Institute of Plant Nutrition

After establishment of the Faculty of horticulture and landscape management, Prof. Dr. Anton Fruhstorfer was appointed in 1947 as first professor of plant nutrition. After he had withdrawn from the position in 1949, plant nutrition was taught by guest lecturerers from 1950-1954 and Prof. Dr. Paul Schachtschabel became executive head of the Institute for plant nutrition. The Faculty of horticulture and landscape management was incorporated in 1954 into the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover and Prof. Dr. phil. habil. Karl Rathsack became in the same year director of the Institute until his retirement in 1967. He was succeeded by Prof. Dr. agr. Jürgen Wehrmann from 1967 to 1987 and Prof. Dr. agr. Walter Horst from 1987 to 2011.

The second professorship of plant nutrition was established in 1970 and Prof. Dr. rer. hort. habil. Albrecht Jungk was appointed , who took over in 1983 the professorship of agricultural chemistry at the Georg August University in Göttingen. He was succeeded in 1984 by Prof. Dr. rer. hort. Manfred Schenk, who retired in 2015. In October 2014, Prof. Dr. Claus-Peter Witte was appointed as professor for Molecular Plant Nutrition.