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Maize nutrient dynamics: growth, yield and sustainable practices: A narrative review
83-91Views:388Nutrient acquisition is the fundamental regulator of maize (Zea mays) growth, development, and yield. The present narrative review intends to integrate existing information on dynamics of nutrient uptake in maize under scrutiny for understanding how the processes affect growth and yield. We focus on the effective absorption and utilization of macronutrients (N, P and K) and micronutrients that promote plant health, grain development, and stress tolerance. Key determinants of nutrient availability (soil type, pH, organic matter, environment) and physiological or yield impacts of deficiency are studied. Strategies to optimize uptake efficiency precision application of fertilizer, organic fertilizers, and sustainable soil management are discussed. Optimizing these dynamics is central to maize productivity, enhancement and sustainable crop production. This review provides valuable insights into optimizing maize nutrition for improved food security and sustainable crop production.
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Complex problem analysis of the Hungarian milk product chain
43-47Views:236Hungarian dairy sector went through significant changes in past two decades. The most significant changes were caused by our accession to the European Union. In Hungary milk production remarkably declined after EU accession. The size of our dairy herd has been practically reducing since the political transformation, but increasing yields per cow could compensate it in some way and for some time. However, in recent years, increasing yield per cow came to a stop and in parallel, the number of cows declined further and faster. Low prices, high production costs and tightening quality requirements ousted several producers from the market in past years. Feeding cost represents the highest rate in cost structure of production, but animal health expenditures and various losses are also significant. There are undeniably competitive disadvantages in the level of organisation and labour productivity; however competitiveness already depends on cost effectiveness in the medium run. In Hungary concentration of the dairies is relatively strong in spite of the relative high number of corporations. The dairies compete with each other and with the export market for the raw material and the better exploitation of their capacities. Applied technology of the Hungarian dairies lags behind the Western-European competitors’; in addition they have handicaps in efficiency and product innovation. Presence of chain of stores being dominant in sale of milk products does also not favour in all respects to the position of the dairies. The aforementioned retail chains are namely consumer-centric, engage in price follower conduct and weaken the position of the dairies with their private label products. As a result of increasing import of milk and milk products Hungary became a net importer in recent years. Today, disposable income still essentially determines the consumption habits of price-sensitive consumers. Loyalty for Hungarian products is not typical, consumers are open for import products being preferred by retail chains. In addition Hungarian milk and milk product consumption is about half of the Union average and it is far behind the level being necessary for healthy eating. In Hungary lack of competitiveness and vertical integration relationships and backwardness are revealing among the dairy farmers and the dairies, while chain of stores are in unprecedented “monopolistic situation”; the whole sector can be characterised by defencelessness.
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Comparison of supplier quality assurance methods for compound feed manufacturing from efficiency, product consistency and economical point of view
29-34Views:235Feed manufacturing and human food production are the main routes of use for agricultural products. The food industryparticularly has intensively implemented the recent quality management principles and developed systems that facilitate the continuous improvement and efficiency of the industrial production. Feed production has taken similar approaches however the intensity of deployment at the manufacturer and the rollout towards its supply chain has shown slower progress. The methods, that the feed manufacturer manages the supplier chain of mainly primer agricultural products according to, have a certain impact on the efficiency of the inbound operations, feed product quality and its consistency as well as on other resources. These methods have been built on sound quality management principles that are stated not only in quality standards but also in relevant regulations. Current study addresses the questions related to the link between supply chain quality management and feed product. The objective of the frontier research was to highlight the theoretical possibilities and benefits of the robust design methodimplemented into animal feed manufacturing dealing with highly variable ingredients.
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Soil moisture sensors for sustainable water management in field crop production: A review of advances and application challenges
41-54Views:454Efficient water management is essential for sustainable production of field crops amid climate change, population growth, and water scarcity. Traditional irrigation practices often lead to water use inefficiency, which harms soil health and reduces yields. To address this, reviewing previous studies on soil moisture sensors provides important context and guidance. Literature from Scopus, Google Scholar, and WoS (2019–2025) on soil moisture sensors for sustainable water management in field crops was screened. Out of 244 retrieved publications, 79 met the inclusion criteria with a focus on sensor technologies, applications, advances, and challenges, analysed thematically for research gaps and insights. Based on the findings, soil moisture sensors boost water management, improve yields of field crops, and support sustainable agriculture. However, hindrances related to high costs, lack of awareness, technical complexity, calibration needs, energy challenges, data interpretation difficulties, and compatibility problems hinder effective soil moisture sensor results. Integrating soil moisture sensors with decision-support tools optimises water use and protects soil health to promote long-term productivity under climate variability. Future research should strategise on the development of low-cost, reliable soil moisture sensors with technology subsidies, training, policy support, durability, integration, and simple data to empower farmers to adopt precision water management.
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Characteristics of Land Use and Plant Production in Transcarpathia
290-294Views:148The character of plant cultivation and animal husbandry in different parts of Transcarpathia, are mostly determined by the location of a given region. Usually, four zones are delineated: 1. lowlands; 2. foothills and volcanic remains zone; 3. inter-mountainous subsidence and deep valley; 4. mountain zone.
In county this zone divides quite visibly. By studying the soil, climatic conditions and plants, it is not difficult to see that the vertical zones play a major role in their characteristics and formations. If we go from lower to higher elevations, we can observe the qualitative difference in the environment and, of course, in the character of agriculture.
Environmental pollution is a global problem of our age. In agriculture, the most important thing is to preserve the ideas of sustainable development, because only these can ensure the protection of production resources, which will ensure the continuous production of agricultural products. Present environmental conditions pose a more problematic challenge to agriculture. -
Mitigation of environment impact of mycotoxins produced by Fusarium species
159-164Views:505The Fusarium fungi hazards the grain quality of cereals, therefore significantly affects their utilization as animal feed or consumable product. The Fusarium can decrease the quality of wheat in different ways: decreases the germination capability, causes visible discoloration, mould may appear, reduces the dry material and nutrient content of the grain, causes mycotoxin infection – as a result given by its by-product. Micotoxins produced by Fusarium genus, as the trichotecenes (T-2, HT-2, deoxynivalenol, nivalenol, diacetoxyscirpenol, Fusarenone-X) and the zearalenone (F-2) are the most common in Hungary. Occurrence of fumonisins first discovered in 1988 are must be identified carefully. About 20–30% of the overall worldwide production of cereals is infected with Fusarium and its toxins, which situation is similar in Hungary. This infection causes serious yield-losses in cereal production. In the case of cereal products, which non-utilizable as forage seems, an optimal solution is utilizing as biogas raw material, but it is also important to examine the effect of the infected cereal on the anaerobe digestion process.
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Anaerobe degradation of maize infected by Fusarium graminearum
57-61Views:567Last year intense rainfalls and moisture conditions were beneficial for the Fusarium sp. in Hungary. Fusarium strains decrease cereal quality (for example maize), furthermore may cause yield loss. Due to the toxin production, the fungi have a dangerous animal and human pathogen effect (Placinta et al., 1999).The effects of the Fusarium infection and its mycotoxin production haven’t been perfectly eliminated. Fusariumgraminearum
is the most common agricultural pathogen in Hungary. The utilization of infected maize as an alternative biogas raw material may be an efficient and environmentally friendly disposal method. In this case, Fusarium-, and mycotoxin-content of the maize have to be analyzed as well as the impact of these factors’ on the biogas production process. Our experience was based on the raw material basis of a biogas plant. Different amount of Fusarium free and infected maize grits have been added to the regular raw material mixture. The detection of Fusarium fungi has been analyzed
in experimental digesters throughout the different stages of mesophilic digestion. In the biogas liquid end product the Fusarium was detected by breeding and by microscope. According to our results, the Fusarium sp. was not detectable in the liquid end product after 30 days. -
Realisation of customer focus from quality and forage safety aspects in the Hungarian mixed feed production
35-38Views:208Customer focus is one of the main principles of Total Quality Management, and it is inevitable for long term, mutually successful vendorcustomer partnerships. The strictly controlled quality management systems of animal feed industry ensure that product quality meets the expectations of all parties involved and, indirectly the reliability of human food raw materials. Meanwhile, the participants of agricultural production are variably quality conscious, so feed manufacturers support their supply chain and also their customers with professional background and they play a key role in safe food chains from farm to fork.
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Current Conditions and Opportunities of Biofarming in Hungary
150-156Views:238The aim of organic farming is not to maximize income, but to achieve optimal product quality. It is completed by the tightest possible material, and energy flow within the farm. Organic agriculture significantly reduces external inputs by avoiding the use of chemo-synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and pharmaceuticals. Instead it works with nature to increase both agricultural yields and disease resistance. Total independence of external resources can not be achieved in Hungary due to the small-scale of organic animal husbandry. Some materials in limited quantities can be purchased from external resources, though the group of these materials is strictly regulated. Organic farming harmonizes with the concept of European multifunctional agriculture, because besides farming, it includes social considerations, as it helps to maintain natural resources and the relationship between people and their environment, and provides a living for those living in the region.
As regards organic farming the fertility of the soil and the health of vegetation can be influenced in various ways. Farmers have to be highly skilled and able to manage a farm with great expertise. Generally it can be stated that as the use of non-organically produced products is limited, the opportunities to correct failures made by the farmer are minimal, contrary to conventional farming. Farmers must be intent on developing the tightest material- and energy flow. This means that organic farms ideally have both animal husbandry and crop production. This energy and skill demanding system of farming is compensated by state subsidies, growing market share and relatively high prices for organic products. -
Examination of the interval between litters (IBL) of different genotype HLW sows using survival analysis
13-17Views:561In this study our aim was to find out if there is a difference between the genotypes determined for the previously identified mutations of seven genes of the Hungarian Large White in terms of the time spent in production. We identified the previously determined alleles of the seven genes (BF, EGF, ESR, FSHβ, H2AFZ, LEP, PRLR) related to proliferation that were and performed the survival analysis between breeds indicating the risk of culling and the time spent in production on the given farm. Based on the results of survival analysis by Log-rank test, Breslow (Generalized Wilcoxon) and Tarone-Ware test we concluded that they indicated a significant difference in case of the genes BF (Breslow and Tarone-Ware tests) the EGF (Log-rank and Tarone-Ware tests) and ESR (Log rank test) based on which the curves of the survival of the certain genes varied form one another significantly.
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Evaluation of the blood product characteristics of meat meal and hemoglobin with non-invasive methods in the VISNIR wavelength
49-56Views:646The separate collection of poultry slaughterhouse trimmings and blood is partially solved in Hungary. Only properly prepared animal by-products, protein meals can be utilized as animal feed additive. However, different protein meals are appropriate for feeding different animal species. That is the reason why it is important to avoid accidental cross contamination of the products. Meat and blood meal produced on the same technological line, therefore mixing of the products can happen in various proportions during the shift of production.
Thus the aim of this study is to develop a spectral method which will allow to estimate the ratio of meat and blood protein meal in the final product. During the test the products were mixed in different proportions and were examined by the spectral method. Measurements were conducted with AvaSpec 2048 spectrometer in visible (VIS) and in near infrared (NIR) wavelength range (400–1000 nm) to define the spectral differentiation of the different meal products. Significant difference can be detected in spectral reflectance between the meat and blood product in the VIS-NIR range. The blood product has a characteristic spectral property: in the range of 600 and 735 nm reflectance values are increasing following a sigmoid curve. This property is not observed in the case of meat meal: close to linear rising is detected. Effective protein rate and purity detection could be made by Blood Product Sensitive Mixing Index (BPSMI – R930/R600), and by the calculation of inflection point in 600–735 nm.
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Some methodological aspects of animal behaviour during beef cattle grazing
31-35Views:349Ethology, the research field of animal behaviour, during the past half century developed into an independent science and became more important in recent years as the farming industry has turned toward quality production. Farm animals respond for every environmental factor. Essential to know the answers to avoid unpleasant economic consequences. Based on the shepherds’ experience, this science has merged with modern technology, constantly expanding and searching new methods. According to the literature the article summarizes the observation methods in cattle grazing. This paper introduces the beginnings and shows the future trends. Finally we share personal experiences as the Hungarian Grey cattle grazing behaviour at conditions of Hortobágy, Hungary.
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Effects of cultivation practices and hybrid selection on endofusariosis and mycotoxin contamination in maize
69-78Views:469The aim of this study was to determine the levels of deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisin mycotoxins in tillage and no-till systems in 2020 and 2021. Additionally, we sought to establish the levels of internal Fusarium infection in different tillage systems. We examined four tillage systems for two years (conventional tillage (plowing), conservation tillage, reduced tillage, and strip-till). The results indicate that toxin levels varied between the two years, with fumonisin production dominant in 2021, while DON toxin production was dominant in 2020. Regarding internal Fusarium infection, the lowest levels were observed in the plowing system in 2020, whereas in 2021, the lowest levels were measured in the reduced tillage system. Like the low DON levels in 2020, the plowing-based tillage system resulted in the lowest fumonisin levels in 2021. Throughout our experiment, the toxin levels were below the permissible limits for unprocessed corn, with DON levels under 1750 μg kg-1 and combined fumonisin B1 and B2 levels under 4000 μg kg-1. However, in areas where toxin contamination is typically problematic, considering the beneficial impact of plowing on reducing toxin contamination might be advisable when planning tillage.
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Application of different compost doses in Pinova and Golden Delicious apple orchards
91-94Views:288Nowadays the success vegetable and fruit production are unimaginable without regular nutrient management. The animal husbandry is getting decrease, thereby there is the lack of organic fertilizer and it is suggested to find alternative nutrient supply methods. One of the ways to supply the required nutrients in an environmentally friendly way is the application of composts, which is less widespread so far, which is appropriate for the requirement of organic farming.
From the year of 2010 in each year, compost doses were applied in biological apple orchards in cooperation with the Institute of Horticultural Science. In the function of the years different changes were resulted by the compost treatments in the examined parameters in case of both apple species (Golden Delicious and Pinova). It was concluded that the dry matter, ash, total acids, sugar content and the vitamin C changed versus time and species. It is supposed that the effect of compost treatments is getting visible.
According to the data higher dry matter, total acids and sugar content, (in some cases) ash were measured in case of the apple species Pinova, while the measurements showed higher vitamin C content in case of the species Golden Delicious.
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Analyzing the Efficiency of Dairy Farms by Using the Method of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)
17-21Views:368In Hungary the dairy sector is in a long-term critical period, the stock has been in constant decline. The consumption of milk and dairy products in Hungary is slightly rising compared to the world tendency, and it is fallen behind the level in 1990. The milk consumption per capita in 2006 was with 75 liters less than the EU-15 average. Dairy enterprise is a very risky activity: the profitability of the enterprise is affected by the fluctuation of feed and animal health products prices from the side of inputs, and by the fluctuation of end-product prices. Under these circumstances it is vital for the
cattle breeders, in order to survive, to harness the reserves in the breeding as effectively as possible. In our research we made a multi-faceted efficiency analysis of an agricultural holding’s three dairy farms. The chosen method for the analysis was Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The
selection of the method is justified by the fact that there is not such a reliable database by which we could define production functions, and that DEA makes possible to manage several inputs and outputs, i.e. multiple decision problems, simultaneously. By using DEA the sources that causes shortfalls can be identified, analyzed and quantified on farms that does not operate efficiently, thus it can help the corporate decision support successfully. In the model inputs are the cost data per one liter milk – feed, medicinal product use, logistic costs -, and the main parameters
concerning the keeping and rearing. Outputs are indicators concerning milk production, milk quality and others. We prepared the model in MS Excel, the linear programming model series were programmed by Visual Basic. After solving the model, in light of the shadow prices we can determine why either of the farms is not efficient. -
Element content analyses in the Institute for Food Sciences, Quality Assurance and Microbiology
203-207Views:387The role of chemical elements to ensure and promote our health is undisputed. Some of them are essential for plants, animals and human, others can cause diseases. The major source of mineral constituents is food, drinking water has a minor contribution to it, so the knowledge of elemental intake through food is crucial and needs continuous monitoring and by this way it promotes the food quality assurance and dietetics.
With the evolution of spectroscopic methods increasingly lower concentrations could be determined, so the elemental composition of a sample could be more precisely and fully described. Due to the results the gathered knowledge up to the present is supported and new observations can be done helping us to understand such complex systems as biological organisms are.
The quality of a food is determined by the full process of its production, consequently it starts with agricultural production so elemental-analysis usually cover the whole soil – plant – (animal) – food chain, by this way the „Fork-to-Farm” precept is true in elemental analysis field also.
The history of elemental analysis in the University of Debrecen, Centre for Agricultural and Applied Economic Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences and Environmental Management, Institute of Food Processing, Quality Assurance and Microbiology goes back to 1980s when the so called Regional Measurement Central gave the background for research. The continuous deployment resulted in an obtain of an inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) in 1988, which extended the scope of examinations due to its excellent performance characteristics
compared to flame atom absorption (FAAS) and flame emission spectrometers (FES). The instrumental park retain up to date correlate to the developing analytical techniques due to acquiring a newer ICPAES in 1998 and an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer in 2004 – which sensitivity is three order of magnitude better compared to ICP-AES. The Institute supports the work with its own ICP-AES and ICP-MS since 2011. -
Agricultural biogas plants in Eastern Hungary
79-81Views:272In the scope of the article, agricultural biogas plants which operate within the region have been analysed together with their linked livestock plants. The study attempts to describe the current condition and future opportunities of the sites. It also covers the description of energy production/use efficiency. The study contains the list of factors determining the economic operation of biogas plants. In the course of the analysis, types, amount and quality of energy produced of different raw materials have been determined within the decentralised energy production.
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Evaluation of the relationship between main type traits and longevity in Hungarian Simmental cows
205-209Views:434The Hungarian Simmental cattle is a dual-purpose breed, having good milk and meat production characteristics. Simmental cows have some other important traits, for example, a longer productive life. The longevity or productive life is the time period between first calving and culling. The conformation contributes to productive life, reproduction, and milk production.
The aims of this study were to analyze the longevity of Hungarian Simmental dual-purpose cows, to evaluate the effects of the size of the herd, age at first calving, main type traits (frame, musculature, feet and legs, mammary system), and combination of main type traits (frame and musculature, feet and legs and mammary system).
Animal, age at first calving, herd*calving, musculature, the mammary system as well as the combination of mammary system and feet and legs were significant effects on longevity. The highest risk ratio was observed for cows first calved after 31 months. The risk of culling increased with increasing scores of musculature and decreasing scores of the mammary system. The highest risk ratio was estimated in category 11 (lower scores of mammary system with lower scores of feet and legs). In this case, the risk ratio was 36% higher than the reference group.
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Describing Fusarium diseases on maize in 2013 using data from several production sites
60-64Views:479As in other parts of the world, the frequency of weather extremes has increased greatly in Hungary in recent years. This means that maize production is faced with greater risks from all aspects: nutrient replacement, irrigation, plant protection. This is especially true of fusarium diseases. In a continental climate, the pathogens causing the most serious problems are species belonging to the Fusarium genus. They infect the ears, which – besides reducing the yield – poses considerable risk to both human and animal health due to the mycotoxins produced by them. Depending on which Fusarium species are dominant at a given location, changes can be expected in the level of infection and in the quality deterioration caused by the mycotoxins they produce. Fusarium spp. not only damages the maize ears but when pathogen attacks the stalk, the plant dies earlier, reducing grain filling and resulting in small, light ears. In addition, the stalks break or lodge, resulting in further yield losses from ears that cannot be harvested. The degree of infection is fundamentally determined by the resistance traits of the maize hybrids, but also a great role in that region Fusarium species composition as well.
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Improvement of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) growing under marginal site conditions in Hungary: case studies
129-133Views:583In Hungary, black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) is considered as an important exotic stand-forming tree species growing mostly under unfavourable ecological conditions for forest management. Due to climate change effects, its importance is increasing in many other countries, too. As a result of a selection programme, new black locust clones were tested in clone trials. Juvenile growth of 12 micropropagated black locust clones in two plots series established at different dates were evaluated in central Hungary under marginal site conditions. At age of 7 the clone R. p. ‘Bácska’ (‘KH 56A2/5’), at age of 10 the clones R.p. ‘Homoki’ (‘MB17D3/4’) and ‘PV201E2/4’ appeared to be especially promising for mass production. Based on the data obtained from the performed trials, it can also be concluded that tissue culture can be considered as a suitable tool for propagating superior individuals and offers new prospects for the rapid cloning of selected genotypes used for plantation forestry.
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Investigation of the heat shock gene Hsp70 polymorphism in different sheep genotypes
41-45Views:485Nowadays the climate change has an increasing effect on the animals. The warming climate brings up several problems on the area of the animal husbandry, which ones are really important. From the first time the living beings have defensive mechanisms against the heat shock. In current examination we use– from Hungary and from other countries collected –samples of sheep breeds, which are living on different climate. Our fundamental assumption was, that the animals living on other climate adapted to the changes of the environment and there are differeces in their genetic background. These fixed mutations we are looking for in the HSP70 heat shock gene, but we haven’t found any polymorphism yet. We are going to involve further breeds and more individuals in the investigations.
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Bacteria in the milk of sheep with or without mastitis- mini Review
47-52Views:674From a nutritional point of view, sheep milk is more valuable than cow and goat milk and the interest for sheep milk is increasing in many countries. However, sheep milk is easily contaminated during milking, handling, and transport and it is an ideal medium for bacterial propagation. Consequently, sheep milk spoils quite quickly. The proper, clean handling of milk is not only of sanitarian interest, but it also serves the farmers’ interests, because contaminated milk may not be distributed, and is unsuitable for producing good quality products. Following this technological trend, this review addresses the bacterial composition of sheep milk with and without mastitis. Even though sheep milk contains a lot of bacteria, this review article highlighted total plate count, Enterobacteriaceae, coliform, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter, Salmonella spp. and Streptococcus spp. Mastitis in sheep is a vital cause of mortality, reduction in milk production and early culling. The reported risk factors for mastitis in sheep were age, a case of mastitis, breed, husbandry systems, and location. The main priority should be implementation of programs to minimize human pathogenic bacteria and mastitis in raw ewe milk.
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Optimal age of breeding gilts and its impact on lifetime performance
15-20Views:924Age at first breeding and lifetime reproductive performance was analyzed on 17,558 F1 Landrace x Yorkshire gilts from 9 piglet producing herds of Midwest, United States entered in herds between 1st Jan 2014 and 31st July 2016. At the time of data collection Dec 2018, 15% of the sows were still active in the herds hence excluded from the analysis. Individual gilt data included date of birth, age in days at first mating, piglet total born by parity, lifetime piglet total born and reason for culling. Quality data checks were done before analysis to eliminate all outlier values together with sows that had no entry information for any listed category. The total database of the sows was classified into 6 classes according to age at the first mating in days 170-190(n=754), 191-211(n=4683), 212-232(n=7123), 233-253(n=3385), 254-274(n=1002) and 275-369 (n=611). Piglet total born obtained from each sow during the lifetime production was significantly (P < 0.05) greater for gilts bred between 233-253 days of age at first mating. Gilts that were bred at <233 days appeared to have a higher risk of removal by farrowing productivity as compared to the other groups. However, the results show that the risk of being culled due to health problems and conformation issues increases as the age at first mating is delayed. Overall reproductive failure appears to be the most economical culling reason across all age groups. There is a need to evaluate the best management decisions for gilt initiation in a herd to maximize her lifetime performance. The results indicate that gilts mated for the first time at the right age, 233–253 days, are more productive, both in lifetime total born and have a minimal risk of culling due to farrowing productivity.
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Perspectives of the livestock sector in the Philippines: A review
175-188Views:4239The Philippine livestock industry is a vital component in the country's agricultural sector. It contributes around 18.23 percent of the gross output value in agriculture and provides livelihood to many people living in rural areas, signifying its importance with regard to the country’s economy. The constantly increasing demand for animal protein associated with the increase of the world’s population led to the intensification of livestock production, realized through the various initiatives implemented by the government, such as the import of high producing purebreds of various species. This strategy greatly influenced the country's animal genetic resource's diversity and increased food animals' population; however, it impacted the native breeds of food animals. Understanding the characteristics, performance and value of native and exotic breeds is essential to prioritize their livestock industry existence. Thus, this paper aims to characterize various native and exotic breeds of livestock in the Philippines and assess the current conservation of native animals.
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Examination of the effect of pelleted poultry manure products on a sunflower test plant in a laboratory model experiment
83-88Views:617Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is one of the most important oil plants in Hungary, with a sown area of more than 627.000 ha in 2019. Sunflower cultivation is primarily important for use in the oil industry, but its role in feed and beekeeping cannot be neglected either. Sunflower adapts well to different production areas in terms of soil demand, yet, as important fact, it must be grown on soils with poorer conditions with intensive nutrient replenishment. From the agri-environmental point of view, in addition to the use of pelleted poultry manure products, which are also new to the consumer market, is of paramount importance. Their advantages include a wide range of nutrients as well as a soil structure improving effect.
In our research, we investigated the starter effect of pelleted poultry manure products applied at different doses (200 kg ha-1 and 400 kg ha-1) on sandy soil with humus using a sunflower plant. The aim of our research to investigate the effect of using pelleted fertilizer products as starter fertilizers on sunflower plant germination, and investigate the effect of poultry manure products on soils.
Based on our results, it can be stated that the pigment content (chlorophyll and carotenoid content) was positively influenced by the higher dose treatments (400 kg ha-1), thus increasing the photosynthetically active leaf area. Compared to the control, the carotenoid content in the test plants of the treatments increased, and the differences of this treatment proved to be significant (p<0.05). Our experiments supported the beneficial effect of pelleted poultry manure-based products in the soil-plant system.