Scientific Reports (Apr 2021)

Effect of slow-release fertilizer on soil fertility and growth and quality of wintering Chinese chives (Allium tuberm Rottler ex Spreng.) in greenhouses

  • Cheng Wang,
  • Jian Lv,
  • Jianming Xie,
  • Jihua Yu,
  • Jing Li,
  • Jing Zhang,
  • Chaonan Tang,
  • Tianhang Niu,
  • Bakpa Emily Patience

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-87593-1
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 1
pp. 1 – 14

Abstract

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Abstract To avoid the negative impact of excessive fertilization on vegetable production, a decreased fertilization experiment was conducted in a multi-layer covered plastic greenhouse in 2017 to 2018. Treatments included no fertilizer (CK), traditional fertilization (TF), slow-release fertilizers (SRF), and decreased fertilization with slow-release fertilizers (DSRF). Results showed that the SRF and DSRF increased leaf length (13% and 8.3%) and chlorophyll content (7.1% and 8.2%) of Chinese chives compared to TF. Similarly, DSRF was found to increase the accumulation of dry matter accumulation of roots (22%) and the dry matter accumulation of shoots (36%) of Chinese chives. Flavonoid, soluble sugar, and soluble protein content were enhanced by 18%, 8.5%, and 4.6%, respectively, in DSRF compared to TF. Nitrate content of the SRF and SRFR decreased significantly by 26% and 35%, respectively. In addition, there was a significant increase in soil nutrient and enzyme activity in the middle and late harvest of Chinese chives under DSRF compared to TF, and there was a high correlation between soil nutrients and the quality of Chinese chives. The available P and total P content significantly differed among the different greenhouse soil samples, and this significantly affected the quality of Chinese chives. The content of available P and total P in greenhouse soil was 125.07 g kg−1 and 1.26 mg kg−1, respectively. Optimal quality was obtained. Hence, the application of DSRF promoted the growth of Chinese chives and improved soil fertility, thereby enhancing the productivity and quality of Chinese chives.