NTU Journal of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences

Two different potato varieties, Riviera and Argana, were used in this study to evaluate their performance under the influence of foliar fertilization (calcium and magnesium) at four concentrations (0%, 0.5%, and 1% calcium chloride, and 0.4% magnesium sulfate) and foliar spraying with malic acid at three concentrations (0, 250, and 500 mg L-1) in the vegetable field of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Design at the College of Agriculture and Forestry during the spring growing season of 2023. The study was conducted using a complete randomized block design with three replicates. Argana variety showed significant superiority over Riviera in traits such as plant height, leaf area, average tuber weight, and yield per plant, while Riviera variety outperformed Argana significantly in the number of aerial stems. The best yield per plant for Argana variety was obtained with 0.4% magnesium sulfate and 250 mg L-1 malic acid treatment, while the best plant height was achieved in the same variety with 0.4% magnesium sulfate and 500 mg L-1 malic acid treatment. The highest number of stems was observed in Riviera variety with 0% calcium chloride and 500 mg L-1 malic acid treatment, while the lowest was in Argana variety with 0.5% calcium chloride and 250 mg L-1 malic acid treatment. The highest leaf area was found in Riviera variety treated with 0.5% calcium chloride and 0 mg L-1 malic acid, while the lowest was in the control treatment of the same variety. The highest average tuber weight was recorded in Argana variety with 0.5% calcium chloride and 250 mg L-1 malic acid treatment, while the lowest was in Riviera variety with 0% calcium chloride and 250 mg L-1 malic acid treatment

This study was conducted in 2022–2023 to identify the plant parasitic nematodes that infect olive trees. A field survey was conducted in the most olive-growing areas in Bashiqa and Al-Fadhiliya, Nineveh Governorate, Iraq. The results recorded the parasitism of the nematode Meloidogyne javanica on the olive roots. The formation of root knots on the roots was the main disease symptom. The phenotypic characteristics and perineal pattern of adult females indicated M. javanica, which was used to identify the species. DNA barcoding of the 18SrDNA gene with the primer sets 18S-530R and 18S-CL-F3 yielded a 494-bp fragment to identify M. javanica. The sequence blasted with the GenBank database gave a maximum similarity of 97% to the global isolates. The sequence was submitted and deposited with the NCBI as an Iraqi isolate under accession number PP273501. This is considered the first record of M. javanica on olive trees in Nineveh Governorate.

A field experiment was conducted during the spring growing season of 2023 in Horticulture and Landscape Design / College of Agriculture and Forestry / University of Mosul to determine the effect of spraying zinc on growth and production of two cultivars of potato plant (Solanum tuberosum L.). Our experimentation consisted of two factors, the first one was two cultivars of imported potatoes (Elbeida and Laperla), the second included spraying plants with zinc at three concentrations (0, 500 and 750 mg.l-1), 6 treatments (2 x 3) included in this study and three replicates. The experimentation was carried out using a factorial experiment according to a Randomized complete block design (RCBD). The experiment results confirmed that Laperla cultivar significantly superior compared to Elbeida cultivar in most of the studied traits, and spraying plants with 500 mg.l-1 of zinc recorded best values compared with 750 mg.l-1 of zinc.

This study was conducted with the aim of identifying the cause of bacterial wilt disease in cucurbits, which is considered one of the most threatening diseases for melon and cucumber production because it causes great losses that can reach up to 75% of the annual production, and the study proved that Erwinia tracheiphila is the main cause of this disease after isolating (50) isolates of it from waterm melons and cucumbers leaves that showed symptoms of infection and performing several chemical tests to diagnose it. The effect of (6) different types of antibiotics (rifampin, cefotazima, piperacillin, ceftriaxone, tobramycin and ciprofloxacin) on it was studied by the sensitivity test method. The antibiotic ciprofloxacin gave the highest inhibition value, as indicated by the diameter of the inhibition zone around the disc, which reached (35) mm, followed by tobramycin (20) mm and piperacillin (15) mm, while other antibiotics were ineffective due to resistance. This result indicates that this bacterium is resistant to several drugs, but at the same time it can be treated with antibiotics. That they are sensitive to them, which was indicated in this study for the purpose of controlling its infection of plants, especially cucurbits. The results of this study are therefore very important in terms of promoting the overcoming of its natural resistance to many antibiotics, which limits the possibility of controlling it when resistant strains appear in a particular country.

A study was conducted to test the anti-nutritional effect of ethanolic extracts of Nerium oleander, Melia azedarach, Mentha arvensis , and Ocimum basilicum plants on fifth-instar larvae of the tobacco cutworm Spodoptera litura, where N. oleander, M. azedarach, plants showed activity in preventing larval feeding. The results showed that the extract of N.oleander leaves, M azedarach leaves, and fruits was significantly superior to M. arvensis and O. basilicum leaves in all tested criteria. The values of the nutrition prevention factor reached (55.5, 51.4, 51.3, 16.9, and 10.9%), respectively, while the values of the leaf protection rate reached (59.7, 57.3, 59.3, 25.7, and 20.6%) , respectively. This variation in anti-nutritional activity may be due to the variation in the types and concentrations of the active alkaloid and phenolic compounds revealed by chemical analysis. The statistical analysis showed that there was a positive and significant correlation between the nutritional intake factor and the alkaloid compounds Atropine and Xanthine, whose values reached( 0.943 and 0.947), respectively, and a significant correlation with the two phenolic compounds, Galic acid and Rutine, whose values reached (0.860 and 0.864), respectively. Hence, it can be said that N.oleander , M azedarach plants can be alternative materials to pesticides in pest management programs that rely on compounds that are safe for the environment and human health.

The research aims to develop a map of the agricultural environmental areas of Nineveh Governorate using remote sensing (RS) and the Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. The study area located between longitudes 25 41 and 15 44 east and latitudes 15 34 and 3 37 north with an area of 37,323 km2.

The map of agricultural ecological zones was derived by projecting five landform classes combined with seven soil mapping units, 9 types of land uses, 4 agro-climatic zones and hydrological map resulting in nine classes of an agricultural environmental map that included mountainous lands , urban areas, rugged areas with irrigated lands, irrigated lands, solid lands and residential areas, rainfed lands\1, natural pastures, rainfed lands\2, irrigated lands, irrigated and rainfed lands, with ratios reaching at rates of (2.28, 8.14, 10.49, 9.95, 15.05, 30.16, 19.01, 2.03, 2.88) % for each, respectively.

This study was conducted at the College of Agriculture at Tikrit University for the period from the beginning of May until the end of September 2022. The effect of adding bacteriocin produced from Streptococcus thermophilus bacteria in the manufacture of soft cheese was studied. The cheese was made from pasteurized cow's milk with the addition of (0.5%, 1%, 1.5%, 2% of bacteriocins) and its microbial content (aerobic bacteria, coliform bacteria, yeasts and molds) was studied during the refrigerated storage period (at 5 ± 1 °C). For 28 days. And a study of the effect of bacteriocins on (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli) as pathogenic bacteria in soft cheese. The results of the statistical analysis of these factors showed that there were significant differences in the total numbers of microorganisms in the soft cheese produced. The addition of bacteriocin had a clear effect on all types of microorganisms under study during the storage period.

This study was conducted to detect the bioactive compounds in hot aqueous Turmeric (Curcuma longa) roots extract and study its effectiveness in inhibiting a number of gram-negative and positive bacteria and two types of molds. It was found that the turmeric extract contains a number of active compounds, the most important of which are flavonoids and resins, in addition to volatile oils, while it does not contain The extract contains alkaloids, glycosides, saponins, steroids, tannins, terpenes, and coumarins, and the total amount of phenolic substances in the extract amounted to 7.20 mg g-1 of gallic acid, and the percentage of curcumin in the extract amounted to 8.49 mg g-1. Turmeric root extract did not show high inhibitory activity at all concentrations against gram-negative bacteria, especially Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumonia bacteria. On the contrary, gram-positive bacteria had weak resistance to the extract, specifically at concentrations of 150 and 200 mg g-1, as they reached diameters of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria 14.00 and 14.50 mm at concentrations of 150 and 200 mg ml-1, respectively, and Bacillus subtilis bacteria 22.50 and 24.50 mm at concentrations of 150 and 200 mg/ml, respectively. The results showed that there were significant differences in the percentage of mold inhibition, and the highest percentage of inhibition reached 85.24 for the turmeric root extract at a concentration of 200 mg ml-1 for Alternaria alternata mold, and the lowest percentage of inhibition reached 28.57% at a concentration of 50 mg ml-1for Aspergillus niger.

Iraq is one of the most countries in the region and the world that may face a major challenge in front of its water resources, represented by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which are the largest rivers and sources of water due to the policies of the countries sharing with it and the upstream countries due to the construction of water dams on it, the latest of which is the Turkish Ilisu Dam on the Tigris River, which caused a decrease in the rate of A decrease of (-1.2%), The objective of the research is to examine the reality of water footprint indicators and standards and the virtual water trade of grain crops for the period (2003-2021).The results of the research during the study period indicated a decrease in water quantities from (57.38) billion m3 cubic meters in (2003) to (22.95) billion m3 cubic meters in (2021), The average external, internal and college water footprint of the wheat crop was (6.98, 15.18 and 22.18) billion m3, respectively, The average external, internal and total water footprint of the rice crop was (7.49, 4.21 and 13.68) billion m3, respectively, While the average quantity of virtual water imported for wheat crop (6.99) billion m3, the average quantity of virtual water imported for rice crop reached (9.39) billion m3, Researchers recommended that attention be paid to Iraq's water policy and that alternatives be found to avoid the shortage of water contained therein by focusing on the obligation of farmers to water metering, supplementary irrigation, identifying current and future water needs and conducting a comprehensive water supply survey.

The histological analysis of both the local and Sherazi cat was conducted to comprehend their distinct differences. These felines, classified under the scientific name (Felis catus), are members of the Felidae family . Thirty tongue samples were gathered from cats that frequented veterinary clinics, with each type of cat comprising fifteen samples. The results of our histological study of the parts of tongue in the local and adult Sherazi cat showed that it consists of three main layers: the mucosal layer, submucosa layer, and muscular layer in all its regions. The mucosal layer in the dorsal surface of the tongue is composed of keratinized stratified squamous epithelium, the tunica submucosa consisted of loose Connective tissue containing lingual glands in root region only, which are of two types: mucous and serous glands. The tunica muscularis appears as a bundles of muscle fibers in three directions, longitudinal, transverse and perpendicular. The study also found the presence of four types of lingual papillae on the dorsal surface of the tongue (filiform, fungiform, foliate, and circumvallate papillae).