Diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the rhizosphere of Plantago coronopus in Northwestern Algerian coast

Mycorrhizal fungi play a major role in the functioning of ecosystems. However, their identification has remained a challenge for scientific research. This study presents the first identification report of species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the rhizosphere of the halophyte Plantago coronopus L. in Algeria. Samples of rhizospheric soil were collected in spring 2018 at three sites in the Bomo-plage dunes west of Oran, Algeria. The spores were isolated by wet sieving, morphologically identified, and quantified. The mean spore density was 107.94 spores 100 g-1 dry soil, which is high compared to other dune ecosystems. Endomycorrhizal spore morphotypes were involved in the following Genus: Glomus, Septoglomus, Rhizophagus, Diversispora, Funneliformis, Dentiscutata, Claroideoglomus, Scutellospora, and Entrophospora, to the following Family: Glomeraceae, Gigasporaceae, Diversisporaceae, Claroideoglomeraceae, and Acaulosporaceae. The Glomeraceae was the most dominant identified family. The identification of indigenous arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi has been shown to be essential for future programs to restore disturbed dune ecosystems.

Nowe stanowiska roślin naczyniowych Polski, 2

Streszczenie W pracy przedstawiono nowe stanowiska 12 rzadkich (lub regionalnie rzadkich) roślin naczyniowych w Polsce, tj. Cochlearia danica , Colchicum autumnale , Cuscuta campestris , Lythrum hyssopifolia , Ostericum palustre , Pedicularis sylvatica , Plantago coronopus , Ranunculus arvensis , Rosa gallica , Sesleria uliginosa , Succisella inflexa oraz Veronica prostrata .

Plant Growth Regulators Application Enhance Tolerance to Salinity and Benefit the Halophyte Plantago coronopus in Saline Agriculture

Climate change, soil salinisation and desertification, intensive agriculture and the poor quality of irrigation water all create serious problems for the agriculture that supplies the world with food. Halophyte cultivation could constitute an alternative to glycophytic cultures and help resolve these issues. Plantago coronopus can be used in biosaline agriculture as it tolerates salt concentrations of 100 mM NaCl. To increase the salt tolerance of this plant, plant growth regulators such as polyamine spermidine, salicylic acid, gibberellins, cytokinins, and auxins were added in a hydroponic culture before the irrigation of NaCl (200 mM). In 45-day-old plants, dry weight, water content, osmolyte (sorbitol), antioxidants (phenols, flavonoids), polyamines (putrescine, spermidine, spermine (free, bound, and conjugated forms)) and ethylene were determined. In non-saline conditions, all plant regulators improved growth while in plants treated with salt, spermidine application was the most effective in improving growth, osmolyte accumulation (43%) and an increase of antioxidants (24%) in P. coronopus. The pretreatments that increase the sorbitol content, endogenous amines (bound spermine fraction), phenols and flavonoids may be the most effective in protecting to P. coronopus against stress and, therefore, could contribute to improving the tolerance to salinity and increase nutritional quality of P. coronopus.

Selenium Biofortification of Three Wild Species, Rumex acetosa L., Plantago coronopus L. and Portulaca oleracea L., Grown as Microgreens

Microgreens of wild herbs are a source of healthy compounds. Selenium (Se) biofortification of microgreens could help increase the Se content and thus contribute to Se requirements in humans. We evaluated whether three wild herbs, Rumex acetosa L., Plantago coronopus L., and Portulaca oleracea L., were suitable for biofortification in order to obtain products with high nutraceutical value. In the first experiment, the three species were enriched with Na2SeO4 at 0 and 1.5 mg Se L−1, and the effects of Se on the nutraceutical characteristics of microgreens were evaluated. In the second experiment, using P. oleracea enriched with 0, 1.5, 5, and 10 mg Se L−1, we investigated whether there was a relation between the increasing Se concentrations in the nutrient solution and the Se content in microgreens. The Se added was taken up by roots and accumulated in the aerial part. P. coronopus exhibited the highest ability to accumulate selenium, and the Se-enriched microgreens showed the highest chlorophyll and flavonoid content. The strong correlation between the Se concentration in the growth solution and the Se accumulated in P. oleracea may enable the cultivation of microgreens with the targeted Se content. The resulting Se-biofortified microgreens of wild species could represent a new vegetable product with high nutraceutical value also ensuring a sufficient dietary intake of Se.

A csókalábú útifű (Plantago coronopus) 2020-ban felfedezett újabb lelőhelyei

A folytatódó adatgyűjtés eredményeként 2020-ban a csókalábú útifű (Plantago coronopus L.) újabb lelőhelyei kerültek elő. Számos új előfordulása található az eddig ismert lelőhelyek­től távol, amely bizonyítja, hogy a faj továbbra is intenzív terjedési szakaszban van. KEF-alapú előfordu­lásainak száma aktuálisan 90. Minden új megfigyelése az útpadkát kísérő keskeny növényzeti sávból származik, kivétel ez alól a szombathelyi, ahol egy forgalmas bevásárlóközpont parkolójában a dísz­kövezet résében jelent meg.

Rapid continental spread of a salt-tolerant plant along the European road network

The spread of alien species with the expansion of road networks and increasing traffic is a well-known phenomenon globally. Besides their corridor effects, road maintenance practices, such as the use of de-icing salts during winter facilitate the spread of halophyte (salt tolerant) species along roads. A good example is Plantago coronopus, a mainly coastal halophyte which has started spreading inland from the Atlantic and Mediterranean coastal habitats, recently reaching even Central European countries (e.g. Hungary). Here we studied the spread of this halophyte and tried to identify factors explaining its successful dispersion along roads, while also comparing native and non-native roadside occurrences with regard to altitude of the localities, size of roadside populations and frequency of roadside occurrences. We completed a comprehensive literature review and collected more than 200 reports of occurrence from roadsides spanning a total of 38 years. During systematic sampling the frequency of the species along roads was significantly higher in the Mediterranean (native area), than along Hungarian (non-native area) roads, however the average number of individuals at the sampling localities were very similar, and no significant difference could be detected. Using a germination experiment, we demonstrate that although the species is able to germinate even at high salt concentrations, salt is not required for germination. Indeed salt significantly decreases germination probability of the seeds. The successful spread of the species could most likely be explained by its remarkably high seed production, or some special characteristics (e.g. seed dimorphism) and its ability to adapt to a wide range of environmental conditions. Considering the recent and rapid eastward spread of P. coronopus, occurrences in other countries where it has not been reported yet can be predicted in coming years.

Evaluation of Pacific Whiteleg Shrimp and Three Halophytic Plants in Marine Aquaponic Systems under Three Salinities

The effect of salinity on the growth performance of whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) and three halophyte plants, red orache (Atriplex hortensis), okahijiki (Salsola komarovii), and minutina (Plantago coronopus), in a marine aquaponic system with biofloc was evaluated in this study. The experiment was conducted for 4 weeks, and the three treatments were 10, 15, or 20 ppt (parts per thousand). The growth performance of the shrimp and the three halophytes were affected by the salinity. Compared to the shrimp reared in 10 ppt, those reared in 15 and 20 ppt had higher final weight, weight gain rate (WGR), and specific growth rate (SGR), and lower feed conversion ratio (FCR). The results from shrimp raised in 15 ppt were 2.0 ± 0.1 g, 89.9 ± 2.2%, 2.3 ± 0.0%, and 1.5 ± 0.0, respectively, and those in 20 ppt were 2.0 ± 0.1 g, 93.9 ± 5.4%, 2.4 ± 0.1%, and 1.4 ± 0.1, respectively. On the other hand, the growth performance and nutrient content in halophyte plants decreased with the increasing salinity. In general, the three halophyte plants had better results in the 10 and 15 ppt treatments than those in 20 ppt. Therefore, the salinity of 15 ppt was suggested as the optimal condition for the integrated cultivation of whiteleg shrimp and the three halophytes in marine aquaponics. Additionally, they are compatible species for the development of marine aquaponics.

A csókalábú útifű (Plantago coronopus) folytatódó térhódítása Magyarországon

Magyarországi úthálózat vizsgálata során az atlanti-mediterrán elterjedésű Plantago coronopus L. intenzív terjedését tapasztaltuk. 2017–2019 között a fajt újabb 47 flóratérképezési kvadrát-ból mutattuk ki, amellyel 81-re nőtt előfordulásainak száma. Kimutattuk, hogy a gyorsforgalmi utak mellett a faj erős terjedése a főközlekedési utakat is elérte, ezen kívüli megjelenései egyelőre ritkák. Legnagyobb kiterjedésű és egyedsűrűségű állományai az útpadkák mechanikus és ozmotikus stressztől erősebben érintett (gyakran növényzetmentes) sávja mögötti részén találhatók, de néhány előfordulás ilyen helyeken kívül is ismert. 2013-tól ismert állományai közül több helyen ma is összefüggő tömegben van jelen, így a faj egyértelműen meghonosodott (de nem átalakító) neofitonnak tekinthető.

New floristic records from Central Europe 6 (reports 81-98)

The presented sixth part of the series includes 18 new chorological records of vascular plants, five from Poland and thirteen from Slovakia. In Poland, the first spontaneous occurrence of Clinopodium nepeta subsp. nepeta outside cultivation is reported from Kraków. Also new localities of Euphorbia maculata, Panicum capillare, Plantago coronopus and Symphyotrichum ciliatum from southern Poland were found. In Slovakia, new records of alien Cardamine occulta, Lindernia dubia, Nigella damascena, Pistia stratiotes (with map of known records), Sagittaria latifolia, Senecio inaequidens, Silybum marianum and Vinca major were done as well as autochthonous Cotoneaster melanocarpus, Herniaria hirsuta, Verbascum speciosum and Xeranthemum annuum.

Vegetation of the coastal zone of Heracleisky peninsula

The variety of the vegetation cover of the northern part of the coast of Heracleisky peninsula was studied. Prodromus includes 6 classes ( Festuco-Puccinellietea, Crithmo-Staticetea, Cakiletea maritimae, Therosalicornietea, Juncetea maritimi, Phragmito-Magnocaricetea ), 7 orders, 9 unions, 10 associations, 2 subassociations and a variant of association. The new association Bassio prostratae-Elytrigietum obtusiflorae and the new variant of association Salicornio-Puccinellietum giganteae var. Plantago coronopus described in the class Festuco-Puccinellietea.