A Search for Extractants to Evaluate the Iron Status of Plants

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Abstract
An investigation was carried out to identify the fraction of Fe in maize tissues (Zea mays L. cv. Tipakhia) as an indicator of Fe supply in the rooting medium to distinguish plants which are deficient in Fe from those containing a sufficient amount of Fe. In plants grown at graded levels of Fe supply ranging from acute deficiency to excess, the content of Fe in fresh leaf tissues, extracted in 14 different extractants was estimated. The concentration of Fe in 5 of the extracts-using 1 N HCl, l N oxalic acid, 1 N citric acid, 0.1 N EDTA, and 0.1 N DTPA, was found to be positively correlated with the Fe supply in the medium. Critical Fe concentrations in plant tissues were determined using 1 N oxalic acid and 1 N HCl-extractable Fe fractions.