Joint International Conference on Long-term Experiments ...

plan of the uniform countrywide field trial network in 1965. In this board the staff of the
Department of Plant Production in Keszthely played significant role (Láng Géza,
Mártonffy Tamás). Then in 1966 the administration allocated funds for the
estabilishment of this trial network and field experiments have been set up in 18 sites
operated by 9 research organisations (institutes and universities). In the next step the
number of the experimental sites rised up to 26, from which 3 (Keszthely, Lábod-
Vadaspuszta, Nagykanizsa) belonged to the Department of Plant Production in
Keszthely.
As a recognation of the research work of the department the Ministry of
Agriculture and Food Industry estabilished an operational board in 1968 in order to
improve and help the new uniform field trial network which was chaired by Dr. Láng
Géza, and the secretary was Dr. Mártonffy Tamás. The expenditures of the experiments
were covered by different funding programs (MÉM MÜFA fund, OMFB, Chemical
Industry Union SZP-2 program and G-9 program since 1986). The Department of Plant
Production was in charge of the operation of this new National Field Trial (NFT)
Network until 1985, then it was taken over by the Department of Agrochemistry under
Dr. Debreczeni Béla’s and Dr. Debreczeni Béláné’s leadership. In 2002 the operation of
the network got back to the Department of Plant Production and Soil Science.
Nowadays the number of the experimental sites of the NFT network has reduced to 9
and the financial sources run out of supplies.
The success of the research activity of the department was recognised by the
following facts (it was considered as a school and a scientific workshop).
The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry launched different middle-term
operative research programs in 1970, from which the program of fertilization
(„Research on Soil Power Management”) was run by the department with great
experience in this field with academician Láng Géza’s leadership. He was also in charge
of the domestic and international public relations, as well as of the coordination of the
research in this field by making research plans and comprehensive reports.
In 1971 the ministry tended to rise the research focusing on the improvement of
soil fertility as the basic factor of the increase of production and technological progress
to the priority of the country scale research programs. Dr. Géza Láng was the person in
charge of the preliminary arrangements as a head of the operating board.
In 1972 the ministry decided to start the country scale research program: K-9
„Improvement of soil fertility…”. The program had several chapters as fertilization, soil
improvement, soil tillage and soil conservation. The coordinator of the research
program was Dr. Láng Géza professor the head of the operating board and senior
researcher of the Keszthely university of Agriculture. The subprogram of soil fertility
was operated directly also by Keszthely. This program worked until 1980. Since 1981
the subprograms continued as independent programs. The soil fertility subprogram was
continued by the department under the title of „ SZP-2 Agrochemical research”. Since
1986 it was runed as the project No. 6 of the G-9 Research Program.
The department research activity covered the field of the „Study of soil
acidification as a result of intensive plant production” connecting to the soil fertility
research program between 1982-1986. In the frame of the project the reasons for soil
acidification and the methods of their compensation were studied on different soil types
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