# The Effect of Slow-Release Fertilizer on the Growth of Garlic Sports and the Soil Environment
## 3 Results and Analysis
### The Effects of Different Treatment Groups on Physiological Indicators of Garlic Sprouts
This suggests that replacing conventional potassium  
Figure 5: The effect of different treatment groups on physiological indicators of garlic sprouts: (**a**) soluble sugar; (**b**) soluble protein; (**c**) free amino acid; (**d**) vitamin C; (**e**) Allicin. The different superscripted letters represent a significant difference between different treatments (\(p<0.05\)). Error bars represent \(\pm\)SD. magnesium sulfate fertilizer with slow-release fertilizer can markedly improve the quality of garlic sprouts while appropriately reducing the amount of chemical fertilizer used. Soluble sugars, soluble proteins, free amino acids, vitamin C (VC), and allicin are important indicators reflecting vegetable quality, collectively influencing the commercial value and taste of garlic sprouts. Slow-release fertilizers enhance multiple physiological traits in crops by regulating the dynamic balance of nutrient release. Slow-release fertilizer can improve the quality of garlic sprouts by extending the nutrient release period and enhancing their nutrient uptake. [PERSON] et al. (2019) found that compared with conventional fertilization, the application of slow-release fertilizer increased the soluble sugar and soluble protein contents in chives by 8.5% and 4.6%, respectively. [PERSON] et al. (2019) investigated the effects of liquid urea formaldehyde slow-release fertilizer on spinach through pot experiments, focusing on yield, quality, root growth, antioxidant enzyme activity, and nutrient absorption. Their results showed that the vitamin C concentration in spinach treated with the slow-release fertilizer increased significantly by 7.34% to 30.07% compared with that treated with the conventional fertilizer. Similarly, [PERSON] et al. (2019) reported that chitosan-microsphere-based controlled-release nitrogen fertilizer enhanced the stem length, stem diameter, branch number, pod number, total amino acid content, and vitamin C content in rapeseed. These findings are consistent with the results of the present study, confirming that slow-release fertilizers not only enhance crop yields but also significantly improve quality-related physiological indicators, providing essential technical support for the advancement of green agriculture. Nutrient uptake and its spatial distribution within the plant are critical determinants of both crop yield and quality. Although this study validated the benefits of slow-release fertilizer through physiological assays in garlic sprouts, it did not assess the actual nutrient absorption. Future work should quantify the nutrient concentrations in the root, stem, and leaf tissues to characterize uptake patterns. Additionally, calculating the fertilizer use efficiency for the four treatment groups would elucidate how replacing conventional fertilizers with slow-release formulations--and potentially reducing total fertilizer inputs--affects the nutrient recovery by the crop. Such analyses would further substantiate that slow-release fertilizers significantly enhance nutrient absorption compared to that under standard fertilization practices.