Abstract
Evergreen azaleas grow in acid soil and suffer from iron deficiency when cultivated in substrate with pH higher than 6.0. In order to select tolerant plants, 11 azalea genotypes were tested for 21 days in alkaline solution (pH 9), buffered with sodium hydrogen carbonate (1 g·l-1). Leaf damage, root length and mortality rate were recorded. While leaf damage and mortality rate allowed to discriminate genotypes, root development appeared not directly linked to iron deficiency tolerance. Rhododendron ‘Juko’, R. scabrum, R. macrosepalum ‘Hanaguruma’, R. x pulchrum ‘Oomurasaki’, and R. x pulchrum ‘Sen-e-oomurasaki’ resulted iron efficient genetic resources, useful for azalea cultivation and gardening in calcareous soils. On the contrary, R. obtusum ‘Kirin’, R. tosaense, R.x mucronatum ‘Fujimanyo’ and R. obtusum ‘Susogo-no-ito’ resulted iron deficiency sensitive genotypes. R. x mucronatum ‘Ryukyushibori’ and R. indicum ‘Kinsai’ showed intermediate responses.
Highlights
IntroductionEvergreen azaleas (family Ericaceae, genus Rhododendron, subgenus Tsutsusi) originate from Southeast Asia and grow principally in Japan on land that is mostly covered by Brown forest soil (53%) and Andosols (17%) (Kanno et al, 2008)
Evergreen azaleas originate from Southeast Asia and grow principally in Japan on land that is mostly covered by Brown forest soil (53%) and Andosols (17%) (Kanno et al, 2008)
Some evergreen azalea species (R. x pulchrum) damaged leaves fall versus others (R. obtusum ‘Kirin’) that wilt on the shoots without falling
Summary
Evergreen azaleas (family Ericaceae, genus Rhododendron, subgenus Tsutsusi) originate from Southeast Asia and grow principally in Japan on land that is mostly covered by Brown forest soil (53%) and Andosols (17%) (Kanno et al, 2008). Plant iron deficiency is a global problem, in calcareous soils. It limits the production levels of various field crops (Marschner, 1995; Hansen et al, 2007), and cultivation of the popular ornamental azalea plant (Kofranek and Lunt, 1975; Wallace and Wallace, 1986; Chaanin and Preil, 1994; Preil and Ebbinghaus, 1994; AIPH and Union Fleur, 2013). Using cultivars or rootstocks highly tolerant to iron deficiency stress is an approach that allows strong results control. This strategy has been widely adopted for herbaceous crops and fruit trees (Alcántara et al, 2012). Preil and Ebbinghaus (1994) proposed the use of the lime-tolerant
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