Entessar Mohammad AL Jbawi*(1) Hiba ShamsAlDeen(2) and Samir Shamsham(3)
(1). Sugar Beet Department, Crops Research Administration, General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research GCSAR, Damascus, Syria.
(2). Homs Agricultural Research Center, GCSAR, Damascus, Syria.
(3). Soil and Land Department, Faculty of Agriculture. Al Baath University, Homs, Syria.
(*Corresponding author: Dr. Entessar Al Jbawi. E-Mail: dr.entessara@gmail.com, dr.entessara@gcsar.gov.sy).
Received: 01/05/2020 Accepted: 05/08/2020
Abstract
The production of forage crops is very important for livestock production in Syria, which contributes largely to the national income. The study was conducted on summer date (1st of September), during 2016/2017 season, to study the effect of seaweed extracts on the productivity and quality traits (Root weight/plant (g), shoot weight/plant (g), dry matter content (%), and crude protein content (%) of shoot and root) of fodder beet, assigned in randomized completely block design (RCBD), with three replicates. The results showed that seaweed extracts surpassed the control significantly for all the studied traits, and this reflects the importance of new source of (seaweeds), which are increasingly used in crop production. Sea weeds are environmentally benign and safe for the health of animals and humans. Also, seaweed extracts includes many components such as macro- and microelement nutrients, amino acids, vitamins, cytokinins, auxins, and abscisic acid (ABA)-like growth substances affect cellular metabolism in treated plants leading to enhanced growth and crop yield.
Key words: Fodder beet, Seaweed, Summer sowing, Syria.