Abstract
<p>Knowledge on the interaction between plants and organic amendments is critical for the basic understanding of agroecosystems sustainability. Organic amendments are of great interest in agriculture by virtue of their ability to restore lost soil organic carbon in eroded or conventionally cultivated soils. The major objective of this study was to demonstrate and model the differential response of crop species to organic amendments. Despite the potential of such an interaction to improve crop production, it has never been formally demonstrated in a planned experiment. A two-year greenhouse experiment set as 3×3×5 factorial in a strip-split plot design was conducted. The effects of crop species, type of organic amendment, and application rates on grain yield of soybean, canola, and wheat were evaluated. To account for the asymmetry of the concave responses of soybean, mathematical transcendental models were fitted, for the first time, to yield data.<em> </em>The interaction between crop species and amended soils was highly significant. Soybean displayed concave transcendental yield responses whereas canola and wheat exhibited negative exponential responses, irrespective of the type of amendment. Turkey compost outperformed turkey litter and beef manure by 30% and 52%, respectively, with respect to soybean production; whereas turkey litter outperformed turkey compost and beef manure by 144% and 264%, respectively, with respect to canola and wheat production. It is concluded that in greenhouse settings and perhaps field conditions, growth and development of crop species can be enhanced by matching the specific characteristics of organic amendments to the specific nutrients demand of crop species.</p>
Highlights
The United Nations estimates that the world population will reach 9.4 billion by 2050 and 10 billion by 2100 (Cohen, 2003)
Growth rates induced by turkey compost, turkey litter, and beef manure were generally similar irrespective of the rate of amendment, with the exception of turkey litter which displayed a slower rate at 4.8% and 42 days after transplanting (Figure 1 canola-d)
We have shown that under greenhouse conditions, the responses of soybean, canola, and wheat to increasing amounts of turkey compost, turkey litter, and beef manure vary in nature and magnitude depending upon the type of organic amendment used
Summary
The United Nations estimates that the world population will reach 9.4 billion by 2050 and 10 billion by 2100 (Cohen, 2003). To meet the challenges of food security, various agricultural strategies have been proposed: intensification of agriculture (more lands, fertilizers, pesticides, and water), use of new technologies (equipment, precision-farming), and the creation of genetically modified organisms. These strategies, with the exception of precision farming, have been linked to a heavy environmental cost: eutrophication and contamination of ground and surface waters, land degradation and desertification, loss of soil organic carbon, climate change, etc. One such opportunity is precision nutrient management, or the agronomic exploitation of the interaction between crop and the environment (genotype x environment)
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