Vibrant, showy sunflowers are revered worldwide for their beauty and versatility. While many varieties of sunflower are grown specifically for their nutritional benefits, ornamental sunflowers have become standards for commercial growers and everyday gardeners. As sunflowers' popularity grows, scientists are looking for new supplements and growing methods to enhance production and quality of this celebrated annual.
Horticulturists have found ample evidence that plants depend on "essential nutrients"; naturally occurring elements that are found in normal plant tissue that are essential for the completion of the life cycle of the plant. Although silicon, a predominant element in mineral soil, is not considered to be an essential nutrient for most plants, there has been limited evidence that silicon supplements affect the aesthetic qualities of ornamental flowers and crops.
Drs. Sophia Kamenidou and Todd J. Cavins, formerly of the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Oklahoma State University, published a research study in the February, 2008 issue of HortScience in which they examine the effects of silicon supplements on sunflowers grown in greenhouse environments.
"In greenhouse production, most floricultural crops are cultivated in soilless substrates, which often supply limited amounts of plant-available silicon. The goal of this study was to determine the effects of silicon supplementation on greenhouse-produced ornamental sunflower (Helianthus annuus L. ‘Ring of Fire’).", explained Cavins. "This is one of the first studies to highlight supplemental silicon impact on horticultural traits. Most previous research on silicon has focused on disease suppression in hydroponic vegetable production. This is also one of the few examples of detrimental effects seen from high silicon concentrations."
Depending on the source and concentration of silicon used, several horticultural traits were improved as a result of silicon supplementation. "We observed thick, straight stems, increased flower and stem diameters, and increased height in some of the treatments, upgrading sunflower quality compared with untreated controls. However, growth abnormalities were observed when concentrations of silicon at 100 and 200 mg per liter were supplied as potassium silicate substrate drenches. In these treatments, plants appeared stunted with deformed flowers and were delayed in flowering. Consequently, the effects of silicon supplementation on greenhouse-produced sunflowers can vary from beneficial to detrimental depending on the applied source and concentration.", stated Cavins.
Summarizing the study outcomes, Cavins said, "Silicon is a key component in mineral soil, but it has been overlooked for years since it is not considered an essential element for plant growth and development. Sunflowers are capable of accumulating silicon from multiple sources and we found major benefits to some silicon supplements, such as increased stem diameter and improved quality."
Source: American Society for Horticultural Science
Related stories:
Scientists find clues to the formation of Fibonacci spirals in nature
While the aesthetics and symmetry of Fibonacci spiral patterns has often attracted scientists, a mathematical or physical explanation for their common occurrence in nature is yet to be discovered. Recently, scientists have successfully produced Fibonacci spiral patterns in the lab, and found that an elastically mismatched bi-layer structure may cause stress patterns that give rise to Fibonacci spirals. The discovery may explain the widespread existence of the pattern in plants.
Fibonacci series on microstructures
It is a big challenge for materials scientists to produce highly ordered micro- and nanostructures in a designed pattern with uniform size and shape. By controlling the geometry and the stress upon cooling, CAS researchers coaxed a microstructure to self-assemble into the triangular tessellation and Fibonacci number patterns on its surface. Their work 'Triangular and Fibonacci number patterns driven by stress on core/shell microstructures' was published on the August 5 issue of Science.
Make Ethanol in Your Own Backyard
A Silicon Valley start-up called E-Fuel is showing exactly how ethanol can live up to its name as "the people´s fuel." The company recently announced that it will soon start selling a home ethanol system, the E-Fuel 100 MicoFueler, which will allow anyone to make ethanol from sugar, water, yeast, and electricity in their own backyard.
Planets by the Dozen
You know the planets of our solar system, each a unique world with its own distinctive appearance, size, and chemistry. Mars, with its bitter-cold, rusty red sands; Venus, a fiery world shrouded in thick clouds of sulfuric acid; sideways Uranus and its strange vertical rings. The variety is breathtaking.
Scientists demonstrate method for integrating nanowire devices directly onto silicon
Applied scientists at Harvard University in collaboration with researchers from the German universities of Jena, Gottingen, and Bremen, have developed a new technique for fabricating nanowire photonic and electronic integrated circuits that may one day be suitable for high-volume commercial production.
WiMAX promises to transform wireless Internet world
As US technology giants including Google place a multi-billion dollar bet on WiMAX, backers of the wireless data-streaming format say it will radically change mobile Internet use.
Flying saucers, tiny helicopters compete in British war game
(AP) -- Emotion-detecting robot cars will face off against eavesdropping flying saucers in the English countryside when scientists, academics and schoolchildren compete later this year to design the next generation of military equipment.
Contact Through Silver Particles in Ink
Modern cars are full of sensors. The optimum quantity of air in the intake tract of a combustion engine is regulated by thermoelectric flow sensors, for instance. They measure which quantities of a gas or a liquid flow in a particular direction. Another application for sensors like these is in medicine, where they regulate tiny quantities of drugs.
