Effects of free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) on N, P and K uptake of soybean in northern China
Introduction
The concentration of atmospheric CO2 has been increasing rapidly in the past half century and is predicted to reach 550 μmol mol−1 by mid 21st century (IPCC, 2007). It has been reported that elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations alter plant nutrient demand (Pang et al., 2006), growth and development (Hao et al., 2012), nutrient cycling and utilization (Zeng et al., 2011), and residue decomposition (Lam et al., 2013) in the future high CO2 world. Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) is the world's most important grain legume and a major source of protein and oil for human and livestock consumption. Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) are essential nutrients for the growth and development of soybean, so it is important to understand how the inevitable increase in global CO2 concentrations will affect the uptake and utilization of N, P and K by soybean crops.
Studies on the effects of elevated [CO2] on N, P, K uptake and utilization are inconsistent and varied with crop species and experimental facilities (Li and Kang, 2002, Zeng et al., 2011, Li et al., 2015). Elevated [CO2] increased concentrations of amino acids of the developing leaves of soybean which suggests that elevated [CO2] increases N assimilation in the leaf (Ainsworth et al., 2007). On the other hand, elevated [CO2] decreased N concentration in soybean leaf at the early growth stage, but had no effect in the middle of the season (Rogers et al., 2006). This was attributed to the [CO2]-induced increase in N fixation which matched the additional N demand in the middle of the season (Rogers et al., 2006). Phosphorus concentration and P uptake in rice shoot were significantly increased at elevated [CO2] (Yang et al., 2007). The concentration of (P and K were increased in rice and barnyard grass (Zeng et al., 2011), but reduced in Flindersia at elevated [CO2], and did not vary with CO2 treatment in Alphitonia (Kanowski, 2001) or mung bean (Li et al., 2015). However, the effects of elevated [CO2] on the concentration and uptake of N, P and K of crop tissues have been rarely reported under field conditions (Kanowski, 2001, Zeng et al., 2011, Li et al., 2015). While soybean is an important crop legume, its response to elevated [CO2] in terms of N, P and K concentration and uptake is an important knowledge gap that needs to be addressed. The use of free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) experimental systems provides an opportunity to monitor changes in morphological and physiological traits of plants grown under a natural field condition without the limitations often imposed by growth chambers or pots (Arp, 1991, McLeod and Long, 1999). In 2007 the first wheat-soybean rotation FACE system was established at Beijing, China. This facility was used to host the present study for the investigation of how elevated [CO2] will affect the growth and N, P and K uptake and utilization of field-grown soybean, and to understand more about the effect of elevated [CO2] on nutrient assimilation and metabolism in legumes. The results provide important implications for the strategies of N, P and K application to high-yielding soybean cultivation under future elevated CO2 conditions.
Section snippets
Site description
The study was conducted at the China Mini-FACE facility (Agro-Environment and Sustainable Development Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing, China) located at an experimental station (winter wheat/soybean rotation) of CAAS at Changping, Beijing (40.13° N, 116.14° E). The Mini-FACE facility consisted of 12 experiment areas, six elevated [CO2] (550 ± 19 μmol mol−1, the projected [CO2] in 2050, IPCC, 2007) and six ambient [CO2] (415 ± 16 μmol mol−1), each with a 4-m diameter
Biomass
The above-ground biomass was significantly increased by 19, 30, 35 and 17% under elevated [CO2] at the R1, R3, R5 and maturity stages, respectively, when averaged across two years (Table 1). Elevated [CO2] significantly increased the root biomass of soybean by 16, 30, 39 and 30%, respectively, at the R1, R3, R5 and maturity stages, respectively. The root:shoot ratios were not significantly changed at the R1 stage or R3 stage, but increased by 4 and 6% (p = 0.06) respectively, at the R5 and
Discussion
Differential responses of N, P and K concentration in plants to elevated [CO2] have been observed in our study on soybean and that of others on rice (Roy et al., 2012), barnyard grass (Zeng et al., 2011), maple and white ash (Kanowski, 2001). Our study showed that elevated [CO2] significantly decreased N concentration in above-ground biomass at the beginning bloom stage, but did not significantly affect the concentration at the beginning pod, beginning seed or maturity stage. Likewise, Rogers
Conclusion
Elevated [CO2] had contrasting effects on tissue N, P and K concentrations of soybean depending on growth stage, but had no effect on these concentrations at harvest. At harvest, elevated [CO2] significantly increased above-ground and seed N, P and K uptake. More N, P and K fertilizers will likely be needed for sustainable soybean production under elevated [CO2].
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by National Key Technology R&D Program in the 12th Five year Plan of China (No. 2013BAD11B03-8), the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) (No. 2012 CB955904), Natural science fund projects of Shanxi Province (No. 2013011039-3), The Key Scientific Research Projects of Coal Fund in Shanxi (FT201402-01), the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Program of CAAS, and the earmarked fund for Modern Agro-industry Technology Research System (CARS-3-1-24
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