article · Agriculture
Imbalanced zinc levels in agricultural soil, ranging from deficiency to toxicity, restrict maize growth and yield. Inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can enhance plant tolerance to zinc stress and regulate nutrient uptake. Testing zinc application rates from 0 to 120 milligrams per kilogram, with and without fungal inoculation, showed that inoculated plants achieved 45 percent higher root colonisation. Applying 20 milligrams of zinc per kilogram alongside fungal inoculation significantly outperformed fungal inoculation alone, raising biological yield by 42.2 percent, leaf numbers by 35.4 percent, plant height by 15 percent, and 1000-grain weight by 10.5 percent. This combination also improved gas exchange attributes, including photosynthesis, transpiration, and stomatal conductance, while boosting total soluble protein. Higher zinc concentrations induced plant toxicity regardless of fungal presence, confirming the low-dose combination as optimal.
Maize is a vital global crop, but improper soil zinc levels frequently reduce crop performance and waste agricultural inputs. Demonstrating that biofertilizers such as mycorrhizal fungi enhance plant performance under low zinc additions offers a sustainable management option. This enables farmers to maximise maize yields while preventing the environmental and biological damage associated with excessive heavy metal application.
The findings are relevant to agricultural input manufacturers and agronomists developing integrated biofertilizer and micronutrient packages. By identifying that a low zinc rate of 20 milligrams per kilogram works best with fungal inoculation, the work supports tailored soil amendment products. The research represents applied, experimental-stage testing, meaning farm-scale field trials would be required before translating the specific application ratios into commercial agronomic recommendations.
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Zinc (Zn) concentration in soil varies from deficient to toxic. Its deficiency, as well as toxicity, through imbalanced application and cropping in industrial sites can reduce maize growth and yield. Therefore, balanced Zn application is necessary to save resources and achieve optimum growth and yield in maize. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can provide tolerance to the host plant against Zn-induced stress. Inoculation with AMF helps in regulating the uptake of Zn and enhances the growth and yield of crops. Different application rates of Zn (0, 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, and 120 mg Zn kg−1) were applied with inoculation with AMF (AM) and without AMF (NM). Results showed that root colonization was 45% higher in AMF-inoculated plants than non-inoculated plants. A significant increase in plant height (15%), number of leaves (35.4%), cob weight (4.39%), 1000-grain weight (10.5%), and biological yield (42.2%) signified the efficacious functioning of Zn20 + AM over sole inoculation with AM. We also observed that AMF inoculation with Zn20 helped to improve photosynthesis, transpiration, and stomatal conductance. Furthermore, both Zn20 + AM and Zn20 + AM significantly increased total soluble protein compared with AM. Higher application rates of zinc, i.e., Zn80 and Zn120, induced Zn toxicity with (AM) and without (NM) AMF. In conclusion, Zn20 + AM is an effective treatment to achieve better growth and maize yield without Zn deficiency or toxicity.
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DOI: 10.3390/agriculture11040310
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