Mycorrhizal (Rhizophagus Intraradices) Symbiosis and Fe and Zn Availability in Calcareous Soil |
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| Authors: | Natarajan Balakrishnan |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Soil Science &2. Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India |
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| Abstract: | Greenhouse experiment was conducted to assess the iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) fractionation patterns in soils of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus-inoculated and uninoculated maize plants fertilized with varying levels of Fe and Zn. Soil samples were collected for Fe and Zn fractions and available Fe, Zn and phosphorus (P) contents besides organic and biomass carbon (BMC), soil enzymes and glomalin. Major portion of Fe and Zn fractionations was found to occur in the residual form. Mycorrhizal symbiosis increased the organically bound forms of Fe and Zn while reducing the crystalline oxide, residual Fe and Zn fractions, indicating the transformation of unavailable forms into available forms. Soil enzymes, viz. dehydrogenase and acid phosphatase activities in M+ soils, were significantly higher than M? soil consistently. Overall, the data suggest that mycorrhizal symbiosis enhanced the availability of Fe and Zn as a result of preferential fractionation and biochemical changes that may alleviate micronutrient deficiencies in calcareous soil.Abbreviations: AM: arbuscular mycorrhiza; Fe: Iron; Zn: Zinc; P: Phosphorous; Amox-Zn: amorphous oxide bound zinc; Cryox-Zn: crystalline oxide bound zinc; DAS: days after sowing; DTPA: diethylene Triamine Penta Acetic Acid; MnO2-Zn: manganese oxide bound zinc; OC-Zn: organically bound zinc; WSEX: water soluble plus exchangeable zinc; MnO2 Fe: manganese oxide bound iron; OC-Fe: Organically bound iron; WSEX Fe: water soluble plus exchangeable iron. |
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| Keywords: | Iron maize micronutrients mycorrhiza soil enzymes zinc |
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