Effect of Bentonite on the Early Growth Characteristics of Teak Seedlings Planted in Sandy Soil in Northeast Thailand—A Pilot Study

Abstract

The growth of teak (Tectona grandis L. f.) seedlings in sandy soil in northeast Thailand is suppressed by infertility and drought stress. In a preliminary field pot experiment, we confirmed that bentonite was useful for increasing soil water availability. To monitor early growth characteristics of teak seedlings in sandy soil, we curried out an experiment of teak seedlings using bentonite and fertilizer in the field from July 2014 to November 2015. We then compared the growth, biomass, photosynthetic rate, leaf water potential, and concentration of elements in the plant organs among the four treatments. Bentonite increased both soil pH and Ca during the experimental period, and retained P in fertilizer. The dry mass of teak seedlings was markedly increased by concurrent use of bentonite and fertilizer. However, the use of bentonite alone showed little increase of dry mass of teak seedlings. Moreover, application of bentonite was mitigated drought stress in dry season, and photosynthetic rate showed high value by high concentration of chlorophyll. The concentration of K in root of teak seedlings was increased by application of bentonite, and its value showed positive correlation with the relative growth rate of teak seedlings. We concluded that bentonite was useful for the uptake of K and retention of P in fertilizer, as a result, growth of teak seedlings was accelerated.

Variation in biochemical, physiological and ecophysiological traits among the teak (Tectona grandis Linn. f) seed sources of India

“…Intercellular CO 2 concentration ranged between 475.0 ± 15.23 to 180.5 ± 6.49 µl l −1 indicating that higher intercellular CO 2 concentration associated with increased stomatal conductance affects the photosynthetic rate. Lower photosynthetic rate than the current investigation was documented in teak 11 – 13 , 33 , 42 , 46 , Similar noteworthy results were documented in Pawlonia tomentosa 47 , Eucalyptus species 48 , Tabebuia aurea 49 and Rubber 35 .…”

Improving Growth of Schefflera Arboricola Endl. Cv. Gold Capella Plant Grown in Sandy Soil by Some Natural, Organic and Biotic Additives Under Various Water Regimes Treatments

“…It enhances nutrient holding capacity, improves soil structure and its moisture content and provides a better habitat for soil microorganisms. The positive impacts of bentonite on ameliorating sand properties and plant development were previously reported by Owen et al (2008) on Cotoneaster dammeri 'Skogholm ', Hazrati et al (2017) on Aloe vera, Paradalo et al (2019) on Lolium multiflorum, Kayama et al (2021) on teak (Tectona grandis), Younas et al (2022) on Bougainivillea sp., Satje and Nelson (2009) on sugarcane, AbdEl-Hamid et al (2013) on wheat and peanut, Mi et al (2020) on millet (Setaria italica), Karbout et al (2021) on date palm cv. Deglet Nour and Hassan et al (2022) on date palm cv.…”

“…In general, water use efficiency of A. vera increased with less water and more zeolite availability. On teak (Tectona grandis), Kayama et al (2021) observed that growth and plant dry mass were markedly increased by the application of bentonite and P-fertilizer to growth substrate. Moreover, the application of bentonite could mitigate drought stress in dry season.…”

Trunk injection fertilization to enhance average bunch weight of palm oil for sustainable water management

“…As a result of contact exchange, which releases H+ cationsinto the soil IOP Publishing doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1183/1/012045 2 solution, the absorption of cations by roots can also result in a drop in pH. The whole process of nutrient absorption may be affected to some extent by the pH value [3,4].…”