Agricultural use of sediments from narożniki reservoir - yield and concentration of macronutrients and trace elements in the plant

The aim of study was to assess the effect of bottom sediments on the concentration of macronutrients (K, P, Na, Mg, Ca) and trace elements (Zn, Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Cu) in the plant test. The experimental design comprised 6 treatments: soil (control), soil + 5% of sediment, soil +10% of sediment, soil + 30% of sediment, soil + 50% of sediment and sediment (100%) in relation to the soil dry mass. The test plant - maize was harvested after 70 days of vegetation. Bottom sediment added to soil had a positive effect on maize biomass in the lowest dose, i.e. 5%. Higher doses of the sediment caused a reduction in maize yield. Bottom sediment positively affected concentration of nutrients: N, Mg, Na, K, Ca, Zn, Ni, Cu of maize shoots. However, the shoot biomass did not meet for fodder with respect to quality. Applied bottom sediment, has high content of sandy fractions, acid reaction and low concentration of organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, can not be used as a fertilizer. Using bottom sediment from Narożniki reservoir in plant cultivation, one should take into consideration a necessity of application of supplementary NPK fertilization due to low concentration of these elements both in the bottom sediment and maize yield.