RESUMO
This study aims to investigate the behavior of Atriplex nummularia under field conditions, including its growth, periodic cuttings, salt extraction, and soil chemical properties monitored for 16 months. Three treatments were evaluated: soil cultivated with Atriplex pruned at 6 and 12 months after transplanting (MAT); soil cultivated with plants that were harvested only at the end of the experiment (16 MAT); and a control (uncultivated soil) with four replications. Soil samplings were taken at 0, 6, 12, and 16 MAT. The samples were taken at depths of 0-20, 20-40, 40-60, and 60-80 cm. Biometric variables for growth were monitored monthly. The shoot was divided into leaves, thin stems (< or = 3 mm diameter), and thick stems (> 3 mm diameter) to determine its content of Ca, Mg, Na, K, and Cl. We concluded that pruning regime for Atriplex was efficient mainly because it stimulated regrowth of less lignified material (leaves and stems < or = 3 mm). We found that elements extracted by plant tissue can be quantified accurately, making them valuable indicators of the efficiency of the recovery process. The use of the Atriplex is recommended because the the possibility of revegetating areas inhospitable to most species used in conventional farming.
Assuntos
Atriplex/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Solo/química , Atriplex/metabolismo , Biodegradação Ambiental , Biomassa , Brasil , Produtos Agrícolas , Condutividade Elétrica , Folhas de Planta/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Folhas de Planta/metabolismo , Caules de Planta/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Caules de Planta/metabolismo , SaisRESUMO
The choice of the best species to cultivate in semi-arid and arid climates is of fundamental importance, and is determined by many factors, including temperature and rainfall, soil type, water availability for irrigation and crop purposes. Soil or water salinity represents one of the major causes of crop stress. Species of the genus Atriplex are characterized by high biomass productivity, high tolerance to drought and salinity, and high efficiency in use of solar radiation and water. Based on a search of the international literature, the authors outline an agro-climatic zoning model to determine potential production areas in Argentina for Atriplex halimus and Atriplex numularia. Using the agroclimatic limits presented in this work, this model may be applied to any part of the world. When superimposed on the saline areas map, the agroclimatic map shows the suitability of agro-ecological zoning for both species for energy purposes on land unsuitable for food production. This innovative study was based on the implementation of a geographic information system that can be updated by further incorporation of complementary information, with consequent improvement of the original database.
Assuntos
Atriplex/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Clima , Modelos Teóricos , Salinidade , Argentina , Biomassa , Chuva , TemperaturaRESUMO
The Pre-Andean area of Chile exhibits saline soils of volcanic origin naturally contaminated with arsenic (As), and we hypothesise that revegetation with resistant species may be a valid alternative for soil management in this area. Thus, the xerophytic and halophytic shrubs Atriplex halimus and Atriplex atacamensis were cultivated in containers for 90 days in Pre-Andean soil, As-soil, (111±19 mg As kg(-1), pH8.4±0.1) or control soil (12.7±1.1 mg As kg(-1), pH7.8±0.1) to evaluate As accumulation and resistance using stress bioindicators (chlorophylls, malondialdehyde (MDA) and total thiols). Sequential extraction of As-soil indicated that 52.3% of As was found in the most available fraction. The As distribution was significantly different between the species: A. halimus translocated the As to leaves, whilst A. atacamensis retained the As in roots. At 30 and 90 days, A. halimus showed similar As concentrations in the leaves (approximately 5.5 mg As kg(-1)), and As increased in stems and roots (up to 4.73 and 16.3 mg As kg(-1), respectively). In A. atacamensis, As concentration was lower (2.6 in leaves; 3.2 in stems and 6.9 in roots in mg As kg(-1)). Both species exhibited a high concentration of B in leaves (362-389 mg kg(-1)). If the plants are used for animal feed, it should be considered that A. halimus accumulates higher concentration of As and B in the leaves than A. atacamensis. Neither plant growth nor stress bioindicators were negatively affected by the high levels of available As, with the exception of MDA in the leaves of A. halimus. The results indicate that these plants resist contamination by arsenic, accumulating mainly the metalloid in the roots and can be recommended to generate plant cover in As-contaminated soils in the Pre-Andean region, under saline conditions controlled, preventing the dispersion of this metalloid via wind and leaching.
Assuntos
Arsenicais/análise , Atriplex/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Poluentes do Solo/análise , Solo/análise , Atriplex/química , Atriplex/metabolismo , Chile , Clorofila/análise , Resistência a Medicamentos , Monitoramento Ambiental , Efeito Estufa , Peróxidos Lipídicos/análise , Solo/normas , Estresse Fisiológico , Compostos de Sulfidrila/análiseRESUMO
Even at trace levels, arsenic is of environmental and health concern due to its high toxicity. The xerohalophyte plant species Atriplex atacamensis grows on an arsenic-contaminated mining area in North Chile. Young seedlings that were grown from seeds collected from these plants were grown in a nutrient solution under controlled environmental conditions and were exposed for 14 and 28 days to 0, 100 or 1000 µM arsenate. More than 75% of the plants that were exposed to the highest As dose survived until the end of the treatment. The seedling growth was reduced (100 µM As) or inhibited (1000 µM As) in the stress conditions, but the plants were able to efficiently close their stomata and perform osmotic adjustments to avoid secondary water stress. Arsenic accumulated up to 400 µg g(-1) DW in the shoots and 3500 µg g(-1) DW in the roots. Arsenate drastically impaired the P content and increased glycinebetaine content, although no arsenobetaine was found in the tissues. With the exception of arsenite and arsenate, no As-containing organic compound was detected. Arsenic was not excreted by the trichomes that were present at the leaf surface. Although an increase in the total level of non-protein thiols suggested that arsenite fixation on the sulfhydryl groups could occur in the stressed tissues, the majority of the soluble arsenic remained in its oxidized state As(V). Arsenate induced an increase in the free soluble polyamine concentrations in all of the organs, and it increased the proportion of spermidine and spermine and decreased the proportion of putrescine in the polyamine pool. Therefore, it is likely that these polycationic molecules may assist in arsenate sequestration in the stressed tissues, and A. atacamensis may represent a promising plant species that can be tested in field trials for its phytomanagement of As-contaminated sites in desert areas.
Assuntos
Arsênio/toxicidade , Atriplex/efeitos dos fármacos , Poluentes do Solo/toxicidade , Arseniatos/química , Arseniatos/metabolismo , Arsênio/química , Arsênio/metabolismo , Atriplex/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Atriplex/metabolismo , Biodegradação Ambiental/efeitos dos fármacos , Chile , Cromatografia Líquida de Alta Pressão , Cromatografia por Troca Iônica , Relação Dose-Resposta a Droga , Monitoramento Ambiental , Mineração , Fosfatos/química , Fosfatos/metabolismo , Componentes Aéreos da Planta/efeitos dos fármacos , Componentes Aéreos da Planta/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Componentes Aéreos da Planta/metabolismo , Raízes de Plantas/efeitos dos fármacos , Raízes de Plantas/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Raízes de Plantas/metabolismo , Plântula/efeitos dos fármacos , Plântula/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Plântula/metabolismo , Poluentes do Solo/química , Poluentes do Solo/metabolismo , Espectrometria de Fluorescência , Espectrometria por Raios X , Espectrofotometria Atômica , Compostos de Sulfidrila/química , Compostos de Sulfidrila/metabolismo , Difração de Raios XRESUMO
Mine tailing deposits in semiarid and arid environments frequently remain devoid of vegetation due to the toxicity of the substrate and the absence of a diverse soil microbial community capable of supporting seed germination and plant growth. The contribution of the plant growth promoting bacterium (PGPB) Azospirillum brasilense Sp6 to the growth of quailbush in compost-amended, moderately acidic, high-metal content mine tailings using an irrigation-based reclamation strategy was examined along with its influence on the rhizosphere bacterial community. Sp6 inoculation resulted in a significant (2.2-fold) increase in plant biomass production. The data suggest that the inoculum successfully colonized the root surface and persisted throughout the 60-day experiment in both the rhizosphere, as demonstrated by excision and sequencing of the appropriate denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) band, and the rhizoplane, as indicated by fluorescent in situ hybridization of root surfaces. Changes in rhizosphere community structure in response to Sp6 inoculation were evaluated after 15, 30, and 60 days using DGGE analysis of 16S rRNA polymerase chain reaction amplicons. A comparison of DGGE profiles using canonical correspondence analysis revealed a significant treatment effect (Sp6-inoculated vs. uninoculated plants vs. unplanted) on bacterial community structure at 15, 30, and 60 days (p < 0.05). These data indicate that in an extremely stressed environment such as acid mine tailings, an inoculated plant growth promoting bacterium not only can persist and stimulate plant growth but also can directly or indirectly influence rhizobacterial community development.
Assuntos
Atriplex/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Atriplex/microbiologia , Azospirillum brasilense/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Rizosfera , Microbiologia do Solo , Ácidos/análise , Azospirillum brasilense/genética , Azospirillum brasilense/isolamento & purificação , Biomassa , Sedimentos Geológicos/análise , Metais/análise , Mineração , Solo/análiseRESUMO
Elucidating the mechanisms of species coexistence is a crucial goal in ecology. Theory suggests that, when resource abundance fluctuates, coexistence can be achieved if each species in a competing pair is better at exploiting resources at opposite extremes of a fluctuating resource spectrum. Nonetheless, the proximal mechanisms allowing coexistence remain largely unexplored. In a previous paper, we showed that the coexistence of two Atriplex species was facilitated by their varying demographic response (in survival, growth and recruitment) to fluctuation in water availability. Here we explore the effect of spatial distribution, and pollen and resource limitation on the reproductive success (production of viable seeds) of the same two species. An analysis of their spatial distribution showed that Atriplex acanthocarpa had a clumped distribution, which is thought to increase the effectiveness of pollination in wind-pollinated plants, while Atriplex canescens had a random distribution, a pattern expected to restrict wind-pollination success. A pollen and resource (water and nutrients) addition experiment implemented through a repeated-measures design demonstrated that seed viability of A. canescens was both pollen and resource limited, but that these effects were negligible in A. acanthocarpa. Under natural conditions, pollen limitation restricted seed number in A. canescens to only one-third of that recorded when manual pollination was performed. By decreasing its fecundity (and consequent potential seedling recruitment), pollen limitation reverses the competitive advantage of A. canescens over A. acanthocarpa when the limiting resource (water) is abundant and seedling recruitment takes place. To our knowledge, our study of this congeneric pair in the Chihuahuan Desert is the first to document a link between pollen limitation and species coexistence.