Feature Papers in Horticulturae

The presented Feature Papers reflect the diversity of the types of research performed on horticultural plant species, spanning from the basic to the applied, production systems, and postharvest studies, in addition to highlighting some critical issues facing horticultural plant species [...]

Efektivitas Kebun Buah Cepoko sebagai Media Diseminasi Informasi Pengembangan Tanaman Hortikultura di Kota Semarang

<p><em>Kebun Buah Cepoko is one of the work units farm owned by Unit Pelaksana Teknis Daerah (UPTD)/ Regional Technical Implementation Unit, Departement Agriculture of Semarang City Goverment. The success of farm optimization programs for the development of food crops and horticulture needs to be analyzed in effectiveness dissemination information at the development of horticultural. The purpose of the research was to (1) analyze the effectiveness of Kebun Buah Cepoko as a media dissemination information on horticultural development; (2) analyze the correlation between the level of education, frequency of communication, value economic benefits of commodities, level of cosmopolitan and agricultural information needs with the effectiveness of media dissemination of information on horticultural development; (3) analyze the comparative effectiveness of information dissemination media from the different farmer groups. This research used quantitative methods with questionnaires and interview techniques. The population was 32 horticultural farmers who visited the Kebun Buah Cepoko and received information on the development of horticultural in the December 2019 period. The sampling technique used total sampling with a total of 32 respondents. Data analysis used descriptive statistics analysis, Spearman Rank correlation analysis and Kruskal Wallis comparative analysis. The research showed that the effectiveness of Kebun Buah Cepoko as dissemination media for horticultural development information was 68.78% or in the average category. There was no significant correlation between the factors, farmers, accessing information, consisting of the level of education, frequency of communication, the value of economic benefits of commodities, cosmopolitan level and the need for agricultural information with the effectiveness of dissemination media information on horticultural plant development in Semarang City. The significance value correlation between the economic benefits of commodities with the effectiveness of dissemination media information on horticultural plant development was 0.062. There was a significant comparation of the effectiveness of dissemination media information between farmer groups. Asymp value was obtained sig 0.045.</em></p>

Important Roles of Key Genes and Transcription Factors in Flower Color Differences of Nicotiana alata

Nicotiana alata is an ornamental horticultural plant with a variety of flower colors and a long flowering period. The genes in four different colored N. alata (white, purple, red, and lemon green) were analyzed to explain the differences in flower color using transcriptomes. A total of 32 differential expression genes in the chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway and 41 in the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway were identified. The enrichment analysis showed that the chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway and anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway play critical roles in the color differences of N. alata. The HEMA of the chlorophyll biosynthesis pathway was up-regulated in lemon green flowers. Compared with white flowers, in the red and purple flowers, F3H, F3′5′H and DFR were significantly up-regulated, while FLS was significantly down-regulated. Seventeen differential expression genes homologous to transcription factor coding genes were obtained, and the homologues of HY5, MYB12, AN1 and AN4 were also involved in flower color differences. The discovery of these candidate genes related to flower color differences is significant for further research on the flower colors formation mechanism and color improvements of N. alata.

MANAGEMENT MODEL OF ECOTOURISM-BASED FOREST VILLAGE COMMUNITY LAND TO INCREASE LOCAL ECONOMIC IN KARANGANYAR, INDONESIA

Berjo Village has the potential for ecotourism which can increase the economic potential of its people. This study aims to determine how Berjo Village manages the potential of natural tourism, agricultural tourism, and improves the economy of forest village communities. The method used is qualitative with a case study approach and triangulation as data validity, and interactive techniques as analysis. The results showed that the economic sector of the people of Berjo Village came from agriculture and tourism. The location of the forest area has high potential to be developed into ecotourism, which consists of Sukuh Temple, Jumog Waterfall, Telaga Madirda, Forest Park, Tenggir Park, Camping Ground or Outbound Tourism, Planggatan Site, Kampung Gunung Palace, Berjo Hydroponics, Ornamental Flower and Cut Flower Centers, Horticultural Plant Nursery Centers, the potential for climbing Mount Lawu by making a basecamp for prospective mountain climbers. All tours are in one location, namely, Berjo Village as an ecotourism destination. Tourism management is carried out by applying the concept of empowerment and the existence of embeddedness among various stakeholders with all the potential for ecotourism in an effort to improve the lives of the people in Berjo Village, Karanganyar Regency, Indonesia.

Isoleucine Enhances Plant Resistance Against Botrytis cinerea via Jasmonate Signaling Pathway

Amino acids are the building blocks of biomacromolecules in organisms, among which isoleucine (Ile) is the precursor of JA-Ile, an active molecule of phytohormone jasmonate (JA). JA is essential for diverse plant defense responses against biotic and abiotic stresses. Botrytis cinerea is a necrotrophic nutritional fungal pathogen that causes the second most severe plant fungal disease worldwide and infects more than 200 kinds of monocot and dicot plant species. In this study, we demonstrated that Ile application enhances plant resistance against B. cinerea in Arabidopsis, which is dependent on the JA receptor COI1 and the jasmonic acid-amido synthetase JAR1. The mutant lib with higher Ile content in leaves exhibits enhanced resistance to B. cinerea infection. Furthermore, we found that the exogenous Ile application moderately enhanced plant resistance to B. cinerea in various horticultural plant species, including lettuce, rose, and strawberry, suggesting a practical and effective strategy to control B. cinerea disease in agriculture. These results together showed that the increase of Ile could positively regulate the resistance of various plants to B. cinerea by enhancing JA signaling, which would offer potential applications for crop protection.

Stability of watermelon phenotype characters (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai) from crossing ♀ ‘Putri Delima’ with ♂ ‘Maduri’

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai) is a horticultural plant that belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family with high public demand, however, local markets sometimes have limited supply. The existence of watermelon varieties that are not pest-resistant causes its production to be erratic. Therefore, plant breeding efforts are required to produce superior varieties through the stability test of plant characters. For watermelon to be certified as a new variety, it needs to possess a stable and adaptive character to various conditions. The F1 watermelon from crossing ♀ ‘Putri Delima’ with ♂ ‘Maduri’ produces inole-shaped fruit, red flesh, and a sweet taste. Therefore, this study aims to determine the stability of the phenotypic character of watermelon F2 from crossing ♀ ‘Maduri’ with cultivar ♂ ‘Putri Delima’ and was conducted in Jamusan, Bokoharjo, Prambanan, Sleman, D.I.Yogyakarta fields from August to December. There are five samples of ripe watermelons that were selected randomly while their phenotypic characters were observed qualitatively and quantitatively. Each F2 watermelon character was compared to F1, and the quantitative analysis was conducted using one-factor ANOVA with a confidence level of 5%. The results of quantitative character analysis between F2 and F1 showed a P (P-value)> 0.05. Meanwhile, the results of qualitative observations of F2 watermelon showed different flesh and skin color, while the harvest time from F1 was caused by the segregation of heterozygous crosses. Therefore, it is necessary to select superior phenotypic characters as desired for the next breeding.

Banana Cultivars Microshoot Induction and Plantlet Formation Using Cytokinin and Auxin

<p>Banana is a horticultural plant with very high potentials, which contains carbohydrates and vitamins that are useful in fulfilling people's food and nutritional needs. Hence, this study aims to produce superior banana seedlings and develop a protocol for their mass production using a plant <em>in vitro</em> culture technique. This was a two stage-experiment i.e. microshoot production and plantlet formation. The result showed that Gebyar cultivar produced more shoots than the Kepok Kuning<em> </em>cultivar, with an average of 4.25 microshoots explant^-1. However, Kepok Kuning produced more leaves than Gebyar,<em> </em>with an average of 4.64 leaves plantlet^-1. Banana shoots cultured on the media containing Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) at a concentration of 2.5 µM produced the highest leaves number. Meanwhile, those cultured on the media containing 1-Naphthalenesacetic acid (NAA) at a concentration of 7.5 µM produced the highest roots number. A Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 6-Benzylaminopurine (BAP) up to 30 µM and the one supplemented with 7.5 μM of NAA are suitable for Kepok Kuning and Gebyar<em> </em>cultivars micropropagation with regard to microshoot induction and plantlet formation, respectively.</p>

Aplikasi Asam Giberelin (GA) Alami dari Ekstrak Rebung untuk Meningkatkan Kualitas Buah Tomat (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill.)

The Application of Natural Gibberellic Acid (GA) from Bamboo Shoot Extract to Increase Quality of Tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill). Tomato is a horticultural plant that has a lot of benefits. To increase the quality and productivity of tomatoes can be done by giving plant growth substances. This research aimed to find out the effect of natural gibberellic acid (GA) from bamboo shoot on the quality of tomatoes and to get the best natural gibberellic acid concentration from bamboo shoot to increase the quality and productivity of tomatoes. This research was designed using Randomized Block Design which consisted of 1 factor that is natural hormone concentration from bamboo shoot, with 5 treatments. Every treatment was repeated for 5 times. The standard of the treatment consisted of K0 as a control, K1 which was sprayed by 25% of bamboo shoot extract concentration, K2 which was squirted by sprayed by 50% of bamboo shoot extract concentration, K3 which was squirted by 75% of bamboo shoot extract concentration, and K4 which was sprayed by 100% of bamboo shoot extract concentration. The bamboo shoot was sprayed before the tomatoes’ flower blossomed. This research found that the application of bamboo shoot extract affected the quality of the tomatoes itself and reduced the number of seeds of tomato itself. In conclusion, the best concentration that can reduce the number of tomatoe’s seeds is the concentration of 75% (K3) compared to control one with 77%.