Abstract
Abstract Biosolids are frequently used as organic soil additives. This 2-year field study investigated the effects of sewage sludge (SWS) application on maize ( Zea mays L.) production, nitrogen accumulation, redistribution, and nitrogen use efficiency, as well as on grain element concentrations and soil properties. Treatments included three SWS rates (20, 40, and 80 Mg ha −1 year ‒1 ), mineral fertilizer (300 kg N ha −1 year ‒1 and 26 kg P ha −1 year ‒1 ), and an unamended control. Plant samples were collected at silking and maturity in both years, while soil samples were taken following maize harvest in the second year. Maize grain yield increased by 143 kg ha −1 for every Mg increase in SWS rate. Sewage sludge application resulted in maize grain yield comparable to or even greater than that of mineral fertilizer. Nitrogen uptake and translocation to grains increased quadratically with increasing SWS rates. Nitrogen use efficiency increased with moderate SWS application (up to 40 Mg ha −1 ) but decreased with heavy application (80 Mg ha −1 ) compared to fertilizer, raising the risk of nitrogen losses. Compared to fertilizer, SWS resulted in similar or lower P and Cu concentration in the grain, as well as similar or higher K, but had no effect on N, Zn, Fe, and Mn concentration. Soil pH, NO 3 -N, and exchangeable K were similar in SWS and fertilizer, but soil Olsen P improved with SWS. There were no differences among treatments in DTPA-extractable Zn, Fe, and Cu, while Mn raised with SWS. Sewage sludge could be used to increase plant N reservoir at silking, N translocation to grains, and post-silking N uptake, allowing plants to meet their N requirements throughout the growing season. Even at 20 Mg ha −1 , sewage sludge can successfully replace mineral fertilizer in maize crop.
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Claims 14
Claim · model-written summary
Maize grain yield increased by 143 kg ha −1 for every Mg increase in SWS rate.
Zea maysNot reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“Maize grain yield increased by 143 kg ha −1 for every Mg increase in SWS rate”
Claim · model-written summary
Sewage sludge application gave maize grain yield comparable to or greater than mineral fertilizer.
- Treatment
- Sewage sludge applicatione2
- Outcome
- maize grain yielde2
- Direction
- comparable to or even greater thane2
- Comparator
- mineral fertilizere2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e2“Sewage sludge application resulted in maize grain yield comparable to or even greater than that of mineral fertilizer”
Claim · model-written summary
Nitrogen uptake and translocation to grains increased quadratically with increasing SWS rates.
- Treatment
- SWS ratese3
- Outcome
- Nitrogen uptake and translocation to grainse3
- Direction
- increased quadraticallye3
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e3“Nitrogen uptake and translocation to grains increased quadratically with increasing SWS rates”
Claim · model-written summary
Moderate SWS application (up to 40 Mg ha −1) increased nitrogen use efficiency compared with fertilizer.
- Treatment
- moderate SWS application (up to 40 Mg ha −1)e4
- Outcome
- Nitrogen use efficiencye4
- Direction
- increasede4
- Comparator
- fertilizere5
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e4“Nitrogen use efficiency increased with moderate SWS application (up to 40 Mg ha −1)”
e5“decreased with heavy application (80 Mg ha −1) compared to fertilizer”
Claim · model-written summary
Heavy SWS application (80 Mg ha −1) decreased nitrogen use efficiency compared with fertilizer, raising the risk of nitrogen losses.
- Treatment
- heavy application (80 Mg ha −1)e5
- Outcome
- Nitrogen use efficiencye4
- Direction
- decreasede5
- Comparator
- fertilizere5
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e4“Nitrogen use efficiency increased with moderate SWS application (up to 40 Mg ha −1)”
e5“decreased with heavy application (80 Mg ha −1) compared to fertilizer”
Claim · model-written summary
SWS gave similar or lower P and Cu concentration in maize grain than fertilizer.
- Treatment
- SWSe6
- Outcome
- P and Cu concentration in the graine6
- Direction
- similar or lowere6
- Comparator
- fertilizere6
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e6“Compared to fertilizer, SWS resulted in similar or lower P and Cu concentration in the grain”
Claim · model-written summary
SWS gave similar or higher grain K than fertilizer.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e6“Compared to fertilizer, SWS resulted in similar or lower P and Cu concentration in the grain”
e7“as well as similar or higher K, but had no effect on N, Zn, Fe, and Mn concentration”
Claim · model-written summary
SWS had no effect on grain N, Zn, Fe and Mn concentration compared with fertilizer.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e6“Compared to fertilizer, SWS resulted in similar or lower P and Cu concentration in the grain”
e7“as well as similar or higher K, but had no effect on N, Zn, Fe, and Mn concentration”
Claim · model-written summary
Soil pH, NO3-N and exchangeable K were similar under SWS and fertilizer.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e1“Soil pH, NO 3 -N, and exchangeable K were similar in SWS and fertilizer”
Claim · model-written summary
Soil Olsen P improved with SWS.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e1“but soil Olsen P improved with SWS”
Claim · model-written summary
DTPA-extractable Zn, Fe and Cu did not differ among treatments.
- Treatment
- SWSe1
- Outcome
- DTPA-extractable Zn, Fe, and Cue1
- Direction
- no differencese1
- Comparator
- among treatmentse1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e1“There were no differences among treatments in DTPA-extractable Zn, Fe, and Cu, while Mn raised with SWS”
Claim · model-written summary
DTPA-extractable Mn was raised by SWS.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e1“There were no differences among treatments in DTPA-extractable Zn, Fe, and Cu, while Mn raised with SWS”
Claim · model-written summary
Sewage sludge could be used to increase the plant N reservoir at silking in maize.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Effects on Maize Yield”
e1“Sewage sludge could be used to increase plant N reservoir at silking, N translocation to grains, and post-silking N uptake”
Claim · model-written summary
Sewage sludge can successfully replace mineral fertilizer in maize crop, even at 20 Mg ha −1.
- Outcome
- replace mineral fertilizere1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“sewage sludge can successfully replace mineral fertilizer in maize crop”
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