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The study was carried out in the Experimental field of the Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding-Agricultural University, Plovdiv during the period 2009-2011. New breeding lines were investigated using block design with 4 replications and 20 m2 plot size. The aim of the investigation was to estimate barley lines by yield, stability and some important traits, using Obzor as a standard. Applying biometrical and cluster analysis and index of yield stability, it has been established that some breeding lines: numbers 21411003, 21401409 and 21001008, respectively, had better traits in comparison with the standard cultivar "Obzor" as well as stable yields regardless of differences in the climatic conditions over the years. These lines can be certified as new cultivars according to the government's requirements for cultivar testing.

The main goal of the present paper was to study the possibilities for application of herbicides during vegetation of cape gooseberry. Herbicides Afalon 100 and 150 ml/da and Agil 85 and 150 ml/da were applied at the moment of the beginning of bud formation on the Plovdiv variety. The control was not treated, but it was hoed. Twenty days later, species, number and weight of weeds; number of dead cape gooseberry plants; weight, diameter and length of fruits (in botanical maturity) were investigated. Productivity and chemical components were determined. The highest effectiveness, lowest weed number and weight were observed when using Afalon 150 ml/da which controls annual dicotyledon weeds. Total weeds weight decreased mainly due to Afalon. The highest percentage of dead plants was established after application of 150 ml/da Afalon. The highest productivity was established in control. Investigated herbicides, Afalon and Agil, did not demonstrate satisfactory selectivity in cape gooseberry.

Cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.) is currently cultivated in many regions of the world, and origin-related differences in fruit nutrient composition are observed. Fruit volatile composition is relatively less explored. The objective of this study was to determine (by GC-MS) the volatile composition of the two flavour-related fruit elements, peels and pulp, in a direct comparison of three different genotypes, two local and one imported. Thirty components (98.2 and 98.5%) were identified in the pulp of the local genotypes, dominated by oxygenated aliphatics, diterpenes and oxygenated monoterpenes; 13 components (98.2%) were found in the imported fruit, dominated by phenylpropanoids and oxygenated aliphatics. Twenty-four (98.7%) and twenty-five (98.9%) compounds were identified in the peels of the local genotypes, and 28 (98.5%) - in the imported one. The dominant groups in all peel fractions were oxygenated aliphatics, hydrocarbons and diterpenes. Beside these genotype-based differences, significant variations in the volatile composition were observed between fruit pulp and peel fractions. Thus, it can be assumed that each of the studied fruit elements has a specific contribution to the overall flavour of the fruit; these results might be useful in the design of fruit usability and in optimising fruit processing for food and flavour purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The seeds of Cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.) remain as a by-product from juice production, but they can also be a potential resource of valuable nutrients. The objective of this study was to analyze the phytonutrient composition of the seeds isolated from fruit at two maturity stages unsuitable for regular realization (unripe and under-ripe), with the aim of identifying the possibility for utilization of such non-standard or discarded agricultural production. The results showed about 3-time lower oil content in the unripe seeds than in the under-ripe seeds (6.60% vs. 21.75%), but no significant differences in the content of protein (18.44% and 17.83%) and cellulose (26.63% and 26.14%). The total tocopherol content slightly decreased with the progress of fruit maturity (from 8354 mg/kg to 7118 mg/kg). Significant changes in the amino acid composition were found only with regard to aspartic acid, glutamic acid, tyrosine and methionine. The content of macro and micro minerals was lower in the under-ripe seeds (about 1.5-2-time). The results from this baseline study suggested that the seeds from both unripe and under-ripe fruit could also be considered for nutritive purposes (animal feed, food products).

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of the different age of pepper seeds on the changes of vegetative development and physiological status of the grown seedlings. Experiments were carried out with two pepper cultivars. The seeds were stored for 120 months in ambient conditions. Through 12 mounts the sowing quality was established. The vegetative experiments were conducted. Morphological behaviors, an intensity of respiration and guaiacol peroxidase enzyme activity in seeds and the leaf gas-exchange were measured. Pepper seeds preserve normal sowing quality for up to 4 years. The length of root and stem decrease during storage. The leaf-gaze exchange was inhibited for seedlings of aged seeds.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of IBA, IAA and NAA on rooting power of semi-hardwood cuttings from Tilia. The cuttings were treated with 30, 40, 50 and 60 mg/l IBA, 100, 150, 200 and 250 mg/l IAA, and 20, 30, 40 and 50 mg/l NAA. The results were reported after three months. The following indicators were analyzed: percentage of rooted cuttings (%), number of roots of cutting and the average length of root (cm). The largest number of rooted cuttings was obtained using 40 mg/l IBA for most of the variants. The treatment with 200 mg/l IAA resulted in the roots with the greatest length. The average length of the roots is increased by treatment with 30 mg/l and 40 mg/l NAA. High doses of IBA, IAA, NAA will provide a weak, brittle root system, which reduces the chances of successful adaptation in replanting.

The main aim of this study was to investigate the effect of different time of sowing of seedlings on the behaviors of morphological development and productivity of cape gooseberry. The experiments were carried out with varieties Plovdiv and Obrazec 1 with 15-day sowing intervals between 01.03, 15.03. and 30.03. Phenological observations were done. Main morphological characteristics of the plants, in stages of flower buds, flowering and fruiting were investigated. Contents of dry matter, total sugar, total acid, vitamin C and pectin were analyzed. The highest productivity was established on 15.03. as the sowing date for both varieties with 40.83% (Plovdiv) and 16.07% (Obrazec 1) above the variant with the lowest yield.

The period of vegetation and flowering of carrot usually is very long, and the flowers are formed in different parts of the mother plants. This leads to the formation of seeds with different qualities. Often heterogeneity is of a maternal type, which depends on the position of the umbels on the mother plants. The main goal of the present study was to investigate the quality differences in carrot seeds from different parts of the mother plant. The seedstalks from ‘Nantski’, a typical Bulgarian cultivar, were grown by the conventional method for seed production technology. In botanical maturity the seeds from the primary, secondary and tertiary umbels were extracted separately. The seed yield from umbels, dry weight of the seeds, seed size, length, width and thickness, weight per seed, 1000 seed weight, germination energy (first count), germination capacity (final count), mean germination time, uniformity of germination, fresh weight of seedlings, length of radicle, length of hypocotyls and vigour indexes were investigated. The contents of raw protein, sugar, lipids and the basic calorific values were also analysed. The germination was the highest for the seeds from primary umbels, followed by the ones from secondary umbels and lowest for those from the tertiary umbels. The difference between the highest and the lowest value was 6.30%. These results suggest that it is better to harvest the carrot seeds depending on their position on the plant and divide them into separate lots with different qualities.

One of the most precise methods for qualification of vegetable seeds, which gives more full information, than just values of germination, is the determination of seed vigor. In the present paper are described the history of development, definitions, principles and priorities of the seed vigor and its significance for agricultural practices and especially for complex characterization of vegetable seed quality. The main part of the presentation is dedicated to the importance of seed vigor. Included are the other non-destructive and rapid methods for establishment of the vegetable seed quality and their relation with vigor. Some of the suitable and available indexes and parameters of vegetable seed for estimation of the current status and for prevention of the losses are pointed out. In this article are presented the results of last years investigations form which concern the different means for establishing the quality and viability status of vegetable seeds.

The aim of the present study was to establish the influence of leaf fertilizer Masterblend on the yield and sowing quality of pepper seeds. The experiments were carried out with typical Bulgarian pepper cultivars Kurtovska kapia 1619 and Bulgarski rotund. The leaf fertilizer Masterblend was applied in doses 1.5 g dm-3,3.0 g dm-3 and 6.0g dm-3. The pollen fertility, number of seed per fruit, percentage of fully developed seeds, weight of 1000 seeds, seed yield, index of seed productivity, first count, germinability (final count), fresh matter of sprout, length of embryo root and hypocotile were investigated. Masterblend improved seed formation and seed productivity of pepper. The most appropriate concentration for Kurtovska kapia 1619 was 3- O g dm'3 while for Bulgarski rotund it was 1.5 g dm-3, where yield increased by 20.12% and 36.53%, respectively. The germinability was higher in comparison to seeds from non-treated plants.

Many bidialectal children grow up speaking a variety (e.g., a regional dialect) that differs from the variety in which they subsequently acquire literacy. Previous computational simulations and artificial literacy learning experiments with adults have demonstrated lower accuracy in reading contrastive words for which dialect variants exist compared with noncontrastive words without dialect variants. At the same time, exposure to multiple varieties did not affect learners' ability to phonologically decode untrained words; in fact, longer literacy training resulted in a benefit from dialect exposure as competing variants in the input may have increased reliance on grapheme-phoneme conversion. However, these previous experiments interleaved word learning and reading/spelling training, yet children typically acquire substantial oral language knowledge prior to literacy training. Here we used artificial literacy learning with adults to examine whether the previous findings replicate in an ecologically more valid procedure where word learning precedes literacy training. We also manipulated training conditions to explore interventions thought to be beneficial for literacy acquisition, such as providing explicit social cues for variety use and literacy training in both varieties. Our findings replicated the reduced accuracy for reading contrastive words in those learners who had successfully acquired the dialect variants prior to literacy training. This effect was exacerbated when literacy training also included dialect variation. Crucially, although no benefits from the interventions were found, dialect exposure did not affect reading and spelling of untrained words suggesting that phonological decoding skills can remain unaffected by the existence of multiple word form variants in a learner's lexicon. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Iterated language learning experiments that explore the emergence of linguistic structure in the laboratory vary considerably in methodological implementation, limiting the generalizability of findings. Most studies also restrict themselves to exploring the emergence of combinatorial and compositional structure in isolation. Here, we use a novel signal space comprising binary auditory and visual sequences and manipulate the amount of learning and temporal stability of these signals. Participants had to learn signals for meanings differing in size, shape, and brightness; their productions in the test phase were transmitted to the next participant. Across transmission chains of 10 generations each, Experiment 1 varied how much learning of auditory signals took place, and Experiment 2 varied temporal stability of visual signals. We found that combinatorial structure emerged only for auditory signals, and iconicity emerged when the amount of learning was reduced, as an opportunity for rote-memorization hampers the exploration of the iconic affordances of the signal space. In addition, compositionality followed an inverted u-shaped trajectory raising across several generations before declining again toward the end of the transmission chains. This suggests that detection of systematic form-meaning linkages requires stable combinatorial units that can guide learners toward the structural properties of signals, but these combinatorial units had not yet emerged in these unfamiliar systems. Our findings underscore the importance of systematically manipulating training conditions and signal characteristics in iterated language learning experiments to study the interactions between the emergence of iconicity, combinatorial and compositional structure in novel signaling systems., (© 2021 The Authors. Cognitive Science published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Cognitive Science Society (CSS).)

Correlational studies have demonstrated detrimental effects of exposure to a mismatch between a nonstandard dialect at home and a mainstream variety at school on children's literacy skills. However, dialect exposure often is confounded with reduced home literacy, negative teacher expectation, and more limited educational opportunities. To provide proof of concept for a possible causal relationship between variety mismatch and literacy skills, we taught adult learners to read and spell an artificial language with or without dialect variants using an artificial orthography. In 3 experiments, we confirmed earlier findings that reading is more error-prone for contrastive words; that is, words for which different variants exist in the input, especially when learners also acquire the joint meanings of these competing variants. Despite this contrastive deficit, no detriment from variety mismatch emerged for reading and spelling of untrained words, a task equivalent to nonword reading tests routinely administered to young schoolchildren. With longer training, we even found a benefit from variety mismatch on reading and spelling of untrained words. We suggest that such a dialect benefit in literacy learning can arise when competition between different variants leads learners to favor phonologically mediated decoding. Our findings should help to assuage educators' concerns about detrimental effects of linguistic diversity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

This study analyzed the structural changes of semicrystalline polylactide (PLA) in the form of spun-bonded mulching nonwovens, during outdoor composting. The investigation was carried out at the microstructural, supramolecular and molecular levels using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and the viscosity method, respectively. The obtained experimental results revealed how the popular outdoor composting method, realized under two different European climatic conditions (in Poland and in Bulgaria), affects the degradation of PLA nonwoven, designed for agriculture use. The results showed the insignificant influence of the climatic conditions and prepared compost mixtures on the molecular and micromorphological structure of PLA spun-bonded mulching nonwovens, with a visible increase in crystallinity after the first year of composting. Significant changes were observed only after the second year of composting, which indicates the resistance of semicrystalline PLA to degradation in outdoor composting conditions.