Determination of Optimal Acidity and Concentration of Nano and Micro Sodium Silicate on Efficiency of Foliar Application of Potato Plantlets

پژوهشهای زراعی ایران

Article 5, Volume 16, Issue 2 - Serial Number 50, July 2018, Pages 355-368   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/gsc.v16i2.57918

Authors

M Kafi^* ; B Saadatian

Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

Abstract

Introduction
Silicon (Si) is one of the most abundant elements in Earth’s crust. It has been regarded as an essential element in a number of species of the Poaceae and Cyperaceae, however it has not been possible to demonstrate that it is essential to all higher plants because direct evidence is still lacking that it is part of the molecule of an essential plant constituent or metabolite. Recently, the role of Si in plant metabolism has received increasing attention. It has been suggested that Si may be involved in metabolic or physiological and/or structural activity in higher plants in normal condition and exposed to abiotic and biotic stresses. In many researches, it has been found that Si improved water use efficiency, photosynthesis, membrane stability index and yield in crops. The use of nano-compound material has been given a lot of attention by the agricultural researchers, especially by those who examine the characteristics of the seeds, although the exact mechanism of their actions is not well understood. Nanomaterials, because of their tiny size, show unique characteristics. Previous work reported that nano sodium silicate was affected on physiological and yield of potato seedlings in greenhouse. Acidity was determinant factor in foliar application of solutions. However, studies have not been paid attention to this factor.

Materials and Methods
This research was conducted as a factorial experiment based on a randomized complete block design with three replications at the faculty of agriculture’s research greenhouse, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, in 2013. Plantlets of Agria cv. produced from nodal tissue culture in Murashinge and Skoog (MS) medium. After 25 days, Free disease and uniform plantlets exported to plastic pots with 12 cm diameter and 30 cm height. Perlite, cocopite and sand with 3:3:4 ratios, formed the substrate. Potato plantlets were fed with corrected Hoagland solution. In the first experiment, Treatments were particle size of sodium silicate (nano and micro) and eleven concentrations (Non-spraying, Distilled water, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600,700, 800 and 900 mg l-1). The pH of Concentrations were measured and was in the range of 7.5 (distilled water) and 11.6. In the second experiment, the optimal concentrations nano and micro particles of first experiment and three pH levels (5, 7 and 11.3) were used. In both experiments, membrane stability index, photosynthesis parameters, chlorophyll a, b and cartenoids, shoot dry weight, silicon concentration and amount, yield and yield components of minituber were measured.

Results and Discussion
In the first experiment, the results showed that with increasing silicon concentration up to 400 mg l-1, photosynthesis, chlorophyll a and yield of potato minituber, significantly increased. Membrane stability index increased, transpiration reduced, water use efficiency increased, chlorophyll a and cartenoids of potato leaves increased as a result of nano and micro silicon foliar application up to 400 mg l-1and effects of nano particles on traits more than of micro particles. But, both of silicon particle sizes had a negative effect on traits in higher concentrations. In second experiment, effect of nano silicon particles to improve membrane stability index, chlorophyll b, mean of minituber weight and shoot dry weight traits was higher than the micro particles by 5.4, 9.7, 9 and 12 percentages, respectively. Also, membrane stability index, shoot dry weight and water use efficiency trials, improved in foliar application with pH 5 compared to 11.3 by 8.8, 6.11 and 21.3 percentage, respectively. Reducing the acidity of nano and micro-particles sprayed silicon was caused to increasing of photosynthesis, decreasing of transpiration, increasing of silicon amount of shoot significantly.

Conclusions
Optimal concentration was obtained to foliar application of nano and micro Sodium silicate particles. Overall, the best treatments were 400 mg l-1 sodium silicate and pH=5.

Keywords

Chlorophyll; Membrane stability index; Minituber yield; Photosynthesis; Water use efficiency

References

1. Adtina, M. H., and Beasford, R. T. 1986. The effects of silicon on cucumber plants grown in recirculating nutrient solution. Journal Annual of Botany 58: 343-351.

2. Arnon, D. 1949. Copper enzyme polyphenoloxides in isolated chloroplast in Beta vulgaris. Plant Physiology 24: 1-15.

3. Asmar, A., Castro, E. M., Pasqual, M., Pereira, F. J., and Soares, J. D. R. 2013. Changes in leaf anatomy and photosynthesis of micropropagated banana plantlets under different silicon sources. Scientia Horticulturae 161: 328-332.

4. Cherif, M., and Belanger, R. R. 1992. Use of potassium silicate amendments in recirculating nutrient solutions to suppress Pythium ultimum on long english cucumber. Journal of Plant Disease 76 (10): 1008-1011.

5. Epstein, E. 1999. Silicon, Annual Review. Plant Physiology and Plant Molecular Biology 50: 641-664.

6. Elliot, C. L., and Snyder, G. H. 1991. Autoclave-induced digestion for the colorimetric determination of silicon in rice straw. Agricultural and Food Chemistry 39: 1118-1119.

7. Franke, W. 1967. Mechanisms of foliar penetration of solutions. Annual review. Plant Physiology 18: 281-300.

8. Haghighi, M., and Pessarakli, M. 2013. Influence of silicon and nano-silicon on salinity tolerance of cherry tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) at early growth stage. Scientia Horticulture 161: 111-117.

9. Hashemi, A., Abdolzadeh, A., and Sadeghipour, H. R. 2010. Beneficial effects of silicon nutrition in alleviating salinity stress in hydroponically grown canola, Brassica napus L., plants. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition 56 244-253.

10. Hu, Y., and Schmidhalter, U. 2005. Drought and salinity: a comparison of their effects on mineral nutrition of plants. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 168: 541-549.

11. Kannan, S. 1980. Mechanisms of foliar uptake of plant nutrients: accomplishments and prospects. Journal of Plant Nutrient 2: 717-735.

12. Lichtenthaler, H. K., and Wellburn, A. R. 1983. Determinations of total carotenoids and chlorophylls a and b of leaf extracts in different solvents. Biochemical Society Transactions 11: 591-592.

13. Liang, Y. C., Shen, Q. R., Shen, Z. G., and Ma, T. S. 1996. Effects of silicon on salinity tolerance of two barley cultivars. Journal of Plant Nutrition 19. 173-183.

14. Lim, T. H., Cheol, S. Y., Choi, S. P., and Dhital, S. 2004. Application of giberelic acid and paclobutrazol for efficient production of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) minitubers and their dormancy breaking under soilless culture system. Journal of Korea Society Horticulture Science 45 (4): 189-193.

15. Mateos-Naranjo, E., Andrades-Moreno, L., and Davy, A. J. 2013. Silicon alleviates deleterious effects of high salinity on the halophytic grass Spartina densiflora. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 63: 115-121.

16. Mengel, K. 2002. Alternative or complementary role of foliar supply in mineral nutrition. Acta Horticalture 594: 33-48.

17. Mohaghegh, P., Shirvani, M., and Ghasemi, S. 2010. Silicon application effects on yield and growth of two cucumber genotypes in hydroponics system. Journal of Science technology and greenhouse culture 1 (1): 35-40. (in Persian with English abstract).

18. Nasri, M., Khalat bari, M., Pak nejad, F., Hasanpor, J., and Kasraie, P. 2008. Effect of different levels of silic spraying and plant density on some quantitative characterestics of rapeseed (Hyola-42) in varamin condition. Iranian agricultural science 315-325. (in Persian with English abstract).

19. Ozturk, G., and Yildirim, Z. 2010. A comparison of field performances of minitubers and micro tubers used in seed potato production. Turkish Journal of Field Crops 15 (2): 141-147.

20. Rashed Mohassel, M. H., Aliverdi, A., and Rahimi, S. 2011. Optimizing dosage of sethoxydim and fenoxaprop-p-ethyl with adjuvants to control wild oat. Industrial Crops and Products 34: 1583-1587.

21. Romero-Aranda, M. R., Jurado, O., and Cuartero, J. 2006. Silicon alleviates the deleterious salt effect on tomato plant growth by improving plant water status. Journal of Plant Physiology 163: 847-855.

22. Saadatian, B., and Kafi, M. 2015. Study of nutritional role of silicon nano-particles on physiological characteristics of minituber potato production. Journal of Plant Production Research 22: 173-189. (in Persian with English abstract).

23. Sairam, R. K. 1994. Effect of moisture stress on physiological activities of two con-trasting wheat genotypes. Indian Journal. Experimental of Biology 32: 594-597.

24. Samuels, A. L., Glass, A. D. M., Ehret, D. L., and Menzies, J. G. 1993. The effects of silicon supplementation on cucumber fruit: Changes in surface characteristics. Journal of Annual Botany 72: 433-440.

25. Shen, X., Zhou, Y., Duan, L., Li, Z., Eneji, A. E., and Li, J. 2010. Silicon effects on photosynthesis and antioxidant parameters of soybean seedlings under drought and ultraviolet-B radiation. Journal of Plant Physiology 167: 1248-1252.

26. Tuna A. L., Kaya, C., Higgs, D., Murillo-Amador, B., Aydemir, S., and Girgin, A. R. 2008. Silicon improves salinity tolerance in wheat plants. Environmental Experiment of Botany 62: 10-16.

27. Tyree, M. T., Scherbatskoy, T. D., and Tabor, C. A. 1990. Leaf cuticles behave as asymetric membranes. Evidence from the measurement of diffusion potentials. Plant Physiology 92: 103-109.

28. Wojcik, P. 2004. Uptake of mineral nutrients from foliar fertilization (Review). Journal of Fruit and Ornamental Plant Research 12: 201-218.

29. Zare, H. R, Ghanbarzadeh, Z., Behdad, A., and Mohsenzadeh, S. 2016. Effect of silicon and nano silicon on reduction of damage caused by salt stress in maize (Zea mays) seedlings. Iranian Journal of plant biology 7 (26): 59-74. (in Persian with English abstract).