Abstract Brewery effluent (BE) can be used as a water and nutrient source for crop irrigation. It contains high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus, which are essential plant nutrients. However, the effluent at Ibhayi Brewery (SAB Ltd) has a high concentration of sodium, which is a constraint for its reuse in agriculture. The objectives here were to determine the salt removal efficiency, crop growth and health and changes in soil structure when four salt-tolerant test crops were irrigated with BE and subjected to crop rotation or soil amendments. These crops included Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris), saltbush (Atriplex nummularia), Salicornia meyeriana and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), and all grew efficiently in BE irrigated soils but did not stop sodium accumulation in the growth medium. Nitrogen was successfully exploited, while phosphorus availability was limited by an unfavourable pH. Swiss chard had the best growth with a wet biomass production of 8173 g m-2, due to the plant’s ability to tolerate saline conditions and continuous cropping. Crop rotation, aiming to limit the effects of nutrient depletion in soil, had no significant effect on plant growth, suggesting that the soils were provided enough micro-nutrients in the short term. Prolonged irrigation with BE can lead to sodium accumulation in the soil, which was successfully ameliorated through addition of soil amendments (gypsum and Trichoderma). These amendments reduced soil sodium from a potentially yield limiting level of 1398 mg L-1 to the acceptable levels of 240 mg L-1 and 353 mg L-1, respectively, mainly through leaching. However, only the addition of Trichoderma improved Swiss chard production to 11,238 g m-2, while reducing soil surface crusting and improving infiltration rates. Soil amended with Trichoderma appears to be a potential solution for BE reuse as a water and nutrient source in agriculture.

中文翻译：

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将处理过的啤酒废水用于耐盐作物灌溉

摘要 啤酒厂废水 (BE) 可用作作物灌溉的水源和营养源。它含有高水平的氮和磷，它们是植物必需的营养物质。然而，Ibhayi Brewery (SAB Ltd) 的废水含有高浓度的钠，这限制了其在农业中的再利用。这里的目标是确定当四种耐盐试验作物用 BE 灌溉并进行轮作或土壤改良时的脱盐效率、作物生长和健康以及土壤结构的变化。这些作物包括瑞士甜菜 (Beta vulgaris)、saltbush (Atriplex nummularia)、Salicornia meyeriana 和高粱 (Sorghum bicolor)，它们都在 BE 灌溉土壤中高效生长，但并没有阻止钠在生长培养基中的积累。氮被成功利用，而磷的可用性受到不利的 pH 值的限制。瑞士甜菜生长最好，湿生物质产量为 8173 g m-2，因为该植物能够耐受盐碱条件和连作。轮作旨在限制土壤养分耗竭的影响，对植物生长没有显着影响，表明土壤在短期内获得了足够的微量养分。长时间使用 BE 灌溉会导致土壤中钠的积累，通过添加土壤改良剂（石膏和木霉）成功地改善了这种情况。这些修正主要通过浸出将土壤钠从潜在的产量限制水平 1398 mg L-1 分别降低到可接受的水平 240 mg L-1 和 353 mg L-1。然而，仅添加木霉将瑞士甜菜产量提高到 11,238 g m-2，同时减少土壤表面结皮并提高渗透率。用木霉改良的土壤似乎是一种潜在的解决方案，可将 BE 再利用作为农业中的水和营养源。