Purpose

The objective was to evaluate soluble sources of silicon (Si) applied through fertigation in mitigating water deficit in maize plants. Another objective was to determine the physiological and nutritional effects involved.

Methods

The study was carried out in a greenhouse in pots filled with Oxisol. The treatments were arranged in a 3 x 2 factorial scheme, consisting of Si supply from soluble sources: sodium and potassium silicate stabilized with sorbitol (Si-alkali), potassium silicate (Si-K), plus the control (absence of Si); and two soil water regimes: 70% (without deficit) and 30% (severe water deficit) of soil water retention capacity. The experiment used a randomized block design, with six replications. Si was supplied at a concentration of 2 mmol L^-1, applied through fertigation. Four applications were performed, starting at 12 days after seedling emergence.

Results

The soluble sources of Si applied through fertigation promoted the uptake of this element by maize plants even under water restriction. Si mitigated the damage caused by severe water deficit in maize plants because it kept the relative leaf water content, decreased the cell leakage index, and preserved the content of photosynthetic pigments, which increased quantum efficiency of photosystem II, content and use efficiency of macronutrients, thus leading to greater growth and biomass.

Conclusion

The damage caused by severe water deficit in plants can be mitigated by using a relatively low supply of Si through fertigation. Si addition in irrigated crops improves the use of water resources, proving to be a strategy for sustainable agricultural production.

中文翻译：

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适当来源的硅施肥可降低缺水条件下玉米的需水量

目的

目的是评估通过施肥施用的可溶性硅 (Si) 来源在减轻玉米植物缺水方面的作用。另一个目标是确定所涉及的生理和营养影响。

方法

该研究是在温室中装满 Oxisol 的花盆中进行的。处理以 3 x 2 阶乘方案排列，由可溶性来源的硅供应组成：用山梨糖醇（Si-碱）、硅酸钾（Si-K）稳定的硅酸钠和硅酸钾，加上对照（无硅）；和两种土壤水分状况：土壤保水能力的 70%（无亏缺）和 30%（严重缺水）。该实验采用随机区组设计，重复六次。^{Si以2 mmol L -1}的浓度提供，通过施肥施用。从出苗后 12 天开始，进行了 4 次施用。

结果

通过灌溉施肥的可溶性硅源促进了玉米植物对这种元素的吸收，即使在限水条件下也是如此。Si减轻了玉米植株严重缺水造成的损害，因为它保持了相对叶片含水量，降低了细胞渗漏指数，并保留了光合色素的含量，从而增加了光系统II的量子效率，大量营养素的含量和利用效率，从而导致更大的增长和生物量。

结论

通过灌溉施肥使用相对较低的硅供应可以减轻植物严重缺水造成的损害。在灌溉作物中添加硅提高了水资源的利用，证明是可持续农业生产的一种策略。