Assessment of the Impact of Soil Contamination with Cadmium and Mercury on Leaf Nitrogen Content and Miscanthus Yield Applying Proximal Spectroscopy

The research objective was to use proximal spectroscopy in visible and near infrared (VNIR) spectra to determine the total leaf nitrogen (TN) content and the above-ground biomass of Miscanthus x giganteus (MxG) grown in the open-roof greenhouse experiment on soil contaminated with cadmium and mercury (100 mg Cd/kg soil; 20 mg Hg/kg soil), in dependence of different soil amendments in four treatments (I-soil without amendment; II-sludge; III-mycorrhizae; IV-MxG ash). Leaf reflectance was acquired using a field spectroradiometer (350-1050 nm) at the end of the vegetation period between 2018 and 2019 (n = 24). TN content was determined using the dry combustion method, while biomass was weighted immediately after the harvest. In terms of the treatment effect, sludge showed the greatest contribution in TN content. Regarding the biomass quantity, MxG ash revealed the best results as soil amendment. Applying the partial least squares regression, complete correlation and low root mean squared error (RMSE) were obtained between predicted and measured values for the validation dataset of TN content (R-2 = 0.87, RMSE = 0.139%), while a strong correlation was calculated for biomass (R-2 = 0.53, RMSE = 0.833 t/ha). As an additional tool with analytical methods, proximal spectroscopy is suitable to integrate the optical and physiological properties of MxG, and to assess nutrient stress in crop grown on contaminated soils.