ISHS Acta Horticulturae 564: IV International Symposium on Mineral Nutrition of Deciduous Fruit Crops
NECESSITY FOR WHOLE TREE EXCAVATIONS IN DETERMINING PATTERNS AND MAGNITUDE OF MACRONUTRIENT UPTAKE BY MATURE DECIDUOUS FRUIT TREES |
| Keywords: | crop nutrient removal, 15N-isotope, leaf analysis, over-fertilization, yield responses |
| Abstract:
Both environmental husbandry and economically sound best management practices are optimized to the extent that soil nutrient availability is synchronized with tree nutrient demand. However, there are relatively few published data on temporal and quantitative patterns of nutrient demand by mature, field-grown fruit trees. Many reports relating to fertilization of fruit trees are based on estimates, unwarranted extrapolations and untested assumptions. Bases for fertilizer recommendation include: common practice, leaf nutrient analyses, use of model systems, replacement of nutrients removed in the harvested crop, 15-N isotope studies, and finally sequential tree excavations coupled with biomass determinations and nutrient analyses. Of these only sequential tree excavations can reliably indicate the amounts and seasonal patterns of tree nutrient uptake. | |
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