Effect Of Manure Treatments Research Articles

Effects of different groundcover matters on nutrient availability in an integrated apple orchard in Eastern-Hungary

The aim of our study is to examine the effects of different groundcover methods on nutrient availability and uptake of apple orchard. Theexperiment was carried out at the orchard of TEDEJ Rt. at Hajdúnánás-Tedej, in Eastern Hungary. The orchard was set up on lowland chernozem soil in the Nyírség region. It was established in the autumn of 1999, using Idared cultivar grafted on MM106 rootstocks at a spacing of 3.8 x 1.1 m.The applied treatments were divided into two groups according to origins and effects. On the one hand, different livestock manures (cow,horse and pig), on the other hand different mulch-matters (straw, pine bark mulch, black foil) were used. The different manures and mulcheswere applied on the surface to test the effectiveness of these materials.The effectiveness of manure treatments was higher than the other treatments on AL soluble P content of soil. Mostly the manure treatmentsincreased the AL soluble K of soil. Our all treatments increased 0.01 M CaCl2 soluble NO3 - -N content of the examined soil layers. The effectof manure treatments was the highest. From the results it was evident that the amount of easily soluble organic nitrogen fraction distributedmore homogeneously than the other mineral N fractions examined.Our results can be summarized as follows:1. Our results pointed out that the used ground covering matters divided into several categories regarding its effect.2. The available N, P and K contents of soil were mostly increased by applying manures.3. The effectiveness of straw, mulch and mostly black foil was lower.4. Differences were found between nutrient supplying treatments and the treatments which did not supply nutrients.

Effects of manure treatment and soil compaction on plant production of a dairy farm system converting to organic farming practice

In a dairy farm system during conversion from conventional to organic farming practice, the effects of different cattle manure treatment methods, fertilisation level and soil compaction were studied over a period of 6 years. Yields, botanical composition, earthworm quantity and soil porosity were monitored. The manure was treated as diluted, aerated and mechanically separated slurry (solid compost on tilled land and liquid fraction on ley). There were only small differences in total yield between the different methods of manure treatment. Increasing the manure rate from 90 to 130 to 180 kg N ha −1 year −1 increased the average dry matter yields of mixed pasture from 6.2 to 6.8 to 7.0 t ha −1 year −1 and decreased the percentage of legumes in ley and green fodder. Soil compaction by tractor traffic decreased the average dry matter yields in ley from 9.0 to 6.6 t ha −1 year −1. Compaction had a stronger influence on yield than either manure treatment method or nutrient level. Soil compaction reduced the actual air-filled pore space from 12 to 7% and reduced the number and mass of earthworms. It was concluded that to improve yields in this organic farming system it was more important to avoid soil compaction than to increase the manure rate or to choose one specific manure treatment method.

Abstractions and Runoff from Fescue Plots Receiving Poultry Litter and Swine Manure

This study was conducted to assess the effects of animal manure type (poultry litter vs. swine manure), application rate (218 vs. 435 kg nitrogen/ha), rainfall intensity (50 vs. 100 mm/h), and interactions on initial abstraction, runoff, total abstraction, and curve number for a simulated storm occurring one day after application to plots covered with “tall” fescue. Manure application rate had no significant effects on the hydrologic parameters. The data were then averaged across manure application rates and incorporated with control plot data to determine the effects of manure treatment (control, poultry litter, and swine manure), rainfall intensity, and interaction on the four hydrologic parameters. No differences in mean hydrologic parameter values between the control and litter-treated plots were detected. Initial and total abstractions for the swine manure-treated plots were only approximately 50% of those observed from the control and poultry litter-treated plots. Runoff from the swine manure-treated plots was three times that observed for the control and poultry litter-treated plots at the 50 mm/h rainfall intensity. Curve number for the plots receiving swine manure was 15% greater than that for the control and poultry litter-treated plots. The short-term differences in hydrologic characteristics of the swine manure-treated plots may be attributed to the addition of water via the liquid manure and to soil surface sealing by fine manure particles. Additional work was performed to determine whether the application of the manures affected the hydrologic parameters for longer (4 to 14 days) drying intervals between application and first simulated storm. The results indicated that when the manures were applied at 218 kg nitrogen/ha, hydrologic parameters for the manure-treated plots were no different from those for untreated plots for drying intervals of four days or greater.