IMPORTANCE OF MACRO AND MICRO NUTRIENTS IN SOIL: A REVIEW Rajesh Sohani1, Laxmi Narayan Jagati2
1,2Department of Chemistry, SRGBN, College, Sanawad, Khargone (M.P)
Abstract- Macronutrients (N, P, K) and micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn) are important soil elements that control its fertility .The mineral soil and organic matter are the main sources of essential macro and micronutrient and soil pH has influence micronutrient availability.
Phosphorus plays a crucial role in energy transport and storage, nucleotides, phospholipids, and certain coenzymes. Potassium also plays a crucial role in plant-water relations through the maintenance of osmotic potential and regulation of stomata opening.
Excess Cu may also induce the deficiency of other micronutrients adversely affect yield.
Keywords: Macronutrients, Micronutrients, Soil.
1 INTRODUCTION
The chemistry of the soil is very important property as this determines how plants will grow.
There is a drastic change in the nutrients in soil in last few decades, due to excess use of chemical fertilizer and very less use of FYM (farm yard manure). In the soil there are 16 elements are known to be essential nutrients supposed to be present in the soil and three important parameter i.e. pH, EC and Organic carbon of soil responsible for plant growth.
The essential plant nutrients include carbon, oxygen and hydrogen which are absorbed from the air and water.
In relatively large amounts, the soil supplies nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sulfur. These are often called the macronutrients. In relatively small amounts, the soil supplies iron, manganese, boron, molybdenum, copper, zinc and chlorine, that so-called micronutrients. Elements present at low levels may cause deficiency symptoms. Toxicity is also possible at some levels that may be too high. In 1972, Emanuel Epstein defined two criteria for an element to be essential for plant growth.
1. In its absence the plant is unable to complete a normal life cycle.
2. The element is essential part of plant, constituent or metabolite.
2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE
A review on literature related to the entitled proposed work has been searched and studied extensively some important studies over the few decades is being prevented review is presented related to micronutrients and macronutrients in soil is covered.
Availability of all type of nutrients in soil is depends on number of factors. Detail of related work available in literature is described as given below.
The mineral soil and organic matter are the main sources of essential macro and micronutrient such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sulfur (S), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), and boron (B). Through mineral weathering and mineralization from organic matter, these nutrients are released into the soil solution and available for plant uptake. Organized and well-timed management actions are necessary to improve the nutrient availability and overall fertility of agricultural soils.[1]
The soil pH has the most influence on micronutrient availability, and generally, lower soil pH results in higher micronutrient availability. This effect of soil pH is opposite for Molybdenum (Mo) which generally increase in availability at higher soil pH.[2]
Nitrogen loss is also a potential limitation in many soils and environments including the risk of leaching, denitrification, and immobilization by microorganisms. These potential losses further complicate the development of an effective soil test for available nitrogen.[3]
Phosphorus is another essential element and is typically the second-most limiting nutrient for crop production. Phosphorus plays a crucial role in energy transport and storage, nucleotides, phospholipids, and certain coenzymes. Stunted and delayed maturity are common symptoms of P deficiency in all plants, and tillering are typically reduced in sorghum and wheat. Root growth and nutrient uptake are also affected by P deficiency since energy cannot be easily transported. Phosphorus is highly mobile within the plant and will accumulate in young leaves, flowers, and seeds.[4]
Mobility in the soil is limited and is consider an immobile nutrient in the soil.
Potassium does not form stable compounds in plants; instead, it is found as K+ ions. One
main function of K appears to be in maintaining ionic strength and ionic balance in the cells. Also, over 80 enzyme systems require K for activation. Potassium also plays a crucial role in plant-water relations through the maintenance of osmotic potential and regulation of stomata opening.
Approximately 90% of the sulfur (S) in plants can be found in the amino acids, cysteine, and methionine. Deficiency of S leads to yellowing, spindly, stunted, and chlorotic plants, similar to N deficiency. However, S is much less mobile than N in the plant, and early stages of deficiency tend to appear at the newest growth.
Sulfur deficiency in wheat presents as yellowing of young tissue, stunting, and limited tillering. The distribution of S in the tissue of S-deficient plants can be affected by the nitrogen supply. Sulfur deficiency symptoms can occur either in young or old leaves.[5]
Extent of remobilization and re-translocation from older leaves can be affected by the nitrogen supply. Micronutrient deficiency had become a significant constraint for crop production in some soils and production systems. The deficiency may either be primary, due to low micronutrient levels in the soil, or secondary, caused by soil factors that reduce the availability of micronutrients to plants.[6]
Induced stress in plants leads to low crop yield and quality. Change in plant morphological structure, such as fewer xylem vessels of smaller size, infestations of diseases and pests, and reduced efficiency of fertilizer use are also some of the leading adverse effects of micronutrient deficiency.[7]
Copper (Cu) and its interactions with other micronutrients, such as the Fe, Mn, Zn can affect the growth and yield of wheat. Excess Cu may also induce the deficiency of other micronutrients and adversely affect yield. In recent years, the use of tissue analysis as a diagnostic tool has increased, and questions remain about its reliability for some micronutrients.[8]
The application of mineral fertilizers was directly correlated with tissue analysis of Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn, in the leaf, straw, and grains of wheat.[9]
The application of Zn affected the Mn and Cu concentration of wheat grain.[10]
Iron is another essential micronutrient for plant growth, and deficiency for human nutrition is perhaps the most widespread nutrient deficiency in the world. Which is estimated to affect over 2 billion people.[11]
Zinc deficiency for human nutrition is also widespread, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. It has been estimated to account for 800,000 deaths among children every year (Micronutrient Initiative, 2006). Therefore, there are concerns about low Fe and Zn content in the wheat grain in addition to any potential reduction in grain yield due to micronutrient deficiencies in the plant.[12]
Macronutrients (N, P, K) and micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn) are important soil elements that control its fertility. Soil fertility is one of the important factors controlling yields of the crops. Soil characterization in relation to evaluation of fertility status of the soils of an area or region is an important aspect in context of sustainable agriculture production. Because of imbalanced and inadequate fertilizer use coupled with low efficiency of other inputs, the response (production) efficiency of chemical fertilizer nutrients has declined tremendously under intensive agriculture in recent years. The result of numerous field experiments in different parts of India have, therefore indicated" fertilizer-induced unsustainability of crop productivity" as studied by.
The content of micro nutrient and macro nutrient present in soil, and found that it plays a vital role in the field of agriculture. The amount of nutrients available to the roots of the plant is the main factor limiting the yield of crops. Depending on, climate and crop grown during previous years the fertilizer requirements vary within a field and throughout the year. The Macro nutrients (Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium) and Micro nutrients (Iron, Zinc, and Copper) are essential for healthy plant growth. Macro nutrients are needed in large amount and micro nutrients are needed in smaller amounts. Both micro and macro nutrients are naturally obtained by the roots from the soil.[13]
The plants require C, H and O which are extracted from air and water, besides these macronutrients are consumed in large quantities for plant growth and for survival.
Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium are the primary macronutrients required for plant growth. Nitrogen is necessary for formation of amino acids. It is required for plants cell division and also vital for plant growth. Phosphorus is used in photosynthesis, respiration,
energy storage, cell division, early root formation and growth. It is vital to seed formation.
Potassium is required for carbohydrate metabolism, fruit formation, improves quality of seeds and fruit and increases disease resistance. In the last few decades soil analysis and study of macronutrient level has become an important topic of research to determine pH and primary macronutrients.[14]
The surface soil samples (0-15 cm) were collected from Gharsana tehsil of Sriganganagar district were studied for the N, P and K status in relation to important soil factor. All the soil sample had low amount of available nitrogen, low to medium in phosphorus and medium to high in potassium content. Nitrogen and potassium are highly significant and positively correlated with organic carbon.[15]
Mediterranean soils generally have free CaCO3, high pH, and low organic matter.
Consequently, nutrient disorders in these soils are the most important limiting factor to crop production, second only to moisture stress. Major problems are deficiencies of nitrogen and phosphorus; however, recent research has revealed that micronutrient problems are also hampering crop production. Unlike major nutrient deficiencies, micronutrient problems are highly genotype-specific and location-specific.[16]
Investigations were conducted over a vegetative season at three locations with different distance to the inlet point to assess effects on vegetation. The distance from the inlet did not affect either shoot biomass or nutrients (N, P, K and Na) and heavy metals (Cr, Ni, Cu and Zn) shoot content. With the exception of Na, nutrient and heavy metal concentrations were higher in shoots of P.[17]
Tannery effluents and relevant ground water and soil samples collected from various tanning industries of Peshawar were analyzed for Na, Ca, K, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cr, Co, Cd, Ni, Pb and Zn by the AAS method. Ground water and soil were being contaminated by the toxic metals emanating from the tannery effluents.[18]
Last few years solidification/stabilisation of acidic soils polluted by heavy metals with low-cost sorbents has been investigated. Paper mill sludges are produced in large amounts and their disposal is a serious environmental 71 problem.[19]
Cadmium (Cd) causes Fe-deficiency-like symptoms in plants, and strongly inhibits photosynthesis. To clarify the importance of Cd-induced Fe deficiency in Cd effects on photosynthesis, the recovery processes were studied by supplying excess Fe after the Cd symptoms had developed.[20]
The impact of the water and soil quality of the border area of the industrial belt of jaipur city, Rajasthan. They have concluded that the soil under investigation are enriched with nitrogen along with potassium, they have also obreved that mostly parameters are decreasing with the increasing of the soil profiles.[21]
Fioria vitifolia was the best accumulator for Pb and Ricinus communis can be recommended for remediating the Ni contaminated soils on a large scale.[22]
Heavy metals accumulation in 60 wheat samples collected from wastewater-irrigated fields around discharge channels, during the growth period of plants. Results of their study showed that sewage channel water application for field watering increased the heavy metals (Cu, Cr, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) content in the root, body and seed parts of wheat plant, the increases recorded being higher for Mn and Zn.[23]
The contaminated site, the mean level of all the metals (Cd, Zn, Cr, Pb, Cu, Ni, Mn and Fe) in soil and different parts (root and shoots) of plant species were found to be significantly. The research findings provide us a clue for the selection of plant species, which show natural resistance against toxic metals and are efficient metal accumulators.[24]
Metal concentration in soil was highly variable while concentration of metals in plants directly depends on the concentration of metals it was rooted. Roots showed highest metal concentration followed by leaves, shoots and flowers.[25]
A study was undertaken to examine zinc, copper, lead and nickel content in soils and vegetables collected from different agricultural fields in Tarai region of Kumaun Himalaya. Ladyfinger was found to be the best accumulator of all detected metals. Their study indicates that children ingest significant amount of metals as compared to the adult.
There is more risk of metal accumulation in children as compared to adults.[26]
The heavy metals (Fe, Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Mn and Cr) in tested vegetables (Spinach, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Brinjal, Ladyfinger, Tomato and Radish) grown in contaminated Cement Factory area compared with those grown in reference Clean (control) area. When
compared with the reference in contaminated area, water, soil and vegetables contents of all analyzed metals was significantly higher.[27]
3 CONCLUSION
Micronutrients and macronutrients present in soil plays a vital role in the field of agriculture. Plants require nutrients to survive grow reproduce and development.
Macronutrients provide larger amount of energy to maintain their development and growth.
The most important elements required for crops are nitrogen, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sulfur, oxygen, carbon and hydrogen ,out of this the most important ones are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are directly affected the growth and development of the plants.
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