Changes of the Biomass and Acid Phosphatase Activity in Maize (Zea mays L.) Lines Under Low-P Stress

A pot culture trial was conducted to investigate the changes of the biomass and acid phosphatase (APase) activity in 10 maize lines under low-P stress. P-deficiency significantly decreased the biomass, but induced the significant enhancement of the APase activity. Since P-deficiency had smaller effects on the low-P tolerant maize lines compared with P-sensitive lines, it was demonstrated that differences of tolerance to P-deficiency existed among 10 different maize lines. In addition, the relative biomass and APase activity changed during the vegetative stage of development, and there existed a significant correlation between the biomass and APase activity under low-P stress. These results suggest that the biomass and APase activity can be regarded as indicative traits of maize lines for tolerance to low-P stress at seedling stage.