1. Effects of different foliar nitrogen fertilizers on cellular nitrogen metabolism and biomass of two shrub willow cultivars
- Author
-
Gagne, Maegan A., Minocha, Rakesh, Long, Stephanie, and Minocha, Subhash C.
- Subjects
Urea -- Analysis ,Urea as fertilizer -- Analysis ,Biomass energy -- Analysis ,Polyamines -- Analysis ,Arginine -- Analysis ,Cultivars -- Analysis ,Nitrogen fertilizers -- Analysis ,Earth sciences - Abstract
We examined the effects of foliar supplementation of different nitrogen sources (urea, Nitamin, N[H.sub.4]N[O.sub.3], and arginine) to study their efficacy as fertilizers for growth of two clonally propagated shrub willow cultivars; namely, 'Fish Creek' (Salix purpurea L.) and 'Preble' (Salix viminalis L. x (Salix sachalinensis F. Schmidt x Salix miyabeana Seemen)). Our objectives were to determine (i) if foliar nitrogen application is an effective method of fertilization for the two shrub willows and (ii) if different nitrogen sources are metabolized similarly by the plants. The analyses involved soluble leaf polyamines, amino acids, total protein, total nitrogen and carbon, and plant biomass in response to short-term treatments with four sources of nitrogen. The effects of foliar nitrogen application on leaf chemistry, biomass, and foliar nitrogen content varied according to the form of nitrogen used. The data indicate that (i) urea is the most suitable nitrogen source for foliar spray (29% higher N accumulation vs. Nitamin), whereas arginine is the least suitable, and (ii) different nitrogen sources are metabolized differently by the plant. While the foliar nitrogen application method could become a practical and sustainable way to fertilize shrub willows and other short-rotation biofuel crops, it may also help reduce nitrogen loss to the environment. Key words: amino acids, foliar application, nitrogen assimilation, polyamines, shrub willows, urea. Nous avons observe les effets de differentes sources d'azote applique directement sur le feuillage (uree, Nitamin, N[H.sub.4]N[O.sub.3] et arginine) pour etudier leur efficacite comme fertilisant pour la croissance de deux cultivars de saule arbustif propages de facon clonale, nommement 'Fish Creek' (Salix purpurea L.) et 'Preble' (Salix viminalis L. x (Salix sachalinensis F. Schmidt x Salix miyabeana Seemen)). Nos objectifs consistaient a determiner (i) si l'application foliaire d'azote est une methode efficace pour les deux saules arbustifs et (ii) si la maniere dont l'azote est metabolise par les plants differe selon la source. Les analyses du feuillage ont porte sur les polyamines solubles, les acides amines, les proteines totales, l'azote et le carbone totaux ainsi que la biomasse des plants en reaction aux traitements a court terme avec quatre sources d'azote. Les effets de l'application foliaire d'azote sur les caracteristiques chimiques, la biomasse et la teneur en azote des feuilles variaient selon la forme d'azote utilisee. Les donnees indiquent que (i) l'uree est la source d'azote la plus appropriee pour un epandage foliaire (accumulation de N 29 % plus elevee qu'avec Nitamin), tandis que l'arginine est la source la moins appropriee, et (ii) differentes sources d'azote sont metabolisees differemment par les plants. Alors que l'application foliaire d'azote pourrait devenir une facon pratique et durable de fertiliser les saules arbustifs et d'autres cultures a courte rotation pour la production de biocombustibles, cela pourrait aussi contribuer a reduire les pertes d'azote dans l'environnement. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles: acides aminees, application foliaire, assimilation de l'azote, polyamines, saules arbustifs, uree., Introduction Global consumption of synthetic nitrogen (N) fertilizer increased almost 10-fold in 2015 compared with the early 1960s (FAO data, http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/GY). Although the norm, soil application of N fertilizer can [...]
- Published
- 2019
- Full Text
- View/download PDF