Effect of Compost and Synthetic Fertilizer on Soil Fertility, Yield and Nitrogen Use Efficiency of Broccoli Crop in Arid Region of Morocco

Abstract

Background: Soils in arid regions like Morocco are becoming increasingly degraded and polluted because of the high use of synthetic chemical fertilizers linked to population growth. Organic fertilizers such as compost remain a good alternative to improve soil quality and crop yields. Broccoli is a crop that is beginning to develop in Morocco. It is very nitrogen demanding crop; therefore, it is necessary to know nitrogen use efficiency in broccoli. Methods: In this field experimental conducted during 2015 at the horticultural complex of Agadir - Agronomy and Veterinary Institute Hassan II, different treatments were tested on broccoli as follows:TC8t/ha: compost, 8 t/ha (equivalent 200 kgN /ha), TC12t/ha: compost, 12 t/ha (equivalent 300 kg N /ha), TSYN: Synthetic chemical fertilizer (200kg N/ha), TC+SYN: 50% compost, 4t/ha+50% Synthetic fertilizer (equivalent 200 kg N/ha) and T0: control, in order to optimize nitrogen use efficiency of compost and synthetic fertilizer. Result: Our research showed that the combination of compost and synthetic fertilizer: TC+SYN improved the growth and yield parameters of broccoli; the best main head yield of broccoli was 13.5 t/ha for TC+SYN. Compost improved the chemical properties of soil. Total N content was 266 kg/ha for TC+SYN, 253 kg/ha for TSYN, 244 kg/ha for TC8 t/ha and 234 kg/ha forTC12 t/ha. For Nitrogen use efficiency, apparent recovery efficiency (ARE) was higher with TSYN: 0.91 followed by TC+SYN: 0.88 followed by TC8t/ha with 0.77and T C12 t/ha: 0.48.

Broccoli quality and nutrient uptake response to integrated nitrogen management and mulching

“…About 27.6% of the area is covered by Punjab Anonymous et al (2016) [1] . For successful crop growth and development, balanced fertilization is essential for improving the nutrient usage efficiency of plants and retaining soil productivity (Aouass et al, 2022) [2] . It is widely known that imbalanced nutrient availability not only leads to low and poor-quality output but may also lead to mitigation of soil nutrient stores, nutrition scarcity, soil degradation and diseases; a specific balance among the various nutrients along with mulching techniques resulted in improving fertilizer usage efficiency.…”

Untitled

“…About 27.6% of the area is covered by Punjab Anonymous et al (2016) [1] . For successful crop growth and development, balanced fertilization is essential for improving the nutrient usage efficiency of plants and retaining soil productivity (Aouass et al, 2022) [2] . It is widely known that imbalanced nutrient availability not only leads to low and poor-quality output but may also lead to mitigation of soil nutrient stores, nutrition scarcity, soil degradation and diseases; a specific balance among the various nutrients along with mulching techniques resulted in improving fertilizer usage efficiency.…”