Our study was to develop a rapid and successful method for promoting asymbiotic seed germination and growth and development of protocorm like bodies (PLBs) and subsequent plantlets of Phalaenopsis orchid. Four basal media i.e. Murashige and Skoog (MS), half strength MS (½MS), Knudson C (KC) and, Vacin and Went (VW) supplemented with coconut water and peptone were examined for their effectiveness in large-scale multiplication by asymbiotic seed germination. Seed germination, leaf number, root number, root length, seedling length and fresh and dry weight were scored. Well-rooted plantlets 4-cm in height were transferred to a greenhouse in trays containing expanded clay, charcoal, cocopeat and perlite (4:2:1:1) or sphagnum moss. The seed germination frequency and seedling development was found significantly higher in organic growth supplement-enriched MS and ½MS media. The results indicated that the highest seed germination (94 %) was obtained in MS medium supplemented with 100 mg/L coconut water or 1 g/L peptone and ½MS containing 1 or 2 g/L peptone. However, the longest seedling was found in MS or ½MS media supplemented with 100 mg/L coconut water or MS containing 1 g/L peptone. Ninety-seven percent of plantlets survived after 1 month in mixture media expanded clay: charcoal: cocopeat: perlit. Manuscript profile

The main object of this study is to investigate the effect of plant growth regulators on the prolongation of vase life of two kinds of cut carnation under normal and ethylene. Carnation is one of the most popular flowers that has a short life due to its sensitivity to ethylene. Also, the effect of plant growth regulators on several physiological traits under ethylene stress and normal conditions was studied. The effects of short-term treatment with benzyl adenine, salicylic acid, and methyl jasmonate on two types of cut carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus L.), one-headed standard cut carnation and multi- flower mini cut carnation, under exposure of ethylene condition were investigated. Benzyl adenine 100 µM short-term treatment had the most effect on total chlorophyll content. Salicylic acid 100 µM treatment enhanced the soluble carbohydrates, and also prolonged the cut carnation vase life. Methyl jasmonate 400 µM treating elevated the catalase and peroxidase enzymes activity and increased the proline content in cut carnations. All considered traits were reduced by exogenous ethylene. None of short-term treatments could repel the inappropriate exogenous ethylene effects. One-headed standard carnations were also tolerant of ethylene more than multi- flower mini carnations. Manuscript profile

Selenium (Se) is an essential microelement for humans and a beneficial element for plants. Recently, biofortification with Se has emerged as a key practice to increase plant quality. The aim of present study was to investigate the postharvest responses of Pelargonium peltatum L. to the application of Se in soil. The Se was used as sodium selenite (Na2SeO4) in soil application of 20, 40, and 60 µM L-1 distilled water. The results showed that flower weight, relative water content (RWC), anthocyanin, and vitamin C decreased over the storage time. Malondialdehyde (MAD) increased by progressing the time of storage. Total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) were significantly enhanced at early days of storage and then decreased up to the end of storage on days 4 and 6. Se significantly improved flower weight, RWC, anthocyanin, vitamin C, TPC, and TFC entire the storage. Although, Se was effective in enhancing the quality of P. peltatum L., there was no significant difference between 40 and 60 µM Se in all traits. Therefore, this experiment suggests using 40 µM Se to alleviate adverse effects induced by postharvest time growth on productivity of P. peltatum L. Manuscript profile

Lilium ledebourii is a native and endangered rare species in Iran. It requires a cold period for proper growth and flowering. This experiment was performed to investigate the effects of cold storage on changes of endogenous abscisic acid (ABA), indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), gibberellic acid (GA3), sucrose, fructose, glucose, and total saponin during dormancy of Lilium ledebourii bulbs. The bulbs of lily were stored at 1 or 7 ºC, for 0, 30, 60, 90, and 120 days, and after each period removed from storage and analyzed using HPLC system. The results indicated that, cold storage at 1 ºC for 120 days decreased the levels of ABA while, 7 ºC in the same duration increased its content, slightly. The levels of IAA increased at 1 ºC storage, while remained almost constant at 7 ºC. Cold treatment at 1 ºC increased the levels of GA3, while storage at 7 ºC caused slight decrease in its content. Sucrose and fructose concentrations increased in both temperatures during the storage, while minor reduction in glucose content was observed. Storage at 7 ºC for 120 days induced the highest content of total saponin. The magnitude of changes in hormones and soluble sugars measured at 1 ºC was greater than that at 7 ºC. Manuscript profile

Indoor air pollution is one of the most important environmental subjects in the world with serious side effects on human health. We report the result of three replications and a factorial design experiment that assesses the effect of plants (Epipremnum aureum and Dracaena trifasciata ) on the removal of indoor air pollution. To gain the objects, potted plants were placed individually in 125 liters airtight glass containers (chamber) which had a small valve to inject and sucking airs. Each plant was exposure to, benzene 25 and 50 µl/l, acetone 25 and 50 µl/l, ethanol 50 µl/l and methanol 50 µl/l during a day (24 hours). According to the biochemical examination electrolyte leakage (%) of pothos was decreased especially in acetone 25 µl/l versus on treated sansevieria increased. Total chlorophyll content of sansevieria in all treatments was increased, while it was decreased when pothos exposure to benzene 25, benzene 50 µl/l and methanol 50 µl/l catalase activity and superoxide dismutase showed converse results. In both plant species catalase activity was decreased especially in acetone 50, however superoxide dismutase activity was increased in all treatments and in sansevieria exposure to benzene 50 µl/l more than others. There was no significant change in proline content of pothos, although there was significant increase in acetone 50 µl/l and ethanol 50 µl/l of sansevieria. The results indicate when plants exposure to the benzene, tissue cells damaged more than other treatments while, acetone had least amount of tissue cell damage. According to this paper results, both plant species have the potential of indoor air pollution phytoremediation but, pothos had higher adaptability in pollutant indoor area. Manuscript profile

The cyclamen (Myrsinascea) as the flowers growing in some temperate regions, are of high ecological and botanical importance and endangered as well. Therefore, to provide an opportunity to identify and protect its species, Iranian native cyclamen was studied. Plants were collected (in winter and spring) from three northern provinces of Iran, i.e., Guilan, Mazandaran, and Golestan, and their morphological traits (14 quantitative and 10 qualitative traits) were assessed. Based on the analysis of variance, there were significant differences in some recorded traits, e.g., leaf number, flower number, flower color, and flower and leaf shape, which would allow selecting plants with more optimal traits. The cluster analysis divided the plants into three groups. Accordingly, the plants collected from the Shadan region in Golestan province and those collected from the Sinava and Shahsheshmeh regions in Chalus County, Mazandaran province differed from the plants collected from the other regions. The plants were collected from the Abpari and Lavij regions in Nur County, the Pasand region in Behshahr County, the Qarnabad region in Gorgan County, and the Deylaman region in Siahkal County were placed in the same group due to their similar morphology although they had been collected from three different provinces. The first group included the cyclamens of the Qarnabad region in Gorgan County, the Lavij region in Nur County, the Deylaman region in Siahkal County, the Pasand region in Behshahr County, and the Abpari region in Nur County. These plants had lowly toothed leaf margins, long petals, and few seeds. The second group included the cyclamens of the Shadan region in Kordkuy County. These plants had longer and heavier hypocotyls, larger and wider leaves, and smaller flowers. They showed the highest number of seeds, hypocotyl diameter, length, and weight, flower number, leaf length and width, leaf area, petiole and peduncle length, and peduncle diameter. The third group included the cyclamens of the Sinava and Shahsheshmeh regions in Chalus County. They had the highest petal width but the lowest peduncle diameter, leaf length, width, and area, flower and leaf number, and hypocotyl weight, length, and diameter. The cyclamens native to Iran are highly diverse in morphological traits and they need to be further investigated by cytogenetic, phytochemical, and molecular methods. Manuscript profile

The cultivation of edible flowers, e.g. violet, which is native to Iran, is a good way to increase the availability of these new and nutritionally valuable sources to humans. This research employed a factorial experiment based on a randomized complete block design in three replications to explore the interactive effects of gibberellic acid (GA) at three rates of 0, 150, and 300 mg L-1 and nitrogen (N) at three rates of 0, 100, and 200 mg L-1 on the traits of two violet species (Viola tricolor and V. odorata). The results showed that the application of GA and N significantly improved the edible traits of both species so that the highest protein, carotenoid, Fe, and Zn contents in the petals of both species were related to the treatment of ‘GA300 × N200’. The maximum petal anthocyanin content was produced by the treatment of ‘GA0 × N100’ (58.32 mg 100 g-1 FW) in the sweet violets and by the treatment of ‘GA300 × N100’ (66.84 mg 100 g-1 FW) in the commercial violets. The commercial violets were richer in Se than the sweet violets. The highest Se contents in the commercial violets were obtained from the treatments of ‘GA300 × N200’, ‘GA300 × N100’, and ‘GA150 × N200’. In both violet species, the highest flavonoid contents at the wavelengths of 300 and 330 nm were related to the treatments of ‘GA300 × N200’ and ‘GA150 × N200’. However, these treatments were ineffective in flavonoids at 270 nm. The sweet violets had a higher antioxidant capacity than the commercial violets. The highest antioxidant capacity in the sweet violets (84.83 % DPPHsc) and commercial violets (78.17 % DPPHsc) was produced with the application of ‘GA150 × N200’. Based on the results, both species are effective sources of proteins, minerals, and antioxidant compounds. As well, ‘GA300 × N200’ and ‘GA150 × N200’ are recommended for improving the edible traits of these two species. Manuscript profile

Marigold (Calendula officinalis L.) is also known as one of the common edible flowers. In this study, the improvement of nutritional value and shelf life of marigolds under the covers of packaging and gaseous composition was investigated. Marigold flowers in plastic packages made of polyethylene, polyamide, and the combination of these two covers with gas composition (1: 5% O2 + 5% CO2; 2: 5% O2 + 10% CO2; 3: 5% O2 + 20% CO2) or without gas combination were placed along with the control (without packaging). These packages were transferred to the cold store at 4°C, and sampling was done to evaluate the desired traits on days 0, 5, 10, and 15. The results showed that with the increased storage time in all edible marigold flowers, the amount of weight loss, ion leakage, and decay increased, and the relative water content (RWC), total phenol, flavonoids, and carotenoids decreased. At the same time, using polyethylene and polyamide packaging treatment, along with gaseous composition, improved the visual and nutritional quality of flowers. Among all the treatments, the combination treatment of 5% O2 + 10% CO2 and polyethylene + polyamide coating had better effects in maintaining the quality and increasing the shelf life of the edible marigold flowers. As a result, considering the nutritional and medicinal value of the marigold flowers, this treatment can be used as an effective and safe method to increase the shelf life and maintain the appearance quality and biochemical compounds of this plant. Manuscript profile

One of the most significant decorative and medicinal plants, the dog rose (Rosa canina L.), serves as the rootstock for the majority of ornamental roses, including hybrid roses. The quick growth with desirable traits and the creation of wholesome, disease-free plants are the major outcomes of in vitro rose propagation. So, in order to provide micropropagation instructions for this plant utilizing nodal explants, this research was carried out. Many factors including the type, concentration, and phase of culture medium, sampling season, type, and concentration of hormones were investigated in several experiments. Explant disinfection was significantly affected by the timing of immersion in different sodium hypochlorite concentrations as well as the explant sampling season. The explants harvested in the winter and treated with 1% sodium hypochlorite showed the lowest rate of infection and the best percentage of survival. The percent of explant establishment was affected by the culture medium used as well as the IBA and BAP concentrations employed; the highest percentage of explant establishment was found in the MS culture medium with 0.3 mg L-1 BAP and or 0.4 mg L-1 IBA. The solid MS culture medium with 0.5 mg L-1 BAP had a stronger impact on proliferation. The results of the root formation test proved that the highest percentage of rooting is obtained in the half-strength MS culture medium with 2 mg L-1 IBA. After adapting to the environment with more than 80% survival, the produced plants were finally moved to the greenhouse. Using these findings, Rosa canina can be quickly commercially propagated for use in breeding and conservation efforts. Manuscript profile