In recent years, the progressive escalation of climate change scenarios has emerged as a significant global concern. The threat to global food security posed by abiotic stresses such as drought, salinity, waterlogging, temperature stress (heat stress, freezing, and chilling), and high heavy metal accumulation is substantial. The implementation of any of these stresses on agricultural land induces modifications in the morphological, biochemical, and physiological processes of plants, leading to diminished rates of germination, growth, photosynthesis, respiration, hormone and enzyme activity disruption, heightened oxidative stress, and ultimately, a reduction in crop productivity. It is anticipated that the frequency of these stresses will progressively escalate in the future as a result of a rise in climate change events. Therefore, it is crucial to develop productive strategies to mitigate the adverse effects of these challenges on the agriculture industry and improve crop resilience and yield. Diverse strategies have been implemented, including the development of cultivars that are resistant to climate change through the application of both conventional and modern breeding techniques. An additional application of the prospective and emerging technology of speed breeding is the acceleration of tolerance cultivar development. Additionally, plant growth regulators, osmoprotectants, nutrient and water management, planting time, seed priming, microbial seed treatment, and arbuscular mycorrhiza are regarded as effective methods for mitigating abiotic stresses. The application of biochar, kaolin, chitosan, superabsorbent, yeast extract, and seaweed extract are examples of promising and environmentally benign agronomic techniques that have been shown to mitigate the effects of abiotic stresses on crops; however, their exact mechanisms are still not yet fully understood. Hence, collaboration among researchers should be intensified to fully elucidate the mechanisms involved in the action of the emerging technologies. This review provides a comprehensive and current compilation of scientific information on emerging and current trends, along with innovative strategies to enhance agricultural productivity under abiotic stress conditions.

The introduction of superior grain corn genotypes with high and stable yield (YLD) in most environments is important to increase local production and reduce dependency on imported grain corn. In this study, days to tasseling (DT), plant height, and YLD of 11 grain corn genotypes were observed in 10 environments to evaluate the effects of genotype (G), environment (E), and genotype by environment interactions (GEI) using GGE analysis and the stability of genotypes using stability parameters. In each location, grain corn genotypes were arranged in three replications using a randomized complete block design. An analysis of variance showed that all three traits were highly significant toward G and E factors, whereas GEI showed that only DT and YLD were highly significant. Genotype V14 produced the highest YLD of 10,354 kg/ha, followed by V4 (10,114 kg/ha) and V2 (9797.74 kg/ha). These three genotypes also dominated in seven out of 10 tested environments. With regard to stability ranking, genotype V4 was the most stable genotype, with a big gap difference between the second (V14) and third places (V2). Therefore, V14, V4, and V2 were the most promising genotypes because of their great YLD performance and most stable across tested environments, which can be recommended to farmers for high-scale planting.

Drought and submergence have been the major constraint in rice production. The present study was conducted to develop high-yielding rice lines with tolerance to drought and submergence by introgressing Sub1 into a rice line with drought yield QTL (qDTY; QTL = quantitative trait loci) viz. qDTY₃.₁ and qDTY₁₂.₁ using marker-assisted breeding. We report here the effect of different combinations of Sub1 and qDTY on morpho-physiological, agronomical traits and yield under reproductive stage drought stress (RS) and non-stress (NS) conditions. Lines with outstanding performance in RS and NS trials were also evaluated in vegetative stage submergence stress (VS) trial to assess the tolerance level. The QTL class analysis revealed Sub1 + qDTY₃.₁ as the best QTL combination affecting the measured traits in RS trial followed by Sub1 + qDTY₁₂.₁. The effects of single Sub1, qDTY₃.₁ and qDTY₁₂.₁ were not as superior as when the QTLs are combined, suggesting the positive interaction of Sub1 and qDTY. Best performing lines selected from the RS and NS trials recorded yield advantage up to 4453.69 kg ha⁻¹ and 6954 kg ha⁻¹ over the parents, respectively. The lines were also found having great tolerance to submergence ranging from 80% to 100%, contributed by a lower percentage of shoot elongation and reduction of chlorophyll content after 14 days of VS. These lines could provide yield sustainability to farmers in regions impacted with drought and submergence while serving as important genetic materials for future breeding programs.

Drought has been a major limiting factor for rice production. Drought yield QTLs (qDTYs; QTLs = quantitative trait loci) were pyramided into MRQ74 and MR219 to produce drought tolerant lines. In this study, new drought tolerant MRQ74 and MR219 pyramided lines (PLs) were evaluated under drought stress (RS) and non-stress (NS) conditions to evaluate the effects of different qDTYs combinations on morphological and agronomical traits. MRQ74 PLs having qDTY_12.1 possessed the best root length (RL) under both RS and NS but the effect was only significant for MR219 PLs under RS. Some qDTYs combinations also found to have consistent effect on the same trait of both populations. PLs with only qDTY_12.1 showed the highest grain yield (GY) under RS in both populations which means qDTY_12.1 controlled RL and caused higher GY under drought condition. The interaction of major-effect qDTY_12.1 with qDTY_2.2 also shows significant effect on leaf rolling (LR) of both PL populations. These qDTYs proved to be beneficial in improving traits related to drought tolerance. Selected PLs with qDTY_12.1 combinations also found to have better RL and root weight (RW) under RS. Improvement of morphological and agronomical traits led to higher GY of PLs. Therefore, qDTY_12.1 either is present singly or in combination with other qDTYs was the best qDTY due to its consistent effect on morphological and agronomical traits and GY across populations under RS and NS.