Spatial and temporal variation in soil Mn2+ concentrations and the impact of manganese toxicity on lucerne and subterranean clover seedlings
R. C. Hayes A D , M. K. Conyers A , G. D. Li A , G. J. Poile A , A. Price A , B. J. McVittie A , M. J. Gardner B , G. A. Sandral A and J. I. McCormick A C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A EH Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation (an alliance between NSW Department of Primary Industries and Charles Sturt University), Wagga Wagga Agricultural Institute, Pine Gully Road, Wagga Wagga, NSW 2650, Australia.
B NSW Department of Primary Industries, Tamworth Agricultural Institute, 4 Marsden Park Road, Tamworth, NSW 2340, Australia.
C Department of Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 84 Lincoln University, Lincoln 7647, New Zealand.
D Corresponding author. Email: richard.hayes@dpi.nsw.gov.au
Crop and Pasture Science 63(9) 875-885 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP12138
Submitted: 4 April 2012 Accepted: 9 October 2012 Published: 10 December 2012
Abstract
Spatial and temporal variation in soil Mn2+ was observed over a 12-month period at two field sites near Gerogery and Binalong in southern New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Three pot experiments were then conducted to emulate the range of soil Mn2+ concentrations observed in the field and to determine the effect of different concentrations on lucerne and subterranean clover seedling growth, as well as to determine the effect of heating a soil on pH and Mn2+ concentrations. Concentrations of soil Mn2+ in the surface 0.20 m varied at a given sampling date by up to 288% (2.5–9.7 µg/mL) and 183% (8.7–24.6 µg/mL) across the Gerogery and Binalong field sites, respectively. At both sites, the concentration of soil Mn2+ in a given plot also varied by up to 175% between sampling times. There was little consistency between sites for seasonal fluctuations of soil Mn2+, although in both instances, peaks occurred during months in which newly sown lucerne plants might be emerging in southern NSW. Pot experiments revealed that high concentrations of soil Mn2+ reduced lucerne seedling survival by 35%, and on seedlings that did survive, reduced shoot growth by 19% and taproot length by 39%. Elevated concentrations of soil Mn2+ also reduced subterranean clover seedling survival by up to 55% and taproot length by 25%, although there were few effects on subterranean clover in treatments other than those imposing the highest soil Mn2+ concentrations. The third pot experiment demonstrated that elevated soil temperatures led to increased soil pH and increased soil Mn2+ concentrations, attributable to a decrease in biological oxidation of soil Mn2+. This was in contrast to the commonly anticipated response of a decline in soil Mn2+concentrations as soil pH increased.
Additional keywords: acid soil, lime, alfalfa, easily reducible manganese, soil temperature, Trifolium subterraneum, Medicago sativa.
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