P SCHOOL: VENUE CHANGE

Guests please note: Sylvania Park, 808 East Rd, Drung, VIC, 3401

Glenn McDonald will discuss the vital role of P in plant functions. Here is an excerpt of Glenn's presentation.

Phosphorus

While soils can contain substantial amounts of P, the majority is unavailable to plants and the concentration of P in the soil solution is generally very low (~1-10mM). Therefore, while many plants are very effective in taking up P from the soil solution at low concentrations at the soil-root interface, the limiting factor is the supply of the soluble P to the roots.  The main way of overcoming this low supply of P has been to apply P fertiliser, but there is now a growing interest in trying to unlock and utilise the large P reserves that are in the soil.  Factors such as the size and the distribution of roots in the soil, the ability of the plants to alter the rhizosphere characteristics and the effects of the plant-microbe interactions in improving P availability and uptake can become important to the P nutrition of plants.

The role of P in plant

Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for plants and without adequate supplies of P growth will be reduced.  There are two important roles of P in plants - in energy metabolism and in maintaining cell structures in plants.  While the amount of P required for normal growth is much less than the requirement for N, an inadequate supply of P will reduce the capacity of plants to photosynthesise and perform the range of metabolic functions required for normal growth.

Registration still open:

Website Registration: P SCHOOL
Download PDF: P SCHOOL FLYER

More information: Darren Cribbes 0400 600 556
                          Owen McCarron 0419 006 100