Abstract
Abstract Background Modern high‐yielding crops, such as maize, are characterized by extensive yield stability across various environments and can cope with repetitive periods of moderate water shortage. However, there is conflicting evidence on how the nutritional status of the plants contributes to stress resilience and whether farmers have management options via nitrogen fertilization. Aims We aimed at identifying factors relevant for improved growth recovery of maize after repeated water deficit stress (WDS). Methods A pot experiment with maize and repeated WDS was conducted. Growth and recovery from stress and physiological parameters were measured. Results The growth penalty of juvenile maize plants exposed to a moderate WDS was lost after additional exposure to a 2‐week WDS. Primed plants transiently contained more osmolytes and performed superior in the second recovery phase when nitrogen fertilization was applied directly before the second WDS. Nitrogen fertilization did not affect the osmolyte quantity, and primed plants had transiently higher antioxidant levels, higher reactive oxygen species production and recovered more quickly with N addition. Conclusions Pot experiments suggest that nitrogen fertilization may be an option to improve maize resilience to repeated WDS, a hypothesis that should be tested more rigorously in the field.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
The growth penalty after moderate water deficit disappeared after a further two-week deficit.
- Organ / stage
- juvenilee0
- Treatment
- a 2‐week WDSe0
- Outcome
- growth penaltye0
- Direction
- was loste0
- Comparator
- a moderate WDSe0
Zea maysOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The growth penalty of juvenile maize plants exposed to a moderate WDS was lost after additional exposure to a 2‐week WDS.”
Claim · model-written summary
Primed plants transiently contained more osmolytes.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Primed plants transiently contained more osmolytes”
e1“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
With nitrogen applied before the second water deficit, primed plants performed better in recovery.
- Material
- Primed plantse1
- Treatment
- nitrogen fertilizatione0
- Outcome
- second recovery phasee0
- Direction
- superiore0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“performed superior in the second recovery phase when nitrogen fertilization was applied directly before the second WDS.”
e1“Primed plants”
e2“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
Nitrogen fertilization did not affect osmolyte quantity.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Nitrogen fertilization did not affect the osmolyte quantity”
e1“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
Primed plants had transiently higher antioxidant levels.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“primed plants had transiently higher antioxidant levels”
e1“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
Primed plants had higher reactive oxygen species production.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“primed plants had transiently higher antioxidant levels, higher reactive oxygen species production”
e1“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
With nitrogen addition, primed plants recovered more quickly.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“recovered more quickly with N addition.”
e1“primed plants”
e2“maize plants”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors proposed nitrogen fertilization as a possible option to improve maize resilience to repeated water deficit.
- Outcome
- nitrogen fertilization may be an option to improve maize resilience to repeated WDSe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“nitrogen fertilization may be an option to improve maize resilience to repeated WDS”
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