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A study of the quality factors affecting the short-term decomposition of field vegetable residues
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Rahn, C. R. and Lillywhite, Robert (2002) A study of the quality factors affecting the short-term decomposition of field vegetable residues. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 82 (1). pp. 19-26. doi:10.1002/jsfa.1003 ISSN 00225142.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.1003
Abstract
Experiments were carried out to characterise the composition and decomposition of 13 vegetable crop residues. There was a considerable range of composition, with 55% of the dry matter being water-soluble in onion compared with only 15% in wheat. The range of carbon/nitrogen ratio in the vegetable crops was narrow, between 9 and 24, compared with a C/N ratio of 58 in wheat. The decomposition of the residues could be described by the single-exponential equation Y = a + be−k(t − d), where Y is the proportion of residue remaining at any thermal time day degrees above 0 °C, a is the proportion of residue remaining at the end of the experiment, b is the corresponding proportion of the degradable fraction, k is the rate constant for the decomposition process and d is a delay factor (in units of thermal time) which delays the start of the decomposition process. Y, a and b are all expressed as percentages on a weight basis and, by definition, a + b must equal 100 at t = 0. The value of d is assumed to equal zero for all residues except those from leafy brassicas, for which it was set at 100. The half-life of crop residue decomposition ranged from 145 day deg for onion to over 1400 day deg for wheat. The decomposition rate constant (k) was related to the C and N contents (r = 0.84, p = 0.001), and the a parameter to the crop's lignin content (r = 0.74, p = 0.004).
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||||||
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Subjects: | Q Science > QH Natural history | ||||||||
Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Life Sciences (2010- ) | ||||||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Biodegradation | ||||||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture | ||||||||
Publisher: | John Wiley & Sons Ltd. | ||||||||
ISSN: | 00225142 | ||||||||
Official Date: | 1 January 2002 | ||||||||
Dates: |
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Volume: | 82 | ||||||||
Number: | 1 | ||||||||
Page Range: | pp. 19-26 | ||||||||
DOI: | 10.1002/jsfa.1003 | ||||||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||||||
Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||||||
Funder: | Great Britain. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) |
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