Use and Misuse of Nitrogen in Agriculture: The German Story

Nitrogen (N) fertilization in agriculture has been discussed controversially in Germany for almost two centuries. The agronomist Carl Sprengel, who published his theory on the mineral nutrition of plants in 1828, advocated the use of mineral N fertilizers. Chemist Justus von Liebig, on the other hand, vehemently denied around 1850 the need for N fertilization. Although it soon became evident that Sprengel was right and Liebig was wrong, not much synthetic N fertilizer was used in German agriculture until around 1915, when the Haber-Bosch technique enabled the commercial production of NH3. The use of N fertilizers since then has grown, especially since 1950. To increase agricultural productivity, German governments have promoted, directly and indirectly, the use of N in crop and in animal production. Unfortunately, it was overlooked that N surpluses in agriculture increased rapidly; around 1980 they amounted yearly to more than 100 kg ha-1. The extensive use of N in agriculture is causing environmental damage and is contributing substantially to the external costs of present agriculture. The main N compounds that affect the environment are N2O, NH3, and NO3. These compounds are considered to contribute one third to the external costs of agriculture. Additionally, the high rate of human intake of animal proteins and lipids has adversely affected the health of the country’s population. Fundamental corrections in German farm policy appear inevitable.

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Seasonal variability in soil N mineralization and nitrification as influenced by N fertilization

Plant Soil and Environment ◽

10.17221/4385-pse ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 48 (No. 9) ◽

pp. 389-396

Author(s):

S. Malý ◽

B. Šarapatka ◽

M. Kršková

Keyword(s):

N Mineralization ◽

Variable Parameter ◽

Late Summer ◽

Fertilizer Application ◽

N Fertilization ◽

Nitrification Rate ◽

Limiting Factor ◽

Mineral N ◽

N Fertilizers ◽

Potential Nitrification

Parameters characterizing N mineralization and nitrification were measured in soils of ten monitoring areas of the basal soil monitoring carried out by the Central Institute for Supervising and Testing in Agriculture. A remarkable seasonal cycle was found only for nitrate concentrations that reached their maxima in the spring (April–June), and late summer and/or autumn, starting in August. Ammonium ions were nitrified immediately after fertilizer application. Anaerobic N mineralization represented a variable parameter, which was not directly affected by mineral N fertilizers. Nitrification measured by means of one-week incubation was significantly stimulated by N fertilizers confirming that substrate availability was a limiting factor of this process. Short-term nitrification activity (SNA) showed no remarkable seasonal fluctuations, which meant that the potential nitrification rate remained relatively constant during the season. Urease activity was mostly constant during the year and was only slightly related to N mineralization.

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Improvement of Nitrogen-Fertilizer Recommendation by Consideration of Long-Term Site and Cultivation Effected Mineralization

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy11122492 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (12) ◽

pp. 2492

Author(s):

Dietmar Meyer ◽

Hartmut Kolbe

Keyword(s):

Nitrogen Fertilizer ◽

Process Model ◽

N Fertilization ◽

Actual Condition ◽

Agricultural Practice ◽

Crop Species ◽

Mineral N ◽

N Fertilizers ◽

Fertilization Level

Organic matter (OM) and nutrient nitrogen (N) play vital roles in the fertility and production of soil in accordance with goals of efficient environmental protection. This study aimed to show the extent to which N delivery can contribute to improving nitrogen fertilizer requirements (NFR) through comparative analysis of OM and N. Systems determining the NFR in agricultural practices have thus far been challenged to estimate the annual rate of mineralization of the soil. OM and N turnover was investigated through an available evaluation consisting of 546 representatively distributed permanent test and observation plots (TP) of the German Federal State of Saxony farms. A solid database of at least 10-year field plot card records from 2001 to 2010 was selected for the analysis. A program (BEFU) widely used in agricultural practice, along with the simplified process model CCB, were applied. For the calculation of the amount of mineral N fertilizers used, the results of three different methods for determining the NFR were compared with each other. The determination of the farmers’ demand (=actual condition of the TP) with a mean value of 132 kg N ha−1 did not show a large difference between the calculated values with 137 kg N ha−1 by the BEFU program. Based on the available results for the most important crop species cultivated in Saxony, there were clear differences in the considerations of the N delivery from the soil. The BEFU program was able to calculate an average N delivery of 17 kg N ha−1 from tabulated data, whereas with the CCB process model, 66 kg N ha−1 of mineralization was determined with a distinct higher deviation by taking into account the 10-year field histories. Using the N delivery of the TP by the CCB model, a clear reduction of the mean N fertilization level, to about 80 kg N ha−1, was therefore achieved. These differences were particularly large for TP with organic fertilization (livestock), at a relatively low N fertilization level, and for certain crop species. With a high standard deviation, the average savings potential of mineral N fertilizers was 52–57 kg N ha−1. After including the corrected values for the N mineral fertilization, a decrease in the N balances by an average of 20–25 kg N ha−1 was ultimately achieved. In particular, the heavily oversupplied plots with D and E classification decreased by approximately 50%. The results of our study demonstrate clear improvements; therefore, increased efforts should be made in the future to optimize the determination of NFR using applicable methods that consider N mineralization in agricultural practice and consultation.

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First Report of blaNDM-1 Bearing IncX3 Plasmid in Clinically Isolated ST11 Klebsiella pneumoniae from Pakistan

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms9050951 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. 951

Author(s):

Hazrat Bilal ◽

Gaojian Zhang ◽

Tayyab Rehman ◽

Jianxion Han ◽

Sabir Khan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sequence Type ◽

The Other ◽

High Rate ◽

Antibiotics Resistance ◽

New Delhi ◽

Molecular Type ◽

Plasmid Analysis ◽

First Time ◽

Encoding Genes ◽

Sequence Types

The New Delhi Metallo-β-lactamase (NDM) is among the most threatening forms of carbapenemases produced by K. pneumoniae, well-known to cause severe worldwide infections. The molecular epidemiology of blaNDM-1-harboring K. pneumoniae is not well elucidated in Pakistan. Herein, we aim to determine the antibiotics-resistance profile, genes type, molecular type, and plasmid analysis of 125 clinically isolated K. pneumoniae strains from urine samples during July 2018 to January 2019 in Pakistan. A total of 34 (27.2%) K. pneumoniae isolates were carbapenemases producers, and 23 (18.4%) harbored the blaNDM-1 gene. The other carbapenemases encoding genes, i.e., blaIMP-1 (7.2%), blaVIM-1 (3.2%), and blaOXA-48 (2.4%) were also detected. The Multi Locus Sequence Typing (MLST) results revealed that all blaNDM-1-harboring isolates were ST11. The other sequence types detected were ST1, ST37, and ST105. The cluster analysis of Xbal Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) revealed variation amongst the clusters of the identical sequence type isolates. The blaNDM-1 gene in all of the isolates was located on a 45-kb IncX3 plasmid, successfully transconjugated. For the first time, blaNDM-1-bearing IncX3 plasmids were identified from Pakistan, and this might be a new primary vehicle for disseminating blaNDM-1 in Enterobacteriaceae as it has a high rate of transferability.

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Response of Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) to Mineral Nitrogen Fertilization and Bradyrhizobium japonicum Seed Inoculation

Agronomy ◽

10.3390/agronomy10091300 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 1300

Author(s):

Janusz Prusiński ◽

Anna Baturo-Cieśniewska ◽

Magdalena Borowska

Keyword(s):

Nitrogen Fertilization ◽

Bradyrhizobium Japonicum ◽

Plant Density ◽

Higher Plants ◽

High Sensitivity ◽

N Fertilization ◽

Mineral N ◽

Plant Nitrogen ◽

Seed Inoculation ◽

Glycine Max L

A growing interest in soybean cultivation in Poland has been observed in the recent years, however it faces a lot of difficulties resulting from a poorly understood effectiveness of plant nitrogen fertilization and from the introduction of Bradyrhizobium japonicum to the environment. The aim of the study was to evaluate the consistency of response of two soybean cultivars to three different rates of mineral N fertilization and two seed inoculation treatments with B. japonicum in field conditions over four years regardless of previous B. japonicum presence in the soil. A highly-diversified-over-years rainfall and temperature in the growing season do not allow for a definite statement of the differences resulting from seed inoculation and mineral N fertilization applied separately or jointly in soybean. A high sensitivity of the nodulation process to rainfall deficits was noted, which resulted in a decreased amount of B. japonicum DNA measured in qPCR and dry matter of nodules. ‘Annushka’ demonstrated a higher yield of seeds and protein, higher plants and the 1st pod setting. ‘Aldana’, due to a significant decrease in plant density, produced a higher number of pods, seeds per pod and the 1000 seed weight per plant. Both cultivars responded with an increase in the seed yield after seed inoculation with HiStick, also with an application of 30 and 60 kg N, as well as with Nitragina with 60 kg N.

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A Multiregion Model with Capital Accumulation and Endogenous Amenities

Environment and Planning A Economy and Space ◽

10.1068/a38393 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 39 (9) ◽

pp. 2248-2270 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Wei-Bin Zhang

Keyword(s):

Capital Accumulation ◽

Comparative Statics ◽

The Other ◽

High Rate ◽

Unique Equilibrium ◽

Economic Activities ◽

Technological Differences ◽

National Output ◽

Simulation Results ◽

Wage Disparities

The author develops a multiregional growth model with endogenous amenity and capital accumulation for any number of regions. The simulation results demonstrate that the national dynamics have a unique equilibrium. Comparative statics analysis shows that, if environmental improvement occurs in the technologically advanced (less advanced) region, the national output rises (falls). As a region improves its technology, the other two regions' aggregated output levels fall—not only in relative, but also in absolute, terms. This implies that if any region has a high rate of technological change and the other regions remain technologically stationary, then economic activities will tend to be concentrated in the technologically advancing region. It is also shown that technological differences appear to play only a small role in accounting for spatial wage disparities and endowments.

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Voluntary intake, digestibility and rate of passage of a hay and a silage fed to horses and to cattle

Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Science ◽

10.1017/s1752756200591595 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 1995 ◽

pp. 164-164

Author(s):

B. McLean ◽

A. Afzalzadeh ◽

L. Bates ◽

R.W. Mayes ◽

F.D.DeB. Hovell

Keyword(s):

Sugar Beet ◽

Microbial Degradation ◽

Poor Quality ◽

The Other ◽

Alternative Strategy ◽

High Rate ◽

Beet Pulp ◽

Voluntary Intake ◽

Hind Gut ◽

Adequate Nutrient

It is well established that the intake and digestibility of roughages by ruminants is positively correlated with rate of passage (ARC, 1980), presumably to enable as complete a microbial degradation of the poorer roughages as possible. On the other hand hind gut fermenters such as horses have been thought to have adopted the alternative strategy of using a high rate of passage to ‘cream’ off the rapidly degradable material of poor quality roughages so as to maintain adequate nutrient intakes. Surprisingly, there are remarkably few actual comparisons between ruminants and hindgut fermenters in the literature. Traditionally dried roughages (hay) and cereal and ‘by-product concentrates’ have been used as horse feeds (grains, brans sugar beet pulp). Recently there has been more interest in the use of silages with horses (eg Smoulders and Hobiers, 1988). However the information as to the utilisation of silages by horses is limited.

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Production of cabbage grown in pots containing legumes' root and shoot

Revista CERES ◽

10.1590/s0034-737x2012000500015 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 59 (5) ◽

pp. 689-694 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Thiago de Oliveira Vargas ◽

Ellen Rúbia Diniz ◽

Ricardo Henrique Silva Santos ◽

Alysson Roberto de Almeida ◽

Segundo Urquiaga ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Block Design ◽

Mineral Fertilizer ◽

Dry Weight ◽

N Fertilization ◽

Recommended Dose ◽

Legume Species ◽

Mineral Fertilization ◽

Mineral N ◽

Plant Parts ◽

Whole Plant

Roots effect is not generally considered in studies assessing the performance of crops in response to green manuring. However, such effect can contribute to a better understanding of crop rotation. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of root and shoot of two legumes on the production of cabbage. The experiment was conducted in pots of 10 liters containing substrate of 2:1 soil/sand. The experiment was arranged in a factorial scheme (2x3 + 2) in a randomized block design with five replicates using two legume species (Crotalaria juncea L. and Canavalia ensiformis L), three plant parts (root, shoot, or whole plant), and two additional treatments (mineral fertilization with 100% and 50% of the recommended dose of N for growing cabbage). Pots with legume treatments received mineral fertilizer with 50% of the recommended dose of N for growing cabbage. The experimental plot consisted of a pot containing one plant of cabbage. Legumes were grown in pots and harvested at 78 days. The root biomass was determined in extra pots. Production was assessed using head fresh and dry weight. The application of the whole plant of both legume species reduced cabbage production. However, root or shoot of both legume species was equivalent to 50% of mineral N fertilization required for the cultivation of cabbage.

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Evaluation of the performance of three advisory methods for nitrogen fertilization of sugar beet and potatoes.

Netherlands Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.18174/njas.v37i2.16645 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 37 (2) ◽

pp. 143-155 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

J.J. Neeteson

Keyword(s):

Crop Yields ◽

Current Method ◽

Early Spring ◽

The Other ◽

Fertilizer N ◽

Potato Tubers ◽

Current Recommendation ◽

Mineral N ◽

Fertilizer Recommendation ◽

The Difference

The performances of 3 different N fertilizer recommendation methods were retrospectively tested with data obtained from 150 trials with sugarbeet and 98 trials with potatoes in the Netherlands in 1973-82. The recommendations consisted of applying a fixed N rate in all situations (126 kg N/ha for sugarbeet and 286 kg N/ha for potatoes), the current Dutch method, which takes only the amount of mineral N present in the soil in early spring into account, and a refinement of the current method, which also takes soil type and recent applications of organic manures into account. On av., significantly lower amounts of fertilizer N were recommended with the current method. The difference from the other methods was on av. 25 kg N/ha for sugarbeet and 30 kg N/ha for potatoes. With the refined current method the highest crop yields were obtained but the difference from the other methods was not significant and averaged only 0.3-0.4 t/ha for sugarbeet and 0.1-0.2 t/ha for potatoes. The recovery of fertilizer N by the potato tubers was 2% higher with the current method than with the other methods. Based on these findings it is concluded that the current recommendation method is preferable to the other methods. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)

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Speed and Sustainability When Entering New Market

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su132212458 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (22) ◽

pp. 12458

Author(s):

Gwang Seok Kim ◽

Young Hoon Lee

Keyword(s):

Life Cycle ◽

Entry Mode ◽

The Other ◽

Environmental Damage ◽

Optimal Size ◽

Construction Time ◽

Business Excellence ◽

Speed Up ◽

Mature Market ◽

Job Prospects

When constructing a factory to enter new markets, the optimal size to respond to demand is determined by the construction time. Hyundai Motor Company (Hyundai), on the other hand, standardizes the size of its factories to speed up the entry and response to demand. The Hyundai’s entry mode, called SPEED, is modeled as a strategy. The strategy is evaluated of excellence with capacity expansion rules formalized, key parameters identified, and mathematical programming. The SPEED strategy is suited for market followers who want to enter a midscale or mature market in terms of business excellence and more sustainable throughout the factory’s life cycle on the side of sustainability. Shorter construction times, as a result of the SPEED strategy, can help to prevent environmental damage while also standardization can increase job prospects for local workers.

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Seasonal and year dynamics in the quality characteristics in pig carcasses

Biotechnology in Animal Husbandry ◽

10.2298/bah1604341n ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 32 (4) ◽

pp. 341-352 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jivko Nakev ◽

Teodora Popova ◽

Maya Ignatova ◽

Penka Marinova ◽

Tania Nikolova

Keyword(s):

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Quality Characteristics ◽

Commercial Production ◽

The Other ◽

Carcass Weight ◽

Longissimus Dorsi ◽

Finishing Pigs ◽

Lean Meat ◽

Fat Thickness ◽

Pig Carcasses

The aim of our study was to assess the dynamics of the characteristics in pig carcasses as affected by the season and year of slaughter. A total of 106 027 carcasses of growing-finishing pigs of commercial production, slaughtered in the same abattoir in 2014 and 2015 were included in the study. The carcasses were classified using UltraFOM 200 device, as the characteristics controlled were back-fat thickness at two locations and the depth of m. Longissimus dorsi. These measurements were used to further determine the lean meat percentage. The results of the study showed significant differences in the dynamics of changes of carcass characteristics during the seasons and the years. The highest lean meat percentage was found in summer (56.48%), followed by spring (56.34%), autumn (56.29%) and winter (56.10%). On the other hand, the pigs slaughtered in winter displayed highest carcass weight and back-fat thickness at both locations.

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