Effect of salicylic acid spraying and application of biofertilizers on the physiological characteristics and yield of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) cultivars under rainfed conditions

پژوهش‌های حبوبات ایران

Volume 12, Issue 2 - Serial Number 24, December 2021, Pages 136-150   

Document Type: Original Article

DOI: 10.22067/ijpr.v12i2.87109

Authors

Fardin Momeni¹; Alireza Abdali Mashhadi^{* 1}; Seyeed Ataolah Siadat¹; Babak Pakdaman Sardrood²; Mokhtar Ghobadi³

¹Department of Plant Production and Genetics, Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Mollasani, Iran

²Plant Pathology Department, Khuzestan Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University, Mollasani, Iran

³Department of Plant Production and Genetics, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
Chickpea is one of the valuable pulses and rich source of protein. In most years, in west of Iran, the amount of rainfall is low and the distribution of rainfall is not suitable. In many cases, rainfed lands are affected by drought stress. On the other hand, most rainfed lands have low fertility, especially in nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients. In higher plants, salicylic acid applied to reduce the dangerous effects of drought stress. Different varieties of chickpeas show different responses to environmental changes. This experiment was carried out in order to investigate the effect of salicylic acid and biofertilizers on the physiological characteristics of two chickpea cultivars.
 
Materials and Methods
This experiment was done in factorial based on randomized complete block design with three replications in Kermanshah under rainfed conditions in the 2016. Kermanshah is located at an altitude of 1319 m of sea level (Latitude: 34°21′ N and Longitude: 47°9′ E). Experimental treatments included two chickpea cultivars (Bivanij and Azad), foliar spraying of salicylic acid (non-application, 0.5 and 1 mill molar concentrations) and biological fertilizer (non-application of biofertilizers, bio-superphosphate bacteria (Pseudomonas+Enterobacter), biosulfur bacteria (Thiobacillus spp.), a rhizobium bacterium (Mesorhizobium ciceri), and mycorrhiza fungus (Rhizophagus irregularis). Each plot was six m² (four meters long and 1.5 meters wide) with 6 lines (density= 40 plants per m², sowing line spacing= 25 cm, sowing distance on each line= 10 cm and sowing depth= 7 cm). The sowing date was March 19. The studied traits were relative water content, relative water loss, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a/b ratio, carotenoids, hydrogen peroxide, catalase and peroxidase enzyme activity and grain yield.
 
Results and Discussion
Foliar spraying of salicylic acid and the application of biofertilizers increased the production of hydrogen peroxide and decreased the activity of catalase and peroxidase enzymes. The highest catalase activity were obtained in Bivanij cultivar×non-application of salicylic acid, Bivanij cultivar×non-use of biofertilizer, non-application of salicylic acid and the lowest catalase activity were obtained in Azad cultivar×one mM salicylic acid, Bivanij cultivar×bio-superphosphate and one mM salicylic acid×biosulfur application. The highest and lowest peroxidase activity were obtained under non-application of salicylic acid×non-application of biofertilizer and one mM salicylic acid×rhizobium application, respectively. The highest relative water loss (RWL) was obtained in Bivanij cultivar×non-application of biofertilizer, while the lowest RWL was observed in Azad cultivar×biosulfur application biofertilizer. Relatively, the content of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll a/b, total chlorophyll and carotenoids increased with the application of biofertilizers. Bivanij cultivar had a higher grain yield than Azad cultivar. In both Bivanij and Azad varieties, the highest grain yield was obtained from the use of rhizobium and mycorrhiza biofertilizers. The highest grain yield (1626 kg.ha^-1) was observed from the application of the concentration of 0.5 mM of salicylic acid and rhizobium biofertilizer. In both Bivanij and Azad varieties, the highest catalase activity was observed due to non-use of salicylic acid and non-application of biofertilizer.
 
Conclusion
In general, at all three levels of salicylic acid, the highest peroxidase activity was observed in the absence of biofertilizer application. It is possible that biofertilizers reduce both nutrient deficiencies and drought stress, thus reducing peroxidase activity. In general, in this experiment, in terms of grain yield and physiological traits affecting grain yield, between the cultivars, native Bivanij cultivar, among the salicylic acid levels, the concentration of 0.5 mmol and among the biofertilizers, rhizobium biofertilizer were superior treatments.

Keywords

Antioxidant; Carotenoids; Catalase; Chlorophyll; Hydrogen peroxide

References

1. Amani, N., Sohrabi, Y., and Heidari, G. 2017. Yield and some physiological characteristics in maize by application of bio and chemical fertilizers under drought levels. Journal of Agricultural Science and Sustainable Production 27(2):65-83. (In Persian with English Summary).
2. Arnon, A.N. 1967. Method of extraction of chlorophyll in the plants: Agronomy Journal 23: 112-121.
3. Akhtar, M., Jamil, M., Ahamd, M., and Abbasi, G. 2017. Evaluation of biofertilizer in combination with organic amendments and rock phosphate enriched compost for improving productivity of chickpea and maiz. Soil and Environment 36(01):59-69.
4. Amir, M., Aslam, A., Khan, M.Y., Jamshaid, M.U., Ahmad, M., Asghar, H.N., and Zahir, Z.A. 2013. Co-inoculation with Rhizobium and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for inducing salinity tolerance in mung bean under field conditions of semiarid climate. Asian Journal of Agriculture and Biology1(1):17-22.
5. Beres, B.L., McKenzie, R.H., Cárcamo, H.A., Dosdall, L.M., Evenden, M.L., Yang, R.C., and Spaner, D.M. 2012. Influence of seeding rate, nitrogen management and micronutrient blend applications on pith expression in solid-stemmed spring wheat. Crop Science 52: 1316-1329.
6. Bhutali, R.V., and Lal, E.P. 2017. Ameliorative effect of salicylic acid on yield, biochemical and antioxidant parameters of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) under drought stress. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences 6(8): 1388-1399.
7. Chance, B., and Maehly, A. C. 1955. Assay of catalase and peroxidase. Methods in Enzymology 2: 764-775.
8. Cornic, G. 1994. Drought stress and high light effects on leaf photosynthesis. In: R. Baker and J.R. Bowyer(Eds.). Photoinhibition of Photosynthesis from Molecular Mechanisms to the field. pp. 297-313.
9. Dahal B.R., and Bhandari S. 2019. Biofertilizer: A next generation fertilizer for sustainable rice production. International Journal of Graduate Research and Review 5(1): 1-5
10. Elhakem, A.H. 2019. Impact of salicylic acid application on growth, photosynthetic pigments and organic osmolytes response in Mentha arvensis under drought stress. Journal of Biological Sciences 19: 372-380.
11. Farjam S., and Siosemadrdeh, A. 2014.Response of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) to exogenous salicylic acid and ascorbic acid under vegetative and reproductive drought stress conditions. Journal of Applied Botany and Food Quality 87: 80-86.
12. Fazeli, A., Zarei, B., and Tahmasebi, Z. 2017. The effect of salinity stress and salicylic acid on some physiological and biochemical traits of Black cumin (Nigella sativa). Iranian Journal of Plant Biology 9(4): 69-84. (In Persian with English Summary).
13. Fetri, M., Ghobadi, M.E., Ghobadi, M., and Mohammadi, G. 2016. Effect of sowing depth and mulching types on soil water storage at different growth stages of chickpea under rain fed farming. Iranian Journal of Pulses Research 7(1): 135-144.
14. Ghiazdowska, A., Krasuska, U., and Bogatek, R. 2010. Dormancy removal in apple embryos by nitric oxide or cyanide involves modifications in ethylene biosynthetic pathway. Planta 232: 1397-1407.
15. Hayat, Q., Hayat, S., Alyemeni, M.N., and Ahmad, A. 2012. Salicylic acid mediated changes in growth, photosynthesis, nitrogen metabolism and antioxidant defense system in Cicer arietinum Plant, Soil and Environment 58(9): 417-423.
16. Jesfar, A.B.M., Rifky, A.L.M., and Rinos, M.H.M. 2018. Study on the feasibility of chickpea cultivation in Ampara area in Sri Lanka. International Journal of Academic and Applied Research 2: 1-4.
17. Karasu, A., Öz, M., and Dogan, R. 2009. The effect of bacterial inoculation and different nitrogen doses on yield and yield components of some chickpea genotypes (Cicer arietinum ). African Journal of Biotechnology 8(1): 59-64.
18. Khan, N., and Bano, A. 2019. Exopolysaccharide producing rhizobacteria and their impact on growth and drought tolerance of wheat grown under rainfed conditions. Plos One 14(9): e0222302. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0222302
19. Khan, N., Zandi, P., Ali, S., Mehmood, A., Adnan Shahid, M., and Yang, J. 2018. Impact of salicylic acid and PGPR on the drought tolerance and phytoremediation potential of Helianthus annus .Frontiers in Microbiology 9: doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2018.02507
20. Mansourifar, S., Shaban, M., Ghobadi, M., and Sabaghpoor, S.H. 2012. Physiological characteristics of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) cultivars under drought stress and nitrogen fertilizer as starter. Iranian Journal of Pulses Research 3(1): 53-66. (In Persian with English Summary).
21. Niu, L., and Liao, W. 2016. Hydrogen peroxide signaling in plant development and abiotic responses: crosstalk with nitric oxide and c Frontiers in Plant Science 7:230. doi:10.3389/fpls.2016.00230
22. Norouzi, M., Sajedi, N.A., and Gomarian, M. 2018. Effects of salicylic acid and selenium at growth stages on yield and yield components of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) under dryland farming condition. Environmental Stresses in Crop Sciences 11(3): 579-589. (In Persian with English Summary).
23. Pandey, V.P., Awasthi, M, Singh, S., Tiwari, S., and Dwivedi, U.N. 2017. A comprehensive review on function and application of plant peroxidases. Biochemistry and Analytical Biochemistry6(1): doi:10.4172/2161-1009.1000308
24. Rajabi, L., Sajadi, N.A., and Roshandel, M. 2012. Intraction of salicylic acid and superabsorbent on agronomocal characteristic and protein percentage chickpea cultivar Hashem in condition of dryland. Crop Production in Environmental Stress 4(1):37-48. (In Persian with English Summary).
25. Ramezannezhad, R., Lahouti, M., and Ganjali, A. 2013. Effect of salicylic acid on physiological and biochemical parameters on resistant and sensitive chickpea (Cicer arietinum) genotypes under drought stress. Journal of Plant Ecophysiology 5(12): 24-36. (In Persian with English Summary).
26. Riaz, A., Rafique, M., Aftab, M., Qureshi, M.A., Javed, H., Mujeeb, F., and Akhtar, S. 2019. Mitigation of salinity in chickpea by Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria and salicylic acid. Eurasian Journal of Soil Science 8(3): 221-
27. Salahi Farahi, M., Dadashi, M.R., and Ajam Norouzi, H. 2016. Effects of planting date, row spacing and Zn and nitrogen fertilizers on rain feed chickpea in Gonbad. Journal of Plant Ecophysiology 9(32): 26-36.
28. Sharma, A., Shahzad, B., Kumar, V., Kohli, S.K., Sidhu, G.P.S., Bali, A.S., Handa, N., Kapoor, D., Bhardwaj, R., and Zheng, B. 2019. Phytohormones regulate accumulation of osmolytes under abiotic s Biomolecules 9: 285. doi:10.3390/biom9070285
29. Shen, G., Ju, W., Liu, Y., Guo, X., Zhao, W., and Fang, L. 2019. Impact of urea addition and Rhizobium inoculation on plant resistance in metal contaminated s International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16(11): 1-17.
30. Shooryabi, M., and Ganjeali, A. 2012. Investigating the effect of salicylic asid on enzymes activity and antioxidant compounds of chickpea (Cicer arietinum) cultivars under drought stress. Environmental Stress in Crop Sciences 5(1): 41-54. (In Persian with English Summary).
31. Shweta, S., and Kaur, M. 2017. Plant hormones synthesized by microorganisms and their role in biofertilizer- A review article. International Journal of Advanced Research5(12):1753-1763.
32. Wenhugsic, E.R.B. 1992. Structure biosanteetic of peroxidase from peinot cells, plant peroxidasses.X.U, analysis of osmotic adjustment in crop plants. Journal of Experimental Botany 50: 291-302.