Efficiency of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium use by corn, sunflower, and sugarbeet for the synthesis of organic matter

Abstract

A three-year experiment was conducted in natural conditions on chernozem soil to examine the efficiency of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium use by corn (C4 type), sunflower and sugarbeet (C3 type) grown in optimum conditions of mineral nutrition (N100P100K100 kg/ha). Plant materials were analysed for the concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium and dry matter mass per individual plant parts and the whole plant. Leaves of different age, of all three plant species, were analysed to find eventual differences in the efficiency of use of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in the synthesis of organic matter depending on leaf age. It was found that corn had the lowest concentration of the elements studied but the highest dry matter mass. In other words, corn was more efficient than sunflower or sugarbeet in the use of these elements for the synthesis of an organic matter unit. Such results were arrived at in both sets of analyses, i.e., the analyses of leaves performed in the course of ontogenetic plant development as well as the analyses of leaves of different age.