Effects of compost made from pruned pear trees on the fruit, soil nutrients and microorganisms in pear orchards

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted on 10-year-old pear trees for three consecutive years to study the effects of pruning compost (PC) on tree growth, fruit yield and quality, soil nutrients, and microorganisms. Control samples were treated with either chemical fertilizer (CF) or sheep manure (SM), based on equal nutrients and organic matter supply. Compared with CF, PC significantly increased fruit yield by 47.3 and 31.7% in 2013 and 2014, respectively. In 2014, the content of soil organic matter, the available concentrations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), and Fe, Mn, Zn in SM and PC treatments were all increased to a certain degree as compared to CF treatment. The application of PC and SM led to significant increase in the amount of soil microorganisms and soil microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen in both years. The data hereby presented demonstrate that PC is an effective way for recycling pruning waste to improve soil properties and increase fruit yield.