Shakeel Ahmad Anjum

University of Agriculture Faisalabad · Department of Agronomy

Background Changing climate is causing erratic rainfall and prolonged drought periods, thus posing serious threats to crop productivity. Owing to severity of drought events, it is imperative to take proactive measures to enhance the resilience of drought sensitive crops like rice. Therefore, the present study was carried out to improve the drought...

The present study assessed the effect of the exogenous application of gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) on the performance of fragrant rice plants under individual and combined lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) toxicity. The treatments included Ck (no Pb or Cd), GABA, Pb+GABA, Cd+GABA, Pb+Cd+GABA, Pb, Cd, and Pb+Cd, where GABA was applied at 1 mM, while Pb...

Maize is one of the most significant cereal crops of the world. Water shortage has damaging effects on food production. Efficient water utilization for crops appears to be quite effective in the current situation of water scarcity. Application of nutrients (Plant Growth Regulators) which increase tolerance to water stress can mitigate the negative...

High temperature stress during reproductive stages of wheat is a leading constraint in achieving food security. The objectives of study were to investigate heat sensitivity of terminal stages of wheat, to optimize foliar selenium dose, to boost nonenzymatic antioxidants and to determine correlation of these nonenzymatic antioxidants with yield and...

Excessive use of water in wheat is associated with high fuel consumption and the emission of carbon dioxide into the environment. This study was conducted with the objectives to decrease water use and the associated fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions and to improve the productivity of wheat on a sustainable basis using LASER levelling an...

Heat spell during the reproductive growth of wheat is a serious threat to achieve food security. An experiment was conducted with the objectives (i) to explore the optimum dose of foliar selenium for alleviation of heat, (ii) to investigate the thermo-lability of reproductive stages of wheat, (iii) to enquire about the correlation of biochemical at...

Maize is the third most important cereal crop after wheat and rice in the world and plays a significant role in human nutrition. Its area and production have been substantially increased during recent years in Pakistan. Water contributes more than 70% in the composition of plant body and is important for all anabolic/catabolic processes. Among all...

Maize is an important cereal crop in world. Due to the climate change the temperature has increased and water availability is reduced. Both factors limit yield potential of major cereal crops. Uniform and vigorous stand establishment is the main milestone for economically successful maize production program, but drought stress is the major cause of...

Foliar application of Atonik (sodium nitrophenolate) at crop critical growth stages is expected to improve crop physiology, morphology, and productivity. The present field study was conducted at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad in autumn season of 2018 and 2019. Water deficit conditions were imposed by skip irrigation method. Plants were t...

Alternate wetting and drying (AWD) has been recognized as a water‐saving technology in rice production systems; however, pre‐ and post‐flowering AWD could induce changes in yield, quality and aroma biosynthesis in fragrant rice. In the present study, two fragrant rice cultivars (Guixiangzhan and Nongxiang‐18) were subjected to AWD till soil water p...

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is a non-protein amino acid and has a multi-functional role in abiotic stress tolerance. A pot experiment was conducted to assess the role of exogenous gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) application to modulate the growth, yield, and related physio-biochemical mechanisms in two aromatic rice cultivars, that is, Guixiangzh...

Mepiquat chloride (MC) is a plant growth regulator used to manage the rampant vegetative growth of cotton. A two-year field experiment was conducted at the Postgraduate Agricultural Research Station, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan, during 2017 and 2018 to investigate the influence of MC applied at different times on phenology, morp...

Globally, increasing water scarcity and higher production costs are the challenges in the cultivation of conventional transplanted rice (TPR). Under such conditions, dry direct-seeded rice (DDSR) with water-saving techniques like alternate wetting and drying (AWD) or aerobic rice system (AR) is a promising solution. Continuous flooded (CF) and wate...

Transplanting dates and nitrogen application rates are important factors that can affect rice growth, yield and yield-contributing attributes. A field trial on four transplanting dates (20 June, 30 June, 10 July and 20 July) and five nitrogen application rates (100 kg ha-1 , 135 kg ha-1 , 170 kg ha-1 and 205 kg ha-1) was planned to assess the relat...

The conventional rice production system of Pakistan is escalating due to the higher level of labor involved, shortage of water and higher cost of production due to the rapidly increasing cost of energy resources. Dry direct seeded aerobic rice (DDSAR) is a valuable option to ease the problem of labor, water, and energy resources. In this study, scr...

Reducing water inputs, by maintaining grain yield quality, is important for sustainable production of rice. This study was conducted to investigate the influence of different water management techniques on milling recovery, grain quality, and mercury uptake in rice under dry direct-seeded and transplanted production systems. Two aromatic rice culti...

Global warming and declining water resources are threatening the sustainability of rice production and global food security. Conventional continuously flooded system (CF) of rice production requires huge amount of water inputs, which is 3-5 times higher than the other cereals. In addition to huge water demand, CF poses severe threat to ecosystem du...

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of sowing dates, plant spacing and their interactions on seed cotton yield and various fiber quality traits of cotton during 2006-07 at Adaptive Research Station, Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab Pakistan. The cultivar BH-160 was sown on different dates (May 15, June 1, June 15, and June 30), with three p...

Maize belongs to a tropical environment and is extremely sensitive to drought and chilling stress, particularly at early developmental stages. The present study investigated the individual and combined effects of drought (15% PEG-Solution) and chilling stress (15/12 • C) on morpho-physiological growth, osmolyte accumulation, production of reactive...

Lead (Pb) affects the growth and productivity of rice negatively through soil-Pb-plant interactions. A pot experiment was conducted to assess the Pb uptake and its distributive pattern in different fragrant rice cultivars i.e., Meixiangzhan-2 (MXZ-2), Xiangyaxiangzhan (XYXZ), Guixiangzhan (GXZ), Basmati-385 (B-385), and Nongxiang-18 (NX-18) and rel...

Abstract Sustainability of traditionally cultivated rice in the rice-wheat cropping zone (RWCZ) of Pakistan is dwindling due to the high cost of production, declining water resources, and escalating labour availability. Thus, farmers and researchers are compelled to find promising alternatives to conventional puddled-transplanted rice (TPR). A fiel...

Weed infestation is a major problem in direct seeded rice because weeds reduce yield as well as quality of rice. Manual weeding in direct seeded rice is very tedious, time consuming and mostly weather dependent operation. A field experiment was conducted in summer season 2018 to study the comparative efficacy of different pre and post-emergence her...

High temperature during reproductive stages of cotton is a major constraint to achieve potential yield of cotton. The aim of the present study was to determine comparative thermo-sensitivity of squaring and flowering, to optimize exogenous selenium for heat-stressed cotton, and to explore correlation among physiochemical and morphological attribute...

Bio-fuels are considered to be cheap, sustainable and more environmental friendly. Management considerations including sowing method and suitable cultivar have considerable effect on the dry matter yield of plants which in turns influenced the bio-fuel yield. Field experiment was conducted during 2016 and 2017 17 to assess the impact of sowing meth...

Maize belongs to tropical environment and is extremely sensitive to drought and chilling stress, particularly at early developmental stages. The present study investigated the individual and combine effects of drought (15% PEG-Solution) and chilling stress (15C/12C) on the morpho-physiological growth, osmolyte accumulation, production and regulatio...

Abiotic stresses are the most important limiting factors for crop productivity worldwide in the wake of climatic change. Among the various kinds of abiotic stresses, chilling is one of the important components that limit the growth and final productivity of field crops. Chilling-induced adversities in plant growth and yield mainly occur due to phys...

Integrative use of organic and inorganic fertilizers not only fulfills the nutritional needs of crops, but also ensures sustainable production and environmental protection. Thus, this study was conducted to determine the influence of phosphorous application from integrated organic and inorganic fertilizers on maize. In this study poultry manure and...

Boron (B) affects plant growth and development by influencing vital processes like cell division, cell wall formation, water relations, meristematic tissue growth, carbohydrate metabolism, and pollen tube growth which suggests plausible effects on all these activities due to its deficiency. Therefore, a field trial was set up to assess the efficacy...

Experiments were conducted to study the deleterious impacts of low intensity light on physiochemical and agronomic attributes of tobacco, to evaluate varying doses of foliar 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) for alleviation of adverse impacts of low light intensity and to observe either 5-ALA modulated physiochemical regulations impart stress tolerance...

Crop establishment is mainly based on techniques used for good seed bed preparation. The objective of this study was to check the influence of various tillage practices on yield of the autumn planted maize crop. The experiment was conducted in summer, 2014 at Agronomic Research Area, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan in a randomized co...

Leymus chinensis (Trin.) is a dominant grass species in the Northeastern China Plain and the Inner Mongolia Plateau of China; however, this grass is under severe threat due to abiotic stresses such as drought and other human-induced practices. There are strategies to compensate the stress injuries and some plant growth substances show the potential...

Besides being a costly input considerable losses of chemical fertilizers occur that add to envi-ronmental pollution and reduced nutrient use efficiency. However, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are cheap and excellent alternate and can be applied as seed inoculation to enhance nutrient use efficiency along with reduced nutrient losses....

Abiotic stresses and poor biomass accumulation are chief constraints to accomplish potential yield in Leymus chinensis. An experiment was conducted to improve biomass and correlation of biomass accumulating attributes with photosynthetic pigments, osmotic substances and antioxidants under foliar application of different plant growth substances. The...

Wheat is an important cereal crop feeding human and livestock as well. Stagnant wheat yield has been observed over the time in maize-wheat intensive cereal rotation in Pakistan. Maize residue management might be a good choice over conventional burning/cutting practice. The present research was performed at Agronomic Research Area, University of Agr...

Different light and shade intensities are the main constraints to achieve potential biomass accumulation in Leymus chinensis (Trin.) Tzvelev. An experiment was conducted to explain the physiochemical and morphological adversity triggered by various light intensities. Adverse impacts were lessened with exogenous brassinolide (BR). Treatments consist...

Soil moisture status and row spacing at the time of sowing are important factors that can affect crop stand establishment, yield and yield-related attributes along with quality of direct seeded rice. Farmer field-based experiment comprised two soil moisture regimes at the time of sowing: (M1 = Sowing in moist (field capacity) condition, M2= Sowing...

Weeds are one of the major biological threats to higher rice productivity worldwide. Various cultural, biological, physical and chemical practices affect the composition and intensity of weeds in rice fields. Generally, weeds can be controlled through herbicides; nevertheless, chemical weed control is not a sustainable option on a long term. Variou...

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Plant growth regulators are an immense group of substances that have the ability to alter growth pattern of plants and can be used for improving plant growth and productivity. A study was conducted in the Xilin Gol grassland of Inner Mongolia, China, to ascertain the growth and biomass production of Stipa krylovii in response to exogenous applicati...

Heat stress at reproductive stages of cotton is a leading encumbrance to accomplish yield potential. An experiment was conducted to alleviate adversities of terminal heat stress on cotton. Experiment was conducted at University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan during 2013 and repeated in 2014 using Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with sp...

Seed nutrients reserves have direct relationship with seed functional traits and influence offspring performance. Effects of plant density, foliage boron (B) nutrition and mepiquat chloride (MC) growth regulation on seed nutrients reserves, seed mass and production, and emergence and offspring growth traits of cotton were studied in two years field...

Plant growth regulators are an immense group of substances that have the ability to alter growth pattern of plants and can be used for improving plant growth and productivity. A study was conducted in the Xilin Gol grassland of Inner Mongolia, China, to ascertain the growth and biomass production of Stipa krylovii in response to exogenous applicati...

Plants face a combination of different abiotic stresses under field conditions which are lethal to plant growth and production. Simultaneous occurrence of chilling and drought stresses in plants due to the drastic and rapid global climate changes, can alter the morphological, physiological and molecular responses. Both these stresses adversely affe...

Delayed sowing of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in cotton-based system reduces the productivity and profitability of the cotton-wheat cropping system. In this scenario, relay cropping of wheat in standing cotton might be a viable option to ensure the timely wheat sowing with simultaneous improvement in wheat yields and system profitability. This 2-y...

Heat stress is an important abiotic constraint limiting crop productivity. An experiment was conducted to elucidate the impacts of heat induced biochemical transformations on morphological attributes of Pakistani wheat genotypes. Experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with the split plot arrangement during the winter sea...

Plant growth regulators (PGRs) are used to manipulate growth and development of cereal, horticultural and forage crops in most parts of the world. The present study was conducted to ascertain the effect of different PGRs at varying concentrations on growth and biomass production of Leymus chinensis (Trin.) in the Xilin Gol grasslands of Inner Mongo...

The present study was aimed at determining the allelopathic influence of water extracts at varying concentrations (2.5% and 5% w/v) and residues with varying decomposition periods (0, 15 and 30 days) at 2% (w/w) concentration of four weeds (Trigonella polycerata, Vicia sativa, Lathyrus aphaca, Medicago polymorpha) against rate, synchronization and...

Rice cultivation in lead (Pb) polluted soils often leads to high Pb contents in rice grains. The present study investigated the dynamics of Pb uptake under different water regimes in two fragrant rice cultivars i.e., Guixiangzhan and Nongxiang-18. Results revealed that water dynamics regulated the antioxidant activities in both rice cultivars under...

Terminal heat stress is a prime constraint hampering the accomplishment of yield potential in wheat. While, selection of heat tolerant genotypes using morphological attributes often leads to ambiguities. An experiment was conducted with the objectives to screen different wheat genotypes for heat tolerance at metabolite level. Experiment was laid ou...

Weeds associated with crops may impose their phytotoxic effects on crop plants through the release of their allelochemicals and hence seriously reduce crop productivity. The present study was conducted to investigate the allelopathic effect of water soluble phenolics of weeds associated with wheat crop (Vicia sativa, Trigonella polycerata, Lathyrus...

Water deficit conditions are a bearing on plant growth and development leading to diminished crop productivity. However, improving the crop productivity is need of the time to sustain the food security under ever increasing world population. Drought episodes are increasing with varying intensity and duration. Drought stress imposes alterations in c...

Abiotic stresses are one of the major constraints to crop production and food security worldwide. The situation has aggravated due to the drastic and rapid changes in global climate. Heat and drought are undoubtedly the two most important stresses having huge impact on growth and productivity of the crops. It is very important to understand the phy...

The present study was conducted to determine the effect of exogenous application of brassinolide (BR) on Leymus chinensis grown under shade, i.e., control (100% natural light), mild shade (70% natural light), and moderate shade (50% natural light). Shade substantially enhanced the plant growth, synthesis of photosynthetic pigments, photosynthetic e...

An experiment was conducted during 2014-15 and 2015-16 at Agronomic Research Area, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, to study the effect of various doses and methods of zinc application on maize and wheat. The treatment consisted of control, 12.5 kg ZnSO4 ha-1, 25 kg ZnSO4 ha-1 and foliar spray of 0.5 % ZnSO4 and two wheat Varieties 'AARI 2011'...

Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) is a valuable vegetable crop of Pakistan. It is predominantly hosted by pathogens that reduce its yield and quality. Among these yield reducing agents, root knot nematodes are very important due to their board host rang. Because of root knot nematode infestation, huge yield losses are caused by Meloidogyne incognita. C...

Soybean has become an increasingly important agricultural commodity, with a steady increase in worldwide annual production. The worldwide increasing demand of soybean is due to its unique composition and excellent nutritional value. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the yield stability and performance of various soybean genotypes at Agro...

The late sowing of wheat is the major problem of low wheat yield in Pakistan due to delayed harvesting of rice and cotton in rice-wheat and cotton wheat cropping system. Priming and foliar application of different agents may be used to increase the yield of late sown wheat. This field experiment was conducted to evaluate the growth and yield respon...

Lead (Pb) affects plant growth and its related physio-biochemical functions negatively. The present study investigated the responses of five different fragrant rice cultivars viz., Meixiangzhan (MXZ-2), Xiangyaxiangzhan (XYXZ), Guixiangzhan (GXZ), Basmati-385 (B-385), and Nongxiang-18 (NX-18) to four different Pb concentrations viz., 0, 400, 800 an...

Crop growth and productivity may differ under different sowing methods and planting densities. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of different sowing methods and planting densities on growth, yield, quality and economic returns of cotton. Sowing methods included pit planting (1 m × 1 m pits), bed planting (75 cm apart beds),...

Agricultural production systems are immensely exposed to different environmental stresses in which heavy metal stress receives serious concerns. This study was conducted to explore the deleterious effects of different chromium (Cr) stress levels, i.e., 0, 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 �mol L−1, on two maize genotypes, Wandan 13 and Runnong 35. Both geno...

Climate change, soil degradation and depletion of natural resources are becoming the most prominent challenges for crop productivity and environmental sustainability in modern agriculture. In the scenario of conventional farming system, limited chances are available to cope with these issues. Relay cropping is a method of multiple cropping where on...

Water and labour scarcity pushes researchers to explore alternate sowing methods for rice like aerobic direct seeding but weed infestation is the major hindrance to adapt this production system. In our study, mechanical, chemical and cultural approaches were employed as weed control measures. Weed dynamics and yield parameters were recorded and eco...

Consequences of drought stress in crop production systems are perhaps more deleterious than other abiotic stresses under changing climatic scenarios. Regulations of physio-biochemical responses of plants under drought stress can be used as markers for drought stress tolerance in selection and breeding. The present study was conducted to appraise th...