Plant Soil Environ., 2016, 62(6):274-278 | DOI: 10.17221/16/2016-PSE

The effect of fertilisation with digestate on kohlrabi yields and qualityOriginal Paper

T. Lošák1, J. Hlušek1, T. Válka1, J. Elbl2, T. Vítěz3, H. Bělíková4, E. Von Bennewitz5
1 Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
2 Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech Republic
3 Faculty of AgriSciences, Mendel University in Brno, Brno, Czech republic
4 Department of Technologies, Research and Breeding Institute of Pomology Holovousy Ltd., Hořice, Czech Republic
5 Department of Agronomy, Catholic University of the Maule, Curicó, Chile

Three treatments were used in a two-year (2014-2015) vegetation pot experiment with kohlrabi of the cv. Moravia: (1) untreated control; (2) digestate; (3) digestate + phosphorus (P). The nitrogen (N) rate was the same in treatments 2-3. There were significant differences between years in all parameters. The weight of single kohlrabi bulbs in the unfertilised control was significantly lower in both years (33.1-46.9%) than in the digestate treatment (100%). Digestate supplemented with P (treatment 3) increased the bulb yield significantly by 11.0-14.3% compared with pure digestate (treatment 2). In both years the content of bulb nitrates (mg NO3-/kg FM (fresh matter)) was significantly the lowest in the unfertilised control (135 and 163, respectively). After digestate applications the nitrates content (mg NO3-/kg FM) increased significantly in both years, i.e. to 315-327 (2014) and to 486-509 (2015) compared to unfertilised control. In two years the content of ascorbic acid (mg/kg FM) did not differ among the three treatments (274-288 in 2014 and 311-329 in 2015). Digestates can be recommended for kohlrabi fertilisation prior to planting.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion; vegetable; biogas plants; renewable energy; Brassica oleracea

Published: June 30, 2016  Show citation

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Lošák T, Hlušek J, Válka T, Elbl J, Vítěz T, Bělíková H, Von Bennewitz E. The effect of fertilisation with digestate on kohlrabi yields and quality. Plant Soil Environ.. 2016;62(6):274-278. doi: 10.17221/16/2016-PSE.
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