Volume 193, 22 September 2015, Pages 301–307
Highlights
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- “On farm” production of green compost in nursery from residues from internal activity was developed.
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- Composting process was analyzed by the succession of microbial communities and temperature.
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- Plants cultivated in mixes obtained with compost and reduced percentage of peat showed a regular development.
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- The potential of N mineralization varied with decreasing amount of peat present in the substrate.
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- The compost was found to be a suitable component of mixed-peat substrates for olive plants growth.
Abstract
The
increasing environmental concerns about the use of peat as a
non-renewable resource in growing substrates has led to the search for
alternative materials. The aim of the present work was to develop a
circular chain system model based on the “on farm” production of green
compost in nursery from residues of pruning of woody plants and of grass
mowing to replace peat in the composition of potting mixes. Composting
process, carried out in a nursery located in Central Italy, was
evaluated by the analysis of the succession of microbial communities and
monitoring of temperature. The potential of green nursery compost in
the replacement of different percentages of peat in potting mixes used
for the cultivation of olive pot-plants was assessed by the estimation
of the nitrogen mineralization potential and the detection of olive tree
growth parameters. Results showed that initial mesophilic phase of
composting occurred within three weeks followed by the thermophilic
phase, which lasted for about 26 weeks and then by the second mesophilic
phase. The potential of N mineralization varied with decreasing amount
of peat present in the substrate. Plants cultivated in mixes obtained
with reduced percentage of peat showed a regular development of growth
parameters (plant height and stem diameter) during the whole cultivation
cycle. Our results show that the widespread production and use of this
renewable resource can provide the partial substitution of peat in
potting mixes with the potential to consistently reduce the economic and
environmental costs of nursery industry.
Graphical abstract
Keywords
- Green compost;
- N mineralization kinetics;
- Nursery;
- Olive;
- Peat;
- Substrates
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