The Agrochemical Evolution of Districambosoil Through Differentiated Fertilizations on Potato Crop in the Apuseni Mts. Area
Authors: MARGHITAS Marilena , RUSU Mihai , TOADER Constantin , MIHAI Mihaela , MOLDOVAN Lavinia 
Published: December 2021

The paper presents the agrochemical evolution of the districambosoil, through differentiated organo-mineral fertilization on potato crop, in the Avram Iancu commune, under the slope of the Găina Mountain, where the Apuseni seem a huge fort and a gate open towards the world and the sky.

The districambosoil (the brown acidic soil) is representative for the mountain area, exhibiting an acidic and strong-acidic trait (pHH2O 4.8 -5.6), the presence of exchangeable aluminium in all of its subtypes, a moderate humus content, a low supply in basic nutritive elements for plants. Thus, it requires enhanced attention granted to fertilization, with an emphasis on mineral fertilizers. Through organo-mineral fertilization, the organic matter in the soil formed from natural organic fertilizers exerts a positive influence on the soils physical and agrochemical traits, making a contribution to the decrease of soil acidity and erosion (characteristic to the mountain area), diminishing nutrition imbalances and enhancing the effect of mineral fertilizers applied to plant species, to achieve superior qualitative and quantitative productions.

Alongside being the basic food product of population in the area, the importance of potato increases once the altitude of the area also increases, being used as fodder for animal husbandry, due to the fact that the assortment of cultivated plants is limited to potato, rye, oat, some fruit trees, certain vegetables, while the rest of the surfaces is covered with natural pastureland and forests.

Nutritionally, the potato is considered to be a highly-demanding plant in terms of nutritive elements. Once harvesting occurs, the export of nutritive elements in the soil is high, which determined the quick depletion of the soil. Thus, it is necessary to apply suitable fertilization to potato crop, which is adequate to the household system specific to the mountain area, where the basic occupation of locals is animal husbandry. This yields an amount of natural fertilizers that can be rationally employed as the main fertilization source of plants cultivated on lo-fertility soils.

The numerous research in the area led to the conclusion that there are good and even very good pedoclimatic conditions for the potato crop, but it has been proven that the time variation of agrochemical indices is the result of the dynamics determined by present clmate change, microorganisms, the plants’ productive consumption and soil nutrient chemism, as well as the influence of fertilizer application and systems of agriculture applied. The increasing possibility and severity of climate events will lead to the increase of the risk of calamity for cultivated agricultural and horticultural plants. Climate change will also affect the soil, decreasing the organic matter content – a major contributor to soil fertility.

The importance, originality and novelty of these agrochemical experiemnts are due to yet unsolved issued regarding fertilization combinations through the implementing of an ecologically-protective soil fertilization system to maintain and enhance the organic matter content according to the climatic specificity of the mountain area and the specific and overall consumption requirements of potato varieties in the area. This soil fertilization system for potato crop in the mountain area accompanied by a rigorous agrochemical control, provide for a diversity of practical solutions in achieving the agrochemical optimum of the soil-plant system and protection of mountain ecosystems.