Silicon Improves Yield Performance by Enhancement in Physiological Responses, Crop Imagery, and Leaf and Culm Sheath Morphology in New Rice Line, PadiU Putra

Abstract

The PadiU Putra rice line is a blast-resistant and high-yield rice line with high potential. The application of topdressing and the foliar applied method of silicon (Si) treatments could strengthen the culm to resist breakage and ultimately increase yield production. Treatments which consisted of a control, a Si topdressing, and a Si foliar applied were arranged in a randomised complete block design. At 55 days after transplanting (DAT), the foliar applied Si treatments had 59% higher dry matter partitioning to the roots. Meanwhile, at 75 DAT, both Si foliar applied and topdressing method showed increased assimilate partitioning into the culm sheath by 29% and 49%, respectively. Dark green and light yellowish colours were obtained in both Si treatments using UAV, indicating similar results to physiological responses. Remarkably, Si foliar applied treatments enhanced the diameter and width of the outer and inner layers of the diameter of vascular bundles at 75 DAT by 58, 181, and 80%, respectively. The yield production of rice increased by 53% in the Si foliar applied, compared to the control, and produced a 1.63 benefit-cost ratio.

Silicon Application Promotes Productivity, Silicon Accumulation and Upregulates Silicon Transporter Gene Expression in Rice

“…The improvement of rice crops by application of Si fertilizer was due to the increase in the yield characteristics of rice, as found in the present study where the numbers of tillers and panicles per plant and percentage of filled grains were increased under higher Si application [ 19 ]. Several studies have demonstrated that a high rate of Si fertilizer could promote the strength of stems, increase chlorophyll content and photosynthetic activity, and consequently improve productivity in rice crops [ 7 , 8 , 10 ]. The increase in rice grain yield by Si is also associated with an improvement in some morphological and physiological characteristics of the reproductive system, including pollen vigor, strength and thickness of the anther wall, and pollen germination rate [ 20 ].…”

“…Additionally, grain yield increases by Si application have been found to be associated with Si concentration in the shoot and grain [ 9 ]. A high concentration of Si in plant tissues has been demonstrated to play a major role in the growth and productivity of rice through increases in the strength of stems, the erectness of leaves, and the photosynthetic rate [ 10 ]. The wide variation of Si concentration in plants depends on the potential of uptake and transport mechanisms [ 11 ].…”

Beneficial Effects of Silicon Fertilizer on Growth and Physiological Responses in Oil Palm

“…The beneficial effects of Si on plant growth, productivity, photosynthesis, balanced nutrient availability, and the mechanisms for reactive oxygen species scavenging have been demonstrated in numerous studies [17,18]. Thus, the application of Si has been widely implemented on various crops to alleviate the deleterious effects of water, salt, and heavy-metal stresses, as well as protect against pest infestation and disease [1,7,[9][10][11][18][19][20][21]. Si has been reported to promote stem strength by increasing lignin accumulation.…”

“…Si has been reported to promote stem strength by increasing lignin accumulation. In rice, stem strengthening helps to reduce lodging, thus preventing mutual shading, maintaining canopy photosynthesis, and consequently improving productivity [20,22]. Ahmad and Haddad [19] demonstrated that Si application positively influenced the antioxidant system in Triticum aestivum plants.…”

How Can Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Be Used for Detecting Weeds in Agricultural Fields?

“…They counted manually the actual weeds to check the real weeds in the field. Berahim et al, [124] also collected the ground and agronomic data and related with the aerial imagery. They found that physiological responses similar to the aerial imagery in rice field monitoring.…”