Yusuf Murat Kardeş

Maize (Zea mays L.) is a globally significant cereal crop, serving as a fundamental source of food, feed, and industrial raw material. This two year field study investigated the effects of different doses of a microbial fertilizer on the yield, yield components, and grain quality traits of three maize hybrids under field conditions in Afyonkarahisar, Türkiye, during the 2021 and 2022 growing seasons. The experiment was arranged in a split-plot design with three replications, where maize cultivars (P0937, P0573, and Sy Andromeda) were assigned to the main plots and microbial fertilizer doses (0 (control), 5, 10, 15, and 20 L ha⁻¹) to the subplots. number per ear, especially under the 2.0 L ha⁻¹ microbial fertilizer dose (MF₂), whereas Sy Andromeda showed higher protein (9.12%), starch (75.08%), and fiber contents (ADF: 5.29%, NDF: 17.05%). The MF₂ dose consistently enhanced yield and quality traits across cultivars and years. Climatic variation notably influenced results; increased rainfall and humidity in 2022 improved grain yield, kernel number, and fat and starch accumulation compared to 2021. Genotype-specific responses to microbial fertilizer doses highlight the importance of considering cultivar × environment × input interactions. These findings emphasize Significant main and interaction effects of year, cultivar, and microbial fertilizer dose were observed on ear morphology, grain yield, thousand kernel weight, and grain quality traits including ash, protein, fat, starch, acid detergent fiber (ADF), and neutral detergent fiber (NDF). Cultivar P0937 demonstrated superior grain yield (up to 19.57 t ha⁻¹) and kernel the agronomic potential of microbial fertilizers to improve maize productivity and grain quality when applied according to cultivar and environmental conditions. Further research is needed to assess long-term soil health impacts and integration with conventional fertilization strategies.

Bu çalışma, 2020–2021 yetiştirme sezonunda farklı bakla popülasyonlarına ait taze bakla hasadından sonra tarlada kalan yeşil bitki materyalinin yeşil ot verimi ve yem kalite özelliklerini belirlemek amacıyla yürütülmüştür. Araştırmada dört tescilli çeşit ve on yedi yerel çeşit olmak üzere toplam yirmi bir popülasyon, tesadüf blokları deneme deseninde üç tekrarlamalı olarak yetiştirilmiştir. Popülasyonlar arasında yeşil ot verimi, kuru madde oranı, ham protein içeriği, asit deterjanda çözünmeyen lif (ADF), nötr deterjanda çözünmeyen lif (NDF) ve mineral madde konsantrasyonları (K, P, Ca, Mg) bakımından istatistiksel olarak önemli farklılıklar saptanmıştır.Yeşil ot verimi 29.30–64.75 ton ha⁻¹, kuru madde oranı %20.78–22.87, ham protein içeriği %14.66–20.10, ADF değeri %27.78–36.82 ve NDF değeri %38.30–50.88 aralığında değişmiştir. Mineral analiz sonuçlarına göre potasyum içeriği %4.13–5.14, fosfor içeriği %0.32–0.44, kalsiyum içeriği %0.89–1.22 ve magnezyum içeriği %0.31–0.41 düzeyinde bulunmuştur. Biplot analizi, protein, Ca, Mg ve P arasında güçlü pozitif ilişkiler olduğunu; buna karşılık ADF ve NDF’nin yeşil ot verimi ile ters yönde ilişkili olduğunu ortaya koymuştur.Popülasyonlar performansları değerlendirildiğinde P16, P2 ve P7 yüksek yeşil ot verimiyle, P15, P14 ve P6 ise yüksek protein ve mineral içerikleriyle öne çıkmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular, bakla bitkisinin taze bakla hasadı sonrası geriye kalan ve çoğunlukla atık olarak bırakılan yeşil aksamının besin değerinin yüksek olduğunu ve ruminant beslemede kullanılabilecek önemli bir alternatif kaba yem kaynağı sunduğunu göstermektedir. Yerel popülasyonların bazı kalite özellikleri bakımından tescilli çeşitlerden daha üstün performans sergilemesi, bu popülasyonların sürdürülebilir yem üretimi ve ileri ıslah programları için değerli bir genetik kaynak olabileceğini göstermektedir.

This study was conducted to determine the secondary metabolite contents in the hay of mixtures of forage turnip “FT” (Brassica rapa L.) and forage pea “FP” (Pisum arvense L.) under Bilecik ecological conditions. The mixtures were prepared at four ratios of forage turnip to forage pea: 100:0%, 50:50%, 25:75%, and 0:100%. The study was carried out over three years (2022-2023, 2023-2024, and 2024-2025) using a randomized complete block design with three replicates. Harvesting was performed at the flowering stage for pure forage turnip and the mixtures, and at the stage when the lower pods matured for pure forage pea. In the mixtures, total phenolic (TP), total flavonoid (TF), radical scavenging activity (DPPH), and total alkaloid (TA) contents were determined. There were statistically significant differences among the mixtures and years for all examined traits in the study. Over the three-years; TP, TF, DPPH, and TA contents ranged between 17.30-22.36 mg GAE g-1, 5.77-6.22 mg QE g-1, 49.90-56.23%, and 6.40-6.51%, respectively. As a result, mixtures of forage turnip and forage pea have been shown to exhibit high biochemical content and resilience to environmental stressors.

The amount of available water and the adverse impacts on water resources worldwide and in our country are increasing day by day due to global climate change, population growth, excessive consumption, and pollution. Therefore, the efficient use, conservation, and management of water have become increasingly important, making the rational and productive utilization of existing resources through new strategies inevitable. One of these strategies is rainwater harvesting. In this study, the potential use of rainwater collected from the roofs of high tunnels located at Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University, Agricultural Practice and Research Center, for irrigation in greenhouses was investigated. Various scenarios were developed considering the year-round cultivation of tomato, lettuce, and green onion under high tunnels, and the extent to which the harvested water would meet irrigation needs was determined. The annual crop water requirements of the selected plants were estimated using the CROPWAT software. According to the calculations, under the climatic conditions of 2024, the total annual amount of water harvested from the greenhouse roofs was estimated at 122.67 m³. It was determined that the harvested water could enough 37% of the annual irrigation water requirement for tomato, 36% for lettuce, and 38% for green onion. These findings indicate that while the total irrigation demand cannot be fully met through rainwater harvesting, it can significantly reduce the pressure on existing water resources.

Sorghum (Sorghum spp) is one of the world's significant warm-climate cereals, used both as animal feed and human food. It demonstrates better adaptation to saline soils and diverse climatic conditions compared to other cereals. Salt stress significantly limits plant growth, development, yield, and quality. This study aimed to investigate the changes in antioxidant defense enzymes and total phenolic compounds in sorghum under salt stress. Different salinity levels (0, 50, 100, 150, and 200 mM NaCl) were applied to the Acme Brom Corn sorghum variety grown in Hoagland nutrient medium. The experiments were conducted under controlled conditions in a climate chamber for 10 days, both under salt stress and non-stress conditions, with three replicates. At the end of the experiments, the roots and leaves of the plants were harvested separately, homogenized, and placed in aluminium foil in portions of 0.5 g and 0.25 g, shock-frozen in liquid nitrogen, and stored at -20 °C. Antioxidant enzymes induced by salt stress, as well as chlorophyll and carotenoids, were determined spectrophotometrically. Statistically significant correlations were found between root glutathione reductase (GR), proline, and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities, and between antiradical capacity, glutathione S-transferase (GST), MDA, total phenolics, catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities. In leaves, significant correlations were observed between SOD, total phenolics, and GST, as well as between Chl a, CAT, antiradical capacity, APX, and carotenoids. Significant correlations were also identified between total chlorophyll and carotenoids, GR and Chl b, and MDA and proline. Although increased antioxidant enzyme activity and total phenolics support the salt stress resistance of sorghum plants, these mechanisms were insufficient at high salinity levels. Therefore, it was concluded that further studies are needed to better understand the relationships between salt stress and antioxidant enzyme activities at higher salt concentrations using the investigated sorghum variety. It should be noted that the findings should not be generalized, as the results depend on the experimental year, genotype, salt doses applied, enzyme activities investigated, and methods used.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of different treated wastewater levels on maize germination in a hydroponic system. The experiment was conducted in the plant growth chamber of Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University laboratories using a randomized complete block design. Five irrigation treatments were applied, consisting of treated wastewater levels of 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%. The results demonstrated that higher levels of treated wastewater (75% and 100%) negatively impacted parameters such as green forage yield, shoot length, and root length. Conversely, the best outcomes were observed at the 25% treated wastewater level, which significantly enhanced plant growth metrics. The highest green fodder yield as 13745.9 g m-2, dry matter yield as 1559.54 g m-2 and plant height as 15.99 cm were obtained from TWW25 subject. These findings indicate that moderate levels of treated wastewater can be effectively utilized in hydroponic systems to optimize maize growth while minimizing potential adverse effects associated with higher wastewater concentrations.

This study investigated the effects of sodium selenate (Se) application on the yield and quality parameters of strawberry plants under different water deficit conditions. The research was conducted in greenhouses at Bilecik Şeyh Edebali University during the 2023 growing season and employed a split‐plot design with three replications. Irrigation treatments (100% (I ₁₀₀ ) and 50% (I ₅₀ ) of Class A pan evaporation) were assigned to main plots, while sodium selenate doses (0, 2, and 4 ppm as foliar‐applied) subplots. In this study, strawberry plant shape, fresh fruit yield, fruit weight, fruit per plant, total phenolic and flavonoid concentrations, relative water content and mineral content were investigated. The results indicated that Se application mitigated the adverse effects of water stress, enhancing plant morphology and relative water content. Fresh fruit yield ranged from 43.91 to 86.70 g per plant, with the highest yield from I ₁₀₀ ×Se ₄ and the lowest from I ₅₀ ×Se ₄ . The highest total phenolic and flavonoid contents were found as 271.44 mg QE g‐1 and 64.62 mg QE g‐1, respectively, from the I ₁₀₀ ×Se ₂ . Selenium application increased mineral content under both irrigation levels. Overall, Se supplementation under limited irrigation (I ₅₀ ) alleviated water stress‐related negative effects, suggesting its potential for improving strawberry resilience to drought.

Rice serves as the primary food source for the majority of the world’s population. In terms of irrigation water, the highest volume of irrigation water is utilized in paddy irrigation. Excessive water use causes both waste of limited water resources and various environmental problems. The drip irrigation method with high water use efficiency will reduce both the need for irrigation water and the environmental footprint of paddy production. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of two different irrigation intervals (2 and 4 days) and four irrigation levels (150%, 125%, 100%, and 75% of evaporation from a Class-A pan) on the nutritional traits of three different paddy cultivars (Ronaldo, Baldo, and Osmancık). Increasing irrigation intervals and decreasing irrigation levels reduced the nutritional properties (protein, oil, starch) of the rice grains. In addition, increasing irrigation levels also increased the phytic acid and dietary fiber contents. The highest protein (7.14%) and total starch (87.10%) contents were obtained from the 150% irrigation treatments. The highest amylose content (20.74%) was obtained from the 75% irrigation treatment. In general, it was found that irrigation levels should be applied at 125% and 150% to increase the mineral content of rice grains. Although water deficits decreased the nutritional properties of the paddy cultivars, drip irrigation at an appropriate level did not have any negative effects on nutritional traits.

The effective use of water and the role of soil amendments are gaining increasing importance in sustainable agricultural practices. This study examined how changing irrigation water levels and biochar dosages affect the production and quality of buckwheat. In the study, 5 different irrigation water levels (100%,75%, 50%, 25% and 0%) and 5 biochar doses (1000 kg, 750 kg, 500 kg, 250 kg and 0 kg per decare) were applied in Bilecik conditions. Grain yield, water productivity, mineral content (Mg, K, P, Fe, Zn, Cu), total starch, crude protein, crude oil content, fibre and ash were analyzed. Application result show that the average grain yield increased when the irrigation water level and biochar dose increased. The highest grain yield was determined from the B100×I75 (2311.6 kg ha-1) interaction. Irrigation water and water use efficiency values increased with decreasing irrigation water level and plant water consumption. The analysis indicated that under stressful conditions, some quality criteria increased. Biochar enhances soil water retention, reduces evaporation losses, and improves irrigation efficiency, thereby supporting plant growth under water stress and enabling higher yields with reduced irrigation. In addition, according to the analysis results using the ANN model, the issue where 92% irrigation and biochar application was applied came to the fore.