Irrigation with brackish water modifies the boron requirement of mungbean (Vigna radiata L.) on typic calciargid

The boron (B) sufficiency range for plant growth is narrow and its management is problematic under brackish irrigation water. This study was conducted to evaluate the B requirement of mungbean at different sodium adsorption ratios of irrigation waters (SAR_iw) [control, 8 and 16 (mmol_c L^?1)^1/2]. The boron adsorption characteristics of a loamy soil were first determined in the laboratory by equilibrating 2.5 g soil with 0.01 M CaCl₂ solution containing different B levels. Boron rates for a pot study were computed against different soil solution levels by fitting sorption data in a modified Freundlich model [x/m = K _f (EBC)^1/n ]. The maximum increase in shoot dry matter was 11.9% when B was applied at 1.29 mg kg^?1 soil at control SAR_iw. Visual leaf B toxicity symptoms appeared at higher B rates and became severe at higher SAR_iw. By contrast to Ca, shoot concentrations of B and Na increased significantly with B application and SAR_iw. For optimum shoot growth, internal and external B requirements were 25 mg B kg^?1 shoot dry matter and 0.39 mg B L^?1 soil solution, respectively, at control SAR_iw. At higher SAR_iw, a lower concentration of B in plant shoots and soil solution had an inhibitory effect on plant growth.     

Influence of soil applied boron on yield of berseem (Trifolium alexandrium L.) and soil boron fractions in calcareous soils

A greenhouse experiment was conducted in North-west India to study the effect of soil applied boron on yield of berseem (Trifolium alexandrium L.) and soil boron fractions in boron deficient calcareous soils. Three soils with varying calcium carbonate content viz. 0.75% (Soil I), 2.6% (Soil II), and 5.7% (Soil III) were collected from different sites of Ludhiana, Bathinda, and Shri Muktsar Sahib districts, Punjab, India. The treatments consisted of six levels of soil applied boron viz. 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25, 1.5, and 2.0 mg B kg^?1 along with control. The green fodder yield and dry matter yield increased significantly at 0.75 mg B kg^?1 soil treatment level in the first cutting, while these were significant at 1.0 mg B kg^?1 soil treatment level in all soils at second, third, and fourth cuttings. Among all three calcareous soils, Soil I with lower calcium carbonate was the best soil in respect of mean yield in comparison to Soil II and Soil III. Combined effect of boron level and soils had significant effect on yield of berseem. There was a significant increase in mean dry root biomass at 1.0 mg B kg^?1 soil level over control and then remained non-significant with further high levels of soil applied boron. The mean dry root biomass decreased significantly for the soils having 0.75%, 2.6%, and 5.7% calcium carbonate levels. Readily soluble fraction is considered to be easily available fraction of B for plant uptake and consisted of 0.47–0.62% in Soil I, 0.31–0.43% in Soil II, and 0.24–0.34% in Soil III of the total boron. Among all B fractions, mean readily soluble, specifically adsorbed, and oxide-bound fractions got increased significantly with increase in B levels. Readily soluble and organically bound B fractions were more in Soil I as compared to Soil II and Soil III. Specifically adsorbed boron, oxide bound fraction, residual and total boron were more in Soil III in comparison to Soil I and Soil II. Among all fractions, residual fraction accounted for the major portion of the total B. It comprised of 92.71–93.90% in Soil I, 94.51–95.40% in Soil II, and 94.91–95.25% in Soil III of the total boron.     

Comparison of symbiotic effectiveness of Rhizobium sp. with positive hydrogen-uptake activity compared with negative mutants in relation to nitrogen fixation in mungbean (Vigna radiata L.)

H₂ uptake activity was well distributed in Rhizobium sp. strains isolated from nodules of mung-bean (Vigna radiata L.). Two effective strains, RMP1 und RMP2, exhibiting significantly higher H₂ uptake activity were subjected to mutagenesis with nitrosoguanidine. The respective mutation frequencies were 0.18 and 0.19%. Three Hup^- mutants each of RMP1 und RMP2 were compared with the wild-type parent strains under pot culture experiments to evaluate the significance of the H₂ uptake system in biological N₂ fixation. Nodulation capabilities, plant growth characteristics, and the chlorophyll content of the leaves were significantly reduced in the plants treated with Hup^- mutants. Nitrogenase activity in Hup^- nodules was reduced by 8–41%. Similarly, N accumulation was also reduced singificantly.     

Influence of Boron Nutrition on Membrane Leakage,Chlorophyll Content and Gas Exchange Characteristics in Cotton (Gossypium Hirsutum L.)

Understanding the effect of boron (B) on plant physiology will help to refine the diagnosis of B deficiency and improvement in B fertilizer recommendations for cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) growing areas. This study shows the testing of hypotheses “that application of B-fertilizer improves net photosynthetic rate (P_N) and water use efficiency (WUE) for cotton plant on a B-deficient soil [< 0.50 mg B kg^?1 hydrochloric acid (HCl)-extractable] in an arid environment”. Thus, a permanent layout [two-year field experiment (2004 and 2005)] was conducted to study the impact of B fertilizer at 0, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 kg ha^?1 on gas exchange and electrolyte leakage (EL) characteristics of cotton crop (cv. ‘CIM-473’). The soil at experimental site was alkaline (pH 8.1), calcareous [calcium carbonate (CaCO₃ 5.6%)], and silt loam (Typic Haplocambid). Boron use decreased EL of plant membrane (P ≤ 0.05), and increased P_N, transpiration rate (E) and stomatal conductance (g_s), while intercellular concentration of carbon dioxide (CO₂; C_i) significantly decreased (P ≤ 0.05) during both experimental years. There was a positive, but non-significant effect of B concentration on chlorophyll content in plant leaves. Application of 3.0 kg B ha^?1 improved WUE up to 9.7% [4.62 μmol (CO₂) mmol^?1 water (H₂O)] compared to control plants (4.21 [μmol (CO₂) mmol^?1 (H₂O)]. Principal component analysis (PCA) of data indicates positive correlations between leaf B concentration and P_N, E, g_s, and WUE, while a negative relationship existed between leaf B concentration and intercellular CO₂ (C_i). This study showed that addition of B fertilizer in the B-deficient calcareous soil proved beneficial for growth and development for cotton crop by enhancing its WUE and gas exchange characteristics.     

Effects of different phosphatase-producing fungi on growth and nutrition of mung beans [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek] in an arid soil

Summary The efficiency of different phosphatase-producing fungi in arid soils was studied in pot experiments in order to evaluate the effect of these organisms on the enhancement of rhizosphere enzyme activities, the uptake of different nutrients, dry matter production, and grain yields of the mung bean. A significant increase in phosphatase (acid and alkaline), nitrogenase, and dehydrogenase activities was observed upon inoculation. Inoculation with phosphatase-producing fungi significantly increased dry matter production and grain yields compared with uninoculated controls. In general, there was a significant improvement in the uptake of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, and Zn while no effect on Na, Mn, and Cu was recorded. A significant positive correlation was observed between the activities of various enzymes in the rhizosphere on the one hand and N and P uptake, dry matter production, and grain yields of the mung bean on the other. Aspergillus rugulosus was the best of the phosphatase-producing fungi that were tested, followed by A. terreus. The experiment confirmed that phosphatase-producing fungi have a significant effect on growth and nutrient uptake in the mung bean and indicated that these fungi are particularly important in arid soils.     

水培和土培条件下氮素供应对燕麦生长和磷素吸收的影响

Plants show different growth responses to N sources supplied with either NH₄⁺ or NO₃^-. The uptake of different N sources also affects the rhizosphere pH and therefore the bioavailability of soil phosphorus, particularly in alkaline soils. The plant growth, P uptake, and P availability in the rhizosphere of oat (Avena nuda L.) grown in hydroponics and in soil culture were investigated under supply with sole NH₄⁺-N, sole NO₃^--N, or a combination. Sole NO₃^--fed oat plants accumulated more biomass than sole NH₄⁺-fed ones. The highest biomass accumulation was observed when N was suppliedw ith both NH₄⁺-N and NO₃^--N. Growth of the plant root increased with the proportion of NO₃^- in the cultural medium. Better root growth and higher root/shoot ratio were consistently observed in NO₃^--fed plants. However, root vigor was the highest when N was supplied with NO₃^-+NH₄⁺. NH₄⁺ supply reduced the rhizosphere pH but did not affect P uptake by plants grown in soils with CaHPO₄ added as P source. No P deficiency was observed, and plant P concentrations were generally above 2 g kg^-1. P uptake was increased when N was supplied partly or solely as NO₃^--N, similarly as biomass accumulation. The results suggested that oat was an NO₃^--preferring plant, and NO₃^--N was essential for plant growth and the maintenance of root absorption capacity. N supply with NH₄⁺-N did not improve P nutrition, which was most likely due to the absence of P deficiency.     

Critical limit of boron for maize (Zea mays L.) in red and lateritic soil of Jharkhand,India

ABSTRACT

To establish a critical limit in soils and plant, an experiment was conducted in red and lateritic soil (Alfisols) of farmer’s field in tribal-dominated Panchayat Kurum, Palkot block, Gumla district, Jharkhand, India. Based on the results of the field experiment, the critical limits were determined as 0.48, 0.50, 0.47, and 0.42 mg kg^?1 in the soil, respectively, for hot water, hot calcium chloride, salicylic acid, and ammonium acetate-extractable B, while a critical limit of 12.00 mg kg^?1 was observed in maize tissue using the graphical method. In an analysis of variance method, the critical limits of B in soils were found as 0.45, 0.54, 0.49, and 0.43 mg kg^?1 using hot water, hot calcium chloride, salicylic acid, and ammonium acetate extractants, respectively. Maize plants were highly responsive to B application where soil B level was below the critical limit (0.50 mg kg^?1). In a field experiment, grain yield of maize increased with increasing levels of B application, while soil application at 1.0 kg ha^?1 + two foliar application (at the knee and pre-flowering stages) of borax at 0.2% were showed significantly higher grain yield of the maize crop. The hot water, hot calcium chloride, salicylic acid, and ammonium acetate-extractable B were significantly and positively correlated with organic carbon and negatively correlated with the electrical conductivity of soils.