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PLANT NUTRITION
Prakash Kulkarni
Agricultural Technologist, Pune
E mail - [email protected]
Cell - 93706 71620
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"Plant Nutrition"
is the study of
the Chemical
elements &
compounds
necessary for
plant growth,
plant
metabolism &
their external
supply.
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Essential nutrients for plant growth
Introduction
Plants require certain elements for their
normal growth when any of these elements are
not available to plants, it will develop definite
deficiency symptoms.
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Plant Nutrients Classifications
• Primary Nutrients
– Nitrogen (N)
– Phosphorus (P)
– Potassium (K)
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Secondary Nutrients
• Calcium (Ca)
• Magnesium (Mg)
• Sulfur (S)
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Micronutrients (Trace Elements)
• Zinc (Zn)
• Iron (Fe)
• Manganese (Mn)
• Molybdenum (Mo)
• Copper (Cu)
• Boron (B)
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Primary Nutrients
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Nitrogen (N)
Function :
– Promotes rapid vegetative growth.
– Gives plants healthy green colour.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Stimulated growth, pale yellowish colour.
– burning tips and margins of leaves
starting at the bottom of the plant.
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Nitrogen (N) Deficiency Symptoms
Maize
Citurs
Grapes
Banana
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Phosphorus (P)
Function :
– Stimulates early growth and root formation.
– Hastens maturity.
– Promotes seed production.
– Makes plants hardy.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Small root growth, Spindly stalk, Delayed maturity.
– Purplish discoloration of leaves.
– Dying of tips of older leaves, Poor fruit & seed
development.
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Phosphorous (P) Deficiency Symptoms
Potato
Citurs
Tomato
Banana
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Potassium (K)
Function :
– Improves plant ability to resist disease & Cold.
– Aids in the production of carbohydrates.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Slow growth
– Margins on leaves develop a scorched effect on
the older leaves.
– Weak stalk, shriveled seed & fruits.
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Potassium (K) Deficiency Symptoms
Grape
Potato
Tomato
Citurs
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Secondary Nutrients
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Calcium (Ca)
Function :
– Aids in the movement of carbohydrates in
plants
– Essential to healthy cell walls & root structure
Deficiency symptoms :
– Terminal bud dies under severe deficiency
– Margins of younger leaves scalloped
– Blossoms shed prematurely
– Weak stalk & stem structure
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Calcium (Ca) Deficiency symptoms
Citurs
Tomato
Potato
Banana
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Magnesium (Mg)
Function :
– An ingredient of chlorophyll.
– Aids in the translocation of starch within the plant.
– Essential for formation of oils & fats.
Deficiency symptoms :
– Yellowing of leaves between veins starting with
lower leaves.
– Leaves abnormally thin.
– Tissue may dry & die.
– Leaves have tendency to curve upward.
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Magnesium (Mg) Deficiency symptoms Photo
Grape
Citurs
Potato
Tomato
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Sulfur (S)
Function :
– Aids in the formation of oils and parts of protein
molecules.
Deficiency symptoms :
– Young leaves light green to yellowish in colour.
– In some plants, older tissue may be affected also.
– Small spindly plants.
– Retarded growth and delayed maturity.
– Interveinal chlorosis on corn leaves.
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Sulfur (S) Deficiency Symptoms
Tomato
Banana
Potato
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Micronutrients
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Zinc (Zn)
Function :
– An essential constituent of several enzymes.
– Controls synthesis of indole acetic acid (IAA) an
important growth regulator.
– Zinc is most often needed by crops like Grapes, Citrus,
Pomegranate, Apple, Beans, Tomato, Onion, Cotton and
Rice
Deficiency symptoms :
– Decreased stem length and resetting of terminal leaves
– Reduced fruit bud formation
– Mottled leaves and stripping of corn leaves
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Zinc (Zn) Deficiency symptoms
Citurs
Grape
Tomato
Potato
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Iron (Fe)
Function :
– Essential for formation of chlorophyll.
– releases energy from sugars & starches.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Leaves yellowish or white. (young leaves first)
– Veins green, affected leaves curl up.
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Iron (Fe) Deficiency Symptoms
Grape
Citurs
Tomato
Potato
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Copper (Cu)
Function :
– Promotes formation of vitamin A, excess is very
toxic
Deficiency symptoms :
– Started growth, die back of terminal shoots in trees
– Poor pigmentation, wilting & eventual death of leaf
tips.
– Formation of gum pockets around central pith in
oranges
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Copper (Cu) Deficiency Symptoms
Citrus
Tomato
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Manganese (Mn)
Function :
– Serves as an activator for enzymes in growth processes.
– Assist iron in chlorophyll formation.
– Generally required with zinc in foliar spraying of Citrus.
Deficiency symptoms :
– Interveinal chlorosis of young leaves.
– Gradation of pale color next to veins.
– Development of gray specks (oats).
– Interveinal white streaks (wheat) or Interveinal brown
spots (barley).
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Manganese (Mn) Deficiency Symptoms
Citurs
Grape
Potato
Tomato
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Molybdenum (Mo)
Function :
– Required for N Utilization.
– Needed to transform NPN into amino acids.
– & legumes can not fix atmospheric N symbiotically
without Mb.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Stunting & lack of vigor. Very similar to N deficiency
due to the key role of Mb plays in N utilization.
– Whiptail in cauliflower & yellow spotting in citrus.
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Molybdenum (Mo) Deficiency Symptoms
Tomato
Citurs
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Boron (B)
Function :
– Aids in assimilation of calcium, amount required is
extremely small.
Deficiency Symptoms :
– Death of terminal growth causing lateral buds to
develop & produce "witches broom" effect.
– Thickened, curled, wilted & chlorotic leaves.
– Soft & neurotic spots in fruit & tubers.
– Reduced flowering or improper pollination.
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Boron (B) Deficiency Symptoms
Grape
Potato
Tomato Citurs
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Role of Each Plant Nutrient
N P K Ca Mg S B Cu Fe Mn Zn
Yield
Fruits Size
Fruits Number
Fruit Weight
Firmness
TSS
Bitter Pit
Internal breakdown
Fruit Rots
Acidity/Vitamin C
Coloration
Alfalfa Greening
Increase - Decrease - Neutral -
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Crops - susceptibility for nutrient deficiency
Crops Cu Fe Mn Zn B Mo
Field crops
Maize ++
Cotton +++ +++ +++
Rice ++ +++ +++
Fruit Crops
Citrus ++ +++ +++ +++ +++
Apple/Pear ++ ++ +++ +++ +++
Peach +++ +++ +++
Vegetables
Chillies +++ +++ +++
Melon +++ +++ +++
Tomato ++ +++ ++ ++ ++ ++
Potato +++ ++ ++
+ = Susceptibility
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Factors influencing availability of micronutrients in soil
Details Cu Fe Mn Zn B Mo
pH > 7.0 --- --- -- --- - ++
pH < 5.5 ++ +++ +++ ++ -- -
Water-logged soil + -- ++ +
Drought --- --- --- - --- -
High humus content --- ++ ++ ++ ++ -
High P-content - --- - --- - +++
Sand --- --- -- --- - -
Compaction + ++ + + + +
+ = availability
- = deficiency
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Mineral Management
• The Pie chart
highlights how the
minerals (elements)
impact one another.
• Too much of any
major cation or anion
will shut down
another mineral
(element) in the
same group.
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Table of Antagonistic Elements
Excess element Nutrient(s) affected
Nitrogen Potassium, Calcium
Potassium Nitrogen, Calcium, Magnesium
Calcium Boron, Magnesium, Phosphorus
Magnesium Calcium, Potassium
Iron Manganese
Manganese Iron, Molybdenum, Magnesium
Copper Molybdenum, Iron, Manganese, Zinc
Zinc Iron, Manganese
Molybdenum Copper, Iron
Sulfur Molybdenum
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Mulder's Chart of Mineral Interactions
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Law of Minimum in Soil Fertility
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SOIL TEST
• Soil Test may refer to one or more wide variety
of soil analysis conducted for one of several
possible reasons.
• Possibly the most widely conducted soil tests
are those done to estimate the plant -
available concentrations of plant nutrients, in
order to determine fertilizer recommendation
in agriculture.
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Importance of Soil Testing
Introduction
• The Farmers find it extremely difficult to know the proper
type of fertilizer, which would match his soil.
• In using a fertilizer he must take in to account the
requirement of his crops & the characteristics of the soil.
• The basic objective of soil testing program is to give farmers
a service leading to better & more economic use of
fertilizers & better soil management practices for increasing
agricultural production.
• High yielding crops can not give potential yields without
overcoming deficiencies.
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Soil pH related to nutrient availability chart
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