Horticultural Science - Online first
Effect of pre-harvest chemical treatments on post-harvest disease control and quality enhancement in banana fruitsOriginal Paper
Murugan Loganathan, Raman Thangavelu, Kalimuthu Muthubharathi, Subramanian Bagavathi, Karur Nallappagounder Shiva, Govindasamy Prabhu, Banerjee Kaushik, Hingmire Sandip, Arumugam Mohanasundram, Ramasamy Selvarajan
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/100/2025-HORTSCI 
Bananas, as climacteric fruits, are highly prone to rapid deterioration caused by fungal pathogens, resulting in considerable post-harvest losses. These pathogens typically infect the fruit during field growth, resulting in latent infections that develop into disease after harvest. Generally, several rounds of fungicides such as Carbendazim, Mancozeb + Carbendazim, Trifloxystrobin + Tebuconazole, and Propiconazole are applied to manage fungal diseases like Fusarium wilt and leaf spot in the field. This study assessed the effectiveness of these chemicals on post-harvest diseases, fruit quality and residual toxicity. All four fungicides recorded...
Effects of nitrogen on the hydraulic characteristics and biomass allocation in Notopterygium franchetii in the Qinghai-Tibet PlateauOriginal Paper
Shengrong Xu, Lili Pei, Honghong Zhou, Yijin Hu, Li Tong, Ruili Ma
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/53/2025-HORTSCI
Nitrogen fertiliser changes the soil environment, regulates the water balance of plants, and directly affects nitrogen and water use efficiency. In order to identify the adaptation mechanism and water regulation strategy of Notopterygium franchetii to the soil nitrogen environment, this study was conducted. Two-year-old Notopterygium franchetii plants grown in farmland were used as the test material. The hydraulic characteristics, natural dehydration, water capacitance and biomass allocation were investigated at three nitrogen application levels (0, 40, 80 kg/ha) and four growth periods (seedling, jointing, flowering and harvesting...
Comparative evaluation of IBA and NAA effects on rhizogenesis and shoot morphogenesis in rose stem cuttingsOriginal Paper
Wagdi Saber Soliman, Khaled Saad-Eldeen, Ahmed M. Abbas, Mohammed O. Alshaharni, Abd-Allah Gahory
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/192/2024-HORTSCI
This study was conducted at the Floriculture Nursery, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Aswan University, Aswan, Egypt, during the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 growing seasons. The experiment aimed to evaluate the effects of two plant growth regulators (PGRs), indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and naphthalene acetic acid (NAA), on the root and shoot development of rose, a species known for its poor rooting ability. A split-plot arrangement within a randomised complete block design was used, with PGR type assigned to the main plots and concentrations (control, 500, 1 000, 1 500, and 2 000 ppm) allocated to the sub-plots. Both IBA and NAA significantly...
Identification of essential oils of Mentha rotundifolia from north-east Jijel region and their antifungal potential against Botrytis cinereaOriginal Paper
Zehaira Bouziane, Hind Sebti
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/33/2025-HORTSCI
The objective of the present research is to determine the main essential oils of Mentha rotundifolia and to clarify the antifungal effect of these oils against Botrytis cinerea isolated from strawberries. The essential oils were obtained from hydrodistillation of fresh leaves, and the composition was determined using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The results show that the essential oils yield is in the order of 1.37%, and the main components were identified as pulegone 39.21%, ß-cubebene 11.72%, caryophyllene 9.18%, D-limonene 4.7%, ß-ocimene 2.39%, myrcene 2.21%, myrtenol 2.1%, ß-farnesene 2.03%, respectively. The essential oils of...
Impact of thinning level and timing on yield, maturity, and quality of Merlot grapevines under the Big T trellis systemOriginal Paper
Ilknur Korkutal, Elman Bahar, Gamze Uysal Seckin, Derya Akinci
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/109/2025-HORTSCI
This study evaluated the effects of cluster thinning on yield and quality of 12-year-old Merlot/41B grapevines over the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 growing seasons. Six phenological stages-before flowering, setting, bunch closure, veraison, half maturity, and before maturity-and three thinning levels (0%, 25%, and 50%) were assessed. Key parameters included total soluble solids (TSS), total acidity (TA), pH, sugar accumulation, maturity indices (TSS/TA, pH2 × °Brix), secondary metabolites (total anthocyanins, total tannins, total phenolic content, total polyphenol index), and yield. Cluster thinning significantly enhanced most...
The effect of exogenous salicylic acid on the germination and seedling growth of sweet melon (Cucumis melo L.) seeds under NaCl stressOriginal Paper
Chun Liu, Lingyue Wang, Jinjin Li, Yupeng Fang
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/78/2025-HORTSCI
The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of different concentrations of salicylic acid (SA) on seed germination and seedling growth physiology of sweet melon under NaCl stress. Under salt stress, low concentrations of 0.25–0.5 mmol/L SA treatment can effectively alleviate plant salt damage and promote the germination rate of sweet melon seeds. Simultaneously, high concentrations of SA had a significant inhibitory effect on the root length, root fresh weight, and root : shoot ratio of sweet melon, but using medium concentrations (1.0 mmol/L) of SA can increase the root length and root : shoot ratio of seedlings. In addition,...
Plums: Their potential in cultivation, breeding, and useReview
Luká¹ Mary¹ka, Lubor Zelený
Hort. Sci. (Prague), X:X | DOI: 10.17221/213/2024-HORTSCI
Plums are one of the most important and most overlooked fruits. Their nutritional value, composition, antioxidant potential, and vitamin content place them at the forefront of the food industry. Their potential is so great that plums are one of the fruits being considered for space travel. Prunes are not just a hot topic for astronauts. The possibility of growing plums in a cultivation box at reduced or zero gravity has also been studied. The sharka virus (Plum pox virus) is responsible for the major economic losses worldwide. Efforts are being made to develop the most effective way to control the spread of the virus between trees, as there...