ASHS 2024 Conference

Nitrogen (N) is an essential crop nutrient and is a major production requirement for vegetable crops, critical for optimum yield and fruit quality. An adequate supply of N improves plant growth and health, reduces plant susceptibility to diseases, and minimizes the risk of groundwater and surface water pollution. There is limited information on the N requirements for commercial vegetable production systems in Mississippi (MS). This project aims to establish the critical N application rate for open-field fresh-market tomato production in northeast Mississippi. The study was conducted at North Mississippi Research and Extension Center, Verona MS. The evaluated treatments (0, 73, 109, 145, 218, and 290 kg/ha-N) were arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replicates per treatment. For each treatment, the total required amount of nitrogen application was applied at a split rate of 50% preplant (ammonium nitrate, 33-0-0 and fertigation (Calcium nitrate, 15.5-0-0). Fertigation was applied weekly starting at 6 weeks after transplanting. Both potassium and phosphorus were the same for all treatments and applied at 100% pre-plant using 0-46-0 and 0-0-60 formulations respectively. Yield data were collected at fruit maturity and analyzed for statistical differences among treatments. Preliminary results suggest significant differences (p < 0.05) among treatments for leaf tissue N concentration. The total marketable yield and extra-large fruit categories were highest (p < 0.05) at 290 kg/ha-N compared to other treatments. The results also clearly demonstrated that the observed yield increase at a higher N rate (290 kg/ha-N) was attributed to increase in total fruit number at maturity and bigger fruit size. The observed yield for the unmarketable fruit category was highest at N application rate of ≤ 73 kg/ha. Based on the preliminary results obtained, the optimum N application rate for open-field fresh-market tomato production in northeast MS could be up to 290 kg/ha. However, more studies are currently being conducted to validate these preliminary results.

Nitrogen is a crucial macronutrient for potato production, as it plays a vital role in promoting photosynthesis, chlorophyll synthesis, and overall plant growth, ultimately contributing to higher crop yield. However, the shallow root system of potato plants and the sandy soil conditions in this region make applied nitrogen unavailable to the crop, resulting in reduced nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). An alternative and eco-friendly solution is to integrate microbial consortium inoculation in nutrient management plans. This approach entails the introduction of a mixture of beneficial microorganisms known as plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), into the soil to promote plant growth. These N2-fixing microbes can increase soil N availability which could meet N demand of potato crop, hence can help in reducing N fertilizer input rate. Therefore, a commercial microbial biostimulant was applied with five different N rates 0, 78, 157, 235, and 314 kg ha-1. We found that microbial biostimulant did not increase tuber yield but improved NUE. Increasing N rate increased tuber yield, biomass and NUE significantly.

The study of nitrogen fixation in sugarcane has a long history that has demonstrated high potential but with substantial variation in results. This 32-month study sought to assess the response of nitrogen fixation associated with sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L. cvs. ‘Akoki, Honua’ula, and ‘Ula) to available soil nitrogen. Plants were grown in large pots of perlite along with a fixing and a non-fixing plant control and administered liquid fertigation with varying amounts of isotopically enriched nitrogen. Assessment of nitrogen fixation utilized nitrogen isotope tracing and acetylene reduction assay in the target and control plants. Isotope enrichment and acetylene reduction assay both indicated that nitrogen fixation peaked under low nitrogen application, and declined with higher application rates, with agreement between the two methods. These results suggest that sugarcane engages in a downregulation of nitrogen fixation under high nitrogen availability, potentially explaining the high variation in published experimental results. This suggests that nitrogen management and fertilization strategy can impact the atmospheric inputs of nitrogen in sugarcane cultivation, and the potential to improve nitrogen application efficiency in cropping systems utilizing sugarcane.

In California, lettuce (Lactuca sativa) production generates over $1.8 billion in revenue. As a leafy green vegetable, Nitrogen (N) fertilizer applications can reach as much as 280 kg N/ha. The relative shallow root systems and frequent irrigation can enhance Nitrate (NO3) Leaching Potential (NLP) when the crop is grown on Sandy Loam soil. Because of economic, health, and environmental concerns, growers are exploring the option of using organically approved fertilizers such as water-soluble N derived from soy protein hydrolysate (GS) as an alternative to Urea Ammonium Nitrate (UAN). The objective of this study was to compare the NLP of equivalent rates of UAN and GS applied to a (1) soil-column study (Phase 1) and (2) greenhouse lettuce crop with 3 Irrigation regimes x 2 Fertilizers x 4 Rates as a factorial experiment replicated four times (Phase 2). In the Phase 1 study, approximately 2,150 ml of water containing a chloride (Cl) tracer and fertilizers at rates of 0, 56, 112, and 168 kg N/ ha were applied to a fixed volume of soil at a bulk density of 1.35 g/cm3. The chloride concentrations in the leachate from both fertilizer treatments were similar, and the water balance accounted for 95% of the solution applied. The concentration and amount of NO3 in the leachate collected from soil treated with GS were lower or at least equal to that obtained from the soils treated with UAN. In contrast, the amount of residual soil NO3 was significantly higher in the soil receiving the UAN, ranging from 2 to 4 times as the application rates increased from 56 to 168 kg N/ha, respectively, implying a relatively higher NLP for the UAN. In the case of the lettuce experiment (Phase 2), there were no significant differences in the chlorophyll content based on the choice of fertilizer or application rates. Lettuce yields, expressed on a dry matter basis, were not significantly (p=0.11) different for fertilizer type, with similar fertilizer rate response curves being obtained for both UAN and GS. Finally, the mean %N and %C in the lettuce leaves were 3.22% and 40%, respectively, regardless of whether the lettuce was grown with synthetic UAN or organically derived soybean hydrolysate (GS). These preliminary findings justify the need to investigate further the impact of higher irrigation rates and even saturated conditions on the NLP of vegetables subjected to the two fertilizers used in the current study.

Matching crop nitrogen (N) demand and supply is necessary to increase crop N use efficiency (NUE) and reduce environmental impact. Proximal optical sensors such as the Soil Plant Analysis Development (SPAD) meter have been found to be useful in monitoring the crop N status, providing insight into the effects of N fertilization practices in cropping systems. High N rate applications are common in conventional tomato production, where loss of N, more specifically NO 3 - , from the rootzone can decrease water quality. Thus, optimal N management of fertigated vegetable crops requires frequent and rapid assessment of the crop N status to quickly adjust application of N when required. A two-year field study was conducted in north Florida to evaluate the crop N status based on N fertilization practices associated with soluble urea and polymer coated controlled-release urea (CRU) for fall and spring tomato (‘HM 1823’) grown in sandy soils under a plastic-mulched bed system. In addition to a no N fertilizer treatment, three urea N sources [one soluble source and two polymer-coated CRU sources with different N release durations of 60 (CRU-60) and 75 (CRU-75) days] were applied at three N rates (140, 168, and 224 kg ha -1 ), where 224 kg ha -1 is the recommended N rate for tomato production in Florida. Soluble urea was split applied weekly over the 13-week growing season, whereas CRUs were applied at the full rate once at preplant. For all seasons, biweekly SPAD meter readings were taken and sampling periods coincided with the vegetative, flowering, fruit set, fruit growth, and harvest growth stages. Overall, minimal differences in tomato N status were observed among the tested N rates and N sources, indicating that all N fertilizer practices tested maintained similar N use. Thus, irrespective of the N source, this study found that tomato N demands could be met at a 38% reduction of the recommended N rate, potentially enhancing NUE in tomato production systems cultivated on sandy soils in north Florida.

Excessive use of commercial fertilizers in nursery production results in substantial fertilizer runoff, leading to surface and groundwater contamination. Therefore, to prevent contamination and comply with regulations, irrigation return flow (runoff water) is generally collected in a retention pond before it can be safely discarded or released. Nitrogen, applied as nitrate compounds is among the highest used fertilizer and is prone to leaching and runoff. Employing a phytoremediation strategy to remediate irrigation return flow (runoff water) has the potential to lower nitrate concentrations in water before release. In this study, we assessed the suitability of growing Helianthus maximiliani (maximilian sunflower) and Asclepias speciosa (showy milkweed) in a floating treatment wetland system (FTW) and evaluated the nitrate uptake capacity of these plants grown in three different nitrogen concentrations i.e., 10, 20, and 30 mg/L and two water temperatures of 75°F and 85°F. Increasing water temperature increased growth index for both species and increased dry weight for Asclepias speciosa. However, for Helianthus maximiliani, increasing temperature had a lesser effect on total dry weight. The accumulation of nitrate nitrogen in plant tissue was higher in Helianthus maximiliani at the nitrate nitrogen concentration of 20 mg/L under both temperature treatments. However, in Asclepias speciosa, the accumulation of nitrate nitrogen in plant tissue was higher at the high temperature treatment of 85⁰F and 20 mg/L nitrate nitrogen concentration. The nitrate nitrogen uptake from both plants in this study indicated suggests that Helianthus maximiliani ‘maximilian sunflower’ and Asclepias speciosa ‘showy milkweed’ can be grown as FTW and be used to remove nitrogen from a nursery retention pond.