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Effect of Composted Municipal Sewage Sludge on Growth and Elemental Composition on White Pine and Hybrid Poplar
Author(s) -
Mc Intosh M. S.,
Foss J. E.,
Wolf D. C.,
Brandt K. R.,
Darmody R.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1984.00472425001300010010x
Subject(s) - compost , loam , festuca arundinacea , agronomy , cutting , sewage sludge , green waste , environmental science , horticulture , chemistry , soil water , biology , sewage , poaceae , environmental engineering , soil science
A field study was conducted to determine the benefits of land application of composted municipal sewage sludge to white pine ( Pinus strobus L.) and hybrid poplar ( Populus deltoides spp., P. angulata × P. trichocarpa ) growth. Composted municipal sewage sludge was disked into a Chester silt loam (Typic Hapludult—fine loamy, mixed, mesic) at rates of 0, 150, and 300 dry Mg/ha. White pine seedlings and hybrid poplar cuttings were grown for 3 y on the plots which had been seeded with ‘Kentucky 31’ tall fescue ( Festuca arundinacea Schreb.). White pine growth was not affected by the compost treatments. Poplar growth, however, increased as a result of the compost application. After 3 y, the average hybrid poplar heights were 233, 443, and 483 cm for the 0, 150, and 300 Mg/ha treatments, respectively. The height differences between the control and the compost‐amended plots were due to a faster growth rate and a longer growth period of the trees on the compost‐amended plots. Hybrid poplars grown on the compost‐amended soil had higher concentrations of N and K and a lower concentration of Zn in the leaves than the control. No consistent differences in elemental composition of the white pine needles were apparent.