Plant, Soil and Environment, 2016 (vol. 62), issue 5

Effect of long-term differential application of inorganic fertilizers and manure on soil CO2 emissionsOriginal Paper

H.S. Dhadli, B.S. Brar

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):195-201 | DOI: 10.17221/266/2015-PSE  

Carbon dioxide (CO2) fluxes from agricultural soils have been considered as one of the important environmental impact issue, due to their role in global warming and also its mitigation by carbon (C) sequestration in soils. Substantial scope of C sequestration with the application of inorganic fertilizers and manures has been reported, but the long-term effects of continuous application need to be critically examined. To study the effect of continuous differential application of NPK fertilizers and farmyard manure (FYM) in maize-wheat cropping system, CO2 fluxes were measured via closed chambers and gas chromatography in a long-term...

Effects of livestock grazing on soil nitrogen mineralization on Hulunber meadow steppe, ChinaOriginal Paper

R. Yan, G. Yang, B. Chen, X. Wang, Y. Yan, X. Xin, L. Li, X. Zhu, K. Bai, Y. Rong, L. Hou

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):202-209 | DOI: 10.17221/445/2015-PSE  

Soil nitrogen (N) cycling is an important factor in terrestrial ecosystems, including grasslands. Understanding the effects of grazing on nitrogen cycling in grassland ecosystems is critical for better management and for improving knowledge of the mechanisms underlying grassland degradation and can provide basic information for sustainable development in grassland ecosystems. In this study, in situ incubation in intact soil cores was used to measure seasonal changes in soil nitrogen mineralization and nitrification in the meadow steppe of the Hulunber grasslands of northeastern China. Soil plots were subjected to varying intensities of cattle...

The potato minituber production from microtubers in aeroponic cultureOriginal Paper

K. Rykaczewska

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):210-214 | DOI: 10.17221/686/2015-PSE  

Minituber production by traditional method is an expensive procedure due to limited productivity. In order to increase the multiplication rate of seed material in vitro, multiple techniques have been assayed in the last decades. The aeroponic system is a soilless culture system, where roots are kept in a dark environment saturated with aerosol of nutrient solution. Aeroponics technology is potentially efficient for specific potato cultivars. The aim of this study was to investigate the multiplication rate of microtubers of national cultivars in aeroponics while maintaining weekly intervals between harvests. The total number of harvests was...

Microwave induced plasma optical emission spectrometry in agricultural analysisOriginal Paper

P. Niedzielski, L. Kozak, K. Jakubowski, W. Wachowiak, J. Wybieralska

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):215-221 | DOI: 10.17221/781/2015-PSE  

The article describes the use of the recently commercially available technique of microwave induced plasma optical emission spectrometry with plasma gas (nitrogen) generation for the determination of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium in Mehlich 3 extracts. The specifics of the analysis of the agricultural samples for soil fertility assessment mean there are often a great number of samples to analyse in laboratory (the daily throughput of 500 or more samples). The analytical procedures were adapted to special requirements by the use of the new multielemental instrumental techniques. The detection limits were 0.43; 0.86; 0.20 and 0.06 mg/L;...

Rice yield corresponding to the seedling growth under supplemental green light in mixed light-emitting diodesOriginal Paper

S.X. Zhang, D.D. Huang, X.Y. Yi, S. Zhang, R. Yao, C.G. Li, A. Liang, X.P. Zhang

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):222-229 | DOI: 10.17221/783/2015-PSE  

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of different supplemental intensity of green light in mixed light-emitting diodes (LEDs) on rice (Oryza sativa L.) seedling growth, and their after-effect on grain yield. The rice seedlings were nursed in greenhouse with 30-days continuous supplemental lighting (6 h/day) from three light sources: 75% red + 25% blue (photon flux density) LED (RB), 62.5% red + 25% blue + 12.5% green LED (RBG12.5) and 50% red + 25% blue + 25% green LED (RBG25), and then transplanted into paddy field in two consecutive years (2014 and 2015). The results showed that both shoot and root...

The effect of sulphur and nitrogen fertilization on grain yield and technological quality of spring wheatOriginal Paper

H. Klikocka, M. Cybulska, B. Barczak, B. Narolski, B. Szostak, A. Kobiałka, A. Nowak, E. Wójcik

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):230-236 | DOI: 10.17221/18/2016-PSE  

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of nitrogen (N) and sulphur (S) fertilizer on grain yield of spring wheat and its technological quality. A field experiment (2009-2011) was conducted in south-eastern Poland on Cambisols. The experiment included 2 factors: N fertilization (0, 40, 80, 120 kg/ha) and S fertilization (0, 50 kg/ha). The experiment showed that spring wheat cv. Tybalt exhibited a positive reaction of N and S fertilization on grain yield, which was the highest at the application of 80 kg N/ha (5.40 t/ha), increasing by 1.30 t/ha (13.1%) with respect to the control. S fertilization increased grain yield by 3.58%. S application...

The effect of cover crops on the fungal and bacterial communities in the soil under carrot cultivationOriginal Paper

E. Patkowska, M. Błażewicz-Woźniak, M. Konopiński, D. Wach

Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(5):237-242 | DOI: 10.17221/117/2016-PSE  

The purpose of the study was to establish quantitative and qualitative composition of soil-borne microorganisms in the cultivation of carrot. The experiment considered rye, white mustard, buckwheat and sunflower as cover crops and three systems of cultivation. The population of bacteria and fungi having an antagonistic effect towards selected fungi pathogenic to carrot was determined. The greatest total population of bacteria as well as Bacillus spp. and Pseudomonas spp. was observed in the soil when rye was the cover crop. The greatest quantity of fungi was found in the control, a slightly smaller amount - after using sunflower,...