On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost
Green agro waste can be turned into compost, which can then be used as an organic fertilizer, thus reducing the environmental impact of food and feed production. This research is focused on finding a feasible on-farm composting treatment of plant biomass to produce high-quality compost. Three differ...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/9/4190 |
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| author | Lucija Luskar Julija Polanšek Aleš Hladnik Barbara Čeh |
| author_facet | Lucija Luskar Julija Polanšek Aleš Hladnik Barbara Čeh |
| author_sort | Lucija Luskar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Green agro waste can be turned into compost, which can then be used as an organic fertilizer, thus reducing the environmental impact of food and feed production. This research is focused on finding a feasible on-farm composting treatment of plant biomass to produce high-quality compost. Three different composting treatments were prepared and followed (with different additives at the start—biochar (BC) and effective microorganisms (EM), no additive (CON); covering and not covering the pile; different start particles size). Samples were analysed for nutrient concentrations, phytotoxicity and bacterial and fungal presence after seven months of composting. In 100 g of dry matter, the average compost contained 2.7 g, 0.38 g and 1.08 g of N, P and K, respectively. All investigated treatments contained more than 2% of total nitrogen in dry mass, so they could be used as a fertilizer. The highest nutrient content was observed in compost of small particle size (˂5 cm) and added biochar (11 kg/t fresh biomass). However, this compost had the least bacteria and fungi due to very high temperatures in the thermophilic phase of this pile. According to the radish germination index, the prepared composts have no phytotoxic properties and are stable and ready to use in plant production. Taking the cress germination test into consideration, they provided a nutrient-rich and biostimulative soil amendment. All three final composts were stable in terms of respiration rate, growth and germination tests. Results have shown that hop biomass after harvest has great potential for composting. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T04:23:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a9a3833494024242ab01cbc63b2908ca |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T04:23:07Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-a9a3833494024242ab01cbc63b2908ca2023-11-23T07:45:31ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172022-04-01129419010.3390/app12094190On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of CompostLucija Luskar0Julija Polanšek1Aleš Hladnik2Barbara Čeh3Slovenian Institute of Hop Research and Brewing, 3310 Žalec, SloveniaSlovenian Institute of Hop Research and Brewing, 3310 Žalec, SloveniaFaculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, SloveniaSlovenian Institute of Hop Research and Brewing, 3310 Žalec, SloveniaGreen agro waste can be turned into compost, which can then be used as an organic fertilizer, thus reducing the environmental impact of food and feed production. This research is focused on finding a feasible on-farm composting treatment of plant biomass to produce high-quality compost. Three different composting treatments were prepared and followed (with different additives at the start—biochar (BC) and effective microorganisms (EM), no additive (CON); covering and not covering the pile; different start particles size). Samples were analysed for nutrient concentrations, phytotoxicity and bacterial and fungal presence after seven months of composting. In 100 g of dry matter, the average compost contained 2.7 g, 0.38 g and 1.08 g of N, P and K, respectively. All investigated treatments contained more than 2% of total nitrogen in dry mass, so they could be used as a fertilizer. The highest nutrient content was observed in compost of small particle size (˂5 cm) and added biochar (11 kg/t fresh biomass). However, this compost had the least bacteria and fungi due to very high temperatures in the thermophilic phase of this pile. According to the radish germination index, the prepared composts have no phytotoxic properties and are stable and ready to use in plant production. Taking the cress germination test into consideration, they provided a nutrient-rich and biostimulative soil amendment. All three final composts were stable in terms of respiration rate, growth and germination tests. Results have shown that hop biomass after harvest has great potential for composting.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/9/4190composting<i>Humulus lupulus</i>green biomassagrowastehop biomass after harvestcompost quality |
| spellingShingle | Lucija Luskar Julija Polanšek Aleš Hladnik Barbara Čeh On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost Applied Sciences composting <i>Humulus lupulus</i> green biomass agrowaste hop biomass after harvest compost quality |
| title | On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost |
| title_full | On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost |
| title_fullStr | On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost |
| title_full_unstemmed | On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost |
| title_short | On-Farm Composting of Hop Plant Green Waste—Chemical and Biological Value of Compost |
| title_sort | on farm composting of hop plant green waste chemical and biological value of compost |
| topic | composting <i>Humulus lupulus</i> green biomass agrowaste hop biomass after harvest compost quality |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/9/4190 |
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