Nitrogen use efficiency of rice reconsidered: What are the key constraints?

Recent field studies on irrigated rice at the IRRI research farm indicate efficient use of fertilizer-N based on plant uptake of applied N, (estimated by N difference), and utilization of acquired N for increased grain yield. These findings contrast with ¹⁵N uptake in microplot studies which underestimate the actual increase in plant N from added fertiliser. Constraints other than uptake efficiency, however, may govern fertiliser-N efficiency in farmers fields. In a study of 44 farmers' fields in Central Luzon, rice yields ranged from 2.5 to 6.2 t ha^-1 and N uptake from 35 to 95 kg N ha^-1 in plots without fertiliser-N addition. Farmers applied from 35 to 240 kg N ha^-1, but there was no relationship between the N rate used by each farmer and the effective soil N supply. Mean N uptake efficiency from fertiliser by N difference was only 36%. We conclude that improved fertiliser-N efficiency by farmers will require a more information-intensive management strategy that makes N fertiliser inputs better fitted to the seasonal pattern of crop N demand and soil N supply.     

Residual phosphorus and long-term management strategies for an Ultisol

Due to their extensive growth potential, transgenic root systems arising from inoculation withAgrobacterium rhizogenes became popular in the last decade as model systems in domains as diverse as production of secondary metabolites, interactions with pathogens and symbionts, examination of gene importance in control of root development or in regulation of gene expression in roots. Wild-type bacterial strains have also been considered as useful tools to stimulate rooting on recalcitrant cuttings or microcuttings as they cause abundant root initiation at the site of inoculation.Root initiation and the in vitro growth characteristics of transformed roots result from the transfer of genes located on the root-inducing plasmid (Ri) to plant cells and their expression therein. Two sets of pRi genes are involved in the root induction process: therol (rootloci) genes located in the TL region and theaux genes of the TR region. Some of these genes being able to interact, the system appears also as a new tool to study the role of auxin in the process of root initiation. The distinctive phenotype of the transformed roots which are capable of hormone autonomous growth seems to be controlled mainly by therol genes. Theserol genes, i.e. the geneticloci rol A, rol B, rol C androl D correspond to open reading frames ORFs 10, 11, 12 and 15. In vitro experiments determined the functions of the Rol B and Rol C proteins but the functions of Rol A and Rol D are still unknown. Altered metabolism of developmental regulators or modified sensitivity to auxin have been suspected to mediate root induction and morphological abnormalities of transformed roots and plants.The target cells for transformation and the cells which are competent for root initiation will be characterized as well as the subsequent development of transgenic roots provided with various constructs from the whole T-DNA to singlerol genes. Results dealing with auxin contents in relation with root growth kinetics, phenotype and structure, will also be presented and discussed with the potential use of therol genes to control root biomass. F J de Bruijn Section editor     

Cotton root and shoot response to localized supply of nitrate,phosphate and potassium: Split-pot studies with nutrient solution and vermiculitic soil

Vertical stratification of plant-available K in vermiculitic soil profiles contributes to a late-season K deficiency that limits cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) yields on affected soils. Split-root solution culture and split-pot soil experiments were conducted to determine whether root distribution and cultivar differences in root extension in these stratified profiles result from a compensatory response to localized enrichment with NO₃-N, PO₄-P, and/or K in the root zone. Compensatory root growth was greatest in response to localized NO₃-N enrichment. For two cultivars examined in solution culture, 74% of new root development occurred in the half-pot providing 90% of the total NO₃-N supply. Only 60% of cultivar root development occurred in the half-pot providing 90% of the PO₄-P. No compensatory root growth was observed in response to localized K enrichment. In the split-pot system, the proportion of total root surface area developing in a half-pot was highly correlated with localized soil NO₃-N levels (r²=0.81), while increased K availability in one half of the root zone did not affect root distribution. Mean soil NO₃-N supply to the whole root system determined shoot N accumulation (r²=0.97). Shoot K accumulation was not related to soil K availability but was strongly correlated with mean root surface area density (r²=0.86). Cultivar Acala GC510, known to be less sensitive to K deficiency than Acala SJ-2, had significantly larger root diameter in all nutrient-supply environments. Under conditions of K stress, Acala GC510 had increased root branching and allocated greater dry matter to roots relative to shoots than Acala SJ-2. The results demonstrate that K acquisition by cotton is strongly influenced by the quantity and distribution of NO₃-N in the root zone through its effects on root proliferation, and that distinct cultivar differences associated with crop performance on low K soils can be detected in short-term, solution culture growth systems.     

Soil organic matter and the indigenous nitrogen supply of intensive irrigated rice systems in the tropics

Soil organic matter (SOM) has been proposed as an index of N supply in paddy soils although field validations are few. We evaluated the relationship between the indigenous N supply (N _i ) of the soil-floodwater system and soil organic carbon (SOC) or total N (N _t ) in surface soil of long-term fertility experiments (LTFEs) at 11 sites, in 42 farmer's fiels with similar soil type, and in the same field in ten consecutive rice (Oryza sativa L.) crops. The N _i was estimated by crop N uptake from plots without applied N (N _o plots) under otherwise favorable growth conditions. There was a tight linear correlation between yields and N uptake in N _o plots and tremendous variation in both parameters among LTFE sites, farmer's fields, and in the same field over time. Correlation between N _i and SOC or N _t explained little of this variation. Factors likely to contribute to the poor correlation were: (1) inputs of N from sources other than N mineralization of SOM in surface soil, (2) degree of congruence between soil N supply and crop demand, which is sensitive to soil drying, length of fallow, crop rotation, and residue management, and (3) differences in SOM quality related to intensive cropping in submerged soil. Better understanding of the processes governing the N _i of tropical lowland rice systems would contribute to the development of crop management practices that optimize utilization of indigenous N resources.