Content of plant nutrients in vegetables depending on various lime materials used for neutralising bog peat

M. Järvan¹ and P. Põldma²

¹Department of Field Crops, Estonian Research Institute of Agriculture, Teaduse 13, 75501 Saku, Estonia; e-mail: malle.jarvan@mail.ee
²Department of Horticulture, Estonian Agricultural University, Kreutzwaldi 64, 51014 Tartu, Estonia; e-mail: ppoldma@eau.ee

Abstract:

The trials were performed in the years 1998–2000 in Saku (59°18’N, 24º39’E) in greenhouse conditions. The aim was to establish how lime materials used for the neutralisation of bog peat acidity (oil shale ash, clinker dust, limestone meal, dolomite meal and their mixtures), which changed significantly the contents of available Ca, K and Mg in the peat substrata, affect the mineral composition of vegetable leaves (lettuce, cucumber, tomato, paprika) and the mutual relationships between elements (K, Ca, Mg, P). In the case of all vegetables, a strong Ca and Mg antagonism occurred. The Mg content of plants was very sensitive to the Ca:Mg ratio in the lime material used for peat neutralisation. In the case of limestone meal, the tomato plants contained Mg 0.18–0.24% and cucumber plants 0.36–0.40%; in the case of dolomite meal, 0.66–0.71% and 0.78–0.90, respectively. The Ca and K contents of vegetables were somewhat less affected by the difference of lime materials than the Mg content. Abundant Mg in lime material increased P content in plants, a synergism between Mg and P occurred.
Lettuce grown on substrata neutralised with mixtures of limestone and dolomite meal contained less nitrates than that grown on substrata with clinker dust and oil shale ash. Too high K content in the substrate neutralised with clinker dust had a negative effect on the carotene content of lettuce.

Key words:

carotene, cement clinker dust, cucumber, dolomite, lettuce, limestone, mineral content in leaves, nitrate, oil shale ash, peat substrate, pepper, tomato