Canola and cucumber responses to activeflower

农作物需要广泛的集约化农业投入，包括施肥、灌溉、农药、生长调节剂和其他合成和有机产品。植物生长所需的养分配制成肥料，便于施用和稳定。在许多情况下，需要宏量营养素和微量营养素的组合来提供最佳的植物生长。植物所需的主要营养元素是氮(N)、磷(P)和钾(K)。微量元素包括铜（Cu）、铁（Fe）、锰（Mn）、钼（Mo）、锌（Zn）和硼(B)(9)。研究表明，作物产量增加30%至50%归因于使用天然或合成商业肥料。矿物质营养可以通过增加机械屏障的形成来影响植物的生长和疾病的发展。细胞壁增厚，或天然防御化合物的合成，如植物抗毒素、抗氧化剂和类黄酮。在之前的NSERC Engage项目中，我们证明了使用含有N， P， K和B的组合的pollinaid，通过对病原体的直接毒性或促进诱导抗性来减少病原体的生长和对植物的伤害。酚类物质水平升高，组织中B类物质水平显著升高。为了进一步研究授粉因子的作用，我们建议在黄瓜和油菜上研究每种营养成分对植物生长和疾病发展的影响。此外，还将评估抗氧化剂和各种酶的水平，包括多酚氧化酶、过氧化氢酶、过氧化物酶，这些已知在其他植物物种中具有减少疾病的作用。这些结果将为这种肥料产品如何影响植物生长的机制提供更多的见解，并应进一步加深我们对真菌与植物相互作用的认识，并提供新的信息。2017年全球化肥市场销售额预计将超过1850亿美元。因此，更好地了解这些化学品如何间接影响作物健康，可以为作物生产和作物保护提供更多的机会，以最佳方式使用肥料。

Agricultural crop plants require a wide range of intensive agricultural inputs, which include fertilizerapplications, irrigation, pesticides, growth regulators and other synthetic and organic products. Nutrientsrequired for plant growth are formulated as fertilizers for ease of application and stability. In many cases, acombination of macronutrients and micronutrients are required to provide optimal plant growth. The mainmacronutrients required by plants are nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). Micronutrients includecopper (Cu), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), zinc (Zn), and boron (B) (9). Studies have shownthat crop yield increases of 30 to 50% are attributed to use of natural or synthetic commercial fertilizers.Mineral nutrition can affect plant growth and disease development by increasing formation of mechanicalbarriers, eg. development of thicker cell walls, or synthesis of natural defense compounds, i.e. phytoalexins,antioxidants, and flavonoids. In the previous NSERC Engage project, we demonstrated that applications ofPollinAID, containing a combination of N, P, K, and B, reduced pathogen growth and damage to the plantthrough either direct toxicity to the pathogen or by promoting induced resistance. Levels of phenolics wereincreased and B levels in tissues significantly increased. To further investigate the role of PollinAID (nowActive Flower), we propose to assess the effects of each of the individual nutrient components on plant growthand disease development on cucumber and canola plants. In addition, the levels of antioxidants and variousenzymes, including polyphenoloxidase, catalase, peroxidase, that are known to have a role in disease reductionin other plant species, will be assessed. The results will provide additional insight into the mechanisms of howthis fertilizer product affects plant growth and should further our knowledge on fungal-plant interactions andprovide novel information. Global market estimates for fertilizer sales are projected to exceed US $185 billionin 2017. Hence, a better understanding of how these chemicals may indirectly influence crop health can provideadditional opportunities for optimal use of fertilizers for crop production and crop protection.