Botany

The vigor of indole 3-butyric acid (IBA) induced rooting of stem cuttings and its suitable sprouting/rooting medium can be evaluated using sprouting value index, which is developed in Pongamia pinnata, a nitrogen fixing, avenue and medicinal tree species of the tropics. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, during the months of February (P1), June (P2), and October (P3) in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Field trials were performed using 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index) for aerial shoot cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) with all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the speed of completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment. Increased CWR and SUP percentages indicate defects in management practices, dormancy and or the genotype of the cultivar.

Present study was conducted to compare the morphological, anatomical and histochemical features of exotic species Costus pictus with its related C. speciosus, introduced in Peninsular India during the recent past. Identifying features of C. pictus is well documented through the present study with samples collected from different agro climatic regions along with its closely related species C. speciosus, which is available from the past even in wild without any characteristically reported medicinal property. The comparative study of fresh specimen shows distinctive features for identification with regard to morphological and anatomical characters at its flowering condition. The dried raw drug can be distinguished with the analysis for the presence of cuboidal solid crystal in the leaf mesophyll. Result of comparative study of leaf suggests that C. pictus leaves do not show the presence of cuboidal ergastic crystal in their leaf mesophyll where as C. speciosus leaves possess the same.

Rooting of Saraca asoca stem cuttings using three IBA (Indole 3-butyric acid) concentrations 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA, have been carried out and the data obtained was evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to interpret the vigor in rooting/sprouting and the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, for three years at four months regular interval. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index), when prop root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment. Increased CWR and SUP percentages indicate defects in management practices, dormancy and or the genotype of the cultivar.

Rooting ability in IBA induced rooting experiments largely depends on the medium used for rooting this has been established using SVI (sprouting value index), which, is a mathematical approach. Terminalia arjuna is a medicinal and avenue tree species of tropical India that has known to have poor regeneration through seeds and hence in the present study stem cuttings of saplings were used to generate clonal plant propagules. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, for three years at four months regular interval. Three IBA (In dole 3-butyric acid) concentrations 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA, have been used and the data obtained was evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to evaluate the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index), when stem root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment.

Rooting of golden shower (Cassia fistula) stem cuttings using three IBA (Indole 3-butyric acid) concentrations 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA, have been carried out and the data obtained were evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to interpret the vigorin rooting/sprouting and the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, from February 2012 to October 2014 at four months regular interval. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index) (16.25 in 300ppm IBA treatment; 23.20 in 500ppm IBA treatment; 29.17 in 1000ppm IBA treatment),when stem cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment. Increased CWR and SUP percentages indicate defects in management practices, dormancy and or the genotype of the cultivar.

Rooting of Saraca asoca stem cuttings using three IBA (Indole 3-butyric acid) concentrations 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA, have been carried out and the data obtained was evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to interpret the vigor in rooting/sprouting and the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, for three years at four months regular interval. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index), when prop root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment. Increased CWR and SUP percentages indicate defects in management practices, dormancy and or the genotype of the cultivar.

In order to study the germination pattern and root trainer technology for Terminalia arjuna, its seeds were procured from two places of central Kerala and their germination studies were conducted in six different sowing media using fresh, pretreated and seeds stored up to three months. Germination value (GV) for all the field trials was calculated that showed highest for fresh seeds without pretreatments sown in PBCP and RTCP. Maximum GV for pretreated seeds were recorded in control and in gibberellic acid (100 ppm) treated seeds sown in PBCP and RTCP. Analysis of variance shows significance at 1% level between medium, between pretreatments and between years of study. Transplantation shock, bulkiness, and frequent change of polythene bags cause additional labor by conventional method but root trainers have advantages such as requiring no change of medium, least possibility of transplantation shock, advantage of air pruning, prevention of root coiling due to antispiral design and requirement of small area which makes them suitable for mass production of seedlings.

Rooting ability in IBA induced stem cuttings in vegetative regeneration experiments largely depends on various parameters, which has been established using SVI (sprouting value index), a mathematical approach. Marathi-moggu the Bombax ceiba tree is a medicinal and avenue tree species of tropical India that has known to have poor regeneration through seeds and hence in the present study stem cuttings of saplings were used to generate clonal plant propagules. Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, for one year at four months regular interval. Three IBA (Indole 3butyric acid) concentrations 300 ppm, 500 ppm and 1000 ppm IBA, have been used and the data obtained was evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to evaluate the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index), when stem root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was increased and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment.

Rooting ability of indole 3-butyric acid (IBA)-induced stem cuttings in vegetative regeneration experiments depends on various parameters, which can be entrenched using sprouting value index (SVI), a mathematical approach. In this study, field studies were carried out in Tabebuia rosea to generate clonal planting stock regeneration using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, for three consecutive years from October 2014 till June 2016 at four months regular intervals. Three IBA concentrations, viz., 200, 500 and 1,000 ppm, have been used and the data obtained was evaluated using SVI method in order to establish the suitable medium, which gives the maximum rooting results. Control cuttings did not record rooting in any of the trials. The high SVI was obtained when stem root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage was marked up and the delay in completion of sprouting/rooting initiation decreased by the use of IBA treatment.

The nutritional value of food can be altered by the presence of antinutrients such as oxalates present abundantly in plants as ergastic crystals. High oxalate content in plant-based raw food can lead to oxalonephropathy, nephrolithiasis and renal dysfunction. Presence of oxalate can hinder the absorption of other minerals such as calcium and magnesium present in food. CaOx antinutrient intake can be minimised by avoiding plant with high oxalate content or by decreasing oxalate levels through cooking practices like, boiling, fermenting, treating with baking soda, adding yoghurt and milk etc. More sophisticated ways of minimising antinutrient intake through raw diet is by choosing genetically modified crops which are bred for low oxalate content or by choosing mutant varieties which are devoid or low in oxalate content in food crops. The future for sustainable antinutrient management and nutritional value enhancement is by incorporating genes from bacteria or fungi which are capable o...

Phytochemical constituents are distributed in various parts of plants and their localization is indicative of their therapeutic properties. Ergastic crystals such as calcium oxalate crystals are also found in almost all plant parts, which is an anti-nutrient as the dietary oxalates contributes to human ailments. Several of the medicinally useful plants contain these crystals and consumption of such plant materials in raw form can cause health problems in humans. Ergastic crystals can be an important diagnostic tool for the identification of raw drug as in Costus pictus a medicinal spiral ginger commonly called Insulin plant is devoid of cuboidal crystal but its related Costus speciosus leaves possess characteristic cuboidal shaped crystal in its leaf mesophyll. Gene manipulation technology may be promising in removing such deleterious genes or introduction of altered bio-chemicals to nullify such effects for the future generation.

Sacred groves of tropics are treasure houses of biodiversity are part of tradition, with minimal human interaction in homesteads and hence it is known to be rich in biodiversity from historic time. Taxonomical and ecological studies on different groups of fungi from ten selected sacred groves sites of Central Kerala were studied. Twenty species of fungi were identified from these conserved patches of land. Of these eight were wood rotting fungi and twelve were litter fungi, all indicates their role in bio-geochemical cycle of these regions. Helminthosporium velutinum was a new species record to this region. Torula herbarum found on a new host Ervatamia coronaria. Present studies project that the presence of macro-fungal flora is an indication of limited interaction in the sacred groves and hence the quality of land resources will be considerably good. IndexTerms – Sacred groves, wood rotting fungi, litter fungi, central Kerala ________________________________________________________...

In order to study the germination pattern and root trainer technology for Mimusops elengi L.(the bullet wood tree), its seeds were procured from two places of central Kerala and their germination studies were conducted in six different sowing media using fresh, pretreated and seeds stored up to three months. Germination value (GV) for all the field trials was calculated that showed highest for fresh seeds without pretreatments sown in polythene bags with coir pith compost (PBCP) and root trainers with coir pith(RTCP). Maximum GV for pretreated seeds were recorded in control and in gibberellic acid (100ppm) treated seeds sown in PBCP and RTCP. Analysis of variance shows significance at 1% level between medium, between pretreatments and between years of study. Transplantation shock, bulkiness, and frequent change of polythene bags cause additional labor by conventional method but root trainers do not requires change of medium, least possibility of transplanta-tion shock, advantage of ...

Rooting ability in IBA induced rooting experiments largely depends on the medium used for rooting this has been established using SVI (sprouting value index), which, is a mathematical approach. Lemon plant Citrus lemon an fruit yielding plant with world wide market for its fruits has been selected for . Field studies were carried out using three rooting medium at a location in Central Kerala, Peninsular India, during June 2014, and repeated at four months regular interval till February 2015. Three IBA (Indole 3-butyric acid) concentrations 100 ppm, 200 ppm and 300 ppm, have been used and the data obtained was evaluated with SVI (sprouting value index) method in order to evaluate the suitable medium, which gives maximum results. The control cuttings do not recorded rooting. The results obtained indicate high SVI (sprouting value index), when stem root cuttings planted in root trainers with coir pith compost (RTCP) for all the three concentration of IBA applied. Sprouting percentage w...

Present study was conducted to compare the morphological, anatomical and histochemical features of exotic species Costus pictus with its related C. speciosus, introduced in Peninsular India during the recent past. Identifying features of C. pictus is well documented through the present study with samples collected from different agro climatic regions along with its closely related species C. speciosus, which is available from the past even in wild without any characteristically reported medicinal property. The comparative study of fresh specimen shows distinctive features for identification with regard to morphological and anatomical characters at its flowering condition. The dried raw drug can be distinguished with the analysis for the presence of cuboidal solid crystal in the leaf mesophyll. Result of comparative study of leaf suggests that C. pictus leaves do not show the presence of cuboidal ergastic crystal in their leaf mesophyll where as C. speciosus leaves possess the same.

In an age where students display competency in diverse fields of activities, selecting qualified candidates from an assorted group for a service-learning exchange program demands a multidimensional approach. The framework for student selection for International Service-Learning (ISL) at Union Christian College (UCC) has been designed bearing this in mind. Its value increases when there is a proportionally higher number of applicants for a limited number of slots. Practiced for the last three years (2018-2021), the model has been designed using seven-fold criteria. The compositely designed rubric examines Q&A responses, perspectives on SL, and problem solving skills at various stages in the assessment. Each assessment level is graded from A to D, with highest A and least D. The evaluation is conducted to assess student social commitment, community engagement, leadership qualities and personal initiatives. The process of enriching writing skills and designing SL activities for diverse...

Phytochemical constituents are distributed in various parts of plants and their localization is indicative of their therapeutic properties. Ergastic crystals such as calcium oxalate crystals are also found in almost all plant parts, which is an anti-nutrient as the dietary oxalates contributes to human ailments. Several of the medicinally useful plants contain these crystals and consumption of such plant materials in raw form can cause health problems in humans. Ergastic crystals can be an important diagnostic tool for the identification of raw drug as in Costus pictus a medicinal spiral ginger commonly called Insulin plant is devoid of cuboidal crystal but its related Costus speciosus leaves possess characteristic cuboidal shaped crystal in its leaf mesophyll. Gene manipulation technology may be promising in removing such deleterious genes or introduction of altered bio-chemicals to nullify such effects for the future generation.