# Silicon and methionine enhance cowpea water stress tolerance

## TL;DR

This study shows that applying silicon and methionine to cowpea plants helps them tolerate water stress and recover better after rehydration.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates that silicon and methionine improve cowpea's stress tolerance and recovery through distinct physiological mechanisms.

## Key findings

- Silicon primarily enhanced growth and biochemical metabolism during water stress.
- Methionine improved biochemical aspects that supported plant growth under stress.
- Both substances increased cowpea's recovery potential after rehydration.

## Abstract

This study investigated whether foliar application of silicon (Si) and methionine (Met) can modulate the biochemical metabolism and growth of cowpea ‘BRS Exuberante’ during water restriction and rehydration cycles, based on the hypothesis that these elicitors could improve physiological recovery after water stress. Considering the above, the experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, in a 2 × 4 factorial scheme, with four replications. The factors studied were: water stress period and rehydration period. In addition, the following foliar doses of the elicitors were applied: control, 300 mg L-1 of Si, 890 mg L-1 of Met, and the combination of both, 300 mg L-1 of Si + 890 mg L-1 of Met. The results that positively impacted the mitigation of water stress observed in the presence of silicon were more related to growth, although they also reflected improvements in biochemical metabolism. Methionine, on the other hand, was associated with changes in biochemical aspects that benefited growth. In both cases, the improvements that occurred during water restriction were what enabled greater recovery potential after rehydration. Both attenuating agents proved effective in inducing tolerance to certain physiological characteristics. Therefore, their use represents a promising alternative to strengthen the tolerance mechanisms of cowpea, especially by stimulating its ability to recover from stress after rehydration.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1038/s41598-026-37795-2.