Non-food Research Articles

In vitro Genebank of India for safe conservation of horticultural plant diversity: four decades of milestones.

India is a treasure trove of biological diversity with its plant genetic resources playing a crucial role in the crop improvement serving as the foundation for the country's sustainable food and nutritional security. India's in vitro genebank (IVG) is part of the National Genebank at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research-National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (ICAR-NBPGR). The IVG houses distinctive multi-crop repository that utilizes several tissue culture techniques for short- to medium-term storage in in vitro active genebank (IVAG) and cryoconservation approaches for long-term storage in in vitro base genebank (IVBG). In IVAG, germplasm is conserved under normal and slow growth conditions with a subculture period of 1-36months depending on the species/genotype and conservation approach. Currently, the IVAG holds 2,038 germplasm accessions (69 genera and 171 species) from six crop groups, viz. (a) tropical fruit crops (449), (b) temperate and minor tropical fruit crops (408), (c) tuber crops (530), (d) bulbous and ornamental crops (187), (e) medicinal and aromatic plants (232), and (f) spices and industrial crops (232). For long-term conservation, in vitro produced explants of various species are cryopreserved at the IVBG in liquid nitrogen. Utilizing various cryoconservation procedures, 347 accessions from several crop groups have been successfully conserved in the IVBG. Over the past four decades, in vitro conservation has been accomplished by the above mentioned cutting-edge techniques. This report highlights the efforts and achievements of the National Genebank in conserving horticultural genetic resources through in vitro and cryoconservation.

Gróf Zichy Béla hitbizományi uradalmának fejlődése (1887-1914)

The study deals with the economic development of the entailed manor of Lengyeltóti owned by Count Béla Zichy. According to the current literature entailed estates were running with low efficiency. However, based on my preliminary findings it appears that there were a few innovative entailed large-scale agricultural plants in Somogy County. The main question is whether it was possible to implement modernisation within the legal framework of an entail. I have used archival sources, statistics, press sources, literature and genealogic sources. I have established that the Manor of Lengyeltóti successfully dealt with all the external economic hardships (decrease in crop prices and wine blight). It implemented many innovations and through its initiations it contributed to the national agricultural development. The manor enjoyed successes in the field of intensive livestock farming and growing animal fodder plants and industrial crops. Its significant achievements included converting water-meadows to lands, engaging in railway development and the large-scale peat extraction within the industrial system of the manor. Its initiative participation in the tourism of Lake Balaton still has its effects felt today. This obviously required an owner with broad vision and proper management. Our study shows that not the legal category of the estate (entailed of free) was the decisive factor; in the ages of capitalism an owner of an entail could became a successful agriculture entrepreneur.

Justification of the operating parameters of the soil mill for the formation of a ridge

Abstract This paper presents the development and justification of operating parameters for a soil milling machine designed to form ridges for the pre-sowing preparation of industrial crops. The study focuses on determining the optimal parameters of the working bodies and operating modes of the cutter, emphasizing the importance of reducing undesirable soil fractions to enhance seed germination. Experimental results demonstrate that the use of organomineral complexes significantly improves soil structure, leading to better moisture retention and reduced vibrations during sowing. The machine’s design incorporates four sections, each equipped with milling drums, ridge formers, and compaction rollers, allowing for efficient soil preparation in a single pass. Key findings indicate that increasing the number of knives on the milling drum enhances soil crumbling efficiency, with optimal configurations yielding significant improvements in grain weight and overall crop quality. The research highlights the effectiveness of the developed machine in achieving high-quality tillage while conserving resources, thereby contributing to more sustainable agricultural practices.

Transcriptome analysis and transcription factors response to transplanting and topping time of upper leaf in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.)

Tobacco, as an annual industrial crop, is significantly affected by agronomic practices such as transplanting and topping, which can influence the yield and quality of the upper leaves. However, the processes by which transcription factors integrate both agronomic practices remain unclear. In this study, eight treatments were designed based on varying transplanting and topping periods. RNA-seq was employed to analyze the transcriptional expression and identify key differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and transcription factors (TFs). Subsequently, a rigorous quality inspection and data cleaning process yielded 1,302,152,358 high-quality reads. The comparative analysis of 8 treatments identified a total of 4265 DEGs. Utilizing K-means analysis, these DEGs demonstrated 9 distinct expression patterns. GO and KEGG annotation revealed a significant association of these DEGs with photosynthesis and secondary metabolism. 10 hub genes including AFC2, SIGB, PGSIP8, BIG5, OSP1, RL13, PDC1, NtORF and EBG were identified through WGCNA analysis. 41 differentially expressed TFs were identified through transcription factor analysis. Among them, 10 TFs namely ABR1, ERF26, HAT5, HSF24, LUH, AGL8, TIFY5A, TIFY10A, WRKY4, and WRKY40 are directly associated with plant stress resistance. 5 TFs such as ERF110, IDD7, ATB40, NAC81, and NAC83 have been identified as positive regulators of growth and development, while 3 TFs such as BH130, TCP4, and WRKY53 have been found to negatively impact growth and development. Furthermore, 4 TFs have been implicated in hormone and light signaling pathways, namely CIGR1, BLH1, WRKY42, and EIN4. The identified hub genes and TFs suggest that early transplanting and topping (B1D1C) contribute to enhanced stress resistance in tobacco. This may result in more developed stomata on tobacco leaves, as well as an increase in leaf thickness and a reduction in leaf size.

Customized Weighted Ensemble of Modified Transfer Learning Models for the Detection of Sugarcane Leaf Diseases

Sugarcane is the primary crop in the global sugar industry, yet it remains highly susceptible to a wide range of diseases that significantly impact its yield and quality. An effective solution is required to address the issues caused by the manual identification of plant diseases, which is time-consuming and has low detection accuracy. This paper proposes the development of a robust Deep Ensemble Convolutional Neural Network (DECNN) model for the accurate detection of sugarcane leaf diseases. Initially, several transfer learning (TL) models, including EfficientNetB0, MobileNetV2, DenseNet121, NASNetMobile, and EfficientNetV2B0, were enhanced through the addition of specific layers. A comparative analysis was then conducted on the enlarged dataset of sugarcane leaf diseases, which was divided into six categories and 4800 images. The application of data augmentation, along with the addition of dense layers, batch normalization layers, and dropout layers, led to improved detection accuracy, precision, recall, and F1 scores for each model. Among the five enhanced transfer learning models, the modified EfficientNetB0 model demonstrated the highest detection accuracy, ranging from 97.08% to 98.54%. In conclusion, the DECNN model was developed by integrating the modified EfficientNetB0, MobileNetV2, and DenseNet121 models using a distinctive performance-based custom-weighted ensemble method, with weight optimization carried out using the Tree-structured Parzen Estimator (TPE) technique. This resulted in a model that achieved a detection accuracy of 99.17%, which outperformed the individual performance of the modified EfficientNetB0, MobileNetV2, and DenseNet121 models in detecting sugarcane leaf diseases.

Employment of Ethnic Minorities Migrating from the Northern Mountains to the Central Highlands, Vietnam: A Case Study of Pleiku, Gia Lai Province

The Central Highlands includes five provinces: Lam Dong, Dak Nong, Dak Lak, Gia Lai, and Kontum. The Central Highlands is rich in resources, and fertile land is convenient for agricultural cultivation, especially industrial crops. With that great potential, after 1975, the State organized migration. It redistributed the population and owners throughout the region to the Central Highlands to establish agricultural and forestry farms, especially in the "new economic" regions. In addition to organized migration, the State's plan includes the "free migration" phenomenon of ethnic minorities from the northern mountainous provinces to the Central Highlands provinces. Unlike the original residents regarding soil, climate, and farming methods, the Central Highlands is a promising land that can bring a better life than their native homeland; they come to reclaim, establish villages, cultivate, and organize life on the new land. This paper presents the employment problem of ethnic minorities in the North who migrated to the Central Highlands, Vietnam, through a study in Pleiku City, Gia Lai Province.

Effect of Pre-Sowing Seed Stimulation on Maize Seedling Vigour.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of treating maize (Zea mays L.) seeds with fish collagen hydrolysate (FC) and keratin (KE) derived from animal waste by-products of leather and meat production, as well as poly(hexamethylene biguanide) hydrochloride (P) and bentonite (B). This research is in line with the search for new, environmentally friendly methods to increase yields of industrial crops in a way that is compatible with sustainable development. The effect of the binders used was investigated by analysing the grown maize seedlings by determining changes in parameters of chlorophyll fluorescence, photosynthetic pigments, elemental composition and FTIR analysis on maize shoots. The results indicated a slightly higher fresh weight (FW) of shoots in plants treated with fish collagen, PHMB and bentonite (FC+P+B) and FW of roots in plants treated with keratin, PHMB and bentonite (KE+P+B). Unexpectedly, the FW and dry weight (DW) of both roots and shoots of all bentonite-treated plants were significantly higher than the corresponding non-bentonite-treated groups. In addition, changes in chlorophyll-a fluorescence were observed for the keratin, PHMB and bentonite variants. This study showed that the proposed materials could be promising seed pelleting agents to improve seed growth and yield.

Pemanfaatan kulit buah kakao pada proses alkalisasi biji kakao serta pengaruhnya terhadap mutu kakao bubuk

The problem facing the industry of cocoa powder in Indonesia is that cocoa powder on the market has a high fat content, high acidity, a color quality that is not comparable with imported cocoa products, and a variety of flavors and aromas. Alkalization is a method that can handle these problems. Alkalization is a process to improve the quality and appearance of cocoa powder. Alkalization is carried out by adding potassium, magnesium, and others to cocoa. High potassium content can be found in cocoa pod husks. Cocoa pod husks are the main by-product from the cocoa industry, constituting 67 – 76% of the cocoa fruit weight. Cocoa pod husk contains potassium, fiber, and antioxidants that function as biomaterials for food and non-food products. The aims of the study were to determine and evaluate the quality of cocoa powder with the effect of alkalization treatments using cocoa pod husks. The study was carried out at The Indonesian Industrial and Beverage Crops Research Institute, Sukabumi, West Java, from January to June 2022. This study was designed in a factorial completely randomized design. The first factor was the alkaline material, which consisted of two levels (cocoa pod husk and baking soda). The second factor was the concentration, which consisted of 3 levels (1%, 2%, and 3%). The variables observed were the L*, a*, b*, moisture content, ash content, fineness, pH, fat content, protein, antioxidant activity, and organoleptic properties. The results showed that the alkalization process with alkaline material from cocoa pod husk and a concentration of 2% is the best quality characteristic of cocoa powder in accordance with SNI 01-3747-2013.

Highly stable Co@BC catalysts encapsulated in biochar for efficient lignin hydrogenolysis to valuable monophenols

The development and utilization of renewable lignin from industrial crops to produce high-value bio-based chemicals and fuels is of great significance in reducing dependence on fossil resources and promoting green chemistry. However, conventional metal-supported catalysts often suffer from poor metal dispersion and particle agglomeration during lignin conversion, resulting in insufficient catalytic activity. To address these challenges, a novel biochar-encapsulated cobalt catalyst (Co@BC) was developed in this study for efficient lignin hydrogenolysis. The catalyst formed a unique thin carbon layer structure by encapsulating cobalt nanoparticles in biochar, which enhanced metal dispersion and prevented particle agglomeration. The performance of the catalysts was systematically evaluated at different calcination temperatures. Co@BC-650 showed the best results with a lignin liquefaction degree of 79.7 % and a monophenol yield of 19.1 wt%. This yield was significantly higher than that of the supported Co/BC-650 catalyst, which only reached 15.4 wt%. The thin carbon layer not only facilitated the reduction of cobalt species at 650 °C, but also provided antioxidant protection and maintained the stability of metallic cobalt, which was essential for H2 adsorption and activation. In addition, Co@BC-650 exhibited excellent stability with little loss of activity after 3 cycles. This study provides an efficient and sustainable method for the selective production of monophenols from renewable lignin from industrial crops, which has the potential to be widely applied for biomass conversion and large-scale sustainable chemical production.

Agricultural waste valorisation – Novel Areca catechu L. residue blended with PVA-Chitosan for removal of chromium (VI) from water – Characterization, kinetics, and isotherm studies

Arecanut, an industrial crop prevalent in tropical regions such as India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Southeast Asia, generates significant agricultural waste during processing. This study explores a waste-to-wealth approach by incorporating arecanut organic residue into Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) - Chitosan blends via an eco-friendly continuous stirring method to develop an adsorbent film for removing chromium (VI) from water. Morphological analyses confirmed enhanced surface area, porosity, and roughness in the blended films. XRD and FTIR analyses indicated a semi-crystalline nature with a decrease in the characteristic peak intensity of PVA and chitosan, confirming the incorporation of arecanut residue. Optimal conditions identified OR-4 film, using 0.4 g of adsorbent, achieving 88.68 % removal of 173 mg/L chromium (VI) at pH 9.0, within 45 minutes at 40°C. SEM images demonstrated significant surface roughness reduction before and after adsorption, confirming chromium adsorption. Kinetic studies revealed a pseudo-second-order model and adsorption isotherms confirmed film surface heterogeneity. This research advances eco-friendly materials for water purification and offers a sustainable solution for managing agricultural residues.

Genome-wide characterization of pyrabactin resistance 1-like (PYL) family genes revealed AhPYL6 confer the resistance to Ralstonia solanacearum in peanut

Bacterial wilt (BW) caused by Ralstonia solanacearum severely impacts the yield and quality of peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), a globally cultivated industrial crop. Despite the abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathway have been identified as key factors in peanut resistance to BW, the molecular mechanism remains unclear. Through systematic identification, it was discovered that the peanut genome contains 18 ABA receptor pyrabactin resistance 1-like (PYL) family genes, which show conservation with other plant species. Among these PYL genes in peanut (referred to as AhPYL), AhPYL6 and AhPYL16 showed significant up-regulation in response to salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, ABA treatments, and R. solanacearum infection. Subsequently, the full-length AhPYL6 was cloned and functionally characterized. The fusion protein AhPYL6-YFP was predominantly expressed in the cytoplasm and nucleus of tobacco leaves, and overexpression of AhPYL6 notably enhanced resistance against R. solanacearum. Expression analysis revealed that the expression levels defense -related genes including NbNPR1, NbPR2, NbPR3, NbHRS203, NbEFE26, and NbNDR1 were significantly up-regulated by the overexpression of AhPYL6, which suggested that AhPYL6 confers the resistance to R. solanacearum through promoting expression of defense -related genes. These findings highlight the potential roles of PYL ABA receptors in the plant defense response to bacterial pathogens.

Crop Diversification in India (1990–2016): Implications for the Eastern and Northeastern States

This study utilises data from the Agriculture Census for 1990–1991, 2005–2006 and 2015–2016, employing the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) to assess crop diversification in Indian states. The overall HHI declined from 1990–1991 to 2015–2016, indicating increased crop diversification nationally. However, the proportion of states exceeding the overall average HHI significantly decreased, indicating a shift towards specialisation or monoculture in some states. The analysis notes a decrease in the gross cropped area (GCA) under total food crops (TFC) and an increase in total non-food crops (TNFC). Despite the overall decline in TFC, high-value crops like horticultural produce, sugar crops, spices, and condiments have seen improvement. Focusing on the Eastern region (ER) and the Northeastern region (NER), the study reveals diversification in NER due to higher allocation of land to high-value crops, while economically disadvantaged states in the ER, such as Bihar and Odisha, show a trend towards crop specialisation, potentially affecting overall food security in the region. The study emphasises the need for government support to address persistent vulnerabilities in poverty, unemployment, and low yields in cereals, pulses, and oilseeds in these regions, recommending inputs, infrastructure development, insurance, and market linkages for perishable items to enhance food security.

A Lightweight Cotton Field Weed Detection Model Enhanced with EfficientNet and Attention Mechanisms

Cotton is a crucial crop in the global textile industry, with major production regions including China, India, and the United States. While smart agricultural mechanization technologies, such as automated irrigation and precision pesticide systems, have improved crop management, weeds remain a significant challenge. These weeds not only compete with cotton for nutrients but can also serve as hosts for diseases, affecting both cotton yield and quality. Existing weed detection models perform poorly in the complex environment of cotton fields, where the visual features of weeds and crops are similar and often overlap, resulting in low detection accuracy. Furthermore, real-time deployment on edge devices is difficult. To address these issues, this study proposes an improved lightweight weed detection model, YOLO-WL, based on the YOLOv8 architecture. The model leverages EfficientNet to reconstruct the backbone, reducing model complexity and enhancing detection speed. To compensate for any performance loss due to backbone simplification, CA (cross-attention) is introduced into the backbone, improving feature sensitivity. Finally, AFPN (Adaptive Feature Pyramid Network) and EMA (efficient multi-scale attention) mechanisms are integrated into the neck to further strengthen feature extraction and improve weed detection accuracy. At the same time, the model maintains a lightweight design suitable for deployment on edge devices. Experiments on the CottonWeedDet12 dataset show that the YOLO-WL model achieved an mAP of 92.30%, reduced the detection time per image by 75% to 1.9 ms, and decreased the number of parameters by 30.3%. After TensorRT optimization, the video inference time was reduced from 23.134 ms to 2.443 ms per frame, enabling real-time detection in practical agricultural environments.

Foliar Application of Methyl Jasmonate and Chitosan Improve Growth, Yield, and Quality of Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) Under Water-Deficit Stress.

Guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.), a summer legume, is becoming increasingly important as an industrial crop due to its high gum and viscosity content. This study investigated the effects of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), chitosan (CH), and their combination on the growth, yield, and quality of guar under irrigation regimes. A greenhouse experiment was conducted using a factorial design to evaluate the effect of foliar spraying with MeJA (5, 25, and 50 µM), CH (100, 150, and 200 mg/L), their combination (25 µM MeJA + 150 mg/L CH), and control on two commercial guar varieties (RGC-986 and BR-2017) under different irrigation regimes (100%, 70%, and 40% field capacity). The results showed that the exogenous application of MeJA and CH, individually and in combination, significantly enhanced various morphological traits and yield components in guar, including plant height, pod characteristics, seed yield, and root development. Additionally, the combination treatments improved seed quality parameters, such as gum percentage and viscosity content. Leaf analysis revealed increased levels of total phenolic content, total flavonoid, and anthocyanin contents. The BR-2017 variety showed superior performance in most morphological and qualitative traits, demonstrating greater resistance to irrigation regimes. It maintained yield and quality characteristics under water-deficit conditions, particularly when treated with 25 µM MeJA and 150 mg/L CH. The highest gum percentage (33.67%) and viscosity (4768.5 cP) were observed in the RGC-986 variety, along with enhanced levels of secondary metabolites. This study provides new insights into how MeJA, CH, and their combination can improve the yield and quality of guar under water deficit stress conditions. The results suggest that the use of these elicitors, especially in combination, represents an innovative strategy for improving guar production and quality, with potential variety-specific responses to water-deficit stress.

Characterization of xanthan gum–metal complexes biosynthesized using a medium containing produced water and cassava processing residues

The use of residues from petroleum and crop industries is a feasible and sustainable alternative approach for the production of xanthan gum (XG). This study aimed to evaluate the biosynthesis of XG and the resulting final product obtained using Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. manihotis 1182 in a medium containing produced water (PW) and cassava processing residues. The combined use of PW and cassava crop residues was beneficial for XG production, achieving a product yield of 6.80 g L−1. The micrographs of recovered XG revealed the presence of elongated fiber-like microstructures rather than large agglomerates. The X-ray diffraction profiles of recovered xanthan comprised well-defined peaks rather than an amorphous halo. The thermogravimetry profiles revealed the presence of approximately 60 % of remaining solids in recovered xanthan, in contrast to 30 % in the commercial sample. All the samples demonstrated a pseudoplastic behavior; however, the consistency indices of the recovered samples were approximately 50-times lower than those of commercial XG. The emulsification indices of the recovered XG were > 50 % and comparable to those of commercial xanthan. In this study, for the first time, we obtained a complex XG–metal structure possessing a high emulsification capacity and low viscosity.

Efficient Coordination Among Chinese Provinces in Managing Supply and Demand for Staple Crops

ABSTRACTEnsuring a stable supply and demand of food represents a pivotal challenge for sustainable development. This study seeks to delineate the spatiotemporal distribution and circulation patterns of supply and demand for staple crops, identify the major producing and consuming zones in China, and investigate the drivers underpinning efficient coordination of food supply and demand. Results indicate that between 2000 and 2020, China's food supply and demand expanded by 73.8% and 36.62%, respectively, achieving a supply surplus. However, the most significant threats to supply–demand coordination are the extensive use of feed and industrial crops, compounded by the import vulnerabilities arising from global supply chain uncertainties. In terms of major producing and consuming zones, Northeast China plays a vital role in the national food supply, contributing 71% of domestic soybeans, 55% of its maize, and 34% of its rice. Climatic conditions and self‐sufficiency rates are key determinants of provincial supply and demand for staple crops. Provinces such as Sichuan, Hubei, Anhui, and Shandong represent balanced producing–consuming zones for these staple crops. To enhance food supply–demand coordination, tailored and adaptive measures for different provinces are imperative. This study offers theoretical insights to understand the trends of food supply and demand and further contributes to adaptive strategies to address climate change for sustainable food systems.

Growth Increase of Gelam (Melaleuca Leucadendron) Burnt Peatland Through the Provision of Soil Conditioner (Study in Londerang Peat Protection Forest)

The protected forest of Londerang Jambi is an area of hydrological unity with a surface area of 12.484 ha that is located in the district of Tanjung Timur and Muaro Jambi, which is surrounded by palm plantations and forest of industrial crops and 10 villages in the Districts of Tanjung Jabung Timur and Jambi. Based on the results of the Landsat 8 OLI image analysis and the SPOT 7 image interpretation by WWF Indonesia in 2015 that the Londerang Forest Protection Area (HLG) has an area of 12.848 Ha, currently the steep vegetation cover that canopies closely on the HLG Londerang remains only less than 10% of the area of HLG londerang due to forest fires in 2015. An attempt to overcome the situation has been made, one of them in the HLG Londerang being made an of the Hydrological Union of Mendahara-Sungai Batanghari which has been intervened by the Badan Restorasi Gambut (BRG). This effort was also carried out by the KIFC (Korea Indonesia Forest Center) by revegetating the blocks of land that had been burned in HLG Londerang. The planting has been carried out from the beginning of 2022 to December 2022. The species of plants planted among them are Pulai Rawa (Alstonia scholaris), Balangeran (Shorea balangeran), Gelam (Melaleuca leucadendron). In order to support the success of the revegetation, intensive maintenance is required, including the provision of soil fertilizers such as dolomite and NPK fertilizer. The research was conducted for seven months from May to December 2023 at HLG Londerang. Measuring fields are made with group random designs (RAK). The clustering is based on the difference in the height of the groundwater surface

Unravelling alternative splicing patterns in susceptible and resistant Brassica napus lines in response to Xanthomonas campestris infection

BackgroundRapeseed (Brassica napus L.) is an important oil and industrial crop worldwide. Black rot caused by the bacterial pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc) is an infectious vascular disease that leads to considerable yield losses in rapeseed. Resistance improvement through genetic breeding is an effective and sustainable approach to control black rot disease in B. napus. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying Brassica-Xcc interactions are not yet fully understood, especially regarding the impact of post-transcriptional gene regulation via alternative splicing (AS).ResultsIn this study, we compared the AS landscapes of a susceptible parental line and two mutagenized B. napus lines with contrasting levels of black rot resistance. Different types of AS events were identified in these B. napus lines at three time points upon Xcc infection, among which intron retention was the most common AS type. A total of 1,932 genes was found to show differential AS patterns between different B. napus lines. Multiple defense-related differential alternative splicing (DAS) hub candidates were pinpointed through an isoform-based co-expression network analysis, including genes involved in pathogen recognition, defense signalling, transcriptional regulation, and oxidation reduction.ConclusionThis study provides new insights into the potential effects of post-transcriptional regulation on immune responses in B. napus towards Xcc attack. These findings could be beneficial for the genetic improvement of B. napus to achieve durable black rot resistance in the future.

Identification of weeds in cotton fields at various growth stages using color feature techniques

Weeds affect the growth and yield of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), which is the most prevalent commercially viable non-food crop. Accurate differentiation between weeds and cotton plants is crucial for implementing precise weed-control strategies, optimizing crop yields, and minimizing herbicide usage. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effectiveness of using color feature techniques combined with Otsu's method (OTSU) to distinguish weeds from cotton plants at various growth stages. The results revealed that the image segmentation approach achieved a recognition rate of 74.1 % during the second growth stage. In the third growth stage, the weed identification process primarily targeted lambsquarters (Chenopodium album). The standard deviation (SD) difference between the red (R), green (G), and blue (B) components of the plant images revealed that the difference between the SD values of R and B was <5, which could serve as an effective threshold for identifying lambsquarters. Additionally, the recognition rates for cotton and lambsquarters were 71.4 % and 92.9 %, respectively, and the overall recognition rate reached 82.1 % during the identification process. The results of this study have practical implications for weed management practices, such as targeted herbicide application, mitigation of environmental impacts, and contribution to higher crop yields. Future research will focus on refining these methods by exploring advanced image processing techniques that integrate deep learning for automatic feature extraction, which will be evaluated for handling complex agronomic scenarios, such as leaf occlusion, varying growth stages, and image noise.

The effect of spermidine supplementation on polyamine metabolism and Fusarium infection in Linum usitatissimum

Flax (Linum usitatissimum) is a valuable industrial crop in temperate climate zones. However, the prevalence of fungal diseases, particularly those caused by Fusarium oxysporum sp. linii, poses a substantial threat, leading to significant crop losses and diminished interest in flax cultivation. In this study, flax plants were treated with spermidine and subsequently infected with Fusarium oxysporum to investigate multiple aspects: (1) the uptake of exogenous spermidine by the plants, (2) the impact of this uptake on the levels of other polyamines and the expression of polyamine biosynthesis genes, and (3) the effects of fungal infection on these parameters. The results demonstrated that flax plants effectively absorb spermidine, leading to substantial changes in the levels of polyamines and the expression of related genes in both roots and shoots. Notably, spermidine treatment resulted in significant alterations in the levels of putrescine and spermine, as well as in the transcript levels of key genes involved in polyamine biosynthesis. Moreover, Fusarium oxysporum infection itself induced changes in polyamine content and gene expression, which varied between root and shoot tissues. When spermidine-treated plants were infected with Fusarium oxysporum, a more complex response was observed, characterized by modifications in polyamine levels and gene expression that suggest an enhanced defense mechanism against the pathogen. These findings indicate that polyamine treatment not only affects the infection process but also modulates the plant's internal polyamine metabolism and gene expression, contributing to an improved resistance to fungal attack. This study highlights the potential of spermidine as a protective agent in flax and provides a foundation for further exploration of polyamine-related defense mechanisms.