Nutrient dynamics through leachate and turf grass growth in sands amended with food-waste compost in pots

Nutrient dynamics through leachate by intermittent irrigation and turf grass growth was monitored in sands amended with food-waste compost (FWC) and chemical fertilizer (CF) in pots. The present study was carried out to evaluate the subsequent effects of FWC amendment in sands on probable nutrient dynamics/losses and turfgrass growth in pot cultivation. The plants were grown 170 days in pots and nutrient dynamics/losses were evaluated in four different stages. The maximal nitrogen (N) loss occurred as nitrate (NO3)-N, which was higher in FWC than CF treatment. Initially, the loss of N as ammonium (NH4)-N was prominent. Fast N loss was observed in CF, which was totally exhausted by 134 days after sowing of turf grass seeds. Because of slow-release characteristics, the nutrient losses were delayed in FWC, and it took comparatively longer periods (about 170 days) for near-exhaustion of N. The FWC amendment enhanced K retention and decreased its leaching loss compared to P in the present observation. Elevated concentrations of salts leached out, and the electrical conductivity (EC) in the leachate was proportionately maintained with the amount of FWC application. The amount of salt dissociation and EC of leachate were inversely correlated with N uptake and shoot dry-matter production. The total N uptake by shoot was higher in FWC-amended treatments until later stages of turf grass growth but was much lower in CF-treated plants. Comparatively, the FWC pellets treatment showed superior performance over sole FWC in sustaining nutrients in growing media. Finally, longer retention of nutrients with better performance in plant growth was observed in FWC-amended treatments in spite of higher leaching loss of nutrients.