About this Research Topic
This Research Topic traces emerging answers and examines a truck-load of issues around traditional agriculture fertilization and finds some potential solutions for our future. Developing new and sustainable technologies to produce next generation fertilizers for advanced crop nutrition is crucial in order to improve the efficiency of fertilizers to increase crop yields and create stronger, healthier, and sustainable agriculture while reducing the impacts of fertilizers on the environment.
This Research Topic focuses on recent developments, trends, and concepts for novel fertilizer technologies capable of replacing conventional fertilizer and can reduce the environmental effects of modern agriculture while maintaining or increasing crop yields. Deploying innovative approaches for next generation fertilizers in the field of bio-actives, nutrients, controlled- and slow-release fertilizers, nanoparticle-based fertilizers, signaling molecules, and other (in)organic molecules have tremendous potential for boosting plant fitness, yield, and quality/functionality. Additionally, manuscripts that contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism(s) of action of these next-generation fertilizers are also welcome.
We welcome original research articles, reviews, perspectives, short communications, hypotheses and theories, methods, and opinions that include the following (but are not limited to):
• Innovative approaches and advanced methods to produce and characterize next-generation fertilizers (rhizosphere microbiome engineering; atmospheric N fixation; enhanced efficiency fertilizers; increased phosphorus availability; biodegradable coating for controlled release of fertilizers; slow-release fertilizer granules, glass fertilizers formulation...)
• Systems of bioactive (biostimulants, nutrients, signaling molecules, (in)organic molecules) -based novel fertilizers
• Development of next generation fertilizers for enhanced nutrient use efficiency (NUE) in crops
• Promoting crop tolerance to biotic/abiotic stresses using new fertilizers
• Synergies between the bioactivities of different fertilizers
• Improving crop nutritional quality/functionality by using next-generation fertilizers
• Understanding the molecular mechanism(s) of novel fertilizers in imparting stress tolerance and NUE in crops.
Keywords: Next-generation fertilizers, Agriculture, Crop production, Crop quality, Nutrient use efficiency, Stress tolerance, Soil fertility, Biostimulants, Controlled-/slow-release fertilizers, Nano-fertilizers, Food security, Climate change
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.