In this work, we engineered a pilot scale process for the production of granulated organic- and organo-mineral fertilizers (OGF and OMF) from poultry manure. We investigated the effects of moisture content in the manure, energy consumption during the three main stages of the process and the possibility to obtain nutrient balanced fertilizers using conventional straw drying and granulation equipment, common on the farms. Poultry manure was dried and shredded to no less than 90% of dry mass at 95 °C. Granulation was performed via extrusion with and without mineral additives, such as diammonium phosphate (DAP) and potassium chloride (KCl). This process was used to achieve 4-3-3 OGF, as well as tunable NPK content (4-4-2, 4-3-6 and 4-4-9) OMF. Energy consumption as the manure dried was about 100 kWh/t of product. This limiting step of the process suggests that the maximum achievable drying of sub 10% water currently commonly used is not necessarily economically optimal. DAP was used to increase water-soluble phosphate concentration and was limited to 6% of the total amount by the emission of ammonia during the granulation process. Additionally, the presence of hygroscopic KCl in combination with DAP resulted in significant moisture absorption and loss of the granulized pellet structural integrity after 72 h at 30 °C and 80% RH. Significant increases in yields of rapeseed and potato crops were observed with the 2 t/ha application of OGF or DAP/KCl enhanced OMF. The engineered process will provide for sustainable production of nutrient balanced organo-mineral fertilizers on the manure production sites using conventional equipment already used for straw processing.

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In 2013-2014, research was carried out on a Bathihypogleyi-Haplic Luvisol (LVh-gld-w) soil with predominant sandy loam and pH KCl 4.9-5.2 with a view to finding out how composts produced from sewage sludge, green waste and biogas production waste influenced grain and straw yields of winter wheat grown in the first year after compost incorporation and spring barley grown in the second year after incorporation as well as the concentrations of nitrogen, potassium and heavy metals in grain and straw. The field experiment was conducted in the fields of Elmininkai Experimental Station (Anykščiai distr., Eastern Lithuania) of the Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry. The investigations proved that the composts incorporated without mineral fertilizer did not increase grain and straw of winter wheat grown in the first year after incorporation. During the second year, the composts increased the spring barley grain yield as follows: biogas -by 72.9%, green waste -68.6%, cattle manure -58.9% and sewage sludge -45.2%. The application of composts on the background of mineral fertilizers did not significantly increase winter wheat and spring barley grain and straw yields compared with mineral fertilizers. The concentration of chemical elements in plants depended on the compost degradation process in soil. During the first year after incorporation of composts, nitrogen (N) concentration in winter wheat grain was increased by biogas, and during the second year -by sewage sludge and green waste composts in spring barley grain. Potassium (K) concentration in winter wheat and spring barley straw was increased by cattle manure, biogas and sewage sludge composts. During the first year, all composts increased phosphorus (P) concentration in winter wheat straw. The concentrations of heavy metals (Cd, Ni, Pb, Zn, Mn and Cu) in grain and straw were close to the background levels. The composts used in the study increased the content of nickel in winter wheat and spring barley grain and straw somewhat more significantly.

Please use the following format when citing the article: Arbačauskas J., Masevičienė A., Žičkienė L., Staugaitis G. 2018. Mineral nitrogen in soils of Lithuania's agricultural land: comparison of oven-dried and field-moist samples. Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, 105 (2): 99- AbstractMineral nitrogen (N min = N-NH 4 + + N-NO 3 − ) in oven-dried and field-moist samples was investigated in 2011-2014 in five areas of Lithuania with soils of different texture (sand, sandy loam, loam and clay) and different mineral nitrogen (N min ) content. The samples were taken in spring (from late March to early April) and autumn (late October -early November), from the 0-30, 30-60 and 60-90 cm as well as from 0-60 cm soil layers. The aim of the research was to determine the influence of different methods of soil sample preparation on the concentrations of ammonium (N-NH 4 + ) and nitrate (N-NO 3 − ) nitrogen in oven-dried and field-moist samples and to assess the suitability of the obtained results for the development of agricultural plant fertilisation plans. According to the research results, drying of soil samples at a temperature of 35°C for 12 hours resulted in significantly higher levels of N-NH 4 + compared to those of field-moist samples. The N-NO 3 − concentrations in the field-moist samples, when stored at a 4°C temperature for 3 days, increased marginally compared to the oven-dried soil samples. Weak or moderate, however, statistically significant correlations were observed between N-NH 4 + concentrations in the oven-dried and field-moist samples. In order to perform faster chemical analyses of soil N min for making agricultural plant fertilisation plans, it is necessary to carry out analyses on oven-dried soil samples, and using the linear correlation equations, to convert the results of N-NH 4 + analyses into field-moisture data.Keywords: ammonium and nitrate nitrogen, preparation of samples for analysis.

Nutrient uptake and transport depend on the root system of a tree. Various apple rootstock genotypes may interact fruit tree nutrition. The effect of apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.) rootstocks (M.9, M.26, B.396, P22, P59, P61, P62, P66, P67, Pure 1 and PB.4) on the mineral nutrition of leaf and fruit was studied in 2013-2015. The leaf and fruit mineral concentration for nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and leaf mineral content for copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and boron (B) were measured. Apple trees on semi-dwarf M.26 and dwarf P67 rootstocks accumulated more minerals in leaves and fruits. The highest negative deviation from optimal nutrient content was detected in leaves from trees on super-dwarf rootstock P59. Red-leaved rootstocks accumulated significantly more Ca in leaves and fruits of scion cultivar and determined significantly lower K, N and Mg ratios to Ca. Rootstock vigour had impact only on leaf Ca and Mg. More dwarfing rootstocks determined higher content of Ca and lower content of Mg. More vigorous rootstocks had positive effect on fruit K and P, while dwarfing on K, N and Mg ratios to Ca. Based on rootstock selectivity to accumulate certain minerals, by choosing the right rootstock genotype we can create orchards tolerant of unfavourable soil conditions.