Fertilizer Application to Balance Nitrogen and Phosphorus Nutrients and Improve Agronomic Traits of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.) in Coastal Saline Soil Under Subsurface Pipe Salt Drainage

• Published in: Journal of soil science and plant nutrition 2023-12, Vol.23 (4), p.5454-5467
• Main Authors: Tan, Pan, Wang, Shichao, Ameen, Asif, Xie, Jin, Jiang, Gaoqian, Han, Lipu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abelmoschus esculentus; Agricultural production; Agriculture; Agrochemicals; Agronomy; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Diameters; Drainage; Ecology; Environment; Fertilization; Fertilizer application; Fertilizers; Food security; Hormones; Life Sciences; Nitrogen; Nutrients; Okra; Organic fertilizers; Original Paper; Permeability; Phosphorus; Pipes; Plant growth; Plant Sciences; Potassium; Precipitation; Saline soils; Salinity; Signal transduction; Soil improvement; Soil nutrients; Soil Science & Conservation
• ISSN: 0718-9508; 0718-9516
• DOI: 10.1007/s42729-023-01413-1

It is of great significance to study the effects of fertilization on the agronomic traits of okra and soil nutrients, and to construct a reasonable compensation scheme for soil nutrients under the condition of improving saline soil by combining okra with subsurface pipe drainage. In this study, chemical fertilizer + organic fertilizer (NPK+OM) treatment, organic fertilizer (OM) treatment, chemical fertilizer (NPK) treatment were designed and compared with no fertilization (CK) treatment. We measured the growth index, biomass and yield of okra, and the contents of total nitrogen, available phosphorus and available potassium in soil. Fertilization significantly improved the agronomic traits of okra. Compared with CK, the plant height and stem diameter increased by 3.39%-11.97% and 6.09%-31.27% respectively. The root length and diameter increased by 23.82%-42.52% and 20.38%-31.84% respectively. The fresh weight of aboveground and underground increased by 21.00%-93.34% and 120.45%-214.70% respectively. The dry weight yield of okra increased by 26.97%-89.80%. Fertilization effectively compensated soil nutrients. Compared with the initial value, the total nitrogen content increased by 7.66%-13.56%. The available phosphorus and potassium were higher than CK. Among different treatments, NPK+OM treatment has the best effect. Under the experimental conditions, fertilization can balance nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients in coastal saline soil and improve the agronomic traits of okra. The effect of applying organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer together is the best. Because okra has a large demand for potassium fertilizer, in order to maintain the balance of soil nutrients, the amount of potassium fertilizer should be increased.