The main goal of our research was to determine the effects of a sewage sludge compost called „Remusz” on the yield of maize and certain soil properties.

An experiment was set up with three compost doses on meadow chernozem soil in Karcag. The change of the following parameters was determined in the function of the different compost doses: some chemical properties, moisture content, penetration resistance, and CO2-emission of the soil and the yield of maize.

There was no significant change in the chemical parameters of the soil, but the penetration resistance of the soil considerably decreased in parallel to the increase of the compost dose. Regarding the soil moisture content, only the application of the highest dose (20 t ha-1) of the compost resulted in significantly higher amount of restored water in the investigated soil layer. The stimulation effect of compost application on the microbiological activity in the soil was established as higher CO2-emission was characteristic to the soil with the highest compost dose even under unfavourable circumstances.

The yield of maize increased in parallel to the increase ofthe compost dose compared to the untreated control.

Keywords: sewage sludge compost, nutrient supply, soil compaction