Effects of Pea Cultivation as Cover Crop on Nitrogen-Use Efficiency and Nitrogen Uptake by Subsequent Maize and Sunflower Crops in a Sandy Soil in Central Greece

The long-term positive effects of cropping systems involving rotation with cover crops on soil properties and the environment are well recognized. The present work concerns a 3-year field experiment focusing on two cropping systems including two energy crops [maize (Zea mays L.) and sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)] cultivated May–September on an infertile sandy soil, and Pisum sativum cultivated as cover crop after the harvest of the energy crop. Soil samples from two soil layers, 0–20 cm and 20–40 cm deep, were collected at the beginning and end of the experiments; they were analyzed for soil physical and chemical properties such as soil moisture properties, total nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), pH, organic matter, and organic carbon (C). The results demonstrated the effect of pisum intercropping on the performance of the subsequent energy crop. These results are particularly important for the cultivation of less fertile soils such as sandy soils, which can be put in use for the production of energy crops such as maize and sunflower, which are characterized by high nutrient—particularly N—demand.