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Maximization of citrus fruit yield and enhancing their quality are ambitious objectives for citrus growers and scientist across the globe. This study explores the synergistic potential of organic manures and zinc to achieve these objectives. This integrated approach represents a sustainable and environmentally friendly strategy for citrus cultivation. For this, a study was conducted with different treatments of zinc and farm yard manure. The trial was conducted using randomized complete block design with five repeats. Results showed that the highest fruit yield (58.23 kg plant-1 ), fruit weight (169.40 g fruit-1), fruit diameter (72.80 mm), juice content (46.64%), TSS (10.87 ˚Brix), citric acid (645.22 mg 100 mL-1 ), ascorbic acid (593.45 mg 100 mL-1 ), total sugar content (7.05%), Zn content in leaf (19.46 mg kg-1), photosynthetic rate (14.68 µmol m-2 s-1), transpiration rate (3.95 mmol m-2 s-1 ), WUE (3.72 µmol CO2 mmol-1 H2O), stomata conductance (0.465 mmol m-2 s -1) and total chlorophyll (4.41 mg g-1) were obtained by application of T8: (Zn @ 50 g plant-1 + FYM @ 25 kg plant-1 + PM @ 10 kg plant-1). On the basis of our results, it is concluded that integrated use of Zn coupled with organic manures was the most effective combination of fertilization for improving physiological functioning and ionic metabolism, yield contributing attributes and fruit quality of citrus.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040202

Crops sown as intercrops in sugarcane are presumed to modify the emergence and growth of sugarcane by releasing phytotoxic chemicals into its rhizosphere. This study was conducted to investigate the allelopathic effect of leachates (liquid extracts with soluble solids) of intercrops Triticum aestivum, Cicer arietinum, Brassica napus and Lens culinaris on sugarcane. Aqueous extracts (5% w/v) derived from different plants parts (leaves, stem, root and whole plant). Among all the extracts used in study, B. napus root extract caused the highest reduction in emergence percentage (78%), emergence index (85%) and chlorophyll content (60%) of sugarcane seedlings in comparison with distilled water treated control. Whereas, the maximum inhibition in seedling growth of sugarcane was observed in response to application of stem extract of gram that resulted in the lowest sugarcane seedling length (23 cm), seedling biomass (2.0 g) and seedling vigor index (875). It can be concluded that in autumn planted sugarcane, intercropping of Brassica napus and Cicer arietinum should be avoided as these exhibited the strongest allelopathic influence on sugarcane.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040203

Textile products are required to be safeguard them against bacteria and microorganisms infestation. Natural herbs and plant material may be used on the surface of fabrics rather than synthetic materials to protect them against biotic factors. In this regard a study was conducted to evaluate orange peel on several fabrics to create an antibacterial textile finish. AATCC 147 test method was used to measure the developed finish's efficacy against two different strains of bacteria, including Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Treated and untreated fabrics were compared to determine significant (P ≤ 0.05) difference. Treated materials showed zones of inhibition ranging from 32 - 45 mm, and for gram negative bacteria, it ranged between 30 to 41 mm. The zones of inhibition in the treated materials indicate areas where bacterial growth is actively controlled. Larger zones suggest a stronger antimicrobial effect. The active compounds in the orange peel extract may interfere with bacterial cell membranes, disrupt cellular processes, or inhibit essential enzymes.

doi.org/10.52587/JAF040204

Abstract Sorghum is a major fodder crop with a substantial biomass production all over the world, including Genetic divergence among 15 Pakistani sorghum genotypes was evaluated under this study. High variability was reported in fresh biomass (382.197-778.181g), dry biomass 70.717-79.288), leaf area index (51.200-69.596cm2), leaf length 24.778-34.876 cm2), plant height 188.36-290.16cm), brix value (11.703-16.034) days to 50% flowering (156.21-292.288 days), and days to maturity (109.1-120.87 days). The first five principal components (PCs) across sorghum genotypes with Eigen values >1 shared 83.25% variability. Strong positive correlation was observed among fresh and dry biomass with the number of leaves per plant, the flag leaf area index, days to maturity and 50% of the days to flowering, whereas plant height and days to maturity showed a positive correlation. The Un-weight Pair-Group Method of Analysis (UPGMA) identified 5 morphotypes. Based on homology, the germplasm was divided into five classes. The genotypes (GP-6) and (GP-7) had the highest values for the fresh biomass, stem thickness, leaf length, dry biomass, number of leaves/plants and flag leaf area index. The Pakistani sorghum germplasm's explored genetic potential may be useful for varietal development programs.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040205

Drought stress is a limiting factor for yield and oil quality in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). The objective of current study was to determine the gene action for drought stress, and its impact on oil quality. Thirty-two single cross hybrids developed by crossing 8 drought tolerant inbred lines and four drought susceptible lines through line × tester mating design. The experiment was performed using randomized complete block design where two factors i.e., genotypes and stress and three replications were used. The oil quality related traits i.e., protein content (PC), oil content (OC), palmitic acid (PA), stearic acid (SA), oleic acid (OA) and linoleic acid (LA). Degree of dominance was higher than one indicating the over dominant type of gene action for all traits and could have the potential for hybrid breeding. Based on the GCA effects, L1, L6 and L7 were good combiners for oil quality traits. Based on SCA effects, the H25 was identified a good combiner for all the traits except LA. This hybrid is recommended for good quality oil seed production under arid and semi-arid areas.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040206

The goal of this study is to study the influence of heat stress on the hereditary patterns of different agronomic traits in upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) by utilizing generation mean analysis. A total of six parental varieties were cultivated in a controlled greenhouse environment, consisting of three heat-tolerant cultivars (CIM-600, Cyto-178, and FH-142) and three heat-susceptible cultivars (Aleppo-1, Marvi and AMSI-38). Following the development of six primary generations resulting from three crosses (CIM-600 × Allepo-1, Cyto-178 × AMSI-38 and FH-142 × Marvi), the seeds were subsequently planted at the farm of the Central Cotton Research Institute, Multan. The dominant component significantly influenced plant height more than the additive component in all crosses under normal conditions. The inheritance of traits in both situations was influenced by epistatic components (i, j, and l), except cross 1 under heat stress. It is worth noting that negative values for component [i] suggest the absence of any fixable additive genetic effect in some crosses. The presence of negative component values [j] in some crosses has led to the proposal of a digenic interaction. Diverse prior investigations have documented both similarities and differences in their respective conclusions.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040206

Climate change significantly affecting the agriculture sector globally, the world population is projected to be 9.1 billion by the year 2050, and about 70% extra food will be required. One of the main challenges regarding food security is the negative effects of climate change on crops. The farming of chili is vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change, leading to a significant decline in production due to heightened rain and drought occurrences. Current research carried out to investigates the impacts of climate change on chili production and income, involving the entire cultivation process from planting to harvest in Sindh province of Pakistan. The findings of this study reveal that climate change (Drought or heavy monsoon rain) employs a visible impact on both production efficiency and the income derived from chili cultivation. Thus, overall net-revenue from per acre is Rs. 269760.25 in the rainy season and Rs. 209,281in the dry season. The calculated return cost ratio (R/C) is computed at 2.46 and 1.97 in rainy and drought season respectively, declares the continued feasibility of chili farming, despite the challenges posed by climate change, Cobb-Douglass, function, analysis reveals the influence of various factors on chili production during both the dry and rainy seasons. In the dry season, the production of chili is significantly (R2= 0.82) affected by variables such as land area, seeds, manure, pesticides, and labor. Similarly, in the rainy season, all the parameters show positive signs, indicating that land area, seeds, manure, pesticides, and labor have a significant impact on chili production. Although variable of chemical fertilizer does non-significant effect on chili production in both seasons.

https://doi.org/10.52587/JAF040207