Ahn, Tae In Yang, Jung-Seok Im, Yong-Hoon Youn, Young Jik Kim, Dahae Lee, Ju Young 2024-12-06T10:30:13Z 2024-12-06T10:30:13Z 2024-12-06 2024-12 0959-6526 https://pubs.kist.re.kr/handle/201004/151315 Crops are key players in agroecological nutrient dynamics. While the environmental impact of introduced agronomic nutrients has been widely studied, crop traits as modulators of environmental stoichiometry in agroecosystems have not been systematically considered. To observe crop-driven stoichiometric variation, we assessed nutrient variability of greenhouse substrate culture effluents on a nationwide scale in South Korea using 150 effluent samples collected from 10 different geographical locations over two consecutive pepper, tomato and cucumber growing seasons. We found that nutrient concentrations varied widely among crops, with cucumber effluents showing significantly lower quartile ranges (e.g., NO-3: 12.4-18.0 mM) compared to tomato and pepper (NO-3 : 21.2-30.4 mM). However, when converted to molar fractions, the distributions between crops overlapped (NO- 3 molar fraction quartile ranges: 0.42-0.54 for all crops) and the coefficient of variation (%CV) decreased from 30%-98% in concentration units to 12%-65% in molar fractions, with an average reduction of 18.5%p. This reduction invariability suggests that plant absorption kinetics contribute to the low variability in molar fractions. Further stochastic simulation analysis using a simple box model for root zone nutrient fluxes supported this finding. Our results demonstrate the robustness of plants as ambient stoichiometric modulators in agronomic systems. Such information on reduced plant parametric uncertainty may support future efforts to quantify agricultural nutrient budgets and design optimized agroecosystem stoichiometry for improved sustainability. English Elsevier BV Nationwide analysis of greenhouse effluents reveals robustness of crops as a modulator of ambient stoichiometry Article 10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.144127 1 Journal of Cleaner Production, v.482 Journal of Cleaner Production 482 Y scie scopus 001363299800001 2-s2.0-85209592525 Green & Sustainable Science & Technology Engineering, Environmental Environmental Sciences Science & Technology - Other Topics Engineering Environmental Sciences & Ecology Article SOILLESS CULTURES ELECTRICAL-CONDUCTIVITY NUTRIENT LIMITATION PLANT-GROWTH NITROGEN KINETICS IRRIGATION PHOSPHORUS MANAGEMENT RADIATION Agroecosystems Stoichiometry Greenhouse effluents Sustainability Nutrient budget