English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

Ocimum basilicum L. is an herbaceous plant from the Labiate family that used fresh, as a spice, and as a medicinal plant. Mulch is technique capable of reducing evaporation from the surface of the soil in basil production systems; it has more impacts on yield and essential oil quality of a basil crop. This research was performed in order to study the effects of different mulch types and irrigation regimes on various growth parameters and the essential oil content of basil. Treatments included two mulch types (black plastic, wood chips, and control) and three irrigation levels (100, 80, and 60% of water requirements, calculated by evaporation pan class A), following a randomised complete block design with four replications. Results showed that the effect of irrigation on fresh weight, dry weight, leaf relative water content, leaf area, and essential oil yield was significant (P<0.05). The effect of mulch on fresh weight, dry weight, leaf area, inter-node distance, number of branches, and essential oil yield was significant (P<0.05). Interaction between irrigation and mulch on inter-node distance, fresh weight, dry weight, and leaf area was significant (P<0.05). This study identified wood chips as the best mulch treatment. The highest dry weight yield (38.35 g/plant) and the highest essential oil yield (82.83 L/ha) resulted when wood chip mulch was used in combination with irrigation at 100% of the water requirement. This combination also resulted in the highest water productivity in basil production. Introduction Recent climate change investigation has reported that global escalation of storms, flooding and other severe weather episodes with growing temperatures may ultimately disrupt crop production (Farhad et al., 2013). Global circulation models projected an increase of 4-5.8°C in the surface air temperatures over the next few decades. From 1979 to 2003, an increase of 0.35 and 1.13°C have already documented in the annual mean maximum and minimum temperatures respectively (Farhad et al., 2016a). These temperature increases have likely exposed crops globally to drought induced stress (Farhad et al., 2016c). Drought is recognised as one of the most prominent conditions affecting Iran’s geography; however, it is also recognised that irrigation the primary relief from drought is not a natural process and in fact taxes an irreplaceable natural resource. Simultaneously, society’s consumption of energy resources, water, and food is increasing. Severe droughts cause substantial decline in crop yields through negative impacts on plant growth, physiology, and reproduction (Fahad et al., 2017). Therefore, it will be useful and fruitful to: i) adopt more sustainable agricultural techniques, including sustainable use of water, proper cropping styles, and sowing of resistant plants; ii) recognise the relationship between soil water deficit and plant growth at each stage; and iii) examine the plant’s morphological responses to stress (Kochaki and Nasiri Mahallati, 2000; Fahad and Bano, 2012; Farhad et al., 2016b; Aziz et al., 2017a). Plants are sessile beings, so the need of mechanisms to flee from unfavourable circumstances has provided the development of unique and sophisticated responses to environmental stresses. Depending on the degree of plasticity, many morphological, cellular, anatomical, and physiological changes occur in plants in response to abiotic stress (Farhad et al., 2014a; Farhad et al., 2014b; Farhad et al., 2016c; Farhad et al., 2016d). Many researchers have argued that water loss due to evaporation is sufficiently significant, so as to support the premise that water use performance and efficiency could be increased by any management technique capable of reducing evaporation from the surface of the soil (Farhad et al., 2015a; Farhad et al., 2015b). One of the several methods for reducing evaporation from the soil surface is the use of mulch. Mulch is defined as any natural or artificial material used for purposes including the covering of soils, green spaces, and agricultural fields. Plastic covers are widely used throughout the world, including in Iran, because of their low cost and ready availability. Perhaps no technology has ever changed the world’s vegetables as much as the use of plastic in agriculture (Mitchell and Yang, 2001; Aziz et al., 2017b). The World Bank reported that from 1989 to 2009 in China, the level of plastic cover in agriculture increased from 44 hectares to two million hectares (Jensen and Malter, 2009). With average rainfall of 250 mm per year, Iran is classified among the arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Calcareous soils, such as Inceptisols, Entisols, Alfisols and Vertisols, are most Correspondence: Fatemeh Nejatzadeh-Barandozi, Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Islamic Azad University, Khoy Branch, P.O. Box 58168-44799, Khoy, Iran. Fax: +98.4434640001.6. E-mail: fnejatzadeh@yahoo.com

Effects of different levels of mulch and irrigation on growth traits and essential oil content of basil