The aim of this work was to determine if PAW (Plasma Activated Water) seed treatment and growing conditions could have positive effects on lettuce seedlings and growth. The paper presents the results of a pot experiment on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) cultivation in greenhouse and field conditions after seed treatment with PAW. The experiment was conducted in two consecutive seasons in 2021 and 2022 and the following growth parameters were measured: head mass, rosette height, rosette width, number of leaves, root mass and root length. As a result of the study, it was found that lettuces grown in the greenhouse from PAW treated seeds had higher results in the first measurement for both cultivars (mass 32.26%, diameter 19.01%, number of leaves 13.49% and height 24.01%), while there were no statistically significant effects on the root system. The lowest results were obtained in untreated and field-grown plants. In addition, plant dry matter was measured and it was found that plants grown from PAW treated seeds had a higher percentage of dry matter (11.51% in 2021, and 11.58% in 2022). It was also found that cultivation in greenhouse resulted in a better quality of plants than the cultivation in the open field.

Plasma-activated water (PAW) is a novel and promising technique in the agricultural field that has the potential to improve vegetable growth and yield. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of plasma-activated water seeds treatment and growth conditions on pepper plant growth parameters and fruit quality. A factorial design of three factors (C = cultivar, GC = growth condition, and PAW = plasma activated water treatment seeds) was established, with two variants for each one: Cultivar 1 (C1) and Cultivar 2 (C2); greenhouse (G) and open field (F); PAW seeds treatment (PAW) and seeds without treatment with PAW (C). Four replicates with fifty seeds were taken for each variety. Growth and fruit quality parameters were measured in the three month period during 2021 and 2022, respectively. The significant influence of cultivar, growing condition, and PAW on fruit quality and pepper plant growth parameters were determined. The lowest values of measured parameters were obtained in the open field without PAW treatment. Pepper growth in a greenhouse from PAW-treated seeds had a higher canopy height (17.85%), weight (10.57%), number of leaves (10.5%), nodes (18.94%), and buds (37.83%). Moreover, dry matter content was higher (33.73%) as well as fruit quality: fruit weight (50.19%), diameter (24.3%), length (20.88%), and pericarp weight (49.49%). Results indicate that PAW treatment of peppers seeds can lead to production and yield improvement under different climates and growing conditions.

The aim of this paper was to find out if PAW (plasma-activated water) irrigation treatment might have a positive influence on morphological parameters (number of leaves, head mass, rosette height, rosette width, and dry matter), microelements and macroelements content, and the formation of secondary metabolites (phenols, phenolic acids, flavonoids, antioxidant activity, and proline). Watering in two treatments (PAW 1 (150 mL added per watering) and PAW 2 (300 mL added per watering)) were completed four times. The experiment was conducted in inside and outside growing conditions. As a result of the experiment, it was established that PAW treatment had a positive effect on morphological parameters, nitrogen content, and the content of phenols, phenolic acids, flavonoids, antioxidant activity, and proline. In addition, it was discovered that growing in inside conditions for PAW 1 treatment gave 61.43% better results in mass in relation to outside conditions. Regarding the PAW 2 treatment, the results showed that the mass in inside conditions was 66.30% higher than in outside conditions. Comparing PAW 1 and PAW 2 treatment, it was found that PAW 2 treatment gave 6% more mass than plants under PAW 1 treatment. It can be concluded that there was a positive effect of PAW treatment on morphological parameters in relation to the control, but there was no significant difference between the treatments.

The aim of the work was to find out the effects of three types of organic fertilizers (S-horse and cow, P-chicken, B-compost) and three types of biostimulants (BC-plants, BO-microorganisms, BS-microorganisms) on the growth of lettuce (Lactuca sativa cv. Maradona) and the secondary metabolites accumulation. The combination of manure (P) and biostimulant (BC) produced the highest yield, exceeding the control by 50% and 66% in two successive growing cycles (p < 0.05). Across all fertilizer treatments, BC application consistently improved plant performance and metabolic activity. Among secondary metabolities, the highest total phenolic content was observed in S and S + BC (≈2.56 mg g⁻¹), phenolic acids in S + BC (≈2.54 mg g⁻¹), antioxidant activity in P + BC (≈1.24 mg g⁻¹), flavonoids in control with S (≈14.09 µmol/g), and proline in P + BO (≈2.45 µmol/g). These findings highlight the synergistic effects of organic fertilizers and biostimulants, suggesting their potential to improve both productivity and nutritional quality in sustainable horticultural systems.

The metals such as Fe, Cu, Zn and Mn are the essential elements that have an important role in the human immune system. The aim of this research was to determine the concentration of nutritive values of macroelements (N, P, and K) and microelements (Fe and Zn) in a mushroom substrate and in a champignon mushroom fruiting body. A trial was conducted in the mushroom production company Romanjek LLC in Slavonski Brod, Croatia. It was conducted in four vegetation cycles on two different substrates, the one originating from Eastern Europe and the other originating from Northern Europe. At the end of the trial, the basic chemical properties of substrates and mushrooms were recorded. A comparison of investigated substrate measurements demonstrates that the highest content of elements N, P, and K was determined in the substrate 2 originating from Northern Europe, while the concentration of microelements Fe and Zn was higher in substrate 1, originating, from Eastern Europe. There was a statistically significant difference in a macroelement content in the mushrooms grown on the substrates of different origin, as well as in the transfer of Zn and Fe from a substrate to mushrooms. There was a higher accumulation of the transferred Zn in comparison to Fe in the mushrooms regardless of the origin of the substrate.

The production of green leafy vegetables is an important segment in agriculture, because they are the source of functional compounds that are beneficial for human health. The main objective of this study was to determine the effects of plasma activated water (PAW) treatment on the morphological, qualitative and chemical properties of spinach under greenhouse and field growing conditions. The application of PAW has a significant influence on plant height, plant diameter, green mass and dry matter, as well as on the content of bioactive substances (phenols, flavonoids, proline) under both cultivation conditions. The results of this study show that the application of a higher dose of PAW (PAW 2) resulted in 46% higher green mass of spinach under field conditions and 57% higher green mass under greenhouse conditions compared with the control varieties. The application of PAW 2 increased the dry matter of the plants by 53% under field conditions and by 75% under greenhouse conditions compared with the control varieties. Similar results were obtained with respect to proline content under field conditions, which increased by 30% with the application of PAW 2 compared with the control varieties and by 50% in the greenhouse with the application of PAW 1. The results indicate that PAW treatment can be a useful method to improve the growth and nutritional quality in spinach cultivation under different climatic and growing conditions.