Garyfalia Economou

Drought is an increasing constraint to barley cultivation in the Mediterranean region and thus there is a necessity to find genotypes adapted to maintain stable productivity under water stress. Drought adaptation in seven genotypes of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), including local populations and modern two- and six-row cultivars, was evaluated under field conditions in Greece over two growing seasons. Four irrigation regimes, ranging from well-watered to severe drought stress, were imposed under permanent rainout shelter in order to evaluate progressive water deficit impact on growth parameters, biomass production, grain yield, yield components, and drought tolerance indices. Under drought stress, a decrease in plant height and tiller number was noted. Total biomass production was also significantly affected by water stress, when the six-row cultivar Elassona showed the largest values of total biomass accumulation under non-stress (21404 and 21425 kg ha-1 in 2013-2014 and 2014-2015, respectively), whereas under severe stress, the six-row population ANP-233/07 and two-row cultivar Grace showed the lowest biomass values in 2013-2014 (10271 kg ha-1) and 2014-2015 (9725 kg ha-1), respectively. Two-row cultivars Cha-Cha and Grace demonstrated better productivity and achieved grain yield values of 7041.5 and 6670.8 kg ha-1 in 2013-2014 and 6504.3 and 6245.8 kg ha-1 in 2014-2015 under well-watered conditions, while having the highest grain yield values under severe stress. Productivity-based drought indices such as Stress Tolerance Index (STI), Mean Productivity (MP), Geometric Mean Productivity (GMP), and Harmonic Mean (HM) appeared efficient in selecting the genotypes combining high productivity and stress tolerance. The local population of six-row barley ANP-233/07 was characterized by higher reproductive stability in terms of grain number under water deficiency. These results emphasize the diversity of drought adaptation strategies within barley genetic resources and suggest promising genotypes for breeding efforts to improve drought resistance in Mediterranean conditions.

Integrated water resources management uses decision-making and planning techniques in developing long-term strategies to ensure the sustainability of water resources and the resulting water security of future generations. Policy formulation through such integrated planning interlinks with indicators serving as an information channel to decision-makers. The present effort aims to develop a specific methodology using technical, environmental, and social indicators, formulating composite indices to identify vulnerability to changing water conditions. Thus, a set of indices developed through a multiyear research effort in Latin America, namely Drought Vulnerability Index (DVI), Water Stress Vulnerability Index (WSTVI), Water Scarcity Vulnerability Index (WSCVI), and Water Changing Conditions Vulnerability Index (WCCVI). Time series analysis covered the years 1991–2020, whereas the reference period was 1961–2020. Climate and water resources information is mainly obtained from ERA5-Land reanalysis; social, economic, infrastructure, and institutional data derived from harmonized sources (COROADO Project-EU, FAO, The World Bank, WHO/UNICEF JMP). Statistical tests and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identified the indicators included in the equations for each index. Expert knowledge played an important role in the development as data were collected according to known local specificities and global trends, as well as scientific criteria and methodological rigor regarding the proposed new indices. Finally, application of such a framework for spatially explicit analysis indicated higher levels of vulnerability to changing water conditions in the northern part of Mexico, the Andes, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Central America, and lower levels in Chile, Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. This application demonstrates that the produced composite indices may be implemented with matching success all over Latin America and, therefore, in diversified natural, technical, environmental, social and economic conditions.

In this study, a survey was conducted in 14 fields (6 in Thessaloniki and 8 in Serres) before barley harvest during three growing seasons (2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22) to map the occurrence of ACCase and ALS multi-resistant populations and evaluate the influence of agronomic practices and environmental conditions on their dynamics. Specifically, weed cover and tiller number/plant were assessed in each field using a W pattern, while questionnaires were used to collect information from farmers on agronomic practices applied, such as seedbed preparation, the rate of fertilization at sowing, the time of sowing, the time and rate of top-dressing nitrogen fertilizer, the time of application of the herbicide pinoxaden, and the harvest time. Soil properties and climatic conditions were also recorded. These results indicated that regardless of the different agricultural practices applied in the fields of the studied regions, no significant association was found with L. rigidum’s ground cover or number of tillers/plant. Additionally, no association was identified between weed ground cover and climatic characteristics. Therefore, the findings of this study strongly support the dependence of the dispersal of the resistant strain L. rigidum on the interactions between genetic, biological, and soil factors; fertilizer or herbicide use; sowing or other agronomic practices; and climatic factors that drive resistance dynamics, rather than any individual practice alone.

Soil tillage significantly affects yield, grain quality, and the environmental footprint of cereals under Mediterranean rainfed conditions. This two-year field study evaluated five contrasting tillage systems: conventional tillage (CT), disc harrow (DH), chisel plough (CP), and two no-tillage systems, including long-term (NT1, 30 years) and recently established (NT2, 3–4 years), for their effects on yield and quality traits, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of malting barley grown in Central Greece. Conventional tillage achieved the highest aboveground biomass (up to 12.1 t ha⁻¹) and yield (up to 6.3 t ha⁻¹), but resulted in lower thousand-grain weight (TGW) and reduced grain plumpness. In contrast, no-tillage systems produced slightly lower yields (4.3–5.2 t ha⁻¹), significantly higher TGW (up to 58.3 g), and improved grain-size distribution, while maintaining grain protein concentration within acceptable malting thresholds (10.4–11.0%). Environmental assessment indicated substantially lower GHG emissions under no-tillage, with NT2 achieving the lowest carbon footprint (0.19–0.22 kg CO₂ eq kg⁻¹). Carbon footprint estimates revealed that carbon accounting tools prioritize short-term management transitions over long-term no-tillage systems. Year effects reflected differences in rainfall distribution and temperature during critical growth stages. Overall, no-tillage systems provided the most balanced agronomic, qualitative, and environmental performance for malting barley under Mediterranean conditions.

Greek oregano (Origanum vulgare ssp. hirtum) is an important aromatic and medicinal crop grown in Greece, often on marginal lands. Effective weed management is essential for sustainable production, but the use of herbicides raises concerns about potential pesticide residues. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the residue levels of metribuzin + pendimethalin applied and incorporated pre-planting, as well metribuzin + cycloxydim and glyphosate applied post-emergence in oregano crop grown over a three-year period in the Agrinio location in Greece. Herbicide residue analysis in the edible part of the oregano plants was performed using two validated protocols, i.e., QuEChERS and QuPPe coupled with LC-MS/MS. The analytical methods demonstrated high sensitivity, with limits of quantification (LOQ) at 0.01 mg/kg and recovery rates ranging from 71% to 102%. These results indicated that the application of the above herbicides in oregano crop grown under Greek field conditions resulted in no detectable residues above the established LOQs, strongly supporting the potential safe use of these herbicides in oregano crop and their possible use for regulatory assessments and consumer safety assurance.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the economic performance of nurseries producing Sideritis propagation material using different propagation methods. Two nurseries were compared, each employing a different method that was experimentally tested at the Agricultural University of Athens (AUA). The comparison focuses on production cost and overall economic outcomes. One enterprise uses a method involving ethanolic solutions (ES), while the other applies the conventional propagation technique (Control—C). Findings indicate that the ES method demonstrates superior economic performance and achieves a lower cost per plant compared to the conventional method (C).

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a key cereal crop for malting and brewing, where grain plumpness and optimal grain protein concentration (GPC) are essential quality traits. This study investigated the combined effects of nitrogen fertilization strategies and a seaweed-based biostimulant (Ascophyllum nodosum extract) on malting barley production across four environments in Thessaly, Greece, over two growing seasons. Treatments included urea (U), urea with biostimulant (U + B), urea with urease inhibitor (UI), urea with urease inhibitor and biostimulant (UI + B), and a control (no fertilization). Applications were tested on genotype G20 at mid-development (Z30–33) and genotype G45 at an earlier stage (Z24–30). UI + B treatment consistently enhanced yield by up to 71%, thousand-grain weight by 27%, and spikelets per square meter by 75% relative to the control, with responses influenced by genotype and environment. Grain fractions > 2.8 mm increased by up to 22% under UI + B, while GPC remained within the optimal malting range (9.5–11.5%). Early-stage applications produced strong benefits overall. Principal component analysis distinguished treatment effects, with UI + B samples clustering consistently apart from controls. These results demonstrate that combining biostimulants with urease inhibitors can simultaneously improve yield, quality, and sustainability in malting barley, supporting reduced nitrogen input in Mediterranean systems.

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a key cereal crop for malting and brewing, where grain plumpness and optimal grain protein concentration (GPC) are essential quality traits. This study investigated the combined effects of nitrogen fertilization strategies and a seaweed-based biostimulant (Ascophyllum nodosum extract) on malting barley produc-tion across four environments in Thessaly, Greece, over two growing seasons. Treat-ments included urea (U), urea with biostimulant (U+B), urea with urease inhibitor (UI), urea with urease inhibitor and biostimulant (UI+B), and a control (no fertilization). Applications were tested on genotype G20 at mid-development (Z30–33) and genotype G45 at an earlier stage (Z24–30). UI+B treatment consistently enhanced yield by up to 71%, thousand grain weight by 27%, and spikelets per square meter by 75% relative to the control, with responses influenced by genotype and environment. Grain fractions >2.8 mm increased by up to 22% under UI+B, while GPC remained within the optimal malting range (9.5–11.5%). Early-stage applications produced stronger benefits overall. Principal component analysis distinguished treatment effects, with UI+B samples clustering consistently apart from controls. These results demonstrate that combining biostimulants with urease inhibitors can simultaneously improve yield, quality, and sustainability in malting barley, supporting reduced nitrogen input in Mediterranean systems.

Based on the complaints of malt barley growers about the insufficient control of rigid ryegrass (Lolium rigidum Gaudin) after applying the ACCase inhibitor pinoxaden, a survey was conducted during the early spring growing season of 2019/20; 20 barley fields located in Thessaloniki and 20 fields in Serres were marked with poor weed control levels. Before the barley harvest, representative weed seeds were collected from all 40 fields. After performing seed germination tests, fourteen populations (six from Thessaloniki and eight from Serres) with the highest seed germination ability were selected for further study. The whole-plant dose–response assays conducted in 2019–2020 indicated that most of the populations were multi-resistant to ACCase and ALS inhibitors. The estimated GR₅₀ values (the herbicide dose required to reduce the fresh weight of treated plants by 50%) for pinoxaden and mesosulfuron-methyl + iodosulfuron-methyl-sodium ranged from 1.15 to 52.41 g ai ha⁻¹ and 4.75 to 31.25 g ai ha⁻¹, respectively. Furthermore, the sequencing of acccase gene fragments from plants that survived pinoxaden application revealed that 11 out of 14 plant populations had a double accase point mutation at Ile1781 and Ile2041 codons. In addition, the sequencing of als gene fragments from the plants that survived mesosulfuron-methyl + iodosulfuron-methyl-sodium application revealed that 11 out of 14 plant populations had a point mutation at the Pro197 codon and 2 of them had a second als mutation at the Trp574 codon. These findings indicate that L. rigidum populations are multi-resistant to ACCase and ALS inhibitors, with individuals exhibiting either double accase or double als mutations.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the technical and economic impact of using commercial phytogenic feed supplements and dried Greek Oregano leaves as feed additives on dairy sheep farms. Fifteen farms in the Greek region of Thessaly were divided into intervention and control farms, and techno-economic data were collected before and after supplementation through structured interviews and cost analysis. The results showed that the administration of certain phytogenic supplements and oregano to ewes resulted in improved animal health, higher milk yield, and lower production costs, which created a positive trend in the financial results of the farm. Further research is needed to accurately determine the ideal production stage of the animals for the interventions, the amount of supplements administered, and the selection of appropriate plant species, which would lead to better financial management of the farms.