Effect of pH and nitrogen content in substrate on the yield of Withania somnifera (L.) Dun.
Grażyna Obidowska
grazyna_obidowska@sggw.plKatedra Genetyki, Hodowli i Biotechnologii Roślin, Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego, Warszawa (Poland)
Ala Sadowska
Katedra Genetyki, Hodowli i Biotechnologii Roślin, Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego, Warszawa (Poland)
Abstract
Withania somnifera, a subtropical plant from Solanaceae family, is a very interesting medicinal species. In the regions of its natural occurrence, especially in India, the root of Withania (Radix Withaniae) has been widely used as an energizing, immunostimulating and adaptogenic drug. The aim of experiments carried out in the greenhouses of Agricultural University in Warsaw in 1997–1999, was to verify the hypothesis that: the observed in Withania lack of response to nitrogen fertilization is not a result of low demand for nitrogen, but it is caused by the pH of soils in which the plant has been grown in India. The experimental plants were grown in peat substrate with pH adjusted to 5, 6 and 7. Nitrogen contents were: 100, 200, 300, 350 and 400 mg/dm3, while the constant phosphorus and potassium levels were set to 80 and 300 mg/dm3, respectively. The results suggest that Withania somnifera prefers acidic soils. The highest yields of herb and roots, as well as withaferine A content and yield, were obtained at pH 5. The plants took up significantly more minerals (nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus) than the ones grown at a higher pH of soil. Withania somnifera seems to have high demand for nitrogen, and the observed lack of reaction to nitrogen fertilization is probably due to inappropriate pH of soils, on which it is grown in India.
Keywords:
Withania somnifera, nitrogen, pH, withaferine AReferences
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Authors
Grażyna Obidowskagrazyna_obidowska@sggw.pl
Katedra Genetyki, Hodowli i Biotechnologii Roślin, Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego, Warszawa Poland
Authors
Ala SadowskaKatedra Genetyki, Hodowli i Biotechnologii Roślin, Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego, Warszawa Poland
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