نشریه تحقیقات علوم زراعی در مناطق خشک
سال ششم شماره 3 (پیاپی 14، پاییز 1403)

Increasing soil carbon, both globally and on a farm level, has been considered as a fundamental strategy to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide and increase soil productivity. Because agricultural ecosystems cover 11% of the earth's surface and wheat is one of the three most important grains in the world, any study on increasing soil carbon through land management and organic additive management can lead to a better understanding of our potential for soil improvement, ecosystem services, higher biomass yields, nutrient recycling, potentially increasing agricultural and ecological productivity. Crop rotation significantly affects the sequestration capacity of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and the change of cropping systems from fallowing to continuous cultivation can affect the rate of carbon sequestration in the soil through the introduction of more organic carbon. Also, managing the use of fertilizers, especially nitrogen, will not only increase crop yields, but also increase carbon sequestration as a secondary benefit to the land. Due to the alkalinity of most soils in arid and semi-arid regions, the addition of organic matter reduces soil acidity and improves plant growth conditions, increases the ability to absorb elements such as phosphorus and iron, moreover has a positive effect on increasing biomass production and carbon sequestration.

This study was conducted to take advantage of a set of desirable crop measures in diverse production systems with the aim of improving the chemical properties of soil and carbon sequestration with a focus on wheat during the two cropping years of 2018-19 and 2019-20 in a farm in Taybad plain. In this study, the factor of the cropping system in four levels (wild rocket-wheat, fallow-wheat, mung bean-wheat and corn-wheat) and the factor of nitrogen fertilizer levels (100, 50% and without nitrogen fertilizer application) were implemented in a randomized complete block design as factorial with three replications. Soil chemical properties such as acidity, organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorus and iron were measured.

The highest amount of acidity was observed in corn-wheat treatment with 50% nitrogen fertilizer supply and the lowest amount of acidity was observed in wild rocket-wheat treatment with 100% nitrogen fertilizer supply. The study of treatments shows that wild rocket and mung bean showed the best results in increasing soil organic carbon and carbon sequestration. Corn less than were able to increase soil organic carbon, although with increasing nitrogen fertilizer supply in the corn-wheat cropping system, organic carbon improved compared to the control treatment. The results also showed that wild rocket-wheat treatment with 100% nitrogen fertilizer supply experienced the highest increase (56.7%) and corn-wheat treatment with 50% nitrogen fertilizer supply experienced the lowest (21.4%) increase in soil organic carbon. Soil nitrogen was also significantly affected by the increase of soil organic carbon mainly in two treatments of wild rocket-wheat (25.6%) and mung bean-wheat (17.9%) in conditions of 100% nitrogen fertilizer supply, while fallow-wheat and Wheat maize without nitrogen fertilizer showed the highest reduction in soil nitrogen content of 15.3% and 20.5%, respectively. Phosphorus and iron levels also increased in all treatments. The results of trait correlation also showed that reducing acidity in alkaline soils is the key to success in increasing plant access to phosphorus (r = -0.37 **) and iron (r = -0.33 **). It seems that the most important factor in the improving farming practices, which leads to an increase in organic carbon and consequently soil fertility, is the removal of fallow and continuous cultivation of agricultural lands.

The results showed that soil organic carbon increased in all treatments and led to increased carbon sequestration and improved soil chemical properties. The results regarding nitrogen also showed that non-use of nitrogen fertilizer in all cropping systems reduce or stop the increase of nitrogen and the need for optimal use of nitrogen fertilizer even in the case of using cover crops or legume as a nitrogen stabilizer. Reducing acidity in alkaline soils is the key to success in increasing plant access to phosphorus, although the capacity of soil organic carbon to retain phosphorus and iron in the soil should not be underestimated. Also, cropping systems affected by the type of crop rotation had different effects on soil properties. It seems that in addition to determining the quantity and quality of plant residues, plant rotation will have a different behavior on the concentration of soil elements depending on the amount of harvest of each nutrient.

Considering the growing human population and the loss of environmental moderation, it is essential to use effective scientific methods to produce as many crops as possible and create more diversity in them. Sustainable agriculture is the most beneficial way to use the sun's energy and convert it into agricultural products without destroying the soil, water and environment. The global approach to the use of medicinal plants and natural compounds in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic-sanitary and food industries, followed by the attention of the people, officials and domestic industries to the use of medicinal and aromatic plants, creates an urgent need for extensive basic and applied research. It shows in this context. Medicinal plants are one of the most valuable resources in Iran's wide range of natural resources, which can play an important role in society's health, job creation, and non-oil exports if scientifically recognized, cultivated, developed, and exploited correctly. The diversity of climate and different ecological conditions have caused the diversity and richness of medicinal plants throughout Iran. The need for comprehensive research and correct utilization of these plants is very necessary, especially when the world's use of medicinal plants in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic-health and food industries has accelerated. In this regard, in this research, it has been tried to evaluate the ecotypes of the common Dragon's head in the region in terms of performance and performance components, and identify and introduce the most suitable ecotypes for the region and, if necessary, in the improvement programs. be noticed. In order to evaluate the performance and components of performance of 49 ecotypes of Dragon's head (Gare Zarak) collected from different regions of the country, a research was conducted in the form of randomized complete block design with 3 replications during 1995 and 1996 in the research farm of Tabriz University's Faculty of Agriculture. The most important traits measured were the number of seeds per capsule, number of seeds per plant, thousand seed weight, seed yield and harvest index. The obtained results showed that the ecotypes showed significant differences with each other in most of the studied traits. Ecotype No. 37 (Alvar Village, Bostan-Abad) was highly superior in terms of many traits, especially in terms of grain yield. The results of correlation, regression and causality analyzes showed that the number of seeds per plant and the number of seeds per capsule had the highest correlation with seed yield and are considered effective components in increasing seed yield. The highest correlation coefficient (0.879) was observed between the number of seeds per plant and the seed yield of a single plant. Based on the cluster analysis, ecotypes were grouped into two separate clusters based on seed yield and related traits, the second group included 22 ecotypes with the highest value in terms of traits such as number of seeds per plant and number of seeds per capsule. Based on the results of this research, ecotypes No. 37 (Alwar Bostan-Abad village), 23 (Tabriz 4) and 24 (Kalvanagh 14) in terms of seed yield traits and ecotypes No. 14 (Tabriz 3), 44 (Lilab village, Varzeghan) and 37 (Alvar Village, Bostanabad) were recognized as the most appropriate and compatible ecotypes for Tabriz city in terms of dry fodder yield. Based on the average comparison results, ecotype No. 35 (Param 2 Haris village) and ecotype No. 48 (Zanjan) have the highest 1000 seed weight among the studied ecotypes with an average of 5.418 grams and 5.385 grams, respectively. They gave. Based on the results of regression analysis and causality analysis of seed yield, the number of seeds per plant and the number of seeds per capsule had a direct positive effect on the seed yield of a single plant. Based on the Word method and based on grain yield, Dragon's head ecotypes were divided into two groups. The second group includes ecotypes 2, 8, 10, 17, 18, 20, 24, 25, 26, 29, 31, 32, 33, 36, 39, 41, 42, 43, 46, 47, 48, 49. Was. The percentage of deviation from the average for all traits in this group was positive; Therefore, the ecotypes of this group are superior to the first group in terms of performance and traits related to it, and they can be used in breeding programs and selection of suitable ecotypes in terms of seed yield, number of seeds per plant and number of seeds per capsule. According to the results of various statistical analyzes of some important traits with seed yield, it can be said that the selection and cultivation of ecotypes No. 37 (Alvar village, Bostanabad), No. 23 (Tabriz 4), No. 24 (Kluvanq local mass 14), No. 25 (Tashe local mass) Kend 1 Harris) and No. 7 (Kelwanq 6) are recommended to the farmers of Tabriz as the most suitable ecotypes for sowing.

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), is one of the oldest domesticated crops. In terms of importance, it is considered the fourth most important grain in the world after wheat, corn and rice. Proper nutrition of plants is one of the important factors in improving the quantity and quality the crops. Among the nutrients, nitrogen is the most important growth limiting factor. Nitrogen foliar application, especially at the end of the growing season and reproductive stage, can be an effective factor in increasing the quality and possibly the quantity of grains. There are different sources of nitrogen for agricultural purposes. In general, for most nutrients, there is little difference between the effects of different sources. However, in the case of nitrogen, the effects of the form and source of nitrogen on many vegetative and reproductive characteristics of plants are different and significant. To investigate the effect of late season foliar application of nitrogen and potassium on the yield and quality of barley, a factorial experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design with three replications in Sabzevar during the cropping year of 2018-2019. The factors studied were nitrogen foliar application at five levels (no foliar application and foliar application with urea, ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate and calcium nitrate at the rate of 3 kg N ha-1) and potassium foliar application at two levels (foliar application of 2.5 kg K2O ha-1 in the form of potassium sulfate and non-foliar application of potassium). The application rate of nitrogen and potassium in foliar application treatments were 3 kg N ha-1 from different sources and 2.5 kg K2O ha-1 in the form of potassium sulfate, respectively. Reyhan barley cultivar was used in this experiment. The results showed that nitrogen foliar application at anthesis stage had no significant effect on the plant height, number of tillers and number of fertile tillers per plant, but it caused a significant increase in the spike length, number of fertile spikelets per spike, number of grains per spike, 1000 grains weight, grain yield, biological yield, harvest index, and grain nitrogen and protein content. The lowest harvest index of barley was obtained in the control treatment, which had no significant difference with calcium nitrate and ammonium sulfate foliar application treatments. The highest harvest index was also recorded in the conditions of foliar application of urea fertilizer, which was not significantly different from the ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulfate foliar application treatments. The highest grain nitrogen (2.1%) and protein (12.4%) contents were observed under ammonium sulfate foliar application conditions. Nitrogen foliar application reduced the grain starch content compared to non-foliar application conditions. Ammonium sulfate foliar application treatment had the lowest content of grain starch with 57.91%. Late season foliar application of potassium caused a significant increase in 1000 grain weight, grain yield and biological yield of barley compared to the non-foliar application conditions, but it had no significant effect on the other studied traits. Foliar application of potassium sulfate along with urea and ammonium nitrate, significantly increased the number of grains per spike and grain yield compared to the foliar application treatments of these fertilizers alone. The highest spike length (5.8 cm), number of fertile spikelet per spike (15), number of grain per spike (46.1), grain yield (5178 kg ha-1) and biological yield (13965 kg ha-1) of barley plants were observed under the combined foliar application of urea and potassium sulfate conditions. According to the results, combined foliar application of potassium sulfate and urea in the anthesis stage is recommended to produce high yield and increase the protein content of barley grains. Ammonium nitrate foliar application in the anthesis stage of barley will also lead to high starch content in grains in addition to producing optimal seed yield.

The management of water and nutrients are among the most important factors affecting the quality and quantity of medicinal plants. Among the medicinal plants, isabgol has a particular importance due to its mucilage, which is obtained from the seeds. It is an annual plant, which is mainly distributed in dry regions of the world. Considering that Iran is one of the arid and semi-arid countries and has recently faced with consecutive droughts, the optimal use of water resources should be prioritized. In this regard, it is important to introduce plants with low water requirements, such as isabgol. Since it is a medicinal plant, its fertilization using biological and organic fertilizers is also considered important. Therefore, in this experiment, the effect of different levels of water availability and bio fertilizers was studied on the growth and yield of isbgol. In this experiment, the effect of water availability (irrigation after evaporation of 100, 150, and 200 mm from the evaporation pan) and organic nutritional resources (humic acid, fulvic acid, and seaweed extract along with no fertilization as control treatment) was studied on the growth of and yield of Isabgol, under climatic conditions of Birjand (59 oE, 32 oN, 1410 m above sea), Iran. The experiment was conducted as split plot based on a randomized complete block design with three replications. The levels of water availability were placed in the main plots and nutritional resources in the sub-plots. The measured traits included plant height, number of leaves and number of tiller per plant, fresh and dry weight of plant, number of spikes per plant, number of seeds per spike, weight of 1000 seeds, seed yield, biological yield, percentage and yield of mucilage. Statistical analysis was performed using SAS, version 9.4 and the means were compared using the protected LSD test at the 5% probability level. The results of analysis of variance showed a significant effect of fertilizers application on most growth and yield indices, while the effect of irrigation management (except for number of leaves per plant) and interaction of studied factors was not significant on the evaluated traits. Application of all fertilizes, especially seaweed, improved the vegetative growth of the plant. The highest plant height (21 cm), number of leaves (16 per plant), number of tillers (4.8 No. per plant) and fresh weight of the plant (9.6 g) were gained from the seaweed extract, which were 31.2, 29.2, 39.9 and 78.1%, superior to the control treatment (no fertilizer application), respectively. The highest number of spikes (13.24 No. per plant) was obtained from humic acid application, which was 2.1 times more than the control treatment. Number of seeds per spike in seaweed, humic acid, fulvic acid and control treatments were 45.1, 44.3, 44.9 and 29, respectively, and 1000-seed weight was 1.63, 1.60, 1.62 and 1.55 g, respectively. Fertilizers application improved biological yield and seed yield, but in terms of these two traits, irrigation levels were in a same statistical group. The highest and the lowest biological yield (1942.2 and 1225.7 kg ha-1, respectively) and seed yield (763.4 and 456.1 kg ha-1, respectively) were gained from seaweed and control treatments, respectively. The percentage of mucilage was not affected by irrigation and nutritional managements, but the mucilage yield by the use of algae extract, humic acid and fulvic acid was increased by 56.4, 31.4 and 23.0%, respectively, compared to the control. In general, consumption of all organic fertilizer types improved the growth and quantitative and qualitative yield of Isabgol, while reduced water availability had no negative effect on the plant growth and yield, which indicates that isabgol is well adapted to semi-arid regions.

90% of Iran's land area is in arid and semi-arid areas. It is expected that by 2025, about two-thirds of the world's agricultural lands will face a water deficit. The yield also decreases by 50 to 90% under drought stress conditions compared to non-stressed conditions. Among the different types of stress, drought stress at the end of the season is the most important stress in Mediterranean areas such as many areas of Iran. Therefore, the yield of small grains cultivated in these areas is affected by drought stress at the terminal of the season. Salinity and drought stress increases the concentration of dissolved solutes in the root environment, increases the osmotic potential of the soil, decreases the absorption of nutrients and decreases the mobility of zinc and iron elements in the soil solution. Elements in the plant can be compensated and tolerance to saline conditions can be increased. Researchers reported that the application of zinc increased the grain yield of wheat and barley cultivars. Researchers reported that the application of zinc increased the grain yield of wheat and barley cultivars. In stress conditions due to reduction of stomatal conductance and limited access to CO2 for carboxylation reactions, the rate of photosynthesis decreases and increasing stomatal resistance is a suitable defense strategy for the survival of wheat and barley. Due to the cultivation of barley in these moderate areas and the role of the micronutrient element zinc in reducing the effects of drought and salinity stress, this research was carried out in different varieties of barley using different amounts of zinc sulfate. This research was carried out in November of the agricultural year 2017-2018 in two areas: 1) Kobutrabad Agricultural Research Station (drought stress by removing water after spike emergence); 2) Rudasht Station (rrigation with salt water 10 dS/m). Planting was carried out by machine planter in November in both regions. In the dry area of Kabutrabad, the plots containing 6 rows of 6 meters with the distance between the rows of 20 cm (the planting area of each plot is 7.2 square meters) with a density of 400 grains per square meter were done. Data analysis and step-by-step regression were performed using SAS9.1 software and mean comparison was performed by LSD test at 5% probability level. If the interaction effect is significant, cutting (slicing) and comparison of means was done by Lsmeans test at 5% probability level. The results showed that barley cultivars under drought stress had higher thousand-grain weight, grain yield and biological yield and lower proline content than under salt stress. Drought stress at the end of the season compared to salinity stress during the growing season had higher thousand-grain weight, grain yield and biological yield and lower proline content. Foliar application of 0.5% zinc sulfate had higher grain yield (4763 kg/ha about 34%) and biological yield (4763 kg/ha about 26%) than without foliar application and is recommended. It should be noted that there was no difference in the amount of proline between cultivars in drought stress, but in salt stress, tolerant and semi-tolerant cultivars had more proline content than the stress-sensitive line. In drought stress, Armaghan (semi drought tolerant) and Goharan (drought tolerant) cultivars had more chlorophyll a in the application of zinc sulfate. It seems that the mechanism of increasing the tolerance and performance of Armaghan and Goharan cultivars under drought stress conditions is the increase in the amount of chlorophyll a due to the application of zinc sulfate. For this purpose, foliar spraying of suitable cultivars (Armaghan and Goharan) is recommended in drought stress conditions.Grain yield had positive correlation with traits of plant height (p = 0.01, r = 0.33), spike length (p = 0.05, r = 0.31), number of grain per spike (p = 0.01, r = 0.35), biological yield (p = 0.01,  r = 0.96), amount of chlorophyll a (p = 0.01, r = 0.44), amount of chlorophyll b (p = 0.05, r = 0.29) and zinc element (p = 0.01, r = 0.39), which is the highest correlation between grain yield and biological yield (r2 = 0.99). In terms of grain and biological yield, Armaghan and Goharan cultivars are recommended under drought stress and Armaghan and Mehr cultivars are recommended under salt stress with a concentration of 0.5% zinc sulfate. In salinity stress, the minimum and maximum grain yield and biological yield were obtained respectively in foliar spraying of 0.1 and 0.5% zinc sulfate in all genotypes. It seems that foliar application of 0.5% zinc sulfate is sufficient for all barley cultivars under salinity stress, and foliar application with a higher concentration of zinc sulfate is not recommended due to the decrease in grain and biological yield in this stress.

One of the benefits of agricultural research is the introduction of new and suitable plants for food production according to the agricultural conditions in the country. Quinoa consumption has become very common in countries around the world. On the other hand, climate change has made it necessary to pay attention to the planting date. In order to investigate the possibility of ecophysiological compatibility of quinoa in different cultivation dates under the influence of foliar application of iron and proline nanoparticles on yield and related experimental traits in two consecutive years 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 in February in the farm of Sarableh Research Center in Ilam province as a split-split plot In the framework of the basic design, randomized complete blocks with three replications were implemented. The main factor included the planting date on 3 dates: 4th February, 19th February and 4th March. The secondary factor included proline in 2 levels of non-consumption and consumption. The sub-factor included iron nanoparticles in four levels of non-consumption, consumption of 3.0 grams, consumption of 6.0 grams and consumption of 9.0 grams. Before statistical analysis and analysis of variance, the test of normal distribution of data and errors was performed using SAS software and also before the combined analysis of variance, the homogeneity test of variance of experimental errors (Bartlett test) was performed. Then, two-year data were analyzed using SAS software version 9, combined analysis, and mean comparison and graph plots were performed using Excel. Duncan test was used to compare means. The results showed that the interaction of iron nanoparticles and planting date on flowering branch height; The interaction effects of planting date, iron and proline nanoparticles on 1000-grain weight, grain yield, biological yield and harvest index were significant. On the 4th March planting date, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles, the highest number of flowering branches was obtained with 31.4. The highest 1000-seed weight was obtained on the 4th March planting date and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles in the amount of 5.87 g. In all planting dates, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles increased the weight of 1000 seeds and the number of flowering branches. The highest amount of biological yield was obtained on the 4th March and the use of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles and proline consumption (5424.5 kg ha-1) and the lowest amount of biological yield was obtained on the 4th February without iron nanoparticles and no proline ( 3688 kg ha-1) was obtained. In all planting dates, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles increased biological yield. The highest grain yield with a rate of 2238.1 kg ha-1 was obtained in the treatment of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles and proline consumption and also the lowest grain yield with a rate of 1858.7 kg  ha-1 was obtained in the treatment of no proline consumption and no consumption of iron nanoparticles. In all planting dates, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles increased seed yield. In general, in all planting dates, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles increased the number of flowering branches and 1000-seed weight as the main components of grain yield, which was followed by grain yield and harvest index. Also, in all planting dates, proline consumption and consumption of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles increased plant height and on the other hand, due to the fact that plant height has a transient effect on biological yield, this treatment combination increased plant dry matter yield. According to the obtained results, the date of cultivation is 4th March, the use of proline and treatment of 0.9 g of iron nanoparticles to achieve high grain production in the region under cultivation conditions is recommended to slightly increase the yield components.

Malva sylvestris, commonly known as the common mallow, is a flowering plant species in the genus Malva. It is native to Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia, and has been introduced to other parts of the world. The plant has been known since ancient times and is considered the "type-species" for the genus. The leaves are edible and the plant (and seeds) are used as herbal remedies. Malva sylvestris is either a perennial or biennial plant. It spreads readily from seed and can self-seed prolifically. The seeds resemble small wheels or discs. The plant is known to be susceptible to a virus called Malva vein clearing potyvirus, which is transmitted by aphids. It also contains compounds such as malvin, malonylmalvin, and the naphthoquinone malvone A. The aim of this article is to evaluate the various (nine) ecotypes of Iranian Malva sylvestris L. by analyzing their morphological and physiological characteristics. By employing a step-by-step regression approach, the study seeks to identify significant traits that differentiate these ecotypes. The research intends to enhance understanding of the adaptive strategies of Malva sylvestris in diverse environmental conditions. Ultimately, the findings aim to contribute valuable insights for conservation efforts and the potential use of these ecotypes in horticulture and agriculture. This comprehensive evaluation will also provide a foundation for future studies on the species' ecological adaptability. In this study, 9 ecotypes of Malva sylvestris were collected in 2017 from different habitats in Iran (Mashhad, Torbat-e Heydariyeh, Fariman, Zabol, Zarand, Jiroft, Rudbar, Bandar Abbas and Khorramdasht) (Table 1) and identified in the Herbarium of Torbat-e Heydariyeh University. They were then cultivated in a completely randomized design with three replications in late February 2018 in the greenhouse of the Agricultural Research Institute of the University of Zabol and evaluated in May 2019. The seeds of each ecotype were planted in 5-liter pots (after germination and thinning, five plants of each ecotype were kept in each pot) in a growing medium consisting of an equal mixture of agricultural soil, coco peat, perlite, and well-rotted animal manure. Irrigation was calculated based on the temperature conditions in Sistan and the greenhouse, as well as the field capacity of the pot mixture, and was carried out regularly until flowering. At full flowering, the stem diameter and length of three plants from each pot were randomly measured and their means were considered for each treatment. At this stage, the number of flowers with seeds and the number of leaves of each plant were counted. Fresh and dry weights of root, stem and whole plant were measured with a digital scale (0.01 g accuracy). For dry weight measurement, fresh samples were placed in an oven at 70°C for 48 hours. Chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and carotenoid contents were determined. The absorbance of the samples for chlorophyll a and b and carotenoids was measured at wavelengths of 663, 645 and 470 nm, respectively, using a spectrophotometer. Proline, soluble carbohydrates, and protein were measured. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to calculate simple correlation coefficients between morphological traits. Statistical analysis of traits was performed using SAS Ver. 9 and Excel software, and means were compared by Duncan's method at 1% and 5% probability levels. The highest stem diameter (9.58 mm), root length (61.22 cm), root weight (18.86 g), root dry weight (4.84 g), and proline content (0.614) belonged to Mashhad ecotype. The number of leaves had a negative and significant correlation with the fresh weight of the plant, while it had a positive and significant correlation with plant height and shoot dry weight. Other traits did not show a significant correlation with the number of leaves per plant. The highest correlation was observed between morphological traits between fresh weight and leaf dry weight (P<0.01) and in phytochemical traits between carotenoid and chlorophyll b (P<0.05). Based on stepwise regression in the presented models, root weight and plant dry weight had the most positive effect on root length, but stem diameter and plant weight had the most negative effect. Chlorophyll b had the most negative and direct effect on proline yield, but chlorophyll a, carotenoids, carbohydrates, and total protein had the most positive effects, respectively. The variance analysis results indicated significant differences among the various ecotypes of Malva sylvestris regarding morphological and phytochemical traits (P<0.01) (Tables 2 and 3). Mean comparisons revealed that the Mashhad ecotype excelled in stem diameter, root length, and fresh and dry root weight, while the Rudbar ecotype showed the highest fresh weight in aerial parts. The Bandar Abbas ecotype had superior fresh and dry weights of aerial parts, leaf count, flower count, and seed count, and the Torbat-e Heydariyeh ecotype was notable for flower and seed counts per plant (Table 4). The tallest stem (40.55 cm) was recorded in the Jiroft ecotype, while the shortest (1.81 cm) was from Mashhad. The greatest stem diameter (9.58 mm) belonged to the Mashhad ecotype, and the smallest (3.54 mm) was found in Zabol. Root length also varied, with the Mashhad ecotype having the longest (61.22 cm) and Rudbar the shortest (9.55 cm) (Table 4). The highest fresh and dry root weights were observed in the Mashhad ecotype, while the Jiroft ecotype had the lowest. In the results of step-wise correlation and regression analysis of the medicinal plant Malva sylvestris L., the highest positive regression coefficients for yield were related to the traits of proline content, root fresh weight, and plant dry weight, which indicates their more fundamental role in increasing yield and their potential for improvement. Overall, the present study showed that root-related traits had an important effect on the final yield in the Mashhad population of Malva sylvestris L., and the Mashhad ecotype also showed the most desirable performance in terms of the evaluated traits. Due to its high performance in these traits, the Mashhad ecotype is recommended for researchers, universities, and private sectors involved in the cultivation and domestication of medicinal plants.

Communication between cells in organic plants for growth and development is done by chemical messengers called hormones. Meanwhile, GA3 is one of the most well-known plant hormones that cause various growth reactions in the plant, and most of their activity is the longitudinal growth between the nodes. Cytokinin is another type of plant phytohormones whose most important effect is in the process of cell division. In this research, the effect of cytokinin and gibberellin hormones on some chemical compounds and the dry weight of the Stevia plant shoot was studied under controlled conditions. A factorial experiment was conducted in the form of a completely randomized design in the greenhouse of Razavi Khorasan Agricultural Research and Training Center in three replications in 2017. Factors included gibberellin (0, 50 and 100 ppm) and cytokinin (0, 50 and 100 ppm). The average temperature of the greenhouse was approximately 25 to 30 degrees Celsius and its humidity was 65%. Irrigation was done regularly every three days. Before treatment, the potted plants were adapted to the greenhouse environment for two weeks. The treatment was carried out as foliar spraying, in this way, for six weeks and before watering at 10 am for each plant, 20 cc at the beginning and 50 cc at the end of the growth were sprayed with the desired solutions so that the leaves were completely wet. At the end of the experiment, the aerial parts were removed from the ground and placed in paper envelopes inside a ventilated oven with a temperature of 70°C for 48 hours. The samples were weighed immediately after leaving the oven with a scale of 0.001. The results showed that the highest amount of soluble sugars was obtained from the application of 50 ppm of gibberellin along with 100 ppm of cytokinin (1.61 mg/g dry weight of leaves), which showed an increase of about 25% compared to the control. The amount of leaf protein was significant only in the presence of different concentrations of gibberellin hormone. The highest amount of proline was obtained from the combined application of 100 ppm gibberellin and 0 ppm cytokinin (1.31 mg/g fresh weight of leaf), which showed an increase of about 63% compared to the control. Foliar spraying with gibberellin hormone decreased the amount of chlorophyll a. The highest amount of chlorophyll b was obtained from simultaneous application of 50 ppm levels of cytokinin and gibberellin. The lowest dry weight of the shoot was shown in the presence of the combined treatment of two hormones at the level of 100 ppm, and the highest value was obtained at the level of 100 ppm of gibberellin hormone. The results of the correlation coefficients showed that the dry weight of the shoot had a positive and significant correlation with the amount of proline (r=0.63**). It seems that the hormone auxin (acidification and loosening of the cell wall) and gibberellin enable elongation and growth by changing the characteristics of the cell wall. Therefore, based on the results of this experiment, the increase in the dry weight of aerial parts can be attributed to the effect of gibberellin and different ratios of hormones inside the plant. In general, the results showed that gibberellin levels were more effective than cytokinin hormone on the biochemical and morphological indicators of stevia plant; So that the maximum dry weight of shoot was obtained from the effect of 100 ppm gibberellin hormone. Photosynthetic pigments showed different reactions to different concentrations of studied hormones. The effect of 100 ppm concentration of gibberellin on the amount of protein, soluble sugars and proline was significant compared to other levels.

Grass pea is one of the most important crops and forage plants in the world, which is known for its high protein and lysine content. Due to the importance of this plant among forage plants in terms of livestock nutrition, planting in low-yielding lands, resistance to stresses, and also their role in soil fertility, they are extensively used. To investigate the response of early-maturing grass pea genotypes to salinity stress, 26 genotypes were studied in a factorial experiment based on RCBD with two replications. Salinity treatments were applied at four levels NaCl and various traits were evaluated. The number of plants in each pot after thinning was five plants, and at the end of the growing season, one plant was harvested from each pot every week. In the first harvest, genotype had a significant effect on pod dry weight and leaf length, and salinity had a significant effect on shoot dry weight, leaf number and root length. In this harvest, for the root length, the lowest average was in the first level of salinity and the other three levels were in the same group, that is, in the conditions of salinity stress, the root grew more than the control. In the second harvest, the genotype had a significant effect on the traits of number of pods, plant height, number of leaves, number of grains per pods, leaf angle, leaf length, number of branches and root length. The effect of salinity was significant for root length. In the root length, the least effect of salinity was related to the first level and the second and third levels were placed in the same group, which increased the root length with the increase of salinity. In the third harvest, the genotype had a significant effect on pod fresh weight, leaf length, pod dry weight and number of branches. The effect of salinity on the dry weight of the pod was significant, and other traits had not a significant difference for any of the effects. Also, in this harvest, the fourth level of salinity was removed. The results of the fourth harvest showed that the genotype had a significant effect on the traits of pod dry weight, number of grains, number of grains per pods, plant height, pod fresh weight, number of branches and location of the first branch. Dry weight of shoot, fresh weight of pod, dry weight of pod, number of grains, number of grains per pod, plant height and number of leaves were significant for the effect of salinity. With the increase in salinity, the dry weight of the pod increased and the number of grains and the number of leaves decreased. In this harvest, the traits dry weight of shoot, fresh weight of pod, dry weight of pod, number of grains, number of grains in pod, plant height and number of leaves, which are components of yield, were affected by salinity. The results of the fifth harvest showed that the genotype had a significant effect on the number of branches. The effect of salinity was significant for dry weight of shoot, fresh weight of shoot, fresh weight of pod, dry weight of pod, number of grains and number of grains in pod, leaf length and plant height. The effect of salinity on yield was consistent with the results of the fourth week. The genotypes showed different reactions in different weeks, which may be because genotypes are exposed more time to salinity, they show the more different reactions. Also, in the first and second harvests, salinity had a significant effect on root length, and with increasing salinity, root length increased. The dry weight of shoots was affected by salinity stress in the first and fourth harvests, and salinity had no significant effect on it in the second and third harvests. In general, it can be said that in the first and second harvests, salinity had a significant effect on root length, and with increasing salinity, root length increased. The dry weight of shoots was affected by salinity stress in the first, fourth and fifth harvests, and salinity had no significant effect on it in the second and third harvests.