Ana Maria Roxana Istrate | University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine from Iasi (original) (raw)
Papers by Ana Maria Roxana Istrate
Horticulturae
This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. T... more This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. The crops were grown using optimal management techniques and crop rotation principles based on organic farming. Three experimental versions were compared: V1 with 40-centimetre-high raised beds, V2 with 20-centimetre-high raised beds, and V3 with ground-level beds as the control. The results showed consistent dry weight and moisture content across all three versions for most vegetable varieties. The sweet pepper ‘Barbara’ stood out significantly, as V3 had the highest dry weight percentage (10.28%) and V2 had the highest moisture content percentage (93.40%). Nutrient analysis revealed no significant differences in lipid, ash, protein, nitrogen, or caloric value among the different versions of most vegetables. However, version V3 of the tomato ‘Tigerella’ showed the highest crude fibre content. Variations were observed in lycopene, ß-carotene, and calcium content among different versions o...
March
Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, eco... more Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, economical, sanitary, and are a source of fresh food. Small allotments in urban and peri-urban areas do not allow the implementation of utilitarian gardens. Thus, ornamental vegetable gardens are the best choice. Raised beds can be used to enhance the decorative effect of the entire vegetable garden. This type of construction presents, in turn, several advantages both for the user and crop: reduced effort for maintenance work, early heating of the substrate, loose substrate, reduced volume of weeds, efficient use of space for plants, etc. Establishing ornamental vegetable gardens on raised beds is easily achieved using geometric modules, as they can be adapted to various designs. This paper presents several design options for a decorative vegetable garden on private properties. The case studies presented showed different methods of using modular raised beds depending on the property's a...
Horticulturae, 2023
This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. T... more This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. The crops were grown using optimal management techniques and crop rotation principles based on organic farming. Three experimental versions were compared: V1 with 40-centimetre-high raised beds, V2 with 20-centimetre-high raised beds, and V3 with ground-level beds as the control. The results showed consistent dry weight and moisture content across all three versions for most vegetable varieties. The sweet pepper ‘Barbara’ stood out significantly, as V3 had the highest dry weight percentage (10.28%) and V2 had the highest moisture content percentage (93.40%). Nutrient analysis revealed no significant differences in lipid, ash, protein, nitrogen, or caloric value among the different versions of most vegetables. However, version V3 of the tomato ‘Tigerella’ showed the highest crude fibre content. Variations were observed in lycopene, ß-carotene, and calcium content among different versions of specific vegetables. Anti-nutritive compounds and average yield varied among the experimental versions for certain plant species. These findings have implications for dietary choices and can guide sustainable food production. It is recommended to consider raised
beds, particularly V3, for cultivating sweet pepper ‘Barbara’, and further research is encouraged to explore the potential health benefits of version V3 of tomato ‘Tigerella’. These insights provide valuable vegetable science and nutrition information and can guide agricultural practices.
Journal of Applied Life Sciences and Environment, 2023
Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, eco... more Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic,
educational, ecological, economical, sanitary, and are a source of fresh food. Small allotments in urban and peri-urban areas do not allow the implementation of utilitarian gardens. Thus, ornamental vegetable gardens are the best choice. Raised beds can be used to enhance the decorative effect of the entire vegetable garden. This type of construction presents, in turn, several advantages both for the user and crop: reduced effort for maintenance work, early heating of the substrate, loose substrate, reduced volume of weeds, efficient use of space for plants, etc. Establishing ornamental vegetable gardens on raised beds is easily
achieved using geometric modules, as they can be adapted to various designs. This paper presents several design options for a decorative vegetable garden on private properties. The case studies presented
showed different methods of using modular raised beds depending on the property's area, the owner's wishes, and the desired area to be planted. Also, depending on the results obtained from the experimental batch, three other variations of modular layouts with different purposes were proposed: focal point, physically closed but visually open space, and relaxation space.
LUCRĂRI ŞTIINŢIFICE SERIA HORTICULTURĂ, 2021
Urban expansion has led the population to create small green spaces around their homes, and the d... more Urban expansion has led the population to create small green spaces around their homes, and the desire to consume fruits and/or vegetables grown according to their own principles, convinced them that a vegetable garden is beneficial, in terms of both food and aesthetics. The data gathered from the specialized scientific literature allowed making a classification of the family vegetable gardens, taking into account the following: the purpose, the style of the design, the functionality and the way of construction. Depending on the purpose, there are vegetable gardens for utilitarian purposes, vegetable gardens for therapeutic purposes and vegetable gardens for culinary purposes. Depending on the style, there are vegetable gardens designed in a geometric style, vegetable gardens arranged in a free style and those arranged in a mixed style. Taking into account the functionality are the ecological, educational, cultural, aesthetic-recreational and sanitary vegetable gardens. In addition, depending on the construction method are the vegetable gardens at ground level, on raised beds, the vegetable gardens in pots and containers and the vegetable gardens on wicker beds. This classification helps to achieve the concept of designing the vegetable garden for decorative purposes and, in this way, can be integrated into the overall design of the property.
Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture. Vol. LXV, No. 1, 2021
The design of a small urban vegetable garden is very important because in this way the site area ... more The design of a small urban vegetable garden is very important because in this way the site area allocated to it will be used at maximum capacity to provide decor and sufficient production for family use. In this paper, we studied the way of designing an ornamental vegetable garden on raised beds with different heights and the appearance offered by them. The environment, the way of preparing the site and creating the raised beds will play an important role on the vegetable garden composition spectrum. According to the information gathered from preliminary research some visual results regarding the development of the plants will be evident from the first week of planting due to the different heights of the raised beds. Vegetable and medicinal plants such as curly kale, mangold, patisson, lavender, rosemary, basil and other ornamental species such as French marigold, silver ragwort, fountain grass, will offer the ornamental value. Most species had a good production and development in V1 (40 cm above ground level). Instead, mint and leeks had higher values in V3 (at ground level) and V2 (20 cm above ground level), respectively.
SCIENTIFIC PAPERS-SERIES B-HORTICULTURE, 2020
Urban gardening is becoming more and more popular in our day to day lives. The desire for such ac... more Urban gardening is becoming more and more popular in our day to day lives. The desire for such activity arose due to the massive urban growth, the daily stress and an increasing desire to have fresh fruits and vegetables for personal use. Although the presence of a vegetable garden in a private urban or peri-urban area offers many advantagesa source of fresh vegetables and aromatic plants, as well as a recreational areait faces a major disadvantagepollution. In the city there are countless sources of pollution, the most common being the one created by traffic. Having this in mind, the purpose of this paper is to present an overview on selecting medicinal and decorative plants in order to provide protection for vegetables against urban pollution. The results gathered were used to create a list of plants including vegetable, medicinal and floricultural species, which helped to design a planting plan for a vegetable and decorative garden.
LUCRĂRI ŞTIINŢIFICE SERIA HORTICULTURĂ, 61 (1) / 2018, USAMV IAŞI, 2018
This paper presents a literature preview regarding the use of vegetable species in the concept of... more This paper presents a literature preview regarding the use of vegetable species in the concept of urban gardens. The designing of the utilitarian gardens dates back from the antiquity when they were particularly important as a source of food. With the emergence of the concept of "edible landscaping", which promotes the use of edible plant species along with ornamental plant species in landscaping, the utilitarian garden has acquired aesthetic valences as an integral part of the green space set up on private property in the urban area and not only. Starting from the desire of people to have a place to produce some of the necessary vegetables and aromatic plants in the small space around the houses and to enjoy a recreation space, will be studied different systems of use of vegetable plants in order to develop concrete measures for the development of decorative vegetable gardens in the private environment in urban and periurban areas, taking into account the possibilities of association of the leguminous plants in raised beds.
Horticulturae
This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. T... more This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. The crops were grown using optimal management techniques and crop rotation principles based on organic farming. Three experimental versions were compared: V1 with 40-centimetre-high raised beds, V2 with 20-centimetre-high raised beds, and V3 with ground-level beds as the control. The results showed consistent dry weight and moisture content across all three versions for most vegetable varieties. The sweet pepper ‘Barbara’ stood out significantly, as V3 had the highest dry weight percentage (10.28%) and V2 had the highest moisture content percentage (93.40%). Nutrient analysis revealed no significant differences in lipid, ash, protein, nitrogen, or caloric value among the different versions of most vegetables. However, version V3 of the tomato ‘Tigerella’ showed the highest crude fibre content. Variations were observed in lycopene, ß-carotene, and calcium content among different versions o...
March
Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, eco... more Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, economical, sanitary, and are a source of fresh food. Small allotments in urban and peri-urban areas do not allow the implementation of utilitarian gardens. Thus, ornamental vegetable gardens are the best choice. Raised beds can be used to enhance the decorative effect of the entire vegetable garden. This type of construction presents, in turn, several advantages both for the user and crop: reduced effort for maintenance work, early heating of the substrate, loose substrate, reduced volume of weeds, efficient use of space for plants, etc. Establishing ornamental vegetable gardens on raised beds is easily achieved using geometric modules, as they can be adapted to various designs. This paper presents several design options for a decorative vegetable garden on private properties. The case studies presented showed different methods of using modular raised beds depending on the property's a...
Horticulturae, 2023
This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. T... more This study evaluated the effects of raised beds on crop production and quality in home gardens. The crops were grown using optimal management techniques and crop rotation principles based on organic farming. Three experimental versions were compared: V1 with 40-centimetre-high raised beds, V2 with 20-centimetre-high raised beds, and V3 with ground-level beds as the control. The results showed consistent dry weight and moisture content across all three versions for most vegetable varieties. The sweet pepper ‘Barbara’ stood out significantly, as V3 had the highest dry weight percentage (10.28%) and V2 had the highest moisture content percentage (93.40%). Nutrient analysis revealed no significant differences in lipid, ash, protein, nitrogen, or caloric value among the different versions of most vegetables. However, version V3 of the tomato ‘Tigerella’ showed the highest crude fibre content. Variations were observed in lycopene, ß-carotene, and calcium content among different versions of specific vegetables. Anti-nutritive compounds and average yield varied among the experimental versions for certain plant species. These findings have implications for dietary choices and can guide sustainable food production. It is recommended to consider raised
beds, particularly V3, for cultivating sweet pepper ‘Barbara’, and further research is encouraged to explore the potential health benefits of version V3 of tomato ‘Tigerella’. These insights provide valuable vegetable science and nutrition information and can guide agricultural practices.
Journal of Applied Life Sciences and Environment, 2023
Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic, educational, ecological, eco... more Ornamental vegetable gardens have many benefits. They are aesthetic,
educational, ecological, economical, sanitary, and are a source of fresh food. Small allotments in urban and peri-urban areas do not allow the implementation of utilitarian gardens. Thus, ornamental vegetable gardens are the best choice. Raised beds can be used to enhance the decorative effect of the entire vegetable garden. This type of construction presents, in turn, several advantages both for the user and crop: reduced effort for maintenance work, early heating of the substrate, loose substrate, reduced volume of weeds, efficient use of space for plants, etc. Establishing ornamental vegetable gardens on raised beds is easily
achieved using geometric modules, as they can be adapted to various designs. This paper presents several design options for a decorative vegetable garden on private properties. The case studies presented
showed different methods of using modular raised beds depending on the property's area, the owner's wishes, and the desired area to be planted. Also, depending on the results obtained from the experimental batch, three other variations of modular layouts with different purposes were proposed: focal point, physically closed but visually open space, and relaxation space.
LUCRĂRI ŞTIINŢIFICE SERIA HORTICULTURĂ, 2021
Urban expansion has led the population to create small green spaces around their homes, and the d... more Urban expansion has led the population to create small green spaces around their homes, and the desire to consume fruits and/or vegetables grown according to their own principles, convinced them that a vegetable garden is beneficial, in terms of both food and aesthetics. The data gathered from the specialized scientific literature allowed making a classification of the family vegetable gardens, taking into account the following: the purpose, the style of the design, the functionality and the way of construction. Depending on the purpose, there are vegetable gardens for utilitarian purposes, vegetable gardens for therapeutic purposes and vegetable gardens for culinary purposes. Depending on the style, there are vegetable gardens designed in a geometric style, vegetable gardens arranged in a free style and those arranged in a mixed style. Taking into account the functionality are the ecological, educational, cultural, aesthetic-recreational and sanitary vegetable gardens. In addition, depending on the construction method are the vegetable gardens at ground level, on raised beds, the vegetable gardens in pots and containers and the vegetable gardens on wicker beds. This classification helps to achieve the concept of designing the vegetable garden for decorative purposes and, in this way, can be integrated into the overall design of the property.
Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture. Vol. LXV, No. 1, 2021
The design of a small urban vegetable garden is very important because in this way the site area ... more The design of a small urban vegetable garden is very important because in this way the site area allocated to it will be used at maximum capacity to provide decor and sufficient production for family use. In this paper, we studied the way of designing an ornamental vegetable garden on raised beds with different heights and the appearance offered by them. The environment, the way of preparing the site and creating the raised beds will play an important role on the vegetable garden composition spectrum. According to the information gathered from preliminary research some visual results regarding the development of the plants will be evident from the first week of planting due to the different heights of the raised beds. Vegetable and medicinal plants such as curly kale, mangold, patisson, lavender, rosemary, basil and other ornamental species such as French marigold, silver ragwort, fountain grass, will offer the ornamental value. Most species had a good production and development in V1 (40 cm above ground level). Instead, mint and leeks had higher values in V3 (at ground level) and V2 (20 cm above ground level), respectively.
SCIENTIFIC PAPERS-SERIES B-HORTICULTURE, 2020
Urban gardening is becoming more and more popular in our day to day lives. The desire for such ac... more Urban gardening is becoming more and more popular in our day to day lives. The desire for such activity arose due to the massive urban growth, the daily stress and an increasing desire to have fresh fruits and vegetables for personal use. Although the presence of a vegetable garden in a private urban or peri-urban area offers many advantagesa source of fresh vegetables and aromatic plants, as well as a recreational areait faces a major disadvantagepollution. In the city there are countless sources of pollution, the most common being the one created by traffic. Having this in mind, the purpose of this paper is to present an overview on selecting medicinal and decorative plants in order to provide protection for vegetables against urban pollution. The results gathered were used to create a list of plants including vegetable, medicinal and floricultural species, which helped to design a planting plan for a vegetable and decorative garden.
LUCRĂRI ŞTIINŢIFICE SERIA HORTICULTURĂ, 61 (1) / 2018, USAMV IAŞI, 2018
This paper presents a literature preview regarding the use of vegetable species in the concept of... more This paper presents a literature preview regarding the use of vegetable species in the concept of urban gardens. The designing of the utilitarian gardens dates back from the antiquity when they were particularly important as a source of food. With the emergence of the concept of "edible landscaping", which promotes the use of edible plant species along with ornamental plant species in landscaping, the utilitarian garden has acquired aesthetic valences as an integral part of the green space set up on private property in the urban area and not only. Starting from the desire of people to have a place to produce some of the necessary vegetables and aromatic plants in the small space around the houses and to enjoy a recreation space, will be studied different systems of use of vegetable plants in order to develop concrete measures for the development of decorative vegetable gardens in the private environment in urban and periurban areas, taking into account the possibilities of association of the leguminous plants in raised beds.