Horticultural Science Research Articles

A Robust Deep Learning Approach for the Quantitative Characterization and Clustering of Peach Tree Crowns Based on UAV Images

The accurate large-scale measurement of peach crowns is vital in horticultural science and the optimization of orchard management. Nowadays, numerous crown parameters (e.g., crown area, height, and volume) can be obtained via the analysis of point clouds or photographs. Current laser-based sensors provide the required reliable and accurate information; however, they are costly and time-consuming. Therefore, a simpler approach for crown measurement is required. For this purpose, this study presents a pipeline for the monitoring and clustering of 259 peach tree crowns based on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images of a peach orchard in Southeast China. Considering the limitation that the original aerial image dataset contains little information, a data augmentation process is adopted, and an efficient deep learning architecture based on conditional generative adversarial networks (cGANs) was designed to extract the crown area. Then, the shape of the crown area was clustered using an edge detection process and a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$k$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-means algorithm. Finally, an ellipsoid volume method (EVM) was applied to estimate the crown volume. Five indicators&#x2014;namely, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$Q_{\mathrm {seg}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$S_{\mathrm {r}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, Precision, Recall, and F-measure&#x2014;were employed to evaluate the crown extraction effects, and the average results for testing samples were 0.832, 0.847, 0.851, 0.828, and 0.846, respectively. Compared with other approaches&#x2014;namely, fully convolutional network (FCN), U-Net, SegNet21, the excess green index (ExG), and the color index of vegetation extraction (CIVE)&#x2014;the proposed cGAN model performs better, achieving an accuracy improvement of 5&#x0025;&#x2013;25&#x0025;. For the estimation of crown volume, using measurements from a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) scanner as a reference, the correlation coefficient and relative-root-mean-square error (R-RMSE) were found to be 0.836&#x0025; and 14.93&#x0025;, respectively. Overall, the results demonstrate that the proposed method is feasible for measuring peach tree crowns. The wide application of such technology would facilitate applied research in plant phenotyping and precision horticulture.

Effect of seed priming with plant defence activators on growth parameters and disease incidence in bell pepper under nursery conditions

The effect of different plant defence activators on the seedling growth and disease incidence in bell pepper cv Solan Bharpur was studied under nursery conditions in the Department of Seed Science and Technology Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, Solan, Himachal Pradesh laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) in 2019. It was observed that amongst different treatments applied as seed priming before sowing in nursery, highest emergence of 86.34, 83.25 and 82.41 per cent was recorded in treatments T5 (Salicylic acid @ 75 ppm + potassium nitrate @ 1.5% for 8 hours), T7 (Butyric acid @ 100 ppm + potassium nitrate @ 1.5%) and T4 (Potassium nitrate @ 1.5%/10 hours) respectively. At 28 and 42 days after sowing, the seedling height was significantly highest (4.62 and 12.21 cm respectively) in treatment T5. Minimum ungerminated seeds were observed in T5 (13.66%) and T7 (16.75%). Lowest incidence of damping off (5.43%) was recorded in T7. In case of viruses, the minimum incidence of 2.90 and 3.05 per cent was recorded in the seedlings raised from the seeds treated with T7 and T5 respectively. Application of salicylic acid @ 75 ppm + potassium nitrate @ 1.5 per cent for 8 hours or butyric acid @ 100 ppm + potassium nitrate @ 1.5 per cent for 4 hours as seed priming before sowing in nursery, enhanced the seedling growth parameters significantly and also reduced the incidence of diseases like damping off and viruses in bell pepper cv Solan Bharpur under nursery conditions.

Standardization of grafting time in different red pulp guava (Psidium guajava L.) by softwood grafting

The investigation was conducted in the Main Horticulture Research and Extension Center, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot during the year 2020 to 2021 with an objective to study the best grafting month in different red pulp guava (Psidium guajava L.) by softwood grafting which showed minimum number of days taken for graft take (4.58 days), maximum sprouting percentage (91.67%), highest graft success (85.83%) and survivability (96.89%) in February month. Among the varieties Arka Kiran took less number of days for graft take (7.04 days), more sprouting percentage (85.00%), highest graft success (67.50%) and survivability (90.13%). However, Interaction effect showed least number of days taken for graft take (4.24 days), highest graft survivability (99.50%) in Arka Kiran grafted on February month followed by March grafted plants.

Experimental study on solar distillation system for oil extraction from eucalyptus plant leaves

Most of the industrial process requires a temperature level below 250?C which is easily achievable using solar energy. Pakistan is fortunate enough to have long sunlight hours and high intensity of solar insolation. The mean total irradiation falling on a horizontal plane is about 200-250 W/m2 per day. This precious source of natural energy has tremendous potential in the agro-based industry like the distillation of medicinal plants. The main objective of this study was to conduct a quantitative and qualitative analyses of solar distilled oil of the medicinal plant. Solar distillation systems had been installed at Agricultural Engineering Workshop, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, and Technology and Rosa Lab, Institute of Horticultural Sciences, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. This distillation system was designed according to the latitude of Faisalabad. This system comprised of primary reflector, secondary reflector, condenser, and Florentine flask. In this study Eucalyptus Camaldulensis and Eucalyptus Citriodora, essential oils were distilled by solar distillation system and by a conventional distillation system for comparing the results. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of Eucalyptus Camaldulensis and Eucalyptus Citriodora essential oils were carried out at National Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad. The results of quantitative and qualitative analyses of essential oils showed that the quantity and the quality of essential oils of same species of eucalyptus, distilled by solar distillation system and conventional controlled distillation system were same. So, it was concluded that the quality and quantity of essential oils of same species do not differ significantly either distilled by solar distillation system or by conventional controlled distillation system.

Field Evaluation of in vitro derived mutants of different varieties of banana on biochemical parameters

A field experiment was conducted on field evaluation of in vitro derived mutants of different varieties of banana during 2018-19 and 2019-20 at the Department of Fruit Science, College of Horticulture, University of Horticultural Sciences, Bagalkot. The 138 in vitro derived banana mutants both physical and chemical mutagens treated plants along with check were planted. The experiment was laid out in Augmented block design with 6 blocks and 26 subplots each block having 23 in vitro mutant lines and three checks. Among 138 in vitro derived mutants in plant crop, the maximum TSS was recorded in YB40Gy- 06 (28.60 0B) Titratable acidity, YB40Gy- 11 (0.70%) Total Sugars, YB45Gy- 15 (25.58%) Reducing sugars, RAJ35Gy- 12 (22.34%) and Non reducing sugars, RAJ40Gy-02 (8.50%) in ratoon crop, the maximum TSS, was recorded in YB40Gy- 06 (27.51 0B), Titratable acidity, YB40Gy- 08 (0.52%) Total Sugars, YB40Gy-06 (24.78%) Reducing sugars, YB45Gy-07 (22.70%) and Non reducing sugars YB35Gy-15 (6.15%).

Bibliometric analysis of blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) research publications based on Web of Science

This study aimed to identify and analyze the 3,872 article and review type papers of blueberry research based on Web of Science. Papers mainly written in English (3,769, 97.34%), were from 10,102 authors, 83 countries or territories, 2,033 organizations and published in 770 Journals and three book series. The top five Journals were HortScience (278, 7.18%), Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science (272, 7.024%), Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (116, 2.996%), Journal of Economic Entomology (97, 2.505%), Food Chemistry (92, 2.376%). The top five countries and regions were USA, Peoples R China, Canada, Chile and Brazil. The six most paper contributed organizations were USDA ARS, University of Florida, Michigan State University, University of Georgia, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and University of Maine. The top five authors were Hancock, James F.; Rowland, Lisa J.; Ehlenfeldt, Mark K.; Lyrene, Paul M.; and Strik, Bernadine C. All keywords of the blueberry research based on Web of Science were separated into seven clusters for different research topics. This review could provide a valuable guide for designing future studies. This work is also useful for student identifying graduate schools and researchers selecting journals.

Introduction pages

The papers published in Notulae Botanicae Horti Agrobotanici Cluj-Napoca, Issue 4, Volume 49, 2021 represent new exciting researches in different topics of life science, respectively in plant science, horticulture, agronomy and crop science. Among the interesting articles we invite you to find news about: Cotton versus climate change: the case of Greek cotton production; Agronomic and genetic approaches for enhancing tolerance to heat stress in rice; Insights on solanaceous resistance against tomato leafminer (Tuta absoluta), with emphasis on chemical compounds useful in integrated pest management; Role of conventional and molecular techniques in soybean yield and quality improvement - A critical review; Assessment of cold stress tolerance in maize through quantitative trait locus, genome-wide association study and transcriptome analysis; Beneficial microorganisms enhance the growth of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) under greenhouse conditions; Genome-wide identification and expression profiling of duplicated flavonoid 3'-hydroxylase gene family in Carthamus tinctorius L.; Comparative analysis of genetic diversity in Norway spruce (Picea abies) clonal seed orchards and seed stands, etc.

Herbs and Spices in the Florida Garden

This 10-page publication of the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department discusses culinary herbs and spices that can be grown in a Florida home garden or landscape. Information on the general cultural requirements, propagation, harvesting, and use of herbs is included as well as detailed descriptions of common culinary herbs. Major revision by Mary Salinas, Sydney Park Brown, and James M. Stephens.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/vh020

Bibliometric analysis of strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) research publications from horticulture category based on Web of Science

BACKGROUND: The strawberry (Fragaria × annanasa Duch.) is one of the most significant cash horticultural crops in the world. Fresh strawberry fruits contain dietary fiber, vitamin C, 30-08-2021-carotene, folic acid and other nutrients required for human health and nutrition, and they have an appetizing aroma and flavour, as well as various phytonutrients that may be potentially beneficial to human health and could be used against chronic diseases including cancer and cardiovascular disorders. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to identify and analyze the 2,640 article and review type papers of strawberry research from horticulture category based on the Web of Science. METHODS: The Web of Science database was searched to extract data. Bibliometric data, including citation count, were analyzed together with the words by bibliometric science mapping and visualization tools. RESULTS: Papers mainly written in English (2,426, 91.894 %), were from 6,807 authors, 77 countries/territories, 1,504 organizations and published in 57 Journals and book series. Top 5 core journals ranked as Hortscience (360, 13.636 %), Scientia Horticulturae (322, 12.197 %), Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science (248, 9.394 %), Postharvest Biology and Technology (236, 8.939 %) and Journal of Horticultural Science Biotechnology (134, 5.076 %), that these journals each published more than 134 papers. Top 5 countries and regions were USA, Peoples R China, Japan, South Korea and Brazil. Top 5 organizations were Univ Florida, Univ Calif Davis, USDA ARS, ARS and Michigan State Univ. Top 5 authors are Hancock James F. (Hancock JF), Shaw DV, Chandler Craig K. (Chandler CK), Whitaker Vance M, Choi Jong Myung, each published more than 28 papers. All keywords of the strawberry research from horticulture Category were separated eight clusters for different research topics. CONCLUSIONS: Visualizations offer exploratory information on the current state in a scientific field or discipline as well as indicate possible developments in the future. The review could provide a valuable guide for designing future studies. This work is useful for student identifying graduate schools and researchers selecting journals.

Value-Added Products From Soil, Brown Coal, and Composted City Solid Waste

This review article highlights alternative innovative uses of soil, brown coal, and composted solid city waste. The latter leads to environmental pollution, which can be addressed by using these materials to generate value-added products. Humic substances present there can be isolated in large amounts and used in diverse fields like sustainable agriculture, horticulture, biomedicine, and materials science. These have been shown to be non-toxic and safe for humans and serve as growth promotants for plants and to cure stomach ailments. The recent discovery of their antiviral/anti-HIV-AIDS activity is described here in some detail. The use of humic substances for making dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) and for preparing a catalyst for reduction and for oxidation processes is also highlighted. Such innovative uses of humic substances can lead to environmental cleaning and positively impact climate change.

Nitrogen Fertilization Guidelines for Potato Production in Florida

This new 11-page publication focuses on the nitrogen (N) fertilizer best management practices (BMP) for potato crop in Florida. The aim is to provide management strategies that comply with statewide BMP guidelines to maximize yield and economic return while minimizing N losses to the environment. Written by Lincoln Zotarelli, Tara Wade, Gary K. England, and Christian T. Christensen and published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1429

Growing Feijoa Fruit in Florida

Feijoa is often found in central and north Florida landscapes as a durable and cold-hardy plant for hedges and foundation plantings, and as a dooryard fruit. Its value as a potentially heavy producer of flavorful fruits (and flavorful flowers) is frequently overlooked due to issues in pollination and limited genetic improvement. This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department describes the opportunity and limitations of feijoa as a horticultural crop.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1424

NC-GSB-524W, NC-GSB-527W, NC-GSB-528W, NC-GSB-530W, NC-GSB-531W, and NC-GSB-532W Watermelon Lines with Gummy Stem Blight Resistance and Good Fruit Quality

"NC-GSB-524W, NC-GSB-527W, NC-GSB-528W, NC-GSB-530W, NC-GSB-531W, and NC-GSB-532W Watermelon Lines with Gummy Stem Blight Resistance and Good Fruit Quality" published on Dec 2021 by American Society for Horticultural Science.

Nitrogen Fertilization Guidelines for Bare-Ground and Plastic Mulch Cabbage Production in Florida

This new 9-page publication of the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department focuses on the nitrogen fertilizer best management practices (BMP) for green fresh-market and processing cabbage head production in Florida. This publication aims to provide management strategies that comply with statewide BMP guidelines to optimize economic yield while minimizing nitrogen losses to the environment. Written by L. Zotarelli, C. E. Barrett, A. L. B. R. da Silva, C. T. Christensen, and G. K. England.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1428

Biotechnological Approaches for Enhancing the Production of Vegetables – An Updated Overview

Introduction: Biotechnology is an interdisciplinary field that deals specifically with many aspects of life with genetically modified medicine, food, global warming and energy production. Cultivation of low cost and disease-free crops as well as planting materials such as potatoes and bananas cannot be used for a long term, so through cryopreservation, the conservation of genetic resources is possible. Plant biotechnology has not only increased the scale of attributes that can be addressed but also accelerated the vegetable growing program. Using a biotechnology approach, traditional breeding thresholds such as relationship drag issue, wide cross sexual barrier, nutritional avoidance factor, etc. can be effectively and efficiently overcome. Study objects and methods: A basic and thorough overview of the literature surveyed to identify the application of biotechnology in the yield of vegetables was conducted till 2021. Results and discussion: Recent advances in the field of molecular biology such as genetic engineering (Cisgenesis, transgenic and intragenesis), DNA sequencing, cloning, molecular markers, in-vitro mutagenesis, etc., promote new meanings, modern dimensions and novel capabilities of decrepit biotechnology. It also provided a modern aspect of microbial interference in the agricultural practices, such as bio-control agents, bio-fertilizers and various microbiological products used in the current agricultural sector. Conclusion: Thus, the current biotechnological trends can have a striking impact on the advancement of vegetable crops. The above review concludes with an emphasis on the revolution in the field of biotechnology that highlights advancement of horticulture science, which is accomplished with superior quality and higher productivity of vegetable crops.

Trunk Injection to Deliver Crop Protection Materials: An Overview of Basic Principles and Practical Considerations

This new 8-page article presents an overview on the use of trunk injection for the targeted delivery of protection materials to agricultural crops to manage pests and diseases. Different methods of injection are described along with the underlying plant physiological principles, possible implications on the tree, and other concerns and considerations. Written by Leigh Archer, Ute Albrecht, and Jonathan Crane, and published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1426

2022 Florida Blueberry Integrated Pest Management Guide

This 32-page publication is a blueberry integrated pest management guide for the commercial production of blueberries in Florida, including information on plant disease, insect and mite pests, weed control, hydrogen cyanamide, and plant growth regulators. Major revision for 2022 by Philip F. Harmon, Oscar E. Liburd, Peter Dittmar, Jeffrey G. Williamson, and Doug Phillips; published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs380

Image Quality Assessment: Edge Based Entropy features estimation using Soft Computing Techniques

With the always expanding interest for image handling based applications, the requirement for Image Quality Assessment (IQA) techniques for proficient and dependable assessment of picture quality in concurrence with human quality decisions has similarly taken off at each phase of image processing. The limits of customary IQA strategies as far as having the option to work just under a pre-characterized set of filtering algorithms confines the effectiveness of methods in explicit degradations has roused the investigation of IQA dependent on Soft Computing metaheuristic techniques, which are equipped for choosing the features shrewdly. A swarm based meta heuristic technique known as Grey Wolf Optimization (GWO) has been utilized, which impersonates the conduct of wolf packs to encompass and chase their prey. This paper presents a basic and direct strategy for artificially assessing computerized images by a solitary parameter, entropy. The benchmark dataset Colourlab Image Database: Image Quality (CID:IQ) is employed for the extensive Matlab investigations. Outcomes are addressed graphically to approve the viability of GWO algorithm over others. GWO evidently surmounts Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) based optimization algorithm in terms of entropy. These meliorations are likely to propel the future researchers to prefer the soft computing techniques for use in different image handling areas including horticultural sciences, medication, cryptography, and so on, for evaluating their images in pre-processing phases for improved outcomes.

‘lucía myrtea’ and ‘victoria myrtea’: Two New Japanese Plum Cultivars with Low Chilling Requirements, Early Ripening, and High-quality Fruit for the Fresh Market

"‘lucía myrtea’ and ‘victoria myrtea’: Two New Japanese Plum Cultivars with Low Chilling Requirements, Early Ripening, and High-quality Fruit for the Fresh Market" published on Nov 2021 by American Society for Horticultural Science.

Bibliometric Analysis of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) Research Publications from Horticulture Category Based on the Web of Science

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is an economically important vegetable crop that is cultivated worldwide. The current study aimed to identify and analyze the 2030 articles and review article about cucumber research from the horticulture category of the VOS viewer Web of Science. Bibliometric data were analyzed by bibliometric science mapping and visualization tools. Articles mainly written in English (1884; 92.81%) were from 5630 authors, 80 countries or territories, and 1094 organizations; they were published in 46 journals and book series. The top five core journals are Scientia Horticulturae (337; 16.60%), HortScience (265; 13.05%), Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science (239; 11.77%), European Journal of Plant Pathology (195; 9.61%), and Horticulture Journal (Journal of the Japanese Society for Horticultural Science) (157; 7.73%). These journals each published more than 157 articles. The top five countries and regions were the United States, People’s Republic of China, Japan, South Korea, and India. The top five organizations were the University of Wisconsin, North Carolina State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service, Michigan State University, and Nanjing Agricultural University. The top five authors are Todd C. Wehner (Wehner, TC), Jack E. Staub (Staub, JE), Yiqun Weng, R.L. Lower, and S. Tachibana; each published more than 24 articles. All keywords used for cucumber research in the horticulture category were separated into eight clusters for different research topics. Visualizations offer exploratory information regarding the current state in a scientific field or discipline as well as indicate possible developments in the future. This review could be a valuable guide for designing future studies.