Yildiran Sogurtlupinar, Sevda; Inanç, Merve; Keçe, Yusuf Murat; Tarhan, Leyla; Sogutmaz Ozdemir, Bahar; Sahin, Fikrettin; Turan, Metin; Günes, Adem

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are increasingly applied in sustainable agriculture to enhance plant growth, improve yield, and induce tolerance to stress condition while reducing chemical inputs. Tuff, a porous volcanic material with high water-holding and cation exchange capacity, was used as a carrier to inoculate and deliver PGPR to the plant root zone. This two-year greenhouse study evaluated the effects of PGPR-inoculated tuff (T1) compared with non-inoculated tuff (T0, control) on the growth, physiological performance, antioxidant enzyme activities, and biochemical profiles of 'K & imath;rik' wheat. Large tuff (9 & times; 14 & times; 11 mm) were inoculated with approximately 4.8 & times; 1010 cfu/g PGPR and applied to the root zone of each plant. PGPR application increased grain yield by 20.43% and significantly improved chlorophyll content, stomatal conductance, membrane permeability, and photosynthetic rate. Antioxidant enzymes, including CAT, SOD, and POD, showed increases of 11.43, 14.83, and 10.71%, respectively. Levels of IAA (13.59%), GA (7%), and SA (9.27%) were elevated, whereas ABA decreased by 16.67%. Amino acid and organic acid contents were generally enhanced, along with significant increases in nutrient element concentrations, most notably P (18.49%), Cu (10.61%), and Fe (9.99%); in contrast, Na and B concentrations decreased by 5 and 3.48%, respectively. These findings indicate that PGPR-inoculated tuff can improve nutrient availability and growth and physiological performance in wheat, offering a low-cost, scalable biological input to complement conventional fertilization in sustainable wheat production. Further field studies comparing this approach with standard chemical fertilization are needed to confirm its practical applicability and support broader adoption.

Polat, R.; Cakilcioglu, U.; Selvi, S.; Türkmen, Z.; Kandemir, A.

In this study, we comparatively investigated three endemic Salvia species spreading in Erzincan (Turkey) in terms of anatomy and micromorphology. For anatomical investigation, cross sections taken from stems and leaves of the species were examined under light microscope. For micromorphological investigation, epidermal surface and nutlet structure were examined using scanning electron microscopy. The S. euphratica and S. divaricata species were examined anatomically and micromorphologically for the first time, and S. hypargea was examined micromorphologically for the first time. In anatomical examinations, it was seen that stem and leaf structures of the species were similar. In micromorphological analyses, it has been seen that hairiness of the nutlet surface and nutlet ornamentations (verrucate and rugose type) created a difference between the species.