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Horticulturae
Special Issues
Nutrient Uptake and Efficiency of Horticultural Crops
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Nutrient Uptake and Efficiency of Horticultural Crops

A special issue of Horticulturae (ISSN 2311-7524). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 3644

Editors

Dr. Raul I. Cabrera

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Guest Editor
Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Department of Plant Biology, Rutgers University, 121 Northville Road, Bridgeton, NJ 08302, USA
Interests: horticulture; plant mineral nutrition; irrigation and fertilization management; nursery and greenhouse crops; urban landscapes; irrigation sources & quality; salinity tolerance/management; hydroponics; soilless substrates; hemp production
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Miguel Guzmán

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
RNM151, Ciaimbital, Department of Agronomy, Cei A3, Almería University, Ctra. Sacramento s/n, 04120 Almería, Spain
Interests: horticulture; soilless crops; vertical crops; plant nutrition; water & nutrient use efficiency; fertigation; nanofertilizers; agronomic biofortification
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. María Fernanda Quintero Castellanos

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Guest Editor
Agronomy Department, San Luis Potosí University, Km. 14.5, SLP-Matehuala, San Luis Potosi 78321, Mexico
Interests: horticulture; fertigation; irrigation; sustainable fertilizers management; water resources management; nutritive efficiencies in horticultural crops; soilless crops; hydraulics; soil and water conservation; drip irrigation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Maria del Carmen Salas Sanjuán

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Guest Editor
Department of Agronomy, Higher Engineering School, Research Centres CIAIMBITAL and CeiA3, University of Almería, 04120 Almeria, Spain
Interests: hidroponics; horticulture; plant nutrition; irrigation and fertigation (mineral and organic); soilless crops, water sources & management; bio-fertilizers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Crop production in this 21st century is facing a multitude of challenges to meet the needs and demands of an increasing population. These needs and demands must be met with sustainable approaches addressing social, economic, and ecological considerations, particularly under dynamic climate changes and dwindling freshwater resources. Compared to extensive agronomic crops, horticultural crops are characterized by their intensive production systems which utilize large inputs of water and fertilizers. The use efficiency of these inputs is a major concern as it rarely surpasses 50%, leading to economic losses and undesirable environmental impacts. Furthermore, in the case of fertilizers, applications exceeding crop requirements, over short (minutes, hours) and long (days, weeks) periods produce stressful osmotic, toxic, and nutrient imbalance stresses that significantly, and negatively, impact crop yield and quality.

This Special Issue aims to present novel studies, approaches and techniques that lead to significant increases in fertilizer and nutrient use efficiency in horticultural crop production. Contributions could address new fertilizer and fertilization trends, enhanced fertigation management, modelling and modulation of fertilizer applications to actual (short- and long-term) crop demand, uptake and efficiency of alternative fertilizers (biofertilizers, nanofertilizers), biostimulants effects on nutrient use efficiency, and other suitable fertilization practices and nutrient monitoring approaches that augment application, uptake and overall nutrient use efficiency.

Dr. Raul I. Cabrera
Dr. Miguel Guzmán
Dr. María Fernanda Quintero Castellanos
Dr. Maria del Carmen Salas Sanjuán
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Horticulturae is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • plant and crop nutrition
  • efficiency
  • uptake and absorption
  • tissue nutrient status
  • integrative nutrient diagnosis

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

29 pages, 595 KB  
Article
Optimizing Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium Use Efficiency in Temperate Vegetable Production in Latvia’s Agroecological Conditions
by Līga Lepse, Solvita Zeipiņa and Marija Gailīte
Horticulturae 2026, 12(5), 567; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae12050567 - 6 May 2026
Viewed by 1137
Abstract
Optimizing nutrient uptake efficiency (NUE) through an understanding of system-level dynamics and crop-specific physiological thresholds is essential for the resilience of North European vegetable production under shifting climatic conditions. This study evaluated the uptake and efficiency of macro- and secondary nutrients (N, P, [...] Read more.
Optimizing nutrient uptake efficiency (NUE) through an understanding of system-level dynamics and crop-specific physiological thresholds is essential for the resilience of North European vegetable production under shifting climatic conditions. This study evaluated the uptake and efficiency of macro- and secondary nutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg) in cabbage, carrot, red beet, and onion over a five-year period (2021–2025) in Latvia, comparing organic and integrated management systems. It was hypothesized that NUE on commercial farms is currently suboptimal due to standardized bulk applications and that systems integrating sustainable practices would demonstrate higher nutrient uptake efficiency than those relying exclusively on mineral fertilization. The results revealed a notable yield–input divergence, where increased fertilization rates failed to provide proportional yield gains, as evidenced by the lack of a strong linear relationship (R2 < 0.07) and variable correlation coefficients (e.g., r = 0.52 for N in cabbage and r = −0.47 for Ca in carrot). These findings suggest that abiotic stressors and technical constraints may outweigh the influence of nutrient volume alone. This divergence was less pronounced in organic farming systems compared to integrated ones and varied notably by crop. Such species-specific responses indicate a complex role for mineral nutrition in root crops that requires further physiological investigation. No consistent differences in nutrient concentrations were observed between farming systems, indicating that inter-annual climatic variability is the dominant driver of nutrient dynamics. Furthermore, the integration of green manures and supplemental irrigation triggered extreme apparent system-level N-NUE values (exceeding 500% in some cases), reflecting the successful mineralization of legacy nitrogen and enhanced mass flow to the root zone. The study concludes that current fertilization methodologies in the Baltic region may lead to over-application. To ensure climate-resilient horticulture, management strategies must transition toward balancing ionic ratios (Ca:K) and synchronizing inputs with specific crop removal rates, rather than relying on standardized bulk applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrient Uptake and Efficiency of Horticultural Crops)
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16 pages, 2841 KB  
Article
Evaluation of a Hybrid Fertilizer Based on Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles Supported on Zeolite in a Tomato Crop
by Estrella K. Hernández-Vázquez, María de la L. Guerrero-González, José M. Guzmán-Palomino, María Fernanda Quintero-Castellanos, Erika Padilla-Ortega and Pablo Delgado-Sánchez
Horticulturae 2026, 12(3), 347; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae12030347 - 12 Mar 2026
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Abstract
In recent years, phosphorus (P) nanoparticles have emerged as promising alternatives to conventional fertilizers. This study evaluated zeolite-fixed hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (nHAP) for greenhouse tomato cultivation, comparing their efficiency with phosphate rock (positive P input) and quartz sand (negative P Carrier). Material characterization by [...] Read more.
In recent years, phosphorus (P) nanoparticles have emerged as promising alternatives to conventional fertilizers. This study evaluated zeolite-fixed hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (nHAP) for greenhouse tomato cultivation, comparing their efficiency with phosphate rock (positive P input) and quartz sand (negative P Carrier). Material characterization by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and zeta potential analysis revealed that zeolite was identified predominantly as clinoptilolite, phosphate rock as phosphate-bearing aluminosilicates, and quartz sand as crystalline quartz; in all cases, the materials exhibited negatively charged surfaces. Hybrid fertilizers were formed through electrostatic interactions between zeolite and nHAP, confirming the successful development of a zeolite-based carrier for nanohydroxyapatite delivery. Application of 0.01 g·L−1 nHAP increased the effective quantum yield of Photosystem II by 0.64 compared to the control at midday. Fruit firmness showed no significant differences among treatments. The highest sugar and soluble solids content was observed with 0.1 g·L−1 nHAP (6.84 °Brix), whereas the 1 g·L−1 treatment enhanced pigment concentrations, reaching 5.9 mg·g−1/g chlorophyll a, 2.92 mg·g−1 chlorophyll b, and 2.82 mg·g−1 carotenoids. The 0.01 g·L−1 dose of nHAP maintained quality characteristics and marginally increased yield; however, yield decreased at higher nHAP concentrations, opening new research opportunities to optimize this nanofertilizer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrient Uptake and Efficiency of Horticultural Crops)
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16 pages, 2178 KB  
Article
Soil Application of Urban Waste-Derived Amendments Increased Microbial Community Diversity in the Grapevine Rhizosphere: A Rhizobox Approach
by Giacomo Chiarelli, Daniela Sangiorgio, Chiara Pastore, Ilaria Filippetti, Fatih Buyukfiliz, Elena Baldi and Moreno Toselli
Horticulturae 2025, 11(11), 1368; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11111368 - 13 Nov 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 833
Abstract
The intensification of agricultural practices and the consequent dramatic decrease in soil organic matter has increased the use of organic fertilizer to recover soil fertility and plant productivity. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of three amendments obtained from [...] Read more.
The intensification of agricultural practices and the consequent dramatic decrease in soil organic matter has increased the use of organic fertilizer to recover soil fertility and plant productivity. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of three amendments obtained from the recycling of urban and agri-food wastes on rhizosphere microbial community, soil, and plant nutrient status. The experiment was carried out on rhizobox-grown, 1-year-old vines of Sangiovese (Vitis vinifera L.), grafted onto 110 Richter (V. berlandieri × V. rupestris) planted in April 2023. Twenty-four rhizoboxes were filled with soil collected from a field trial in which three types of amendments had been applied since 2019. In detail, the complete randomized experimental design (with four replications) compared the following treatments: (1) municipal organic waste compost (ACM), (2) agri-food organic waste compost (ACF), (3) defecation gypsum (GDD), and (4) a control that received 60 kg of N ha−1 year−1 (CK). The application of the amendments increased the soil concentration of total C, total N, and pH. The application of ACM increases soil K and Zn and the concentration of N and K in plant roots. The application of all the amendments increased leaf N concentration in comparison with CK, but only ACF increased leaf P. ACM was the most effective in promoting microbial biodiversity, increasing phyla like Bacillota, Pseudomonata, and Bacteroidota, including genra like Bacillus, Neobacillus, Paenibacillus, and Pseudomonas. ACF promoted Nitrosospherota and Chitinophaga, and GDD promoted Chloroflexota and Agrobacterium. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrient Uptake and Efficiency of Horticultural Crops)
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