Co phytoavailability for tomato in amended calcareous soils

A plot study was conducted to assess changes in Co phytoavailability for a tomato cultivar grown on an agricultural soil (a Calcic Petrocalcid) amended with sewage sludge, under controlled conditions in South-eastern Spain. The experiment consisted of three main treatment blocks: (A) without organic fertilisation, (B) with addition of 60 t ha−1 and (C) 120 t ha−1 of sewage sludge. For each block (A, B, and C), four levels of Co (0, 50, 100 and 200 mg kg−1) were added, as CoCl2. Diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid, DTPA (0.005 M plus triethanolamine), ammonium acetate (1 N at pH 7), and water extractable fractions of the soils were analysed for all the plots. The time dependent Co accumulation in different parts (roots, stems, leaves, and fruits) of the tomato plants was studied. Soil Co seemed to be mainly in non-available forms, according to the low concentrations found in the water and ammonium acetate extracts, compared to DTPA. The gradient of Co accumulation in tomato plants was root > leaf > stem + branches > fruit, with a concentration in the edible parts ranging between 4 and 25 mg kg−1. The organic amendment enhanced the plant extraction of Co, this effect being more significant with time. Plant extraction efficiency decreased with increasing Co concentration in the soils. Co in fruit showed the best correlation with all the Co extraction pools in the soil.