Nitrate Uptake of Kentucky Bluegrass as a Determinant of Nitrogen Use Efficiency

Description

<p> Nitrate (NO₃^-) leaching from fertilized land can be detrimental to aquatic ecosystems and human health. Although NO₃^- leaching potential is generally found to be low in turfgrass, certain conditions can occur that result in increased leaching loss of nitrogen. Kentucky bluegrass (<i>Poa pratensis</i> L.) is the most widely used cool-season turfgrass species in the temperate and subarctic climate zones in the United States. Due to its popularity, many new cultivars are bred and released each year. Despite the ample amount of information characterizing the agronomic features of Kentucky bluegrass genotypes, little is available documenting their physiological characteristics related to nitrogen use efficiency and how these might affect the NO₃^- leaching potential of the genotypes. Such information would be of great value for both scientists and customers.</p><p> In this comprehensive study, a screening procedure was developed using nutrient solution culture to evaluate differences in NO₃^- uptake among sixty Kentucky bluegrass genotypes. Two cultivars were selected from the sixty to represent genotypes having high vs. low capacity for NO₃^- uptake. These two cultivars were then used to examine the relationship between NO₃^- uptake efficiency and competitiveness for soil nitrogen. Finally, these two cultivars were compared to determine if NO₃^- uptake efficiency affected NO₃^- leaching potential.</p><p> There were significant differences in NO₃^- uptake at both high (1 mM) and low (0.05 mM) N concentrations among sixty Kentucky bluegrass genotypes, with a strong correlation between uptake rates at high and low N concentrations. Julia and Midnight were selected as representing cultivars with efficient and inefficient nitrate uptake, respectively. In nutrient solution culture, Julia exhibited 56% higher NO₃^- uptake rates than Midnight. In a root competition study, in which the root systems of the two cultivars occupied the same soil volume, Julia was more competitive for nitrogen acquisition (absorbed 20 to 71% more NO₃^- ) than Midnight. However, the higher NO₃^- uptake capacity and better competitiveness for soil N in Julia did not result in lower NO₃^- leaching potential. These results suggest that differences in root morphology and architecture may play a more important role than uptake capacity in determining nitrate leaching potential among Kentucky bluegrass genotypes.</p>

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Identifer	oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:3538535
Date	02 May 2013
Creators	Zhang, Chenxi
Publisher	North Carolina State University
Source Sets	ProQuest.com
Language	English
Detected Language	English
Type	thesis