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Response of Tomatoes to Lime and Phosphorus on a Sandy Soil 1
Author(s) -
Rhue R. D.,
Everett P. H.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj1987.00021962007900010015x
Subject(s) - lime , phosphorus , mulch , agronomy , irrigation , soil ph , chemistry , zoology , horticulture , soil water , environmental science , biology , soil science , paleontology , organic chemistry
Very little work has been done on the P requirements of tomatoes ( Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) when grown on acid, poorly drained sands using seepage irrigation and plastic mulch systems. To determine the response of tomatoes to P under these conditions, a study was conducted on an acid Immokalee sand (sandy, siliceous, hyperthermic Alfic Arenic Haplaquod) located near Immokalee, FL. Dolomitic lime was applied in November 1981 at 0, 2240, and 4480 kg/ha and P was applied in January 1982 at 0, 122, 245, and 367 kg/ha in a split‐plot design with lime as main plot and P as subplot treatments. Plots were split in 1983 and 1984 and P was applied at 0 and 20 kg/ha each year. A significant interaction between lime and P treatments occurred in 1982 with respect to yield. High rates of P without lime reduced yields by about 25 Mg/ha compared with the other treatments. The yield depression was not explained by differences in leaf P, Mn, or Zn concentrations, but was associated with leaf Mg that declined steadily to 4.5 g/kg or less by harvest. Yield responses to the dolomitic lime occurred in the second and third years when leaf Mg was also about 4.5 g/kg. Large applications of P without lime resulted in no increase in extractable soil P after 3 yr. Application of lime and P increased extractable P slightly, but the increase was not accompanied by a measurable increase in P availability to tomatoes.