Effects of Silicon Fertilization and Bacillus mycoides Inoculation on Selected Cool-Season Turfgrass Species Subjected to Heat Stress

Project no. 32010 · Status: Kapanmış (Yayın bekleniyor) · 2024

Summary

<p class="ql-align-justify">Heat&nbsp;stress&nbsp;significantly&nbsp;reduces&nbsp;turf&nbsp;quality&nbsp;in&nbsp;cool-season&nbsp;turfgrasses,&nbsp;particularly&nbsp;during&nbsp;the&nbsp;summer&nbsp;months,&nbsp;increasing&nbsp;the&nbsp;need&nbsp;for&nbsp;sustainable&nbsp;management&nbsp;strategies&nbsp;to&nbsp;mitigate&nbsp;its&nbsp;adverse&nbsp;effects.&nbsp;This&nbsp;study&nbsp;was&nbsp;conducted&nbsp;to&nbsp;investigate&nbsp;the&nbsp;effects&nbsp;of&nbsp;silicon&nbsp;(potassium&nbsp;silicate)&nbsp;fertilizer&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Bacillus&nbsp;mycoides</em>&nbsp;applications&nbsp;on&nbsp;cool-season&nbsp;turfgrass&nbsp;species,&nbsp;namely&nbsp;<em>Lolium&nbsp;perenne</em>&nbsp;cv.&nbsp;Monsieur&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Festuca&nbsp;arundinacea</em>&nbsp;cv.&nbsp;Meister,&nbsp;under&nbsp;heat&nbsp;stress&nbsp;conditions.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">The&nbsp;experiment&nbsp;was&nbsp;established&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;experimental&nbsp;fields&nbsp;of&nbsp;Bayındır&nbsp;Vocational&nbsp;School,&nbsp;Ege&nbsp;University,&nbsp;using&nbsp;a&nbsp;split-plot&nbsp;design&nbsp;with&nbsp;three&nbsp;replications.&nbsp;Four&nbsp;treatments&nbsp;were&nbsp;evaluated:&nbsp;Control,&nbsp;Silicon,&nbsp;<em>B.&nbsp;mycoides</em>,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Silicon&nbsp;+&nbsp;<em>B.&nbsp;mycoides</em>.&nbsp;Assessments&nbsp;were&nbsp;carried&nbsp;out&nbsp;between&nbsp;April&nbsp;and&nbsp;September&nbsp;2025.&nbsp;Turf&nbsp;cover,&nbsp;overall&nbsp;turf&nbsp;quality,&nbsp;Dark&nbsp;Green&nbsp;Color&nbsp;Index&nbsp;(DGCI),&nbsp;chlorophyll&nbsp;content,&nbsp;relative&nbsp;water&nbsp;content,&nbsp;dry&nbsp;matter&nbsp;content,&nbsp;and&nbsp;electrolyte&nbsp;leakage&nbsp;were&nbsp;measured&nbsp;monthly&nbsp;throughout&nbsp;the&nbsp;experimental&nbsp;period.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">During&nbsp;the&nbsp;study,&nbsp;mean&nbsp;air&nbsp;temperatures&nbsp;reached&nbsp;30.47&nbsp;°C&nbsp;and&nbsp;29.87&nbsp;°C&nbsp;in&nbsp;July&nbsp;and&nbsp;August,&nbsp;respectively.&nbsp;The&nbsp;cumulative&nbsp;duration&nbsp;of&nbsp;temperatures&nbsp;exceeding&nbsp;30&nbsp;°C&nbsp;amounted&nbsp;to&nbsp;365&nbsp;and&nbsp;357&nbsp;hours,&nbsp;while&nbsp;temperatures&nbsp;above&nbsp;40&nbsp;°C&nbsp;persisted&nbsp;for&nbsp;more&nbsp;than&nbsp;58&nbsp;and&nbsp;36&nbsp;hours&nbsp;during&nbsp;these&nbsp;months.&nbsp;The&nbsp;results&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;treatment&nbsp;effects&nbsp;became&nbsp;statistically&nbsp;significant&nbsp;during&nbsp;periods&nbsp;when&nbsp;heat&nbsp;stress&nbsp;intensified.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">In&nbsp;<em>Lolium&nbsp;perenne</em>,&nbsp;silicon&nbsp;application&nbsp;markedly&nbsp;improved&nbsp;overall&nbsp;turf&nbsp;quality&nbsp;(5.20)&nbsp;and&nbsp;turf&nbsp;cover&nbsp;(90.92%)&nbsp;in&nbsp;August&nbsp;compared&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;control&nbsp;treatment&nbsp;(3.33&nbsp;and&nbsp;49.63%,&nbsp;respectively).&nbsp;Furthermore,&nbsp;silicon&nbsp;significantly&nbsp;reduced&nbsp;electrolyte&nbsp;leakage&nbsp;throughout&nbsp;all&nbsp;heat-stress&nbsp;periods&nbsp;relative&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;control.&nbsp;In&nbsp;<em>Festuca&nbsp;arundinacea</em>,&nbsp;treatment&nbsp;effects&nbsp;were&nbsp;generally&nbsp;more&nbsp;limited;&nbsp;however,&nbsp;electrolyte&nbsp;leakage&nbsp;data&nbsp;similarly&nbsp;indicated&nbsp;the&nbsp;membrane-protective&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;silicon&nbsp;under&nbsp;heat&nbsp;stress&nbsp;conditions.&nbsp;The&nbsp;combined&nbsp;Silicon&nbsp;+&nbsp;<em>B.&nbsp;mycoides</em>&nbsp;treatment&nbsp;exhibited&nbsp;superior&nbsp;performance&nbsp;during&nbsp;specific&nbsp;periods,&nbsp;although&nbsp;this&nbsp;advantage&nbsp;was&nbsp;not&nbsp;consistently&nbsp;maintained&nbsp;across&nbsp;all&nbsp;parameters&nbsp;and&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;dates.</p><p class="ql-align-justify">Overall,&nbsp;the&nbsp;findings&nbsp;suggest&nbsp;that&nbsp;silicon&nbsp;fertilizer&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>B.&nbsp;mycoides</em>&nbsp;applications&nbsp;represent&nbsp;effective&nbsp;alternative&nbsp;inputs&nbsp;for&nbsp;alleviating&nbsp;heat&nbsp;stress&nbsp;in&nbsp;cool-season&nbsp;turfgrasses.&nbsp;However,&nbsp;species-specific&nbsp;differences&nbsp;in&nbsp;response&nbsp;should&nbsp;be&nbsp;carefully&nbsp;considered&nbsp;when&nbsp;developing&nbsp;and&nbsp;implementing&nbsp;management&nbsp;protocols.</p><p></p>

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