Response of Capsicum Hybrids to Zinc (Zn) Fertilization under Protected Cultivation

Micronutrients, particularly Zinc (Zn), play a vital role in the growth and development of plants due to its catalytic effect on many metabolic processes. However, the varietal responses to growth and yield vary significantly. A screening experiment was conducted to know the growth and yield response of six capsicum hybrids viz., Indra, Priyanka, Inspiration, Massilia, Bachata and Local green with two levels of ZnSO4 (with and without ZnSO4) as basal soil application. The growth and yield attributes at harvest stage was recorded. The dry matter production (DMP) and fresh fruit yield was also noted for all the six hybrids. Results revealed that, Zn fertilisation significantly improved the plant height, root growth, fruit development as well as fresh fruits yield. Higher plant height (83 cm), root length (37 cm), root volume (13 cc), fruit numbers, fruit weight (15 and 133g), fruit length, girth, pericarp thickness (9.17, 8.25 and 0.67 cm), DMP (65.0 g pot-1) as well as fresh fruit yield (4.70 kg pot-1) were observed with Indra followed by Inspiration and Bachata. Lesser response for the Zn application was noticed with the local green hybrid for various growth and yield traits. Indra was found to be highly responsive to Zn fertilisation while Inspiration, Bachata, Massilia, and Priyanka were medium responsive and local green hybrid was observed to be less responsive to Zn fertilisation.

Programmed Degradation of Pericarp Cells in Wheat Grains Depends on Autophagy

Wheat is one of the most important food crops in the world, with development of the grains directly determining yield and quality. Understanding grain development and the underlying regulatory mechanisms is therefore essential in improving the yield and quality of wheat. In this study, the developmental characteristics of the pericarp was examined in developing wheat grains of the new variety Jimai 70. As a result, pericarp thickness was found to be thinnest in grains at the top of the spike, followed by those in the middle and thickest at the bottom. Moreover, this difference corresponded to the number of cell layers in the pericarp, which decreased as a result of programmed cell death (PCD). A number of autophagy-related genes (ATGs) are involved in the process of PCD in the pericarp, and in this study, an increase in ATG8-PE expression was observed followed by the appearance of autophagy structures. Meanwhile, following interference of the key autophagy gene ATG8, PCD was inhibited and the thickness of the pericarp increased, resulting in small premature grains. These findings suggest that autophagy and PCD coexist in the pericarp during early development of wheat grains, with both processes increasing from the bottom to the top of the spike. Moreover, PCD was also found to rely on ATG8-mediated autophagy. The results of this study therefore provide a theoretical basis for in-depth studies of the regulatory mechanisms of wheat grain development.

Effects of Foliar Spraying with Different Concentrations of Selenium Fertilizer on the Development, Nutrient Absorption, and Quality of Citrus Fruits

Selenium (Se) fertilizer has a good effect on many field crops, but there are few reports on the application of Se fertilizer on citrus. We investigated the effects of 0 mg/L (CK, water treatment), 50 mg/L, 100 mg/L, 150 mg/L, and 200 mg/L sodium selenite aqueous solutions on the growth, nutrition, and fruit quality of 15-year-old citrus unshiu (Citrus reticulata Blanco cv. Succosa). The results showed that a low concentration of Se fertilizer promoted the growth and development of the citrus plan, and a high concentration of Se fertilizer was found to slightly inhibit the growth and development of the plant. Among the different treatment groups, 150 mg/L selenium fertilizer showed have the best effect on these evaluated parameters. The results thus suggest that 150 mg/L of Se fertilizer promotes the formation of chlorophyll in the leaves of the test plant and increases the longitudinal and transverse diameter of the fruits and weight of single fruit, significantly enhancing the activity of antioxidant enzymes in the leaves, promoting the absorption of nutrients in the leaves, increasing the contents of total sugar and vitamin, and decreasing the acidity in the fruits and the pericarp thickness. It also promoted the accumulation of the total selenium content in the leaves and fruits and consequently improved the quality of the fruits. These results showed that appropriate concentration of Se treatment can improve the activity of antioxidant enzymes to enhance plant stress resistance, regulate the content of sugar and acid in fruits, and improve the quality of fruits.

Domestication of Chili Pepper Has Altered Fruit Traits Affecting the Oviposition and Feeding Behavior of the Pepper Weevil

The pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii, Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is one of the most destructive pests of chili pepper. It causes extensive damage on varieties selected for consumption. However, the occurrence of this pest on wild and ornamental peppers remains unknown. We investigated the consequences of chili domestication on the feeding and oviposition of A. eugenii on fruits and flowers. We used plants of one wild accession, Bird Eye Pepper, five ornamental varieties (Pops Yellow, Black Pearl, Sedona Sun, Chilli Chilli, and Salsa Deep), and two domesticated varieties selected for consumption (Scotch Bonnet and Jalapeño). First, we characterized the plants according to their fruit and flower sizes, pericarp thickness, capsaicin level, fruit position, and flower color. Then, we evaluated the susceptibility of fruits and flowers to A. eugenii. Overall, domestication increased fruit and flower sizes and pericarp thickness, altered capsaicin levels, and altered fruit position and flower color. Weevils laid more eggs and caused more feeding damage on varieties selected for consumption than on wild and ornamental plants. Our results add to the growing literature on the consequences of crop domestication on herbivores. This knowledge could be integrated into breeding programs to select varieties resistant against the pepper weevil.

Phenotypic and Molecular Characterization of Brazilian Capsicum Germplasm

Population growth and the high demand for food production has caused environmental degradation losses in biodiversity. The conservation of genetic resources is the most appropriate strategy for maintaining the variability of species of great importance, such as Capsicum. In this study, we describe the characterization of 69 pepper accessions of four Capsicum species from different regions of Brazil on the basis of qualitative and quantitative descriptors and ISSR markers. The 11 quantitative descriptors grouped the 69 populations into five clades. The fruit traits had the greater discrimination power. A strong correlation was detected between some pairs of quantitative descriptors: petiole and fruit length, fruit diameter and fresh fruit mass, leaf length and leaf width, canopy and plant height, stem diameter and plant height, stem diameter and canopy diameter. A negative correlation was also observed between plant height and pericarp thickness. Moreover, the molecular analysis grouped accessions into five clades. The morpho-agronomic and molecular characterization were efficient to estimate the genetic diversity between accessions, being important tools for the knowledge and use of accessions. This study is of great importance to preserve pepper germplasm and to provide data to facilitate the process of the selection in breeding programs.

Selection of Habanero Pepper F1 Hybrids (Capsicum chinense Jacq.) at the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico with a High Potential for Different Markets

This study evaluated 29 F1 lines and the 11 genotypes of habanero peppers used in the crossbreeding program developed by the Scientific Research Center of Yucatan, México. A randomized complete block design with four repetitions was used. Eight plants of each of the genotypes were studied per block. A total of 22 qualitative and 18 quantitative descriptors established in the manuals of the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) and the National Service for Seed Inspection and Certification (SNICS) was used. The multiple correspondence analysis of the qualitative traits explained 38.2% of the total variability. The trait that contributed the most to the qualitative variability identified was the presence of anthocyanins in the node. Principal component analysis showed that the first two axes explained 85.1% of the total variability and that capsaicin content and fruit pericarp thickness were the major contributors to the variation recorded. Based on these results, four F1 hybrids of habanero pepper were selected because of their promising traits for the different markets, i.e., high productive potential and/or high pungency. These traits are described in the section on Results.

Genetic Variability and Characters Association of Hot Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) Genotypes Tested under Irrigation in Northern Ethiopia

Hot pepper production in most areas of Ethiopia especially in Tigray region is constrained by shortage of varieties, the prevalence of fungal and bacterial as well as viral diseases. Sixty-four hot pepper genotypes were evaluated to obtain the extent of genetic variability, association among characters. The experiment was laid out using 8x8 simple lattice design at Axum Agricultural Research center in 2017/18. Data were collected for 19 agronomic characters and analysis of variance revealed significant differences (p<0.01) among the genotypes for all characters. Fruit yield ranged from 0.8 to 4.5 t ha-1 with a mean of 2.7 t ha-1. The genotypic coefficient of variation (GCV) and phenotypic coefficient of variation (PCV) ranged from 3.57and 3.84 for days to maturity to 42.4 and 42.9% for average single fruit weight. All the traits had moderate to very high broad sense heritability while genetic advance as percent of mean (GAM) ranged from 8.34 for days to maturity to 85% for average single fruit weigh. High heritability coupled with high GAM was obtained for average single fruit weight, fruit length, dry fruit yield per plant, fruit diameter and thousand seed weight reflecting the presence of additive gene action for the expression of these traits and improvement of these characters could be done through selection. Fruit yield per hectare had positive and highly significant phenotypic and genotypic correlations with dry fruit yield per plant, average single fruit weight, fruit pericarp thickness, thousand seed weight, fruit diameter and fruit length, but it had negative and highly significant genotypic and phenotypic correlations with days to maturity. Estimates of genotypic and phenotypic direct and indirect effects of various characters on fruit yield showed that dry fruit yield per plant, fruit pericarp thickness had the highest positive direct contribution to fruit yield indicating that selection based on these characters will improve fruit yield. In conclusion, the research results showed the presence of significant variations among genotypes for agro-morphology traits. Therefore, it is recommended further evaluation of genotypes or hybrids that exhibited highest yield, quality and disease resistance in subsequent breeding programs to improve the productivity of the crop.

Morphological variations of mangosteen fruits from Luzon and Mindanao Islands, the Philippines

Berame J, Lawsin N, Miguel F, Chavez J. 2020. Morphological variations of mangosteen fruits from Luzon and Mindanao Islands, the Philippines. Biodiversitas 21: 3094-3100. Luzon and Mindanao islands in the Philippines are the important mangosteen producing provinces whose growing areas are scattered on these two islands. With this, mangosteen variability was detected based on field fruit collections in summer of 2019. The morphological variations of mangosteen fruits were observed and collected in Quezon Province in Luzon and Davao-Zamboanga Provinces in Mindanao based on the total number of 175 mangosteen trees. The main objectives of the research were to find out the morphological variations of mangosteen fruits and using Tomato Analyzer 4.0 to determine the morphological characters that can be used to differentiate mangosteen accessions in the Philippines. The variables include fruit shape index (external and internal), curve fruit shape index, asymmetry, internal eccentricity and weight of the ripe fruits. The results show that fruit characters like ellipsoidal, circular, rectangular, lobe shape, size, pericarp area, and pericarp thickness. are highly resemblance particularly in its fruit shape characters, and even sharing a similar taste of ripe fruits. Data revealed that Garcinia mangostana shared a similar character with Garcinia malaccensis even though they are from different geographical areas. Based on the morphological variations and characters, the two varieties of mangosteen fruits in the Philippines, G. mangostana and G. malaccensis, are so closely related that they could be combined together as one species as identified in the morphological analysis of this study.

Physical characteristics of passionfruit cv. BRS gigante amarelo produced by flowers with three and four carpels

The carpel is the female reproductive structure composed of a set of stigma, style and ovary. Normally passionflower have three carpels, however, some cultivars have this structure in greater quantity. The objective of this work was to identify relationships between the number of carpels and the physical characteristics of BRS Gigante Amarelo fruits. The flowers with three and four carpels were marked, pollinated and the fruits harvested from these flowers analyzed for transverse diameter, longitudinal diameter, pericarp thickness, fruit mass, pulp mass, pulp ratio, number and weight of seeds. A completely randomized design with 10 replicates per treatment was used and each plot had the average of 3 fruits. The data were submitted to variance analysis and the means were compared by the Tukey test at 5% of probability. The fruits generated by flowers with 4 carpels were 18,30% heavier, their pulp were on average 20.75% heavier, presented transverse diameter 7,53% superior to that of fruits generated by flowers with 3 carpels. Similar increments were identified regarding the number of seeds and the weight of seeds per fruit that increased 18,85% and 52.42%, respectively. This result indicates that cv. BRS Yellow Giant with 4 carpels generates heavier fruits, pulp and seeds with a more spherical shape.

Salacia frutiplatensis (Celastraceae, Salacioideae), a new species of the coastal sand dunes of Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico

The new species Salacia frutiplatensis is described and illustrated herein. This new taxon is part of the arboreal strata of the coastal sand dunes scrub of Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico, where it is considered endemic. Salacia frutiplatensis is similar to S. elliptica, S. cordata, and S. impressifolia, but differs from these in the shape and diameter of the extra-staminal disk, pericarp thickness, greater number of seeds, and not displaying the lianous habit.