoculture of Zehak six-rowed barley cultivar (b), monoculture of Darab chickpea cultivar (c) cultivation of barley on December (b1), cultivation of barley on January (b2), cultivation of chickpea on December (c1), cultivation of chickpea on January (c2) and different combinations of relay intercropping consisted of cultivation of barley on December+chickpea on December (b1c1), cultivation of barley on December+chickpea on January (b1c2), cultivation of barley on January+chickpea on December (b2c1) and cultivation of barley on January+chickpea on January (b2c2) with a ratio of 1:1. Two weeks after drought stress the traits of chlorophyll a, b, catalase, peroxidase, were measured and at crop maturity, plants were hand harvested to measure biological yield, yield and yield components including number of pods/plant, number of seed/plant, 1000-seed weight, grain protein and land equivalent ratio. Finally, analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed using SAS v. 9.4 software and the means compared by LSD test at 5 % probability level (p≤0.05).

Analysis of variance showed that late season drought stress had a significant effect on all plant traits except the number of seed/pod, 1000-seed weight and chickpea seed protein. In chickpea drought stress reduced the amount of chlorophyll a in all treatments and minimum amount of chlorophyll a was achieved in intercropping of barley on January. Also drought stress reduced the amount of chlorophyll b in all treatments except for the cultivation of chickpea on January. Interestingly, drought stress increased the amount of catalase (74.04%) and peroxidase enzymes (81.36%) in intercropping of barley on December+chickpea on January and barley on December+chickpea on December, respectively. Water stress increased 58% and 25% land equivalent ratio chickpea and total compared to the normal irrigation conditions. Finally, the maximum seed yield was obtained under drought stress conditions in barley on December+chickpea on January intercropping.

The result of this study showed that in general, late season drought stress reduced the amount of chlorophyll a and the maximum and minimum amount of reduction was 46.6 and 22.3% in intercropping barley on December+chickpea on January and barley on January+chickpea on January, respectively. Also drought stress reduced the amount of chlorophyll b in all treatments except chickpea on January, while drought stress increased the amount of catalase and peroxidase enzymes with the maximum increase of 74.04 and 81.36% intercropping barley on December+chickpea on January and barley on December+chickpea on December respectively. In this experiment, in barley on December+chickpea on January intercropping treatment, drought stress increased 58% and 25% land equivalent ratio of chickpea and total compared to the normal irrigation conditions, respectively. The results can be recommended for intercropping in some areas. Therefore, relay intercropping can greatly increase the economic efficiency and productivity of agricultural land use.

Soil contamination with heavy metals is one of the most serious problems in the agricultural environments. Due to excessive injudicious and unregulated use of agrochemicals such as pesticides, bactericides and fungicides, which contain Cu as an active component, contamination of agricultural soils with Cu is often occurred. In many plant species, excess copper (Cu) toxicity is an important disorder that limits uptake and accumulation of mineral nutrients. The root system of crops in contact with the roots of neighbor plants (crop or weed) has different characteristics in terms of heavy metals adsorption compared to the pure stand of crops. The position of the roots of heavy metal accumulator weeds may affect the absorption of such metals by adjacent crops in infected conditions. The heavy metal accumulator weeds by reducing or evacuating metals from the rhizosphere of the adjacent plants, cause the plants to be immune to the toxicity of metals. Biomass reduction is a dominant effect of copper toxicity in plants. Application of high copper doses (50 and 75 µM) in nutrient solution, decreased the dry weight of common bean plants in comparison with control. Contamination of soil can affect ecological interactions between plants such as the weed-crop competition. Positive plant-plant interactions are expected to be especially beneficial under high abiotic stresses and therefore, the facilitation effects could be enhanced by increasing stress intensity. Weeds possess the ability to accumulate heavy metal and nutrients, in comparison with crops. The role of nurse plants in facilitating plant community has been applied in severe conditions. Metal hyper-accumulator plants have a positive effect on co-occurring species in met al-rich soils. Redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) is a serious weed, which affects common bean production. Amaranthus retroflexus and Amaranthus spinosus are known as metal accumulators. We hypothesized that in contaminated fields, the effects of heavy metals on crop growth may be modified by the presence of a metal accumulator weed such as redroot pigweed.

To investigate copper uptake and accumulation of mineral nutrients by common bean in association with redroot pigweed under excessive copper conditions, a factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design with four replications was carried out in a research greenhouse of Bu-Ali Sina University in 2016. Experimental factors were three Cu doses of 1 (control), 25 and 50µM CuSO4 and five replacement intercropping ratios of bean (B) and redroot pigweed (P) (1B: 0P, 0.75B: 0.25P, 0.5B: 0.5P, 0.25B: 0.75P, 0B:1P). The experiment was carried out in a hydroponic condition. 15 days after seedling establishment, the seedlings of both plants were transferred to the hydroponic conditions with a Hoagland solution, and Cu doses were applied in the Hoagland solution. 30 days after growing the plants in above condition, biomass dry weight and concentration of Cu, K, P and Mg in the leaves and roots of both plants as well as copper translocation factor were determined.

The results showed that under three doses of copper, the highest concentration of copper in bean was obtained in sole crops, and with increasing replacement intercropping ratios of pigweed, the copper concentration was decreased in bean. In pigweed, the highest concentration of copper was observed in 0.75B: 0.25P proportion. At 1µM CuSO4, potassium concentration in the roots and the leaves of bean in 0.25B: 0.75P proportion, was decreased by 7 percentage in comparison with that of the sole crops, and at 25 µM CuSO4, by 10 percentage and at 50 µM CuSO4, by 15 percentage were increased compared to the sole crops, respectively. At 25 µM CuSO4, phosphorus and magnesium concentration in the roots of bean in 0.25B: 0.75P proportion was increased by 17 and 18 percentage, and at 50 µM CuSO4, by 21 and 26 percentage, respectively in comparison with the sole crops, respectively. Association of pigweed to the bean, decreased Cu pollution in bean plants, which could be related to the balance of nutrient elements uptake by bean under excessive copper conditions. Under excessive copper conditions, the higher copper uptake by pigweed, improved the growth of bean.

The results of this study showed the facilitative effects of pigweed plant in decreasing the Cu toxicity stress effects to the bean and indicated that pigweed could be as a potential Cu accumulator to improve bean plant growth under the Cu stress. Here we showed that the presence of some heavy met al accumulator plants such as pigweed in common bean farms, might be a useful practice in contaminated soils. In addition, these facilitation effects of such weeds, emphasize ecological management of weeds rather than weed eradication.

Climate change is an undeniable fact, and today this phenomenon has become a global issue. Its effects on crops yield and their stability facing increasing global climate change. Yield stability will be the most serious challenge for maintaining agricultural production and food security. After the cereals, pulses are the second most important source of food in Iran and the world, have great importance in agricultural systems and human nutrition. The yield of pulses has more variation than other crops, so the study of the yield stability of these crops can help the policy makers to develop the plans helping preservation and enhancement of pulses yield. The aim of this study was to research the yield stability of pulse crops in Iran for 33 years using different analytical methods.

All available statistics including the yield data on of chickpea, beans, and lentil data for the years 1983 to 2016, were collected from the published statistics by the Iranian ministry of agriculture. The residuals of regression between yield and time of the yields and its trends calculated from linear, bi-lines and tri‑lines models which were selected based on the higher coefficient of determination (R2) and normality of the residuals. Absolute values of the regression residuals were also used to calculate relative residuals of yields. The coefficient of variation (CV) for yields of every 4-year period was calculated by dividing the standard deviation by average. Mean yield of all pulses also were calculated as “Environment Index” to use in Finley-Wilkinson model. The positive slope of the residuals of linear regression, CV and Finlay‑Wilkinson model means the increase of yield instability and slope of zero and the negative slope of the linear regression indicates relative stability and increase of stability of the yield, respectively.

The increase in rainfed chickpea yield over the studied period was low and close to 0.75 kg ha‑1 y‑1. The trend of rainfed lentil yield was negative with a slope of -0.61 kg ha-1 y‑1 and the highest amount of yield increasement belonged to rainfed and irrigated bean by 25.17 and 21 kg ha‑1 y‑1. All the trends of residuals of pulses were positive that means instability of pulses yields over the studied period. Irrigated chickpea and rainfed lentil showed the highest CV trends and rainfed bean have had the highest range of values of CV. A CV as a simple and widely used parameter can show the standard deviation of the yield over the different environments and years, so higher values and positive trend of CV means higher fluctuations of yield level and its lower stability. Yield stability of the rainfed bean was lower than others but the trend of yield stability of irrigated chickpea and rainfed lentil is more than other pulses. Based on Finley-Wilkinson model, the trend of stability of all pulses was low and negative. Yield stability of the irrigated and rainfed bean was the lowest. Although due to the fact that rainfall is the major factor affecting the rainfed yield, it is expected that the irrigated yields to be more stable than rainfed yields, in contrary to our expectations, based on the results and the slope of the regression of the model, the yield of irrigated chickpea and lentil were more unstable than rainfed yield. The cultivated area of rainfed chickpea and lentil and irrigated beans showed a positive trend during the study period and inversely, the cultivated area of irrigated chickpea and lentil and rainfed bean were decreased. Absolute residuals of the yield as the indicator of stability (which has an inverse relationship) as a function of cultivated area, increased in about all of the studied crops except irrigated chickpea and rainfed bean. Most stable crops in the larger cultivated area were irrigated chickpea and rainfed bean.

According to the results, the overall trends in the yield increasement of pulse crops in Iran are low. The trend of chickpea and lentil has been much lower than rainfed and irrigated bean. On the other hand, fluctuations in yield over the past decades are high and therefore the stability of the country's pulses is also low. In Iran, it seems essential to development of new integrated and effective policies for the supporting scientific researched in the order to introducing new varieties, reduction of yield gap of pulses crops and improvement of their yield stability, and also education in order to improve the management of the pulse crops agroecosystems, as well as mitigation of the effects of climate change.

In saline environments, plant growth and crop production are greatly reduced. Salinity, induces oxidative stress in the plants resulting in the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), subsequently, cell membranes, proteins and nucleic acids are destroyed by ROS. Calcium plays a key role in processes that preserve the structural and functional integrity of plant cell membranes, stabilizes cell wall structures, regulates ion transport and selectivity, and controls ion-exchange behavior as well as cell wall enzyme activities. High concentration of Ca2+, stimulates its entry to the cell through ion channels. These channels are also permeable to sodium. Studies have shown that increasing Ca2+ concentration, decreases plasma membrane permeability to Na+ and changes the cell wall properties resulting in reduced Na+ transport by passive transport and decreased Na+ accumulation in the cell. The main objective is to identify the interaction effects of Na+/Ca2+ ions on morpho physiological characteristics of Bean plant and investigation the ameliorative effects of Ca2+ on salinity-induced damages.

 In order to evaluate the effects of different concentrations of Na+ (NaCl) including: 0, 50, 100 and 150 mM NaCl and Ca2+ (CaCl2) including: 0, 5, 10 and 15 mM CaCl2 on morph physiological characteristics of Bean an experiment was arranged as a factorial, based on completely random design. The plastic pots containing seeds were transferred to growth chamber with 600 µmol.m2.s-1 light intensity, 16/8h light and dark period, respectively. The pots were irrigated with water (without NaCl) for 14 days until emergence, then different concentrations of Ca2+ and Na+ were applied. In 6th week after sowing, plants were harvested and morphological and physiological characteristics were evaluated. The amount of some elements in roots and leaves were determined. Data were analyzed using MSTAT-C software.

The interaction of Na+ and Ca2+ on all morphological traits except root dry weight was significant. Toxicity and drought stress are the result of plant exposure to high concentrations of sodium. As water enters the cell, the turgor pressure increases causing the cell walls to extend irreversibly. The rate at which a cell expands is a function of its turgor pressure and cell wall properties. In all salinity levels, the use of 5 and 10 mM Ca2 + significantly increased plant height compared to control. In high salinity levels (100 and 150 mM NaCl), the role of calcium in increasing plant height decreased. In severity stress (150 mM NaCl), application of 10 mM Ca2 +, significantly increased shoot dry weight and leaf area compared to control. Results for root dry weight showed that, with increasing salinity, root dry weight at all levels of Ca2+, decreased. The highest root dry weight and total root length were attributed to the application of 5 mg Ca2 + in saline-free medium. Application of Ca2 + (mainly at 5 and 10 mM) moderated the negative effects of salinity on morphological traits. The elevated Ca2 + in the medium containing Na + ions, inhibits the binding of Na + to cell walls and the plasma membrane probably. In this way electrolyte leakage in the membrane may be reduced. Calcium improves the ability to synthesize and repair of cell walls with a more efficient function by participating in cell wall construction. In low and medium salinity, the use of 10 mM Ca2+ protected cell membranes from adverse effect of Na+, when compared to the control. Supplemental of 5 and 10 mM Ca2+ in all salinity levels, almost improved the leaf relative water content when compared to the control (non-applied Ca2+). Promotion in hydraulic conductivity, more stability and efficient membranes for selective absorption are the other features that were affected by Ca2+ supplemental. In high salinity, the use of 5 mM Ca2+ reduced the negative effects of salinity on total chlorophyll contain when compared to the control. At all salinity levels, application of 5 and 10 mM CaCl2 significantly reduced leaf proline content compared to control. In this regard, the effect of 5 mM Ca2+ was greater than 10 mM Ca2+. Addition of Ca2+ to the medium of plant exposed to salt stress, reduced proline concentration by increasing proline oxidase and following that reduction in glutamyl kinase activity and finally glutamine is used to synthesize more chlorophyll. At all salinity levels, the use of 5 and 10 mM Ca2 + significantly increased the activity of poly phenol oxidase compared to the control. Calcium promoted the synthesis and activity of many enzymes involved in defense mechanism and reduces the rate of proteolytic degradation. In this way Calcium modulates oxidative stress by altering plant metabolism. Results showed that the use of 5 and 10 mM Ca2 + significantly (P≤ 0.05) reduced the amount of Na+ in the plants (leaves + roots) when compared to control. This result for K+ accumulation was adverse. The obtained results go in line with the findings of other scientists. Wu and Wang, 2012 reported, Ca2+ decreased roots Na+ accumulation, increased shoots K+ accumulation, and enhanced the selective absorption and transport capacity for K+ over Na+ in the plant.

Salinity stress significantly reduced plant morphological characteristics but other traits such as proline and polyphenol oxidase increased. Membrane stability index, leaf relative water content, total chlorophyll content and leaf and root potassium content were significantly decreased with applying salinity stress. The use of Ca2+ ions, especially 5 and 10 mM, greatly reduced the negative effects of salinity. It seems that the use of calcium application can be considered as a simple and low cost method for reducing the adverse effects of salinity stress.