The Effects of Dunite Fertilization on Biogenic Silica Concentration in the Liverwort Marchantia polymorpha

Introduction This experimental study, conducted in June 2014, examined silicon uptake in the model species Marchantia polymorpha L. in response to two factors: silicon fertilization and soil water content. Methods M. polymorpha was grown on natural loamy-sandy soil containing different dunite grain size fractions (coarse or fine) and experienced different precipitation regimes (daily or weekly). After exposure for 30 days, three organs (thalli, archegoniophores, and antheridiophores) were sampled and analysed colorimetrically for their BSi contents. For full details see: https://doi.org/10.1080/03736687.2025.2597127 Data column descriptions: Container Type: Identifier (ID) Description: Unique ID of the container in which the liverworts were grown. Rain Type: Factor (categorical) with 2 levels Levels: Daily, Weekly Description: Precipitation regime applied to the container. Dunite Type: Factor (categorical) with 3 levels Levels: Control, Fine, Coarse Description: Dunite treatment applied to the container. In the control treatment, no dunite was added. In the fine dunite and coarse dunite treatments, olivine-rich dunite with p80 = 43.5 µm and p80 = 1020 µm, respectively, was applied to the soil. Organ Type: Factor (categorical) with 3 levels Levels: Archegoniophores, Antheridiophores, Thallus Description: The specific liverwort organ sampled. “Thallus” refers to the vegetative body. BSi Type: Continuous (numeric) Units: mg biogenic silicon per g dry weight of liverwort tissue Description: Amount of biogenic silicon in the liverworts.