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To address food insecurity in northern Canada, some isolated communities started gardening initiatives to reduce dependencies on expensive foods flown in to communities. From 2012–2014, soils in northern Ontario James Bay lowlands were cultivated with bush beans and potatoes, grown in sole and intercropping configurations, in an open field and an agroforestry system enclosed by willow trees. The objective of this study was to compare the supply rates of 15 plant-available nutrients in these soils using in situ ion exchange membranes. After three years of cultivation, the agroforestry site had significantly greater supply of PO4, Ca, and Zn and these nutrients had positive correlations with yield. By contrast, the open site had significantly greater supply of Mg, SO4, and B; these nutrients, and Al, had negative correlations with yield. Whilst there were no differences between sole and intercropping configurations, significantly greater supply of NO3, Ca, Cu, Fe, and Zn occurred early in the growing season, compared to significantly greater supply of K, SO4, B, and Al later in the season. Significantly greater yields have been harvested in the agroforestry site and it is suspected that the presence of a willow shelterbelt improves the microclimate and plant-available PO4, Ca, and Zn.
Jim Karagatzides; Meaghan Wilton; Leonard Tsuji. Soil Nutrient Supply in Cultivated Bush Bean–Potato Intercropping Grown in Subarctic Soil Managed with Agroforestry. Sustainability 2021, 13, 8185 .
AMA StyleJim Karagatzides, Meaghan Wilton, Leonard Tsuji. Soil Nutrient Supply in Cultivated Bush Bean–Potato Intercropping Grown in Subarctic Soil Managed with Agroforestry. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (15):8185.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJim Karagatzides; Meaghan Wilton; Leonard Tsuji. 2021. "Soil Nutrient Supply in Cultivated Bush Bean–Potato Intercropping Grown in Subarctic Soil Managed with Agroforestry." Sustainability 13, no. 15: 8185.
High latitude communities are cultivating crops to adapt to global warming, and thereby reduce dependency on food importation. To minimize the dependency of imported soil nutrient amendments for crop production, the Indigenous subarctic community of Fort Albany First Nation generated compost using by‐products from the traditional activities of goose harvesting along with other organic waste within the community. The compost was evaluated in a single growing season pot experiment as an amendment for bush beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) by being mixed with the local Terric Haplosaprist edaphic soil that was P and K deficient. Twelve pots growing bush beans were amended with compost at rates ranging from 3 to 30% and with unamended controls. All eight plant metrics (height, aboveground, leaf and bean biomass, quantity of leaves and pods, and individual and summed leaf surface area) showed a significant positive relationship with increasing compost amendments (p ≤ .0025, r2 = .66–.86), suggesting soils with compost attain greater bean yields than unamended soil. A threshold of bean growth was not reached, implying that compost amendments >30% may provide even greater bean yield. However, the application of P and K with the 30% compost addition exceeds recommended rates, suggesting that nutrient availability was hindered. Notwithstanding logistical issues in scaling‐up to amend all gardens in the community, such as improving the compost quality and quantity, composting using Indigenous harvest by‐products and local organic wastes is a promising adaptive food security strategy.
Meaghan J. Wilton; Jim D. Karagatzides; Leonard J.S. Tsuji. Fertilizing bush beans with locally made compost in a remote subarctic community. Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment 2020, 3, 1 .
AMA StyleMeaghan J. Wilton, Jim D. Karagatzides, Leonard J.S. Tsuji. Fertilizing bush beans with locally made compost in a remote subarctic community. Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment. 2020; 3 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMeaghan J. Wilton; Jim D. Karagatzides; Leonard J.S. Tsuji. 2020. "Fertilizing bush beans with locally made compost in a remote subarctic community." Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment 3, no. 1: 1.
To ease food insecurities in northern Canada, some remote communities started gardening initiatives to gain more access to locally grown foods. Bush beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) were assessed for N, P, K, Mg, and Ca concentrations of foliage as indicators of plant nutrition in a calcareous silty loam soil of northern Ontario James Bay lowlands. Crops were grown in sole cropping and intercropping configurations, with comparisons made between an open field and an agroforestry site enclosed with willow (Salix spp.) trees. Foliage chemical analysis of the sites revealed an abundance of Ca, adequacies for Mg and N, and deficiencies in P and K. Intercropping bean and potato did not show significant crop–crop facilitation for nutrients. The agroforestry site showed to be a superior management practice for the James Bay lowland region, specifically for P. The agroforestry site had significantly greater P for bean plant (p = 0.024) and potato foliage (p = 0.002) compared to the open site. It is suspected that the presence of willows improve plant available P to bean and potatoes by tree root—crop root interactions and microclimate enhancements.
Meaghan J. Wilton; Jim D. Karagatzides; Leonard J. S. Tsuji. Nutrient Concentrations of Bush Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivated in Subarctic Soils Managed with Intercropping and Willow (Salix spp.) Agroforestry. Sustainability 2017, 9, 2294 .
AMA StyleMeaghan J. Wilton, Jim D. Karagatzides, Leonard J. S. Tsuji. Nutrient Concentrations of Bush Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivated in Subarctic Soils Managed with Intercropping and Willow (Salix spp.) Agroforestry. Sustainability. 2017; 9 (12):2294.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMeaghan J. Wilton; Jim D. Karagatzides; Leonard J. S. Tsuji. 2017. "Nutrient Concentrations of Bush Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivated in Subarctic Soils Managed with Intercropping and Willow (Salix spp.) Agroforestry." Sustainability 9, no. 12: 2294.