Macroelements concentration in plum tree leaves and soil in response to orchard floor management

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the influence of various methods of orchard floor management on ex-tractable mactronutrients concentration in plum leaves and orchard soil. Study carried out between 2013 and 2015. Standard mineral fertilization on experimental plots was applied. Trees of ‘Valjevka’ plum (Prunus domestica L.), grafted onto Myrobalan seedlings (Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. var. divaricata Ledeb.), were planted in the spring of 2008. From 2009 to 2015, the following methods of soil cultivation under tree canopies were introduced: control with limited weeding around tree trunks; spraying with foliar herbicides; mulching with organic waste, i.e. straw with compost; mechanical soil cultivation with the use of rotary cultivators and hoe; weed mowing. The method of soil cultivation had influence on leaf concentration of phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium, as well as soil concentration content of phosphorus, potassium, and magnesium in particular years of the study or as three-year mean. Orchard floor management did not affect leaf nitrogen concentration in any way. The results showed that regular weed control in the evaluated type of orchard is not necessary for properly supplying plum trees with macronutrients.