Abstract
An experiment to study the effects of Mg nutrition on root and shoot development of the Al-sensitive sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) genotype CV323 grown in pots of sandy loam under different acid soil stress is reported. This experiment had a factorial design: four rates of liming were combined with four rates of Mg fertilization. When no Mg was added, the pH of the soil solutions (collected in ceramic cups) increased from 4.0 (unlimed) to 4.2, 4.7 and 5.9 at the increasing rates of liming. After 30 days of growth dry matter yields of the limed treatments were 40%, 115% and 199% higher than that of the unlimed treatment. Without liming and at the highest liming rate, adding Mg did not affect plant biomass significantly. At the two intermediate levels of liming, however, 11.3 mg extra Mg per kg soil increased dry matter yield to the same levels as found at the highest liming rate. Concentrations of Mg in the soil solution rose after Mg was added and fell when lime was added, but adding both Mg and lime increased Mg concentrations in the plant shoots. In plants of the limed treatments, dry matter yield was correlated closely with the Mg concentration in the shoot. This was not so in the unlimed treatment. Furthermore, in the unlimed treatments root development was inhibited, but reduced Mg uptake by the plants resulted mainly from the direct effect of Al- (or H-) ions in the soil solution rather than from impaired root development. It is concluded that Mg fertilization counteracted the interfering effects of Al- and H ions on Mg uptake.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Clark R B 1977 Effect of aluminium on growth and mineral elements of Al-tolerant and Al-intolerant corn. Plant and Soil 47, 653–662.
Duncan R R 1987 Sorghum genotype comparisons under variable acid soil stress. J. Plant Nutr. 10, 1079–1088.
Fageria N K, Baligar V C and Wright R J 1989 Growth and nutrient concentrations of alfalfa and common bean as influenced by soil acidity. Plant and Soil 119, 331–333.
Foy C D, Chaney R L and White M C 1978 The physiology of metal toxicity in plants. Annu. Rev. Plant Physiol. 29, 511–566.
Gallaher R N, Harris H B, Anderson O E and Dobson Jr J W 1975 Hybrid grain sorghum response to magnesium fertilization. Agron. J. 67, 297–300.
Grimme H 1982 The effect of Al on Mg uptake and yield of oats. Proc. IX Intl. Plant Nutr. Colloq. 1, 198–203. Commonwealth Agric. Bureaux, UK.
Grimme H 1984 Aluminium tolerance of soybean plants as related to magnesium nutrition. Proc. VI Intl. Colloq. for Optimization of Plant Nutrition. 1, 243–249. Montpellier Cedex, France.
Grundon N J, Edwards D G, Takkar P N, Asher C J and Clark R B 1987 Nutritional disorders of grain sorghum. Australian Centre for Intern. Agric. Res., Australia. 38 p.
Hill U T 1966 New direct spectrophotometric determination of aluminium in steel, spelter, and iron ores. Anal. Chem. 38, 654–656.
Islam A K M S, Edwards D G and Asher C J 1980 pH optima for crop growth: Results of a flowing solution culture experiment with six species. Plant and Soil 54, 339–357.
Keltjens W G 1987 Nitrogen source and aluminium toxicity of two sorghum genotypes differing in aluminium susceptibility. J. Plant Nutr. 10, 841–856.
Keltjens W G and van Ulden P S R 1987 Effects of Al on nitrogen (NH +4 and NO −3 ) uptake, nitrate reductase activity and proton release in two sorghum cultivars differing in Al tolerance. Plant and Soil 104, 227–234.
Kuo S and Mikkelsen D S 1981 Effect of P and Mn on growth response and uptake of Fe, Mn and P by sorghum. Plant and Soil 62, 15–22.
Lockman R B 1972 Mineral composition of grain sorghum plant samples. III. Suggested nutrient sufficiency limits at various stages of growth. Commun. Soil Sci. Plant Anal. 3, 295–303.
Newman E I 1966 A method of estimating the total length of root in a sample. J. Appl. Ecol. 3, 139–145.
Nye P H and Tinker P B 1977 Solute Movement in the Soil-Root System. pp 6–7. Blackwell Sci. Publ., Oxford.
Rengel Z and Robinson D L 1989 Competitive Al3+ inhibition of net Mg2+ uptake by intactLodium multiforum roots. I. Kinetics. Plant Physiol. 91, 1407–1413.
Reuter D J 1986 Temperate und sub-tropical crops.In Plant Analysis: An Interpretation Manual. Eds. D J Reuter and J B Robinson. pp 38–99. Inkata Press Pty Ltd., Melbourne, Australia.
Ritchie G S P 1989 The chemical behaviour of aluminium, hydrogen and manganese in acid soils.In Soil Acidity and Plant Growth. Ed. A D Robson. pp 1–60. Academic Press, Australia.
Rowell D L 1988 Soil acidity and alkalinity.In Soil Conditions and Plant Growth. Ed. A Wild. pp 844–898. Longman, London.
Tan K and Keltjens W G 1990 Effects of aluminium on growth, nutrient uptake, proton efflux and phosphorus assimilation of Al-tolerant and-sensitive sorghum genotypes.In Plant Nutrition-Physiology and Application. Ed. M L van Beusichem. pp 397–401. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands.
Thawornwong N and van Diest A 1974 Influences of high acidity and aluminium on the growth of lowland rice. Plant and Soil 41, 141–159.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tan, K., Keltjens, W.G. & Findenegg, G.R. Role of magnesium in combination with liming in alleviating acid-soil stress with the aluminium-sensitive sorghum genotype CV323. Plant Soil 136, 65–71 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02465221
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02465221