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| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2015 | Volume
: 1
| Issue : 2 | Page : 52-57 |
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Interactive Effects of Vermicompost and Salicylic Acid on Chlorophyll and Carotenoid Contents of Petunia Hybrid Under Drought Stress
Marziyeh Saberi1, Forogh Mortazaei Nezhad1, Nemat-allah Etemadi2
1 Department of Horticultural Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Isfahan, Iran
2 Department of Horticultural Sciences, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran
| Date of Web Publication | 27-Nov-2015 |
Correspondence Address:
Marziyeh Saberi
Department of Horticultural Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Isfahan
Iran
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/2423-7752.170580
Aims: This study was conducted to investigate the effects vermicompost, drought stress, and salicylic acid on chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of petunia plants. Materials and Methods: Experimental treatments were drought stress including two levels with and without stress, four salicylic acid concentrations including 0, 50, 100, and 200 ppm and three levels of vermicompost (0, 10, and 20% w/w). The experiment was carried out as a completely randomized design with 3 replications. The application of vermicompost resulted in significant increases in contents of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll and carotenoid compared to control. The content of chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll in 50 ppm salicylic acid was significantly greater than that in other treatments. However, the chlorophyll b and carotenoid content was lower in the in 100 ppm salicylic acid than in other treatments. Results: The results indicated that drought stress significantly reduced these pigments. The highest the content of chlorophyll a was observed at the rate of 10% vermicompost, 50 ppm salicylic acid, and no-stress condition. The treatment of 200 ppm salicylic acid at no-stress condition and rate of 20% vermicompost had the highest of chlorophyll b content. The highest the content of total chlorophyll was observed at the rate of 10% vermicompost, 50 ppm salicylic acid, and no-stress condition. The treatment of without salicylic acid and vermicompost at stress condition had the highest of carotenoid content. Based on the results of this experiment, application of salicylic acid and vermicompost improved the contents of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid of Persian petunia under drought conditions. Keywords: Carotenoid, chlorophyll, drought stress, Petunia hybrid, salicylic acid, vermicompost
How to cite this article:
Saberi M, Nezhad FM, Etemadi Na. Interactive Effects of Vermicompost and Salicylic Acid on Chlorophyll and Carotenoid Contents of Petunia Hybrid Under Drought Stress. J Earth Environ Health Sci 2015;1:52-7 |
How to cite this URL:
Saberi M, Nezhad FM, Etemadi Na. Interactive Effects of Vermicompost and Salicylic Acid on Chlorophyll and Carotenoid Contents of Petunia Hybrid Under Drought Stress. J Earth Environ Health Sci [serial online] 2015 [cited 2023 Mar 24];1:52-7. Available from: https://www.ijeehs.org/text.asp?2015/1/2/52/170580 |
| Introduction | |  |
Vermicomposting is the bio-oxidation and stabilization of organic material including the joint action of earthworms and microorganisms. [1] The concentration mineral elements in vermicompost extremely depend on the parent material. It commonly contains higher levels of most of the nutrition elements than the input material. [2] Applications of vermicompost have been proved effective to enhance growth and yield of plants. [3] Chamani et al. (2008) reported that vermicompost had significant positive effects on flower numbers, leaf growth and shoot fresh and dry weights in Petunia hybrida compared to control. [4] Hamidpour et al. (2013) demonstrated that application of vermicompost increased measured parameters in P. hybrida. They found that vermicompost at the rate of 10% produced the maximum amount of plant growth characteristics. [5]
An accelerated reducing water resources in the arid region is the major factor limiting plant growths. Under drought stress condition, crop management practices that improve drought stress resistance may benefit plant growth. Drought stress is an important factor responsible for the limited photosynthesis and plants growth and consequently crop production. [6] Subramanian et al. (2006) reported that the drought stress significantly decreased plant height, the number of primary branches and flower and fruit production of tomato plants. [7]
Salicylic acid is a messenger molecule which plays a nonenzymatic antioxidant role in regulating plant physiological mechanisms during different stress. [8] Salicylic acid, an endogenous plant growth hormone has been found to generate a wide range of physiological and metabolic responses in plants thereby affecting development and growth of plants. [9] This plant growth regulator is a mono hydroxyl benzoic acid, a type of phenolic acid and a beta hydroxyacid. [10] Salicylic acid is classified as a type of herbal hormone which influences many physiological processes such as flower induction, growth and development, ethylene synthesis and respiration [11] stomatal regulation, ethylene biosynthesis, respiration, senescence, and the activation of defense systems against different pathogens. [12],[13],[14] Generally, the potential function of salicylic acid in response to stresses has been confirmed. [15] Kang et al. (2013) reported that the application of salicylic acid significantly alleviated growth (fresh mass, dry mass, plant height, and root length) inhibition induced by drought in wheat. [16]
Nonetheless, little information is available about the effects of vermicompost and salicylic acid and drought stress on chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of vermicompost and salicylic acid on chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of Petunia hybrid under drought stress.
| Materials and Methods | | |
Experimental design
To evaluate the vermicompost, drought stress and salicylic acid on chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of plant, petunia plants were grown in the greenhouse of Horticulture Department at the Isfahan (Khorasgan) University, Iran. The average temperature of day and night were 26 and 18°C, respectively. Experimental treatments were drought stress including two levels with and without stress, four salicylic acid concentrations including 0, 50, 100, and 200 ppm and three levels of vermicompost. P. hybrida (… L.) seeds were germinated in trays with the same medium for each treatment and then transplanted into final pots (4 L) and grown on for 90 days. There was one plant per pot during the growing period. Before the transplant, three levels of vermicompost were applied. The traditional base medium (control) was a mixture of 100% soil. The soil was a silty clay classification. Other treatment media were either vermicompost incorporated at 10 and 20%. The electrical conductivity of soil and irrigation water was 1.5 and 2.3 dSm−1 , respectively. Overall, 24 treatment combinations (two levels of drought stress × four concentrations of salicylic acid × three levels of vermicompost were replicated 4 times and arranged in a completely randomized design. The plants were sprayed manually with different concentrations of salicylic acid using a 500 mL hand sprayer on a once every 2 weeks during 45 days. The half of plants was exposed to drought stress (… of field capacity) and another half were grown under normal condition.
Determination of chlorophyll and carotenoid
Chlorophyll and carotenoid were estimated by extracting the leaf material in 80% acetone. Absorbances were recorded at 663, 645, and 470 nm. The concentrations of total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a and b, as well as carotenoid were calculated accordingly. [17]
Statistical analysis
The effects vermicompost, salicylic acid, and drought stress on chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of P. hybrid were determined by three-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). When statistical significance was found (P ≤ 0.05), comparison of the means was carried out by using the Duncan test. All statistical procedures were carried out using the software package SAS 9.1 for Windows.
| Results | | |
According to the results of ANOVA presented in [Table 1], leaf chlorophyll a, b, as well as total chlorophyll and carotenoid contents was affected by different concentrations of vermicompost, salicylic acid, drought stress, and their interaction. However, the effects of vermicompost on chlorophyll b and interaction of vermicompost × drought stress on chlorophyll b and carotenoid contents not significant [Table 1]. Statistical analysis revealed that, the application of vermicompost resulted in significant increases in contents of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid compared to control [Table 2]. The content of chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll in 50 ppm salicylic acid was significantly greater than that in other treatments. However, the chlorophyll b and carotenoid content was lower in the in 100 ppm salicylic acid than in other treatments [Table 3]. As shown in [Table 4] drought stress significantly reduced these pigments. | Table 1: Analysis of variance of some properties of Petunia hybrid in different treatments
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 | Table 2: The effects of vermicompost on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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 | Table 3: The effects of salicylic acid on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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 | Table 4: The effects of drought stress on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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Although, the content of chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll in 50 ppm salicylic acid and at the rate of 10% vermicompost was greater than that in other treatments, the chlorophyll b and carotenoid content in the 200 ppm salicylic acid and at the rate of 20% vermicompost was higher than other treatments [Table 5]. | Table 5: The effects of vermicompost × salicylic acid interaction on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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Comparison between means for vermicompost × drought stress interaction showed that the highest the content of chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll was revealed at the rate of 20% vermicompost and no-stress condition [Table 6]. | Table 6: The effects of vermicompost × drought stress interaction on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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The results of comparison between means for salicylic acid × vermicompost interaction showed that the highest the content of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid was revealed at no-stress condition and 50 ppm salicylic acid. However, 50 ppm salicylic acid at no-stress condition had highest of chlorophyll b content [Table 7]. | Table 7: The effects of salicylic acid × drought stress interaction on contents of chlorophyll and carotenoid
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Comparison between means for salicylic acid × vermicompost × drought stress interaction showed that the highest the content of chlorophyll a was observed at the rate of 10% vermicompost, 50 ppm salicylic acid, and no-stress condition [Figure 1]. As shown in [Figure 2], the treatment of 200 ppm salicylic acid at no-stress condition and rate of 20% vermicompost had highest of chlorophyll b content. The highest the content of total chlorophyll was observed at the rate of 10% vermicompost, 50 ppm salicylic acid, and no-stress condition [Figure 3]. As shown in [Figure 4], the treatment of without salicylic acid and vermicompost (control) at stress condition had highest of carotenoid content. | Figure 1: The effects of salicylic acid, vermicompost, and drought stress on content of chlorophyll a. D0 = No-stress condition; D1 = Drought stress condition, V0 = 0% vermicompost; V10 = 10% vermicompost; V20 = 20% vermicompost. Means followed by the same letters are not significantly different at P < 0.05, according to the Duncan test
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 | Figure 2: The effects of salicylic acid, vermicompost, and drought stress on content of chlorophyll b. D0 = No-stress condition; D1 = Drought stress condition, V0 = 0% vermicompost; V10 = 10% vermicompost; V20 = 20% vermicompost. Means followed by the same letters are not significantly different at P < 0.05, according to the Duncan test
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 | Figure 3: The effects of salicylic acid, vermicompost, and drought stress on content of total chlorophyll. D0 = No-stress condition; D1 = Drought stress condition, V0 = 0% vermicompost; V10 = 10% vermicompost; V20 = 20% vermicompost. Means followed by the same letters are not significantly different at P < 0.05, according to the Duncan test
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 | Figure 4: The effects of salicylic acid, vermicompost, and drought stress on content of carotenoid. D0 = No-stress condition; D1 = Drought stress condition, V0 = 0% vermicompost; V10 = 10% vermicompost; V20 = 20% vermicompost. Means followed by the same letters are not significantly different at P < 0.05, according to the Duncan test
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| Discussion | | |
The chlorophyll content reflects the plant photosynthetic assimilation ability and photosynthetic rate. [18]
Salicylic acid prevents cytokinin and auxin loss in plants and thus increases cell division and plant growth. Salicylic acid also keeps photosynthetic aspects like chlorophyll content, at the proper level and thus helps plants to well growth and develop. [9] Plant growth regulators increased the fresh weight, dry weight, root growth, total chlorophyll, protein, and amino acid content. [19] Zamani et al. (2011) mentioned that total chlorophyll content increased by the salicylic acid application in Rose. [20] However, Mohammadi et al. (2014) observed that increase in salicylic acid concentration led to a reduction of chlorophyll content in cut gladiolus flowers. [21]
The application of vermicompost resulted in significant increases in contents of chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid compared to control. Liu et al. (2013) illustrated that the contents of chlorophyll were also significantly increased by application of composted pineapple residue return on the soil. Fernαndez-Luqueño et al. (2010) reported that the chlorophyll content of the beans in the vermicompost was higher than sludge and urea treatments. [22] Tejada et al found that the application of 8.2% w/w (vermicompost/soil) induced the largest increase in contents of chlorophyll in bean plants. Vermicompost improved plant uptake of N, P and K, as well as increased chlorophyll production in the leaves. [23] Mafakheri et al. (2010) reported that drought stress significantly decreased chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and total chlorophyll content in three chickpea cultivars. [24] Manivannan et al. (2007) found that chlorophyll a content, the chlorophyll b content, and the total chlorophyll content in all sunflower varieties investigated decreases as a result of drought stress. Severe drought stress can prevent the photosynthesis of plants by causing changes in chlorophyll content, by affecting chlorophyll components, and by damaging the photosynthetic apparatus. [25] The decrease in chlorophyll content under drought stress is mostly the result of damage to chloroplasts caused by active oxygen species. [26] Drought stress changes the plant photosynthesis, respiration, translocation, ion uptake, nutrient metabolism, and hormones. [27] Zeid et al. (2014) found the drought stress significantly decreased chlorophyll b. However, drought stress had not significantly effects on chlorophyll a, total chlorophyll, and total carotenoids. [28] Golchin et al. (2006) demonstrated that chlorophyll content of the leaves of pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) and the photosynthesis rate were better in vermicompost treatments relative to the control. [29] Berova and Karanatsidis (2009) concluded that a distinct increase in the content of chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b relative to the control. [30]
| Conclusions | | |
Results showed that chlorophyll and carotenoid content of P. hybrid affected by drought significantly. Applying salicylic acid and vermicompost improved measured traits at drought condition.
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
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[Figure 1], [Figure 2], [Figure 3], [Figure 4]
[Table 1], [Table 2], [Table 3], [Table 4], [Table 5], [Table 6], [Table 7]
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