Effects of Protein Hydrolysates and Seaweed Extract Application on some Morphological Parameters, Phytochemicals, and Antioxidant Capacity of Violet (Viola ignobilis Rupr.) under Two Light Intensities

Document Type : Research paper

Authors

1 university

2 Horticultural Sciences Department, Plant Production Faculty, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.

3 Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding, Faculty of Engineering, Islamic Azad University, Kermanshah branch, Kermanshah, Iran.

10.22059/ijhst.2024.373386.794

Abstract

This study set out to evaluate the impact of light intensity and plant biostimulant application on the growth and biochemical compounds in violet (Viola ignobilis Rupr.) in the field condition. For these reasons, plants were grown under two light levels (50% and 100% full natural irradiance), and different biostimulants: animal-derived protein hydrolysate (A-PH), vegetal-derived protein hydrolysate (V-PH), seaweed extract (SWE), the combination of A-PH + SWE and V-PH + SWE, water served as a control. Light intensities and biostimulant application significantly impacted the morphological parameters including fresh and dry weight of aerial parts, length and width leaf but, their interaction only affected the leaf area. The maximum leaf fresh weight and leaf length were observed in plants exposed to 100% light intensity, whereas the highest leaf width and leaf area were recorded in plants subjected to 50% light intensity. In addition, the obtained results indicated that the total phenol and flavonoid contents considerably improved at 100% light intensity compared to shaded plants, furthermore, phenol and flavonoid contents in treated plants with the biostimulants significantly improved in comparison with control. Moreover, the antioxidant activities of plant extracts in DPPH and ABTS assays increased at 100% light intensity. In this work, optimization of cultivation techniques as eco-friendly approaches increased crop performance and phytochemical contents in violet, when no other source of fertilizer was available.

Keywords