Influence of Silicon Forms on Nutrients Accumulation and Grain Yield of Wheat Under Water Deficit Conditions

Abstract

Wheat productivity is severely hampered by drought, owing to its negative impacts on crop growth and development. For obtaining better yield, the impacts of drought should be ameliorated. Therefore, the current study scrutinizes the potential of different silicon (Si) forms to minify the drought-associated reduction in yield and the changes in nutrients accumulation. In a strip plots design based on randomized complete block arrangement using 3 replicates, two field experiments were carried out in 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons. Three silicon (Si) forms (potassium silicate, calcium silicate, and aluminum silicate), in addition to the control (tap water) were sprayed. Also, three irrigation regimes were applied as ratio of crop evapotranspiration (60, 80 and 100%, denoted Irr60, Irr80 and Irr100, respectively). Findings clarified that application of aluminum silicate in both seasons, in addition to calcium silicate in the second season recorded the maximum accumulation of Si in wheat plants. Supplying wheat plants with different forms of Si reduced zinc (Zn) and manganese (Mn) and increased Si compared to the control (no Si application). Irr100 possessed increase in accumulation of Si in plant tissues greater than Irr80 or Irr60. Significant increases in all agronomic traits of wheat were obtained owing to spraying any Si form compared to the control. The differences between potassium silicate, calcium silicate, and aluminum silicate were not significant in flag leaf greenness (SPAD value), grains weight spike−1, weight of 1000 grains, and grain yield ha−1 in 2020/21 season. Irr100 was the effective treatment for enhancing SPAD value, spike length, grains weight spike−1, weight of 1000 grains, and grain yield ha−1. When irrigation water was reduced by 20% (Irr80), the lowest reduction in grain yield was obtained with potassium silicate compared to other forms of Si. It could be concluded that since lower accumulation of Si in plant tissues under water deficit than well-watered was recorded, the spraying of Si is great of importance to be applied under drought stress.

Physio-biochemical and Agronomic Changes of Two Sugar Beet Cultivars Grown in Saline Soil as Influenced by Potassium Fertilizer

“…Because breeding programs to develop salt-tolerant crop plants have had very limited success (Schubert et al 2009), as a result, physiological approaches such as maintaining K + /Na + -homeostasis should be given utmost attention through developed field management strategies, e.g., external K + supplementation for crop plants grown in saltaffected soils (Merwad 2016;Mekdad et al 2021a). Accordingly, deficit K + can interrupt many interlinked physio-biochemical activities, plant growth weakness, and premature leaf senescence, resulting in early crop maturity; thus, judicious K + addition under saline soil conditions could enhance the crop productivity (Salem et al 2022). However, to the best of the author's knowledge, relatively little information is available about the beneficial effects of exogenous K + application for supporting salinity tolerance in sugar beet under semiarid conditions.…”

Effect of Potassium Silicate and Irrigation on Grain Nutrient Uptake and Water Use Efficiency of Wheat Under Calcareous Soils

“…Potassium affects the osmotic adjustment of the plant and by enhancing the translocation of assimilates and maintaining osmotic charge (Marschner 1995;Mubarak et al 2016). Therefore, providing wheat plants with potassium silicate is regarded as a crucial action for keeping productivity particularly under adverse conditions as drought (Salem et al 2022).…”

Salicylic Acid as a Tolerance Inducer of Drought Stress on Sunflower Grown in Sandy Soil

“…Since drought causes changes in molecular, biochemical, physiological, and morphological aspects resulting in negative effects on plant growth and development (Nam et al 2020;Taha et al 2020;Babaei et al 2021;Salem et al 2022), injurious impacts of water deficit on different sunflower traits were occurred (Table 3, 4 and 5). The present study confirmed the negative impact of water deficit/on plant physiological status.…”