Growth and shelf life of basil in response to selenium fertilization

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Abstract
Selenium is essential for human metabolism and its enrichment in vegetables plays an effective role in providing the body with selenium requirements. This factorial experiment was conducted in a greenhouse at Shahrekord University in 2019 to study the effects of selenium on basil growth and shelf life in the conditions of feeding with poultry manure (PM) and chemical fertilizers (CF). Experimental factors included two types of soil amended for plant nutrition (PM and CF) and five selenium concentrations (0, 1.5, 3, 4.5, and 6 mg L − 1) applied as foliar sprays. The results showed that shoot fresh weight in plants receiving PM was 16.6% more than CF fertilizers and foliar application of selenium had no effect on fresh weight. In the PM applied conditions, with the increase of selenium, the chlorophyll b content increased and then decreased. Increasing selenium improved its accumulation in the basil tissue, and the amount of selenium accumulated with poultry manure was more than that accumulated with chemical fertilizer. Whereas, the greatest weight loss in storage was observed in high selenium concentration. In plants receiving PM, increasing concentration of selenium sprays improved the shelf life, then decreased. However, in the amended soil with CF, the shelf life did not change by selenium, except in 1.5 mg L − 1 concentration. It is concluded that the foliar application of moderate amounts of selenium in poultry manure conditions helps to produce more basil, relatively good enrichment of selenium in plant tissue and maintain its optimal quality during the storage.

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