Rice is an important cereal and drought stress is a critical abiotic stress that negatively influences the performance and productivity of rice crop, particularly under a changing climate scenario. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the impacts of drought stress on grain productivity and water use efficiency of rice cultivars and to assess the genotypic variability among the tested cultivars. Two irrigation treatments including a control and drought stress were applied to the experiments during 2018–2019 and 2019–2020. The statistical evaluation included a comparison of means, genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation, path analysis, correlation assessment, hierarchical clustering of tested cultivars and principal component analysis. The results indicated that drought stress negatively affected the grain productivity of the rice cultivars. The grain productivity of the cultivars decreased, ranging between 21–45% and 21–52% in the first and second season, respectively. Similarly, water use efficiency was significantly decreased ranging between 7–53% and 21–55% during the first and the second season, respectively. The broad-sense heritability for grain productivity was differed under control and drought stress treatment, indicating that the chances of the transfer of grain-productivity-related traits could be affected during selection for stress tolerance. The correlation assessment indicated that the intensity of association among the evaluated parameters was higher under the control treatment. A maximum direct effect was observed by water consumption (1.76) under control whereas, by water use efficiency (1.09) under drought stress treatment on grain productivity in path analysis. Considering the water use efficiency as a desired trait for selection in path analysis, a maximum direct effect was observed by grain productivity under the control (0.68) and under drought treatment (0.88). Hom Pathum and Pathum Thani−1 were identified as highly tolerant cultivars in the hierarchical clustering and principal component analysis. It was concluded that the results obtained for the assessment of drought stress on grain productivity, water use efficiency and genotypic variability among these cultivars could be utilized in selection program for stress tolerance and the stress tolerant cultivars could be used for sustaining grain productivity to reduce the impacts of climate change.

Climate change is aggravating soil salinity, causing huge crop losses around the globe. Multiple physiological and biochemical pathways determine the ability of plants to tolerate salt stress. A pot experiment was performed to understand the impact of proline levels, i.e., 0, 10, 20 mM on growth, biochemical and yield attributes of two pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivars (cv. L-888 and cv. Round) under salt stress (150 mM) along with control (0 mM; no stress). The pots were filled with river-washed sand; all the plants were irrigated with full-strength Hoagland’s nutrient solution and grown for two weeks before application of salt stress. Foliar spray of proline was applied to 46-day-old pea plants, once a week till harvest. Data for various growth and physio-biochemical attributes were collected from 70-day-old pea plants. Imposition of salt stress significantly checked growth, gas exchange characteristics [net CO₂ assimilation rate (A), transpiration rate (E), stomatal conductance (g_s)], total soluble proteins, concentration of superoxide dismutase (SOD), shoot and root K⁺ and Ca²⁺ contents, while sub-stomatal CO₂ concentration (Ci), coefficient of non-photochemical quenching (_qN), non-photochemical quenching (NPQ), concentration of catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD), free proline, and shoot and root Na⁺ contents increased substantially. Foliar application of proline significantly improved growth, yield, A, g_s, activity of POD, and shoot and root K⁺ and Ca²⁺ contents, while decreased NPQ values in both pea cultivars under stress and non-stress conditions. Moreover, both pea cultivars showed significant differences as cv. Round exhibited a higher rate of growth, yield, gas exchange, soluble proteins, CAT activity, free proline, shoot and root K⁺ and Ca²⁺ contents compared to L-888. Hence, the outcomes of this study pave the way toward the usage of proline at 20 mM, and cv. Round may be recommended for saline soil cultivation.

Undoubtedly, it is important to remain vigilant and manage invasive grasses to prevent their spread and mitigate their negative impact on the environment. However, these aggressive plants can also play a beneficial role in certain contexts. For example, several invasive grasses provide valuable forage for livestock and have disease control potential. Therefore, a research experiment was conducted to explore the pros and cons of this approach, not only for surrounding vegetation but also for human and animal disease control. The study is primarily focused on developing livestock feed, plant-derived herbicides, and an understanding of the phytotoxic effects of invasive species. All plant parts of Cenchrus ciliaris L., Polypogon monspeliansis L., and Dicanthium annulatum (Forssk.) Stapf, were tested for their phyto-chemical screening, proximate, and toxicity analysis which was caused by the methanolic extract of these grass species. Qualitative phytochemical screening tests were performed for proximate composition analysis and toxicity assessment essays. The phytochemical analysis revealed the positive results for alkaloids, flavonoids, coumarins, phenols, saponins, and glycosides, while negative for tannins. Comparison of proximate analysis intimated maximum moisture (10.8%) and crude fat (4.1%) in P. monspeliensis, whereas maximum dry matter (84.1%), crude protein (13.95%), crude fiber (11%), and ash (7.2%) in D. annulatum. Five (10, 100, 500, 100, 10,000 ppm) and three (10, 1000, 10,000 ppm) different concentrations of methanolic extract prepared from C. ciliaris, P. monspeliansis, and D. annulatum were used respectively for root inhibition and seed germination essay. Furthermore, three different concentrations (10, 30, 50 mg) of plant fine powder were used for sandwich method test. There was a significant decline in the growth rate of experimental model radish seeds (P > 0.005), and results from sandwich method tests showed suppressed growth of root hairs, inhibiting the anchoring of the radish seed. In comparison, results manifest that; P. monspeliansis indicated an upsurge of inhibition (66.58% at 10,000 ppm), D. annulatum revealed soar germination (75.86% in controlled conditions), and C. ciliaris exhibited dramatic shoot up of inhibition because of sandwich method test (14.02% at 50 mg). In conclusion, although grasses are toxic, it is important to consider the beneficiary account.

Agricultural productivity is significantly influenced by the restricted availability of irrigation water and poor soil health. To assess the influence of different potential soil moisture deficit (PSMD) regimes and integrated nutrient levels on the growth, yield, and quality of wheat, an experiment was carried out at the research area of the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. The experiment includes three levels of PSMD (I₁: 25 mm PSMD, I₂: 50 mm PSMD, and I₃: 75 mm PSMD) and four integrated nutrition levels (N₁: 50% organic manure + 50% Inorganic NPK, N₂: 75% organic manure + 25% inorganic NPK, N₃: 100% application of organic manure, and N₄: 100% application of inorganic NPK). Results of the experiment revealed that maximum grain yield (4.78 t ha⁻¹) was obtained as a result of irrigation at 50 mm PSMD with the combined use of organic and inorganic sources in equal proportions. In contrast, the minimum yield was observed at I₃: 75 mm PSMD with 100% application of organic manure. The highest plant height (99.11 cm), fertile tillers (284.4), 1000-grain weight (44.48 g), biological yield (14.82 t ha⁻¹), radiation use efficiency for grain yield (RUE_GY) (5.71 g MJ⁻¹), and radiation use efficiency for total dry matter (RUE_TDM) (2.15 g MJ⁻¹) were observed under N₁: 50% organic manure with 50% inorganic NPK treatment. The highest value of these parameters was also observed in I₂ (50 mm PSMD). The results of this study can be extended to arid and semi-arid regions, where deficit irrigation is a key strategy to address water crises and to meet sustainable development goals.

Stumpy irrigation water availability is extremely important for sugarcane production in Pakistan today. This issue is rising inversely to river flow due to inadequate water distribution and an uneven rainfall pattern. Sugarcane growth faces a shortage of available water for plant uptake due to the low water–holding capacity of sandy loam soil, particularly under conventional flood irrigation methods. To address this problem, sugarcane clones were evaluated for their agronomic and physiological traits under conditions of low water availability in sandy loam soil. Ten cane genotypes, HSF–240, SPF–213, CPF–249, CP 77–400, S2008–FD–19, S2006–US–469, S2007–AUS–384, S2003–US–633, S2003–US–127, and S2006–US–658, were exposed to four levels of water deficit created through skip irrigations. These deficit levels occurred during the 9th, 11th, 13th, and 16th irrigations at alternate deficit levels between 2020 and 2022. Physiological data were collected during the tillering and grand growth stages (elongation) in response to the water deficit. The sugarcane clones S2006–US–658, S2007–AUS–384, and HSF–240 exhibited resistance to low water availability at both the tillering and grand growth stages. Following them, genotypes S2006–US–658, S2007–AUS–384, and HSF–240 performed better and were also found to be statistically significant. Clones susceptible to water deficit in terms of growth and development were identified as CP 77–400, S2008–FD–19, S2006–US–469, and S2003–US–633. These genotypes showed reduced photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, relative water content, cane yield, and proline content under stressed conditions. Therefore, genotypes S2006–US–658, S2007–AUS–384, and HSF–240 were better performers concerning physiological traits under water deficit and sandy loam soil in both years. Moreover, a significant positive correlation was assessed between agronomic traits and photosynthetic rats. This study highlights that sugarcane can sustain its growth and development even with less irrigation frequency or moisture availability, albeit with certain specific variations.