Effect of Foliar Application of Cysteine and Ferrous Sulfate on the Vegetative Growth and Flowering of Chinese Carnation (Dianthus chinensis L.)

• Ali Basim Mohammad

  Author

This study was conducted in the lath house of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Design, College of Agriculture, Tikrit University, during the 2025–2026 growing season. The research aimed to evaluate the effect of foliar application of Cysteine as the first factor at three levels (C0, C1, C2) and Ferrous Sulfate as the second factor at three levels (F0, F1, F2), as well their interaction on the vegetative and physiological growth characteristics of China Pink (Dianthus chinensis L.). The experiment was designed according to a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) as a factorial experiment. The results revealed significant differences among the treatments. Cysteine application showed a pronounced effect on improving growth traits; the C2 treatment was superior, recording the highest values for plant height,  number of branches,number of leaves, number of flowers  and chlorophyll content (17.24 cm, 10.23 branch . plant-1,  24.11 leaf . plant-1, 12.18 flower . plant-1 and 40.53 SPAD)  respectively, whereas the control treatment (C0) recorded the lowest values.. While the application of  Ferrous Sulfate  significantly enhanced in enhancing these traits. So the F2 treatment produced high values for the same parameters (15.51 cm  8.95 branch . plant-1 , 21.22 leaf .plant -1, 10.27 flower. plant-1, and 37.95 SPAD) respectively.  This result reflects the physiological importance of iron in chlorophyll synthesis and the activation of vital processes within the plant. The interaction between the two factors showed significant differences, it was highly prominent. The C2F2 treatment significantly outperformed others, recording the highest values across all traits studied : 18.76 cm for plant height, 12.93 branch.  plant^-1, 26.33 leaf .plant^-1, 14.13 flower .plant^-1, and 43.86 SPAD for chlorophyll content

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