Abstract:
Soil nutrient characteristic is a key factor that impacts plant growth and yields. In order to provide a reference for scientific fertilization and efficient nutrients management in large-scale orchards, soil nutrient characteristics in four major kinds of orchards in Shanghai suburb were studied by using the Agro Services International (ASI) method. The results showed that the contents of soil available nitrogen (AN), available phosphorus (AP) and available potassium (AK) were the highest in the vineyard, while were the lowest in the citrus orchard. The characteristics of soil trace elements varied greatly across orchard types. In addition, soil pH was neutral in the vineyards and peach orchard, was slightly alkaline in the citrus orchard, and was slightly acidic in the pear orchard. In general, the soil nutrients characteristics were significantly different among orchard types in the Shanghai suburbs. According to the soil nutrients classification standard with ASI method, the soil nutrients situations in the orchards of the Shanghai suburb was generally at an abundant level. In some orchards, soil nutrients such as AP was at an extra-high level. Therefore, the current nutrient management strategy in the orchards of Shanghai should be adjusted according to soil nutrient situation and fertilizers should be applied to soil as needed, so as to realize the clean and efficient production of scale orchards in the Shanghai suburb.