Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate (SDS) an anionic surfactant pollutant has emerged as a serious hazard to the aquatic and terrestrial environment. Due to physical and chemical methodological difficulties for SDS removal, phytoremediation techniques are efficient alternative strategies to tackle such adversities. Juncus acutus L. (J. acutus) is a pioneer wetland species that has been recently exploited for phytoremediation purposes. To our knowledge, the role of exogenous hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), in improving the phytoextraction of SDS has not been examined yet. In this study, pretreatment foliar spray of H₂O₂ (15 mM) combined with two levels of SDS (50 and 100 ppm) in water culture was evaluated to remove SDS contamination and add value to the phytoremediation process.

Application of pesticides can have a negative impact on pollinating honey bees, Apis mellifera L., ranging from sublethal to lethal concentrations. Consequently, it is important to comprehend any possible impacts of pesticides. Herein, we evaluated the toxicity of specific pesticides (Sulfoxaflor, thiamethoxam, imidacloprid, and acetamiprid) on A. mellifera workers after exposure of 24, 48, 72, and 96 hrs under laboratory conditions. As a result, sulfoxaflor was considered the most toxic compound among the tested pesticides after 24-h of exposure. Further, acetamiprid was found least toxic pesticide. The same trend of toxicity on A. mellifera was observed after 48, 72, and 96 hrs of exposure. These results of the current investigation suggested that sulfoxaflor might be harmful to honey bee workers.This demonstrates the extraordinary sensitivity of local honey bee to routinely applied agricultural pesticides, which may have an impact on the colony level due to the extensive usage of these pesticides in Egypt.

To study the effect of phosphine fumigation treatments (two tablet/ton exposure for 24, 48, 72 hours; four tablet/ton exposure for 24, 48, 72 hours; six tablet/tone xposure for 24, 48, 72 hours) on the vitality of bread wheat grains cv. Giza 171 at different storage periods (fresh grains, 3, 6, and 9 months) using a complete randomized design with three replicationsatthe laboratory of Prof. Dr. Youssef Mohamed Omar,  Plant Protection Department, Agriculture Faculty, Assiut University during the period from 26 May 2022 to 3 March 2023. Grains of Giza 171 cv. were obtained from the Agronomy Department Farm, Agriculture Faculty, Assiut University. The obtained result showed that the tested storageperiods had a highlysignificant effect on all studied traits.Thus, the maximum mean values of germination power (%), germination percentage (%), roots and shoot length (cm), and seedling dry weight(g) traits were recorded at the begging of storage then a gradual decreas eoccurred. In addition, treating wheat grains with phosphine at different doses for different period sgained a significant increase in all studied traits compared to the control treatment (without fumigation), whilethere were no noticeable differences between most of the phosphine treatments themselves werefound. Therefore,we suggest under the conditions of this study,wheat grains could be treated with 2 tablets of phosphine for a period of 72 hour storeduce the dose and increase the exposure time which could reduce the harmful effects of excessive doses of phosphine.

A field experiment wasconducted during the 2019 and 2020 summer seasons to investigate the effect of different weed control treatments namely; Butralin as pre-emergence herbicide (2.5 L/fed.), butralin (2.5 L/ fed.) + hand hoeing once at 30 days after planting (DAP), hand hoeing thrice at 15, 30 and 45 DAP and un-weeded treatment under different planting methods, i.e., rows and raised beds planting, on weeds density, yield and its attributes of Giza 90 cotton cultivar. Results indicated that, the density of the weeds was decreasedsignificantly with all studied weed control treatments compared with un-weeded treatment (control) in the two growing seasons. In addition, the plant height, number of sympodial branches, opening bolls per plant, seed weight and seed cotton yield were also increased with allstudied weed control treatmentsover weedy check. As well as, hand hoeing thrice at 15,30 and 45 DAP treatment gave a significantly higher seed cotton yield as compared to the other studied weed control treatments in both seasons. Furthermore, the obtained result showed that among the tested planting methods, beds width 120 cm planting gave the best results in terms of controlling weeds, reducing dry weight of weeds, increasing sympodial branches plant^-1, total number of bolls plant^-1, number of mature bolls plant^-1, seed cotton weight

1. (2023).
   Plant Pathology Journal

Background Currently, using unconventional water sources in agriculture has become necessary to face overpopulation worldwide. Therefore, a pot experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of irrigation with saline water in the presence of co-applied wood chips biochar (WCB) with chemical fertilizers on physicochemical properties and nutrient availability as well as growth parameters, and yield of red radish (Raphanus sativus L.) grown in the saline sandy soil.

Methods The WCB was added to the saline sandy soil at levels of 0 (control), 2.5, and 5% w/w. Then, this soil was cultivated by red radish plants and irrigated with saline water (5 dS m- 1). This experiment was performed in a randomized complete block design with three replicates.

Results Compared with the control treatment, WCB treatments increased significantly soil water holding capacity by 34.8% and 73.2% for levels of 2.5 and 5%, respectively. Soil pH decreased significantly in all WCB treatments. The relative increase in the total available nitrogen over the control was 30.1 and 103.5% for 2.5 and 5% wood chips biochar, respectively. Compared to the control, applying WCB at 2.5% led to an increase in the fresh root weight of red radish plants by 142.7%, while 5% caused a decrease in the fresh root weight of red radish plants by 29.4%. Conclusion Recently, WCB represents an interesting approach to the rehabilitation of saline soils and the management of using saline water sources. It is recommended that combined application of WCB at a level of 2.5% with chemical fertilizers in order to improve red radish growth and nutrient retention in the saline sandy soil which preserves the ecosystem as well as increases productivity leading to the reduction of costs.