Silicon nutrition and resistance against Pythium aphanidermatum of Lycopersicon esculentum and Mormodica charantia [Elektronische Ressource] / von Gregor Heine

Silicon nutrition and resistance against Pythium aphanidermatum of Lycopersicon esculentum and Mormodica charantia von der Naturwissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Hannover zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades eines Doktor des Gartenbaus (Dr. rer. hort.) genehmigte Dissertation von Gregor Heine geboren am 19. November 1971 in Bergisch Gladbach 2005 Tag der Prüfung: 12. Juni 2005 Referent: Prof. W. J. Horst, Hannover Korreferent: Prof. B. Hau, Hannover Abstract Pythium aphanidermatum is a mayor threat for vegetable production in the tropics. Silicon (Si) nutrition was reported to stimulate pathogen resistance of many crops and could be an environmental friendly alternative to the current, mainly chemical-based control strategies of P. aphanidermatum. However, it is still elusive whether beneficial Si effects on plant health are linked to the degree of Si uptake. Therefore, the ability of Si to increase resistance against P. aphanidermatum was studied using two vegetable species, tomato and bitter gourd, which were expected to differ in Si uptake. An in-depth study on Si uptake showed that tomato discriminates Si from uptake leading to an accumulation of Si in the root water free-space (RWFS).