Reports on the use of effective microorganisms in plant fertilization are ambiguous, as some authors claim it is beneficial to yield and plant quality and other studies do not confirm these findings. However, only few of the numerous studies investigating this topic both in Poland and abroad have focused on the fertilization of meadows. The aim of the study was to assess the influence of effective microorganisms on production capacity of meadow plants, their content of micro- and macronutrients and the level of absorbable forms of micronutrients in the soil. The study was carried out in 2014-2016, on a farm located in Małopolska, in the Kraków district. A univariate field experiment in a randomized block design with four replicates was established on a permanent meadow, with experimental plots of 10 m2. The soil under the experimental meadow was Haplic Phaeozem developed from loess, which belonged to class I in the Polish soil classification system. The experimental factor comprised a spray application of the microbiological formulation ProBios fertilizer, tested at two doses: 20.0 and 40.0 dm3 ha-1. Foliar fertilization with the higher dose of effective microorganisms (40.0 dm3 ha-1) significantly (p≤0.05) increased dry weight yield, as compared with the control, and the biggest difference of 1.90 t ha-1 was observed in the first year of the study. Moreover, plant consumption of nutrients such as phosphorus, magnesium and calcium, but except sodium, was higher. The higher dose of effective microorganisms also improved the plant’s uptake of zinc, copper, manganese and iron. The application of microorganisms contained in the preparation enhanced the content of absorbable phosphorus and potassium in the soil. In conclusion, the addition of effective microorganisms considerably improved plant development (aerial mass), which resulted in improved yields of meadow plants and more effective use of nutrients.

23.2.2018