Soybean is grown in many parts of the world due to the high demand for seeds (food and feed) and its advantages and disadvantages are well known. In Poland, efforts have been made to increase soybean production through the use of optimal cultivars and cultivation technology. In soybean agriculture practice, an important treatment is the inoculation of seeds with symbiotic bacteria and optimal fertilization with selected nutrients. Recently, due to the rising dearth of microelements in soils worldwide, the use of several elements such as B, Zn, Cu, Mn, Mo, Fe, Si or Ti has received great attention in crop production. Although Ti application in crops is very rare, but several studies reported its beneficial effects on plant growth and development.

The present study examined the reaction of soybean to seed inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum and the synergistic effect of foliar fertilization plants with titanium (Ti). The experiment was carried out in 2021-2022 in a field of the Podkarpackie Agricultural Advisory Centre in Boguchwała (21°57′E, 49°59′N), Podkarpackie Province, Poland. The tested factor was a bacterial inoculant for soybean (PRIMSEED® BIOM Soja) and foliar fertilizer (TYTANIT®, Ti - 8,5 g/l) with applied in the following variants:

A – Control

B – Seeds inoculated

C – Foliar fertilization with Ti (in accordance with the instructions on the product label)

D – B + C.

The experiment was carried out in four replicates in a random block design, using the cultivar Mavka, recommended for cultivation in the study area. Soybean was cultivated in accordance with the best agrotechnical knowledge.

It was demonstrated that the best variant was seed inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum in combination with foliar titanium application. As a result of this treatments, a significant increase in nodulation, soil plant analysis development (SPAD) index, leaf area index (LAI) and seed yield (by 0.33 t⸱ha^-1) was obtained compared to the control. In addition, the content of total protein in the seeds increased, while the content of crude fat decreased, which significantly modified the yield of both components. Soybean yielded variably during the study years and the difference obtained between 2021 and 2022 was 0.89 t⸱ha^-1. Inoculation seeds with B. japonicum, in combination with foliar fertilization with Ti, could be recommended for agricultural practice, which was confirmed by economic calculations. Future experiments will assess the soybean’s response to seed inoculation or coating and fertilization with other micronutrients.

The number of deaths due to malignant neoplasms is increasing year by year. For this reason, new ways of preventing them and supporting treatment are being sought. One of them is adding plant extracts to food in case of increasing its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancerogenic activity. The aim of the study was to examine the effect of different wild grown fruits (chokeberry, elderberry, hawthorn and sea-buckthorn) added to wheat-flour cookies on the proliferation of: (i) normal BJ lines (fibroblasts); (ii) tumour cells of the MCF-7 (breast cancer) and (iii) WM793 (melanoma) lines. Methanol-acetone extracts were prepared from previously baked wheat-flour cookies fortified with fruits, in order to use them in the further part of the research to prepare mixtures with concentrations of: 0.5 mg / mL; 1 mg / mL; 1.5 mg / mL; 2.5 mg / mL. The viability and cytotoxicity of normal and neoplastic cells was examined. It was observed that the MCF-7 melanoma tumour line appeared to be more susceptible to the action of the tested extracts with the addition of selected wild grown fruits compared to WM793 breast cancer cells. Moreover, the greatest significant effect on the inhibition of MCF-7 cells among extracts with a concentration of 2.5 mg/ml was proved in the case of chokeberry and elderberry (p <0.05). In terms of the inhibition of the WM793 line among extracts with a concentration of 2.5 mg/ml, the greatest significant effect was proved in the case of sea buckthorn and elderberry (p <0.05).

Agriculture is the backbone of every economy. In a country like Peru, which has an increasing demand for food due to population growth, advancements in the agricultural sector are necessary to meet these needs. Machine learning is an important decision support tool for predicting crop yields. However, nowadays, food production and prediction are being depleted due to non-natural climate changes, which negatively impact the economy of farmers by obtaining low yields. This article explores various machine learning techniques such as neural networks, decision trees, k-means, and logistic regression, used in the field of crop yield estimation, to enhance decision-making by farmers in the Ancash region of Peru. For this research, six provinces in the Ancash region (Yungay, Carhuaz, Huaraz, Recuay, Aija, and Huari) were selected, where a database of 2,573 households was obtained in 2016, and subsequently, a separate set of 594 samples was obtained in 2017. All machine learning algorithms are useful as they cater to different objectives. In our study, we still need to test ensemble algorithms such as random forests, stacking, bagging, boosting, and voting to determine the best one for predicting yields in high-altitude crops in the Ancash region of Peru.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is a highly esteemed horticultural crop that is consumed in various forms, including raw and processed. Contemporary agriculture employs both conventional and organic fertilizers to enhance crop yield and optimize efficiency. Conventional fertilizers have been shown to enhance agricultural productivity, but their usage has been linked to negative environmental consequences. Those circumstances provide motivation for the exploration of an alternative resolution.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of nano-ZnO (at conc. 50, 150 and 250 mg/L) administered in two distinct ways (foliar spraying and directly into the soil) along with conventional fertilizer on tomatoes. After cultivation, the plant tissues, including aboveground parts of the plants and fruits were analyzed in detail. The findings indicate that the utilization of nano-ZnO in tomato plants had an impact on the plant's biometric parameters and its antioxidant capacity. The outcomes of the performed analyses were dependent upon the concentrations of nano-ZnO utilized or the method of their administration. Further investigations revealed that the utilization of nano ZnO resulted in an elevation of malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and other chosen antioxidants’ activities in the aerial parts of the plant. On the other hand, the utilization of nano-ZnO resulted in a slight reduction in the levels of chlorophyll and carotenoid in the chosen plants, along with a decrease in the quantity and mass of the harvested fruits. However, a reduction in fruit weight aside, the application of nano-ZnO resulted in an elevation of lycopene and β-carotene levels in the fruit of chosen plants.

Hydrogels are three-dimensional polymeric networks with promising properties as release systems for fertilizers, pesticides and plant growth-promoting bacteria, as well as improving water availability in crop soils. Most commercial hydrogels for agricultural use are based on synthetic polymers. Due to the increasing attention on the use of biodegradable materials, hydrogels based on natural polymers have gained interest. In this work, the design and development of new hydrogels with superabsorbent characteristics based on gellan gum (GG) and humic acid (HA) were carried out, as an ecological alternative with potential application in the agricultural industry. Hydrogels were obtained by crosslinking the GG chains with spermidine in the presence of HA. The structural and physicochemical properties of the hydrogels were evaluated by FTIR, TGA, SEM and degree of swelling at 25 °C in deionized water. Chlorophyll quantification was evaluated in sorghum (Sorghum sp.) seedlings germinated in a growth chamber for plants at 27±1 °C and 12 light hours. The results showed that adding HA to the GG matrix increases the amount of total chlorophylls in sorghum seedlings.