BackgroundPlant nutrition and climatic conditions play important roles on the growth and secondary metabolites of stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni); however, the nutritional dose is strongly governed by the soil properties and climatic conditions of the growing region. In northern India, the interactive effects of crop ecology and plant nutrition on yield and secondary metabolites of stevia are not yet properly understood. Thus, a field experiment comprising three levels of nitrogen, two levels of phosphorus and three levels of potassium was conducted at three locations to ascertain whether the spatial and nutritional variability would dominate the leaf yield and secondary metabolites profile of stevia.ResultsPrincipal component analysis (PCA) indicates that the applications of 90 kg N, 40 kg P2O5 and 40 kg K2O ha−1 are the best nutritional conditions in terms of dry leaf yield for CSIR-IHBT (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research- Institute Himalayan Bioresource Technology) and RHRS (Regional Horticultural Research Station) conditions. The spatial variability also exerted considerable effect on the leaf yield and stevioside content in leaves. Among the three locations, CSIR-IHBT was found most suitable in case of dry leaf yield and secondary metabolites accumulation in leaves.ConclusionsThe results suggest that dry leaf yield and accumulation of stevioside are controlled by the environmental factors and agronomic management; however, the accumulation of rebaudioside-A (Reb-A) is not much influenced by these two factors. Thus, leaf yield and secondary metabolite profiles of stevia can be improved through the selection of appropriate growing locations and proper nutrient management.

The present investigation focused on the chemical composition and metabolomics of Cordia myxa fruits and leaves collected from five locations in Himachal Pradesh, India. Both fruits and leaves exhibited a substantial amount of phenolics in the range of 9.65−26.22 mg GAE/g and 5.35−33.28 mg GAE/g, respectively, followed by appreciable flavonoid content. Higher antioxidant activity was detected in Shahpur leaf extract (SLE) (IC 50ABTS 0.27 mg/mL) and Raja ka Talab fruit extract (RFE) (IC 50ABTS 0.21 mg/mL) among different harvesting locations of C. myxa. A higher amount of vanillic acid and rutin was detected in Nagrota Surian fruits extract (NFE) by ultraperformance liquid chromatography quadruple time-of-flight ion mobility separation (UHPLC-Q-TOF-IMS). However, glycine, alanine, and isoleucine (ile) were also quantified at higher levels. Fruit extracts exhibited a promising amount of ascorbic acid and macroelements and microelements, whereas a total of 44 unknown compounds were identified by ultraperformance liquid chromatography quadruple time-of-flight ion mobility separation (UHPLC-Q-TOF-IMS) based on a nontargeted approach. This comprehensive metabolomic report brings new insights into metabolite distribution and its possible future implementations in food and nutraceuticals.

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Agroforestry benefits farmers, making it a sustainable alternative to monoculture. To create a viable Eucalyptus clone-based agroforestry system, a field experiment was carried out in Tamil Nadu, India. The economics and changes in the soil qualities were evaluated by growing agricultural and horticultural crops, namely pearl millet, sorghum, maize, sesame, small onions, green gram, and red gram, as intercrops under eight-month-old eucalyptus clone trees using a randomised block design in three replications at a spacing of 3 m × 1.5 m. The plots for the intercrops and the eucalyptus clones were kept apart for comparison. Maize showed the greatest drop in plant height during all the phases, including 30 DAS, 60 DAS, and harvest, while small onions showed the least reduction in plant height. Sesame and small onions showed the greatest drop in dry matter production, whereas sorghum showed the least. In terms of the intercrop yield reduction, maize had the biggest reduction and green gram had the lowest. Red gram had the largest crop equivalent yield, whereas maize had the lowest. The volume of the trees was generally increased more favourably by red gram than by green gram. The intercrops had some effects on the nutrients in the soil. Red gram intercropping had the highest levels of EC, soil organic carbon, available soil nitrogen, available soil phosphorus, and available soil potassium, while the sole tree treatment had the lowest levels. Small onions, red gram, and sesame were the crops; tree + small onion, tree + red gram, and tree + sesame were the intercrop combinations with the highest gross income, net income, and B:C in the intercropping treatment alone. Tree + green gram had the highest land equivalent ratio (LER) and the red gram, sesame, and small onion intercrops were shown to be the most profitable. Although the present study supports a complementary relationship, the lack of awareness among farmers of Eucalyptus allelopathy formed the major limitation.