Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology | 2021
Growth, yield, and quality of roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) plants as affected by nano zinc and bio-stimulant treatments
Abstract
Nanoparticles are one of the most widely studied materials in this century, and they have important uses in various fields, including agriculture. Bio-stimulants play a vital role in the sustainable development of horticultural crops. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of nano zinc and bio-stimulants (salicylic acid, moringa extract, seaweed extract) on growth, yield, and quality of roselle plants. The experiment was conducted during 2018 and 2019 and was a completely randomized split-plot design. Nano zinc oxide of 0, 5, 10, and 15\xa0ppm was used as the main plot, and bio-stimulants were used as the sub-plot. The results showed that application of nano zinc led to significant increases in growth, yield, photosynthetic pigments, as well as anthocyanin content associated with increased zinc content in leaves. The highest values \u200b\u200bof all traits \u200b\u200boccurred under treatment of 10\xa0ppm of nano zinc. Also, bio-stimulants showed positive effects on all traits, and the best results were achieved under treatment with seaweed, followed by moringa extract. The correlation coefficients showed significant positive correlations among calyxes yield and anthocyanin and zinc content as well as with other growth traits and photosynthetic pigments. These results highlighted the important role of nano zinc in improving the growth, yield, and quality of the roselle plant, as well as the positive effects of seaweed as a bioactive stimulant. Therefore, it is recommended to include nano zinc and seaweed extract in fertilization programs for achieving a sustainable production system of such crops.