ผลของซิลิกอนต่อการเจริญเติบโตและสรีวิทยาของดันกล้าปาลัมน้ำมัน

Abstract

Silicon is a beneficial element for plant which promotes several benefits in various mechanisms in plant. This present study aimed to investigate the effects of silicon on growth and physiological characters in oil palm seedlings. The experimental design was completely randomized design with 3 replications. The experiment composed of 4 rates of calcium silicate (0, 0.5, 3.5 and 7 gram per plant). The results showed that oil palm is silicon-accumulating plant. The increased rate of calcium silicate resulted in increased concentration of silicon in oil palm seedlings. Also, the more calcium silicate applied the higher translocation factor from root to leaf observed. In addition, silicon affected growth in oil palm seedlings. The results showed that high level of calcium silicate applied to oil palm seedlings enhanced relative growth rate of biomass and biomass allocation from root to shoot. Moreover, the relative growth rates of plant height, leaf length and stem diameter were positively affected by calcium silicate. The higher relative growth rate of plant height, stem diameter and leaf length were observed when higher concentrations of calcium silicate were applied. Additionally, the results suggested that silicon affected physiological characters in oil palm seedlings. The increased photosynthesis efficiency was demonstrated with higher concentration of calcium silicate applied. Chlorophyll content and total nitrogen accumulation in leaf tended to increase in the calcium silicate-treated seedling when compared to control. These results could be used for utilization of silicon in oil palm seedling production.