Joint International Conference on Long-term Experiments ...

that have higher costs than their direct incomes, since the reliable results can be reached
and published after several replication and besides this publications are available for
everyone wihout any compensation, but on the other hand they are important for the
society.
The results of the applied agrotechnical research can be transfered to the practice
by extension effectively, if the research institutes are located in that particular region.
One of the prominent examples for this is the National Long-term Field Experiment
Network.
A scientific school was formed since 1945 in Keszthely, Hungary, based on the
successful research activity of several decades in the field of soil fertility and nutrient
management. Dr. Kolbai Károly, Dr. Kemenesy Ernő, Dr. Nyéki Jenő, Dr. Láng Géza,
Dr. Kováts András professors had an unexegerateble role in this development.
At the beginning research was aimed at organic (farmyard) manure treatments and
application, delivering useful results for the practice.
Since the 1960-es, when the mineral fertilizer application rate increased
dramatically, the research was focused on the effective application of fertilizers in order
to utilize the genetical potential of the different species and hibreds.
Although mineral fertilizer application had been playing the main role in the
maintainance of soil fertility, the new questions of organic matter and organic manures
had to be studed as well. In this period the research work of the department included the
study of the utilization of agricultural by products like straw (incorporation or burning)
as well as slurry.
The studies covered the specifications of technologies according to the different
requirements of the species, varieties and hibreeds (plant nutrition, sowing date, crop
rotation, plant density, tillage methods, etc.) as well as the methods of physical and
chemical improvement of soils.
The researh activity of the department focused mainly on the yield improvement
and cost effective cropping methodes of the leader field crops as wheat, maize, barley,
potato, sunflower, rape, sugarbeet, and others (soybeen, fababeen).
This studies and trials were conducted in small and large plot field experiments on
30 ha arable land in three different sites (Keszthely, Szentgyörgyvölgy,
Homokszentgyörgy-Mariettapuszta) and also in pot experiments with a well equipped
lab. The three different experimental site had different type of forest soils. Ramann-type
brown forest soil (Keszthely), Pseudogleyic brown forest soil (Szentgyörgyvölgy) and
leached sandy soil (Homokszentgyörgy-Mariettapuszta). The results from this different
study sites can be applied for the most part of the Transdanubian region, where the
different classes of the forest soils are typical.
The half of the long-term field experiments were set up in 1963-1970 (Láng Géza,
Kemenesy Ernő, Kováts András, Nyéki Jenő, Cseh Ervin, Németh István). This trials
represent high scientific values. From the 2-3-4 decade long database reliable
conclusions can be drawn about the alteration of soil fertility as well as about the effects
of the different crop years in these different agroecological regions.
The great increase in the volumen of mineral fertilizer production and application –
beside the previously started experiments – required a country scale study of the
application of fertilizers in order to provide a fertilization advisory system based on
uniform basic principles. A board was estabilished for this purpose and worked out the
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