Suppressive composts represent a sustainable approach to combat soilborne plant pathogens and an alternative to the ineffective chemical fungicides used against those. Nevertheless, suppressiveness to plant pathogens and reliability of composts are often inconsistent with unpredictable effects. While suppressiveness is usually attributed to the compost's microorganisms, the mechanisms governing...

in recent years the use of organic and biological modifier as an environmental friendly replacement for chemical fertilizers has been used more. in order to study the effect of different levels of biological fertilizers and mushroom compost on flower yield and characteristics of saffron corms (crocus sativus l.), a split plot experiment based on rcbd design with three replications was conducted...

A steel-slag/compost fertilizer can be useful in supplying complex Fe(II) species to barren coastal regions. Seawater extractable organic matter (SWEOM) was examined for use as a novel chelator of Fe(II) in the compost. The dissociation kinetics for Fe(II)-SWEOM were evaluated, based on the rate of ligand-exchange with ortho-phenanthroline. The ΔH(‡) for the Fe(II)-SWEOM (19 kJ mol(-1)) was sig...

Soil quality decline represents a significant constraint on the productivity and sustainability of agriculture in the tropics. In this study, the influence of biochar, compost and mixtures of the two on soil fertility, maize yield and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions was investigated in a tropical Ferralsol. The treatments were: 1) control with business as usual fertilizer (F); 2) 10 t ha(-1) bio...

In situ soil amendments can modify the Pb bioavailability by changing soil Pb speciation. Urban soils from three vegetable gardens containing different total Pb concentrations were used. The study evaluated how compost amendment and aging of soil-compost mixture in situ affected the following: (i) soil Pb speciation in the field and (ii) change of soil Pb speciation during an in vitro bioaccess...

Manure or compost application based on N needs of corn (Lea mays L.) may result in soil accumulation of P, other ions, and salt because the manure or compost N/P ratio is usually smaller than the corn N/P uptake ratio. This study was conducted from 1992 to 1996 to evaluate effects of Pand N-based manure and compost application on corn yield, N and P uptake, soil P level, and weed biomass. Compo...

     Due to the environmental problems caused by the accumulation of significant amounts of waste from peanut cultivation, it seems necessary to provide a solution for the reuse of this organic waste. Therefore, this experiment was conducted to investigate the possibility of using compost of peanut shells in potting Begonia rex. This research was based on randomized complete block desi...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the nutritional state, yield and composition of peaches on peach trees subjected to the application of organic compost to the soil. This experiment was conducted during the 2008 and 2009 cropping season in an orchard containing Chimarrita cultivars grafted onto Capdeboscq rootstocks and Haplumbrept soils in the municipality of Farroupilha (Rio Grande do...

Viable ova of Ascaris lumbricoides, an indicator organism for pathogens, are frequently found in feces-derived compost produced from ecological toilets, demonstrating that threshold levels of time, temperature, pH, and moisture content for pathogen inactivation are not routinely met. Previous studies have determined that NH(3) has ovicidal properties for pathogens, including Ascaris ova. This r...

Biofilter media mixtures were compared in 18 pilot-scale biofilters treating pit gases from a swine facility. The compost and wood chips mixtures ranged from 100% wood chips to a 50-50 blend in 10% increments. The effect of three media moisture contents (low, medium, and high) on biofilter performance was also evaluated. Odor and hydrogen sulfide reduction did not change significantly for mixtu...