Integrated Nutrient Diagnosis Techniques to Enhance Productivity and Quality of Horticultural Crops

Dear Colleagues,

The mineral composition of plant tissues, expressed as concentrations or relative values (ratio), constitutes the basic numerical information used to diagnose the nutrient status in plants. The interpretation of nutrient deficiency, sufficiency or excess is affected to a large extent by nutrient interactions and plant tissue age. Taking into account interactions expressed as nutrient relationships provides an integrated diagnosis and generally shows greater diagnostic efficiency than the conventional critical nutrient range methodology. Numerous studies have shown that improving fertilization conditions can promote crop growth and improve nutrient absorption, further leading to better quality of the harvested products. These integrated diagnostic techniques indicate that nutrient insufficiency can be corrected either by adding a single nutrient or by taking advantage of multiple nutrient interactions to improve nutrient balance as a whole. Optimizing fertilizer use while maintaining productivity and minimizing production costs and environmental impacts is an imperative requirement to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The need to increase production per unit area and the emergence of innovative horticultural crop systems force us to establish and validate standards for integrated nutrient diagnostic techniques that increase efficiency in the use of water and fertilizer resources. One conclusion remains obvious: the more balanced the contribution of nutrients to absorption by the plant, the less residues remain in the soil, which can minimize the undesirable pollution of soil and environment.

This Special Issue welcomes original research and review articles that provide updated state-of-the-art research on integrated nutrient diagnosis techniques that can contribute to better crop quality, higher nutrient use efficiency, and environmentally sustainable utilization of natural resources.

Key topics in this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The effects of integrated nutrient diagnosis techniques on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical properties of crops and their relationship with yield improvement;
• the effects of integrated nutrient diagnosis techniques on the mineral element (macronutrients and/or micronutrients) uptake, translocation, and allocation in crops and their use efficiency;
• The effects of integrated nutrient diagnosis techniques on the productivity and quality of horticultural crops;
• Associations between plant nutrient status and insect and disease tolerance or susceptibility.

Dr. Miguel Guzmán
Dr. Raul I. Cabrera
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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• plant nutrient
• mineral element
• nutrient diagnosis techniques
• fertilization
• insect and disease tolerance
• horticultural crop