BORON DEFICIENCY IN SOIL & ITS IMPACT ON PLANTS

ABSTRACT:

Out of a total of 17 essential nutrients which are imperative for plant growth and development, 6 are required in
smaller amounts (generally less than 100 milligrams per day) and hence known as micronutrients. These include
Boron, Zinc, Copper, Iron, Manganese and Molybdenum.

Post the arrival of green revolution in the country, while the initial years saw a tremendous growth in
production levels due to the use of high yielding varieties and NPK fertilizers, it slowly rendered the soils
deficient in essential micronutrients whose application was often overlooked. Subsequently, soils have started
losing the fertility that they once possessed.

The deficiency of Boron is one such constraint when it comes to the production of crops throughout the world.
It is known to be the second most commonly occurring micronutrient deficiency after Zinc. Boron deficiency
has been reported in 132 crops in more than 80 countries. [1] This paper thus aims to outline the deficiency of
Boron as it exists in India, the effects of its deficiency on crop plants and the possible remedies for the same.

CHARACTERISTICS OF BORON:

- Sources: Organic matter in soil releases Boron through the process of mineralization. Tourmaline, an
insoluble borosilicate mineral also acts as an important source. Higher the soil organic matter, more is
the Boron content. On the contrary, light, sandy soils of humid regions tend to have lower Boron due to
heavy leaching.

- Mobility: Boron is immobile in plants. It is however water soluble and exists in the form of Boric acid in
soil solution. Plants uptake Boron in the form of H3BO3. Also, the movement of this nutrient occurs
freely in the xylem but is plant specific in case of phloem.

- Soil concentration: Normal level of Boron in soil ranges from 2-200mg/kg of soil. However only about
5-10% is available for the plants to utilize.

- pH dependence: Greater the pH level of soil, lesser is the availability of mobile Boron. For e.g. in case
of highly limed acidic soils, Boron deficiency tends to occur due to the interaction of the micronutrient
with Calcium.
 THE BORON CYCLE:

Source: Soil5813.okstate.edu. (2019). SOIL-PLANT NUTRIENT CYCLING AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

It is the process of mineralization that causes the release of Boron from soil. Other sources of Boron release
may include irrigation water, fertilizers, weathering of rocks containing Boron or from Tourmaline mineral. On
its release into the soil solution, Boron takes the form of Boric acid and Borate ions. Plants uptake the nutrient
in the form of Boric acid along with water. Plants utilize this Boron for numerous functions. Eventually, as the
crop residue decays, Boron is incorporated back into the soil. In case of finer soils, Boron gets adsorbed on the
surface of clay particles in the soil. On the contrary, in coarse soils, it leaches out if the soil organic matter
content is low coupled with heavy rainfall.

ROLE OF BORON IN PLANTS:

- Cell wall formation: Boron is present in cis-diol ester linkages as a binging agent, thereby helping in
formation of cell wall. It is also responsible for maintaining the stability of biological membranes.

Source: Soil5813.okstate.edu. (2019). SOIL-PLANT NUTRIENT CYCLING AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

- Development of reproductive tissues: Boron plays a key role in the formation of pollen grains and also
the pollen tube during the process of fertilization. Thus it directly affects the seed/fruit set obtained in a
plant.

- Nodulation in legumes: Boron helps in efficient fixation of nitrogen in legume crops.[2]

- Disease resistance: Adequate levels of Boron has been known to decrease the incidence of certain
diseases in plants due to it playing an important role in lignin synthesis. [3]

- Phosphorus absorption: Certain studies have also shown that Boron plays an essential role in
colonization of plant roots by mycorrhizal fungi which are known to promote the uptake of Phosphorus
in plants.[4]

- Translocation of sugar: Boron is known to help in the transport of sugars produced as the result of
photosynthesis to actively dividing regions of the plants and also to the fruits for storage purposes.[5]
 DEFINCIENCY OF BORON:

REGIONS:

Boron availability depends largely on the depth, organic matter and clay content, texture, pH, liming, rainfall
and moisture content of the soil. In India, the total content of Boron available ranges from traces to 8mg/kg soil.
[6] The given graph gives a clear idea about the status of Boron content in Indian soils.

Source: Faidelhi.org. (2019). [online] Available at: https://www.faidelhi.org/general/Soil%20Maps-IISS-Bhopal.pdf

 CAUSES OF DEFICIENCY:

- Since the organic matter content plays a major role in the retention of Boron ions from getting leached out, its
deficiency is common in coarse textured sandy/gravelly soils as well as low organic matter containing soils,
especially in high rainfall receiving regions.

Source: Cdn.intechopen.com. (2019). [online] Available at: http://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/35614/InTech-

Boron_deficiency_in_soils_and_crops_a_review.pdf

Also, Extended periods of low soil moisture make it difficult for plants to uptake Boron thereby resulting in
deficiency. Excessively limed soils have a high pH, which causes Boron to bind with Calcium, leading to a
decrease in the availability of its mobile form thereby leading to the deficiency of the micronutrient in the soil.
Irrigating soils with water containing low Boron concentration is another one of the reasons behind its
deficiency.

EFFECT OF DEFICIENCY IN PLANTS:

Since Boron remains immobile in plants, the highly proliferative meristematic tissues (including shoots and root
tips, buds etc.) obtain it from uptake of the nutrient along with soil water via the Xylem. Due to this, the
deficiency symptoms are first observed in newly developed plant tissues including young leaves and buds in the
form of necrosis.

Death of terminal buds affects the lateral growth of shoots, making their tips deformed/dead in the form of a
rosette- a condition which is known as ‘Witches broom’.[7]

Stunting of plant, thickening of stem and reduced inter-nodal length and root growth are also some of the
important symptoms of Boron deficiency in plants.

The formation of flowers and seeds is highly dependent on the availability of Boron in the soil. Lower levels
can greatly reduce pollination and subsequently the seed set formation. Failure in the formation of fruit may
also occur.

Effect of Boron deficiency in certain plants of importance:

- Rice: Boron deficiency causes the young leaves to deform, with their tips exhibiting drying and
withering.

- Wheat: In wheat Boron deficiency is characterized by thickening of stems and leaves along with reduced
internodes length. Flowering and seed setting is also greatly affected.
- Pulses: Similar to wheat, the stem of pulse crops also becomes thick, their leaves chlorotic and mottled
due to insufficiency of Boron availability. The seed setting is also reduced.

- Apple: Necrosis of the bark, corking and cracking of fruit and inadequate fruit setting are the major
symptoms of Boron deficiency in the fruit.
- Cauliflower: Boron deficiency interrupts flowering and leads to a condition called ‘Hollow heart’
characterised by the development of deformed heads of brown colour.

Boron deficiency symptoms in Cannabis

Source: Lewis, P. (2019). Is a Boron Deficiency Affecting your Cannabis Plants? [Online] Sensi Garden. Available at: https://www.sensigarden.com/boron-
deficiency-cannabis/
 DEFICIENCY MANAGEMENT:

1. Setting up of research centers and testing laboratories in each state by the government to study the soil
micronutrient deficiency, problems associated with their low amount and the possible corrective
measures that can be undertaken.

2. Use of Boron fertilizers: These may be incorporated in a deficient soil during the planting of crop or as a
foliar spray at the time of flower initiation. Some common examples include-
Borax (Sodium tetra borate which contains 10.5% Boron)
Boric acid (17.0% Boron content)
Di-sodium octaborate tetrahydrate (20% Boron)

The table given below indicates the response of different crops to Boron application in case of deficient
soils.

Source: Farmer.gov.in. (2019). [online] Available at:

https://farmer.gov.in/imagedefault/handbooks/BooKLet/DELHI/20150515220856_Micronutrient.pdf

3. Ensuring a balanced and integrated supply of organic manure in the soil tremendously helps in
improving crop yields and preventing the soil to become deficient in the micronutrient.

4. Selecting and growing of crops in a particular land area based on the micronutrient content can also be
done as a temporary solution.

Source: Kiran.nic.in. (2019). [online] Available at:

http://www.kiran.nic.in/pdf/publications/2017/Boron_Nutrition_in_Soil_System_and_Management_Strategy.pdf
 REFERENCES:

1. Impact of Boron deficiency on plant growth- ReseachGate. (n.d.)

2. https://farmer.gov.in/imagedefault/handbooks/BooKLet/DELHI/20150515220856_Micronutrient.pdf

3. https://farmer.gov.in/imagedefault/handbooks/BooKLet/DELHI/20150515220856_Micronutrient.pdf

4. Soil5813.okstate.edu. (2019). SOIL-PLANT NUTRIENT CYCLING AND ENVIRONMENTAL

QUALITY

5 https://www.cropnutrition.com/importance-of-boron-in-plant-growth

7. https://www.cropnutrition.com/importance-of-boron-in-plant-growth

6. Pdfs.semanticscholar.org. (2019). [online] Available at:

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/d43b/3785c1ccf00d7f57c56f5db60f3e0905ea5e.pdf