97/01495 Analysis of alumina-supported catalysts by XPS

Abstract

Scarcity of water is a severe limitation in citrus tree productivity. There are few studies that consider how to manage nitrogen (N) nutrition in crops suffering water deficit. A pot experiment under controlled-environment chambers was conducted to explore if additional N supply via foliar application could improve the drought tolerance of Citrus macrophylla L. seedlings under dry conditions. Two-month-old seedlings were subjected to a completely random design with two water treatments (drought stress and 100% water/field capacity). Plants under drought stress (DS) received three different N supplies via foliar application (DS: 0, DS + NH4NO3: 2% NH4NO3, DS + KNO3: 2% KNO3). KNO3-spraying increased leaf and stem DW as compared with DS + NH4NO3 and DS treatments. Leaf water potential (Ψw) was decreased by drought stress in all the treatments. However, in plants from DS + NH4NO and DS + KNO3, this was due to a decrease in the leaf osmotic potential, whereas the decrease in those from the DS treatment was due to a decrease in the leaf turgor potential. These responses were correlated with the leaf proline and K concentrations. DS + KNO3-treated plants had a higher leaf proline and K concentration than DS-treated plants. In terms of leaf gas exchange parameters, it was observed that net assimilation of CO2 (ACO2) was decreased by drought stress, but this reduction was much lower in DS + KNO3-treated plants. Thus, when all results are taken into account, it can be concluded that a 2% foliar-KNO3 application can enhance the tolerance of citrus plants to water stress by increasing the osmotic adjustment process.