EFFECTS OF CaCO3 AND INOCULUM LEVEL ON NODULATION AND GROWTH OF ALFALFA IN AN ACID SOIL

1975 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 245-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. A. RICE

The effects of CaCO3 and inoculum level on nodulation and growth of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) in an acid soil were studied by measuring alfalfa yield, nodule numbers and nodule weights in relation to various levels of CaCO3 amendment and to the number of Rhizobium meliloti applied per seed. When sufficient CaCO3 was applied to the soil (4 mg CaCO3/g soil) to reduce soluble Al to sub-toxic levels, the relative yield (yield without N/yield with N) of alfalfa increased from 0.7 with no inoculum to 1.0 with 3 × 107 rhizobia per seed. Increasing the inoculum level from no inoculum to 3 × 107 rhizobia per seed decreased the amount of ineffective nodule tissue from 0.65 to 0.27 mg/pot without CaCO3 added, and from 0.60 to 0.06 mg/pot with the addition of 4.0 mg CaCO3/g soil. When no inoculum was applied, the amount of effective nodule tissue was increased from 0 to 0.91 mg/pot by adding 4.0 mg CaCO3/g soil. Application of inoculum increased the amount of effective nodule tissue at all levels of CaCO3. The results demonstrate the importance of liming to decrease the soluble Al content of acid soils for alfalfa production, and show that high inoculum levels can be used to improve alfalfa yields on acid soils.

1986 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 55 ◽  
Author(s):  
JG Howieson ◽  
MA Ewing

Several strains of Rhizobium meliloti that originated from acid soils in Sardinia, Italy, were markedly superior in colonizing a moderately acid loamy sand (pH 5.0 in 1:5 0.01 M CaCl2) than two Australian commercial inoculant strains (U45 and CC169), and a group of strains that originated from alkaline soils in Syria and Iraq. Six Medicago hosts also varied greatly in their ability to achieve nodulation in this soil. M. polymorpha and M. murex were far superior in this respect to M. littoralis, M. truncatula and M. tornata. The most acid-tolerant strains of R. meliloti, WSM419 and WSM413, were able to nodulate a high proportion of plants of M. polymorpha and M. murex sown in the second year between 11 and 20 cm from the point of introduction of the rhizobia into the soil the previous year. It is suggested that these more saprophytically competent isolates of R. meliloti, combined with the species of Medicago more able to nodulate readily in acid soil, will extend the range of soils suitable for successful regenerative growth of these species.


1970 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 427 ◽  
Author(s):  
AD Robson ◽  
JF Loneragan

On a moderately acid soil (pH 4.6 in 115 suspension of soil in 0.01M calcium chloride), nodulation of Medicago truncatula cv. Cyprus responded markedly to increasing applications of calcium carbonate, which increased soil pH. Since the effect of increasing soil pH on the percentage nodulation could be replaced to a large extent by increasing the inoculation level, it appeared that nodulation was restricted by the inability of Rhizobium meliloti to survive or multiply in the acid soil. The growth of R, meliloti appeared more sensitive to soil acidity than growth of the host plant of annual Medicago species. It is suggested that more acid-tolerant strains of R. meliloti would permit annual Medicago species to be grown successfully on moderately acid soils, thus extending the range of soils suitable for the growth of these species.


Soil Research ◽  
1967 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 215 ◽  
Author(s):  
RE White ◽  
KP Haydock

The equilibrium potentialsP was compared with three of the better conventional extractants, namely, Olsen's (0.5M NaHCO3), Truog's (0.002M H2SO4), and Morgan's (0.5M HOAc/NaOAc buffer), on a range of soils of uniform calcium status, using lucerne (Medicago sativa L.), and on soils of variable calcium status, using Phaseolus lathvoides L. Relative yield and phosphorus uptake correlated better with soil test than did absolute yield response to phosphorus, for all methods. On the soils of uniform calcium status, the equilibrium potentialSP and Olsen methods were comparable and were superior to the Truog and Morgan methods. There was little to choose between the four methods on the soils of variable calcium status, when a very acid soil containing a high level of exchangeable aluminium was excluded from the correlations. Contrary to previous findings, the predictive value of the equilibrium potentialSP was high. The discrepancy may be explained by differences in the method of measuring the potential. Of the conventional extractants, one such as Olsen's bicarbonate, which reflects primarily the intensity of the phosphate supply of a soil and does not attack phosphate unavailable to plants, is to be preferred to those that reflect quantity rather than intensity.


1977 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. A. RICE ◽  
D. C. PENNEY ◽  
M. NYBORG

The effects of soil acidity on nitrogen fixation by alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) and red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) were investigated in field experiments at 28 locations, and in greenhouse experiments using soils from these locations. The pH of the soils (limed and unlimed) varied from 4.5 to 7.2. Rhizobia populations in the soil, nodulation, and relative forage yields (yield without N/yield with N) were measured in both the field and greenhouse experiments. Rhizobium meliloti numbers, nodulation scores, and relative yields of alfalfa decreased sharply as the pH of the soils decreased below 6.0. For soils with pH 6.0 or greater, there was very little effect of pH on any of the above factors for alfalfa. Soil pH in the range studied had no effect on nodulation scores and relative yields of red clover. However, R. trifolii numbers were reduced when the pH of the soil was less than 4.9. These results demonstrate that hydrogen ion concentration is an important factor limiting alfalfa growth on acid soils of Alberta and northeastern British Columbia, but it is less important for red clover. This supports the continued use of measurements of soil pH, as well as plant-available Al and Mn for predicting crop response to lime.


1977 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. C. PENNEY ◽  
M. NYBORG ◽  
P. B. HOYT ◽  
W. A. RICE ◽  
B. SIEMENS ◽  
...  

The amount of cultivated acid soil in Alberta and northeastern British Columbia was estimated from pH values of farm samples analyzed by the Alberta Soil Testing Laboratory, and the effect of soil acidity on crops was assessed from field experiments on 28 typical acid soils. The field experiments consisted of two cultivars of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and one cultivar each of rapeseed (Brassica campestris L.), red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) grown with and without lime for 2 yr. There are about 30,000 ha of soils with a pH of 5.0 or less where soil acidity seriously restricts yields of all four crop species. There are approximately 300,000 ha with a soil pH of 5.1–5.5 where liming will on the average increase yields of alfalfa by 100%, yields of barley by 10–15%, and yields of rapeseed and red clover by 5–10%. There are a further 1,600,000 ha where soil pH ranges from 5.6 to 6.0 and liming will increase yields of alfalfa by approximately 50% and yields of barley, rapeseed and red clover by at least 4–5%.


1985 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 787-791
Author(s):  
H. A. BURITY ◽  
B. E. COULMAN ◽  
M. A. FARIS

A greenhouse experiment has shown that total nitrogenase activity of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is not significantly affected when grown in association with timothy (Phleum pratense L.), smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss) or orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) except after initial harvest when decreased alfalfa activity was associated with smooth bromegrass or orchardgrass. It was concluded that mixed cultures of alfalfa with timothy, smooth bromegrass or orchardgrass have no effect on alfalfa N2 fixation. The results also suggest the occurrence of N transference from alfalfa to associated grasses. It is speculated that this transfer is not primarily due to the death of roots and nodule tissue (after harvest), but involves some degree of N excretion during the period before initial harvest.Key words: Alfalfa-grass mixtures, N2-fixation, nodule activity, N-transference


2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Maru ◽  
Osumanu Ahmed Haruna ◽  
Walter Charles Primus

The excessive use of nitrogen (N) fertilizers in sustaining high rice yields due to N dynamics in tropical acid soils not only is economically unsustainable but also causes environmental pollution. The objective of this study was to coapply biochar and urea to improve soil chemical properties and productivity of rice. Biochar (5 t ha−1) and different rates of urea (100%, 75%, 50%, 25%, and 0% of recommended N application) were evaluated in both pot and field trials. Selected soil chemical properties, rice plants growth variables, nutrient use efficiency, and yield were determined using standard procedures. Coapplication of biochar with 100% and 75% urea recommendation rates significantly increased nutrients availability (especially P and K) and their use efficiency in both pot and field trials. These treatments also significantly increased rice growth variables and grain yield. Coapplication of biochar and urea application at 75% of the recommended rate can be used to improve soil chemical properties and productivity and reduce urea use by 25%.


1981 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. Bouton ◽  
M. E. Sumner ◽  
J. E. Giddens

Soil Research ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 737 ◽  
Author(s):  
IJ Rochester ◽  
GA Constable ◽  
DA Macleod

The literature pertaining to N immobilization indicates that ammonium is immobilized in preference to nitrate. Our previous research in an alkaline clay soil has indicated substantial immobilization of nitrate. To verify the preference for immobilization of nitrate or ammonium by the microbial biomass in this and other soil types, the immobilization of ammonium and nitrate from applications of ammonium sulfate and potassium nitrate following the addition of cotton crop stubble was monitored in six soils. The preference for ammonium or nitrate immobilization was highly correlated with each soil's pH, C/N ratio and its nitrification capacity. Nitrate was immobilized in preference to ammonium in neutral and alkaline soils; ammonium was preferentially immobilized in acid soils. No assimilation of nitrate (or nitrification) occurred in the most acid soil. Similarly, little assimilation of ammonium occurred in the most alkaline soil. Two physiological pathways, the nitrate assimilation pathway and the ammonium assimilation pathway, appear to operate concurrently; the dominance of one pathway over the other is indicated by soil pH. The addition of a nitrification inhibitor to an alkaline soil enhanced the immobilization of ammonium. Recovery of 15N confirmed that N was not denitrified, but was biologically immobilized. The immobilization of 1 5 ~ and the apparent immobilization of N were similar in magnitude. The identification of preferential nitrate immobilization has profound biological significance for the cycling of N in alkaline soils.


2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 73
Author(s):  
Arief Vivi Noviati ◽  
Sri Hutami ◽  
Ika Mariska ◽  
Endang Sjamsudin

<p class="p1">Aluminum toxicity is a major constraint to soybean production in acid soils. Since variabilities on Al tolerance in plants are very limited, mutation breeding, and <em>in vitro </em>selection were used to increase the variability. Three soyben genotypes were produced from cultivars Wilis and Sindoro that have been gamma irradiated and selected <em>in vitro </em>for their tolerance to Al on Al and low pH media. These genotypes and their original cultivars were then planted in a greenhouse in an acid soil on May 2001. The results showed that the plant performances were varied, some were shorter and more compact than the original. Based on the yield components, a number of plants from the genotypes showed higher than those of the control cultivars. These plants were considered more tolerant to Al than the original cultivars.</p>


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