Root growth and survivorship in cow manure and compost amended soils

E. Baldi and M. Toselli
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E. Baldi: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
M. Toselli: Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

Plant, Soil and Environment, 2013, vol. 59, issue 5, 221-226

Abstract: The effect of the application of compost and cow manure on nectarine (Prunus persica L.) root growth and survivorship was investigated in a commercial orchard during the growing seasons 2003, 2004 and 2005. Our main objective was to determine whether compost affects root dynamics differently than cow manure. The experiment was a complete randomized block design with four replicates of two treatments: cow manure and compost applied at planting in 2001 at 10 t dry weight (DW)/ha and from 2004 at the rate of 5 t DW/ha. The compost fertilization represented a yearly rate of 120 kg N/ha, while cow manure was approximately 80 kg N/ha/year. Both root growth and survival were evaluated at 20-day intervals during the growing season by the minirhizotron technique. Cow manure increased the production of new roots compared with compost (P ≤ 0.001). Roots were mainly produced at a depth of 21-40 cm for compost and 61-80 cm for cow manure. The root lifespan was longer in compost than in cow manure treated trees (P ≤ 0.05) and was strongly affected by depth. No differences were observed in root length and diameter.

Keywords: Prunus persica; minirhizotron; organic fertilization; root lifespan; root dynamics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:caa:jnlpse:v:59:y:2013:i:5:id:857-2012-pse

DOI: 10.17221/857/2012-PSE

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