Analysis of the Physico-Chemical Properties of Bean Seeds after Three Years of Digestate Use

Abstract

Taking into consideration its physico-chemical properties, digestate should be used primarily as a fertiliser. The possible ways of using digestate as a fertiliser in agriculture were identified, and digestate collected from an agricultural biogas plant was tested for its macroelement and heavy metal content. The research was conducted on Haplic LUVISOLS soil according FAO classification. The area of the land plots was 75 m2. All measurements were carried out in ten replicates. Seed yield was determined at 2.6 t ha−1. The thousand-seed weight was similar in the three growing seasons, and averaged 171.49 g to 184.44 g for the three years under analysis. For the control object, the average thousand-seed weight from the three years of the experiment was 168.56 g. This parameter was significantly influenced by the year of analysis. The highest protein content was obtained in 2022 (an average of 20.3%), which was significantly higher than in 2021 (20.13%) and 2020 (20.12%). The analysis showed an increase in the average value for the three harvest years regarding the fat content of the multiflora bean seeds depending on the post-harvest digestate dose, ranging from 0.47% to 0.61%. In the control object, the average fat content for the three harvest years under analysis was 0.41%. The year under analysis had no significant impact on fat content. A positive correlation was found between the digestate dose and protein, fat, and carbohydrate contents per 100 g of beans. Increasing the dose resulted in statistically significant differences from the lower dose. The obtained results show an increase in macroelement content depending on the digestate dose applied. The average carbohydrate content per 100 g of beans for the three years under analysis ranged from 49.78 g to 54.01 g, while the calcium content per 100 g of beans ranged from 109.23 mg to 124.00 mg. In contrast, the magnesium content in 100 g of bean ranged from 129.91 g to 137.01 mg, the phosphorus content in 100 g of bean from 366.99 mg to 387.00 mg, and the potassium content in 100 g of bean from 1341.20 mg to 1394.06 mg. Statistical analysis revealed statistically significant differences except for potassium, where no differences were found for the two highest doses. In addition, no differences were found in the average phosphorus and potassium content between the years under analysis. The study showed an increase in yield depending on the amount of digestate applied. The highest dose used in the experiment provided the most nitrogen and macronutrients, with a positive effect on yield velocity, protein and fat content, micronutrients, and macronutrients in beans.