Halophytes are naturally adapted in saline environments, where they benefit from the substantial amounts of salt in the growth media. The need for salt-tolerant crops increases as substantial percentages of cultivated land worldwide are affected by salinity. There are few protocols, guidelines, or trials for glasswort (Salicornia (L.) and Sarcocornia (Scott), belong to the Amaranthaceae) field cultivation. The high salt tolerance and content in bioactive compounds make glassworts one of the most important candidates for future use both for fresh and processed food, due to their functional and health properties. This review describes the glassworts respect to their biodiversity and the most important factors affecting propagation, salt tolerance traits, agro-techniques and yields, food uses and nutraceutical properties.

To assess the effect a new animal-derived biostimulant on the growth, root morphology, nitrogen content, leaf gas exchange of greenhouse potted snapdragon, three treatments were compared: (a) three doses of biostimulant (D): 0 (D₀ or control), 0.1 (D_0.1), and 0.2 g L⁻¹ (D_0.2); (b) two biostimulant application methods (M): foliar spray and root drenching; (c) two F₁ Antirrhinum majus L. hybrids (CV): “Yellow floral showers” and “Red sonnet.” The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete-block design with four replicates, with a total of 48 experimental units. Plant height (+11%), number of shoots (+20%), total shoot length (+10%), number of leaves (+33%), total leaf area (+29%), and number of flowers (+59%) and total aboveground dry weight (+13%) were significantly increased by the biostimulant application compared to the control, regardless of the dose. The lowest dose resulted in the best effect on the ground plant dry weight (+38%) and, in order to the root system, on total length (+55%), average diameter (+36%), volume (+66%), tips (+49%), crossings (+88%), forks (+68%), projected (+62%), and total surface area (+28%). Compared to the control, plants treated with the biostimulant significantly enhanced leaf (+16%) and root (+8%) nitrogen content, photosynthetic rate (+52%), transpiration rate (+55%), and stomatal conductance (+81%), although there were no changes in dark-adapted chlorophyll fluorescence. Differences in the application method were not evident in the aboveground morphological traits, except in the plant shoot number (root drenching: +10%). The foliar spray compared to root drenching had a significant effect only on flower dry weight (3.8 vs. 3.0 g plant⁻¹). On the other hand, root drenching had a positive effect on ground dry weight (2.7 vs. 2.3 g plant⁻¹), root morphology, leaf-N and root-N content (+3%), transpiration rate (+21%), stomatal conductance (+40%), concentration of CO₂ in intracellular spaces (+11%), as well as on the efficiency of Photosystem II (+11%). A higher pot quality was obtained in “Red sonnet” compared to “Yellow floral shower.” Based on our findings, applying the biostimulant to potted snapdragon at the lowest dose, as part of a fertilizing regime, improves the crop quality in an agro-environmental sustainable way.

Barbados aloe (Aloe vera (L.) Burm. f.) has traditionally been used for healing in natural medicine. However, aloe is now attracting great interest in the global market due to its bioactive chemicals which are extracted from the leaves and used in industrial preparations for pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food products. Aloe originated from tropical and sub-tropical Africa, but it is also now cultivated in warm climatic areas of Asia, Europe and America. In this review, the most important factors affecting aloe production are described. We focus on propagation techniques, sustainable agronomic practices and efficient post harvesting and processing systems.

There is a stringent need to reduce the environmental impact of peat in the plant nursery production chain. In this experiment, the use of different rates of sewage sludge compost in the preparation of growing media for potted Bougainvillea was evaluated to assess its efficiency for the replacement of peat and to quantify the environmental impact of such alternative substrates by the life cycle assessment (LCA) method. Five substrates containing increasing proportion of composted sewage sludge to peat (0%, 25%, 40%, 55%, and 70% v/v) were used, and their physicochemical properties were measured. Bougainvillea plant growth, biomass production, and macro- and micronutrient absorption were also determined. The main results were that compost addition improved the plant nutrient and increased the substrate pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and dry bulk density values. Globally, the results showed that compost could be used at up to 55% by volume with no negative effects on plant growth. The LCA showed that use of compost reduced the environmental loads of the growth media, except the Global Warming Potential value (GWP100). Environmental implications of the use of compost in the plant nursery chain are discussed.

The problems associated with the salinization of soils and water bodies and the increasing competition for scarce freshwater resources are increasing. Current attempts to adapt to these conditions through sustainable agriculture involves searching for new highly salt-tolerant crops, and wild species that have potential as saline crops are particularly suitable. The common ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum L.) is an edible halophyte member of the Aizoaceae family, which switches from C3 photosynthesis to crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) when exposed to salinity or water stress. The aim of this review was to examine the potential of using the ice plant in both the wild and as a crop, and to describe its ecology and morphology, environmental and agronomic requirements, and physiology. The antioxidant properties and mineral composition of the ice plant are also beneficial to human health and have been extensively examined.