Burns, Ian G., Hammond, John P. and White, Philip J.. (2010) Precision placement of fertiliser for optimising the early nutrition of vegetable crops : a review of the implications for the yield and quality of crops, and their nutrient use efficiency. Acta Horticulturae, Vol.852 . ISSN 0567-7572

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Abstract

The research outlined in this paper highlights the importance of the early nutrition of vegetable crops, and its long-term effects on their subsequent growth and development. Results are also presented to demonstrate how the nutrient supply during the establishment stages of young seedlings and transplants can be enhanced by targeting fertiliser to a zone close to their developing roots. Three different precision fertiliser placement techniques are compared for this purpose: starter, band or side-injected fertiliser. The use of each of these methods consistently produced the same (or greater) yields at lower application rates than those from conventional broadcast applications, increasing the apparent recovery of N, P and K, and the overall efficiency of nutrient use, while reducing the levels of residual nutrients in the soil. Starter fertilisers also advanced the maturity of some crops, and enhanced produce quality by increasing the proportions of the larger and/or more desirable marketable grades. The benefits of the different placement techniques are illustrated with selected examples from research at Warwick HRI using different vegetable crops, including lettuce, onion and carrot.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	S Agriculture > SB Plant culture
Divisions:	Faculty of Science > Life Sciences (2010- ) > Warwick HRI (2004-2010)
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Fertilizers -- Application, Vegetables -- Fertilizers, Vegetables -- Nutrition, Vegetables -- Seedlings
Journal or Publication Title:	Acta Horticulturae
Publisher:	International Society for Horticultural Science
ISSN:	0567-7572
Date:	31 January 2010
Volume:	Vol.852
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
Funder:	Great Britain. Dept. for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Horticultural Development Council (Great Britain) (HDC)
References:	Brewster, J.L., Rowse, H.R. and Bosch, A.D. 1991. The effects of sub-seed placement of liquid N and P fertiliser on the growth and development of bulb onions over a range of plant densities using primed and non-primed seed. J. Hort. Sci. 66:551-557. Burns, I.G. 1988. Effects of interruptions in N, P or K supply on the growth and development of lettuce. J. Plant Nutr. 11:1627-1634. Burns, I.G. 1990. The effects of continuity of early nitrogen nutrition on growth and development of Lactuca sativa. In: M.L. van Beusichem (ed.), Plant Nutrition – Physiology and Applications, Proc. Eleventh Intl. Plant Nutr. Colloq. Wageningen, The Netherlands 30 July – 4 Aug. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht. p.545-549. Burns, I.G. 1996. Nitrogen supply, growth and development. Acta Hort. 428:21-30. Costigan, P.A. 1984. The effects of placing small amounts of phosphate fertiliser close to the seed on growth and nutrient concentrations of lettuce. Plant & Soil 79:191-201. Costigan, P.A. 1987a. The importance of seedling nutrient stress in producing site to site variations in yield. J. Plant Nutr. 10:1523-1530. Costigan, P.A. 1987b. A model to describe the pattern of availability of broadcast phosphorus fertiliser during the growth of a crop. Plant & Soil 101:281-285. Grant, C.A., Flaten, D.N., Tomasiewicz, D.J., Sheppard, S.C. 2001. The importance of early season phosphorus nutrition. Canadian J. Plant Sci. 81:211-224. Greenwood, D.J., Cleaver, T.J., Turner, M.K. 1974. Fertiliser requirements of vegetable crops. Proc. Fertiliser Soc., No. 145. 30p. Greenwood, D.J., Neeteson, J.J. and Draycott, A. 1986. Quantitative relationships for the dependence of growth rate of arable crops on their nitrogen content, dry weight and aerial environment. Plant & Soil, 91:281-301. Rahn, C.R., Shepherd, M.A. and Hiron, R.W.P. 1996. The effect of water supply on the response of onions and calabrese to starter solutions. Acta Hort. 428:141-150. Rowse, H. 1993. Design and testing of commercial prototype equipment for application of starter fertiliser. HDC Final Report FV41a, 18pp. Stone D.A. 1998. The effects of “starter” fertiliser injection on the growth and yield of drilled vegetable crops in relation to soil nutrient status. J. Hort. Sci. & Biotech. 73:441-451. Stone, D.A. 2000a. The effects of starter fertilisers on the growth and nitrogen use efficiency of onion and lettuce. Soil Use & Mgt. 16:42-48. Stone, D.A. 2000b. Nitrogen requirement of wide-spaced row crops in the presence of starter fertiliser. Soil Use & Mgt. 16:285-292. Stone, D.A., Tyler, F.T. and Runham, S. 1999. Effect of starter fertilisers on the yield and quality of lettuce grown on peaty soils. Soil Use & Mgt. 15:128-132. Woodhouse, P.J., Wild, A. and Clement, C.R. 1978. Rate of uptake of potassium by three crop species in relation to growth. J. Exp. Bot. 29:885-894.
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/4442

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