Nitrogen formulation influences plant nutrition and yield components of lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium ait.)
2002
Percival, D.C. | Prive, J.P.
A study examining the influence of nitrogen formulation and application date was conducted at the Nova Scotia Wild Blueberry Institute and at a commercial field at West Brook N.S. from 1997 to 2000. Nitrogen applications consisted of applying 25 kg·ha-1 N in the autumn following the cropping year of production (September and October), or during the spring (May) of the vegetative year of production. The nitrogen sources consisted of ammonium nitrate (AN), ammonium sulphate (AS), or sulphur coated urea (SCU), and were applied in a 7-14-7 mixture (N:P2O5:K2O). No deleterious effects of autumn nitrogen applications on winter hardiness were observed in this study. Although fertilizer application, application date, and nitrogen formulation had a significant impact on leaf tissue nitrogen content, these differences were less than 7%. Fertilizer applications had a beneficial effect on yield at all sites examined with yield increases of 23, 27, and 25% being observed at the NSWBI (1999), NSWBI (2000), and West Brook sites respectively. These yield increases were partially due to increased berry numbers per stem, with 7.6, 82, and 10% more berries per stem being present than the control at the NSWBI (1999), NSWBI (2000) and West Brook sites respectively. Nitrogen formulation had a significant influence on yield at all 3 sites with the fruit set and yield of the AN treatments being lower than the AS and SCU treatments. Therefore, the results from this experiment indicate that nitrogen formulation can influence the yield potential of lowbush blueberries, and must be considered in fertility management practices.
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