The effects of iron plaque and phosphorus on yield and arsenic accumulation in rice

Abstract

The effects of arsenate, Fe2+, and phosphate on amount and composition of Fe-oxide plaque at the rice-root surface and on the yield and arsenic accumulation in rice (cv. BRRI dhan33) were studied in a replicated pot-culture experiment. Arsenic in the form of Na2HAsO4 was applied at concentrations of 0, 15 and 30 mg kg−1 in combination with P and/or Fe at 0 and 50 mg kg−1, from KH2PO4 and FeSO4, respectively. Root, grain and straw yields and their As, Fe and P concentrations were determined. The Fe-oxide plaque was extracted from the plant roots using dithionite-citrate-bicarbonate (DCB) and NH4-oxalate extractions. The addition of Fe2+ reduced the toxic effect of As in flooded-rice culture and resulted in reduced grain-As accumulation and increased grain yields. The effect of applied phosphate was the opposite, in that it resulted in higher As concentrations in both grain and straw and lower grain yields. The effects of both Fe and P can be explained based on their impacts on adsorption of As onto soil and rice-plaque Fe-oxides and the subsequent As solubility and availability for uptake by rice. These reactions have important implications to rice-crop management and the natural variability in soils and irrigation-water characteristics that might impact As uptake by rice.