The study examines factors affecting sprinkler irrigation system distribution uniformity, including sprinkler type, operating pressure and computer software design. The pressures used were 1.5, 2.1, and 2.5 bar for spray nozzles 4A and 17A, and 1.7, 2, 2.5, and 3 bar for rotor nozzles 1 and 3. The results showed a strong correlation, with (R2) values of 0.996 and 0.973, between SIDUL-Program (Sprinkler Irrigation Distribution Uniformity for Landscape–Program) and Excel program with respect to coefficient of uniformity (CU) and distribution uniformity (DU) respectively, suggesting a strong correlation between the two programs. The HEDIA program validated the SIDUL–Program, revealing a 0.42% difference in CU values between the two programs for rotor nozzle 3, indicating also a strong correlation (R2 = 0.953) between the two programs. The results showed that DU for spray 4A at a pressure of 2.1 bar was 7.4%, higher than DU at a pressure of 1.5 bar; the CU for spray 17A was 11.9% higher, as supported by manufacturer specifications. The study concluded that calculating CU and DU using the SIDUL–Program is critical for assessing sprinkler performance in irrigation systems since it considers factors such as soil type, irrigation 1methods and location; in addition to being easy to use and accurate com-pared to other programs.

The Tomato Chlorosis Criniviruses (ToCV) and Tomato yellow leaf curl Geminivirus (TYLCV), which naturally infecting and limited to the phloem, have caused a drastic reduction in tomato yield. The current study aims to determine the incidence of single and mixed viruses using biological, serological and molecular PCR methods in natural tomato plants. The incidence of mixed infection was found more frequently, followed by ToCV and TYLCV (42.3, 28.8, 17.8 in 2020 and 49.1, 29.7 and 19.1% in 2021, respectively). ToCV causes chlorosis, TYLCV causes leaf curl and yellowing, while mixed ToCV & TYLCV cause progress symptoms. By using the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and coat protein (CP) genes, ToCV and TYLCV isolates could be identified. These isolates were recorded in GenBank under accession codes "ON951644.1" and "OP265136.1" respectively. Host plants responded differently to severe and common disease density between ToCV and TYLCV. The transmitted whitefly could distinguish between ToCV and TYLCV within 15-20 minutes of the acquisition period. ToCV increases in fields with high whitefly populations, requiring further research to understand effects and reduce harm.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is considered one of the main food crops in many countries worldwide. The present work was planned to manage potato black-leg disease using organic treatments as well as mineral-nitrogenous treatments, in addition to examining their effects on the pathogenic bacterium (Pectobacterium atrosepticum) population under artificial inoculation conditions. The obtained data indicated that applications of cabbage, onion and peppermint dry ground leaves as organic matters, and applications of ammonium super-phosphate, potassium sulfate and urea as mineral-nitrogenous fertilizers reduced P. atrosepticum population and black-leg disease of potato compared with the control treatment. In addition, these treatments led to increasing potato yield, while the beneficial effects increased with increasing their doses compared with the control treatment. Meanwhile, the organic matter appeared highly effective compared with mineral-nitrogenous fertilizers in disease reduction. However, mineral-nitrogenous fertilizers appeared highly effective in increasing potato yield. Meanwhile, onion dry ground leaves (organic matter) and urea (nitrogenous fertilizer) were the most effective on the pathogenic bacterium population and severity of the disease compared with other treatments

Mulberry trees suffer from many pest infestations. To control these pests, some natural compounds such as Techno Oil and Top 9 and some other chemicals such as Mospilan® and Chinook® were used. Mulberry trees, Morus nigra were treated with three different concentrations of each of Chinook, Techno Oil® and Top 9® to reduce infestation with Icerya sp. and Ferrisia virgate. A high reduction rate of more than 90% occurred when using these pesticides. On the other hand, the corrected mortality of mulberry silkworm larvae was 93.3%, 0.0% and 6.7% respectively after 8 days of treatment. When treating mulberry trees Morus alba with two different concentrations of each of pesticides; Mospilan and Techno Oil against whitefly, the average rate of infestation reduction was 100% and 94.94%, respectively. The corrected mortality of mulberry silkworms' larvae was 100% and 0.0% after 8 days of treatment respectively. This study proved that natural compounds could be used safely instead of chemical pesticides to reduce the pest population without affecting the life of silkworm larvae or cocoon properties.

Drought stress is considered one of the main factors that reduce plant growth, development and production. Therefore, studying plants during drought stress is highly useful to discover the newly gained characteristics of plants. The potato is considered one of the most important crop with economic value in Egypt and over the whole world. The main target is the proline-rich protein extracted from potato plants under drought stress. A stress experiment was applied to two potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars Desiree and Diamante. The stress experiment was conducted by poly-ethylene glycol (PEG) 4000; the used water potentials were: zero (control), (PEG 2%), (PEG 4%) and (PEG 8%), after drought stress, the solutes accumulation in the two potato cultivars were determined. Increasing drought stress through elevating PEG decreased leaf area as well as shoot and root lengths. Incontorary, the chlorophyll and proline contents increased with increasing PEG treatments. The proline-rich protein gene was cloned to the pGEM-T Easy vector and was submitted to the gene bank to be used later for enhancing drought resistance in other cultivars.

This study examines fermented soya bean (SBM) and sunflower meal (SFM) with three biological treatments: Aspergillus Oryza, Ruminococcus flavefaciens and Lactobacillus plantarum, as well as the effects of these treatments on chemical composition, cell wall constituents, in vitro dry matter disappearance (IVDMD), and enzyme activity of the fermented SBM and SFM. After 2 h of ruminal incubation, all biological treatments (fungi, Bacteria, fungi with Bacteria) improved the IVDMD for Fermented SBM compared to that of the control (19.47, 20.65 and 18.38%, respectively). The maximum improvement values of IVDMD for SBM were recorded after 4 h and 6 h of incubation for all treatments. In addition, SFM after 2 h of ruminal incubation with any examined biological treatment (fungi, Bacteria, fungi with Bacteria), the IVDMD values have improved compared to that of the control group. Moreover, enzyme activities (cellulase, amylase, xylanase, and protease) have increased in all treatments. It was determined that SSF with A. oryzae and Ruminococcus boosted the protein content and digestibility of soybean and sunflower meals.

The research aimed to isolate and characterize local entomopathogenic fungi from different agricultural ecosystems and assess their pathogenicity against cowpea aphid. Forty soil samples were collected from different ecosystems. In total, 38 fungal isolates were collected from the cadavers' exteriors of Galleria mellonella larvae. Microscopic observation of these fungal isolates revealed that they belonged to nine fungal genera among them Metarhizium sp. (3 isolates) and Beauveria sp. (5 isolates). Primary experiments showed different bioactivities of the isolates of the two selected genera against the target insect. Only Metarhizium isolates (M3 & M5) and Beauveria isolates (B1 & B5) were selected for further investigations. Identification of fungal cultures by morphological characters, molecular characterization, ITS sequencing, and NCBI Blast showed that two isolates were confirmed as M. anisopliae and two isolates as B. bassiana. The bioassay evaluation revealed that M. anisopliae (M3 and M5) and B. bassiana (B1) exhibited significant virulence against A. craccivora, as evidenced by their high LT50 and LC50 values and substantial sporulation on the cadavers. Therefore, they could be used for the formulation of pesticides targeting this pest on cowpea and other vegetable crops.

Imidacloprid is a systematic neonicotinoid widely used to combat piercing-sucking insects; however, neonicotinoids, despite having low effects on vertebrates, showed high adverse effects on honeybees (Apis mellifera L.). Glutathione-S-transferases (GST) are an important constituent of the defense system in detoxifying invading chemicals. This work examines the effects of imidacloprid on GST activity in vivo and in vitro conditions. Results revealed that there are two responses of GST activity toward IMI treatment; first, stimulation of enzyme activity to combat and detoxify the insecticide. Second, direct inhibition of GST, which is confirmed by the in vitro inhibition with IC50 887.42 ppm. At a short exposure time to IMI (2 hours) at an IMI concentration of 0.35 ppm, the enzyme was stimulated up to 113% while increasing exposure time or IMI concentration, the inhibition effect dominates.

Heat stress is an environmental problem that can negatively impact tomato productivity by reducing fruit setting and disrupting pollen development. The present study aims to understand the molecular mechanism of heat tolerance induced by L-ascorbic acid. Plants were grown in the summer of 2022 (day and night temperatures were 34.4°C and 25.2°C respectively). The plants were divided into two groups: one was sprayed with L-ascorbic acid (0.5 mM) and the other served as a control. Growth parameters, antioxidant enzymes, proline, hydrogen peroxide, and malondialdehyde levels in the leaves were determined. Additionally, a molecular docking allowed understanding the interaction between the antioxidant enzymes and L-ascorbic acid. Results indicated that L-ascorbic acid increased antioxidant enzyme activities (catalase, peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase), proline content, fruit setting and growth indicators (shoot and root fresh and dry weight). It also reduced hydrogen peroxide and malondialdehyde levels in tomato leaves. Furthermore, the in-silico analysis revealed that L-ascorbic acid binding energies toward antioxidant enzymes were similar to those of known activators. In conclusion, foliar application of L-ascorbic acid (0.5 mM) effectively mitigated heat stress effects, activating antioxidant enzymes and eliminating reactive oxygen species, ultimately resulting in increased fruit setting.

This investigation was performed during the 2018 and 2019 seasons in a private vineyard to study the effect of calcium, magnesium fertigation and molybdenum foliar sprays on the yield and fruit quality of Flame seedless table grape cultivar. The experimental layout was arranged in a split-plot design. All treatments were applied on three dates: after the bud burst stage, at the fruit set stage and veraison stage. The results showed that the combined application of 30 Kg calcium with 20 Kg magnesium fertigation and foliar spraying of 30 ppm molybdenum was the most effective among all treatments in terms of enhancing vegetative growth characteristics, increasing leaf content of total chlorophylls and mineral elements as well as improving yield and fruit quality attributes.