Organic Fertilizer Substitution Improves Grape Yield and Quality by Regulating Soil Nutrient Availability and Berry Morphological Traits: A Two-Year Field Study

To improve nitrogen (N) fertilizer management in vineyards and support sustainable production, we conducted field experiments in 2021–2022 to evaluate the effects of reduced N fertilization combined with organic fertilizer (OF) on vine growth, fruit quality, soil fertility, and economic returns in Shine Muscat grapes. Six treatments were established: conventional fertilization (CF), four reduced-N treatments combined with OF (0.9N + OF to 0.6N + OF; i.e., 10–40% N reduction), and a blank control (CK). Yield was significantly increased under 0.8N + OF (18.2% in 2021; 96.0% in 2022) and 0.7N + OF (10.8% in 2021; 47.9% in 2022), with 0.8N + OF also delivering the highest economic returns. Fruit quality analysis showed that 0.8N + OF consistently increased total sugar and the sugar–acid ratio, and improved vitamin C content. Substitution ratios >40% led to a decline in economic benefits. Path analysis indicated that vertical diameter and single-berry weight exerted significant positive effects on total yield. OF substitution also improved fruit quality. Soil available nutrients (N, P, and K) and organic matter were primary factors influencing yield; potassium was the key factor regulating sugar accumulation, with the strongest effect on improving flavor coordination. Reducing N by 20–30% combined with OF (particularly the 0.8N + OF treatment) synergistically enhanced photosynthetic efficiency, N utilization, yield and quality, and soil fertility, representing the optimal fertilization strategy.

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Publication Details

Journal
Agriculture
Published
2026-04-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture16080862
Primary Topic
Horticultural and Viticultural Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Organic Fertilizer Substitution Improves Grape Yield and Quality by Regulating Soil Nutrient Availability and Berry Morphological Traits: A Two-Year Field Study

Gongwen Luo, Guoshun Yang, Xuan Sun, Mengyan Xu et al.
Agriculture
Horticultural and Viticultural Research
article

Organic Fertilizer Substitution Improves Grape Yield and Quality by Regulating Soil Nutrient Availability and Berry Morphological Traits: A Two-Year Field Study

Gongwen Luo, Guoshun Yang, Xuan Sun, Mengyan Xu, Jianwei Peng, Xuan Zhou, Xuemei Zhong
article en

Abstract

To improve nitrogen (N) fertilizer management in vineyards and support sustainable production, we conducted field experiments in 2021–2022 to evaluate the effects of reduced N fertilization combined with organic fertilizer (OF) on vine growth, fruit quality, soil fertility, and economic returns in Shine Muscat grapes. Six treatments were established: conventional fertilization (CF), four reduced-N treatments combined with OF (0.9N + OF to 0.6N + OF; i.e., 10–40% N reduction), and a blank control (CK). Yield was significantly increased under 0.8N + OF (18.2% in 2021; 96.0% in 2022) and 0.7N + OF (10.8% in 2021; 47.9% in 2022), with 0.8N + OF also delivering the highest economic returns. Fruit quality analysis showed that 0.8N + OF consistently increased total sugar and the sugar–acid ratio, and improved vitamin C content. Substitution ratios >40% led to a decline in economic benefits. Path analysis indicated that vertical diameter and single-berry weight exerted significant positive effects on total yield. OF substitution also improved fruit quality. Soil available nutrients (N, P, and K) and organic matter were primary factors influencing yield; potassium was the key factor regulating sugar accumulation, with the strongest effect on improving flavor coordination. Reducing N by 20–30% combined with OF (particularly the 0.8N + OF treatment) synergistically enhanced photosynthetic efficiency, N utilization, yield and quality, and soil fertility, representing the optimal fertilization strategy.

AgricultureVol. 16(8)
Soil and Fertilizer Institute of Hunan Province (CN), Hunan Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CN), Chongqing Vocational and Technical University of Mechatronics (CN), Hunan Agricultural University (CN)
Responsible consumption and production
Openalex Percentile: Top 24%
Horticultural and Viticultural Research
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