Copper for crop nutrition
Copper for crop nutrition

Summary/Abstract: Copper (Cu) is a transition redox-active metal, one of eight essential trace elements and one of 17 essential elements required by humans, animals, and plants in limited ranges of low concentrations. Copper exists in two oxidation states, Cu⁺ and Cu²⁺. This property makes copper a key structural component and catalytic cofactor in many metalloproteins. These include enzymes involved in photosynthesis, respiration, stress protection, and lignin metabolism. Plant genomes contain an average of more than 70 copper enzyme genes, indicating its broad importance. Therefore, copper research is important for establishing the scientific basis for nutrition systems with high levels of resource efficiency. In classical plant physiology, redox homeostasis was considered primarily protective; however, recent results show that Cu pools are essential for growth and development, as well as for numerous interactions between plants and their environment. The components of redox homeostasis are also factors in the formation of high levels of nitrogen use efficiency and carbon accumulation during vegetation, as well as in the formation of increased levels of plant adaptation to extreme environmental conditions. Copper is an important regulator of nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). It improves nitrogen uptake and efficient consumption, which is key to reducing nitrogen losses in the environment and increasing crop profitability. This is of paramount importance for the development of crop cultivation technologies in resource-poor environments. An important component of copper's biological activity is its ability to increase plant resistance to disease pathogens. Copper deficiency systematically inhibits NUE, causing growth retardation, decreased enzyme activity, and chlorosis, leading to susceptibility to pests and diseases, impaired root system development, and reduced crop yield and quality. Thus, copper plays a very important role in achieving high levels of nitrogen use efficiency in cereal crops. Cu is also needed in legume crops (soybeans, peas, chickpeas). Unlike other micronutrients, copper is essential for the productivity of cultivated plants throughout the country. With the formation of optimal pools of available copper, the productivity of winter wheat reached 11.0–14.4 t/ha, and triticale – 16.6 t/ha in 2021–2024 in Kyiv region under moderate nitrogen nutrition.

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