Enhancing Iris tingitana cv. Wedgewood productivity with chemical, bio-fertilizers and irrigation
Taghreed E. Eissa1*, Hassan A. Elfeky1, Alaa El deen Shaheen2, Feng Xu 3,4* and Mohamed A.A. Ahmed5*
1Ornamental Plants and Landscape Gardening Research Department, Horticulture Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt. 2Sandy and Limestone Lands Department, Water and Environment Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt. 3Key Laboratory for Flower Breeding of Yunnan Province, National Engineering Research Center for Ornamental Horticulture, Floriculture Research Institute, Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Kunming, China. 4Yunnan Seed Laboratory, Kunming 650200, China. 5Plant Production Department (Horticulture-Medicinal and Aromatic Plants), Faculty of Agriculture (Saba Basha), Alexandria University, Alexandria 21531, Egypt. Corresponding e-mail: dr.taghreed.eissa.2019@gmail.com; 148422486@qq.com; drmohamedmarey19@alexu.edu.eg
Abstract: This study aimed to investigate the impact of various fertilization methods and doses on the growth, flowering, and chemical composition of Iris tingitana cv. Wedgewood plants. The research aimed to address challenges hindering Iris plant development and bulb production, ultimately striving to cultivate high-quality plants suitable for Egyptian conditions. Conducted over two seasons (2021-2022 and 2022-2023) at the Horticulture Research Institute’s nursery of the Agriculture Research Center in Giza, Egypt, the experiment followed a factorial design with a randomized complete design (RCD) and three replicates. Results revealed that plants treated with 5 g/pot of phosphorein and 2 g/pot of kristalon, with irrigation intervals every 10 days after sowing (DAS), exhibited superior growth parameters. These included increased vegetative growth in terms of height, stem length, number of leaves per plant, fresh weight of cut spikes, diameter of the spike stem, and earliest flowering compared to other treatments across both seasons. Conversely, the application of 2 g/pot of kristalon and nitrobine, combined with irrigation intervals every 10 DAS, ranked second in enhancing plant growth and flowering characteristics in both seasons.
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