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Growth and Nutrient Accumulation and Distribution in Wild Rice 1
Author(s) -
Grava John,
Raisanen K. A.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj1978.00021962007000060044x
Subject(s) - nutrient , dry matter , agronomy , biology , human fertilization , cultivar , crop , ecology
Wild rice ( Zizania aquatica L.) is a newly cultivated crop and its nutrient requirements are not well defined. To develop a sound fertilization program, a better understanding of the growth, nutrient uptake and distribution in the plant is essential. The purpose of this research was to investigate the dry matter, N, P, and K accumulation, and distribution pattern of wild rice throughout its growth cycle. This study utilized a portion of an NP factorial experiment conducted with K2 cultivar on peat soil (Terric Borohemist) in a grower's paddy in northcentral Minnesota. Plant samples were collected from six 3.7‐ ✕ 3.7‐m areas receiving 40, 19.7, and 55.7 kg/ha of N, P, and K, respectively. Dry matter accumulation and nutrient element concentration in various above‐ground plant parts wre determined at 10 growth stages. At the jointing stage, the second leaf was separated and analyzed for N, P, and K. Although N, P, and K uptake preceded dry matter production, the accumulation patterns were similar. Accumulation rates were slow during the vegetative development phase, e.g., first 50 days after emergence. Following the jointing stage, during a 30‐day period of rapid growth, the plant accumulated over half of its dry matter and plant nutrients. Accumulation of plant nutrients continued at a relatively rapid rate until maturity. The effectiveness of topdress N application at jointing is partially explained by data indicating that wild rice accumulated 70% of its total N during flowering and grain formation. The second leaf at jointing contained 3.83% N, 0.55% P, and 3.73% K. A single plant produced 30 g of total dry matter and took up 300 mg N, 110 mg P, and 740 mg of K. The grain contained 38, 22, and 3% of the total amount of N, P, and K, respectively, taken up by the plant. Nearly 85% of total K accumulated in stems. In this study, wild rice produced nearly 11,800 kg/ha of dry matter and contained 120, 40, and 290 kg/ha of N, P, and K, respectively. A major portion of nutrient elements was supplied by the soil.