Sustainable Fertilization Management Consequences to Horticultural Crops: 2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

Following the tremendous success of the first edition of the Special Issue “Sustainable Fertilization Management Consequences to Horticultural Crops” (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/horticulturae/special_issues/Fertilization_Horticultural_Crops), we are eager to further advance research in this area.

To meet the ever-increasing global demand for food, the agricultural community continues to seek innovative practices to boost crop yields without sacrificing the environment. For example, using huge amounts of fertilizers hampers soil health and generates pollution. Integrated nutrient management paves the way towards overcoming these problems, which involves conjunctive use of chemical fertilizers and organic manures. Horticultural crops require many essential nutrients for optimum growth, yield and quality (such as N, P, K, Mg, S, Ca, and microelements). Hence, these are applied through fertilizers. The application of plant nutrients in an optimum ratio and adequate amounts is called “Balanced Fertilization”.

Sustainable Fertilization Management is the proper supply of all nutrients throughout the growth of a crop. It is now commonly understood that irrational and/or excessive fertilizer application does not always translate into a continuous increase in crop yield. In contrast, a balanced fertilization strategy is economically superior and is a more sustainable agricultural practice. According to “Liebig’s barrel” principle, plant growth is dictated by the scarcest resource (limiting factor) and not by the total resources available. A deficiency in one nutrient cannot be compensated for by a surplus of any of the others. Thus, one nutrient alone cannot ensure a yield, and a balance between the nutrients is essential to ensure the attainment of yields according to the genetic potential of the crops.

Fertilizer application must be planned to accommodate any variability. The main factors for consideration are crop type, anticipated yield, the naturally available nutrients in the soil and the changes in nutrients required by a particular crop during its growth cycle. Calculations are usually based on a combination of scientific research and local experience. A crop’s nutrient uptake often varies, both by field and by year. Field variability is primarily due to different soil conditions, while annual variability is often a result of changing weather patterns. Application programs that do not sufficiently account for these variations in uptake can lead to incorrect fertilization. Hence, research in this field must be up to date and is crucial for science and the practice of horticulture.

This Special Issue publishes scientific articles and reviews discussing the consequences of the balanced fertilization of horticultural plants.

Dr. Wacław Jarecki
Prof. Dr. Maciej Balawejder
Dr. Natalia Matłok
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Horticulturae is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• horticulture
• fruit growing
• vegetable growing
• precision agriculture
• balanced fertilization
• nutrients
• macroelements
• microelements