Nutrient cycling and nutrient-use efficiency in an agroecosystem of Trifolium alexandrinum L.

Paper Details

Research Paper 01/09/2018
Views (174) Download (19)
current_issue_feature_image
publication_file

Nutrient cycling and nutrient-use efficiency in an agroecosystem of Trifolium alexandrinum L.

Salama El-Darier, Mabroka Hemada
J. Bio. Env. Sci.13( 3), 122-133, September 2018.
Certificate: JBES 2018 [Generate Certificate]

Abstract

Trifolium alexandrinum L. is an essential green forage crop and anti-diabetic medicinal plant in Egypt. The total forage phytomass was about14.3 tons/fed/year. The present study evaluates the dry matter production, nutrient cycling and nutrient use efficiency (NTUE) in an agroecosystem of T. alexandrinum under normal agricultural practices and rotational clipping by farmers. The net above ground primary productivity was estimated at about 0.066 and 0.093g/g dry weight/day during the first and last at three growth periods. The rate of nutrient accumulation in shoots was initially greater than the rate of biomass accumulation. There was a gradient of N and K concentration from a minimum in roots and a maximum in shoots which is associated with active translocation of these elements to the shoot. The amount translocated exceeds about 90% of the total uptake of N and K. The total organic constituents (TAC, CP, EE and SOC) in shoot attained their maximum content in the vast growth period. Furthermore, T. alexandrinum was found to be having differently for NTUE in the different growth periods. The main controlling factor in changes in NTUE for most elements was due to biomass allocation.

VIEWS 5

Abdel-Razik M. 1990. Growth pattern and nutrient cycling in a Trifolium alexandrinum (clover) agroecosystem under rotational grazing in the Mediterranean desert of Egypt. Arab Gulf Journal of Scientific Research 8(2), 93-105.

Abdel-Sattar M. 1986. Productivity and Quality of Egyptian Forage crops. M.Sc. Thesis, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Alexandria pp. 117.

Abrahamson WG, Caswell H. 1982. On the comparative allocation of biomass, energy and nutrients in plants. Ecology 63(4), 982-991.

Allen S, Grimshay HM, Parkinson JA, Quarmby C. 1984. Chemical Analysis of Ecological Materials. Blackwell Scientific Publications Osney, Oxford, London, Edinburgh, Melbourne pp. 565.

Celena AE, Avcioglua R, Gerena H, Uzunb A, 2006. Herbage yield of Persian clover (Trifolium resupinatum L.) as affected by row distance and herbicide application. Crop Protection 25, 496-500.

Chaichi MR, Shabani G, Noori F. 2015. Response of Berseem Clover (Trifolium Alexandrinum L.) to Chemical, Biological and Integrated Use of Fertilizers. Cercetări Agronomice în Moldova Vol. XLVIII, No. 1(161), 77-87.

Cooke GW. 1982. Fertilizing for Maximum Yield. The English Language Book Society and Granada London pp. 465.

Cordell D, Drangert JO, White S, 2009. The story of phosphorus: global food security and food for thought. Glob Environ Change 19, 292-305.

Donald A, Phillips D, Jones M, 1983. Nitrogen turn-over and assimilation during regrowth in Trifoliun subterraneum L. and Bromus mollis L. Plant Physiology 71, 472-476.

Fakhry AM. 1989. Seasonal Variations in Nutrient Contents in a Plant Community of the Western Mediterranean Region of Egypt (E1-Omayed). M.Sc. Thesis, Faculty of Science, University of Alexandria.

Finger H, Werk O. 1973. Increase of the sodium and magnesium content in pasture herbage and the influence of Magnesia-Kainite application on the forage uptake by cows. Landw. Forsch. 28/II. S. Sonderh 190, 196.

Gibson CA, O’Reilly CM, Conine AL, Lipshutz SM, 2015. Nutrient uptake dynamics across a gradient of nutrient concentrations and ratios at the landscape scale. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 120(2), 326-340.

Gray JG. 1983. Nutrient use by evergreen and deciduous shrubs in southern California. I. Community nutrient cycling and nutrient-use efficiency. Journal of Ecology 71, 21-41.

Hackney B, Dear B, Crocker G, 2007. Berseem clover. New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, Primefacts 388, pp. 1-3.

Handmer J, Honda Y, Kundzewicz ZW, Arnell N, Benito G, Hatfield J, Mohamed IF, Peduzzi P, Wu S, Sherstyukov B, Takahashi K, Yan Z. 2012. Changes in impacts of climate extremes: human systems and ecosystems. A special report of Working Groups I and II of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge pp. 290.

Hannaway DB, Larson C. 2004. Berseem Clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.). Oregon State University, Species Selection Information System, Feedipedia.

Kolodziejczyk-Czepasn J. 2012. Trifolium species-derived substances and extracts: biological activity and prospects for medicinal applications. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 143, 14-23.

Le Houerou HM. 1980. Browse in Northern Africa In: Browse in Africa. (Le Houerou, ed.) ILCA, Addis Ababa 55-81.

Madan P, Karthikeyapandian V, Vanita-Jain AC, Srivastava AR, Sengupta UK. 2004. Biomass production and nutritional levels of be seem (Trifolium alexandrium) grown under elevated CO2 agricultural. Ecosystems and Environment 101, 31-38.

Mengel K, Kirkby A. 2001. Principles of Plant Nutrition. Kluwer Academic Publisher, Springer-Science Business Media, B. V. 5th Edition pp 807.

Muhammad D, Misri B, EL-Nahrawy M, Khan S, Serkan A, 2014. Egyptian clover (Trifolium alexandrinum) King of Forage Crops. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa Cairo 401-413.

Murata T, Shikiko F. 1968. Enzymic mechanism of starch breakdown in germinating rice seeds. Plant Physiology 43, 1899.

Niu J, Chen F, Mi G, Li CJ, Zhang F. 2007. Transpiration, and nitrogen uptake and flow in two maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines as affected by nitrogen supply. Annals of Botany 99, 153-160.

Nowakowski TZ. 1962. Effects of nitrogen fertilizers on total gen soluble nitrogen and soluble carbohydrate contents of grass. Journal of Agricultural sciences 59, 387-392.

Pastor J, Bockheim JG. 1984. Distribution and cycling of nutrients in aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) mixed hardwood-spodosol ecosystem in northern Wisconsin. Ecology 65, 339-353.

Pecetti L, Usai R, Romani M, Fraschini P, Salis M. 2012. Evaluation of berseem clover (Trifolium Alexandrinum L.) germplasm in Sardinia, Italy. Indian Journal of Agronomy 7, e28.

Pulss G, Hagemeister H. 1969. Hypomagnesaemie after the feeding of wilted silage of pasture herbage during the stable period. Z. Tierphysiol Tierenahr University Futtermittelk 25, 32-42.

Rink GE, Ederson GA, Istani KR. 2005. Nutrient uptake of swine effluent-fertilized Bermuda grass during primary spring and summer growth. Journal of Plant Nutrition 28, 1337-1346.

Shaver GR, Melillo JM. 1984. Nutrient budgets of marsh plants: efficiency concepts and relation to availability. Ecology 65(5), 1491-1510.

Smith GS, Middleton RJ. 1980. Sodium nutrition of pasture plants Translocation of sodium and potassium in relation to transpiration rates. New Phyto1ogist 84, 603-612.

Sun X, Luo N, Longhurst B, Luo J. 2008. Fertilizer nitrogen and factors affecting pasture responses. The Open Agriculture Journal 2, 35-42.

Suttie JM. 1999. Berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum). A searchable catalogue of grass and forage legumes FAO Vargas. Primefacts, N (388).

Tufail MS. 2016. Development of Berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.), village-based forage seed enterprises for the profitability and sustainability of smallholder farmers of Pakistan in mixed farming systems. Ph. D thesis, School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences Charles Sturt University New South Wales, Australia pp. 266.

Wakeel A, Farooq M, Qadir M, Schubert S. 2011. Potassium substitution by sodium in plants. Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences 30(4).

WHO. 2003. WHO Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) for Medicinal Plants. WHO, Geneva pp. 69.