Abstract
A field study with barley was conducted in 1984 and 1985 to provide data on uptake rates of N, P, K and Mg and their variation as the growing season progressed. Two varieties were grown: Galt in 1984 and Otal in 1985. Soil fertility was maintained at or near optimum conditions. Samples were obtained approximately every 10 days for shoot dry weight, nutrient content and root length measurements. The approximate method (Williams, 1948) traditionally used for calculating uptake rates was found to be invalid for most of the nutrients studied. The method used for measuring uptake rates was the functional approach proposed by Hunt (1973). Inflow,i.e. uptake rate per unit root length, of plant nutrients, decreased with time. However, maximum uptake rates measured in kg ha−1d−1 occurred at about 50 days from sowing because of increasing root length density with time. Inflow or uptake rates were low in 1985 because of moisture deficiency, and grain yield (0.89 t ha−1) was severely depressed. This study demonstrated that Hunt's method is superior and more advantageous than the traditional, approximate method.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Barber S A 1978 Growth and nutrient uptake of soybean roots under field conditions. Agron. J. 70, 457–461.
Barraclough P B 1986a The growth and activity of winter wheat roots in the field: Nutrient uptake rates of high-yielding crops. J. Agric. Sci. (Cambridge) 106, 45–52.
Barraclough P B 1986b The growth and activity of winter wheat roots in the field: Nutrient inflows of high-yielding crops. J. Agric. Sci. (Cambridge) 106, 53–59.
Barrow N J 1975 The response to phosphate of two annual pasture species. II. The specific rate of uptake of phosphate, its distribution and use for growth. Aust. J. Agric. Res. 26, 145–156.
Bohm W 1979 Methods of Studyng Root Systems. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 188 p.
Brewster J L and Tinker P B 1970 Nutrient cation flows into soil around plant roots. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc. 34, 421–426.
Brewster J L and Tinker P B 1972 Nutrient flow rates into roots. Soils Fertil. 35, 355–359.
Clarkson D T and Sanderson J 1970 Relationship between the anatomy of cereal roots and the absorption of nutrients and water. Agric. Res. Council Letcombe Lab. Ann. Rep., 16–25.
Dick A C, Malhi S S, O'Sullivan P A and Walker D R 1985 Chemical composition of whole plant and grain and yield of nutrients in grain of five barley cultivars. Plant and Soil 86, 257–264.
DuChateau P C, Nofziger D L, Ahuja L R and Swartzendruber D 1972 Experimental curves and rates of change from piecewise parabolic fits. Agron. J. 64, 538–542.
Gregory P J, Crawford D V and McGowan M 1979 Nutrient relations of winter wheat. 2. Movement of nutrients to the root and their uptake. J. Agric. Sci. (Cambrodge) 93, 495–504.
Hunt R 1973 A method of estimating root efficiency. J. Appl. Ecol. 10, 157–164.
Large E C 1954 Growth stages in cereals. Illustrations of the Feekes Scales. Plant Pathol. 3, 128–129.
Mengel D B and Barber S A 1974 Rate of nutrient uptake per unit of corn root under field conditions. Agron. J. 66, 399–402.
Racz G J, Webber M D, Soper R J and Hedlin R A 1965 Phosphorus and nitrogen utilization by rape, flax and wheat. Agron. J. 57, 335–337.
Radford P J 1967 Growth analysis formulae—their use and abuse. Crop Sci. 7, 171–175.
Schenk M K and Barber S A 1979 Root characteristics of corn genotypes as related to P uptake. Agron. J. 71, 921–924.
Soon Y K 1988 Root distribution of and water uptake by field-grown barley in a Black Solid. Can. J. Soil Sci. 68 (In press).
Tennant D 1975 A test of a modified line intersect method of estimating root length. J. Ecol. 63, 995–1001.
Thomas R L, Sheard R W and Moyer J R 1967 Comparison of conventional and automated procedures for nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium analyses of plant material using a single digestion. Agron. J. 59, 240–243.
Wiersum L K 1981 Problems in soil fertility characterization by means of plant nutrient requirements. Plant and Soil 61, 259–267.
Williams R F 1946 The physiology of plant growth with special reference to the concept of net assimilation rate. Ann. Bot. 10, 41–72.
Williams R F 1948 The effects of phosphorus supply on the rates of intake of phosphorus and nitrogen and upon certain aspects of phosphorus metabolism in gramineous plants. Aust. J. Sci. Res. 1B, 333–361.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Soon, Y.K. Nutrient uptake by barley roots under field conditions. Plant Soil 109, 171–179 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02202081
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02202081