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Biofortification of wheat, rice and common bean by applying foliar zinc fertilizer along with pesticides in seven countries

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Abstract

Aims

Rice (Oryza sativa L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) are major staple food crops consumed worldwide. Zinc (Zn) deficiency represents a common micronutrient deficiency in human populations, especially in regions of the world where staple food crops are the main source of daily calorie intake. Foliar application of Zn fertilizer has been shown to be effective for enriching food crop grains with Zn to desirable amounts for human nutrition. For promoting adoption of this practice by growers, it is important to know whether foliar Zn fertilizers can be applied along with pesticides to wheat, rice and also common bean grown across different soil and environmental conditions.

Methods

The feasibility of foliar application of zinc sulphate (ZnSO4.7H2O) to wheat, rice and common bean in combination with commonly used five fungicides and nine insecticides was investigated under field conditions at the 31 sites-years of seven countries, i.e., China, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Turkey, Brazil and Zambia.

Results

Significant increases in grain yields were observed with foliar Zn/foliar Zn + pesticide (5.2–7.7 % of wheat and 1.6–4.2 % of rice) over yields with no Zn treatment. In wheat, as average of all experiments, higher grain Zn concentrations were recorded with foliar Zn alone (41.2 mg kg−1) and foliar Zn + pesticide (38.4 mg kg−1) as compared to no Zn treatment (28.0 mg kg−1). Though the magnitude of grain Zn enrichment was lesser in rice than wheat, grain Zn concentrations in brown rice were significantly higher with foliar Zn (24.1 mg kg−1) and foliar Zn + pesticide (23.6 mg kg−1) than with no Zn (19.1 mg kg−1). In case of common bean, grain Zn concentration increased from 68 to 78 mg kg−1 with foliar Zn alone and to 77 mg kg−1 with foliar Zn applied in combination with pesticides. Thus, grain Zn enrichment with foliar Zn, without or with pesticides, was almost similar in all the tested crops.

Conclusions

The results obtained at the 31 experimental site-years of seven countries revealed that foliar Zn fertilization can be realized in combination with commonly-applied pesticides to contribute Zn biofortification of grains in wheat, rice and common bean. This agronomic approach represents a useful practice for the farmers to alleviate Zn deficiency problem in human populations.

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Acknowledgments

This study was financially supported by HarvestPlus Program (www.harvestplus.org) and the sponsors of the HarvestPlus Global Zinc Fertilizer Project (www.harvestzinc.org) including Mosaic Company, K + S Kali, Bayer CropScience, ADOB, Valagro, Omex Agrifluids, International Zinc Association, International Fertilizer Industry Association, FBSciences, ATP Nutrition and International Plant Nutrition Institute.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, 141 004, Punjab, India

    H. Ram, R. S. Bal, S. S. Malik & V. S. Sohu

  2. Pakistan Academy of Sciences, Islamabad, Pakistan

    A. Rashid

  3. Department of Plant Nutrition, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, People’s Republic of China

    W. Zhang & C. Q. Zou

  4. Agronomic Institute (IAC), Postal Box 28, 13012-970, Campinas, Brazil

    A. P. Duarte & R. Freitas

  5. Plant Genetic Resource and Nutrition Lab., Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand

    N. Phattarakul & B. Rerkasem

  6. Golden Valley Agricultural Research Trust, P.O. Box 50834, Lusaka, Zambia

    S. Simunji

  7. Transitional Zone Agricultural Research Institute, 26002, Eskisehir, Turkey

    M. Kalayci & E. Savasli

  8. Soil Science Division, Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    K. Mahmood

  9. Department of Soil Science, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia

    O Lungu

  10. College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A & F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, People’s Republic of China

    Z. H. Wang

  11. Apta Regional, Postal Box 62, 18300-970, Capão Bonito, Brazil

    V. L. N. P. de Barros

  12. BD International Agricultural Research Institute, 42020, Konya, Turkey

    R. Z. Arisoy

  13. College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Weigang 1, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China

    J. X. Guo

  14. Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Sabanci University, 34956, Istanbul, Turkey

    I. Cakmak

Authors
  1. H. Ram
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  2. A. Rashid
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  3. W. Zhang
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  4. A. P. Duarte
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  5. N. Phattarakul
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  6. S. Simunji
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  7. M. Kalayci
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  9. B. Rerkasem
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  10. R. S. Bal
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  11. K. Mahmood
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  12. E. Savasli
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  13. O Lungu
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  14. Z. H. Wang
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  15. V. L. N. P. de Barros
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  16. S. S. Malik
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  17. R. Z. Arisoy
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  18. J. X. Guo
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  19. V. S. Sohu
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  20. C. Q. Zou
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  21. I. Cakmak
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to I. Cakmak.

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Responsible Editor: Fangjie Zhao.

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Ram, H., Rashid, A., Zhang, W. et al. Biofortification of wheat, rice and common bean by applying foliar zinc fertilizer along with pesticides in seven countries. Plant Soil 403, 389–401 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-016-2815-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-016-2815-3

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