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Publications

NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.

2024

To document

Abstract

Large-scale replacements of native birch with spruce have been carried out in Western Norway for economic reasons. This tree species shift potentially affects biotic components such as the eucaryome, consisting of microscopic animals (Metazoa), protists and fungi, which are key players in the functioning of forest ecosystem. The impact on the belowground eukaryome and its interactions with vegetation and soil properties is not well assessed. We examined the impact of replacing native birch with Norway spruce plantations on the eukaryome of the boreal forest floor in Western Norway using 18S rDNA metabarcoding. The tree species shift from birch to spruce had significant impacts on the eukaryome at both taxonomic (Metazoa) and functional categories (phagotrophs, phototrophs, parasites and osmotrophs). The distinct differences in eukaryome communities were related to changes in understorey vegetation biomass and soil chemistry following the tree species shift. This had a negative effect on eukaryome richness, particularly affecting phagotrophs and parasites, while the opposite was observed for osmotroph richness. Our results indicated that the spruce plantations altered the eukaryome communities and their food-web patterns compared to what was found in the native birch forest soil. This information should be taken into consideration in forest management planning.

Abstract

To facilitate nutrient management and the use of manure as a feedstock for biogas production, manure is often separated into a solid and a liquid fraction. The former fraction is usually high in P and low in N, so when incorporated in the soil as fertilizer, it needs to be supplemented by N from, e.g., mineral fertilizers or nitrogen-fixing species. To explore strategies to manage N with solid-separated manure, we examined how the amount of digestate and the N:P ratio of pig digestate, i.e., manure that had partially undergone anaerobic digestion, affected the productivity of Westerwolds ryegrass and red clover in a pot experiment with one soil which was rich and another which was poor in plant nutrients. The soil and plant species treatments were combined with four doses of digestate, which gave plant available phosphorus (P) concentrations of 2, 4, 8, or 16 mg P100 g−1 soil. Ammonium nitrate was dosed to obtain factorial combinations of digestate amount and N:P ratios of 1.8, 4, 8, and 16. Clover was harvested once at the beginning of flowering (15 weeks after seeding), while Westerwolds ryegrass was allowed to regrow three times after being cut at the shooting stage (in total, 4 cuts, 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks after seeding). Ryegrass yield increased by up to 2.9 times with digestate dosage. Interactions with the N:P ratio and soil type were weak. Hence, the effect of increasing the N:P ratio was additive across digestate dosages. Red clover biomass also increased by up to 39% with digestate dosage. Residual nutrients in the soil after red clover cultivation were affected by the initial differences in soil characteristics but not by digestate treatment or biomass of harvested red clover. A targeted N management is required to benefit from the P-rich digestate in grass cultivation, while the long-term effects of red clover culture on N input need further investigation.

2023

To document

Abstract

The objective of SCANGREEN 2019-22 was to find species, varieties and seed blends/mixtures of Agrostis, Festuca, Poa and Lolium that are suited for pesticide-free management of putting greens in the two major climatic zones of the Nordic countries and in the northern USA. The four test sites in the Nordic countries were Reykjavik GC, Iceland and NIBIO Apelsvoll in the the northern zone, and NIBIO Landvik, Norway and Smørum GC, Denmark in the southern zone. The two US test sites were located at Troll Turfgrass Research Facility in Massachusetts and at University of Minnesota. The trials included 30 candidate varieties representing eight different species and subspecies from 13 different seed companies/representatives, and three seed mixtures of red fescue and colonial and creeping bentgrass, a seed mixture of creeping bentgrass and perennial ryegrass and a seed blend of red fescue. Monthly evaluations of overall impression, tiller density, winter hardiness, disease and weed coverage etc., were done from three weeks after sowing in June-September 2019 until October 2022. The trial at Smørum GC was established in May 2021. The trials were established according to a split-plot design with three blocks (replicates), species on main plots and varieties on subplots. The experimental greens were mown three times per week – Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and deficit-irrigated to 80% of field capacity three to four times per week in periods without sufficient natural rainfall. Fertilizer (mean N–P–K ratio, 100–22–74) was given as completely balanced compound fertilizers every second week. Each experimental green was divided in different management levels: High and low fertilizer rate and high and low mowing. The two fertilizer rates were 10 and 17 g N m−2 yr−1 and the two mowing heights were 3 and 5 mm. Mixtures were managed at both regimes. There was no use of pesticides or plant growth regulators in any of the trials.