Plant, Soil and Environment, 2017 (vol. 63), issue 2
Fertilization efficiency of wood ash pellets amended by gypsum and superphosphate in the ryegrass growthOriginal Paper
Pavla OCHECOVÁ, Filip MERCL, Zdeněk KOŠNÁŘ, Pavel TLUSTOŠ
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):47-54 | DOI: 10.17221/142/2016-PSE 
Application of biomass ash to soil can save mineral nutrients due to its relatively high contents of Ca, K, and P. The study assessed the effect of powdered ash and pellets made from wood fly ash (WFA), combined moreover with additives rich in S (flue gas desulfurization gypsum - FGDG) and P (single superphosphate - SP) on the yield and uptake of nutrients (Ca, K, P, and S) by ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), the accumulation of nutrients in plant biomass at individual four cuttings, and the available nutrients amount in the acidic loamy soil after the last harvest. Plants grown in pots enriched by wood ash showed significantly higher...
Arsenic reactions and brake fern (Pteris vittata L.) uptake in tropical soilsOriginal Paper
Hue Van NGUYEN, Amjad AHMAD
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):55-61 | DOI: 10.17221/428/2016-PSE
In Hawaii, past use of arsenical pesticides has left elevated levels of arsenic (As) in some soils. Sorption isotherms of an Andosol and an Acrisol showed that the former required 1100 mg/kg, and the latter 300 mg/kg of added As to maintain 0.20 mg As/L in solution, the maximum allowable As level in streams/rivers in Hawaii. Greenhouse experiments were conducted on an Andosol (315 mg/kg total As), which was amended with 0, 5 g/kg compost, 5 g Fe/kg as amorphous Fe(OH)3, or 250 mg P/kg as Ca(H2PO4)2, and on a low-As (15 mg/kg) Acrisol, which was spiked with 0, 150 or 300 mg As/kg as Na2HAsO4.7...
Transgenic Bt cotton inhibited arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus differentiation and colonizationOriginal Paper
Xiuhua CHEN, Rui ZHANG, Fengling WANG
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):62-69 | DOI: 10.17221/743/2016-PSE
The present study investigated the impact of transgenic Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton on several aspects of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Funneliformis mosseae. The results showed that Bt cotton significantly inhibited spore germination and pre-symbiotic hyphal growth. The appressorium density, arbuscule frequency and colonization intensity in Bt roots were also decreased. The statistical analysis demonstrated that the transformation event resulted in the inhibition of hyphal development and colonization. The reduced interaction between AM fungi and plants could affect nutrient uptake and transportation...
Grain sorghum transpiration efficiency at different growth stagesOriginal Paper
Sushil THAPA, Bob A. STEWART, Qingwu XUE
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):70-75 | DOI: 10.17221/796/2016-PSE
Transpiration efficiency (TE) is an important physiological trait associated with drought tolerance of plants. Currently, little is known about the grain sorghum TE and its dynamics with the age of plants. To compare the sorghum TE at different growth stages, four studies (two in the greenhouse and two in the growth chamber) were conducted under controlled environmental conditions. Plants were grown in lid-covered boxes and harvested at six-leaf, flag leaf, grain filling and maturity stages. The mean shoot TE values were 4.47 and 4.10 kg/m3 for two greenhouse studies, and 4.85 and 4.30 kg/m3 for two growth chamber studies, respectively....
Influence of sowing and harvest dates on production of two different cultivars of sugar beetOriginal Paper
Klára PAVLŮ, Jaromír CHOCHOLA, Josef PULKRÁBEK, Jaroslav URBAN
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):76-81 | DOI: 10.17221/614/2016-PSE
Small-plot trials conducted in 2013-2015 studied the impact of longer vegetation periods (by means of earlier drilling and/or later harvest) on production results of two sugar beet cultivars - one nematode-tolerant cultivar and one cultivar without such tolerance. The trials took place at two sites with different Heterodera schachtii infestation levels. In all trial seasons, root yield was significantly higher in the earlier drilled plots. On average, prolongation of the vegetation period in spring by 13 days increased root yield by 10.9%. Therefore, each day by which drilling is postponed represents a 0.7-0.8% loss of yield. As to sugar content,...
Do cover crop sowing date and fertilization affect field weed suppression?Original Paper
Dominic J. STURM, Christoph KUNZ, Gerassimos PETEINATOS, Roland GERHARDS
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):82-88 | DOI: 10.17221/1/2017-PSE
The weed suppressive ability of oilseed radish (Raphanus sativus var. oleiformis Pers.) cover crop is attributed to high competitiveness for resources and biochemical effects on weeds. The oilseed radish cover crop was sown in five treatments plus an untreated control over a period of five weeks before and three weeks after winter wheat harvest. Additionally, fertilization effects on oilseed radish biomass and weed suppression were measured. The highest biomass of the cover crop was observed 12 weeks after harvest (WAH) when the oilseed radish was sown one week after harvest (1 WAH) (2015) and five weeks before harvest (5 WBH) (2016)....
Effect of combined fertilization with rock phosphate and elemental sulphur on yield and nutrient uptake of soybeanOriginal Paper
Sahar BRAHIM, Anne NIESS, Matthias PFLIPSEN, Daniel NEUHOFF, Heinrich SCHERER
Plant Soil Environ., 2017, 63(2):89-95 | DOI: 10.17221/22/2017-PSE
Greenhouse pot experiments were carried out in 2013 and 2014 at the University of Bonn, Germany, to study the effect of combined fertilization of rock phosphate (RP) with elemental sulphur (ES) on growth, grain yield and nutrient uptake of soybean. Treatments included RP, ES, combined application (RPES), triple superphosphate (SP), magnesium sulphate (MgS), SP and magnesium sulphate (SPMgS) and an unfertilized control. Combined fertilization (RPES) resulted in a significant increase of soil-plant analysis development (SPAD) values, grain yield, yield components and nitrogen and in part phosphorus uptake of the shoot. Single application of RP or ES...