Role of Marine Algae Extracts in Water Stress Resistance of Onion Under Semiarid Conditions
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Role of Marine Algae Extracts in Water Stress Resistance of Onion Under Semiarid Conditions Yaser A. Almaroai 1,2 & Mamdouh A. Eissa 3 Received: 20 August 2019 / Accepted: 10 February 2020 # Sociedad Chilena de la Ciencia del Suelo 2020
Abstract Availability of water for food production is a global concern; thus, increasing water productivity has been become a necessary. Deficit irrigation is a good strategy to increase water use efficiency, but it may affect negatively on plant physiology and crop productivity. Little is known about the effect of marine algae extracts on water stress resistance and yield of onion grown on semiarid regions. Therefore, field experiments were conducted in 2018 and 2019 growing seasons to study the effect of foliar application of marine alga (Amphora ovalis) extracts (at rate of 0, 3, 6 or 9%) on onion grown under normal irrigation (80% of available soil water) or water stress (50% of available soil water). The field experiments were laid out in a split-plot design with four replicates. The highest dose of algal extract sprayed on onion grown under water stress significantly (P < 0.05) increased N, P, and K uptake by 116, 113, and 93% compared to the unsprayed plants. The application of 9% algal extract for onion grown under water stress significantly (P < 0.05) increased the bulb yield by 67 and 102%, respectively, in 2018 and 2019 growing seasons. Water stress reduced the chlorophyll production as a result of directing most of plant’s energy to produce water-resistant materials such as proline and phenols. Algal extract reduced the negative effects of water stress and caused significant increases in onion growth and yield. Keywords Algal extract . Biochemical changes . Drought . Drip irrigation . Nutrients and water uptake
1 Introduction Deserts in semiarid regions may be suitable for crop cultivation expansion, but most of these lands are characterized by low nutrient availability, high pH, and calcium carbonate content (Kolahchi and Jalali 2013; Eissa 2014, 2016a). Furthermore, sandy texture is the dominant one which leads to low water holding capacity (Badr et al. 2012). Agriculture expansion in these regions is restricted due to poor soil properties, shortage of water resources, and high daily evapotranspiration rate (Mahadeen et al. 2011; Zhang et al. 2013). In order to get best economic returns from the degraded calcareous sandy soils in arid and semiarid regions, there is a need to * Mamdouh A. Eissa [email protected] 1
Department of Biology, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
2
Research Laboratories Centre, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
3
Department of Soils and Water, Faculty of Agriculture, Assiut University, Assiut 71526, Egypt
use good management strategies for irrigation and fertilization (Eissa 2016a). The use of drip irrigation systems has increased in the last decades due to the high use efficiency of water and nutrients and the easy fertilizer management and
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