Kiwifruit potting is used extensively in ornamental plantations. However, the procedure of pot cultivation with fruit-bearing via air layering is still not yet developed. In this study, several treatments were used to induce rooting via air layering, including wounding, hormone use, and environmental conditions. The results showed that both wounding operations such as scraping and girdling, were effectively inducible for rooting in kiwifruit. Application of continued 100 mL ½ Murashige & Skoog (MS) + 0.5 mg/L Indole-3-butyric acid solution every 7 days can significantly enhance the rooting rate by up to 83.33% as compared to plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, which inhibited rooting. Finally, the rooting canes with fruiting were cut and transferred into the pot, the fruit grew well. Taken together, the developed method provides insight into an efficient way to produce kiwifruit potted plants with fruits in four months that are directly available for commercial sale and scientific research.

Cucumber seeds that have been freshly extracted show dormancy. In the first experiment, cucumber var. Pusa Uday seeds were subjected to various treatments viz., running with tap water, GA3, benzyl adenine, ethylene, KNO3, HNO3 and control (dry seed). The results revealed that seeds treated with benzyl adenine at 150 ppm for 12 hr recorded the highest germination (5.5%). Second experiment was carried out to find out an effective method for breaking seed dormancy and also to study how long it persists when stored under ambient conditions. When the initial trial with chemical treatments failed to break seed dormancy, the seeds were exposed to varying durations of dry heat treatment. Results revealed that seed dormancy in fresh seeds of the cucumber var. Pusa Uday could be totally overcome by a four-day dry heat treatment at 70°C without impacting other seed quality parameters. Such seeds could be stored for 24 months under ambient conditions without any reduction in viability and vigour. Additionally, it was observed that seed dormancy was naturally broken within 4 months when seeds were stored under ambient conditions, without any specific treatment.

Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) are widely recognized as a nutritious food due to their rich content of essential nutrients. Their growing popularity in recent years is largely attributed to lycopene, a powerful antioxidant known for its anti-cancer properties. However, the tomato leaf curl virus (ToLCV) represents a substantial risk to tomato crops at global level resulting in 100% crop loss. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop and screen the tomato hybrids for ToLCV resistance and validate the presence of Ty-3 gene.The study involved evaluating 12 parents, 8 hybrids and 7 double cross hybrids carrying Ty-3 genes, which underwent screening at both phenotypic and genotypic levels. Assorted array of co-dominant sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers were utilised to assess the resistance genes linked with tomato leaf curl virus (ToLCV), focusing specifically on Ty-3. The chosen markers P6-25, FLUW-25F and SCAR-1 demonstrated high reliability in distinguishing susceptible and resistant lines, facilitating the efficient identification of homozygous or heterozygous alleles relevant to ToLCV resistance. The screening resulted in the identification of three resistant parents (CBESL159, CBESL162 and CBESL169), two hybrids (H5-CBESL133×CBESL169 and H7-CBESL146×CBESL162) and two double hybrids (H5xH7 and H4xH5). These promising parents hold potential as parental materials for developing lines or hybrids with genes providing strong and enduring resistance against ToLCV and yield improvement. The double hybrids can be used for development of breeding lines.

The fungal endophytes play a key role in habitat adaptation of plants resulting in enhanced plant performance and withstand against biotic and abiotic stresses in the environment. The present study was conducted to isolate root-associated fungal endophytes from cultivated crops and evaluated for their efficacy against Meloidogyne incognita infecting tomato plants. Total 262 fungal root endophytes were isolated from 14 cultivated crops and classified and also grouped into 4 genera (Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., Fusarium sp., Trichoderma sp.) based on morphological structure. The colonization rate of these isolates ranged from 0 to 100%; Shannon’s index (H) is 0 to 1.37; Simpson (1-D) is 0 to 0.74 and Dominance (D) is 0.4 to 1. Antagonism evaluation of fungal endophytic isolates on M. incognita revealed that 5 isolates caused 100 per cent juveniles (J2) mortality, 14 isolates caused mortality in the range of 90-99 per cent, 12 isolates caused 75- 89 per cent mortality, and remaining 26 isolates caused <75 percent J2 mortality. The isolates that caused 100 per cent J2s mortality were molecularly characterized based on ITS-1 and ITS-2 gene nucleotide sequences and identified as Aspergillus flavipes, Penicillium murcianum, Fusarium oxysporum, Trichoderma asperellum and Trichoderma viride. Thesefungal root endophytic isolates possessed plant growth promotion traits, effectively parasitized the eggs of M. incognita and significantly reduced the infection in tomato.

Potential of different pretreatments for shelf life enhancement and nutritional quality maintenance in minimally processed fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) leaves (MPFL) at 8°C storage were evaluated. Pretreatment agents such as calcium propionate, calcium chloride, kinetin, gibberellic acid, 1-methyl cyclo propene, neutral electrolysed water and sodium hypochlorite were used. The results have proven that a five minutes dip in kinetin solution (50 mg L-1) was the best among all tested pretreatments; and it resulted in achieving eight days shelf life compared to four days in control samples. Besides this, better maintenance of total antioxidants (1735 mg ascorbic acid equivalent antioxidant capacity kg-1) and proteins (44 g kg-1), at levels close to that of fresh leaves, could be achieved. Calcium propionate (1.5 g L-1) was identified as the second best treatment. It was also shown that minimally processed fenugreek leaves (MPFL) is a rich source of vitamins B1, B2, E and K. The B vitamins were susceptible to deterioration during storage, while their loss could be minimized with kinetin treatment. Sanitizers like chlorine (100 mg L-1 available chlorine) and neutral electrolysed water (100 and 200 mg L-1) have reduced the shelf life of MPFL indicating their phytotoxicity to FL. The results of the study open up the possibility of using kinetin as an effective pretreatment tool for MPFL in minimal processing industry.

In India, floral waste is disposed of in rivers and water bodies annually, leading to significant pollution. However, this waste can be substantially reduced if utilized effectively. One promising application is the use of floral waste in the production of value-added products. This study specifically explores the potential of repurposing waste to manufacture incense sticks. Two experiments were conducted to identify the optimal combination of flower petal powder and adhesives for making incense sticks. In experiment 1, sixteen different treatments of flower petal powder and adhesive combinations were tested. The treatment consisted of rose petal powder 42.5% and marigold petal powder 42.5% mixed with 15% Jigat powder as adhesive was found to be the most effective, followed by a combination of marigold petal powder 85% and 15% Jigat powder as adhesive. In experiment 2, the two best treatments from experiment 1 were mixed with aromatic plant powder in various proportions to create naturally fragrant incense sticks. The mosquito repellent activity and olfactory evaluation of these incense sticks were assessed. It was observed that the combination of rose petals, marigold petals, Jigat powder, and 30% lemongrass powder yielded the best results.

Orchid micropropagation is often limited by slow seed germination and early seedling development. This study evaluated the potential of royal jelly (RJ), a nutrient-rich organic substance, as a growth-promoting additive in the asymbiotic culture of five Phalaenopsis varieties viz., Nottingham, Dubrovnik, Andorra, Memphis, and Bucharest. A factorial experiment was conducted using two peptone concentrations (1/ gL{ 1 and 2/ gL{ 1) combined with four RJ levels (0, 150, 300, and 450/ ppm) in half-strength Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium. Results demonstrated that RJ significantly enhanced germination and seedling development in a concentration- dependent manner. The variety Nottingham cultured in 2/ gL{ 1 peptone medium supplemented with 300/ ppm RJ achieved the highest germination rate of 96.33%, reduced the time to protocorm formation by 2–3/ days, and increased leaf and root primordia numbers by 15–20% compared with the control. Higher RJ concentrations (450/ ppm) occasionally reduced germination and delayed early growth, indicating an optimal range for supplementation. These findings suggest that RJ can serve as an effective organic bio-stimulant for Phalaenopsis micropropagation, offering a sustainable alternative to conventional synthetic growth regulators. Future studies should isolate active compounds in RJ and assess its scalability across different orchid species.

Horticulture farming is a subset of agriculture, contributing approximately 30% of the agricultural GDP in India. The nutritional benefits of horticultural crops such as fruits, vegetables, and mushrooms play an important role in daily life. With the ever-increasing demand for food, the horticultural industry faces new challenges that require innovative and sustainable solutions. This has led to a significant shift towards technology-driven solutions to address the challenges of a growing population in a sustainable way. The Internet of Things (IoT), a promising technology in smart farming, greatly helps in real-time monitoring of plant growth status and facilitates faster decisions under challenging circumstances. Smart farming in horticultural crops relies on a range of components including sensors, actuators, microcontrollers, and cloud storage for the effective implementation of IoT. These components work together to collect and store data, which can be utilized to optimize the allocation of input resources. This review discusses how components of smart farming can improve resource management, crop yields, and the quality of production of horticultural crops, along with its applications and development in this area.

Macadamia nut (Macadamia integrifolia) is among the world’s premium nuts and is gaining popularity in India due to its high market value. However, its germination is poor and slow owing to the presence of a hard seed coat, often delaying emergence for 5–6 months. The present study evaluated the effect of seed soaking and drying treatments on germination and early growth attributes. Seeds soaked for three days followed by oven drying at 40 °C for 18 hours exhibited significantly earlier germination (47 days) and higher germination percentage (88.13%) compared with the control. These treatments also enhanced seedling growth parameters, including plant height (16.16 cm), stem girth (0.47 cm), number of leaves per plant (11.22), fresh weight (10.73 g), dry weight (4.66 g), vigour index-I (1429.11 cm), and vigour index-II (411.40 g). Correlation analysis revealed that initiation of germination was positively associated with the time required for 50% and complete germination. Overall, soaking macadamia seeds for three days followed by oven drying improved germination efficiency, growth performance, and vigour of seedlings, and can be recommended for commercial propagation.

Curry leaf (Murraya koenigii L. Spreng), a widely used spice and medicinal crop, rich in essential oils, bioactive compounds, and nutrients. The present study aimed to evaluate 80 curry leaf germplasm ex situ, to explore genetic variability in mineral nutrient content and their interrelationships. The observed ranges of these nutrients on a dry weight basis were, calcium (0.30–5.97%), phosphorus (0.11–0.77%), potassium (0.09–3.52%), magnesium (0.10–0.78%), sulphur (0.06–0.41%), iron (51.7–439.16 ppm), zinc (4.55–42.60 ppm), boron (26.02–143.38 ppm), copper (2.26–47.41 ppm), and manganese (4.12–92.47 ppm). Correlation analysis revealed a positive association of calcium with manganese, copper, and magnesium. Manganese and copper also exhibited a positive correlation with iron, while, zinc was positively correlated with phosphorus and magnesium. Both phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variation were high for all traits studied. Furthermore, high heritability, coupled with substantial genetic advance, was observed, indicating the potential for improving these traits through breeding interventions. Principal component analysis demonstrated considerable population divergence in mineral nutrient composition, with calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sulphur, and potassium contributing most to the overall variability. Hierarchical cluster analysis further revealed a significant regional pattern in mineral nutrient concentrations. The highest levels of calcium and iron were found in accessions collected from Karnataka, followed by those from Odisha and Himachal Pradesh.