1,721,249 research outputs found
Potential use of wild plants in floriculture
No full textOver recent years, the floriculture trade, in particular cut flowers and potted ornamentals, has been on the rise, driven by the growing interest of society in its environmental and well-being benefits. Consequently, it is in the best interest of floriculturists, extension specialists and scientists to tap upcoming trends and opportunities for new ornamental plants. Wild plants could represent potential candidates to be used as ornamentals. The term “wild” when applied to plant species refers to those that grow spontaneously in self-maintaining populations in natural or semi-natural ecosystems and can exist independently of direct human action. Although often overlooked with respect to their commercial development, wild plant species can have a considerable role in floriculture. Wild plants are also successfully used in sustainable landscaping and xeriscaping for their beauty, functionality in maintaining environmental stability in terms of resource preservation, low water consumption, reduced demand for pesticides and other chemical inputs, suitability in preserving valuable wildlife habitats as well as reduced maintenance and labor costs. With respect to the contribution of wild plants to improved flower trade, aspects to be considered include: i) conservation and sustainable use of wild species; ii) identification of wild species useful as sources of new ornamentals; iii) germplasm conservation; and iv) the role of research institutions and nurseries in the innovation process. This review gives an overview of all these aspects in relation to the Mediterranean basin, which is considered to be one of the planet’s biodiversity ‘hotspots’, because of its high level of endemism
Chemical eustress and biofortification: Targeted nutrient solution management for enhancing quality in hydroponically grown vegetables
No full textSoilless cultivation including both open and closed loop systems is considered an efficient tool to increase crop productivity all year round, as well as enhancing nutritional and qualitative aspects of vegetables. Manipulation of secondary metabolites or phytochemicals in vegetables, by management of the nutrient solution is an exciting research area attracting scientists, growers and extension specialists. Proper management of salt concentration (all ions, salinity or electrical conductivity), cationic and/or anionic composition in the nutrient solution can improve the quality of a wide range of vegetables. After a brief introduction on the advantages of soilless cultivation systems and the concept of quality of fresh vegetables, the paper focuses on the effective application of salinity or nutritional eustress to improve the sensorial and functional traits of several leafy and fruit vegetables. Accurate control of essential and beneficial micronutrients (iron, silicon and selenium) concentrations in the nutrient solution, as an instrument for the biofortification of vegetables will be also covered. The present paper concludes by providing an overview of the future perspective and challenges on scientific advances in open/closed soilless cultivation aimed at enhancing the phytochemical profiling of vegetables
Plant biostimulants: Innovative tool for enhancing plant nutrition in organic farming
No full textOrganic farming has generated significant interest among consumers and scientists owing to their healthier and safer characteristics to human health. However, nutrient (N and P) availability has been identified to be a major yield-limiting factor in many organic farming systems. Plant biostimulants which are defined as substances (humic acids, protein hydrolysates and seaweed extracts) and/or microbial inoculants (plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and Trichoderma spp.) applied to plants with the aim to enhance plant resilience and also to improve nutrient uptake and translocation. This review focuses on how the plant biostimulants application can overcome nutrient limitation typical of organic systems by improving nutrient availability, uptake and assimilation, and consequently reducing the gap between organic and conventional yields. The agronomical, physiological and molecular responses conferring tolerance to nutrient deficiency were also covered. The review concluded by proposing several research areas to understand the specific application of plant biostimulants to improve the yield of organic horticulture
Modelli colturali sostenibili per le produzioni orto-floro-frutticole di qualità
Full text linkIl concetto di sviluppo sostenibile si è articolato nel tempo, integrando l’idea di sviluppo socialmente accettabile e compatibile con il mantenimento degli equilibri ecologici e la economicità dei processi produttivi. La salvaguardia dell’ambiente e della salute umana, l’uso razionale delle risorse naturali e degli input tecnici, il mantenimento di elevati e stabili livelli economici di crescita ed il rispetto dei principi di equità sociale, sono i paradigmi della sostenibilità dei processi produttivi, anche in agricoltura. In un contesto di economia globalizzata, che di fatto ha creato le condizioni di estremo disagio delle economie agricole più deboli e che comunque ha reso più aleatorie le redditività dei sistemi agricoli più forti, a livello europeo e nazionale sono state avviate strategie a sostegno soprattutto delle colture e delle aree agricole marginali attraverso la valorizzazione degli aspetti qualitativi delle produzioni agricole, delineando processi produttivi basati su risorse genetiche autoctone o, anche, sulla rivisitazione di modelli e sistemi colturali tradizionali e sulla promozione di nuovi rapporti tra produzione e mercato, attraverso, ad esempio, la promozione delle filiere corte. Le politiche nel settore dell’ortofrutta, indirizzate alla salvaguardia della biodiversità, alla creazione di marchi tipici o biologici, possono essere una risposta alle sfide imposte dalla globalizzazione, aumentando la competitività delle realtà produttive agricole in generale e di quelle locali in particolare. Modelli di sviluppo sostenibili sono richiesti sia dal mercato sia dalle esigenze proprie del sistema produttivo, in un contesto in cui in Europa, alla difficile competizione sul piano del costo di produzione, si risponde aumentando il valore aggiunto del prodotto.The influence of flesh firmness on consumer acceptance
and its relationship with total soluble solids
concentration (TSSC), titratable acidity (TTA) and
sensory analysis was studied to understand their interaction
in determining acceptance judgments, for different
organoleptic typologies of peaches and nectarines.
The investigation was carried out during summer
2006 on fruit of ‘September Sun’ and ‘Sweet September’
(low acid) peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch),
and ‘Maria Dolce’ (low acid) and ‘Venus’ nectarines
(Prunus persica (L.) Batsch, var. nucipersica). Sensory
descriptors for peaches and nectarines were Flesh
firmness, Sweetness, Sourness, Aroma, and Acceptability.
The panel was able to discriminate different
fruit ripening stages, in terms of fruit firmness, aroma
and sweetness and to relate those parameters to fruit
acceptability. ‘Maria Dolce’, ‘Venus’ and ‘September
Sun’ fruit ranging from 3.2 to 5.3 kg cm–2 of flesh firmness,
were accepted by the panel, while acceptability
of low-acid fruit of ‘Sweet September’ was related to
their aroma and firmness. Values of flesh firmness
higher than 5.5 kg cm–2 always resulted in unacceptable
fruit quality
Protein hydrolysate-based biostimulant improves yield and fruit quality of greenhouse fresh tomato
No full textThe use of natural plant biostimulants has been proposed as one of the most promising and innovative approach to address the challenges to sustainable greenhouse horticulture, to ensure optimal nutrient uptake and crop yield. Very limited information are available concerning the effect of natural biostimulants on yield and quality attributes of vegetables. Accordingly, it is in the best interest of growers, extension specialists and scientists to elucidate how biostimulant applications can modulate quality and yield of greenhouse vegetables. A greenhouse experiment were carried out to assess the crop productivity and fruit quality traits of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) in relation to foliar protein hydrolysate-based biostimulant applications (untreated or treated at a concentration of 3 mL L-1). Foliar application of the protein hydrolysate-based biostimulant enhanced marketable yield and mean fruit weight by 15.4 and 19.8%, respectively compared to untreated tomato plants, with no significant effect on the fruit number. Similarly to crop performance, the foliar application of protein hydrolysate incurred a significant increase in total soluble solids, total ascorbic acid and by 10.2, 22.9 and 37.5%, respectively compared to untreated tomato plants
Irrigation water quality for greenhouse horticulture
No full textWater, in terms of both quantity and quality, is crucial to the success of horticulture greenhouse production. As water supplies are often limited, it is necessary to use low quality water for irrigation purposes. This is particularly true in Mediterranean countries, where growers increasingly face problems associated with low quality water. In this chapter the most important water physical and chemical quality parameters are discussed. These include pH, alkalinity and salinity. Furthermore, a review of the criteria for water quality assessment is presented. Water tests to be conducted prior to selecting a greenhouse site are also briefly described with reference to the official methods of water analysis. The presence of high soluble salts in irrigation water is one of the most limiting factors in greenhouse crop production. As an alternative to using seawater – a common practice in some Mediterranean areas (e.g. Almería, Spain) – wastewater from industrial processes or lower grade water from wells contaminated by seawater infiltrations can be used. Management and agronomic techniques that may be used to combat some of the problems associated with the use of these “waters” are discussed, including methods to correct poor quality irrigation water
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