Grasses are of great importance for sustainable food production in different ecosystems. Leaf anatomical studies of grasses are the indicator for adaptation of grasses in different areas of the world. The present research study was conducted to evaluate the diversity of leaf anatomical adaptations in different grass species from Faisalabad region in Pakistan. Thicker epidermis in Paspaledium flavidium, Setaria pumila and Eleusine indica is the adaptation to survive under water stressed environments such as drought and salinity. Larger cortical cell area in Setaria verticillate, Digitaria sanguinalis and Eleusine indica is a sign of their wide distribution in a variety of environmental conditions. Eragrostis tenella and Desmostachya bipinnata with significantly larger vascular bundle is the better adaption to a variety of environments. Different species of grasses showed variable responses in their anatomical characters. These variations help to evaluate the adaptation of grasses in varying climatic conditions and their ability to tolerate abiotic stress (i.e., drought and salinity) which are common in this region in natural habitats of grasses.

Heavy metal pollution is a stern global environmental challenge due to its long-term persistence in the environment and bioaccumulating nature. The vehicular emanations having traces of various heavy metals result in contamination of roadside plants and soil. A comparative investigation has been planned between olive varieties Arlik and Gemlik, collected from two sites; roadside and farmland Kallar Kahar. The potential for heavy metal accumulation was explored by comparing the morphological, physiological, biochemical, and antioxidant responses of both varieties from two different sites. Soil and mature olive leaves were sampled, labeled, and brought to the Botany Lab, at the GC Women’s University of Faisalabad, for further analysis. The sampling was completely randomized with three replications. The roadside soil showed a high concentration of Pb, Cd, Ni, and Zn and low concentrations of Na and K in comparison to farmland soil. The findings depicted that both Arlik and Gemlik olives experienced high metal stress under roadside conditions. Roadside olive varieties had smaller leaf areas, high fresh and dry weights, fewer amounts of chlorophyll A and B, total chlorophyll and carotenoids, total soluble sugars, proteins, and total free amino acids as compared to farmland olives. However, phenolics, MDA, anthocyanin, and proline antioxidants were greater under roadside stressed conditions. The concentrations of Ni, Pb, Cd, and Zn heavy metals and BAF were higher in both varieties of olive collected from the roadside as compared to farmland. The comparison among varieties showed that Arlik performed far better than Gemlik at both sites.