Bean Response to Conventional Versus Alternative Phosphorus Fertilizer.

Mineral phosphate sources are non-renewable deposits mined from geologically old formations. The long term sustainability and availability of mineral phosphate is a serious concern due to the current rate of consumption. Animal waste products can be recovered and used as alternative P fertilizers. However, for an alternative P source to be adopted as P fertilizer it must have a predictable plant response in terms of yield and tissue P concentration. A field experiment was conducted in Paterson, Washington, to assess yield and tissue P response of dry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) to application of both conventional and alternative P fertilizers. Two dry bean cultivars (Buster and Stampede) were fertilized with four rates of P (10, 20, 30, 40 kg P ha^-1) from three sources: anaerobically digested (AD) dairy manure; composted chicken manure and mono-ammonium phosphate (MAP). There also was a no P control. To evaluate P uptake, bean shoots were collected at three growth stages (V5, V6 and R1). Beans were harvested to determine yield and a subsample analyzed for P concentration. Fertilizer treatments had no significant influence on seed yield for both cultivars. Seed P concentration did not differ by cultivar. Phosphorus source and application rate had significant effect (P≤0.05) on seed P concentration. Across both cultivars, seed P concentration was greater for all the rates of composted chicken manure and AD dairy manure than control and three lowest rates of MAP (10, 20 and 30 kg P ha^-1). For all the three sampling dates, fertilizer treatments had no significant influence on shoot P concentration. Across sampling dates, shoot P concentration was significantly (P≤0.05) greater for ‘Buster’ (5144 mg kg^-1) than ‘Stampede’ (4838 mg kg^-1).