Dynamic distribution of potassium in sugarcane

Abstract

In this work the distribution of potassium in sugarcane has been studied during its growth. The soil was prepared with natural fertilizers prepared with sugarcane bagasse. For the measurement of potassium concentration in each part of the plant, gamma-ray spectrometry was used to measure gamma-rays emitted from the radioisotope 40K. The concentrations of potassium in roots, stems and leaves were measured every two to three months beginning about five months after planting the sugarcane. The results show a higher concentration of potassium at the beginning of plant development and over time, there is an oscillatory behavior in this concentration in each part of the plant, reaching a lower concentration in the adult plant. To describe the evolution of potassium distribution in sugarcane we proposed a phenomenological model assuming that the potassium incorporation rate is proportional to the difference between the element concentration in the plant and a very long term equilibrium value and it is coupled to a resource-limited growth model. The proposed model succeeded in interpreting the results for the potassium distribution in stems and leaves during the sugarcane growth. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.