IPI Open Forum on "Potassium Research in Central Europe", 22 March 2007, Budapest, Hungary.

IPI Coordinator for Central Europe, Dr. T. Popp, organized a satellite event to the 5^th New Ag International Conference and Meeting, 21-23 March 2007. Ten papers covering potassium demand, application and status in soils, and results from the various experiments and research conducted in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Czech and Slovak republics were presented by scientists from these countries. A presentation on the effect of potassium on plant disease was given by Dr. L. Datnoff, IFAS University of Florida, USA.

All the presentations made at the event are available on the IPI website.

5^th Workshop on "Site specific Nutrient Management for Maize in Indonesia", 31 May 2007, Bandar Lampung, Indonesia.

Collaborators of the project on Site-Specific Nutrient Management (SSNM) for Maize in Indonesia met to review recent research and develop fertilizer recommendations for participatory evaluation at project sites in the provinces of North Sumatra, Lampung, East and Central Java, and South Sulawesi in 2007/08. In recent months, much progress has been made in the development of the new SSNM approach for maize, particularly in the formulation of guidelines to determine meaningful yield targets; calculate fertilizer N, P, and K rates; and manage fertilizer N depending on crop need by growth stages, including the use of the leaf color chart. Data from trials with different planting densities were used to provide decision support on the selection of adequate row-spacing and plant spacing within-rows for favorable and less favorable tropical maize growing environments. Several management practices, including the application of lime or organic matter, have been evaluated at project sites in the last three years depending on suspected constraints to high yield. Average yield advantages with SSNM and improved crop management were about 1-2 t/ha compared to the farmers' practice (see graph). With SSNM for maize approaching maturity, the team has started the development of an integrated framework geared towards an Ecological Maize Intensification (EMI) based on the selection of suitable crops grown in rotation, optimal planting times, varieties, and best management practices including SSNM.

Maize yield in the farmers' fertilizer practice (FFP) and treatments with Site-Specific Nutrient Management (SSNM) or SSNM plus Improved Crop Management (SSNM+ICM) at project sites in Central Java (2005-2006, one season for Grobogan; one season for Wonogiri, nine farms), Lampung (2006, one season, five farms), North Sumatra (2005-2006, two seasons, 10 farms), East Java (2005-2006, three seasons, 15 farms).

Farmers, extension workers, and researchers attending a field day organized by the Assessment Institute of Agricultural Technologies (AIAT) in Lampung to discuss project findings on improved nutrient and crop management strategies for maize on 30 May 2007 (photo above, by C. Witt). Workshop participants on 1 June 2007 (photo on top) were from various research centers and institutes in Indonesia, IPNI (Canada), FENALCE (Columbia), IRRI (Philippines), IPI (Switzerland), the University of Nebraska (U.S.), and the Southeast Asia Program of IPNI and IPI (Singapore).

Coming events:

IPI-IFS-Sabanci University joint symposium on "Potassium and Magnesium Sodium: Advances in Research and Application", 5-7 December 2007, Cambridge, UK.

This symposium is jointly organized by IPI, the International Fertilizer Society (IFS) and Prof. Ismail Cakmak of Sabanci University, Istanbul, Turkey. The Conference will start at midday on Wednesday the 5th December 2007 and finish after lunch on Friday 7th. It will be of interest and value to academics, agronomists and advisors and also to fertilizer company staff. Distinguished speakers have been invited to give a keynote addresses. The speakers and their topics will be announced soon on the websites of the IFS (www.fertiliser-society.org) and IPI (www.ipipotash.org). The Symposium is open to all, and the registration fee will be approximately GBP250. The registration fee includes coffees and lunches, as well as a full set of Proceedings, but does not include accommodation or evening meals, which will be approximately GBP150 per delegate for the full Conference. VAT will be added to these prices for delegates from within the EU.

For more information see www.ipipotash.org.

IPI-IFDC-BRRI-BFI International workshop on "Balanced Fertilization for Increasing and Sustaining Crop Productivity", 30 March-1 April 2008, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

The workshop will be jointly organized by IPI, International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural Development (IFDC), Bangaladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) and Bangladesh Fertilizer Association (BFA).

A major new challenge in future food production is to meet the demand of the growing Asian population. Malnutrition remains endemic in Bangladesh, an overwhelmingly agrarian country, and without adequate measures the level of vulnerability is likely to increase as a result of severe land degradation, soil erosion and the lack of appropriate technologies in agriculture. Successful diversification in crop production, which is helpful in providing ability to withstand market variability, requires wide dissemination of modern technologies for the cultivation of high value crops like fruits and vegetables. Research-based balanced application of mineral fertilizers will increase agricultural productivity for selfsufficient crop production and for maintaining soil fertility for future generations.

This Workshop will provide an opportunity for delegates to discuss soil fertility issues and concerns resulting from current status of fertilizer application, and to share experiences gained from advanced nutrient management practices.

For more details, see the IPI website.

Other events:

Dahlia Greidinger Symposium 2007 on "Advanced Technologies for Monitoring Nutrient and Water Availability to Plants", 12-13 March 2007, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa.

The availability of water and nutrients is a major factor regulating world agricultural productivity. Until recently, large scale estimation of such availability has been problematic. However, the development of global positioning system technology (GPS) and computerized approaches to chemical, spectral and biological sensing of nutrients and water has lead to numerous breakthroughs in this cutting edge area of research and development.

Previous symposia have covered on slow release fertilizers, fertigation, fertilization under saline conditions, nutrient and resource management and the environment, amongst other topics. The 9^th Dahlia Greidinger Symposium was focused this time on the technical developments in the field of GPS and advanced monitoring systems and approaches, and provided an opportunity for leading scientists to present 18 invited lectures and contributed posters describing on-going research on monitoring methods, technologies for measuring physiological processes in plant systems, VNIR reflectance spectroscopy, spectral data and hyperspectral images used for nitrogen prediction in potatos, irrigation control and stress mapping.

The symposium was followed by a technical tour to the Dead Sea and Negev area where Israel's potash and phosphate resources are mined and processed.

For proceedings of Dahlia Greidinger's meetings since 1993, log on to http://gwri-ic.technion.ac.il/.