Leafy kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala L.) is one of the most important Brassicaceae species with health-promoting properties and great diversity. To investigate variability within and among accessions, 12 accessions (each accession comprised four individuals/genotypes) from the Balkan region were genotyped at 12 simple sequence repeats (SSRs) loci. The selected SSR markers originated from the genomes of B. oleracea (eight), B. rapa (two) and B. napus (two). DNA was extracted from seeds, cotyledons, shoots, and young leaves, depending on the germination energy of each seed, using magnetic extraction method. Genetic analysis included eight accessions from Serbia (24 genotypes), two accessions from Montenegro (eight genotypes), and one accession from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia (with four genotypes each). Accession-specific polymorphism was found at the Ol12-FO2 and Ol10-F11a loci, where genotypes were qualitatively distinguished by horizontal agarose gel electrophoresis (binary detection). Among 12 loci, the average polymorphic information content (PIC) was 0.71, with the marker Ol13-C12 proving to be the most informative (PIC = 0.89). However, the analysis of molecular variability (AMOVA) showed 11% diversity between accessions, 19% diversity between genotypes, and 70% diversity within genotypes, explaining the molecular diversity of native Balkan leafy kale germplasm. According to the genetic structure, four genetic groups were formed with an average expected heterozygosity of 0.70 between clusters. In order to exploit the genetic diversity, it would be advisable to evaluate these accessions at phenotypic level and use their potential in breeding programmes.

In this research the aim was to determine differences in morphological characteristics between 11 tomato accessions from the Gene Bank of the Republic of Srpska. The experiment was conducted and analysis was performed during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. A total of 16 morphological characteristics (9 quantitative and 7 qualitative) were analyzed according to International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) descriptors for tomato. The results showed that polymorphism (diversity) was present in all quantitative characteristics and in 6 qualitative characteristics, while only one qualitative characteristic was monomorphic (no differences between accessions). Thereby, polymorphism was present in 93.75% of morphological characteristics. Out of a total of 9 quantitative characteristics, a highly significant difference (p 0.01) was found in all characteristics except for the 1000-seed weight since this characteristic had only one value per accession measured according to the IPGRI tomato descriptors. The accessions from the Gene Bank of the Republic of Srpska have shown high diversity in all qualitative characteristics except in plant growth type, which was indeterminate in all analyzed accessions. This research provides a new insight into the research area of diversity of tomato landraces from the Republic of Srpska, which is important for further promotion and sustainable use of germplasm not only for scientific research purposes but also for national rural farmers, who are the key to preserving traditional knowledge and skills related to the cultivation and use of traditional varieties and tomato landraces.

Mushroom production has become more popular in our environment. The most common cultivated mushroom is Agaricus bisporus. After mushrooms are harvested a large amount of used compost remains. This compost is a good material and producers used it as alternative substrate in plant production. The benefits of this compost are numerous like high content of organic matter and the rich mineral composition. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the use of spent mushroom compost (as alternative substrate) on growth and development of roots and above-ground parts of sage transplants (Salvia officinalis L.). Measurements of morphological parameters of plants (plant height, number of leaves, number of branches and plant diameter) were performed, as well as determination of fresh and dry weight of roots and above-ground parts of transplants. Application of spent mushroom substrate in the production of sage Salvia officinalis L. positively influenced growth and development as well as fresh and dry weight of roots and above-ground parts of treated plants compared to nontreated plants during transplanting growing stage. Plant height (+104%), number of leaves (+65%), number of branches (+143%), plant diameter (89%), were significantly increased by the spent mushroom compost application compared to the control - commercial substrate.

ABSTRACT Plant biostimulants are commercial products based on different chemical substances used to enhance plant growth and productivity. The effects of biostimulants, Megafol and Viva, with different dominant compositions (amino acids and humic acids) on two tomato cultivars (cv. Gravitet F1 and cv. Minaret F1) exposed to conventional and low-input macronutrient nutrition were investigated. Application of both biostimulants positively affected yield at conventional nutrition. In low-input nutrition variant, biostimulant application prevented yield loss only in cv. Minaret F1. Inter-cultivar differences were noticed in fruit characteristics (total phenol content, total flavonoids content and total antioxidative capacity) where application of biostimulants leads to opposite results in the examined cultivars. We considered the possibility of biostimulant usage as an effective nutritional addition for overcoming the problem of excessive fertilisation.

Grass pea belongs to the legume family and it is traditionally used as a grain for human consumption while its foliage is used for fodder. In this study morpho-agronomic evaluation and characterisation of different grass pea accessions (Lathyrus sativus L.) from Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H)/Republic of Srpska was performed. A collection of 8 grass pea accessions was cultivated in Slovenia (Jablje) and Bosnia and Herzegovina/Republic of Srpska (Banja Luka) in the open field trials during the growing season of 2019. A number of quantitative and qualitative IPGRI descriptors for Lathyrus spp. concerning the vegetative growth, stem, branch, leaf, inflorescences, pods, and seeds were measured and/or visually estimated. The results of the present study will add value through the enrichment of the Lathyrus spp. collection in both countries, improving the existing data and documentation, as well as creating a certain basis for further studies of the morpho-agronomic traits of the grass pea.

Two commercial tomato cultivars were used to determine whether grafting could prevent decrease of Ca2+ concentration under salt stress conditions. The cultivars Buran F1 and Berberana F1 were grafted onto rootstock "Maxifort" and grown under three levels of the elevated soil salinity (S1 EC 3.80 dS m-1, S2 6.95 dS m-1 and S3 9.12 dS m-1). Ca2+ concentration of non-grafted plants of both examined hybrids was lower at all salinity levels in comparison to the control. In the fruits of grafted plants salt stress significantly decreased Ca2+ concentration only at the third salinity level (EC 9.12 dS m-1). The possibility of grafting tomato plants to improve influx of Ca2+ under salt stress conditions is discussed.

In South-Eastern Europe, the majority of runner-bean (Phaseolus coccineus L.) production is based on local populations grown mainly in home gardens. The local runner-bean plants are well adapted to their specific growing conditions and microclimate agro-environments, and show great morpho-agronomic diversity. Here, 142 runner-bean accessions from the five South-Eastern European countries of Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, North Macedonia and Romania were sown and cultivated in their respective countries and characterised using 28 quantitative and qualitative morpho-agronomic descriptors for Phaseolus spp. based on inflorescences, leaves, plants, pods and seeds. For each of these morpho-agronomic descriptors, the accessions can be classified into two or three specific groups. The highest correlations were observed within the fluorescence, seed and pod traits. The highest variability, at 76.39%, was between the different countries, representing different geographic origins, while the variability within the countries was 23.61%. Cluster analysis based on these collected morpho-agronomic data also classified the accessions into three groups according to genetic origins. The data obtained serve as useful genetic information for plant breeders for the breeding of new bean varieties for further studies of the morpho-agronomic traits of the runner bean.

Salinity is one of the most important ecological problems that affect irrigated agriculture in the world. Increased soil salinity inhibits plant growth through osmotic and ionic stress, but can also decrease availability of certain micronutrients. Copper is an essential metal for normal plant growth and development that participates in numerous biochemical and physiological processes and it is an essential cofactor for many metalloproteins. Copper concentration in two commercial tomato cultivars (grafted and non-grafted) was investigated under different levels of elevated soil salinity. Soil with EC 9.1 dS m-1 led to the highest copper deficiency, approximately by 37% in the non-grafted and 25% in the grafted tomato plants. The effect of a grafting technique is considered as an environmentally friendly tool for overcoming soil salinity problem.

1 University of Banja Luka, Faculty of Agriculture, Banja Luka, Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 University of Banja Luka, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Banja Luka, Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina 3 University of Sarajevo, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina 4 University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Agriculture, Novi Sad, Serbia

Murtic S., Oljaca R., Koleska I., Karic L., Todorovic V. (2018): Response of cherry tomato seedlings to liquid fertiliser application under water stress. Hort. Sci. (Prague), 45: 22–28. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of different liquid fertilisers on selected physiological parameters in order to evaluate the drought tolerance of cherry tomato seedlings. The following physiological parameters were investigated: total phenolic and flavonoid content, total antioxidant capacity and proline content of leaf extracts. Total phenolic and flavonoid content were determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminium chloride colorimetric methods, respectively. The ferric-reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP assay) was used to measure the total antioxidant capacity, while proline content was evaluated according to the method of Bates. The contents of proline, total phenolics and flavonoids were significantly higher in the leaves of cherry tomato seedlings exposed to water stress, which suggests that the higher synthesis of these substances by plants represents an important defence mechanism of drought tolerance. The results also indicate that the application of all the used fertilisers in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions can significantly increase the content of phenol compounds and total antioxidant capacity of plants under normal growth conditions, thus improving survival under subsequent stress.