Phosphorus speciation in mature wheat and canola plants as affected by phosphorus supply

Background and aims

As plants approach maturity and start to senesce, the primary sink for phosphorus (P) is the seed but it is unclear how plant P status affects the resulting P concentration and speciation in the seed and remaining plant parts of the residues. This study was established to measure how P speciation in different parts of wheat and canola is affected by plant P status.

Methods

Wheat and canola grown in the glasshouse were supplied three different P rates (5, 30 and 60 kg P ha^?1 equivalent). At physiological maturity, plants were harvested and P speciation was determined for all plant parts (root, stem, leaf, chaff/pod and seed) and rates of P application, using solution ³¹P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.

Results

Phytate was the dominant form of P in seed whereas orthophosphate was the dominant form of P in other plant parts. The distribution of P species varied with P status for canola but not for wheat. The phytate content of wheat chaff increased from 10 to 45 % of total P as the P rate increased. Canola pods did not show a similar trend, with most P present as orthophosphate.

Conclusions

Although minor differences were observed in P speciation across the three P application rates and plant parts, the effect of this on P cycling from residues into soil is likely to be relatively minor in comparison to the overall contribution of these residues to soil P pools. This glasshouse experiment shows the dominant P form in crop residues that is returned to soil after harvest is orthophosphate, regardless of plant P status.