Boron in Agriculture
Plants require 13 mineral nutrient elements for growth. The elements that are required or necessary for plants to complete their life cycle are called essential plant nutrients. Each of these nutrients has a critical function in plants and are required in varying amounts in plant tissue.
Macronutrients like Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg) and Sulfur (S) are plant nutrients required in the largest amount in plants. Micronutrients like Zinc (Zn), Boron (B), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn) molybdenum (Mo) and Chlorine (Cl) etc are required in relatively smaller amounts.
Boron - An Essential Plant Micronutrient
Boron is an essential nutrient required for all plant growth and must remain available for plant uptake during the growth period.
Boron plays an important role in
Sugar transport
Cell wall synthesis
Lignification
Cell wall structure
Carbohydrate metabolism
RNA metabolism
Respiration
Membranes
Root growth
Pollination
Boron Deficiency
Boron deficiency & positive response to B application has been reported in over 80 countries and on 132 crops over the last 60 years.
Earliest effect of boron deficiency in plants and trees is observed in outer membrane of cytoplasm of root cells, which are, altered in such a way that absorption of phosphorus, chlorides and potassium from the soil is reduced. Poor or weak root system affects the absorption of nutrients from soil and it also affects absorption of sugar cell in membrane.
Boron deficiency is particularly observed in root crops, leafy vegetables, fruit trees, tea, coffee, tobacco, olive tree, oil palm etc. In olive trees suffering from boron deficiency the yield drops drastically.