Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food

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From clay to crops: improving water productivity in rosemary and lavender under sandy soil conditions in South Africa
(Frontiers Media SA, 2026-07-29)
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Stander, Hendrik Barend
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Wolfaardt, Gideon M.
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Goli, Imaneh
Background Increasing irrigation water productivity is a key strategy for achieving sustainable agricultural production. This study evaluated the performance of self-regulating low-energy clay-based irrigation (SLECI) as a sustainable alternative to surface and subsurface drip irrigation under water-scarce sandy field conditions, with a particular focus on quantifying the trade-off between irrigation water productivity and fresh biomass yield. SLECI system is a subsurface irrigation technology that uses microporous clay emitters buried within the crop root zone. Water is released passively in response to soil moisture deficits, as water flows through the clay pores only when soil suction exceeds the retention force of the emitter. This self-regulating mechanism delivers water directly to plant roots without the need for pumps, sensors, or external control systems. Methods The experiment was conducted on newly established, 1-year plantings of rosemary ( Salvia rosmarinus , Tuscan Blue variety) and lavender ( Lavandula stoechas , Hollandia variety) grown under open-field conditions at the Welgevallen Experimental Farm, Stellenbosch, South Africa (33°56′33″ S, 18°51′52″ E), from November 2023 to February 2024, during the hot-dry summer season. Results The highest fresh marketable yield of rosemary was obtained under subsurface drip irrigation (906 kg/ha), while lavender achieved its highest yield under conventional surface drip irrigation (3,625 kg/ha). Although yields under SLECI were lower, this system used substantially less irrigation water (533.2 m 3 /ha) over the 3-month period, compared with surface drip (6,800 m 3 /ha) and subsurface drip irrigation (3,060 m 3 /ha). Irrigation water productivity (IWP) demonstrated the water-saving efficiency of SLECI, producing 0.529 kg of fresh marketable rosemary per m 3 of applied water, nearly 4.5 times higher than surface drip irrigation. Similarly, SLECI achieved an IWP of 1.467 kg/m 3 for lavender, representing a more than 2.7-fold increase compared to surface drip irrigation (0.115 kg/m 3 ). Irrigation technique significantly affected fresh marketable yield. Subsurface drip irrigation and SLECI increased rosemary plant diameter relative to surface drip, whereas subsurface and surface drip irrigation promoted larger lavender plant diameters. Conclusion This study contributes to understanding how clay-based irrigation systems perform under severe sandy soil conditions and provides practical insights into the trade-off between water saving and crop productivity in semi-arid environments.
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ATR-FTIR spectroscopy as a rapid complementary tool for qualitative assessment of mineral fertilizers
(2026-09-15)
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Mitkova, Tatjana
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Lončarić, Zdenko
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Petek, Marko
Complementary analytical methods are crucial for the qualitative assessment of mineral fertilizers commonly applied in agriculture. In this study, both reference substances and fertilizer samples were analyzed using the ATR-FTIR technique. Pure compounds such as ammonium sulfate, potassium sulfate, and calcium sulfate heptahydrate were first recorded as standards to establish a reference spectral library. Fertilizer samples were ground to a fine powder (<1 mm) and placed on the diamond crystal surface for spectral measurement. The obtained absorption spectra enabled identification of the main components present in the fertilizers and provided a clear comparison with the standard spectra. Although the method allows only qualitative determination of compounds, comparison with the recorded standards provides valuable insights into the composition of the investigated samples. This approach is particularly useful when rapid screening of fertilizers is required without the need for time-consuming wet chemistry analyses. The results demonstrate that ATR-FTIR spectroscopy can serve as a reliable complementary method for routine fertilizer testing, ensuring both quality control and detection of possible adulteration or impurities. Furthermore, when combined with conventional laboratory techniques such as titrimetry, AAS, or ICP-OES, the method contributes to a more comprehensive and accurate characterization of fertilizer composition, ultimately supporting sustainable agricultural practices.
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Spatial distribution of copper in the soils under orchards in the Kumanovo region
(Biotechnical Faculty of the University of Montenegro, 2026-03-31)
Mitkova, Tatjana
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Todorovska Marija
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Phosphorus and iron content in apples in different sales channels
(University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest, 2025-10-01)
Petek, Marko
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Matilda Povodnik
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Tomislav Karažija
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Šatvar Vrbančić Mihaela
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Phosphorus and iron are essential elements that are necessary for various functions of plants, but also for humans. The apple, Malus × domestica Borkh., is one of the most consumed fruits in the world, also in Croatia. Since the mentioned elements influence the growth and development of the plant and also have certain health effects on humans, the presence of these elements in apples on the Zagreb market should be investigated. After collecting and sampling the apples, the phosphorus content was determined by spectrophotometry and the iron content by atomic absorption spectrometry. Apples from retail chains statistically have the highest average phosphorus content in dry matter (0.14 % P DW), while apples from organic products stores statistically have the highest phosphorus content in fresh weight (27.29 mg P/100 g fresh weight). As for iron, the statistically highest average content in both dry matter and fresh matter was found in apples from retail chains (15.99 mg Fe/kg DM and 0.261 mg Fe/100 g fresh weight). These results could be the consequences of conventional agriculture.
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SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF COPPER (Cu) IN APPLE ORCHARDS IN THE RESEN REGION
(Journal Agriculture and Forestry, 2025-12-15)
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MITKOVA, Tatjana
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PETEK, Marko
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WATER USE EFFICIENCY AND PEPPER YIELD UNDER DIFFERENT IRRIGATION AND FERTILIZATION REGIME
(Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, 2019-06-10)
Tanaskovik, Vjekoslav
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Cukaliev, Ordan
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Romić, Davor
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Ondrasek, Gabrijel
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Savić, Radovan
<jats:p>The primary objective of this study was to determine water use efficiency (WUE) and pepper yield under differ-ent irrigation and fertilization regimes. For this purpose, a three-year field experiment was conducted with pepper, grown in a plastic house in the Skopje region. Four experimental treatments were applied in this study. Three of the treatments were drip fertigated (DF1, DF2, DF3), while the last one was furrow irrigated with conventional application of fertilizer (ØB). The results obtained clearly showed that treatments DF1, DF2, and DF3 resulted in significantly higher marketable and dry pepper yield in comparison to treatment ØB. Also, drip fertigation frequency at four and two days (DF2 and DF1) resulted in 9.6 % to 13.6 % higher marketable and 17.6 % to 20.1 % dry pepper yield when compared with drip fertigation scheduled by tensiometers (DF3). Also, our results indicate that drip fertigation is an effective prac-tice in achieving significantly higher WUE. Namely, WUE was 2.50, 2.47, 1.99 and 1.54 kg/m3 for the treatments DF1, DF2, DF3 and ØB, respectively.</jats:p>

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