Zeolite is considered an important soil amendment for sustainable agricultural production due to its high cation exchange capacity and its ability to retain water and nutrients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of different zeolite application rates (0, 5, and 10 t/ha) and mineral nitrogen (N) rates (0%, 70%, and 100% of the recommended rate) on grain yield, plant height, and chlorophyll content in soybean, winter wheat, and maize grown in a three-year crop rotation at the experimental field of the Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, during the period 2021-2023. The results showed that nitrogen exerted a stronger influence on all evaluated parameters than zeolite. The highest grain yields were recorded in winter wheat (8,650 kg/ha) and maize (12,167 kg/ha) under the 100% nitrogen treatment, whereas no statistically significant treatment effects on average grain yield were observed in soybean. The greatest relative grain yield response to zeolite application within individual nitrogen levels was found in winter wheat (21.1%), followed by soybean (14.1%) and maize (10.3%). The highest mean plant height was observed in winter wheat at 73.7 cm (100% N, 0 t/ha zeolite) and in maize at 281.5 cm (100% N, 10 t/ha zeolite), while differences among soybean treatments were less pronounced. The combination of zeolite and nitrogen had no statistically significant effect on chlorophyll content in soybean. In contrast, the highest chlorophyll content in winter wheat and maize was recorded under the combination of 100% N and 0 t/ha zeolite. The results indicate that winter wheat was the most responsive crop to zeolite application, with the greatest effects observed under nitrogen-deficient conditions.
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