Comparative Effects of Nano-NPK and Conventional NPK Fertilizers on Growth, Nutrient Content, and Seed Quality of Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The development of nanotechnology-based fertilizers represents a potential avenue for optimizing the efficiency of fertilizer application and increasing the yield of agricultural crops. The current study aimed at investigating the efficacy of nano-NPK fertilizer compared with conventional NPK fertilizer on vegetative growth, chemical analysis, and seed quality of sesame plant (Sesamum indicum L.). The experiment was conducted using RCBD with three replications, where different concentrations of nano-NPK (0, 1, 2, and 3 g/L) and conventional NPK (0, 5, 10, and 15 g/L) were applied through foliar spray. When treated with optimal nano-NPK (2 g/L), plant height (46.50 vs. 38.98 cm), leaf area (13.97 vs. 9.29 cm2), leaf number (27.25 vs. 19.50), fresh and dry weight (30.41 vs. 21.26 g and 3.73 vs. 2.16 g) were improved by 19, 51, 39, 43, and 73%, respectively. The combined treatment (10 g/L conventional NPK + 2 g/L nano-NPK) produced maximum chlorophyll content (42.68 mg/100g, 95% increase), nitrogen (2.90%, 48.7% increase), phosphorus (0.46%, 188% increase), potassium (0.54%, 86% increase), magnesium (1.98%, 383% increase), protein (18.12%, 48.2% increase), and oil content (33.68%, 39.2% increase) relative to untreated controls. It has been observed that the use of nano NPK fertilizers has shown great efficacy even at lower dosages (2 g/L compared to 15 g/L, which means seven-and-a-half times less), suggesting better availability and absorption of nutrients. It has been found from this experiment that use of nano fertilizers, especially in combination with the use of normal fertilizers, positively affects the growth of sesame plants and oil content in them.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
Sharma, L.; Saini, C.; Punia Bangar, S.; Sandhu, K. Sesame (Sesamum indicum) seed. In Oilseeds: Health Attributes and Food Applications; Springer: Singapore, 2020; pp. 305–330. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4194-0_12
Wei, P.; Zhao, F.; Wang, Z.; Wang, Q.; Chai, X.; Hou, G.; Meng, Q. Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.): A comprehensive review of nutritional value, phytochemical composition, health benefits, development of food, and industrial applications. Nutrients 2022, 14, 4079. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14194079
Nongbet, A.; Mishra, A. K.; Mohanta, Y. K.; Mahanta, S.; Ray, M. K.; Khan, M.; Baek, K. H.; Chakrabartty, I. Nanofertilizers: A smart and sustainable attribute to modern agriculture. Plants 2022, 11, 2587. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11192587
Hawkesford, M. J.; Cakmak, I.; Coskun, D.; De Kok, L. J.; Lambers, H.; Schjoerring, J. K.; White, P. J. Functions of macronutrients. In Marschner's Mineral Nutrition of Plants, 4th ed.; Elsevier: Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2023; pp. 201–281. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-819773-8.00019-8
Jiaying, M.; Tingting, C.; Jie, L.; Weimeng, F.; Baohua, F.; Guangyan, L.; Hubo, L.; Juncai, L.; Zhihai, W.; Longxing, T.; et al. Functions of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in energy status and their influences on rice growth and development. Rice Sci. 2022, 29, 166–178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsci.2022.01.005
Veronica, N.; Subrahmanyam, D.; Vishnu Kiran, T.; Yugandhar, P.; Bhadana, V.; Padma, V.; Jayasree, G.; Voleti, S. Influence of low phosphorus concentration on leaf photosynthetic characteristics and antioxidant response of rice genotypes. Photosynthetica 2017, 55, 285–293. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11099-016-0640-4
Sardans, J.; Peñuelas, J. Potassium control of plant functions: Ecological and agricultural implications. Plants 2021, 10, 419. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants10020419
Biswas, J. K.; Roy, B.; Rai, M. Nanotechnology for environmental management: An introductory overview. In Nanotechnology for Environmental Management; Springer: Cham, Switzerland, 2024; Vol. 1, pp. 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003350941
Shang, Y.; Hasan, M. K.; Ahammed, G. J.; Li, M.; Yin, H.; Zhou, J. Applications of nanotechnology in plant growth and crop protection: A review. Molecules 2019, 24, 2558. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules24142558
Madlala, N. C.; Khanyile, N.; Masenya, A. Examining the correlation between inorganic nano-fertilizer properties and crop performance. Nanomaterials 2024, 14, 1263. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano14151263
Siddiqui, M. H.; Al-Whaibi, M. H.; Firoz, M.; Al-Khaishany, M. Y. Role of nanoparticles in plants. In Nanotechnology and Plant Sciences; Springer: Cham, Switzerland, 2015; pp. 19–35. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-14502-0_2
Dimkpa, C. O.; Bindraban, P. S. Nanofertilizers and nanopesticides for agriculture. Trends Plant Sci. 2018, 23, 491–499.
Al-Hasnawi, A. N.; Abbass, J. A. Effects of cytokinin (BA) and chelated Mg on growth and flowering of Chrysanthemum hortorum. Jordan J. Agric. Sci. 2013, 9, 342–351.
Singh, I.; Stoskopf, N. Harvest index in cereals. Agron. J. 1971, 63, 224–226. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj1971.00021962006300020008x
Al-Zaidy, A.; Al-Ubaidy, R. Effect of wheat peat and organic nutrients on red cabbage. Iraqi J. Agric. Sci. 2017, 48, 742–749. https://doi.org/10.36103/ijas.v48i2.405
Mackinney, G. Absorption of light by chlorophyll solutions. J. Biol. Chem. 1941, 140, 315–322. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0021-9258(18)51320-X
Temminghoff, E. E.; Houba, V. J. Plant Analysis Procedures, 2nd ed.; Springer: Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 2004. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-2976-9
Bender, M.; Wood, C. Total phosphorus in soil. In Methods of Phosphorus Analysis; North Carolina State University: Raleigh, NC, USA, 2000; pp. 45–47.
Tomar, N. S.; Agarwal, R. Influence of Jatropha curcas leachates and potassium on wheat growth. Am. J. Plant Sci. 2013, 4, 1134–1150. https://doi.org/10.4236/ajps.2013.45140
AOAC. Official Methods of Analysis, 21st ed.; AOAC International: Rockville, MD, USA, 2019.
Bradford, M. M. A rapid method for protein quantitation. Anal. Biochem. 1976, 72, 248–254. https://doi.org/10.1016/0003-2697(76)90527-3
Steel, R. G. D.; Torrie, J. H.; Dickey, D. A. Principles and Procedures of Statistics, 3rd ed.; McGraw-Hill: New York, 1997.
Varamin, J. K.; Fanoodi, F.; Sinaki, J. M.; Rezvan, S.; Damavandi, A. Foliar application of chitosan and nano-Mg on sesame. Not. Bot. Horti Agrobot. Cluj-Napoca 2020, 48, 2228–2243. https://doi.org/10.15835/nbha48411852
Ding, Y.; Zhao, W.; Zhu, G.; Wang, Q.; Zhang, P.; Rui, Y. Recent trends in foliar nanofertilizers. Nanomaterials 2023, 13, 2906. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano13212906
Ahmad, I.; Chen, C.; Younas, Z.; Yousaf, T.; Mashwani, Z.-u.-R. Nano-selenium improves sesame oil yield. Front. Plant Sci. 2024, 15, 1431877. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2024.1431877
Sharma, B.; Tiwari, S.; Kumawat, K. C.; Cardinale, M. Nano-biofertilizers for sustainable agriculture. Sci. Total Environ. 2023, 860, 160476. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160476
Gebregergis, Z.; Amare, M. Effect of nitrogen fertilization on sesame yield. Int. J. Agron. 2019, 2019, 5696397. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/5027254
Agnihotri, R.; Tyagi, D. B.; Nehal, N.; Tripathi, L.; Bhati, D. Effect of nano-fertilizer on sesame growth. Technofame J. Multidiscip. Adv. Res. 2023, 12, 18–25.
Wang, Y.; Chen, Y. F.; Wu, W. H. Potassium and phosphorus signaling in plants. J. Integr. Plant Biol. 2021, 63, 34–52. https://doi.org/10.1111/jipb.13053
Calabrese, E. J.; Baldwin, L. A. Hormesis: The dose-response revolution. Annu. Rev. Pharmacol. Toxicol. 2003, 43, 175–197. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.pharmtox.43.100901.140223
