Reuse of Pruning Waste from Subtropical Fruit Trees and Urban Gardens as a Source of Nutrients: Changes in the Physical, Chemical, and Biological Properties of the Soil
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Reyes Martín, Marino Pedro; Ortiz Bernad, Irene; Lallena Rojo, Antonio Miguel; Fernández Ondoño, EmiliaEditorial
MDPI
Materia
Pruning waste Litter bags Decomposition rates Carbon release Nitrogen release Avocado Cherimoya Mango Garden
Date
2021-12-25Referencia bibliográfica
Reyes-Martín, M.P... [et al.]. Reuse of Pruning Waste from Subtropical Fruit Trees and Urban Gardens as a Source of Nutrients: Changes in the Physical, Chemical, and Biological Properties of the Soil. Appl. Sci. 2022, 12, 193. [https://doi.org/10.3390/app12010193]
Sponsorship
Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Project CGL-2013-46665-R); European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)Abstract
A field experiment was conducted on the Andalusian coast (Granada, Southern Spain) to
study the time course of nutrient release into the soil after the addition of bagged pruning waste
from subtropical orchard trees (avocado, cherimoya, and mango) and urban garden waste over three
two-year periods. N, P, and K concentrations were greater in the garden waste, whilst avocado and
cherimoya pruning waste registered the highest values for Mg. In general, micronutrient contents
were low in all waste, especially Cu. Macronutrient release followed a three-phase dynamic: fast
initial release, intermediate stabilization, and final increase. Garden waste showed a similar time
course in all three trees and released greater concentrations of K and P. The annual decomposition
rate factor k was negative for N and Ca in the avocado tree, indicating strong biological activity in
this plot. Avocado, cherimoya, and garden waste showed a good microbial degradation, improving
soil quality by increasing carbon and nitrogen contents as well as soil microbial activity. As for the
mango tree, its special microclimatic conditions appeared to favor waste photodegradation, thus
eliminating nutrients that were not incorporated into the soil. Soil enzymatic activities increased in
the avocado and cherimoya trees with the addition of all waste. In the mango tree, only an increase
in urease was detected after the addition of garden waste. Our results suggest that the time course of
organic waste in different subtropical trees grown on similar soils is significantly conditioned by the
microclimatic characteristics.