Abstract
Phosphorus (P) is an important nutrient in plant nutrition. Its absorption by plants from the soil is influenced by many factors. Therefore, a foliar application of this nutrient could be utilized for the optimal nutrition state of plants. The premise of the study is that foliar application of phosphorus will increase the yield of normal-phytate (npa) cultivars (CDC Bronco a Cutlass) and low-phytate (lpa) lines (1-2347-144, 1-150-81) grown in soils with low phosphorus supply and affect seed quality depending on the ability of the pea to produce phytate. A graded application of phosphorus (H₃PO₄) in four doses: without P (P0), 27.3 mg P (P1), 54.5 mg P (P2), and 81.8 mg P/pot (P3) realized at the development stages of the 6th true leaf led to a significant increase of chlorophyll contents, and fluorescence parameters of chlorophyll expressing the CO2 assimilation velocity. The P fertilization increased the yield of seeds significantly, except the highest dose of phosphorus (P3) at which the yield of the npa cultivars was reduced. The line 1-2347-144 was the most sensible to the P application when the dose P3 increased the seed production by 42.1%. Only the lpa line 1-150-81 showed a decreased tendency in the phytate content at the stepped application of the P nutrition. Foliar application of phosphorus significantly increased ash material in seed, but did not tend to affect the protein and mineral content of seeds. Only the zinc content in seeds was significantly reduced by foliar application of P in npa and lpa pea genotypes. It is concluded from the present study that foliar phosphorus application could be an effective way to enhance the pea growth in P-deficient condition with a direct effect on seed yield and quality.
Highlights
Pea (Pisum sativum L.) is a plentifully grown leguminous plant in many countries, and it can be utilized both in human nutrition as well as a part of the feed for farm animals
A significant effect of the foliar phosphorus application on the chlorophyll content of wheat was presented by Waraich et al [25]
The positive effect of the applied phosphorus can be explained by its direct involvement into the structure of cell membranes [30] a whole range of proteins, nucleic acids, and nucleotides [25] with direct effects on photosynthesis [31]
Summary
Pea (Pisum sativum L.) is a plentifully grown leguminous plant in many countries, and it can be utilized both in human nutrition as well as a part of the feed for farm animals. In the case of low P supplies in the soil or conditions decreasing its intake by plants, fertilization by phosphorus significant increases legume production, and its quality [5,6,7,8,9,10,11]. The greatest benefits of the foliar P fertilization were observed under low moisture and highly P-deficient soil conditions In these aforementioned conditions, the foliar P application has a potential to increase the yield and quality of seeds [23,24]. There have been relatively few reports on analyses of the productivity and seed quality of legumes [10] or normal [11] and low-phytate pea cultivars grown under varying foliar P fertilization levels. It is determined whether the low-phytate lines will use the P supplied by fertilization directly for binding to phytate, i.e., will this increase the phytate phosphorus content or will it only increase the total P content of the seeds and the phytate level will remain unchanged?
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