Nickel Deficiency
Posted: Tuesday, December 14, 2010
by Robert Wright
UsaveHydroponics
Nickel (Ni)
Background:
All of the nickel presently in the Earth was created in a super nova explosion. Nickel was discovered by the Swedish chemist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt in 1751. Nickel is the most recently identified essential element, and the one needed in the least amounts. A deficiency of nickel was discovered in 2003 to be the cause of "mouse ear" on River Birch Trees by John Ruter, a horticulturist with the University of Georgia. The deficiency was present only in nursery fields, where they had access to native, natural soils were not affected. Nickel was recognized as an essential element in 2004.
Ionic Charge: Nickel is taken up by plants as Ni + 2 cation
pH of Nickel: Nickel (ll) chloride solutions are acidic, with a pH of around 4 due to the hydrolysis of the Ni2 + ion.
Possible source of the mineral, natural and inorganic:
Nickel is found naturally in the Earth's crust and deficiencies generally have only been discovered in soilless mixtures. Most of the World's supply of nickel is mined in the Sudbury region on Ontario Canada. It is believed that this large deposit of nickel ore is a result of an ancient meteor impact. These meteorites are crushed into a rock power, ground into dust, and pelletized for granular applications, and mixed into soluble solutions for foliar, drench, and hydroponic applications.
Function the mineral has in plants:
In vascular plants, Nickel is essential for activation of urease, an enzyme involved with nitrogen metabolism that is required to process urea. Without Nickel, toxic levels of urea accumulate, leading to the formation of necrotic lesions. In non - vascular plants, Nickel activates several enzymes involved in a variety of processes, and can substitute for Zinc and Iron as a cofactor in some enzymes.
Deficiency symptoms in plants and corrections for deficiencies:
Nickel deficiency in plants causes an accumulation os urea in leaf tips. This accumulation leads to necrosis at the tips.
Additional Symptoms:
- tiny leaves (Mouse Ears)
- thickening of leaves or leaflets
- pale green foliage
- reduced growth or vigor
- dwarfing, short internodes
- weak shoot growth, (failure to survive dormancy)
- loss of apical dominance
- reduced number of feeder roots
- death of shoots or limbs
- tree death
Propagate in nursery fields only, or fertilize.
Application recommendations for plants:
For potted plants showing nickel deficiency, drenches with solutions containing 3 to 6 ppm nickel as nickel nitrate, chloride, or sulfate can correct the problem. High levels of nickel can be toxic to plants. Elevated nickel levels are sometimes found in sewage sludge.
Author: Robert R. Wright
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