Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Role of Potassium: An Overview

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Role of Potassium in Plants

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Plant Science ((BRIEFSPLANT))

  • 800 Accesses

Abstract

In agriculture, constant need and demand of fertilizers for improving crop quality is increasing in the present scenario, particularly in developing countries. Due to low amount of plant-available potassium (K) in the soil, one of the major cynosures for agriculturists is to increase the K availability to the plants using various strategies. K participates in many cellular activities as it is often present as a co-factor for the enzymes. Apart from this, it has many physiological roles described in this chapter.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Amtmann, A., Troufflard, S., & Armengaud, P. (2008). The effect of potassium nutrition on pest and disease resistance in plants. Physiologia Plantarum, 133, 682–691.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Armstrong, C. M. (2003). The Na/K pump, Cl ion, and osmotic stabilization of cells. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 100, 6257–6262.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ashraf, K. U., Josts, I., Mosbahi, K., Kelly, S. M., Byron, O., Smith, B. O., & Walker, D. (2016). The potassium binding protein Kbp is a cytoplasmic potassium sensor. Structure, 24, 741–749.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Basal, B. B., & Biswas, D. R. (2008). Influence of potassium solubilizing microorganism (Bacillus mucilaginosus) and waste mica on potassium uptake dynamics by sudan grass (Sorghum vulgare Pers.) grown under two Alfisols | SpringerLink. Plant and Soil, 317, 235–255.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, P. C., Choi, W. J., & Rogers, J. R. (1988). Microbial destruction of feldspars. Mineralogical Magazine, 8, 149–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, Y. X., Lin, Q., Lu, F., & He, Y. (2000). Study on detoxication of organic acid to raddish under the stress of Pb and Cd. Acta Scientiae Circumstantiae, 20, 467–472.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dessougi, H. E., Claassen, N., & Steingrobe, B. (2002). Potassium efficiency mechanisms of wheat, barley, and sugar beet grown on a K fixing soil under controlled conditions. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science, 165, 732–737.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dreyer, I., & Uozumi, N. (2011). Potassium channels in plant cells. The FEBS Journal, 278, 4293–4303.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Egilla, J. N., Davies, F. T., & Drew, M. C. (2001). Effect of potassium on drought resistance of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis cv. Leprechaun: Plant growth, leaf macro- and micronutrient content and root longevity. Plant and Soil, 229, 213–224.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Epstein, W. (2003). The roles and regulation of potassium in bacteria. Progress in Nucleic Acid Research and Molecular Biology, 75, 293–320.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fang, S. X., Yan, H. L., & Yi, H. W. (2002). The conditions of releasing potassium by a silicate-dissolving bacterial strain NBT. Agricultural Sciences in China, 1, 662–666.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goulding, K. W. T., & Loveland, P. J. (1986). The classification and mapping of potassium reserves in soils of England and Wales. Journal of Soil Science, 37, 555–565.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Han, H. S., & Lee, K. D. (2005). Phosphate and potassium solubilizing bacteria effect on mineral uptake, soil availability and growth of eggplant. Research Journal of Agriculture and Biological Sciences, 1, 176–180.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinsinger, P., & Jaillard, B. (1993). Root induced release of interlayer potassium and vermiculitization of phlogopite as related to potassium depletion in the rhizosphere of ryegrass. Journal of Soil Science, 44, 525–534.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hosseinpur, A. R., Salehi, M. H., & Motaghian, H. R. (2012). Potassium release kinetics and its correlation with pinto bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) plant indices | Request PDF. Plant Soil and Environment, 58, 328–333.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jeschke, W. D., Kirkby, E. A., Peuke, A. D., Pate, J. S., & Hartung, W. (1997). Effects of P deficiency on assimilation and transport of nitrate and phosphate in intact plants of castor bean (Ricinus communis L.). Journal of Experimental Botany, 48(1), 75–91.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kraffczyk, I., Trolldenier, G., & Beringer, H. (1984). Soluble root exudates of maize: Influence of potassium supply and rhizosphere microorganisms. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 16, 315–322.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Leigh, R. A., & Jones, R. G. W. (1984). A hypothesis relating critical potassium concentrations for growth to the distribution and functions of this ion in the plant cell. New Phytologist, 97(1), 1–13.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lodish, H., Berk, A., Zipursky, S. L., Matsudaira, P., Baltimore, D., & Darnell, J. (2000). Intracellular ion environment and membrane electric potential. In S. Tenney (Ed.), Molecular cell biology. New York: W. H. Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maroulis, S. L., Schofield, P. J., & Edwards, M. R. (2003). Osmoregulation in the parasitic protozoan Tritrichomonas foetus. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 69, 4527–4533.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Marschner, P. (2012). Mineral nutrition of higher plants. London: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mengel, K., & Kirkby, E. A. (2001). Principles of plant nutrition. Dordrecht: Springer.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Navarrete, C., Petrezselyova, S., Barreto, L., Martinez, J. L., Zahradka, J., Arino, J., Sychrova, H., & Ramos, J. (2010). Lack of main K+ uptake systems in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells affects yeast performance in both potassium-sufficient and potassium-limiting conditions. FEMS Yeast Research, 10, 508–517.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Newton, A. C., Bootman, M. D., & Scott, J. D. (2016). Second messengers. Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Biology, 8, a005926.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Öborn, I., Rangel, A., Grant, C. A., Watson, C. A., & Edwards, A. C. (2008). Critical aspects of potassium management in agricultural systems. Soil Use and Management, 21, 102–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rengel, Z. (1993). Mechanistic simulation models of nutrient uptake: A review | SpringerLink. Plant and Soil, 152, 161–173.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rengel, Z., & Damon, P. M. (2008). Crops and genotypes differ in efficiency of potassium uptake and use. Physiologia Plantarum, 133, 624–636.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Römheld, V., & Kirkby, E. A. (2010). Research on potassium in agriculture: Needs and prospects | SpringerLink. Plant and Soil, 335, 155–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rüdiger, H., & Ralf-Rainer, M. (1997). Cell biology of metals and nutrients. Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, A., Tesileanu, R., Charles, R., & Sinaj, S. (2013). Kinetics of soil potassium sorption–desorption and fixation. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 44, 837–849.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, D. (2019). Structure and weathering of potassium containing minerals. IPI Research topics, 2013, 43–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shabala, S. N., & Lew, R. R. (2002). Turgor regulation in osmotically stressed Arabidopsis epidermal root cells. Direct support for the role of inorganic ion uptake as revealed by concurrent flux and cell turgor measurements. Plant Physiology, 129, 290–299.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Srivastava, A. K., Shankar, A., Chandran, A. K., Sharma, M., Jung, K. H., Suprasanna, P., & Pandey, G. K. (2019). Emerging concepts of potassium homeostasis in plants. Journal of Experimental Botany, 71(2), 608–619.

    Google Scholar 

  • Umar, S., & Moinuddin. (2007). Genotypic differences in yield and quality of groundnut as affected by potassium nutrition under erratic rainfall conditions. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 25, 1549–1562.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, Y., & Wu, W. H. (2015). Genetic approaches for improvement of the crop potassium acquisition and utilization efficiency. Current Opinion in Plant Biology, 25, 46–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, H. Y., Shen, Q. H., Zhou, J. M., Wang, J., & Du, C. W. (2011). Plants use alternative strategies to utilize nonexchangeable potassium in minerals | SpringerLink. Plant and Soil, 343, 209–220.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wedepohl, H. K. (1995). The composition of the continental crust. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 59, 1217–1232.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whatmore, A. M., Chudek, J. A., & Reed, R. H. (1990). The effects of osmotic upshock on the intracellular solute pools of Bacillus subtilis. Journal of General Microbiology, 136, 2527–2535.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • White, P. J. (2013). Improving potassium acquisition and utilisation by crop plants. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science, 176, 305–316.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wolfgang, E. (1986). Osmoregulation by potassium transport in Escherichia coli. FEMS Microbiology Reviews 2, 73–78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zorb, C., Senbayram, M., & Peiter, E. (2014). Potassium in agriculture–status and perspectives. Journal of Plant Physiology, 171, 656–669.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi South Campus, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Girdhar K. Pandey

  2. Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi, South Campus, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Swati Mahiwal

Authors
  1. Girdhar K. Pandey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Swati Mahiwal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Pandey, G.K., Mahiwal, S. (2020). Role of Potassium: An Overview. In: Role of Potassium in Plants. SpringerBriefs in Plant Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45953-6_1

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation