Carbohydrate Composition and Distribution in Cotton Plant as Affected by Substitution of Sodium for Calcium

Abstract

This study was concerned with carbohydrate composition and distribution in the cotton plant as affected by the substitution of sodium for calcium. No qualitative effect of sodium upon the carbohydrate composition of cotton plants, either in the presence or absence of calcium, was found. In the absence of calcium, sodium had a marked influence upon carbohydrate translocation. Plants receiving sodium but no calcium lived longer and, for a limited time, exhibited a carbohydrate distribution pattern more comparable to that of control plants than did those which received neither calcium nor sodium. It was suggested that, as a partial substitute for calcium, sodium has a role in maintaining carbohydrate translocation. It was further felt that sodium was able to help maintain minus-calcium cotton plants in a condition conducive to the synthesis of cellular constituents.