Effects of water deficit and selenium on common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench.) plants

Abstract

Two cultivars of common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum), Pyra and Siva, were exposed to three treatments: water deficit (WD), foliar spraying by selenium (as Na2SeO4) (Se), and the combination of both. In WD-plants the stomatal conductance (g s) was significantly lower, while WD+Se-plants of Siva had significantly higher g s. None of the treatments resulted in significant differences of potential photochemical efficiency of photosystem 2 (PS2). A significantly higher actual photochemical efficiency of PS2 was obtained in Siva WD-plants and in Pyra Se-and WD-plants which was possibly due to improvement of plant water management during treatment. A significant interaction was observed between the effects of WD and Se on respiratory potential in Pyra. WD, Se, and the WD+Se combination resulted in shorter Pyra and Siva plants, with a reduced number of nodes. WD slightly negatively affected the yield per plant. The yield was highest in plants exposed to Se only. In Siva the number of seeds was triple while the average seed mass remained unchanged.