Research on Sustainable Fertilization Possibilities on the Nutritional Parameters of Sweet Corn from the Crișului Negru Meadow

Sweet corn is an important vegetable crop due to its high nutritional value and increasing demand for fresh consumption and food processing. This study evaluated the effects of different fertilization systems on the yield and nutritional quality of sweet corn cultivated under the pedoclimatic conditions of the Crișului Negru Meadow, Bihor County, Romania. A field experiment was conducted in 2024 using a randomized block design arranged in a Latin rectangle with four fertilization treatments: an unfertilized control (V1), organic fertilization with farmyard manure compost (V2), mineral fertilization with NPK (V3), and mineral fertilization with NPK supplemented with micronutrients (V4). Kernel quality was assessed by determining ash, crude protein, fat, fatty acids, carbohydrates, total sugars, energy value, and reference intake. Data were analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA), and treatment means were compared using Tukey’s HSD test at p < 0.05. The fertilization regime significantly affected most nutritional parameters. The highest values were recorded in V4, with significant increases in crude protein (24.54%), fat (24.00%), fatty acids (26.32%), total sugars (50.20%), energy value (15.42%), and reference intake (15.32%) compared with V1. In contrast, carbohydrate content was not significantly affected by the fertilization treatments, while mineral content remained comparable to the control only in V4. Overall, mineral fertilization supplemented with micronutrients proved to be the most effective strategy for improving the nutritional quality of sweet corn and represents a promising sustainable fertilization approach for cultivation under the environmental conditions of the Crișului Negru Meadow.