Effect of simulated acidification on soil properties and plant nutrient uptake of eggplant in greenhouse

Tianqi Wang ^1,2 Leixin Yu ³ Zhen Wang ⁴ Chuang Yang ⁵ Feiyu Dong ¹ Diwen Yang ⁴ Haijun Xi ⁶ Zhouping Sun ² Roland Bol ⁷ Muhammad Awais ² Lijuan Yang ^1* Hongdan Fu ^2*

• ¹ College of Land and Environment, Shenyang Agriculture University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China
• ² College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China
• ³ Shenyang Urban Construction University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
• ⁴ College of Agricultural Science and Technology, Shandong Agriculture and Engineering University, Shandong Jinan, China
• ⁵ Shenyang Hengxin Technology Management Consulting Service Co., Ltd, Shenyang, China
• ⁶ Chaoyang Agricultural Development Service Center, Chaoyang, China
• ⁷ Institute of bio- and geosciences, IBG3 Agrosphere, Forschungszentrum juelich, juelich, Germany

Soil acidification is of paramount importance in crop and agricultural development. It substantially influences the accessibility of nutrients within the soil, as well as plant capacity to absorb these nutrients. However, there has been a lack of systematic research on how soil acidification influences nutrient absorption in eggplant cultivated in greenhouse. To address this research gap, an experiment was conducted in a greenhouse with seven different acidity levels (4.50, 5.00, 5.50, 6.00, 6.50, 7.00, 7.50), achieved by adding dilute H2SO4. The findings indicated that the soil organic matter (SOM) content at pH 4.50 decreased by 49.73% -48.90% compared to pH levels of 7.50 -7.00. In addition, the levels of exchangeable aluminum (Al 3+ ) and soil electrical conductivity (EC) were highest at pH 4.50, with increases of 87.75 -81.68 mg kg⁻¹ and 1.82 -1.78 ms cm -1 , respectively, compared to pH 7.50 -7.00. The total nitrogen (TN), phosphorus (TP), and potassium (TK) content in the soil declined as acidity increased, reaching their lowest levels of 0.59, 0.42, and 3.79 g kg⁻¹ at pH 4.50.Among the available nutrients, only potassium levels did not exhibit significant variation across treatments. However, the levels of macro elements in the soil consistently decreased, while the concentrations of trace elements (Fe, Cu, Zn) increased with rising acidity; conversely, the levels of other trace elements (B, Mo, Mn) decreased. The amounts of exchangeable calcium (Ca 2+ ) and magnesium (Mg 2+