Zinc, Iron, Manganese and Copper Uptake Requirement in Response to Nitrogen Supply and the Increased Grain Yield of Summer Maize

Abstract

The relationships between grain yields and whole-plant accumulation of micronutrients such as zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and copper (Cu) in maize (Zea mays L.) were investigated by studying their reciprocal internal efficiencies (RIEs, g of micronutrient requirement in plant dry matter per Mg of grain). Field experiments were conducted from 2008 to 2011 in North China to evaluate RIEs and shoot micronutrient accumulation dynamics during different growth stages under different yield and nitrogen (N) levels. Fe, Mn and Cu RIEs (average 64.4, 18.1and 5.3 g, respectively) were less affected by the yield and N levels. ZnRIE increased by 15% with an increased N supply but decreased from 36.3 to 18.0 g with increasing yield. The effect of cultivars on ZnRIE was similar to that of yield ranges. The substantial decrease in ZnRIE may be attributed to an increased Zn harvest index (from 41% to 60%) and decreased Zn concentrations in straw (a 56% decrease) and grain (decreased from 16.9 to 12.2 mg kg−1) rather than greater shoot Zn accumulation. Shoot Fe, Mn and Cu accumulation at maturity tended to increase but the proportions of pre-silking shoot Fe, Cu and Zn accumulation consistently decreased (from 95% to 59%, 90% to 71% and 91% to 66%, respectively). The decrease indicated the high reproductive-stage demands for Fe, Zn and Cu with the increasing yields. Optimized N supply achieved the highest yield and tended to increase grain concentrations of micronutrients compared to no or lower N supply. Excessive N supply did not result in any increases in yield or micronutrient nutrition for shoot or grain. These results indicate that optimized N management may be an economical method of improving micronutrient concentrations in maize grain with higher grain yield.

Micronutrients (Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu) balance under long-term application of fertilizer and manure in a tropical rice-rice system

“…It suggests that application of fertilizers and manure either alone or in combination promoted the uptake of Zn by rice. It was reported that proper levels of N and K could enhance the uptake of Zn by rice; our results were in agreement with earlier reports (Li et al 2007;Dash et al 2010;Rutkowska et al 2014;Xue et al 2014). However, wherever phosphatic fertilizers have been applied, the corresponding increase in the Zn uptake over the control was less as compared to the treatments where phosphatic fertilizer was not used.…”

“…Application of chemical fertilizers although increased the Cu uptake, but the balanced fertilization (NPK) resulted in higher uptake. Earlier authors have reported that balanced fertilization not only increases grain yield and maintains soil nutrient balance, but also accelerates rice nutrient uptake (Mann et al 2006;Li et al 2007;Xue et al 2014). Similar findings were reported by Aulakh and Malhi (2005) who enumerated that the interaction of other soil macronutrients and micronutrients also affected micronutrient uptake by crops.…”

Comprehensive phenotypic analysis and quantitative trait locus identification for grain mineral concentration, content, and yield in maize (Zea mays L.)

“…Potassium (K) was extracted by NH 4 OAc and determined at flame photometer (Van Reeuwijk 1992). Micro-minerals (Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn) were extracted with DTPA (diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid) solution (Lindsay and Norvell 1978) and served for concentration measurement by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES, Perkin-Elmer, USA) (Xue et al 2014).…”

“…The analysis methods used are almost identical to those described by Xue et al (2014). At harvest, five plants were chosen from the middle of each row for trait evaluation.…”

Metal micronutrients relationships in crop, soil, and common weeds of two maize (Zea maysL.) fields

“…Competition for nutrients may even occur between different weeds, which can determine the composition of the weed community (Tilman et al 1999). The necessity of metal micronutrients supply for maximum maize yield has been documented (Salem & El-Gizawy 2012;Bender et al 2013;Xue et al 2014). Information on the relationships between metal micronutrients in weeds and main crops is scarce.…”