Linse, Lisbeth
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Research article2015Peer reviewedOpen access
Boron fertilisation of organically managed grass-clover swards on coarse-textured soils: effects on botanical and element composition
Linse, Lisbeth; Dahlin, Sigrun; Nadeau, Elisabet; Forkman, Johannes; Öborn, Ingrid
Abstract
Three trials were performed on two organic farms with dairy and suckler cows and using home-produced forage and feed crops, predominantly grass-clover ley, in order to determine whether boron (B) is a limiting factor for legumes on coarse-textured soils in an area predisposed to low B soil concentrations. The effects of B fertilisation (applied as sprayed liquid) on biomass yield, botanical composition and plant macro-and micronutrient concentrations relative to soil concentrations and livestock requirements were investigated. Boron fertilisation (i) did not affect any yield, (ii) increased the white clover percentage significantly in forage on one farm and (iii) increased B concentrations in plants and soil on both farms, and (iv) did not affect concentrations of other nutrients in forage on either farm. Thus, B was not an obvious limiting factor on these farms. Effects of management practices on interactions and ratios between B, calcium (Ca), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg) and sodium (Na) and their implications are discussed.
Keywords
deficiency; interaction between nutrients; legumes; livestock requirement; macronutrient; micronutrient
Published in
Agricultural and Food Science
2015, volume: 24, number: 4, pages: 261-272
Publisher: SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURAL SOC FINLAND
SLU Authors
Dahlin, Sigrun
- Department of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- Department of Soil and Environment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Nadeau, Elisabet
- Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- The Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies
- Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Forkman, Johannes
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
Öborn, Ingrid
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)
- Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
UKÄ Subject classification
Agricultural Science
Food Science
Publication identifier
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.23986/afsci.51469
Permanent link to this page (URI)
https://res.slu.se/id/publ/69601