Melia Dubia Research Articles

Potential of Melia dubia-wheat based agroforestry system to cope up with climate change

Climate change has impact on agricultural production, because it raises CO2 levels in the atmosphere, which leads to higher temperatures. Agroforestry systems aid in climate change adaptation and mitigation by providing relatively lower temperature beneath the tree canopy. Therefore, diversified agricultural systems are needed to be identified and studied throughout the world that can help annual crops in providing better survival conditions with least effects on yield. Although food crop output in agroforestry systems is lower than in open regions, agroforestry is seen to be capable of supporting food security, soil and water conservation, land use diversification, and micronutrient adequacy and most importantly climate change mitigation. The present study showed that all the tree parameters (i.e., tree DBH, tree height and canopy spread) recorded in the intercropped conditions (Melia dubia based agroforestry system) were found higher compared to the trees devoid of intercrops. Trees with intercrops showed more canopy spread, tree height and DBH (6.9 m, 16.3m, 56.6 m) as compared to pure stand (6.6 m, 16.2 m, 55.6 m) of Melia dubia trees. The canopy temperature depression (CTD) of wheat crop grown with Melia dubia trees was -5.58 0C whereas; -5.27 0C CTD was recorded in non-shaded conditions. Significantly higher biological yield was observed in wheat variety HD 3086 in open and intercropped conditions (134.9 q/ha and 100.5 q/ha respectively). Study revealed that M. dubia based agroforestry provides trees to perform better in intercropped conditions and provides favourable environment for the crop growing beneath in terms of lowering temperature and maintaining apt moisture to the crop raised beneath.

Growth performance of different forestry species irrigated with moderately saline wastewater

A seven month, pot study was conducted to evaluate the impact of moderately saline wastewater on the growth potential of six forestry plant species viz., Eucalyptus calmaldulensis, Dendrocalamus strictus, Casurina equisetfolia, Cassia fistula, Melia dubia, and Bambusa arundinacea under different drainage conditions namely, well-drained saline (WDS) condition and poor-drained saline condition (PDS) and the control with well-drained non-saline condition. WDS treatment resulted in no mortality whereas PDS treatment resulted in mortality in the range of 33–66%. The plant height and root dry biomass increased in the range of 145% to 221.6% and 4.3–37.1 g respectively in WDS treatment, however, 23.60% to 173.4% and 4.1–10.1 g in PDS treatment. Among all, Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Dendrocalamus strictus showed high Na+ accumulation in roots (2.16 ± 0.02% and 1.13 ± 0.01%), shoots (1.98 ± 0.01% and 0.74 ± 0.01%) and leaves (1.27 ± 0.02% and 0.86 ± 0.01%) in WDS treatment and in case of PDS treatment root (1.01 ± 0.01% and 0.23 ± 0.01%), shoot (1.12 ± 0.02% and 0.11 ± 0.01%), and leaf (0.07 ± 0.01% and 0.1 ± 0.02). The overall performance of both Eucalyptus camaldulensis and Dendrocalamus strictus was highest in WDS treatment. Therefore, it was concluded, that both plants had better performance than other plant species, a proper drainage system defines the overall productivity and treatment efficiency.

Development of natural fiber reinforced thermoplastic bonded hybrid wood veneer composite

This study aimed at preparing thermoplastic based hybrid wood veneer composite panels in which bamboo fiber reinforced thermoplastic (BPC) was used in granular form as one component and Melia dubia wood veneers as the second component. BPC was prepared using twin screw extruder and maleated polyethylene/ maleated polypropylene as a coupling agent. The effect of polymer type i.e., polypropylene (PP), high density polyethylene (HDPE) and poly butylene adipate-co-terephthalate (PBAT) and bamboo fiber content (10%, 30%, and 50%) on physical, mechanical and thermal properties of Melia dubia plywood has been investigated. Plywood prepared with BPC exhibited superior mechanical properties as compared to pure polymer irrespective of polymer type. The improvement in flexural strength at 30% bamboo content was 14.6%, 17.6% and 38% for PP, HDPE and PBAT based BPC, respectively. Volumetric swelling in panels on water absorption was not influenced by the presence of bamboo fibers in the polymer. The improvement in mechanical properties of BPC bonded plywood was due to manifestation of an improved interfacial adhesion between BPC and wood veneers via coupling agent. SEM images revealed pertinent bonding between BPC and wood veneers in the form of mechanical interlocking.

Pre-sowing Treatments Impact on the Germination of Three Melia species (Melia Azeadarch, Melia composita and Melia dubia)

A nursery experiment was carried out to study germination rate of three different Melia species at the Division of Agroforestry, experimental farm at Sher-e-Kashmir, University of Agricultural Science and Technology, Chatha, Jammu (UT). Three Melia species drupes (Melia azedarach, Melia composita and Melia dubia) were subjected to eight pre-sowing treatments. Analysis of the results revealed that Melia drupes treated with cow dung slurry for 30 days enhanced germination percentage and days to initial and final germination. Finding of the experiments showed that pre-sowing treatments was effective in enhancing germination and production of quality seedlings of Melia species.

Exploring the phytochemical profile of melia dubia seeds and evaluating their biological properties

Melia dubia, also referred to as Malabar neem, is a potential multipurpose tree ideal for agroforestry to increase yield per unit of land. It has several medical, pharmacological, ethnomedicinal, and conventional qualities and uses, including antioxidant, anticancer, antibacterial, and antidiabetic actions, and is widely sought after in herbal medicine. The aim of this paper is to assess the biological characteristics of Melia dubia seeds through phytochemical characterization. The study emphasizes preliminary phytochemical analysis, total alkaloid content, in vitro antioxidant activity, and antimicrobial activities. The ferric-reducing antioxidant power method and nitric oxide radical scavenging activity methods were employed to examine the extract's antioxidant activity. For determining its antimicrobial activity, disc diffusion was used. It can be concluded that the ethanolic extract of Melia dubia seeds contains alkaloids, and the seeds exhibit both antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.

Performance of intercrop in Melia dubia based agroforestry in central dry zone of Karnataka

Performance of intercrop in Melia dubia based agroforestry in central dry zone of Karnataka

Bio Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using the Aqueous Leaf Extracts of Melia Dubia and its Anti-Oxidant Efficacy

Bio Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using the Aqueous Leaf Extracts of Melia Dubia and its Anti-Oxidant Efficacy

Growth performance of Melia dubia in agroforestry in the central dry zone of Karnataka

Growth performance of Melia dubia in agroforestry in the central dry zone of Karnataka

Panel products from Melia dubia

The demand and supply gap for wood is showing an ever increasing trend and in order to counter act on this trend, efforts are made in all possible ways to substitute wood with suitable alternatives wherever possible and to shift the focus from natural forests to private plantations for sourcing the timber raw material for wood based industries. As part of this efforts, local timbers are being extensively studied for their suitability for producing wood based composites which could replace the solid wood without compromising in either aesthetic appearance or strength properties. Clones of Eucalyptus, Poplar, Silver oak etc. are a few timber species to name. Melia dubia is one such plantation timber suitable for farm forestry and agro forestry which is becoming trendy among present day farmers, private planters and wood based industries because of its fast growth, inherited anti-termite and anti-insect properties etc. This paper presents the research results of a series of studies conducted to find the suitability of Melia dubia for manufacturing Particleboard, Medium density fiberboards (MDF), Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) and Blockboard.Â

Chloroplast genome skimming of a potential agroforestry species Melia dubia. Cav and its comparative phylogenetic analysis with major Meliaceae members.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-022-03447-1.

Within-species variations in drying and preservative intake properties: a case of two progenies of plantation grown Melia Dubia CAV

Two progenies of 7 years old plantation grown Melia dubia Cav. were taken for carrying out studies on variability in drying and preservative intake properties. Terazava1 method of testing drying properties was used to give scores to various drying defects occurred in two progenies. The preservative intake properties like retention, penetration, treatability etc were determined using standard methods. Results indicate that the drying properties varied from progeny to progeny. Occurrence of the defects like surface checks were found to vary progeny to progeny, whereas, defects like surface deformation and honey combing didn’t vary. Variation in preservative properties like retention and treatability was found to vary. The study indicates that M. dubia species may possess considerable intra-species variation in drying and preservative intake properties in the plantations of seed origin.

Effect of micronized copper treatments on retention, strength properties, copper leaching and decay resistance of plantation grown Melia dubia Cav. wood

Effect of micronized copper treatments on retention, strength properties, copper leaching and decay resistance of plantation grown Melia dubia Cav. wood

Suitability of Melia dubia and Eucalyptus tereticornis for Particleboard production

In this study the production of particleboard using two fast growing tree species viz., Eucalyptus tereticornis and Melia dubia and using Urea Formaldehyde as adhesive. This experiment was conducted in Centaury plywood industry, Chennai. The physical and mechanical properties of two tree species were assessed for the suitability of particleboard production. Based on the physical and mechanical properties of the wood, Particleboards were produced using Eucalyptus tereticornis (100%) and Melia dubia (100%) as raw material. Physical and Mechanical properties of both the particleboards were recorded. Particleboard using Eucalyptus tereticornis has recorded maximum density of 642 Kg/m3 with lower moisture content of 5.08%, observed minimum water in both 2hrs (18.26%) and 24hrs (51.45%) and also recorded minimum thickness swelling of 12.91%. In other hand Eucalyptus tereticornis based Particle board has Minimum Modulus of Rupture (MOR) of 12.30 N/mm2, minimum Screw withdrawal strength load of 1825Kg/m3 in face and 992 Kg/m3 in edge. Observed maximum Modulus of Elasticity (MOE) of 2098 N/mm2 with more Internal Bonding of 0.36 N/mm2. From this study, results clearly showed that, both fast growing tree species having good physical and mechanical properties for the production of particleboard but compare with these two tree species Eucalyptus tereticornis is highly suitable for production of good quality particleboards.

A new Enzolv process for simultaneous delignification and lignin-derived chemical production from the woody biomass of Melia dubia

A new Enzolv process for simultaneous delignification and lignin-derived chemical production from the woody biomass of Melia dubia

Root distribution pattern studies to assess the foraging zone in Melia dubia Cav.

Melia dubia is one of the important tree species in agroforestry models across India owing to its multifarious utilities, compatibility with various agricultural, horticultural and forage crops. Inspite of its pan India prevalence, research data pertaining to the spatial distribution of its root system is scarce which is primarily responsible for determination of the capacity to absorb water and nutrients preferentially over other allied crops. Belowground competitions are the major constraints to successful intercropping in woody/agroforestry ecosystems and thus spatial distribution of tree roots assumes paramount importance. The root distribution pattern of selected trees in a twelve-year-old Malabar neem (Melia dubia Cav.) plantation grown at 4 m x 4 m spacing was studied using the logarithmic spiral trench technique to assess the level of competitive/complementary impacts of the root system. Root intensity decreased steadily as the root diameter classes increased with function to soil depth as well as lateral distance. It was observed that 65.07 % of the total roots observed on the profile wall of the trench were fine roots (size class 2.5 to5.0 mm). Major share of the fine roots occupied near to the base of tree and 60.14% of fine roots were found to be accumulated in upper 20 cm layer of soil. In terms of lateral distance, maximum number of fine roots were recorded near the tree at 0.26 m with root intensity 431.1 m-2, and 65.85% of fine roots were found to be concentrated within 80 cm lateral distance from the tree.

Characterizations, physio-chemical and biological evaluation of novel nanostructure hydroxyapatite synthesized by conventional method using egg shell and by green synthesis method using Melia dubia extract

• The green synthesis of Hydroxyapatite nanorods using Melia dubia leaf extract can be employed in better way than conventional synthesized one in biological, electronic and mechano use. • This study has proved the possibility of producing inexpensive, non-toxic and ecofriendly HA and other calcium phosphate nanoparticles solely from Melia dubia . • The green synthesized HA nanorods had greater antibacterial activity against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria. • The electronic influx and frequency, voltage augmentation of HA and GHA gives the superiority by GHA and tribological data gives 325 MPa for GHA as the better one than normal and HA. Nanomaterials based on hydroxyapatite (HA) are well synthesized in the traditional mode using reagents, are not ecological friendly and are of very expensive one. Since current research areas are well focused on the production/synthesis of nanomaterials using an environmental friendly approach, the synthesis of green HA using plant extracts is of paramount importance. In this context, this work is carried out for the chemical and green synthesis of HA and GHA nanorods, from egg shells and Melia dubia as well as for the characterization of their structural, morphological, thermal, optical XRD, EDAX, SEM, and FT-IR analysis as well as in mechano and in influx for filter uses. Antimicrobial properties of these nanorods are evaluated. GHA nanorods are made using the herb Melia dubia . HA and GHA are evaluated for antimicrobial properties against Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Proteus vulgaris and Escherichia coli . The results showed that GHA exhibits a strong antibacterial effect against all bacteria studied. GHA nanoparticles can be used for various applications due to their environmental friendliness, non-toxicity and compatibility in bio and especially in tribological and electronics.

Physiochemical characterization and thermal behaviour of transparent wood composite

This paper describes the fabrication of large size transparent wood composite (TWC) from longitudinal veneers of three hardwood wood species viz., Populus deltoides (Poplar), Grevillea robusta (Silver oak) and Melia dubia (Melia) based on two-step lignin modification bleaching process and polymer (epoxy resin) infiltration. High optical transmittance of ~83.5%, ~76.7% and ~72.8% was obtained at 550 nm wavelength for TWC prepared using 2 mm thick veneers of Poplar, Melia and Silver oak, respectively. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy validate preservation of substantial lignin and successful inclusion of polymer in the wood micro-structure. X-Ray diffraction technique was used for analyzing crystallinity in wood and TWC material. Thermal behavior of wood and TWC was studied using thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. TWC exhibited low density, good mechanical properties, low thermal conductivity (0.36 W/mK) and good thermal stability.

Improving physico-mechanical properties, thermal stability and decay resistance of fast grown Melia dubia wood by nanoclay fortified phenolic resin impregnation

Improving physico-mechanical properties, thermal stability and decay resistance of fast grown Melia dubia wood by nanoclay fortified phenolic resin impregnation

Fabrication, characterization and in vitro evaluation of Melia dubia extract infused nanofibers for wound dressing

Open wounds are easily susceptible to infection, so it is necessary to develop a suitable barrier to prevent infection and enhance wound healing. The nanofibers has potential applications in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Certain phytochemicals are proangiogenic agents and helps in tissue remodeling. The present study focuses on the fabrication and characterization of Melia dubia (MD) leaf ethanolic extract incorporated polycaprolactone (PCL)/gelatin (Gel) electrospun nanofibers (NFs) for efficient wound dressing applications. The existence of bioactive compounds in MD leaf extract was confirmed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis (GCMS). The fabricated nanofibers are characterized by scanning electron microscope (HRSEM), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray crystalline diffraction analysis (XRD), contact angle and mechanical strength analysis. Antioxidant and in-vitro drug release was evaluated for NFs. Then antibacterial activity was tested against clinical pathogens and the biocompatibility of the NFs was tested on L929 fibroblast cells by MTT and confocal analysis. GCMS analysis of MD leaf extract confirms the existence of numerous bioactive compounds, that support wound healing. HRSEM analysis revealed that MD leaf extract loaded electrospun nanofibers were smooth, ultrafine, and free of beads with 256 ± 89 nm. The incorporation of the MD leaf extract into the NFs reduced their semi-crystalline nature and increased the tensile strength of the NFs. Contact angle analysis confirmed that incorporation of plant extracts enhanced the hydrophilic nature (22.93 ± 4.3°). The continuous sustained release of drug from initial concentration (∼74 %). In vitro antibacterial analysis revealed that fabricated NFs effectively inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli (18.2 ± 1.5 mm), Staphylococcus aureus (26.5 ± 2.0 mm), multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (23.0 ± 0.9 mm), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (28.1 ± 1.2 mm). In vitro biocompatibility assays revealed that fabricated NFs are not cytotoxic and enhanced the proliferation of fibroblast. The study indicated the possible ability of Melia dubia leaf extract incorporated PCL/Gel NFs in the killing of wound pathogens with biocompatibility towards L929 cells.

Inhibitory and stimulatory effects of Melia dubia drupe pulp on Capsicum annuum and Vigna radiata in laboratory and pot culture bioassays

Inhibitory and stimulatory effects of Melia dubia drupe pulp on Capsicum annuum and Vigna radiata in laboratory and pot culture bioassays