Foliar Application of Silicon and Boron to Alleviate Effects of High Temperature on Yield and Nutritional Quality of Rice Variety RD43
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Abstract
Rice grown in Thailand’s dry season is commonly exposed to heat stress from high temperatures, resulting in lower grain yield and quality compared to the wet season. Although foliar application of silicon (Si) or boron (B) can help alleviate this effect, their combined effects on yield and nutritional quality under different growing seasons have not been studied, particularly for RD43 rice, a low glycemic-index variety of increasing economic importance. This study, therefore, aimed to evaluate the effects of foliar-applied silicon and boron on the yield and grain quality of RD43 rice grown in the dry and wet seasons. The treatments included no foliar application, foliar silicon (0.6% Si), foliar boron (0.01% B), and a combination of silicon (0.6% Si) and boron (0.01% B), showed that grain yield and quality were significantly lower in the dry season than in the wet season. Combined Si and B foliar application increased grain set particularly in the dry season and increased grain yield, without affecting nitrogen or protein accumulation in the grain, but reduced grain zinc accumulation. These findings provide guidelines for nutrient management to maintain the yield and nutritional quality of RD43 rice under the differing temperature conditions of each growing season.
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