One of the ways of haploid production is a cross between wheat and maize. Recently success has been achieved in this method, leading to the production of zygotes; these zygotes generally undergo elimination of maize chromosomes and thus lead to production of wheat haploid plant. The purpose of this study was to develop an efficient method of haploid production via maize POLLINATION in short duration bread and durum wheat cultivars grown in Iran and India. POLLINATION of agronomically superior varieties of six hexaploid wheat (2n=2x=42): Golestan, Mahdavi MACS-2496, HD-2189, NIAW-34, NI-5439 and four tetraploid wheat (2n=2x=28): MACS-9, MACS-2846, MACS-1967, Raj-1555 with pollen from maize cultivar resulted in haploid embryos by post POLLINATION treatment with four concentration of dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and silver nitrate (AgNO3). Treatment with 3 mgL-1 2,4-D plus (120-180 mgL-1 AgNO3) gave highest frequency of haploid embryos and haploid plants. In this study haploid embryos and haploid plants were produced from all of the ten genotypes, but frequency of haploid embryos (7.45%) and haploid plants (1.06%) in hexaploid wheat was more than haploid embryos (6.16%) and haploid plants (0.83%) in tetraploid wheat. We produced a total of 368 mature haploid plants.

In some hadith sources there is a hadith about forbidding POLLINATION of DATE-PALMS and has been attributed to the holy Prophet, may peace and blessings be upon him. Dr. Sorush holds this as a scientific error of the Prophet. The author of the present paper has a critical view of this hadith both by document and content. He argues that there is no trace of such a hadith before the third century. Some believes that this hadith has been made up by some rulers of the time to justify the separation of religion from material world. The content of the hadith contradicts the holy Quran and does not agree with the Prophet’s knowledge about the POLLINATION of flowers. Since it’s not a reliable hadith, it can not be regarded as the Prophet’s scientific mistake.

The objective of this study was to determine the allowed and desired limits for heavy soils of texture (clay loom), as it has operational capability (friability), These limits were 6.34 mm for planting and 10.62 mm for harvesting in each raining or irrigation episode. We determined some factors that affect soil wetness and water content as follow: the amount and severity of rain, the condition of soil’s drainage, the percent of air moisture, evapotranspiration, the amount of runoff, the amount and severity of sunlight, the ambient temperature, the condition of vegetation and, the soil texture. The time needed for dryness and removal of soil moisture as evapotranspiration in each over- desired and allowed capacity rains are 5-7 days. Also, because of higher evaporation in planting time (late April and early May) than in harvesting time (November), and also higher surface temperature in spring, both result in moving the vapor from deeper layers of soil to surface. Therefore, as our result showed, the time needed for readiness of soil for machinery operation at time of planting are 5 days for planting (late April and early May) and 7 days for harvesting time (November). According to our calculation, 19.5% of rains at planting time and 7.5% at harvest time changed to run- off; and with taking this amount of run- off in account at allowed- limit calculation, and also because of texture of the studied soil, the maximum allowed rain in which the soil remains in proper condition for machinery planting and harvesting activities exceeded 7.6 and 11.41 mm in each rainy day. As a result, according to limiting factor of well doing of operations and also factors affecting these restricting factors, the number of working days for mechanized planting operation was found to be about 19.69 days and also 21.98 days for harvesting operations in farms with heavy soil with 98% of probability.

In some of the Sunni sources of narrations, such as Sahih Muslim, Musnad by Ibn Hanbal, Sunan by Ibn Majah, Sahih by Ibn Habban, and Majma al-Zawaid by Haythami, there is a narration known as the “POLLINATION of the palm trees” which is considered as authentic by the Sunnis. The researcher in this article first traces the sources of this narration and shows that some of the transmitters of this hadith according to the Sunni scholars in the science of hadith transmission are weak. He then has an assessment of the content of the narration and its problems and shows that accepting personal judgment as one of the sources of the knowledge of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his household, would not only lead to the failure of the Prophetic mission and the reason of sending the Prophet but it is also its incompatible with the principles of reason. In this article a reference is also made to the difference between the Shiis and Sunnis on the infallibility and knowledge of the Prophet.

There is a species of barberry that cultivated in arid and semi arid area of Iran (south Khorasan province) which is widely used as a food additive for rice cooking. Fruits of this species have no seed while wild types at the same area produce seeded fruits. In this experiment, mechanism of seedlessness was evaluated by in 'in vitro pollen viability test, in situ, pollen tube growth study in pistil, histological study of ovule development and field POLLINATION experiment. Histological study was done in seeded wild type barberry (Berberis crataegina DC) as well. In vitro test of pollen germination in seedless barberry showed that pollen had viability of about 54%. Seedless barberry produced 20% seeded fruit when pollinated with pollen of wild types barberry. There was dramatically decrease of fruit set in emasculated unpollinated flowers of seedless barberry. Plenty of pollen grains (about 370) were observed on stigma of each flower at 12 hr after flower opening. Most of them germinated and penetrated intracellular area of stigma surface but no pollen tube reached to ovary. About 41% of studied ovaries in seedless barberry did not have any embryo sac or had very small incomplete embryo sac. In seedless barberry, in some case unfused polar nuclei were clearly recognized at 14 days after anthesis. However, In wild type, double fertilization was accompanied by disappearance of polar nuclei. In seeded barberry, the cellular endosperm became clear at seven days after anthesis. At 21 days after full bloom, all ovules of seedless barberry degenerated while at the same time in wild seeded type, one or two ovules of each flower were normal and were developing toward complete seeds. In general, it can be concluded that self incompatibility have main role in seedlessness in barberry but high frequency of abnormal ovules and single fertilization can be considered as another reason of seedlessness. Fruit of seedless barberry is probably set via simulative parthenocarpy.

Honeybee have various products in addition to the vital role in increasing agricultural products through POLLINATION which affect the environmental preservation of the ecosystem. Reports from different countries suggest that the role of honeybee in increasing agricultural production is 69-143 times more than its direct produce (honey yeilds) In 1997 the result of various studies in Iran showed that the impact of honeybee POLLINATION on agricultural products is about 11000 billion rials whereas in the same year the honey yields valued 123 billion rials in the honeybee industry. In other words the role of honeybee in increasing agricultural products is 90 times more than the direct produce of the honeybee colonies, and this accounts about 4 percent of the value of gross national production (G.N.P.) of Iran. Regarding the significant role of honeybee POLLINATION in the preservation of ecosystem it is necessary to protect related industries and to improve the knowledge of farmers for the application of honeybee colonies in their farms and plantations.

Information about reproductive systems of pasture plant species help to determine their genetic variation potential and adaptability, when planted in a new condition. Due to the importance of Onobrychis as a fodder plant, POLLINATION mechanisms of thirteen Onobrychis populations of annual species O. crista-galli, O. pulchella, O. caput-galli and O. micrantha together with O. viciaefolia and O. altissima as perennial species were examined based on morphological characteristics of flower, pollen/ovule ratio and quantity of fruit and seed production in natural and isolated POLLINATIONs. The results showed that flower length in O. viciaefolia and O. altissima was longer than that in other species. Style length was also longer than filament length in these two species. The most pollen/ovule ratio belonged to O. viciaefolia (22211) and the least belonged to O. crista-galli 387 (2) (840). Seed and Fruit production in all species in tripping and isolated methods were similar to those in natural POLLINATION, but in completely isolated condition seed and fruit were not produced in the perennial species. Based on the sum of the results it can be concluded that the perennial species O. viciaefolia and O. altissima are obligate xenogamy and the annual species O. crista-galli, O. pulchella, O. caput-galli and O. micrantha are facultative.

The Scythians tribes were one of the nomadic tribes inhabiting large areas in the central Eurasian steppes from about the 9th century BC up until the 4th century AD. These tribes moved into parts of present-day Iran after many displacements in the first millennium BC. These tribes have played important role in central Eurasian steppes and in Persian and part of India. What scholars know about the Scythians tribes based on the writings of Herodotus. These people have played an important role in Persian and Indian epics, as well as in various historical periods of Iran, such as the Iron Age and Achaemenid and Parthian periods. Their presence in Iran has been illustrated by at least the name of one of the Iranian cities, Sakestan or Sistan, which is the name of these people. Few archaeological findings in Iran have been attributed to Scythians. However, in recent years, new burial grounds have been found which shed new light on the Scythian’ s presence in Persia and central Eurasian that appears to confirm the writing of historians. In recent years many articles and books have been published about Scythians based on archaeological findings. Recently a new book has been published entitled Scythians Warriors of Ancient Siberia. This paper critically reviews this book edited by St. John Simpson and Svetlana Pankova.