Athar Mahmood

University of Agriculture Faisalabad · Department of Agronomy

Purpose This study explored how exogenous silicon (Si) affects growth and salt resistance in maize. Methods The maize was cultivated in sand-filled pots, incorporating varied silicon and salt stress (NaCl) treatments. Silicon was applied at 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 mM, and salt stress was induced using 0, 60 and120 mM concentrations. Soil salinity trigge...

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is one of the most economically important crops worldwide. However, high salt stress in soil, resulting from agricultural practices and climate change, can pose a substantial risk to cotton growth and productivity. The objective of this research was to assess the ability of several G. hirsutum genotypes against variou...

A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the role of thiourea exogenous application (0 mg/L and 100 mg/L) on the morphological, physiological, and yield traits of two varieties of tomato (Naqeeb and Nadir) under different salt stress treatments (0, 60, and 120 mM) in completely randomized design (CRD). The imposition of salinity by rooting med...

Maize (Zea mays L.) is a significant global staple crop, which is important for its nutritional and economic value. However, the negative effects of drought and chilling stress, induced by climate change, are rapidly increasing threats to compromise its healthy yield. The processes that are affected by chilling stress are reduced growth, impaired p...

One of the most significant biotic constraints that wheat production faces is weed infestation. Wheat is infested with different weeds that cause yield losses (up to 100%) that vary based on the type of weed, their density, and the environmental conditions. Chemical weed control is the most common method to control weeds in wheat. However, widespre...

The main consequence of climate change on temperature is global warming. Over the past century, worldwide temperature has increased, rising by about 0.14 degrees Fahrenheit every year. Rising temperature negatively affects morphology, physiology, and yield of crops. Over the last 5 years, agriculture production in Pakistan affected due to temperatu...

Soils have been getting worse over time, which has led to lower crop yields and nutritional value. This is because of too many conventional fertilizers, anthropogenic activities, and climate change. Soil salinity is also a big problem and challenge for agricultural scientists. To address this issue, nanoparticles are gaining a reputation in agricul...

Numerous abiotic and biotic stresses threaten sustainable agriculture under limited resources. Agriculture productivity is disrupted by these unpredictable environmental fluctuations, posing a serious threat to food security. As a beneficial nutrient, silicon (Si) application enhances biological functions, crop development and productivity. Silicon...

Drought stress poses a significant obstacle to agricultural productivity, particularly in the case of oilseed crops such as sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). Selenium (Se) is a fundamental micronutrient that has been recognized for its ability to enhance plant resilience in the face of various environmental stresses. The FH-770 sunflower variety wa...

Macronutrients are essential for plant growth and development because they give plants the building blocks, they need to stay healthy and do important biological processes. A completely randomized designed (CRD) pot experiment was done to find out how nitrogen and sulfur affected the morphology and biochemistry of sunflowers. There were three repli...

Chitosan encourages the growth of plants, controls their metabolic processes and homeostasis, and activates their defence mechanisms. On one side, it hinders the ability of pathogens by preventing their growth and limiting their reproduction, so it will become a more common and ideal asset for agricultural sustainability. Additionally, cesium (Cs)...

An ample amount of water and soil nutrients is required for economic wheat production to meet the current food demands. Nitrogen (N) and zinc (Zn) fertigation in soils can produce a substantial wheat yield for a rapidly increasing population and bring a limelight to researchers. The present study was designed to ascertain N and Zn’s synergistic rol...

Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) has gained more attention worldwide in recent decades because of its importance as a bioenergy resource and in producing table sugar. However, the production capabilities of conventional varieties are being challenged by the changing climates, which struggle to meet the escalating demands of the growing global popu...

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a significant cereal crop belonging to Poaceae that is essential for human food and animal feeding. The production of barley grains was around 142.37 million tons in 2017/2018. However, the growth of barley was influenced by salinity which was enhanced by applying a foliar spray of salicylic acid. The current study in...

Climate change has had significant impacts on agriculture, particularly on cotton production, where drought has emerged as a major threat worldwide. Long and intense dry periods in cotton-growing regions have become more frequent and severe. Drought stress severely affects various aspects of cotton plants, including chlorophyll pigments, carbohydr...

Salicylic acid (SA) is a plant growth regulator known to take part in defense responses against different types of stresses, including salt stress. In this study, the role of foliar applied SA in improving the growth of berseem variety ‘Anmol’ under salt stress was examined. Plants were sown in plastic pots in the sand. Plants were treated with dif...

Global climate change is predicted to increase exogenous N input into terrestrial ecosystems, leading to significant changes in soil C-cycling. However, it remains largely unknown how these changes affect soil C-cycling, especially in semi-arid grasslands, which are one of the most vulnerable ecosystems. Here, based on a 3-year field study involvin...

Climatic changes and global warming produce abiotic stressors that affect plant development and productivity. Abiotic stressors, such as drought, salt, cold, and heat, significantly impair global agricultural crop yields. The endophyte is a type of endosymbiont, usually a bacteria or fungus that lives inside plant cells and doesn't cause disease in...

Micronutrient application has a crucial role in mitigating salinity stress in crop plants. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of zinc (Zn) and boron (B) as foliar applications on fenugreek growth and physiology under salt stress (0 and 120 mM). After 35 days of salt treatments, three levels of zinc (0, 50, and 100 ppm) and two lev...

Melatonin is a naturally occurring biologically active amine produced by plants, animals and microbes. This review explores the biosynthesis of melatonin in plants, with a particular focus on its diverse roles in Arabidopsis thaliana, a model species. Melatonin affects abiotic and biotic stress resistance in A. thaliana. Exogenous and endogenous me...

This study investigates the effect of boundary conditions and treatment-time on the electro-desalination of artificially-contaminated soil. The effect of ion exchange membranes (IEM), calcium chloride (CaCl2), and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) on the removal of salt (i.e., Na⁺, Cl⁻, and Ca²⁺) and metal (i.e., Co²⁺ and Fe²⁺) ions from the s...

Drought stress (DS) is one of the most destructive abiotic stresses that negatively affects plant growth, and yield. The intensity of DS is continuously increasing due rapid of water sources, less rainfall, and an increase in global warming. The world’s population is increasing at an alarming rate which needs a substantial increase in crop producti...

Wheat production suffers greatly from drought stress, resulting in yield losses. Endophytes and rhizobacteria have been recognized as a valuable source in mitigating of drought stress by improving plant resistance and growth. In this review, we discuss how endophytes and rhizobacteria help wheat cope with drought stress. During drought stress, endo...

Climate-change-induced variations in temperature and rainfall patterns are a serious threat across the globe. Flooding is the foremost challenge to agricultural productivity, and it is believed to become more intense under a changing climate. Flooding is a serious form of stress that significantly reduces crop yields, and future climatic anomalies...

Abiotic stress derives through rapid increase in the frequency and intensity of climate change causing hazardous problems. These environmental constraints induce different changes in the plants. The most common action of these environmental stresses is to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) which alters the internal mechanism of plants. When it...

Climate change is having a major impact on the natural world. Waterlogging occurs when free water covers the soil surface of crops. As an abiotic stress, flooding has a significant impact on around 16% of agricultural production regions globally. Both growth and yield of agricultural crops are gradually reduced due to harsh environmental conditions...

The capacity of a plant to maintain optimal cellular homeostasis under biotic and abiotic stressors is essential for plant growth and development. Desert ecosystems occupy almost 35% of the planet’s land area. As a result of climate change, more regions are anticipated to experience water scarcity. Owing to its fatal impact on plant growth, develop...

The world is currently experiencing a faster rate of warming than ever before, resulting in climate change that affects natural vegetation and ecosystems. Changing phenological aspects and both the quantity and quality of global fruit production are affecting farmers’ incomes and food security. Fruit and nut species may survive in the wintertime in...

Drylands are areas characterized by low ratios of annual precipitation on an average to potential evapotranspiration. The soil in these regions naturally has insufficient reserves of organic carbon (C) due to less diverse climatic conditions. Instead of this limited availability of organic carbon, they contain sufficient amount of persistent inorga...

Climatic change causes many stresses to crops such as drought, salinity, heat, cold, and heavy metal. Abiotic factors in plants have gained global attention and many strategies have been carried out to alleviate these factors in plants. Several protective mechanisms are developed by plants to alleviate stress. These mechanisms include synthesis of...

Modern agriculture faces significant challenges in order to secure crop production for an expanding population. Somehow minimizing the environmental impact of agricultural techniques. Moreover, the expenses involved with them, these all can be intensified by the high rate of abiotic stresses which can be imposed by climatic change. The agricultural...

The human population is increasing at an exponential rate and plants make the base of the food chain. All inhabitants including human beings are primarily dependent on plants, and the production of these plants or crops primarily depends on various environmental conditions prevailing around the atmosphere. Climatic change imposes many stresses on p...

It is now widely recognized that natural vegetation and many economically important crop species are significantly harmed by a variety of compounds that are found in the atmosphere in the form of pollutants. These pollutants are the result of anthropomorphic actions, which lead to increasing concentrations of harmful chemicals in the atmosphere. Th...

Remarkable structural changes take place in the community due to different modes of distribution occurring in the root zone diazotrophic community because of tillage. The transformation of conventional tillage system concealed a significant concentration of soil organic carbon. One of the most important purposes of agricultural conservation is to a...

Rising temperature is a major agricultural issue throughout most of the world. Heat stress has harmful effects on plants that vary depending on the species and affects their growth and development. Major tolerance mechanism tools include proteins, ion transporters, osmoprotectants, proteins, and antioxidants. High temperatures may also have adverse...

Micropropagation is used in both crop production and agriculture. Crop improvement by genetic engineering methods is possible in most cultivated crops. There is major challenge to produce more genetic diversity by vegetative method due to lack of suitable genotype, and hence the growth of crops decreases. But there are many ways to increase crop im...

Agrochemicals are of great importance to enhance growth and productivity for sustainable agriculture. In the past, different techniques have been developed to reduce the usage of synthetic fertilizers and insecticides to protect the environment from hazardous chemicals and to increase plant yield. Among such environment-friendly approaches, one is...

Agronomy covers nearly 30% of the earth and intricately tied to environmental quality. The environmental quality section is primarily concerned with understanding how agriculture affects our environment and improving agricultural management to increase air, soil, and water quality. Climate risk assessment is critical for effective adaption activity...

Agriculture’s vulnerability to changing climate needs to be the focus of scientific, economic, political, and social efforts to ensure viable existence on this planet. Climate change impacts all types of life, but the influence on plant life is much more noticeable because plants are the primary energy source and matter fixer on land. Producing cli...

Climate change is a serious issue over all the world as it directly influences on agriculture sector. Abiotic and biotic stresses occurred in response to environmental changes. Crop yield is highly vulnerable to environmental changes. Wheat is the major staple food globally and severely affected by changing climate. Wheat is one of the most extensi...

Drought is a serious restriction as it impacts the food security and lives of over two billion people who lives in arid areas. Water shortage is a limiting factor for plant growth. Drought is a natural condition that cannot be avoided; however, actions can be taken to mitigate its impacts. Drought stress affects water status, plant development, res...

Climate change is the major cause of environmental stresses, which badly affect agricultural crops. Abiotic stresses such as heat, drought, and soil salinization, among this soil salinity, are the main problem that is very dangerous to global food security and environmental sustainability. Soil salinity causes osmotic stress, led to an imbalance of...

Plants face different stresses in the environment, and among these environmental stresses, salinity is more devastating stress due to its negative impacts on crop plants. Salinity is stress that affects growth, physiology, and nutrient uptake in plants, which ultimately leads to food scarcity. Soluble salts decrease the water potential, resulting i...

A variety of organic waste feedstock, such as municipal sewage sludge and agricultural waste, can be used to create the carbon-rich material known as biochar. Biochar has gained popularity owing to its unique properties, which include stable structure, cation exchange capacity, a sizable specific surface area, and high carbon content. With differen...

Nanoherbicides are articulated by exploiting the prospective of nanotechnology for effectively delivering chemical and biological herbicides using nanomaterial‐based herbicide combinations. The nanoparticles were characterized using X-ray diffraction and FT-IR. On the targeted weeds, the nanoherbicides were sprayed at the third to fourth leaf stage...

The current study was planned to compare the effects of foliar spray of glutathione and co-applied zinc (Zn) on growth, lipid peroxidation and photosynthetic pigments in relation to alterations in antioxidative potential and biochemicals under drought induced water stress (75% field capacity). Three levels of glutathione (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 mM) were...

Weed control and sustainable rice production through rice intensification system and conventional practices of weed competition periods and age of transplanted seedlings Controle de ervas daninhas e produção sustentável de arroz através do sistema de intensificação do arroz e práticas convencionais de períodos de competição de ervas daninhas e idad...

Arid soils are often weak, low in fertility, and lack essential plant nutrients. Organic amendments might be a feasible solution to counter the detrimental impact and rehabilitate weak arid soil for the growth of legumes. The study aimed to investigate how organic amendments of compost and humic acid may affect winter field pea productivity in arid...

Highlights Sunflower is an important non-conventional oil seed crop. Zinc is an important mineral playing an important role in the growth and development of plants. Globally deficiency of boron is the second most leading micronutrient problem. Abstract Sunflower is sensitive to boron (B) and zinc (Zn) deficiency when grown on deficient soil, A fiel...

Salinity stress is a major hazard to crops, severely restricting agricultural productivity around the world. Salt stress has a negative impact on the growth, physiological, biochemical, and metabolic processes of maize, resulting in a significant loss in final crop productivity. However, the maize genotypes differ significantly in terms of salinity...

Winter cropping is widely considered as an effective way to increase rice yield. Therefore, this study was performed to find optimal winter cropping patterns in middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, China. Five experimental treatments were set up based on the long-term field experiment including winter fallow (CK), Chinese milk vetch winte...

The current study was planned to compare the effects of foliar spray of glutathione and co-applied zinc (Zn) on growth, lipid peroxidation and photosynthetic pigments in relation to alterations in antioxidative potential and biochemicals under drought induced water stress (75% field capacity). Three levels of glutathione (1.5, 3.0, and 4.5 mM) were...

Soybean is one of the most significant oilseed and vital food crops. Soybean growth and yield have been significantly affected by abiotic stresses. Heavy metal stress like Al toxicity is the most serious threat to soybean growth and yield and impairs plant growth and development. To counter the toxic effect of Al stress, breeders have used differen...

Soil salinity is abiotic stress of growing concern, whose effects can be potentially mitigated by the use of suitable fertilisers. Based on this, an experiment was conducted to determine the role of vegetable oil–coated urea on the performance of wheat ( Triticum aestivum ) under salinity. Neem oil–coated urea (NOCU), castor oil–coated urea (COCU),...

Winter cropping is an effective way to solve the low resource utilization efficiency in single rice system. In order to explore the effects of winter cropping on rice yield, economic benefits and resource utilization efficiency of single rice paddy field, two different cropping systems (single and winter multiple cropping systems) including 4 tre...

Drought stress is an inevitable factor that disturbs the production of plants by altering morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular functions. Breeding for drought tolerance requires a complete understanding of the molecular factors controlling stress-responsive pathways. The plant responds to drought stress by adopting four mechanis...

Citation: Rasheed, A.; Zhao, L.; Raza, A.; Mahmood, A.; Xing, H.; Lv, X.; Saeed, H.; Alqahtani, F.M.; Hashem, M.; Hassan, M.U.; et al. Role of Molecular Breeding Tools in Enhancing the Breeding of Drought-Resilient Cotton Genotypes: An Updated Review. Water 2023, 15, 1377. https://doi. Abstract: Drought stress is an inevitable factor that disturbs...

Raising sugarcane nurseries by single bud nodes cutting and using peat moss or coco peat as growth substrates are getting popular in many top sugarcane-producing countries worldwide. However, to reduce production costs, commercial growers involved in the sugarcane nursery raising business want to avoid peat moss or coco peat, which are expensive as...

Moringa oleifera Lam. is a common edible plant, famous for several nutritional and therapeutic benefits. This study investigates the salt-induced modulations in plant growth, physio-biochemical responses, and antioxidant performance of M. oleifera grown under 0, 50, and 100 mM NaCl concentrations. Results showed that the plant effectively managed m...