Soil inorganic-N and nitrate leaching on organic farms

1993 ◽  
Vol 120 (3) ◽  
pp. 361-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. A. Watson ◽  
S. M. Fowlerf ◽  
D. Wilman
Keyword(s):  
Nitrate Leaching ◽  
Arable Soils ◽  
Surface Layers ◽  
Inorganic N ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Soil Layers ◽  
Crop Uptake ◽  
Nitrate N ◽  
Ammonium N ◽  
Soil Inorganic N

SUMMARYOn two organic farms, nitrate-N and ammonium-N in the surface layers of the soil of representative fields were recorded for 2 years. Nitrate-N was also determined in different soil layers down to 120 cm at the beginning, middle and end of two winters and at intervals after ploughing three fields, to seek evidence of leaching.Nitrate-N and ammonium-N were both consistently low in the surface layers of fields in ley. Nitrate-N accumulated in arable soils on some occasions when there was little or no crop uptake of N, after ploughing, and after very heavy applications of manure.There was some evidence of nitrate leaching in all five fields which were deep-sampled. In four cases, the loss by leaching appeared to be < 25 kg N/ha per winter. In the other case, in which a 4-year ley was ploughed on 5 October, the loss by leaching appeared to be c. 70 kg N/ha. Ploughing in winter, rather than early autumn, might have reduced the nitrate leached, but the drilling of the next crop might have been delayed.The nitrate concentration of water draining from recently ploughed sandy soil in Shropshire was high, but it would have been diluted by water draining from unploughed fields.

scholarly journals Soil inorganic nitrogen in spatially distinct areas within a commercial dairy farm in Canterbury, New Zealand

2017 ◽  
Vol 79 ◽  
pp. 83-88
Author(s):  
D.C. Ekanayake ◽  
J.L. Owens ◽  
S. Hodge ◽  
J.A.K. Trethewey ◽  
R.L. Roten ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Surface Soil ◽  
Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
Dairy Farm ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
Inorganic N ◽  
N Distribution ◽  
Nitrate N ◽  
Ammonium N ◽  
Grazing Behaviour

For precision nitrogen (N) fertilisation of grazed dairy paddocks, soil N distribution needs to be quantified. It is expected that farm infrastructure will affect inorganic-N distribution due to its influence on cow grazing behaviour. Surface soil from four spatially distinct areas (main gate, water troughs, non-irrigated and the remaining pasture) was analysed for soil ammonium-N (NH4 +-N) and nitrate-N (NO3 --N) from three paddocks (180 soil samples) on an irrigated commercial dairy farm in Canterbury, New Zealand. Variation between paddocks was higher for NO3 - (P

Nitrate leaching from organic farms and conventional farms following best practice

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 256-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Stopes ◽  
E.I. Lord ◽  
L. Philipps ◽  
L. Woodward
Keyword(s):  
Nitrate Leaching ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Organic Farms ◽  
Conventional Farms

Tillage, crop residue and crop sequence effects on nitrogen availability in a legume-based cropping system

2004 ◽  
Vol 84 (4) ◽  
pp. 421-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. K. Soon ◽  
M. A. Arshad
Keyword(s):  
Crop Yield ◽  
Crop Residue ◽  
N Uptake ◽  
Microbial Biomass N ◽  
Fertilizer N ◽  
Inorganic N ◽  
Soil Inorganic N ◽  
Crop Sequence ◽  
Extractable Soil ◽  
Soil Inorganic

A field study was conducted to determine the effects and interactions of crop sequence, tillage and residue management on labile N pools and their availability because such information is sparse. Experimental treatments were no-till (NT) vs. conventional tillage (CT), and removal vs. retention of straw, imposed on a barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)-canola (Brassica rapa L.)-field pea (Pisum sativum L.) rotation. 15N-labelling was used to quantify N uptake from straw, below-ground N (BGN), and fertilizer N. Straw retention increased soil microbial biomass N (MBN) in 2 of 3 yr at the four-leaf growth stage of barley, consistent with observed decreases in extractable soil inorganic N at seeding. However, crop yield and N uptake at maturity were not different between straw treatments. No tillage increased soil MBN, crop yield and N uptake compared to CT, but had no effect on extractable soil inorganic N. The greater availability of N under NT was probably related to soil moisture conservation. Tillage effects on soil and plant N were mostly independent of straw treatment. Straw and tillage treatments did not influence the uptake of N from its various sources. However, barley following pea (legume/non-legume sequence) derived a greater proportion of its N from BGN (13 to 23% or 9 to 23 kg N ha-1) than canola following barley (nonlegumes) (6 to 16% or 3 to 9 kg N ha-1). Fertilizer N constituted 8 to 11% of barley N uptake and 23 to 32% of canola N uptake. Straw N contributed only 1 to 3% of plant N uptake. This study showed the dominant influence of tillage on N availability, and of the preceding crop or cropping sequence on N uptake partitioning among available N sources. Key words: Crop residue, crop sequence, labile nitrogen, nitrogen uptake, pea, tillage

scholarly journals Correction to: Modeling the temporal distribution of water, ammonium-N, and nitrate-N in the root zone of wheat using HYDRUS-2D under conservation agriculture

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 2217-2225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Poomadathil Mohammed Shafeeq ◽  
Pramila Aggarwal ◽  
Prameela Krishnan ◽  
Vikas Rai ◽  
Pragati Pramanik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Root Zone ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Conservation Agriculture ◽  
Nitrate N ◽  
Ammonium N

Nitrogen-retention capacity in a fertilized forest after clear-cutting — the effect of forest-floor vegetation

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 130-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per-Ola Hedwall ◽  
Johan Bergh ◽  
Annika Nordin
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Nitrogen Retention ◽  
Tree Seedling ◽  
Retention Capacity ◽  
N Retention ◽  
Clear Cutting ◽  
Nitrate N ◽  
Ammonium N ◽  
Forest Floor Vegetation

Forest fertilization with nitrogen (N) has several benefits to society such as increased wood production and carbon sequestration. There are, however, concerns about N leakage, particularly following clear-cutting. The forest-floor vegetation may increase the N retention of forest ecosystems; however, very few studies have quantified the amount of vegetation required. We studied the relationship between vegetation cover and risk of N leakage, estimated by the amounts of ammonium-N and nitrate-N retained on ion-exchange capsules in the soil, during 4 years following the clear-cutting and harvesting of logging residues in a previously fertilized forest in southern Sweden. Previous fertilization increased the amount of nitrate-N captured on the capsules, whereas the amount of ammonium-N decreased. The vascular vegetation cover increased from almost zero to approximately 25% independent of fertilization. The amount of ammonium-N and nitrate-N retained on the capsules was already reduced by 50%–75% at 20% vegetation cover, and by 30%–40% cover, it approached zero, independent of the number of years since clear-cutting. The vegetation may impede tree-seedling establishment, implying a trade-off between seedling growth and N-retention capacity. However, our results indicate that maximum N retention may be achieved at a relatively low vegetation cover, which could be accomplished with less intrusive scarification methods than currently used.

Poultry manure effects on soil nitrogen processes and nitrogen accumulation in red raspberry

2000 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 849-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. M. Dean ◽  
B. J. Zebarth ◽  
C. G. Kowalenko ◽  
J. W. Paul ◽  
K. Chipperfield
Keyword(s):  
Dry Matter ◽  
Poultry Manure ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Rubus Idaeus ◽  
Inorganic N ◽  
N Accumulation ◽  
Total N ◽  
Soil Inorganic N ◽  
History Of ◽  
N Management

This study examined the effects of solid poultry layer manure addition on soil N processes and on dry matter and N accumulation in red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.). In trials conducted in two years, approximately 50% of the 400 kg total N ha−1 applied as manure was recovered as soil inorganic N 1 mo after manure application when manure was incorporated within 4 h of application. Three trials were conducted in two commercial raspberry fields: one with no history of manure use and one other with a history of heavy annual applications of poultry manure. Treatments included 55 kg N ha−1 as NH4NO3, 100 or 200 kg total N ha−1 as manure, and a control that received no manure or fertilizer N. Soil inorganic N to 60 cm depth was measured throughout the growing season. Berry yield was estimated, and dry matter and N accumulation was determined in floricanes at first berry ripening and in primocanes at the end of the growing season. Few significant effects of N fertilization were measured for any crop yield, growth or N accumulation parameter. This was attributed to the large (>150 kg N ha−1) supply of N to the crop in the unamended soil, primarily from soil N mineralization. Dry matter accumulation in the fruiting clusters was strongly correlated to estimated berry yield, and may provide a simple means for assessing relative yield within experiments. Soil nitrate measured in August after berry harvest may serve as a "report card" to assess N management in the current growing season, to refine fertilizer N management for subsequent growing seasons, and as an index of the risk of nitrate leaching over the following fall and winter in south coastal British Columbia. Key words: Nitrogen mineralization, nitrate leaching, manure N availability, Rubus idaeus

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