Types of abiotic problems that can occur
Plant injuries and diseases can arise from any of the following abiotic, or nonliving, environmental stresses:
- Total salinity exceeding a plant's tolerance level
- Concentrations of one or more specific ions or elements — principally boron, chloride ion, and sodium ion — exceeding a plant's tolerance levels
- Water deficit
- Water excess, which often leads to aeration deficit
- Nutrient deficit
- pH of soil higher than plant can tolerate (alkaline soil)
- Air pollutants
- Herbicides
- Temperatures lower or higher than plant can tolerate
- Too much or too little sunlight for plant to tolerate
- Wind damage
- Mechanical injuries — for example, damage to plants from construction activities