Use of Chitosan-PVA Hydrogels with Copper Nanoparticles to Improve the Growth of Grafted Watermelon

Abstract

Modern agriculture requires alternative practices that improve crop growth without negatively affecting the environment, as resources such as water and arable land grow scarcer while the human population continues to increase. Grafting is a cultivation technique that allows the plant to be more efficient in its utilization of water and nutrients, while nanoscale material engineering provides the opportunity to use much smaller quantities of consumables compared to conventional systems but with similar or superior effects. On those grounds, we evaluated the effects of chitosan-polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel with absorbed copper nanoparticles (Cs-PVA-nCu) on leaf morphology and plant growth when applied to grafted watermelon cultivar ‘Jubilee’ plants. Stomatal density (SD), stomatal index (SI), stoma length (SL), and width (SW) were evaluated. The primary stem and root length, the stem diameter, specific leaf area, and fresh and dry weights were also recorded. Our results demonstrate that grafting induces modifications to leaf micromorphology that favorably affect plant growth, with grafted plants showing better vegetative growth in spite of their lower SD and SI values. Application of Cs-PVA-nCu was found to increase stoma width, primary stem length, and root length by 7%, 8% and 14%, respectively. These techniques modestly improve plant development and growth.

Response of Bell Pepper to Rootstock and Greenhouse Cultivation in Coconut Fiber or Soil

“…The increases in average fruit weight and fruit length of up to 21.6% and 5.5%, respectively, from using the Yaocali F1 or CLX-PTX991 F1 rootstocks, can be attributed to the overall greater plant growth and development that they promote [25], indicated by the 20% and 6.5%, respectively, increases in each parameter. Given the vigor that rootstock cultivars generally possess, frequently characterized by more efficient water and nutrient absorption [5,29], similar results are reported for grafted cucumber [40] and grafted tomato [17], as well as a 30% increase in dry biomass production and greater accumulation of mineral elements in the aerial parts of the plant [41]. Our recorded yield increases were only slightly higher than the 25% increase reported by Lopez et al [28], and less than the up to 50% yield increases described by Muñoz et al [42] and Sánchez et al [25] for bell pepper.…”

Boron: Functions and Approaches to Enhance Its Availability in Plants for Sustainable Agriculture

“…Nanoparticles (NPs) can boost plant metabolism because of their unique physiochemical properties, and, hence, enhance crop yield and nutritional value [ 128 ]. For instance, the application of copper NPs in watermelon improved plant growth and development compared with control [ 129 ]. Similarly, zeolites and hydrogels are reported to absorb environmental contaminants and improve soil water holding capacity [ 130 ].…”

“…The combination of these techniques may improve B uptake. For instance, a combination of grafting and Cu NPs improved growth and development of watermelon by increasing ion uptake [ 129 ]. Melatonin application improves plant performance by inducing resistance against stress conditions.…”

Efecto del portainjerto en el índice y densidad estomática de pimiento morrón Capsicum annuum var. annuum

“…similares a lo reportado porCañizares et al (2003) yAyala et al (2010), pero contrastan con lo reportado porGonzález et al (2017) para sandía y conPeralta et al (2016) para pepino, quienes señalan que en las plantas injertadas se reduce la densidad estomática del haz y envés, y el índice estomático del haz. La densidad de células del envés del pimiento sin injertar superó en 8.51% al pimiento injertado, lo que indica que las células se hacen más grandes con el portainjerto, lo que diere con lo reportado por Ayala et al(2010)quienes indican que las plantas injetadas tienen mayores valores.…”