Carbon loss from roots of wheat cultivars

The amounts of organic materials released into soil from roots during the first 4 weeks of growth were determined for 11 cultivars of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Carbon loss from roots was measured by supplying ¹⁴CO₂ continuously to the shoots and measuring the ¹⁴C content of the roots, root-free soil, water-soluble material and CO₂ flushed from the root chamber. Six cultivars were compared in each of two experiments, with the cultivar Condor common to both experiments. There were no significant differences between cultivars, relative to Condor, for ¹⁴C activity present in soil, roots, water-soluble material or rhizosphere CO₂. There was a significant difference between cultivars in experiment 1, but not in experiment 2, for the variate log₁₀ (¹⁴C lost from roots: ¹⁴C translocated to roots).There was evidence that a reduction in growth temperature, within the range 10–15°C, increased carbon loss from wheat roots into the rhizosphere.