Acta Univ. Agric. Silvic. Mendelianae Brun. 2015, 63(3), 787-791 | DOI: 10.11118/actaun201563030787

What is More Suitable for Kohlrabi Fertilization - Digestate or Mineral Fertilizers?

Tomáš Lošák1, Jaroslav Hlušek1, Hana Bělíková2, Monika Vítězová2, Tomáš Vítěz3, Jacek Antonkiewicz4
1 Department of Environmentalistics and Natural Resources, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
2 Department of Agrochemistry, Soil Science, Microbiology and Plant Nutrition, Faculty of Agronomy, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
3 Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Agronomy, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic
4 Department of Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Al. Mickiewicza 21, 31-120 Krakow, Poland

In a one-year vegetation pot experiment, we compared the effect of digestate from a biogas station and mineral fertilisers on yield and quality parameters of kohlrabi, variety Moravia. Four treatments were used in the trial: 1) untreated control, 2) urea, 3) digestate, 4) urea, triple superphosphate, KCl, MgSO4. The N dose was the same in treatments 2-4, 1.5 g N/pot. In treatment 4 the P, K and Mg doses corresponded to those supplied in the digestate treatment (3).
The weight of single kohlrabi bulbs in the unfertilised control was significantly lower (39.2%) than in the urea treatment (100%) and the other fertilised treatments. After application of digestate (treatment 3) and mineral fertilisers (treatment 4), the weight of single bulbs significantly increased by 18.6 and 25.2%, respectively, compared with the urea treatment (2). The content of ascorbic acid did not differ among the all four treatments (274-291 mg/kg). There were significant differences between all fertilised treatments (2, 3, 4) in bulb nitrate content (792, 327, 776 mg NO3-/kg fresh matter, respectively). The content of nitrates was the lowest in the unfertilised treatment - 135 mg NO3-/kg fresh matter. After digestate application the nitrate content decreased significantly, to 327 mg NO3-/kg fresh matter. We recommend the use of digestate to kohlrabi as it results in comparable or better yield and qualitative parameters of kohlrabi compared with mineral fertilizers.

Keywords: digestate, urea, mineral fertilisers, kohlrabi, yields, ascorbic acid, nitrates
Grants and funding:

This study was financed by the Internal Grant Agency of the Faculty of Agronomy MENDELU in Brno No. TP 8/2014.

Prepublished online: June 28, 2015; Published: August 1, 2015  Show citation

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Lošák, T., Hlušek, J., Bělíková, H., Vítězová, M., Vítěz, T., & Antonkiewicz, J. (2015). What is More Suitable for Kohlrabi Fertilization - Digestate or Mineral Fertilizers? Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis, 63(3), 787-791. doi: 10.11118/actaun201563030787
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