Influence of Pretreatment Stresses on Inhibitory Effects of Ferulic Acid, an Allelopathic Phenolic Acid

Experiments were conducted to determine the potential for acclimation (i.e., increased tolerance) to allelopathic phenolic acids resulting from pretreatment of seedlings with allelochemical (ferulic acid), drought, or nutrient stress. Cucumber seedlings were exposed to pretreatment stresses in a nutrient culture system for nine days, starting with day 3. Seedlings were subsequently treated for 5 hr with 0, 0.25, 0.5, or 0.75 mM ferulic acid. Acclimation (tolerance) was quantified by percentage inhibition of net phosphorus uptake. Seedlings grown with ferulic acid or drought pretreatment stresses were more tolerant to subsequent ferulic acid treatments (i.e., inhibition of net phosphorus uptake by ferulic acid was reduced). Nutrient pretreatment stress eliminated the inhibitory activity of ferulic acid on net phosphorus uptake. The results suggest that a general acclimation response to a variety of pretreatment stresses can confer an increased tolerance of plants to allelopathic phenolic acids such as ferulic acid.