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Morphological and physiological responses of Picea asperata to different nitrogen availability and pH
Author(s) -
Tang Bo,
Man Jing,
Jia Ruoyu,
Yin Chunying,
Liu Qing
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of plant nutrition and soil science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.644
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1522-2624
pISSN - 1436-8730
DOI - 10.1002/jpln.201900103
Subject(s) - sugar , shoot , biomass (ecology) , nutrient , proline , botany , chemistry , nitrogen , agronomy , biology , food science , biochemistry , ecology , organic chemistry , amino acid
Soil nitrogen (N) availability and pH are two determinants affecting plant growth, both of which are influenced by long‐term N deposition. However, the physiological mechanism of plants response to the changes in soil N availability and pH are not fully understood. To investigate the response of Picea asperata to both factors, seedlings of P. asperata were exposed to 50 or 1000 µM NH 4 NO 3 with pH 5 or pH 7. In the current study, P. asperata , regardless of N availability and pH in growth medium, exhibited invariably aNH 4+preference. Lower root biomass, root : shoot mass ratio, total root length and area, and root vitality were detected in high N condition compared to those in low N supply, corresponding well to lower net influxes ofNH 4+andNO 3-at the root surface in both pH treatments. These results indicate that P. asperata may employ an active‐forge strategy to exploit nutrient resources for growth under low N availability, probably by increased below‐ground carbon allocation and net influxes ofNH 4+andNO 3-. Although low pH, to some extent may generate more malondialdehyde, P. asperata would enhance pH tolerance by increased detoxification, i.e ., antioxidant enzymes (peroxidase), free proline and soluble protein as well as improved carbohydrate status ( i.e ., soluble sugar and starch).