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Dr. Zulfiqar Ahmad
University of Agriculture Faisalabad Pakistan

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0 Phytoremediation
0 Soil Fertility
0 soil salinity
0 Soil reclamation
0 organic amendments

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Journal article
Published: 16 June 2021 in Sustainability
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Salt accumulation in soils poses severe challenges for crop production in arid and semi-arid regions. Scarcity of rainfall and a high evaporation rate in these regions are considered major reasons for salt accumulation. It drastically reduces the leaching of excessive salts below the root zone of crops. The toxic effects of salts on plants can be greatly reduced with the use of biological and inorganic amendments. The present study was conducted to investigate the positive influence of gypsum (GP), composted cow dung (CCD) and the combined use of gypsum and composted cow dung (GP+CCD) on the growth, seed yield, and physiological and chemical attributes of sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) in salty soil conditions. Saline-sodic soil was prepared using salts that include NaCl, Na2SO4, MgSO4, and CaCl2. It contained three levels of electrical conductivity (EC), i.e., 1.8, 6, and 12 dS m−1, and had a sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) of 15. We noted significant deleterious effects of excessive salt stress on multiple attributes of the growth, produce, physiology, and chemical factors of sunflowers. However, treatment with GP+CCD improved all these attributes in all these conditions over the control treatment. Treatment with GP+CCD also significantly increased N, P and K contents over the control in the absence of salt stress, i.e., normal conditions. Conversely, treatment with GP+CCD caused an extreme decline in antioxidant enzyme activity (APX, GPX, CAT and SOD) and Na+/K+ ratio in seeds of up to 90, 75, and 71% over control at an EC level of 1.8, 6, and 12 dS m−1, respectively. This study suggests the combined application of gypsum and composted cow dung for better production of sunflowers in salt-affected soils, and augmented growth, yield, physiology, biochemistry and nutritional value in the sunflower seeds.

ACS Style

Muhammad Naveed; Muhammad Aslam; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Tasawar Abbas; Asma Al-Huqail; Manzer Siddiqui; Hayssam Ali; Irfan Ashraf; Adnan Mustafa. Growth Responses, Physiological Alterations and Alleviation of Salinity Stress in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) Amended with Gypsum and Composted Cow Dung. Sustainability 2021, 13, 6792 .

AMA Style

Muhammad Naveed, Muhammad Aslam, Zulfiqar Ahmad, Tasawar Abbas, Asma Al-Huqail, Manzer Siddiqui, Hayssam Ali, Irfan Ashraf, Adnan Mustafa. Growth Responses, Physiological Alterations and Alleviation of Salinity Stress in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) Amended with Gypsum and Composted Cow Dung. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (12):6792.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Muhammad Naveed; Muhammad Aslam; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Tasawar Abbas; Asma Al-Huqail; Manzer Siddiqui; Hayssam Ali; Irfan Ashraf; Adnan Mustafa. 2021. "Growth Responses, Physiological Alterations and Alleviation of Salinity Stress in Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) Amended with Gypsum and Composted Cow Dung." Sustainability 13, no. 12: 6792.

Journal article
Published: 16 November 2020 in Sustainability
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There is no alternative to phosphorus (P) in agriculture as it is second most important plant nutrient after nitrogen. Mineral P fertilizers are derived from rock phosphate (RP) which is finite, non-renewable and geographically restricted to a few countries, thus its shortage likely affects agriculture in near future as the world population is growing at a greater pace. This could increase P inputs in agriculture in order to meet rising food demands which may result in the depletion of RP reserves. Furthermore, P losses from farmlands in case of mineral P fertilizers also demands the sustainable use of P not only because of its finite resources but also the environmental concerns associated with P fertilization such as eutrophication. The present study was designed to formulate biochar-based P fertilizer that would help in the sustainable use of P fertilizer. Biochar(s) were prepared using wheat straw at 350–400 °C pyrolytic temperature followed by enrichment with Di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) taking into account all possible combination of DAP to biochar on the w/w basis (0:100, 25:75, 50:50, 75:25 and 100:0). Enrichment was carried out using two different methods i.e., phosphorus enriched biochar (PEB1) by hot method and cold method (PEB2). An incubation experiment was performed to assess the impact of each biochar on selected properties of soil. The treatments were organized in factorial arrangement under complete randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Both the amendments were applied at rate of 1% of dry soil on a w/w basis. A significant increase in soil extractable P and total nitrogen (N) was recorded for the ratio 50:50 as compared to control as well of rest of treatments. Similarly, high organic contents were found for both PEB1 and PEB2 at the ratio 50:50. An incubation experiment was followed by pot trial using 50:50 for both PEB1 and PEB2 and split doses of recommended P were applied (0%, 25%, 50% and 100%) with a control under CRD with three replications using chickpea as test crop. Both PEB1 and PEB2 with 50% P have significantly improved crop growth, yield, nodulation, and plant physiological and chemical parameters as compared to a recommended dose of P alone. The result may imply that the integration of P-enriched biochar and chemical fertilizer could be an effective approach to improve chickpea production and soil properties.

ACS Style

Farman Wali; Muhammad Naveed; Muhammad Bashir; Muhammad Asif; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Jawaher Alkahtani; Mona Alwahibi; Mohamed Elshikh. Formulation of Biochar-Based Phosphorus Fertilizer and Its Impact on Both Soil Properties and Chickpea Growth Performance. Sustainability 2020, 12, 9528 .

AMA Style

Farman Wali, Muhammad Naveed, Muhammad Bashir, Muhammad Asif, Zulfiqar Ahmad, Jawaher Alkahtani, Mona Alwahibi, Mohamed Elshikh. Formulation of Biochar-Based Phosphorus Fertilizer and Its Impact on Both Soil Properties and Chickpea Growth Performance. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (22):9528.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Farman Wali; Muhammad Naveed; Muhammad Bashir; Muhammad Asif; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Jawaher Alkahtani; Mona Alwahibi; Mohamed Elshikh. 2020. "Formulation of Biochar-Based Phosphorus Fertilizer and Its Impact on Both Soil Properties and Chickpea Growth Performance." Sustainability 12, no. 22: 9528.

Journal article
Published: 24 January 2020 in Agronomy
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Iron-biofortification is a sustainable food-based approach to combat iron deficiency by increasing iron content and bioavailability in agronomic crops. Siderophore producing microbes offer a sustainable and low-cost way to increase iron supply in crops. Also, certain substances released from organic amendments act as iron-chelators which increase the solubility as well as the availability of iron to plants. Present study investigated the role of siderophore-producing endophytic bacteria and biochar on iron-fortification of a novel crop quinoa in iron-limited saline conditions. The surface-disinfected seeds of quinoa were inoculated with Burkholderia phytofirmans PsJN (CFU = 109) and sown in saline soil (EC 20 dS m−1) amended with biochar (1% w/w). Results revealed that biochar and PsJN particularly when applied together significantly enhanced plant growth, grain yield, and grain nutrient contents of quinoa. Strikingly, iron concentration in quinoa grains was increased up to 71% by the combined application of biochar and PsJN. Moreover, plant physiological parameters were also improved significantly by the integrated application. However, enzymatic/non-enzymatic antioxidants activities were decreased by integrated treatment thus ameliorated salinity stress. Our study suggests that integrated application of siderophore-producing bacteria and biochar could be a promising, sustainable and cost-effective strategy which is easily integratable into the existing farming practices to achieve food fortification with micronutrients in developing countries.

ACS Style

Muhammad Naveed; Natasha Ramzan; Adnan Mustafa; Abdul Samad; Bushra Niamat; Muhammad Yaseen; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Mirza Hasanuzzaman; Nan Sun; Weiqi Shi; Minggang Xu; Xu Minggang. Alleviation of Salinity Induced Oxidative Stress in Chenopodium quinoa by Fe Biofortification and Biochar—Endophyte Interaction. Agronomy 2020, 10, 168 .

AMA Style

Muhammad Naveed, Natasha Ramzan, Adnan Mustafa, Abdul Samad, Bushra Niamat, Muhammad Yaseen, Zulfiqar Ahmad, Mirza Hasanuzzaman, Nan Sun, Weiqi Shi, Minggang Xu, Xu Minggang. Alleviation of Salinity Induced Oxidative Stress in Chenopodium quinoa by Fe Biofortification and Biochar—Endophyte Interaction. Agronomy. 2020; 10 (2):168.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Muhammad Naveed; Natasha Ramzan; Adnan Mustafa; Abdul Samad; Bushra Niamat; Muhammad Yaseen; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Mirza Hasanuzzaman; Nan Sun; Weiqi Shi; Minggang Xu; Xu Minggang. 2020. "Alleviation of Salinity Induced Oxidative Stress in Chenopodium quinoa by Fe Biofortification and Biochar—Endophyte Interaction." Agronomy 10, no. 2: 168.

Journal article
Published: 23 January 2020 in Sustainability
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Salinity stress is one of the serious restrictive issues for optimum crop production in arid to semi-arid areas. Application of organic amendments have shown positive effects on crop growth and yield under such scenario. The present study was conducted to estimate the potential of calcium-fortified composted animal manure (Ca-FCM) to enhance growth and yield of canola under saline soil conditions. Salt affected soils with various electrical conductivity (EC) levels (original 1.5, 5, and 10 dS m−1) were developed via spiking the soil with sodium chloride (NaCl) salt. The results reveal that soil salinity reduced the growth, physiological, yield, and nutritional parameters of canola. However, application of 3% calcium-fortified composted manure significantly enhanced the growth and yield parameters at all EC levels as compared to control. Plant physiological parameters such as photosynthetic rate, relative chlorophyll contents (SPAD value), and relative water content were also increased with the application of 3% Ca-FCM at all EC levels in comparison to control. Application of 3% Ca-FCM also mediated the antioxidant enzymes activities at all EC levels in comparison to control. Moreover, application of 3% Ca-FCM caused maximum increase in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium concentrations in shoot at all EC levels. Conversely, application of 3% Ca-FCM showed maximum decrease in Na+/K+ ratio in leaf up to 83.33%, 77.78%, and 71.43% at EC levels 1.5, 5, and 10 dS m−1, respectively, as compared to control. It was concluded that application of calcium-fortified composted animal manure (Ca-FCM) could be an efficient method for improving growth, yield, physiological, and nutritional parameters of canola through mediation of antioxidant defense machinery under saline soil conditions.

ACS Style

Muhammad Naveed; Haroon Sajid; Adnan Mustafa; Bushra Niamat; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Muhammad Yaseen; Muhammad Kamran; Munazza Rafique; Sunny Ahmar; Jen-Tsung Chen. Alleviation of Salinity-Induced Oxidative Stress, Improvement in Growth, Physiology and Mineral Nutrition of Canola (Brassica napus L.) through Calcium-Fortified Composted Animal Manure. Sustainability 2020, 12, 846 .

AMA Style

Muhammad Naveed, Haroon Sajid, Adnan Mustafa, Bushra Niamat, Zulfiqar Ahmad, Muhammad Yaseen, Muhammad Kamran, Munazza Rafique, Sunny Ahmar, Jen-Tsung Chen. Alleviation of Salinity-Induced Oxidative Stress, Improvement in Growth, Physiology and Mineral Nutrition of Canola (Brassica napus L.) through Calcium-Fortified Composted Animal Manure. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (3):846.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Muhammad Naveed; Haroon Sajid; Adnan Mustafa; Bushra Niamat; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Muhammad Yaseen; Muhammad Kamran; Munazza Rafique; Sunny Ahmar; Jen-Tsung Chen. 2020. "Alleviation of Salinity-Induced Oxidative Stress, Improvement in Growth, Physiology and Mineral Nutrition of Canola (Brassica napus L.) through Calcium-Fortified Composted Animal Manure." Sustainability 12, no. 3: 846.

Journal article
Published: 07 November 2019 in Plants
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Soil salinity and sodicity are among the main problems for optimum crop production in areas where rainfall is not enough for leaching of salts out of the rooting zone. Application of organic and Ca-based amendments have the potential to increase crop yield and productivity under saline–alkaline soil environments. Based on this hypothesis, the present study was conducted to evaluate the potential of compost, Ca-based fertilizer industry waste (Ca-FW), and Ca-fortified compost (Ca-FC) to increase growth and yield of maize under saline–sodic soil conditions. Saline–sodic soil conditions with electrical conductivity (EC) levels (1.6, 5, and 10 dS m−1) and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) = 15, were developed by spiking soil with a solution containing NaCl, Na2SO4, MgSO4, and CaCl2. Results showed that soil salinity and sodicity significantly reduced plant growth, yield, physiological, and nutrient uptake parameters. However, the application of Ca-FC caused a remarkable increase in the studied parameters of maize at EC levels of 1.6, 5, and 10 dS m−1 as compared to the control. In addition, Ca-FC caused the maximum decrease in Na+/K+ ratio in shoot up to 85.1%, 71.79%, and 70.37% at EC levels of 1.6, 5, and 10 dS m−1, respectively as compared to the control treatment. Moreover, nutrient uptake (NPK) was also significantly increased with the application of Ca-FC under normal as well as saline–sodic soil conditions. It is thus inferred that the application of Ca-FC could be an effective amendment to enhance growth, yield, physiology, and nutrient uptake in maize under saline–sodic soil conditions constituting the novelty of this work.

ACS Style

Bushra Niamat; Muhammad Naveed; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Muhammad Yaseen; Allah Ditta; Adnan Mustafa; Munazza Rafique; Riffat Bibi; Nan Sun; Minggang Xu. Calcium-Enriched Animal Manure Alleviates the Adverse Effects of Salt Stress on Growth, Physiology and Nutrients Homeostasis of Zea mays L. Plants 2019, 8, 480 .

AMA Style

Bushra Niamat, Muhammad Naveed, Zulfiqar Ahmad, Muhammad Yaseen, Allah Ditta, Adnan Mustafa, Munazza Rafique, Riffat Bibi, Nan Sun, Minggang Xu. Calcium-Enriched Animal Manure Alleviates the Adverse Effects of Salt Stress on Growth, Physiology and Nutrients Homeostasis of Zea mays L. Plants. 2019; 8 (11):480.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Bushra Niamat; Muhammad Naveed; Zulfiqar Ahmad; Muhammad Yaseen; Allah Ditta; Adnan Mustafa; Munazza Rafique; Riffat Bibi; Nan Sun; Minggang Xu. 2019. "Calcium-Enriched Animal Manure Alleviates the Adverse Effects of Salt Stress on Growth, Physiology and Nutrients Homeostasis of Zea mays L." Plants 8, no. 11: 480.

Original articles
Published: 21 July 2015 in Journal of Plant Nutrition
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The potential of encapsulated calcium carbide (ECC) in improving growth, yield and physiology of cotton under salinity was evaluated in pot experiment. Salinity was induced by sodium chloride (NaCl) at 0, 1250 and 2000 ppm. The ECC was applied at the rate of 0, 15, and 30 mg kg−1 soil. The results revealed that ECC improved number of branches, yield, shoot dry biomass, root dry biomass, by 57, 67, 40, 22, and 18% respectively, over control. Similarly, net photosynthesis, stomatal conductance nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P and K) concentration of shoot were enhanced by 38, 34, 7, 25 and 11% over control, respectively. The induction of new set of proteins ranging from 11 to 26 kDa was also observed at various levels of ECC and salinity stress. These results proved the efficacy of very lower concentrations of ethylene produced by ECC and showed the behavior of different parameters of cotton to it under saline stress.

ACS Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad; Shermeen Tahir; Abdul Rehman; Nabeel Khan Niazi; Muhammad Abid; Muhammad Amanullah. Effect of Substrate Dependent Ethylene on Cotton (Gossypium hirsutumL.) at Physiological and Molecular Levels Under Salinity Stress. Journal of Plant Nutrition 2015, 38, 1913 -1928.

AMA Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad, Shermeen Tahir, Abdul Rehman, Nabeel Khan Niazi, Muhammad Abid, Muhammad Amanullah. Effect of Substrate Dependent Ethylene on Cotton (Gossypium hirsutumL.) at Physiological and Molecular Levels Under Salinity Stress. Journal of Plant Nutrition. 2015; 38 (12):1913-1928.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad; Shermeen Tahir; Abdul Rehman; Nabeel Khan Niazi; Muhammad Abid; Muhammad Amanullah. 2015. "Effect of Substrate Dependent Ethylene on Cotton (Gossypium hirsutumL.) at Physiological and Molecular Levels Under Salinity Stress." Journal of Plant Nutrition 38, no. 12: 1913-1928.

Journal article
Published: 02 January 2014 in Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis
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ACS Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad; Shermeen Tahir; Muhammad Abid; Muhammad Amanullah. Salt-Induced Variations in Physiological Parameters and Nutrient Concentrations of Two Wheat Cultivars. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 2014, 45, 29 -41.

AMA Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad, Shermeen Tahir, Muhammad Abid, Muhammad Amanullah. Salt-Induced Variations in Physiological Parameters and Nutrient Concentrations of Two Wheat Cultivars. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis. 2014; 45 (1):29-41.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zulfiqar Ahmad; Shermeen Tahir; Muhammad Abid; Muhammad Amanullah. 2014. "Salt-Induced Variations in Physiological Parameters and Nutrient Concentrations of Two Wheat Cultivars." Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 45, no. 1: 29-41.