Work

Optimization of nitrogen nutrition of cauliflower intercropped with clover and in rotation with lettuce

Year: 2018

Type: article

Abstract: Cauliflower ( Brassica oleracea var. botrytis L.) requires large amounts of nitrogen (N) fertilizer to produce high yields. The intercropping of cauliflower with a leguminous species may help farmers to reduce N fertilizer rates, production costs and environmental pollution. Moreover, the recycling of crop residues can contribute to the nutritional support of subsequent crops in a rotation. In this study, cauliflower was cultivated in year one either alone or intercropped with annual clover ( Trifolium resupinatum L.), using four N fertilization rates: 0, 75, 150, and 300 kg N ha −1 (referred to as N0, N1, N2, and N3 respectively). Following crop residue incorporation in year two, iceberg lettuce ( Lactuca sativa var. capitata (L.) Janchen) was cropped on the same field without the supply of N fertilizer to assess the effect of cauliflower and clover residues as well as of residual N fertilizer rates on the growth and N uptake of lettuce. The presence of clover did not affect the marketable yields of the intercropped cauliflower, which were similar to the cauliflower sole-cropped. The N1 and N2 fertilizer rates maximized both growth and N uptake of the intercropped cauliflower, while with the N3, crop development was limited. In the N0 plot, the legume competed for N and depressed growth and N absorption of cauliflower. The sole-cropped cauliflower was, on the contrary, unaffected by the N fertilizer rates. The iceberg lettuce cultivated in succession benefited from the presence of clover in plots N1 and N2. When succeeded to the sole-cropped cauliflower, however, the iceberg lettuce produced less biomass and absorbed less N. Results from this study suggest that the intercropping system cauliflower-clover can be a sustainable tool to optimize N input and reduce N fertilizer requirements for the successive crop.

Source: Scientia Horticulturae

DOI: 10.1016/j.scienta.2018.11.020

Authors: Marco Tempesta, Giorgio Gianquinto, Markus Hauser, Massimo Tagliavini

Institutions: Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, University of Bologna, Laimburg Research Centre

Language: English

Topic: Agronomic Practices and Intercropping Systems

Subfield: Agronomy and Crop Science

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Zero hunger

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,273