Composted Sewage Sludge Application in a Sugarcane Seedling Nursery: Crop Nutritional Status, Productivity, and Technological Quality Implications

Rafael dos Santos Silva, Arshad Jalal, Raimunda Eliane Nascimento do Nascimento, Nathércia Castro Elias, Karen Cossi Kawakami, Cassio Hamilton Abreu-Junior, Fernando Carvalho Oliveira, Arun Dilipkumar Jani, Zhenli He, Fengliang Zhao, Marcelo Carvalho Minhoto Teixeira Filho, Raffaella Rossetto, Gian Franco Capra and Thiago Assis Rodrigues Nogueira
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Rafael dos Santos Silva: School of Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira 15385-000, SP, Brazil
Arshad Jalal: School of Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira 15385-000, SP, Brazil
Raimunda Eliane Nascimento do Nascimento: School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal 14884-900, SP, Brazil
Nathércia Castro Elias: School of Agricultural and Veterinarian Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Jaboticabal 14884-900, SP, Brazil
Karen Cossi Kawakami: School of Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira 15385-000, SP, Brazil
Cassio Hamilton Abreu-Junior: Center for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture (CENA), Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Piracicaba 13416-000, SP, Brazil
Fernando Carvalho Oliveira: Biossolo Agricultura & Ambiente, Piracicaba 13416-310, SP, Brazil
Arun Dilipkumar Jani: Department of Biology and Chemistry, California State University, Monterey Bay, Seaside, CA 93955, USA
Zhenli He: Indian River Research and Education Center, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Fort Pierce, FL 34945, USA
Fengliang Zhao: Environment and Plant Protection Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou 571101, China
Marcelo Carvalho Minhoto Teixeira Filho: School of Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira 15385-000, SP, Brazil
Raffaella Rossetto: São Paulo’s Agency for Agribusiness Technology APTA-SAA, Piracicaba 13416-310, SP, Brazil
Gian Franco Capra: Dipartimento di Architettura, Design e Urbanistica, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Polo Bionaturalistico, Via Piandanna n° 4, 07100 Sassari, Italy
Thiago Assis Rodrigues Nogueira: School of Engineering, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Ilha Solteira 15385-000, SP, Brazil

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 8, 1-15

Abstract: Composted sewage sludge (CSS) contains large amounts of organic matter and nutrients and can be used as an organic fertilizer to improve growth, yield, and quality of sugarcane. However, there is a lack of information regarding the impact of CSS application on sugarcane seedling performance in nursery environments. A field study was conducted using a randomized complete block design to evaluate the development, nutritional status, productivity, and technological quality of sugarcane seedlings after CSS application with or without mineral fertilizer. Morphological variables (stem height, diameter, and number, as well as leaf area), technological attributes (total recoverable sugar: ATR; quantity of sucrose in sugarcane juice: Pol; Brix: percentage (weight/weight) of soluble solids contained in juice; TAH: tons of sugar per hectare), nutritional status, and sugarcane productivity were evaluated. Treatments did not influence morphological and technological variables except for TAH but did positively alter nutritional status and seedling productivity. The application rates of 5.0 and 7.5 Mg ha −1 of CSS with or without mineral fertilizers (MF) provided the greatest increase in crop productivity. Our results indicate that CSS can be a sustainable nutritional management option in sugarcane seedling nurseries, resulting in greater crop productivity at lower mineral fertilization rates.

Keywords: alternative fertilizer; nutrient balance; saccharum spp.; solid waste; sustainable development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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