Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

Following the successful completion of Volume I of “Plants Nutrients” and considering the great interest in this research topic, we are pleased to announce the launch of Volume II. The study of the manner in which plants obtain and use nutrients, namely plant nutrition, is central for feeding the ever-growing global population, improving modern agricultural practices, environmental protection, as well as understanding plant ecological interactions in natural ecosystems. Recently, there has been an upsurge in research and a renewed interest in the field of plant nutrition as contemporary experimental approaches are being used to examine the mechanisms underlying plant nutrient transport and utilization. This has been driven by the availability of new powerful tools, including molecular techniques and complete genome sequences, and the development of model plant systems and sophisticated tools to study plant physiology. The present Topic aims to host and gather relevant high-quality papers concerned with multiple different aspects of the biology of plant nutrients, such as: uptake mechanisms; short- and long-distance transport; functions in planta; source–sink relationships; yield and yield quality; relationships with plant diseases and pests; diagnosis of deficiency and toxicity; as well as plant–soil relationships, including rhizosphere chemistry; symbiotic interactions; and the involvement of carbon fluxes in terrestrial agricultural and forestry ecosystems.

Dr. Georgia Ntatsi
Dr. Maurizio Badiani
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Agronomy agronomy	3.3	6.2	2011	15.5 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Crops crops	-	-	2021	24.2 Days	CHF 1000	Submit
Forests forests	2.4	4.4	2010	16.9 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Horticulturae horticulturae	3.1	3.5	2015	14.8 Days	CHF 2200	Submit
Plants plants	4.0	6.5	2012	18.2 Days	CHF 2700	Submit

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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All Agronomy Crops Forests Horticulturae Plants

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22 pages, 3173 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

The Nitrogen Preference of Cactus Pear (Opuntia ficus-indica): A Sand Culture Snapshot

by Nicholas A. Niechayev, Paula N. Pereira and John C. Cushman

Plants 2024, 13(24), 3489; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13243489 - 13 Dec 2024

Viewed by 384

Abstract

Cactus pear (Opuntia-ficus indica (L.) Mill.) is an important agricultural crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) species used as a source of food, forage, fodder, and secondary products and as a biofuel feedstock. However, the preferred source of nitrogen for this species, whether it [...] Read more.

Cactus pear (Opuntia-ficus indica (L.) Mill.) is an important agricultural crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) species used as a source of food, forage, fodder, and secondary products and as a biofuel feedstock. However, the preferred source of nitrogen for this species, whether it be nitrate (NO₃⁻), ammonium (NH₄⁺), or a combination of both, is not well understood. To investigate the nitrate and ammonium preference of cactus pear, we grew cladodes in sand culture with deionized water as a control or with a cross-factorial set of nutrient solutions of 0.0, 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 mmol of nitrate and/or ammonium for one month. We then assessed a set of physiological parameters including cladode growth, relative water content, chlorophyll, tissue acidity, soluble sugars, starch, nitrate, ammonium, glyoxylic acid, nitrate reductase activity, and nitrogen and carbon content. We found significant differences in all measured parameters except for cladode length, relative water content, and carbon content. Cladodes provided with only deionized water produced no new cladodes and showed decreased soluble sugar content, increased starch content, and increased tissue acidity. We also determined the relative steady-state transcript abundance of genes that encode enzymes involved in N metabolism and CAM. Compared with control cladodes, nutrient-supplied cladodes generally showed increased or variable steady-state mRNA expression of selected CAM-related genes and nitrogen-metabolism-related genes. Our results suggest that O. ficus-indica prefers fertilizers containing either equal concentrations nitrate and ammonium or more nitrate than ammonium. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume)

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12 pages, 4231 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Calcium Uptake Pattern and Its Transport Pathway in ‘Shixia’ Longan Fruit

by Wenpei Song, Siqi Huang, Odit F. Kurniadinata, Ziqin Yang and Xuming Huang

Agronomy 2024, 14(11), 2480; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14112480 - 24 Oct 2024

Viewed by 745

Abstract

Calcium plays an irreplaceable role as an essential mineral nutrient in plants, particularly in the formation of calcium pectinate, which is critical for cell wall construction. Fruits deficient in calcium are more susceptible to cell wall disintegration, bacterial infections, and the development of [...] Read more.

Calcium plays an irreplaceable role as an essential mineral nutrient in plants, particularly in the formation of calcium pectinate, which is critical for cell wall construction. Fruits deficient in calcium are more susceptible to cell wall disintegration, bacterial infections, and the development of various physiological disorders and fungal diseases. Despite its importance, limited research has focused on calcium nutrition in longan, and the pathways and regulatory mechanisms underlying calcium uptake in this fruit remain unclear. In this study, we investigated calcium uptake in longan at different developmental stages, examined its variation patterns, analyzed the correlations between calcium concentrations in the pedicel and the fruit, and explored the distribution of calcium in the pedicel. We also studied the functions of xylem/apoplastic and symplastic pathways using dye tracers. Our findings contribute to a deeper understanding of calcium nutrition in longan and clarify the transportation characteristics of calcium within longan fruit. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume)

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16 pages, 4447 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

New Intrinsic Ecological Mechanisms of Leaf Nutrient Resorption in Temperate Deciduous Trees

by Xingchang Wang, Yanmin Guo, Qi Wang, Jun Pan, Xiankui Quan, Jiacun Gu and Chuankuan Wang

Plants 2024, 13(12), 1659; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13121659 - 15 Jun 2024

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Abstract

Leaf nutrient resorption is a critical process in plant nutrient conservation during leaf senescence. However, the ecological mechanisms underlying the large variability in nitrogen (NRE) and phosphorous (PRE) resorption efficiencies among trees remain poorly understood. We conducted a comprehensive study on NRE and [...] Read more.

Leaf nutrient resorption is a critical process in plant nutrient conservation during leaf senescence. However, the ecological mechanisms underlying the large variability in nitrogen (NRE) and phosphorous (PRE) resorption efficiencies among trees remain poorly understood. We conducted a comprehensive study on NRE and PRE variability using 61 tree individuals of 10 temperate broad-leaved tree species. Three potentially interrelated intrinsic ecological mechanisms (i.e., leaf senescence phenology, leaf pigments, and energy residual) were verified. We found that a delayed leaf senescence date, increased degradation of chlorophylls and carotenoids, biosynthesis of anthocyanins, and reduced nonstructural carbohydrates were all positively correlated with NRE and PRE at the individual tree level. The intrinsic factors affecting resorption efficiency were ranked in decreasing order of importance: leaf pigments > energy residual > senescence phenology. These factors explained more variability in NRE than in PRE. Our findings highlight the significance of these three ecological mechanisms in leaf nutrient resorption and have important implications for understanding how nutrient resorption responds to climate change. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume)

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18 pages, 289 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Sustaining the Yield of Maize, Blackgram, Greengram, Groundnut, Cotton, Sugarcane, and Coconut through the Application of Nutrients and Plant Growth Regulator Mixture

by Senthil Alagarswamy, Kalarani M. Karuppasami, Maduraimuthu Djanaguiraman, Prasad B. R. Venugopal, Sritharan Natarajan, Sivakumar Rathinavelu, Vijayalakshmi Dhashnamurthi, Ravichandran Veerasamy and Boominathan Parasuraman

Plants 2024, 13(11), 1549; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13111549 - 4 Jun 2024

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Abstract

The foliar application of nutrients and plant growth regulators (PGRs) at critical crop growth periods can improve the yield of field crops. Hence, the present study was conducted to quantify the effects of the combined application of nutrients and PGRs (crop-specific formulation) on [...] Read more.

The foliar application of nutrients and plant growth regulators (PGRs) at critical crop growth periods can improve the yield of field crops. Hence, the present study was conducted to quantify the effects of the combined application of nutrients and PGRs (crop-specific formulation) on maize, blackgram, greengram, groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, and coconut yield. In all the crops except coconut, the treatments included (i) a foliar spray of crop-specific nutrients and PGR combinations and (ii) an unsprayed control. In coconut, the treatments included (i) the root feeding of coconut-specific nutrients and PGR combinations and (ii) an untreated control. Crop-specific nutrient and PGR formulations were sprayed, namely, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) maize maxim 1.5% at the tassel initiation and grain-filling stages of maize, TNAU pulse wonder 1.0% at the peak flowering stage of green gram and black gram, TNAU groundnut-rich 1.0% at the flowering and pod-filling stages of groundnut, TNAU cotton plus 1.25% at the flowering and boll development stages of cotton, and TNAU sugarcane booster 0.5% at 45 days after planting (DAP), 0.75% at 60 DAP, and 1.0% at 75 DAP of sugarcane. The results showed that the foliar application of TNAU maize maxim, TNAU pulse wonder, TNAU groundnut-rich, TNAU cotton plus and TNAU sugarcane booster and the root feeding of TNAU coconut tonic increased the yield of maize, pulses, groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, and coconut, resulting in higher economic returns. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume)

13 pages, 1601 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Optimizing Soybean Crop Performance through the Integrated Application of Organic and Chemical Fertilizers: A Study on Alkaline Soil in Afghanistan

by Abdul Basir Turabi, Safiullah Habibi, Kifayatullah Kakar, Shafiqullah Aryan, Mohammad Daud Haidari and Sabqatullah Alipour

Crops 2024, 4(1), 82-94; https://doi.org/10.3390/crops4010007 - 7 Mar 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2109

Abstract

The excess application of chemical fertilizer contributes to environmental pollution. Therefore, this study aims to explore the integrated use of animal manure and chemical fertilizer to identify a more sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to nitrogen fertilizer. Two experiments were conducted in 2018 [...] Read more.

The excess application of chemical fertilizer contributes to environmental pollution. Therefore, this study aims to explore the integrated use of animal manure and chemical fertilizer to identify a more sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to nitrogen fertilizer. Two experiments were conducted in 2018 and 2019 at Kabul University, Afghanistan, using an LD04-13265 soybean variety. The integration of animal manure and chemical fertilizer was categorized into six treatments: (1) control (no fertilizer), (2) animal manure low dose (AMLD), (3) animal manure high dose (AMHD), (4) chemical fertilizer (CF), (5) CF 50% + AMLD, and (6) CF 75% + AMLD. The results revealed that AMHD and its integration with 75% chemical fertilizer greatly influenced the vegetative growth of soybean plants in experiments I and II. The number of pods per plant and pod length significantly (p < 0.05) increased under the CF 75% + AMLD treatment. In experiment I, soybean yield increased the most with the CF treatment, followed by CF 75% + AMLD. In contrast, in experiment II, the highest yield per hectare was observed in the CF 75% + AMLD treatment, followed by CF. The CF 75% + AMLD treatment significantly increased the SPAD value in both experiments. Consequently, a strong relationship was observed between the SPAD value and yield (r = 0.74) in experiment I and between SPAD and pod length (r = 0.82) in experiment II. Incorporating animal manure with chemical fertilizer significantly impacted soybean growth and yield, offering a potential possibility for reducing reliance on nitrogen fertilizer application to mitigate environmental pollution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Plants Nutrients, 2nd Volume)

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