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Swoboda P, Döring TF, Hamer M. Remineralizing soils? The agricultural usage of silicate rock powders: A review. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 807:150976. [PMID: 34662609 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2021] [Revised: 10/04/2021] [Accepted: 10/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Soil nutrient depletion threatens global food security and has been seriously underestimated for potassium (K) and several micronutrients. This is particularly the case for highly weathered soils in tropical countries, where classical soluble fertilizers are often not affordable or not accessible. One way to replenish macro- and micronutrients are ground silicate rock powders (SRPs). Rock forming silicate minerals contain most nutrients essential for higher plants, yet slow and inconsistent weathering rates have restricted their use in the past. Recent findings, however, challenge past agronomic objections which insufficiently addressed the factorial complexity of the weathering process. This review therefore first presents a framework with the most relevant factors for the weathering of SRPs through which several outcomes of prior studies can be explained. A subsequent analysis of 48 crop trials reveals the potential as alternative K source and multi-nutrient soil amendment for tropical soils, whereas the benefits for temperate soils are currently inconclusive. Beneficial results prevail for mafic and ultramafic rocks like basalts and rocks containing nepheline or glauconite. Several rock modifications are highly efficient in increasing the agronomic effectiveness of SRPs. Enhanced weathering of SRPs could additionally sequester substantial amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere and silicon (Si) supply can induce a broad spectrum of plant biotic and abiotic stress resistance. Recycling massive amounts of rock residues from domestic mining industries could furthermore resolve serious disposal challenges and improve fertilizer self-sufficiency. In conclusion, under the right circumstances, SRPs could not only advance low-cost and regional soil sustaining crop production but contribute to various sustainable development goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Swoboda
- Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, International Centre for Sustainable Development, Granthamallee 20, 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany.
| | - Thomas F Döring
- University of Bonn, Faculty of Agriculture, Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation, Auf dem Hügel 6, 53121 Bonn, Germany
| | - Martin Hamer
- Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, International Centre for Sustainable Development, Granthamallee 20, 53757 Sankt Augustin, Germany
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Abstract
Agriculture in subarctic regions is limited by a short and cold growing season. With warming in the region, the number of growing days and, consequently, the potential for agricultural intensification and expansion may increase. However, subarctic soils are typically acidic, low in plant-available nutrients, and coarsely textured, so they require soil amendment prior to intensification. This is the case in South Greenland, where we tested the use of glacial rock flour (GRF) produced by glaciers as a soil amendment. An experiment was made on a farm in South Greenland during the 2019 summer to quantify the short-term effect of applying GRF to a field dominated by perennial timothy grass. Three treatments were compared to control sites (n = 5): 20 t GRF ha−1 without conventional NPK-fertilizer, as well as 20 and 40 t GRF ha−1 in combination with 25% NPK-fertilizer. The experiment showed no significant response in biomass production (aboveground and belowground) for the plots treated with GRF only. The low rate of GRF combined with 25% NKP showed a marked and significant increase in yield in contrast to a high GRF rate with NPK, which resulted in a significant reduction in yields. The chemical composition of the plants versus soil and GRF showed that the plant uptake of nutrients was significantly higher for NPK-fertilized plots, as expected, but no differences were found between GRF-treated plots and the control plots with respect to nutrient availability or pH in the soil. We conclude that adding water and fertilizer has the potential to increase yields in South Greenland, but applying glacial rock flour as a short-term agricultural supplement needs to be further investigated before it can be recommended.
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Assainar SK, Abbott LK, Mickan BS, Whiteley AS, Siddique KHM, Solaiman ZM. Response of Wheat to a Multiple Species Microbial Inoculant Compared to Fertilizer Application. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2018; 9:1601. [PMID: 30483282 PMCID: PMC6243077 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2018.01601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Microbial inoculants, including those formed from multiple species, may have dual functions as biostimulants and/or biocontrol agents, and claimed agricultural benefits are instrumental for regulatory categorisation. Biostimulants include commercial products containing substances or microorganisms that stimulate plant growth. Biostimulant microbes can be involved in a range of processes that affect N and P transformations in soil and thus influence nutrient availability, and N and P fertilizers can influence soil microbial diversity and function. A glasshouse experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of a multiple species microbial inoculant relative to a rock-based mineral fertilizer and a chemical fertilizer on wheat growth and yield, and on microbial diversity in the rhizosphere. The microbial inoculant was compared to the mineral fertilizer (equivalent to 5.6 kg N ha-1 and 5.6 kg P ha-1), and to the chemical fertilizer applied at three rates equivalent to: (i) 7.3 kg N ha-1 and 8.4 kg P ha-1 as recommended for on-farm use, (ii) 5.6 kg N ha-1 and 6.5 kg P ha-1 which matched the N in the mineral fertilizer, and (iii) 4.9 kg N ha-1 and 5.6 kg P ha-1 which matched P content in the mineral fertilizer. Despite an early reduction in plant growth, the microbial inoculant treatment increased shoot growth at maturity compared to the control. Similarly, grain yield was higher after application of the microbial inoculant when compared to control, and it was similar to that of plants receiving the fertilizer treatments. Using 16S rRNA sequencing, the microbial inoculant and fertilizer treatments were shown to influence the diversity of rhizosphere bacteria. The microbial inoculant increased the relative abundance of the phylum Actinobacteria. At tillering, the proportion of roots colonized by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi increased with the microbial inoculant and mineral fertilizer treatments, but decreased with the chemical fertilizer treatments. At maturity, there were no treatment effects on the proportion of wheat roots colonized by AM fungi. Overall, the multiple species microbial inoculant had beneficial effects in terms of wheat yield relative to the commercial mineral and chemical fertilizers applied at the level recommended for on-farm use in south-western Australia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salmabi K. Assainar
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Lynette K. Abbott
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Bede S. Mickan
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- Richgro Garden Products, Jandakot, WA, Australia
| | - Andrew S. Whiteley
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Kadambot H. M. Siddique
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Zakaria M. Solaiman
- UWA School of Agriculture and Environment, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- The UWA Institute of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
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Manning DAC, Baptista J, Sanchez Limon M, Brandt K. Testing the ability of plants to access potassium from framework silicate minerals. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2017; 574:476-481. [PMID: 27644025 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2016] [Revised: 09/11/2016] [Accepted: 09/11/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The availability of K, essential for plant growth, from syenite (a silicate rock in which potassium feldspar is the dominant mineral; >90wt%), and phlogopite mica has been demonstrated using carefully designed plant growth pot experiments in which the only added source of K was the mineral of interest, with no loss of nutrients through drainage. Using pure quartz sand as a soil, both growth (increase in diameter) of leek plants and K-content of the plant material showed a dose-dependent positive response to the application (114-43000mgK/pot) of milled syenite with increases in plant diameter of 0.5-0.7mm/week, increasing with application rate. Phlogopite mica (114-6000mgK/pot) supported the highest observed increase in diameter (approx. 1mm/week) and plant K-content, both similar to that observed for a positive control (KCl). These experiments demonstrate that plants can obtain K for growth from milled syenite, in which feldspar is the dominant K-bearing mineral, and confirm previous observations that micas can be an effective source of K.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A C Manning
- School of Civil Engineering & Geosciences, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
| | - Joana Baptista
- School of Civil Engineering & Geosciences, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
| | - Mallely Sanchez Limon
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 43 Boulevard du 11 Novembre 1918, 69100 Villeurbanne, France
| | - Kirsten Brandt
- School of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Newcastle University, NE1 7RU, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
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Kim YH, Khan AL, Lee IJ. Silicon: a duo synergy for regulating crop growth and hormonal signaling under abiotic stress conditions. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2015; 36:1099-1109. [DOI: 10.3109/07388551.2015.1084265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yoon-Ha Kim
- School of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea,
- Division of Plant Sciences and National Center for Soybean Biotechnology, University of Missouri-Columbia, MO, USA, and
| | - Abdul Latif Khan
- UoN Chair of Medicinal Plants and Marine Natural Products, University of Nizwa, Nizwa, Oman
| | - In-Jung Lee
- School of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea,
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Abstract
In many parts of the world food security is at risk. One of the biophysical root causes of falling per-capita food production is the declining quality and quantity of soils. To reverse this trend and increase soil fertility soil and plant nutrients have to be replenished. This review provides a literature survey of experiences of using multi-nutrient rock fertilizers for soil fertility enhancement from temperate and tropical environments. Advantages and limitations of the application of rock fertilizers are discussed. Examples are provided from two successful nutrient replenishment projects in Africa where locally available rock fertilizers are used on highly leached acid soils. The potential of combining organic materials alongside rock fertilizers in soil fertility replenishment strategies is stressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Van Straaten
- Department of Land Resource Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
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Barral Silva MT, Silva Hermo B, García-Rodeja E, Vázquez Freire N. Reutilization of granite powder as an amendment and fertilizer for acid soils. CHEMOSPHERE 2005; 61:993-1002. [PMID: 16257320 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2005.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2004] [Revised: 02/28/2005] [Accepted: 03/07/2005] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
The properties of granite powders--a granite manufacturing waste product-were analyzed to assess their potential use as amendments and fertilizers on acid soils. Two types of powders were characterized: one produced during cutting of granite with a diamond-edged disc saw, comprising only rock powder, the other produced during cutting with a multi-blade bandsaw, containing calcium hydroxide and metal filings added during the cutting procedure. The acid neutralizing capacity of the granite powders was assessed in short- (2-3 h) and medium-term (1-30 d) experiments. The powders showed a buffering capacity at around pH 8, which corresponded to the rapid dissolution of basic cations, and another buffering effect at pH<4.5, attributable to the dissolution of Fe and Al. The acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) determined in the short-term experiments, to a final pH of 4.5, varied between 5 and 61 cmol H+kg(-1) powder. The ANC to pH 4.5 obtained in the medium-term experiments was much higher than that obtained in the short-term experiments, reaching a maximum ANC value of 200 cmol H+kg(-1) powder. There was no great difference in the neutralizing capacity determined at between 1 and 30 d. The most abundant elements in acid solutions obtained at the end of medium-term experiments were Mg and Ca for disc saw powders, whereas Ca and Fe (at pH<5) were the most soluble elements in the bandsaw powders. The rapid release of these cations suggests the possible effective use of the granite powders as a source of nutrients on being added to acid soils.
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Affiliation(s)
- M T Barral Silva
- Departamento de Edafología y Química Agrícola, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Santiago, Santiago de Compostela 15782, Spain.
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Abstract
Silicon is present in plants in amounts equivalent to those of such macronutrient elements as calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus, and in grasses often at higher levels than any other inorganic constituent. Yet except for certain algae, including prominently the diatoms, and the Equisetaceae (horsetails or scouring rushes), it is not considered an essential element for plants. As a result it is routinely omitted from formulations of culture solutions and considered a nonentity in much of plant physiological research. But silicon-deprived plants grown in conventional nutrient solutions to which silicon has not been added are in many ways experimental artifacts. They are often structurally weaker than silicon-replete plants, abnormal in growth, development, viability, and reproduction, more susceptible to such abiotic stresses as metal toxicities, and easier prey to disease organisms and to herbivores ranging from phytophagous insects to mammals. Many of these same conditions afflict plants in silicon-poor soils-and there are such. Taken together, the evidence is overwhelming that silicon should be included among the elements having a major bearing on plant life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuel Epstein
- Department of Land, Air and Water Resources-Soils and Biogeochemistry, University of California at Davis, Davis, California 95616-8627; e-mail:
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Granite powder as a source of potassium for plants: a glasshouse bioassay comparing two pasture species. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1995. [DOI: 10.1007/bf00790664] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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