Abstract
Abstract Biodynamic agriculture is an organic farming system that utilizes fermented herbal and mineral preparations as compost additives and field sprays. This study was conducted to determine whether biodynamic preparations affect lentil and wheat growth and yield, soil fertility, or weed populations in the short run. Each of four nutrient treatments, biodynamically prepared compost, non-biodynamic compost, mineral NPK fertilizer, and no fertilizer, were tested with and without biodynamic field sprays. Crop yield, crop quality, and soil fertility were similar in plots treated with mineral NPK fertilizers, biodynamic compost, or non-biodynamic compost. Use of compost raised soil pH from 6.0 without compost to 6.5 with compost. Compost application reduced the broadleaf weed population by 29% and reduced the grass weed population by 78%. Biodynamic sprays altered soil and grain N chemistry, but the effects are of unknown biological significance. Use of the biodynamic field sprays correlated with higher yield of lentil per unit plant biomass, lower grain C and crude protein contents, greater content in soft white spring wheat, and greater content in soil. In general, soils and crops treated with biodynamic preparations showed few differences from those not treated. Application of composts with or without the preparations produced similar crop yields with lower weed pressure, compared with equal nutrients supplied by mineral fertilizer, but any additional short-term benefits from biodynamic preparations remain questionable.
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Claims 9
Claim · model-written summary
Crop yield and quality were similar across mineral fertilizer and both composts.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheat
Lens culinaris
Triticum aestivume1 - Treatment
- biodynamic composte0
- Outcome
- Crop yield, crop qualitye0
- Direction
- similare0
- Comparator
- mineral NPK fertilizerse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Crop yield, crop quality, and soil fertility were similar in plots treated with mineral NPK fertilizers, biodynamic compost, or non-biodynamic compost”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
Claim · model-written summary
Compost raised soil pH from 6.0 to 6.5.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- composte0
- Outcome
- soil pHe0
- Direction
- raisede0
- Value
- 6.5e0
- Comparator
- without composte0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Use of compost raised soil pH from 6.0 without compost to 6.5 with compost”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
Claim · model-written summary
Compost reduced broadleaf weeds by 29%.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- Compost applicatione0
- Interactor
- broadleaf weede0weed
- Outcome
- broadleaf weed populatione0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 29%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Compost application reduced the broadleaf weed population by 29%”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
Claim · model-written summary
Compost reduced grass weeds by 78%.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- Composte2
- Interactor
- grass weede0weed
- Outcome
- grass weed populatione0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 78%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reduced the grass weed population by 78%”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
e2“Compost”
Claim · model-written summary
Biodynamic sprays altered soil and grain nitrogen chemistry.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- Biodynamic sprayse0
- Outcome
- soil and grain N chemistrye0
- Qualifier
- unknown biological significancee0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Biodynamic sprays altered soil and grain N chemistry, but the effects are of unknown biological significance”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
Claim · model-written summary
Biodynamic sprays correlated with higher lentil yield per unit biomass.
- Taxon
- lentilLens culinarise0
- Treatment
- biodynamic field sprayse0
- Outcome
- yield of lentil per unit plant biomasse0
- Direction
- highere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Use of the biodynamic field sprays correlated with higher yield of lentil per unit plant biomass”
Claim · model-written summary
Biodynamic sprays correlated with lower grain carbon and crude protein contents.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- biodynamic field sprayse0
- Outcome
- grain C and crude protein contentse0
- Direction
- lowere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Use of the biodynamic field sprays correlated with higher yield of lentil per unit plant biomass, lower grain C and crude protein contents”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
Claim · model-written summary
Biodynamic sprays correlated with greater content in soft white spring wheat; the measured constituent is unspecified.
Verbatim
e0“greater content in soft white spring wheat”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
e2“Use of the biodynamic field sprays correlated with higher yield of lentil per unit plant biomass”
Claim · model-written summary
Composts yielded similarly to mineral fertilizer with lower weed pressure.
- Taxon
- lentil and wheatLens culinarisTriticum aestivume1
- Treatment
- composts with or without the preparationse0
- Outcome
- crop yieldse0
- Direction
- similare0
- Comparator
- equal nutrients supplied by mineral fertilizere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Application of composts with or without the preparations produced similar crop yields with lower weed pressure, compared with equal nutrients supplied by mineral fertilizer”
e1“lentil and wheat growth and yield”
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- no effect
- negative
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322 papers in the same direction as this paper · 3,115 reporting no difference from an alternative
- no effect
- positive
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3,434 papers more in this group
See all 3,438 papers →fertilization · weed · Lens culinaris (lentil)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.