Effect of Subirrigation and Silicon Antitranspirant Application on Biomass Yield and Carbon Dioxide Balance of a Three-Cut Meadow

Abstract

Meadows are valuable areas that play an important role in the carbon cycle. Depending on several factors, these areas can be carbon sinks or net emitters of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. In the present study, the use of an antitranspirant (AT) with silicon and the groundwater level in a subirrigation system in a three-cut meadow were evaluated on the carbon dioxide exchange balance and the yield of aboveground biomass. The study was carried out in four experimental plots: with high groundwater level (HWL), with a high water level with AT application (HWL_Si), with a lower groundwater level (LWL), and with a lower groundwater level and AT application (LWL_Si). Flux measurements were made using the closed dynamic chamber method. In the drier and colder 2021, the meadow was a net CO2 emitter (mean annual net ecosystem exchange (NEE) of all plots: +247.4 gCO2-C·m−2y−1), whereas in the more wet and warmer 2022, assimilation outweighed emissions (mean annual NEE of all plots: −187.4 gCO2-C·m−2y−1). A positive effect of the silicon antitranspirant application was observed on the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions and the increase of gross primary production (GPP) from the plots with higher groundwater levels. For the area with lower water levels, the positive impact of AT occurred only in the second year of the experiment. The yield of aboveground biomass was higher by 5.4% (in 2021) up to 11.7% (in 2022) at the plot with the higher groundwater level. However, the application of AT with silicon contributed to yield reduction in each cut, regardless of the groundwater level. On an annual basis, AT application with silicon reduced the yield by 11.1–17.8%.