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The features of main osmolytes, silicon and their coupling effects in improving drought resistance of the typical xerophytes in the desert areas of Northwest China
Author(s) -
Kang Jianjun,
Zhao Wenzhi,
Zhou Hong,
Wang Zhiwei
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
land degradation and development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.403
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1099-145X
pISSN - 1085-3278
DOI - 10.1002/ldr.3631
Subject(s) - osmolyte , ion , coupling (piping) , inorganic ions , silicon , drought resistance , botany , chemistry , materials science , biology , organic chemistry , metallurgy
Abstract Succulent xerophytes (SX) and less succulent xerophytes (LSX) are able to accumulate inorganic ions and synthesize organic solutes (OS) to adapt to drought stress. Silicon (Si) is one of the five beneficial elements for plants and its importance to SX has been confirmed. In the study, the features of main osmolytes and Si were studied in SX and LSX species, and the coupling effects of inorganic ions were investigated in the SX H. ammodendron and LSX C. korshinskii . Results showed that SX and LSX had the common adaptive characteristic of preferentially accumulating inorganic ions rather than OS for drought resistance, and the total amount of osmotica in SX was 2.36‐times higher than that in the LSX. The greatest contribution to drought resistance was K + (29.7%), the lowest was Na + (2.4%) in LSX, while the greatest contribution was Na + (41.7%), the total OS was the lowest (2.4%) in SX. The coupling effects of inorganic ions played vital important roles in drought resistance of the SX and LSX. The better coupling ratios of NaCl, NH 4 NO 3 , CaCl 2 , MgCl 2 and Na 2 SiO 3 in H. ammodendron were 20:5:20:40:10 and 40:10:60:10:7.5 (g kg −1 dry soil), and the better coupling ratios of KNO 3 , CaCl 2 , MgCl 2 and K 2 SiO 3 in C. korshinskii were 20:10:20:10 and 40:20:60:5 (g kg −1 dry soil). Findings suggested that the rational coupling of inorganic ions can be utilized as mineral compound fertilizers to restore and reconstruct degraded vegetations in semiarid areas.