This study aims to clarify the suitable fertilization amount for celery cultivation and reduce the negative impact of unreasonable fertilization,providing a theoretical reference for the high-yield and high-profit cultivation of celery in the mountainous area of southern Ningxia.Using the celery va-riety'Queen'as experimental material,a single-factor randomized block design was adopted with five fertilization levels.The effect of different amount of phosphate fertilizer on celery yield,nutrient accu-mulation,allocation,and phosphorus fertilizer utilization rate were investigated.The results showed that application of phosphate fertilizer led to an increase in celery yield ranging from 6.06%-22.22%compared to the control group.Further analysis indicated that the optimal phosphate fertilizer applica-tion rate for maximizing celery yield was between 165.98-172.11 kg/hm2.Additionally,the phos-phorus fertilizer application rate that yielded the best economic benefit was determined to be between 142.80 and 148.93 kg/hm2.Furthermore,as the amount of phosphate fertilizer increased,the quality of celery showed a significant increasing trend,however,the partial productivity of phosphorus and the agronomic efficiency of phosphorus exhibited a significant decreasing trend.The utilization rate of phosphate fertilizer ranged from 18.13%to 36.33%,and the contribution rate varied from 6.16%-15.51%,The treatment of phosphate fertilizer amount 150 kg/hm2 exhibited the highest values,sig-nificantly surpassing those of the control group.When the amount of phosphate fertilizer reached 150 kg/hm2,the surplus of phosphate fertilizer changed from negative to positive.When the amount of phosphate fertilizer reached 225 kg/hm2,the phosphorus output decreased,and the apparent balance of phosphorus showed surplus.The principal component analysis showed that phosphate fertilizer amount 150 kg/hm2 treatment was the optimal fertilization level.In summary,the appropriate phos-phorus fertilizer application rate for celery in the mountainous area of southern Ningxia is 142.80-172.11 kg/hm2.