O2 dynamics in the rhizosphere of young rice plants (Oryza sativa L.) as studied by planar optodes.

Abstract

Background and aimsRadial O2 loss (ROL) strongly affect the O2 availability in the rhizosphere of rice. The ROL create an oxic zone around the roots, protecting the plant from toxic reduced chemical species and regulates the redox chemistry in the soil. This study investigates the spatio-temporal variability in O2 dynamics in the rice rhizosphere.MethodApplying high-resolution planar optode imaging, we investigated the O2 dynamics of plants grown in water saturated soil, as a function of ambient O2 level, irradiance and plant development, for submerged and emerged plants.ResultsO2 leakage was heterogeneously distributed with zones of intense leakage around roots tips and young developing roots. While the majority of roots exhibited high ROL others remained surrounded by anoxic soil. ROL was affected by ambient O2 levels around the plant, as well as irradiance, indicating a direct influence of photosynthetic activity on ROL. At onset of darkness, oxia in the rhizosphere was drastically reduced, but subsequently oxia gradually increased, presumably as root and/or soil respiration declined.ConclusionThe study demonstrates a high spatio-temporal heterogeneity in rhizosphere O2 dynamics and difference in ROL between different parts of the rhizosphere. The work documents that spatio-temporal measurements are important to fully understand and account for the highly variable O2 dynamics and associated biogeochemical processes and pathways in the rice rhizosphere.