Short Response of Spring Wheat to Tillage, Residue Management and Split Nitrogen Application in a Rice-Wheat System

A ifeld experiment was conducted to study the impact of tillage, crop residue management and nitrogen （N） splitting on spring wheat （Triticum aestivum L.） yield over 2 yr （2010-2012） in a rice （Oryza sativa L.）-wheat system in northwestern Pakistan. The experiment was conducted as split plot arranged in randomized complete blocks design with three replications. Treatments comprised six tillage and residue managements：zero tillage straw retained （ZTsr）, zero tillage straw burnt （ZTsb）, reduced tillage straw incorporated （RTsi）, reduced tillage straw burnt （RTsb）, conventional tillage straw incorporated （CTsi）, and conventional tillage straw burnt （CTsb） as main plots and N （200 kg ha-1） was applied as split form viz., control （no nitrogen＆no splitting, N0S0）;2 splits of total N, half at sowing and half at the 1st irrigation （i.e., 20 d after sowing （DAS）） （NS1）;3 splits of total N, 1/3 at sowing, 1/3 at the 1st irrigation, and 1/3 at the 2nd irrigation （NS2）;4 splits of total N, 1/4 at sowing, 1/4 at the 1st irrigation, 1/4 at the 2nd irrigation （45 DAS）, and 1/4 at the 3rd irrigation （70 DAS） （NS3）;and 4 splits of total N, 1/4 at the 1st irrigation, 1/4 at the 2nd irrigation, 1/4 at the 3rd irrigation, and 1/4 at the 4th irrigation （95DAS） （NS4） as sub plots. The results showed that the most pikes m-2, grains/spike, 1 000-grain weight, grain yield, and N use efifciency （NUE） were obtained at zero tillage, straw retained and 4 splits application of total N （i.e., at sowing 20, 45 and 70 d after sowing）. The results indicated that ZTsr with application of 200 kg N ha-1 in 4 equal splits viz. at sowing 20, 45 and 70 d after sowing is an appropriate strategy that enhanced wheat yield （7 436-7 634 kg ha-1） and N efifciency （28.6-29.5 kg kg-1） in rice-wheat system.

Does the Total Soil N Determined by Kjeldahl Method Include Fixed NH4^+?

Forty soils from top layer (0-20 cm) were sampled in different regions of China and Kjeldahl, HF-Kjeldahl and double treatment methods were used to determine total N, total N plus fixed ammonium, and total N and the residual fixed ammonium left in soil after determination of total N, respectively, to evaluate if Kjeldahl’s method could include the fixed N by soil minerals. The fixed N by soil minerals was measured by Silva-Bremner procedure to make comparison. Results showed that total N determined by Kjeldahl’s method averaged 1.622 g kg-1, while that by HF- Kjeldahl’s method 1.633 g kg-1, and that by double procedure 1.666 g kg-1. Obviously results obtained by the last two methods, particularly the double treatment method, were higher than Kjeldahl’s, showing that Kjeldahl’s method could not or not fully release N fixed by 2:1 minerals in soil, and therefore the determined results would not be the true “total N” for soils that contained large amount of the fixed N. The mineral fixedN averaged 166 mg kg-1, accounting for 10.1% of the total N while the residual fixed N amounted to 30.4 mg kg-1, equivalent to 1.9% of the total N or 18.3% of the total fixed N. The residual fixed N was correlated neither to organic matter nor to total N, but closely related to the total fixed N with a correlation coefficient of 0.598 (n=40), showing that the fixed N was the sole source of the residues. Soils having high residues of the fixed N were just those containing high fixed N, and soils containing high fixed N were just those containing high amount of 2:1 minerals. As a result, Kjeldahl’s method could not give a true value of the total N for such soils. However, for those containing small or little amount of 2:1 minerals, there was no significant difference in results measured by these methods.

The new Caribbean Nitrogen Index to assess nitrogen dynamics in vegetable production systems in southwestern Puerto Rico

Nutrient loss from agricultural fields is one of the main factors influencing surface-and ground-water quality.Typical fertilizer nitrogen(N)consumption rates in vegetable production systems and horticultural crops in Puerto Rico fluctuate between 112 and 253 kg N/ha.The nitrogen use efficiency of vegetable crops is low,increasing the potential for nitrogen losses and high residual soil nitrate content.Quantification of residual soil N and N losses to the environment can be a difficult task.Simulation models such as the USDA-ARS N Index can be used to identify the relative magnitude of varying N-loss pathways and to identify best management practices.Field studies were conducted to quantify residual soil N and crop N removal,and to validate the Nitrogen Index in onion,tropical pumpkin and tomato production systems in the Lajas Valley in southwestern Puerto Rico.Relationships between observed and simulated values were determined to examine the capability of the model for evaluating N losses.There was good correlation between observed and predicted values for residual soil N(r=0.88)and crop N removal(r=0.99)(p<0.05).In the production systems evaluated,the N volatilization losses ranged from 1 to 4 kg N/ha,the denitrification losses ranged from 18 to 46 kg N/ha,the leaching losses ranged from 155 to 779 kg N/ha,and the residual soil nitrate ranged from 64 to 401 kg N/ha.The N use efficiency ranged from 15% to 39%.The results obtained showed that the Nitrogen Index tool can be a useful tool for evaluating N transformations in vegetable production systems of Puerto Rico's semi-arid zone.