Proceedings of the ISSAS/IPI Workshop on "Rational fertilization for high quality and high efficiency vegetable production", held in Nanjing, China, in October 1996. Participants of the workshop discussed fertilizer recommendations, vegetables and the environment, vegetables and quality, and the K status of vegetable soils. The Proceedings are available now in Chinese, with headings, tables and figures in English (ISBN 7-5630-1152-8).

Potassium and magnesium for better tea production, issued by the Tea Research Institute in Hangzhou, China, in collaboration with IPI, describes in English and Chinese the status of K and Mg in China’s tea soils and the function of these two nutrients in the yield physiology of tea. Numerous results on the effect of K and Mg on yield and quality of tea underline the importance of balanced fertilization for quality tea. Photographs on deficiency symptoms and fertilizer recommendations complete this 32-page booklet which is available from the Tea Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, 310008, PR China (E-mail tricaas@public.hz.zj.cn).

Effect of potassium on crop production in Egypt by Abd Hamam El Hadi, ARC Cairo, Egypt, Fruits and vegetables are important cash crops in Egyptian farming. Use of potash, however, still lags seriously behind K removal by crops and the balance is negative. This booklet, which is printed in Arabic, describes the need for balanced fertilization and the effect of K on yield and quality of these crops.

Groundnut production, constraints and their management by B.A. Golakiya, Gujarat University, Junagadh, India. India ranks first with respect to area and production of groundnut in the world. Gujarat State stands first in groundnut growing in India. However, the average productivity of groundnut in this region is comparatively low. This booklet, printed in Hindi, discusses the constraints seen in Gujarat such as excessive vegetative growth, adverse soil conditions, salinity and nutrient deficiencies, and gives guidelines on how best to manage the crop.

Crop specific IPI leaflets for Central/Eastern Europe: The series has been extended with leaflets on potato in Hungarian and on rape seed in Polish.

PDA, the Potash Development Association, UK, has issued a "Notebook" on potash with information for farmers including Application timing, Kalculator, Recommendations in metric and imperial units, and Uptake. (Potash Development Association, PO Box 697, York, YO32 5WP, UK, tel/fax: +44(0)1904 492009.

Potassium for Agriculture: in Better crops with plant food, 1998, No. 3 from PPI, Atlanta, USA. This publication presents current information on the importance of potassium for agriculture. It describes the function of K in plants, its effect on maturity and interactions with other nutrients. The influence of K on yield and quality, on relief of stress and on plant diseases form a large part of this booklet.