Evaluation of different fertilizer applications in broccoli

Abstract

Broccoli is an important crop because of its nutritional properties and the increased demand by consumers. The cultivation of this crop, as in the case of many other crops, places significant pressure on the soil in order to supply the necessary nutrients. As the application of inorganic fertilizers poses challenges to environmental sustainability and costs of production, it is important to develop and apply effective forms of organic fertilizers that are able to respond to these challenges and at the same time to maintain productivity of broccoli. This research study is based on a process of reviewing studies that focus on the evaluation of different fertilizer compounds in the cultivation of broccoli. The study provides a detailed analysis of several studies and their experiments in order to evaluate the effectiveness of different compounds, their methods of application and processes involved. The results from these analyses showed that in every case the use of inorganic fertilizers produced with a support to broccoli that produced superior quantities and quality compared to organic fertilizers. On the other hand, the combination of vegetative biomass and animal waste and their processing resulted in fertilizer applications that showed promising results that could replicate the same level of support to broccoli as that of inorganic fertilizers. The study suggests more extensive research on the various potential combinations of organic waste and methods of processing to evaluate and identify more effective strategies to fertilizing soils used for broccoli production.