243-248Pecan nut "Carya illinoinensis" is native from central and western U.S.A. and arrived in Argentina in the nineteenth century. The difference with other nuts is that it presents an 80 percent oil composition, with polyunsaturated fatty acids omega 3 and 6 that help to reduce cholesterol and also prevent the risk of cardiovascular disease. It contains an antioxidant: vitamin E, and has a high content of fibre that helps to prevent colon cancer. Reduces bad cholesterol, helps keep blood pressure low and is recommended especially for patients with cancer and cardiac problems. A pecan sustainable farming system intends to be productive but at the same time, to preserve enviromental quality, favouring the use of biological practices over chemical inputs. Surface application of compost to pecan trees, is a common practice in organic orcharding. The objectives of the work were to compare compost and vermicompost with liquid fertilizer and a control without fertilization in a completely random block design with four replications, in a one-year crop with a planting frame of 8m x 8m. The application of organic amendments produced statistically significant changes in soil properties with reference to inorganic fertilizer, especially in the total carbon, microbial biomass carbon and phosphorus. Compost and vermicompost treatments produced statistically significant increases in factors related to production as tree height and diameter

Giuffré, L.

Romaniuk, R.

Ríos, R. P.

Zubillaga, M. M.

Emirates Journal of Food and Agriculture

English

FAUBA Digital: Repositorio institucional científico y académico de la Facultad de Agronomía de la UBA

Emir. J. Food Agric. 2011. 23 (3): 243-248 
http://ejfa.info/ 
 
 
 243 
Sustainable management in pecan cultivation in Argentina 
L. Giuffré

, R. Romaniuk, R. P. Ríos and M. M. Zubillaga 
Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires. Av. SanMartín 4453.1417                        
Buenos Aires, Argentina  
Abstract: Pecan nut “Carya illinoinensis” is native from central and western U.S.A. and arrived 
in Argentina in the nineteenth century. The difference with other nuts is that it presents an 80% oil 
composition, with polyunsaturated fatty acids omega 3 and 6 that help to reduce cholesterol and 
also prevent the risk of cardiovascular disease. It contains an antioxidant: vitamin E, and has a 
high content of fibre that helps to prevent colon cancer. Reduces bad cholesterol, helps keep blood 
pressure low and is recommended especially for patients with cancer and cardiac problems. A 
pecan sustainable farming system intends to be productive but at the same time, to preserve 
enviromental quality, favouring the use of biological practices over chemical inputs. Surface 
application of compost to pecan trees, is a common practice in organic orcharding. The objectives 
of the work were to compare compost and vermicompost with liquid fertilizer and a control 
without fertilization in a completely random block design with four replications, in a one-year 
crop with a planting frame of 8m x 8m. The application of organic amendments produced 
statistically significant changes in soil properties with reference to inorganic fertilizer, especially 
in the total carbon, microbial biomass carbon and phosphorus. Compost and vermicompost 
treatments produced statistically significant increases in factors related to production as tree height 
and diameter. 
 
Key words: compost, pecan, sustainable cultivation 
 
 
لل تماذتسملا ةرادلإاتعارس يف   زوجناقبلا هيتىجرلأا يف 
 
ملا يفروج ، ر كيوامو،.ر شوير  اجليبوز م.م و 
 
تيلك تيعارسلا ليصاحملا، شريآ صىيوب تعماج. ثابكرملل. SanMartín 4453.1417 ، شريآ صىيوب هيتىجرلأا 
 
صخلملا : زىخ ٌبمبنا "Carya illinoinensis" ًف دىخىي تُكَريلأا ةذحخًنا ثبَلاىنا ًطسىنا وتُبرغنا وو مص
ًنا  ٍُخُخرلااٍف قرفنا رشػ غسبخنا ٌرمنا غي ثارسكًنا يرخلأا ذخوو هَأ  ٍهػ يىخحَ 80 رُغنا جَز ٪ تؼبشًنا ضبًحلأا
تُُهذنا بغُيوأ 3 و 6 طفخ ًهػ ذػبسح ٍخنا و لورخسُنىكنا تبسَغُي بعَأ ضاريأب تببصلإا رطبخي ٍي  تُػولأاو بهمنا
تَىيذنا. ًهػ ٌىخحح بهَا ةذسكلأا ثادبعي :  ٍُيبخُفE خحَوًهػ ٌى ٍي تُنبػ تبسَ فبُنلأا ًهػ ذػبسح ٍخنا  ٍي تَبلىنا
ٌبطرس ٌىنىمنا. مصفَ ئُسنا لورخسنىكناًهػ ذػبسَو ، ًهػ ظبفحنا و وذنا طغظ ضبفخَاحصَُ 
بصىصخ نًظرً ٌبطرسنا وٍف مكبشي بهمنا.  وبظَ تػارسنا زىدنا تياذخسًنا وسخؼح تدخُي ٌىكح ٌأ ًهػ ٍف ٍكنو 
جلىنا هسفَ، ػ ظبفحهنًه تُػىَ تئُبنامُعفحو ، واذخخسا ثبسربًًنا تُخىنىُبنا ٍي رثكأ تَوبًُكنا ثلاخذًنا.  ٍحطسنا شرنا
 دبًسنا كُبطح لأربدشج  زىدنا، ىه ٍف تؼئبشج تسربًي orcharding تَىعؼنا.  فاذهلاا ٌبكو
ٍي مًؼنا نتَربمً ودبًسناvermicompost غي تهئبسنا ةذًسلأا وىكحخنا ٌوذب ذًُسح ٍف ًُصحى تهخك  ٍئاىشػ
بيبًح غي تؼبرأ ثارركي، لىصحي ٍف ةذحاو تُس غي ربطلإا عرز 8mx8m. حخَأ كُبطح تَىعؼنا ثلاَذؼخنا ثارُُغح  ثار
صئبصخ ٍف تَىعػ تُئبصحإ تنلاد تبرخنا غي ةربشجلإا ًنإ ةذًسلأا تَىعؼنا رُغ لاو ،
بًُس ٍف عىًدي ٌىبركنا ٌىبركناو تَىُحنا تهخكنا سفناو تُبوركًُنارىف. جبخَإ دبًسنا  تَىُؼي ةدبَز ًنا ثدأ تَىعؼنا ثبفهخًناو
.بهرطلو ربدشجلاا عبفحربب تهصخًنا ثلايبؼًنا تُخبخَا ٍف
                                                 
Corresponding Author, Email: giuffre@agro.uba.ar 
L. Giuffré et al. 
 
 
 244 
Introduction 
Pecan nut, “Carya illinoinensis”, native 
from central and western U.S.A., was 
introducted by Domingo Faustino Sarmiento in 
the nineteenth century in Argentina, and now is 
spreading in the country growing under 
different climatic and soil conditions. 
Besides being part of the culinary culture of 
Middle Eastern and European countries, has 
highly nutritious properties. The doctors 
recommend it for children with nutritional 
problems due to its constituents (protein, 
phosphorus, calcium, iron, potassium and 
vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, E and 
monounsaturated fatty acids). It reduces bad 
cholesterol, helps keep blood pressure low and 
is recommended especially for patients with 
cancer and cardiac problems (Marín and 
Borestti, 2008). 
With regard to nutrition and pecan 
production, there is controversy regarding the 
strategy of using inorganic and organic 
fertilizers. Inorganic fertilizers are easy to 
handle, and organics have the advantage of 
lower costs and environmental benefits (Gosh, 
2004). 
The nutrients in compost are released 
slowly and steadily, which provides adequate 
nutrition from the roots, and prevents nutrient 
losses into the environment. In recent years 
there was a growing interest in the use of 
compost, because of the possibility of recycling 
of organic materials of high environmental 
priority, however, the application needs proper 
management to avoid risks of over-fertilization 
and nutrient pollution, such as nitrate leaching 
groundwater and transport of phosphorus in 
surface water. 
In the case of pecan nut, an excess of 
nitrogen can stimulate vegetative growth and 
affect the emission of fruitful shoots (Figueroa 
Viramontes, 2007). There is little information 
about research on the effect of compost in 
pecan orchards. 
The objectives of the work were to 
compare organic amendments compost and 
vermicompost, with liquid fertilizer and a 
control without fertilization in a one-year crop, 
and their effects on soil and plant development.  
Materials and methods 
The experiment was developed in 
Villanueva, General Paz, Buenos Aires (S 
Latitude 350 45 'and Longitude W 580 26'), on 
a soil classified as Thapto-argic Hapludoll (Soil 
Survey Staff, 1999). The test was performed on 
a staggered distribution with 8m x 8m planting 
distance, (Figure 1) with a randomized block 
design with four replications to compare the 
liquid fertilizer treatments (15 cm3 / 2 litres of 
water per hole), compost (5 litres / hole), 
vermicompost (5 litres / hole) and control 
without fertilization, in three applications 
dates: 11/12/09, 03/14/2010, and 19/09/2010. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 1. The Pecan nut (Carya illinoinensis) cultivation site. 
Emir. J. Food Agric. 2011. 23 (3): 243-248 
http://ejfa.info/ 
 
 
 245 
The liquid fertilizer presented the following 
formulation: N (total nitrogen): 8.5%, 4.5% of 
P (soluble phosphorus) and 7% K (soluble K), 
with traces of chelated minor elements: Mn, 
Mg, S, Fe, Co, B, Zn, and Cu. The compost 
had: C (total carbon: 9.56%, P: 55 ppm, NO3-
(nitrates):75 ppm, K: 203 ppm , pH: 6, 
EC(electrical conductivity) : 1.55, 12.64% ash. 
The vermicompost showed 23.55% C, 295 ppm 
P,  491ppm NO3-, 689 ppm K, pH: 7.86, EC: 
3.56, 56.87% ash. 
Two sampling dates were considered: 
initial (14/09/2009) and the following year: 
(11/25/2010) to analyze soil C (Nelson and 
Sommers, 1982), pH (Page, 1982), EC 
(Rhoades, 1982), Bray-P (Bray and Kurtz, 
1945) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) by 
the fumigation extraction method by Vance et 
al. (1987). Determinations to assess the growth 
of pecan plants were plant height and stem 
diameter.  
Data were processed using the Infostat 
statistics program (2007). The analyzed 
parameters were firstly checked for normality 
and then subjected to analysis of variance 
(ANOVA). The separation of treatments means 
was carried out by the Rienzo, Guzmán and 
Casanoves test (Di Rienzo et al., 2002). 
Results and discussion 
Main results of soil and plant response are 
shown in Figure 2. 
The addition of vermicompost (V) 
produced a significant increase (5%) of soil pH 
compared to other treatments, but its value was 
close to neutral. It also produced a significant 
increase in electrical conductivity (EC), which 
may be related to its salt content. Romaniuk et 
al. (2010), in their field work on addition of V, 
observed a significant increase in pH, but the 
electrical conductivity of soil was not 
significantly affected. 
The control treatment (T) and the liquid 
fertilizer (FL) differed significantly (5%) from 
the other situations, showing a lower value of 
organic carbon (Cox) that C and V. This also 
coincides with Romaniuk et al. (2010), whose 
results showed a significant increase in total 
organic carbon content by applying V, which 
favors the increase of soil organic matter in 
soil.  
Bray phosphorus (P) showed a significantly 
lower value for T, whereas there was a 
significant difference for the V, with the 
highest value among all treatments. Both Cox 
and P-Bray's results are related to the 
composition of V. 
According Marinari et al. (2000), organic 
fertilizers provide phosphates to the soil, with a 
greater nutritional balance than mineral 
fertilizers. In their  agricultural use, the  more 
restrictive factors in the use of compost have 
been the presence of heavy metals, excess 
nutrient, salt content, and organic pollutants 
(Madrid et al., 2000, Marbán et al, 2008), so 
that the organic materials must be properly 
analyzed and carefully monitored to observe 
their  effects on soil properties. 
With respect to the results for microbial 
biomass carbon (MBC) it´s highlighted the 
effect of vermicompost and compost compared 
to other treatments. This coincides with the 
results of Romaniuk et al. (2010), the field 
application of vermicompost to an Hapludoll 
also produced a significant increase in 
microbial biomass carbon. 
 The use of vermicompost produced an 
augmentation in the population of 
microorganisms in soils due to increased C 
available as an energy source, which allows 
populations of microbes multiply rapidly after 
the implementation of the amendment (Sastre 
et al., 1996). In the study carried out by Gaind 
and Naim (2006), were reported higher 
contents of microbial biomass in soils amended 
with vermicompost compared to those 
receiving only inorganic fertilizers. 
Higher differences in height of the pecan 
trees were statistically significant for V and C, 
while the T value was significantly lower for 
the increase in diameter, compared to 
treatments C and V. 
 
L. Giuffré et al. 
 
 
 246 
T V C FL
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
(a)
a
c
bc
ab
E
C
 (
d
s
 m
-1
)
T V C FL
0
20
40
60
(b)
a
c
b
b
P
 (
p
p
m
)
T V C FL
0
1
2
3
4
(c)
a
ab b
a
C
 (
%
)
T V C FL
0
50
100
150
200
250
(d)
a
b
ab
b
M
B
C
 (

g
 C
 g
 s
u
e
lo
-1
)
T V C FL
0
20
40
60
80
100
(e)
a
b
b
a
H
e
ig
h
t 
d
if
fe
re
n
c
e
 (
c
m
)
T V C FL
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
(f)
a
b b
ab
D
ia
m
e
te
r 
d
if
fe
re
n
c
e
 (
c
m
)
 
Figure 1. Mean values of (a) soil electrical conductivity (EC), (b) exchangeable phosphorous (P),                    
(c) oxidable carbon (C), (d) microbial biomass carbon (MBC), (e) differences in plant height and                  
(f) differences in plant diameter between two consecutive years.  
Different letters denote significant differences between situations at α = 0.05. T is the control, V is the vermicompost treatment, C is the compost treatment and FL is the 
liquid fertilizer treatment. 
 
Mexico has initiated a scheme of pecan 
plantations in sustainable production, using the 
minor possible amounts of fertilizers and 
agrochemicals, in order to obtain highly 
nutritious and free of toxic residues fruit 
(Ascencio Contreras, 2007). It is also important 
to consider, as suggested by Fortuna et al. 
(2003), that the use of compost can play an 
important role in optimizing the availability of 
nutrients and carbon sequestration potential of 
Emir. J. Food Agric. 2011. 23 (3): 243-248 
http://ejfa.info/ 
 
 
 247 
the agroecosystem, as its continued addition 
increased the pool of resistant and labile soil 
carbon. 
Conclusions 
The application of organic amendments 
produced changes in soil properties and plant 
performance. The effects of C and V, with 
respect to pH values obtained are not worrying 
as this parameter remained close to neutrality. 
The electrical conductivity increased, so its 
effect should be monitored to prevent adverse 
effects on soil colloids. The increase of carbon 
is positive, but phosphorus enrichment, which 
can cause nutritional imbalances, should be 
taken into consideration. Organic amendments 
also produced significant increases in MBC, 
with statistically significant differences for the 
V. Both C and V presented statistically 
significant increases in tree height and 
diameter. 
Acknowledgement 
To research project UBACYT G061: Soil 
quality: a multidimensional and 
interdisciplinary perspective. 
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Sustainable management in pecan cultivation in Argentina

School of Agriculture, University of Buenos Aires

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Sustainable management in pecan cultivation in Argentina

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