GENOTYPIC DIFFERENCES IN RESPONSES TO IRON-DEFICIENCY BETWEEN SENSITIVE AND RESISTANT CULTIVARS OF CHICKPEA (CICER-ARIETINUM)

Differences in responses to iron deficiency between two chickpea culti vars, NP-62 and K-850, were examined. The apical leaves of NP-62 quick ly showed symptoms of iron-deficiency chlorosis when grown on an iron- free medium. By contrast, K-850 showed no visible symptoms on the same medium. Iron contents of the apical leaves of these two cultivars wer e similar during the first 7 days after they were transferred to the i ron-free medium in spite of a marked difference in root-associated Fe3 +-reduction activity. The susceptibility to iron-deficiency chlorosis observed in NP-62 was not attributable to the poor Fe3+-reduction acti vity of roots but to the inefficient utilization of iron within leaves under conditions when the supply of iron was limited.