Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide effects on sorghum and soybean nutrient status1

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Abstract
Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration could have significant implications on technologies for managing plant nutrition to sustain crop productivity in the future. Soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) (C3 species) and grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor [L.] Moench) (C4 species) were grown in a replicated split‐plot design using open‐top field chambers under ambient (357 μmol/mol) and elevated (705 μmol/mol) atmospheric CO2. At anthesis, leaf disks were taken from upper mature leaves of soybean and from the third leaf below the head of sorghum for analysis of plant nutrients. Leaf greenness was measured with a Minolta SPAD‐502 chlorophyll meter. Concentrations of chlorophylls a and b and specific leaf weight were also measured. Above‐ground dry matter and seed yield were determined at maturiry. Seed yield of sorghum increased 17.5% and soybean seed yield increased 34.7% with elevated CO2. There were no differences in extractable chlorophyll concentration or chlorophyll meter readings due to CO2 treatment, but meter readings were reduced 6% when sorghum was grown in chambers as compared in the open. Leaf nitrogen (N) concentration of soybean decreased from 54.5 to 39.1 g/kg at the higher CO2 concentration. Neither the chambers nor CO2 had an effect on concentrations of other plant nutrients in either species. Further work under field conditions is needed to determine if current critical values for tissue N in crops, especially C3 crops, should be adjusted for future increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration.