Abstract
Aims
The objective of our study was to confirm if hydraulic lift (HL) promotes nutrient uptake in field-grown plants in the same way as demonstrated previously in pot-grown plants.
Methods
We conducted a field experiment in an agroforestry system, over an entire growing season that included a dry period and a wet period. We used a shallow-root crop plant, mung bean (Vigna radiata L.), intercropped with walnut (Juglans regia L.) and jujube (Zizyphus jujube Mill.), as an indicator for the presence of HL and its effects on nutrient uptake. To monitor HL, we artificially applied deuterium isotope to the deep roots of trees.
Results
We demonstrated the presence of a natural nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium gradient along the soil depth, and the occurrence of HL, evidenced by deuterium signature in the shallow soil layers and V. radiata stem, only during the dry season. J. regia and Z. jujube both had deep root systems, but the former species exhibited stronger HL to the shallow soil than the latter. Meanwhile, the upper soil layers of J. regia had significantly higher moisture content, and the intercropped V. radiata had higher nutrient content.
Conclusion
HL can facilitate water uptake by V. radiata from the upper soil layers in the field condition during the dry season, which relates to nutrient acquisition by the crop.
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Acknowledgments
We greatly acknowledge Professor Melvin Thomas Tyree and two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments on earlier versions of this manuscript. This study has been supported by the 12th 5-year key technology program of China (2011BAD38B02), the basic research foundation from the Institute of New Forestry Technology, Chinese Academy of Forestry (CAFINT2010K09), and CFERN & GENE Award Funds.
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Sun, SJ., Meng, P., Zhang, JS. et al. Hydraulic lift by Juglans regia relates to nutrient status in the intercropped shallow-root crop plant. Plant Soil 374, 629–641 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-013-1888-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-013-1888-5