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Biofertilizers consist mainly of beneficial microorganisms that can release nutrients from raw materials and plant residues in the soil and make them available commercially where specific strains are used as biological fertilizers. They become recently, positive alternatives to chemical fertilizers because they help bring down the costs of chemical fertilizers especially N and P and improve soil fertility by maintaining the physical properties of the soil. They may help in improving crop productivity and quality by increasing the biological N fixation, the availability and uptake of nutrients and stimulating the natural hormones. They are safe for humans, animals and environment and using them is accompanied with reducing the pollution occurring in our environment.

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This study was carried out during the two successive seasons 2015 and 2016 on five years old 'Florida prince' peach trees (Prunus persica L.) budded on 'Nemagard' peach rootstock, grown in sandy soil under drip irrigation system in a private orchard located at El-Nubaria region, El-Behira Governorate, Egypt. The aims of this research was to investigate the effect of some micronutrients foliar as Boric acid (H 3 BO 3 ), Zinc sulphate (ZnSO 4 ) and Fe-EDTA on yield, fruit quality and elemental composition of 'Florida prince' peach trees. The followed experimental design was randomized complete block design with five replicates. Results indicated that all the foliar application treatments, significantly increased the yield (kg /tree) and fruit weight (g) as compared with control. The highest yield and fruit weight were recorded with 0.2% Fe-EDTA foliar application treatment (99.85 and 104.40 kg/tree, for two seasons) as compared with the control (36.87 and 37.38 kg/tree, respectively). Moreover, all Boric acid, Zinc sulphate and Fe-EDTA foliar treatments increased length (cm), diameter (cm), firmness (Ib/inch 2 ), total soluble solids (%), acidity (%), and total sugars (%) as compared with control ones during both seasons. On the other hand, A gradual elemental increases in Boron, Iron and Zinc in leaves (%) were recorded with the micronutrient treatments as compared with the control plants.

This study was carried out during two successive seasons 2016 and 2017 on six years old 'Wonderful' pomegranate trees (Punica granatum L.). Trees were grown on sandy loam soil conditions in a private orchard located at Burg El-Arab, Alexandria governorate, Egypt. The trees were spaced 4x5 m apart and irrigated by drip irrigation system and received similar cultural practices adapted in the orchard. The effect of some growth regulators, nutrient elements and kaolin on cracking and fruit quality of pomegranate 'Wonderful' cultivar was studied. The experiment was designed as randomized complete block design with five replicates. Each block contained 11 treatments (control, naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) at 25 and 50 mg/l, gibberellic acid (GA 3 ) at 100 and 150 mg/l, boric acid at 0.1% and 0.3%, calcium chloride at 1% and 2% and kaolin at 4% and 6%). Results revealed that, boric acid at 0.3% gave the highest mean values of fruit set (%), number of fruits/tree, yield (kg/tree) and anthocyanin; while, naphthalene acetic acid at 50 mg/l recorded the maximum mean values of fruit weight, fruit diameter, volume and grain weight, and gave the minimum mean values of fruit drop and fruit cracking (%). On other hand, gibberellic acid (GA 3 ) at 150 mg/l gave the maximum yield (kg/tree), in the second season and the minimum fruit cracking (%), whereas, calcium chloride at 2% gave the best results of TSS (%), acidity (%), and vitamin C, total and reducing sugars were higher than the control for all treatments. Finally, kaolin at 6% gave the lowest percentage of sunburn and the highest percentage of juice, as compared with the control and other treatments during both seasons.

A two-year (2020-21) study was conducted to investigate the possibility of relying of ten-years old pear trees grown on sandy loam soil irrigated by drip on citric acid (CA), gibberellic acid (GA3) and humic acid (HA). The CA was applied at the concentrations of 500, 1000 and 1500 ppm, GA3 at 50, 100 and 150 ppm and HA at 3, 4 and 5%, whereas water spray was used as the control. The results of our study proved that CA, GA3 and HA improved the shoot length, shoot thickness, leaf area and leaf chlorophyll of pear as compared with the control. Moreover, they also positively increased the fruit set percentage and final yield of ‘Le Conte’ pear. The fruit weight, size and firmness were also improved under the influence of aforementioned treatments. The fruit soluble solids, total sugars, leaf nitrogen, leaf phosphorus and leaf potassium of pear were also enhanced as compared with the control. Additionally, spraying of GA3 at 150 ppm, as well as, HA at 5 and 4% were the superior treatments and showed the most significant impact on plant growth, yield, fruit quality and leaf mineral content of pear. This study provides a basis for the future elucidation of HA-, GA3- and CA-modulated molecular mechanisms in pear, which can make a significant contribution in the scientific community.

The aim of the present study was to study the effects of different doses of gamma rays from Cobalt -60 on Cyperus alternifolius L. plants Rhizomes of Cyprus plants were irradiated with six doses of gamma irradiation (0.0,20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 Gray). The results showed that irradiation of rhizomes with 20 Gray caused the highest increase in sprouting percentage and rate while the 100 gray treatment caused the lowest survival percentage in M1 -generation. The 100 Gray treatment caused the lowest significant decrease in all studied vegetative growth parameters in M1 and M2 generations. As for the vegetative growth abnormalities, the application of gamma rays at the dose of 100 Gray resulted in dwarf plants in M1 and M2 generations. While using 40 Gray caused 3 regenerated small plants from leaves internode and 60 Gray caused 1 regenerated small plant from leaves internodes in M1 -generation , this abnormality disappeared in the M2 -generation. Application of restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis on three Cyperus alternifolius generations stressed with 60 and 100 Gray comparing with un-irradiated Cyperus alternifolius cleared that radiation dose (100 Gray) reflected the dramatic increase of genetic polymorphism and first generation reflected the highest radiation influence on polymorphism.

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