Fruits of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) are valued mainly for their nutraceutical properties, and are among the fruits with the highest antioxidant activity due to their high content of phenolic compounds. The aim of this research was to assess the total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of fruits in six wild bilberry populations from two regions of Romania over three years. The total polyphenol content was determined according to the Folin–Ciocalteu modified method, while the antioxidant activity was evaluated using the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging assay. The Padis and Raul Lung populations registered the highest values of polyphenol content and antioxidant activity, as such the fruits of these bilberry populations could be considered potential sources of antioxidants for direct consumption or for use as ingredients for food products or food supplements. Significant variation of total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity was observed both between populations from the same region and from different regions. The low level of broad sense heritability for total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity associated with the high effects of year, and population–year interaction indicates that the accumulation of polyphenols in bilberry fruits is influenced by changes in environmental conditions.

The purpose of the experiment was to highlight the germination of sunflower seeds affected by the presence of saline stress and the identification of tolerant genotypes. The biological material was represented by sunflower cvs. (Helianthus annuus L.): Coril, Select, Santiago and Fundulea-206. To simulate the saline conditions, germination solutions of sodium chloride (NaCl) were used with concentrations corresponding to the osmotic pressures -6 and -10 atm and the control seed hydration was performed with distilled water. Determination of seed germination, growth of seedling, percentage of plumules dry matter, chlorophyll content and free proline were performed. The experimental data obtained suppose the existence in the assimilation apparatus of sunflowers seedling subjected to stress a competitive chlorophyll/free proline biosynthesis processes. The experimental results regarding the effect of salinity on seed germination and seedling growth revealed important differences between genotypes. The radicle growth in the germination process were strongly affected by saline excess, with significant differences between cultivars. Saline stress results in significant reductions in the amount of chlorophyll, and high levels of free proline. It can be observed that with the increase of the stress level the percentage of the dry matter increases, indicating an accentuated water deficit.

Information on the inheritance of yield and quality traits is important for the selection of parents and breeding approaches to be adopted for the improvement of strawberry. The present study aimed to estimate the combining ability and gene effects for plant yield, fruits number/plant, fruit weight, pulp firmness and sugar content of strawberries in order to identify the best genitors and promising crosses, in 30 hybrids of six parents. The additive and non-additive gene action as well as the maternal effects was involved in the inheritance of the studied traits. For all traits, especially for fruit weight and plant yield, the additive gene action was more important than the non-additive one. The parents 'A1' and 'Alba' showed a higher concentration of favourable alleles for plant yield and fruits number, and they will allow the increase of plant yield when used as a donor of pollen and the increase of fruit number when used as a recipient of pollen. The variety 'Marmolada' was a good general combiner for sugar content, pulp firmness and fruit weight, especially when used as a female genitor. These parents could be used in hybridization in order to accelerate the genetic improvement of some yield and quality traits in strawberries. The cross 'Mira' × 'Onda' expressed desirable specific combining ability effects for yield traits and can be successfully use in strawberries breeding programs. In the case of 'Alba' × 'Clery' there is a high probability to select progenies with valuable yield traits associated with sweet fruits.

Research was conducted during two growing seasons (2017-2018) in Miniş-Măderat vineyard. The study aimed to evaluate the variability of several red wine grape varieties in order to highlight their main qualitative and quantitative parameters. In the research were involved the morphological parameters: the number of bunches on the vine, the bunch weight, the number of berries in the bunch and the grape yield on the vine. The highest bunches number /vine registered Merlot variety (30.24), while Burgund variety recorded the lowest values (17.76). Burgund variety recorded the highest bunch average weight (119.57 g) while Pinot Noir recorded the lowest value (87.18 g).Merlot variety recorded the highest number of berries/bunch,(111.36) and the lower value was recorded by the Pinot Noir ( 82.36).The Merlot variety achieved a significantly higher production than the other varieties during both growing seasons (3600.87g). The conditions of 2018 growing season had a very significant positive influence on the grape yield/ vine.

Lettuce is a valuable leaf vegetable for a well-balanced diet, since it is rich in nutrient elements, has low calories and provides dietary antioxidants. Compared to soil-based cultivation, the hydroponic system is an alternative associated with a shortening of growing cycles and a reduction of wasted water amount. The aim of this study was to analyze the growth of lettuce plants under hydroponic and soil cultivation systems, during three phenological growth stages (45; 47 and 49) according to BBCH scale. During the study different morphological and physiological parameters were evaluated: Plant height (PH); Stem diameter (SD); Fresh mass (FM); Dry mass (DM); Leaf area (LA); Chlorophyll content (CC); Transpiration rate (TR). The research was carried out using a complete randomized design with a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement of cultivation system and growth stages. Plants grown in hydroponic system presented higher values of most parameters, except for DM and TR. The cultivation system had the highest effect on PH, SD and LA. The highest variation between growth stages were observed for PH, LA and CC. Finally, we can conclude that lettuce plants cultivated under hydroponic system, presented better growth parameters associated with higher head weight and yield.