Yield and quality of carrots as affected by soil moisture and N-fertilization

In recent years, the application of nanotechnology for the development of new “smart fertilizers” is regarded as one of the most promising solutions for boosting a more sustainable and modern grapevine cultivation. Despite showing interesting potential benefits over conventional fertilization practices, the use of nanofertilizers in viticulture is still underexplored. In this work, we investigated the effectiveness of non-toxic calcium phosphate nanoparticles (Ca3(PO4)2∙nH2O) doped with urea (U-ACP) as a nitrogen source for grapevine fertilization. Plant tests were performed for two years (2019–2020) on potted adult Pinot gris cv. vines grown under semi-controlled conditions. Four fertilization treatments were compared: N1: commercial granular fertilization (45 kg N ha−1); N2: U-ACP applied in fertigation (36 kg N ha−1); N3: foliar application of U-ACP (36 kg N ha−1); C: control, receiving no N fertilization. Plant nitrogen status (SPAD), yield parameters as well as those of berry quality were analyzed. Results here presented clearly show the capability of vine plants to recognize and use the nitrogen supplied with U-ACP nanoparticles either when applied foliarly or to the soil. Moreover, all of the quali–quantitative parameters measured in vine plants fed with nanoparticles were perfectly comparable to those of plants grown in conventional condition, despite the restrained dosage of nitrogen applied with the nanoparticles. Therefore, these results provide both clear evidence of the efficacy of U-ACP nanoparticles as a nitrogen source and the basis for the development of alternative nitrogen fertilization strategies, optimizing the dosage/benefit ratio and being particularly interesting in a context of a more sustainable and modern viticulture.

Download Full-text

Yield and quality of maize stover: Variation among cultivars and effects of N fertilization

Journal of Integrative Agriculture ◽

10.1016/s2095-3119(15)61077-2 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 14 (8) ◽

pp. 1581-1587 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Ming-yuan LIANG ◽

Gui-yan WANG ◽

Wei-li LIANG ◽

Peng-fei SHI ◽

Jing DANG ◽

...

Keyword(s):

N Fertilization ◽

Maize Stover ◽

Yield And Quality

Download Full-text

Optimizing N Fertilization to Improve Yield, Technological and Nutritional Quality of Tomato Grown in High Fertility Soil Conditions

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants9050575 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. 575 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Domenico Ronga ◽

Alfonso Pentangelo ◽

Mario Parisi

Keyword(s):

N Fertilization ◽

Fruit Yield ◽

Soil Conditions ◽

High Fertility ◽

Marketable Yield ◽

Tomato Crop ◽

Processing Tomato ◽

Yield And Quality ◽

N Rates

Processing tomato is the second most important worldwide cash crop, generally produced in high-input systems. However, fruit yield and quality are affected by agronomic management, particularly nitrogen (N) fertilization, whose application to indeterminate growth genotypes for canning has yet to be investigated in depth. Hence, the objective of this work was to assess the effects of different N rates (0, 50, 125, 200, 275, and 350 kg ha−1) on fruit yield and quality characteristics of processing tomato ‘San Marzano’ landrace. The results of our study showed that 125 and 200 kg of N ha−1 are the most appropriate rates in soil with high fertility, ensuring the highest values of marketable yield and brix yield. However, plants fertilized with 125 kg of N ha−1 attained higher values of N efficiency and fruit K and P concentrations than plants fertilized with 200 kg of N ha−1. Our results suggest that overdoses of N supplies negatively affected fruit yield and quality of San Marzano landrace grown in high soil fertility conditions, also reducing the agricultural sustainability. Hence, specific agronomic protocol and extension services are required to optimally manage tomato crop systems.

Download Full-text