Foxtail millet performance under low phosphorus (P) is determined by growth potential, with tiller number as a key indicator. Yield is influenced by P dilution rather than total P concentration. Foxtail millet, renowned for its high nutrient content and drought resilience, faces limited breeding investment despite being cultivated in vulnerable agri-systems. Low phosphorus (P) levels affect approximately 50% of global agricultural soils, and particularly impact regions like Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, the latter where foxtail millet is extensively grown. This study explores the effects of low P (< 5 ppm; Hedley Fractionation Method; Cross and Schlesinger 1995) on foxtail millet plant growth and yield-related traits, utilizing high-throughput platforms (HTP) with a selected subset of genotypes (n = 10) from the core collection of ICRISAT Genebank. Results uncover substantial variation in plant growth and agronomical traits at both treatment and genotype levels. Under low-P conditions, genotypic variation is noted, with a sixfold difference in tiller count, 2.4-fold in grain yield, 2.7-fold in 3D-leaf area, and 2.3-fold in root surface area. A significant relationship was found between grain yield under low-P and high-P conditions (R2 = 0.65; P < 0.01). This suggests that genetic yield potential (vigor) under high-P conditions strongly influences grain yield and tiller numbers under low-P conditions. Residual grain yield under low-P conditions, not explained by high-P conditions, had a strong positive association with tiller numbers (R2 = 0.70; P < 0.01) and showed a significant negative association with total P concentration (R2 = 0.54; P < 0.05). Conversely, under high-P conditions, grain yield (GY_LF) from Lysi-Field exhibited significant positive correlations with P use efficiency (PUE) (r = 0.94; P < 0.001) and total biomass (r = 0.84; P < 0.01). These findings underscore the critical role of P availability in influencing grain yield and related traits. Under low-P conditions, performance is primarily driven by growth potential, with tiller number serving as a reliable marker of this potential. The significant genotypic variation observed highlights the importance of selecting for growth-related traits in P-limited environments. In addition, P dilution, rather than total P concentration, appears to play a key role in determining yield under low P. Optimizing P management strategies and breeding for improved growth potential may significantly enhance crop performance in regions facing P limitation.

Centre for Plant Sciences and School of Molecular and Cellular Biology University of Leeds Leeds LS2 9JT UK

Centurion University of Technology and Management Bhubaneswar Odisha India

Department of Biosciences Rajagiri College of Social Sciences Cochin 683 104 Kerala India

Department of Information Technologies Faculty of Economics and Management Czech University of Life Sciences Prague Kamýcká 129 165 00 Prague Czech Republic

Geo Biosphere Interactions Department of Geosciences and Department of Biology University of Tuebingen Tuebingen Germany

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics Crops Physiology Laboratory Patancheru 502324 Telangana India

Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University Rajendranagar Hyderabad India

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