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Lilac sage (Whorled sage), as one of the medicinal plants chosen as perspective for the recultivation of flowering meadows in the Czech Republic, was studied for the variability of its morphological characters, seed quality and content of essential oil. Seven particular populations of this genus were studied in the Czech Republic and there were found statistically significant differences in morphological characters (height and width of plants, length and width of leaves and length of inflorescences) but not in the content of the essential oil. Studied populations reached only between 0.028 and 0.072% of essential oil in dry mass and also the quality of seeds was found very low (germination between 0-52%) in the seeds from natural localities but this fact could be influenced by testing method.

This study is intended to determine the physicochemical characteristics of Slovakian honeys, and compare them with specifications described in the Codex Alimentarius Standard, the European Honey directive, the Slovak Codex Alimentarius and Slovak standard No. 1/2006. In addition, we tried to find out correlations between individual constituents of honeys. Physicochemical characterization was carried out following the harmonized methods dictated by the International Honey Commission IHC. Honey samples (n=50) were collected from three honey types (blossom, blends, honeydew), and from the three main Slovakian geographical regions (named 'east', 'middle' and 'west'). The physicochemical evaluation included moisture, reduced sugars, proline, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), conductivity, diastase and invertase activity, pH and water activity, following the techniques proposed by the European Honey Commission (EHC). The moisture content in the honey varied from 15.26 to 17.65 %, HMF levels ranged from 21.83 to 63.00 mg.kg^-1, the diastase activity varied from 21.01 DN to 36.67, invertase activity varied from 121.73 to 164.11 U.kg^-1, the proline content varied from 426.56 to 531.79 mg.kg^-1, the fructose content values were found from 36.33 to 40.20 g.100g^-1, the glucose content values ranged from 27.67 to 31.00 g.100g^-1, the values of saccharose content were from 0.15 to 0.37 g.100g^-1, the conductivity varied from 29.48 to 97.24 mS.cm^-1, the pH value varied from 4.06 to 4.80 and the water activity content varied from 0.55 to 0.57. Significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) were found between HMF and fructose, glucose and saccharose and conductivity and pH, significant differences (P ≤ 0.01) between fructose and glucose and significant differences (P ≤ 0.001) were found between HMF and conductivity. Between blossom honey and honeydew honey were found statistical significant differences in HMF (P ≤ 0.05) and conductivity between honeydew honey and blossom honey (P ≤ 0.001). Among regions were determined statistical differences between HMF and invertase (P ≤ 0.05) and conductivity (P ≤ 0.01).

High quality and purity of DNA isolated from food and feed is essential for species identification and has unpredictable influences an effect of analysis. In this study, the efficiency of eight different methods for DNA isolation was investigated. For DNA extraction, the raw chicken meet, ham, sausages, tinned lunch meat, pate, tinned feeds for dogs, complete granulated feeds for dogs and chicken flour were used. Kits of several different producers, i.e.: NucleoSpin Food (Marchery-Nagel), Wizard Genomic DNA Purification Kit (Promega), Invisorb Spin Food Kit I (Invitek), Wizard SV Genomic DNA Purification System (Promega), JetQuick Tissue DNA Spin Kit (Genomed), RNA Blue (Top-Bio), JetQuick Blood & Cell Culture Kit (Genomed), QIAamp DNA Mini Kit and QIAamp DNA Blood Mini Kit (Qiagen) were employed in the study. Gel agarose electrophoresis for primary verification of DNA quality was performed. The isolates were subsequently assessed for quantity and quality using by spectrophotometer Nanodrop 2000 (Thermo Scientific). To verify of template usability and quality of isolated DNA, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used.
Differences between isolated DNA from tinned products and meat, ham, sausage, granulated dog feed and chicken flour were found. In tinned food and feed, the DNA was more degraded, DNA content and DNA purity was lower and also PCR amplification was the most difficult. Overall DNA yield and quality have important influence on PCR products amplification. The best results were obtained with NucleoSpin Food and JetQuick Tissue DNA Spin Kit. DNA extracted by these methods proved highest yields, purity and template quality in all foods and feeds and the results of PCR analysis are excellent reproducible. Analyses showed that results depended on different food or feed using and different isolation system.
The results of this work will be utilized to choose the suitable isolating kit for educational course, which is designed for students and also for following research and analyses.

The applied method - combination of the factor analysis and Fourier transformation is not routinely used in the water management. Due to the fact that the statistic program Prognost is able to do the analysis only from limited number of the quantities, only selected surface water quality indicators were included in the analysis. Therefore it wasn't possible to prove the influence of all eventual natural and anthropogenic impacts in the catchment area that affect the water quality in the reservoir Vranov nad Dyjí. By the selected indicators it was possible to cover especially the effects of the intensive agriculture, the settlement, the recreation (especially from the point of the view of the draining and cleaning of the waste water), climatic influences (precipitation) and partly the nature background. The selected indicators don't evaluate for example the impact of the industry. The water quality in the reservoir is influenced by the water quality from the tributaries and by the biochemical processes in the reservoir itself.

Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare var. vulgare Mill.) is an perennial herb, it is cultivated for the essential oil in the fruits. The quality criteria are essential oil content, microbiological contamination and residua of pesticides. The important part of the cultivation technology is ununiform maturity of the fruits. The aim of this work was to find out the influence of the desiccants on quality and yield characteristics of fennel fruits produced in field conditions in the first years of growing. Three preparations were applied: glufosinate-NH4, 150 g.l^-1 (2 l.ha^-1), diquat dibromide, 200 g.l^-1 (3 l.ha^-1) and glyphosate-IPA, 480 g.l^-1 (3 l.ha^-1) in three repetitions. The non treated control variant was also repetited three times. The samples were analysed for quantitative and qualitative parameters: the fruit yield (t.ha^-1), the essential oil content (%, V/m), the essential oil yield (kg.ha^-1), the essential oil composition and the residua content.

Cambisols cover an estimated 45% of agricultural soils in the Czech Republic. We aimed our work at stabile forms of organic carbon and humic substances quality in Cambisols under different types of soil management (grassland and arable soil). Object of our study were the following subtypes of Cambisols: Eutric Cambisol (locality Vatín - arable soil), Eutric Cambisol (locality Vatín - grassland), Haplic Cambisol (locality Náměšť n/Oslavou - arable soil), Leptic Cambisol (locality Ocmanice - grassland), Haplic Cambisol (locality Nové Město na Moravě - arable soil), Haplic Cambisol (locality Přemyslov - Tři Kameny - grassland), Arenic Cambisol (locality Pocoucov - arable soil), Dystric Cambisol (locality Sněžné - arable soil), Dystric Cambisol (locality Velká Skrovnice - arable soil), Dystric Cambisol (locality Vojnův Městec - arable soil). Non-destructive spectroscopic methods such as UV-VIS spectroscopy, synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy (SFS) and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy for humic substances (HS) quality assessment were used. Total organic carbon (TOC) content was determined by oxidimetric titration. Fractionation of HS was made by short fractionation method. Isolation of pure humic acids (HA) preparation was made according to the standard IHSS method.
Results showed that TOC and humus content varied from 2.70 % (grassland) to 1.3 % (arable soil). Average HS sum was 8.4 mg/kg in grassland and 6.4 mg/kg in arable soil. Average HA sum was 3.6 mg/kg in grassland and 3 mg/kg in arable soil. Fulvic acids (FA) content was 4.7 mg/kg in grassland and 3.7 mg/kg in arable soil. HS quality was low and very similar for all studied samples. HA/FA ratio low (< 1). HS absorbance in UV-VIS spectral range was low and similar in all studied samples. Higher absorption in this spectral range was closely connected with higher HS content. Also in 2D-synchronous fluorescence scan spectra similar shape of spectral lines was detected. Relative fluorescence intensity strongly depended on HA and FA content. Five main fluorescence peaks for HA and FA presence at λ_ex./ λ_em.: 468/488, 482/502, 450/470, 376/396, 340/360 at constant difference of Δλ=20 nm were measured. ¹³C NMR spectra of HA isolated from Eutric Cambisol showed low aromaticity degree and high content of aliphatic moieties. HA were young (= less aromatic compounds in HA molecule) and no differences in HA structure were detected to compare arable soil and grassland.