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@INPROCEEDINGS{Jablonowski:1043304,
      author       = {Jablonowski, Nicolai David and Ohrem, Benedict and Kuhn,
                      Arnd Jürgen and Kuchendorf, Christina and Klose, Holger},
      title        = {{I}mproving {M}arginal {S}oils for {S}ustainable {P}lant
                      {B}iomass {P}roduction in a {U}nique {F}ield {R}esearch
                      {I}nfrastructure},
      reportid     = {FZJ-2025-02825},
      year         = {2025},
      abstract     = {Aim and approach:In the context of a sustainable, bio-based
                      economy, the production and sufficient provision of biomass
                      for material and/or energy applications is a critical
                      bottleneck. To avoid land use conflicts with food production
                      in biomass generation, it is essential to utilize previously
                      unused and/or agriculturally non-viable, nutrient-poor
                      marginal soils and to enhance and make them suitable for
                      plant production. This goal is pursued, among other things,
                      by the scientific endeavors at the unique "Marginal Field
                      Lab". This includes the development and execution of field
                      experiments that i) evaluate the transferability and further
                      development of results obtained from laboratory and
                      greenhouse trials in a "lab to field" approach, and ii)
                      demonstrate the usability of the experimental field and the
                      plantings for further research approaches, including food
                      and feed, as well as fuel and fiber production.Scientific
                      innovation and relevance:This newly established and
                      artificially created research field is located in
                      central-west Germany, on the spoil heap of the Hambach
                      opencast mine in the Rhenish mining area. A sandy substrate
                      from the opencast mine was deposited on an area of more than
                      4 hectares. This substrate contains neither organic carbon
                      (Corg) nor other plant-relevant nutrients. It is
                      characterized by a very high sand and gravel content and low
                      water holding capacity. The efficiency of targeted
                      fertilization strategies, such as subsurface fertilization
                      with digestate, humic acids, algae biomass, and mineral NPK
                      fertilizer, are compared among each other and are tested for
                      the cultivation of economically relevant and alternative
                      (biomass) plants. These include perennial plants such as
                      Miscanthus x giganteus, Sida hermaphrodita, Silphium
                      perfoliatum, the biennial plant Mellilotus officinalis, and
                      the annual plants Carthamus tinctorius and Hordeum vulgare.
                      By installing suction cups at several locations in defined
                      soil depths and regularly taking soil samples, the possible
                      leaching of applied nutrients and the plant-induced Corg
                      enrichment in the soil are investigated.Results or
                      preliminary conclusions:The overarching goal is to make
                      statements about the suitability of various plants for
                      cultivation on opencast mine terraces and residual areas, to
                      subject these unused fallow lands to economically meaningful
                      interim use. In addition to carbon sequestration by the
                      plants, erosion of these areas is prevented, and ecosystem
                      services are implemented. The obtained biomasses are
                      intended to be used as raw materials for bio-based
                      industries, such as fiber/paper and oil/chemical companies,
                      in the context of regional structural change.Presenting
                      these research projects at the EUBCE 2025 aims to publicize
                      the outlined project activities in the context of
                      sustainable biomass production on marginal soils and to
                      potentially initiate future collaborative projects.},
      month         = {Jun},
      date          = {2025-06-09},
      organization  = {European Biomass Conference and
                       Exhibition, Valencia (Spain), 9 Jun
                       2025 - 12 Jun 2025},
      subtyp        = {Invited},
      cin          = {IBG-2},
      cid          = {I:(DE-Juel1)IBG-2-20101118},
      pnm          = {2171 - Biological and environmental resources for
                      sustainable use (POF4-217)},
      pid          = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-2171},
      typ          = {PUB:(DE-HGF)6},
      url          = {https://juser.fz-juelich.de/record/1043304},
}