sajid ali | University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan (original) (raw)

Papers by sajid ali

Cultivation of mushrooms on lignocellulosic wastes represents one of the most economic organic r... more Cultivation of mushrooms on lignocellulosic wastes represents one of the most economic organic
recycling processes. In this research, three Pleurotus species viz., P. nebrodensis, P. ostreatus and P.
eryngii were cultivated on cotton waste, saw dust, paddy straw and mixture of these substrates (cotton
waste + saw dust, cotton waste + paddy straw, saw dust + paddy straw + cotton waste). Mycelial growth
(days), stalk length and diameter (mm), emergence of primordia (days), time period from primordial
initiation to harvesting (days), number of fruiting bodies, average individual weight of fruiting bodies (g),
number of flushes, total yield (kg), interval between flushes (days) and biological efficiency were recorded.
Amongst the three fungi, P. ostreatus showed the best growth and productivity. Saw dust gave the best
results in spawn running, time interval between primordial initiation to harvesting stage and in number of
flushes. Combination of saw dust, paddy straw and cotton waste gave the best results in emergence of
primordia, fruiting bodies weight, moisture percentage, biological efficiency and total yield.

Tulip (Tulipa gesneriana L.) is a fascinating bulbous cut flower, and also used for potting, b... more Tulip (Tulipa gesneriana L.) is a fascinating bulbous cut flower, and also used for potting, bedding, and
border purpose. However, under the sub-tropical climatic conditions, quality tulip flower production is severely affected
by its non-uniform bulb sprouting, lack or erratic flowering, small flower stalk, and short vase life. Hence, this study
was performed to evaluate the potential of gibberellic acid (GA3) on sprouting, vegetative growth, flowering, flower
quality, and vase life, including different bulb characteristics of ‘Ad-Rem’ tulip. Tulip bulbs were dipped in aqueous
solution of different GA3 concentrations (0, 50, 75, 100, 125, and 150 mg L-1
) for 30 min with Tween-20 (0.01%) as
a surfactant. Tulip bulbs treated with 100 mg·L-1
GA3 sprouted in significantly less number of days, exhibited higher
sprouting percentage, more plant height, leaf area, leaf chlorophyll, photosynthesis rate, flower stalk length, stalk
diameter, and fresh and dry flower stalk weight. Moreover, 100 mg·L-1
GA3 application also decreased overall flower
emergence time, increased flower size, produced attractive, glowing, and sturdy flowers with increased quality, and
extended the vase life of ‘Ad-Rem’ tulip flowers up to 2.9-folds. However, 150 mg·L-1
GA3 application exhibited
better results regarding daughter bulblets per clump with a subsequent increase in bulb diameter, and weight compared
to other treatments. Additionally, significant correlation was also found among different growth, flower, and bulb
characteristics of GA3-treated tulip plants. Hence, 100-150 mg·L-1
pre-planting exogenous application of GA3 may be
effective for quality tulip production under the sub-tropical climatic conditions.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the possible effect of some macro and ... more A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the possible effect of some macro and micro nutrients with
different concentration levels as a foliar application on the vegetative growth, flowering, and yield of tomato cv
‘Roma’. The experiment was carried out under randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates.
The important parameters encompassed in the study were plant height (cm), number of leaves plant-1, leaf
length (cm), days to flowering, number of flower clusters plant-1, fruit set percentage, small fruits plant-1,
medium fruits plant-1, large fruits plant-1, length and width of fruit (cm), fruit weight (g), fruit yield plant-1 (kg),
yield plot-1 (kg), and yield hectare-1. Although all the treatments showed a positive effect on growth, flowering,
and yield but, T5 and T3 revealed most significant influence on all parameters under study as compared to T1 (control). Therefore, foliar application is an appropriate way to feed the tomato crop to enhance the growth,
flowering and marketable yield.

Presence of a large number of seed contents in citrus fruits is a big restraint in consumer’s acc... more Presence of a large number of seed contents in citrus fruits is a big restraint in consumer’s acceptability even if
the fruit have premium organoleptic characteristics. Consumers are only willing to eat seeded fruits if seedless
are not available. Seediness is also a major handicap restricting the use of large number of fruit in processing
industries and increases the cost of juice or pulp production. Moreover, seed presence in the fruit may be
related with bitterness and certain undesirable aromatic compounds. Various useful breeding approaches have
been devised by researchers to reduce total number of seeds or create complete seedlessness in citrus fruits.
These consist of both orthodox and modern molecular breeding tools. Conventional techniques used in the past
encountered numerous problems due to specific reproductive physiology of citrus and was also time exhaustive.
Modern molecular techniques like embryo rescue, protoplast fusion, cybrids, irradiation, inter specific or
generic crosses, flow cytometry and citrus transformation are less time consuming and more productive as well
as rapid results can be attained in short time period. Molecular techniques have further reduced the difficulties
faced in conventional breeding to produce less seeded or completely seedless citrus cultivars.