Abstract
Aims
The increasing global demand for sustainably-produced crops has led to a renewed interest in exploiting unprocessed rocks as soil amendments and fertilizers. Carbonatite rocks are of particular relevance because of their rapid weathering rates and diverse nutrient contents. However, there are insufficient data to support or refute their efficacy and to understand their mechanism(s) of action. Here, the effects of a carbonatite on two crops were assessed and compared to those of calcitic lime.
Methods
Wheat and pea were repeatedly grown under a low-nutrient regime under greenhouse conditions and their development, biomass, and shoot nutrient content were measured. The effect of the carbonatite on soil CO2 evolution was also tested for wheat.
Results
Wheat grown with carbonatite produced 40% more shoot biomass and 50% more root biomass than plants grown with lime. There was a sharp reduction in specific root length (SRL), consistent with approximately 60% increases in shoot contents of N, P, K, and Mn. These effects were smaller for pea. For wheat, CO2 from the soil was 70% greater with lime than with carbonatite.
Conclusions
We conclude that carbonatites can provide benefits to plants beyond serving as liming agents. In addition, root architecture and SRL appear to be useful traits for predicting plant responsiveness to carbonatite addition.
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Abbreviations
- DAP:
-
Days after planting
- DW:
-
Dry weight
- HSD:
-
Honest Significant Difference
- R:S ratio:
-
Root:shoot ratio
- SRL:
-
Specific root length
- SRC:
-
Spanish River Carbonatite
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Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge that the carbonatite deposit and Algoma University are located in the Robinson-Huron Treaty territory and the traditional territory of the Anishnaabe, specifically the Garden River and Batchewana First Nations, as well as Métis People. Additionally, Wilfrid Laurier University is located on the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee, Neutral, and Anishnaabe peoples. JMCJ wishes to gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and of the WLU Office of Graduate and Post-Graduate studies. FCG and PMA are thankful to Boreal Agrominerals for their financial support and for providing the carbonatite, and PMA to NSERC for a Discovery Grant and a Canada Research Chair. We also wish to thank Dr. Kevin Stevens for the use of his WinRHIZO™ software and flatbed scanner, and Charlie Dunsmore for donating the lime used in the experiments. Finally, we wish to acknowledge the contributions of the late Dr. Alizera Navabi (Department of Plant Agriculture, Guelph University) to this project, as his expertise and guidance with wheat were gratefully appreciated.
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Jones, J.M., Guinel, F.C. & Antunes, P.M. Carbonatite rock can enhance plant growth and nutrition depending on crop traits. Plant Soil 465, 335–347 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05001-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05001-z