Phytosiderophore release as a criterion for genotypic evaluation of iron efficiency in oat

Abstract

Iron (Fe) deficiency in small grains grown on calcareous soils results in reduced yields, is difficult and expensive to treat with fertilizer, and is complicated to overcome by genetic field screening due to heterogeneous soil and environmental conditions. Recently, phytosiderophore release has been linked to ability of species and genotypes to resist Fe‐deficiency chlorosis. We propose a laboratory technique to measure phytosiderophore release by Fe‐deficient oat (Avena sativa L.) genotypes as a selection method for Fe‐deficiency chlorosis resistance in oat. Plants were grown in Fe‐limiting nutrient solution and phytosiderophore release was measured on 11 days. Summations of daily phytosiderophore release by 17 oat genotypes correlate well with Fe‐deficiency chlorosis scores in the field (r = ‐0.70, p = 0.01). The proposed method consistently identified the genotypes most susceptible to Fe deficiency but did not clearly separate the moderately susceptible genotypes. In these latter genotypes, other factors such as active uptake sites, root growth rate, utilization of acquired Fe, or soil interactions may be modifying factors to phytosiderophore in Fe efficiency. Quantification of phytosiderophore provides a useful selection criterion for oat by eliminating the most inefficient types and with refinement, may become a powerful tool for identifying Fe efficiency in grass crops.