Physiological and ecological effects of potassium on expansion of crocus corm
钾对番红花球茎膨大的生理生态效应

The corm size of Crocus sativus, a well-known medicine, is a key limiting factor for its stigma harvest. A water cultural experiment with four different potassium (K) concentrations showed that the K content, chlorophyll content, relative ATP content and net photosynthetic rate in C. sativus leaves increased with improving K concentration, which enhanced the function of leaves to be metabolic source. On the other hand, the K absorbing ability and the contents of soluble sugars, vitamin C (Vc) and protein in new-born corms were increased with improving K concentration, which also strengthened the function of new-born corms to be metabolic sink. This study also showed that K could promote the new-born corm growth rate of C. sativus through strengthening the function of "source" and "sink".