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Silicon is beneficial to nursery crops
Silicon protects nursery crops against powdery mildew, drought, salinity and other forms of stress. Researchers regularly report about the benefits of this nutrient to plant species varying from the small perennial Aster to the large deciduous tree Quercus robur. Beneficial nutrients news opens up a lot of these half-forgotten experiments in its November issue. The good two pages with hyperlinks make the literature on this subject more accessible.
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Conference on the ‘interest’ of plants in silicon
Cereals accumulate silicon. At a recently held conference on silicon in agriculture, scientists presented new insights into the genetically controlled processes of uptake and transport in rice, maize, barley and other silicon accululators. Conference presentations on ‘new’ crops like banana and potato and on the use of silicon isotopes as research tool reflect the constantly broadening scope of silicon research. Beneficial nutrients news reports about this conference in its October issue.
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The pros and cons of iodine in plant nutrition
A low dose of iodine can stimulate the growth of plants. Small doses too may enhance the antoxidant content – a favourable effect for both crops and consumers. The growing interest in iodine nutrition however has another reason: food biofortification to control iodine deficiency. Iodine is the feature of the August issue of Beneficial nutrients news. A patent scan and good two pages with hyperlinks to relevant publications offer an extensive review of the state of the art.
Potato profits from silicon supply
Silicon nutrition protects potato against bacterial diseases. Soil applied silicon suppresses blackleg and soft rot incidence and induces resistance and tolerance to bacterial wilt. Silicon amendments may also improve crop growth under harsh circumstances, researchers conclude from greenhouse experiments with this silicon non-accumulator plant. The June issue of Beneficial nutrients news is devoted to silicon effects in potato and its relative tomato. Two pages with hyperlinks to relevant publications offer an extensive review of the state of the art.
American researchers examine silicon in ornamentals
It was 1998. In the autumn of that year, an American plant physiologist presented his first results of experiments with silicon in foliage plants at a then held meeting for soil scientists and other agronomists. A decade after this presentation, at least six research programmes and projects covering silicon in ornamentals are ongoing at American universities and research institutes. The March issue of Beneficial nutrients news has an overview of these programmes and projects, supplemented with relevant contact information.
Mycorrhizae channel silicon to plants
Plants with mycorrhized roots often contain more silicon than non-mycorrhizal ones. Possible effects of the improved silicon status on crop health however are hardly ever investigated. The feature in the free December issue of Beneficial nutrients news gives background information and many hyperlinks to relevant references.
China is a gold mine of applied silicon research
Unknown, unloved. Only few know the way to the Chinese mine of silicon information. In this way the yield of applied and basic research on silicon in arable and horticultural crops in China remains unnoticed. The free December issue of Beneficial nutrients news has a quick scan of silicon research that has been published the last year in Chinese-language papers.
Plants utilize nano-sized silicon oxide
Sodium silicate and nano-sized silicon oxide protect Chinese cantaloupe against postharvest rot. Probable both silicon forms have a different mode of action, the November issue of Beneficial nutrients news reports.
Silicon patent scan
Every year inventors apply for dozens of patents covering silicon in plant nutrition and crop protection. Since the latest update (December 2006), once again a good few patent documents have been published. For a handful examples of these patent publications, click here. The full patent scan has been published in the November issue of Beneficial nutrients news.
Hormesis – beneficials effects of adverse elements
Low doses of adverse elements can stimulate the growth of plants. Researchers report such so-called hormetic effects from nickel, titanium, uranium and rare earth elements. Unaware of the possible hormetic mode of action, farmers in the Far East utilize the benefits of rare earth elements on a large scale. Hormesis is the feature in the September issue of Beneficial nutrients news; this article gives background information and hyperlinks to relevant references.
Zirconium improves wheat growth
Hungarian scientists have found that hydroponically grown wheat seedlings profit from a low dose of zirconium chelate. High zirconium doses however are harmful, the September issue of Beneficial nutrients news reports.
Sodium silicate reduces postharvest fruit decay
Sodium silicate inhibits the growth of pathogens in fruit wounds. Chinese scientists think that combining of sodium silicate with biocontrol agents or food additives will give good fruit disease control. In the June issue of Beneficial nutrients news they inform about planned investigations and finished experiments with sweet cherry, jujube fruit and Hami melons.
Patent applications cover new uses for titanium
Titanium oxides and other metal oxides protect crops against sunburn damage. The oxides absorb UV radiation and can also reflect this radiation, say German researchers in recently filed patent applications in which they disclose the production and use of titanium oxide powders. The June issue of Beneficial nutrients news also reports about other patent applications that cover new uses for titanium, including a quick patent scan that covers recently disclosed applications of titanium in fertilisers and other agrochemicals.
Silicon benefits annual ornamentals
The anual flower Zinnia elegans is a silicon accumulator. American researchers conclude this from analyses with several analytical techniques. The silicon-fed zinnia plants contained about 1.2% silicon in the leaves, whereas the nutrient was not detectable in leaves of the non-treated plants. Also some bedding plants accumulate this nutrient, says the April issue of Beneficial nutrients news. Cultivars may differ strongly in silicon uptake. So far the researchers have looked at 23 plant types and species.
Zinnia profits from silicon nutrition. Silicon application to zinnia plants results in a strong reduction of the powdery mildew attack. Silicon-fed plants are also more resistant to harmful insects, so it appears from preliminary experimental data.
Silicon research profits from new tracing methods
Advanced tracing methods stimulate new silicon research. Recently scientists for instance have adopted new stable silicon isotope measuring techniques. As an alternative to stable isotopes, plant nutrition researchers also suggest a radioactive germanium isotope as a silicon tracer. The February issue of Beneficial nutrients news describes this new development and gives hyperlinks to related literature.
Silicon alleviates acidification effects
Acidified forests benefit from calcium silicate application. Scientists attributed these effects to calcium. Recent findings however provide new insights into the beneficial role of silicon in forest management. In conifers for instance this nutrient alleviates aluminium toxicity. The feature in the December issue of Beneficial nutrients news gives background information and many hyperlinks to relevant references.
Selenium enriched food keeps the doctor away
Selenium has health-promoting effects. Selenium fortified foods therefore attract more and more interest from growers and researchers. The boost in selenium related patent publications also reflects the increasing interest in this essential nutrient. Selenium biofortification is the theme of the November issue of Beneficial nutrients news. This issue reports about ongoing projects and efforts that have already been made in order to reach enhanced selenium levels in food crops. The newsletter counts two pages extra with dozens of hyperlinks to recently published literature on selenium research.
First studies in Plant nutrition series upcoming
Silicon in grass is the first publication in the Plant nutrition series. This series publishes studies about general plant nutrition topics, but also about beneficial nutrients. Subscribers to Beneficial nutrients news receive a discount on the prices of all the studies in the Plant nutrition series. The second publication in the series is a new edition of the popular report Ammonia volatilization from mineral fertilisers. Both reports are also available in a Dutch version: Silicium in gras and Ammoniakvervluchtiging uit kunstmest.
Silicates for carbon dioxide sequestration
Soil liming with silicates is a good way to control the carbon dioxide levels of the atmosphere. A Dutch geochemist concludes this in analogy to a process by which industrial waste acids are neutralized by reaction with the silicate rock material olivine. In the September issue of Beneficial nutrients news, some background information about this process of enhanced weathering has been published.
Dual purpose silicate fertiliser
Beneficial nutrients news has found the recipe of an unknown, but interesting manganese silicate formulation. The inexpensive fertiliser may be of interest for manganese and silicate nutrition as well. In pot experiments with oat on a manganese-deficient calcareous soil, the experimental formulation performed better than manganese sulphate, Mn-EDTA and Mn-DTPA. The inventor recommends the fertiliser for use on hydroponics. He attributes the efficacy of this manganese silicate formulation to the high stability of the compound, but also silicon may have had a favourable effect on the utilisation of manganese by the plant. Further a more efficient distribution of the nutrient within the plant may have contributed to the superiority of the compound, he supposes. In the August issue of Beneficial nutrients news the prospects of the specific manganese formulation for foliar fertilisation are discussed.
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