Nitrogen Mineralization from Animal Manures and Its Relation to Organic N Fractions

Laboratory aerobic incubation was conducted for 161 d to study N mineralization and the changes of organic N fractions of nine different manures（3 chicken manures, 3 pig manures and 3 cattle manures） from different farms/locations. Results indicated that significant（P〈0.01 or P〈0.001） difference existed in N mineralization between manures. The rapid N mineralization in manures occurred during 56 to 84 d of incubation. First order exponential model can be used to describe N mineralization from chicken manures and pig manures, while quadratic equation can predict mineralization of organic N from cattle manures. An average of 21, 19 and 13% added organic N from chicken manure, pig manure and cattle manure was mineralized during 161 d of incubation. Amino acid-N was the main source of N mineralization. The changes of amino acid-N together with ammonium N could explain significantly 97 and 96% of the variation in mineralized N from manured soils and manures. Amino acid-N and ammonium N are two main N fractions in determining N mineralization potential from manures. Amino acid-N contributed more to the mineralized N than ammonium N.

Sunflower response to potassium fertilization and nutrient requirement estimation

Field experiments were conducted in oil and edible sunflower to study the effects of potassium(K) fertilization on achene yield and quality, and to estimate the nutrient internal efficiency(IE) and nutrient requirement in sunflower production. All trials in edible sunflower and 75% trials in oil sunflower showed positive yield responses to K fertilization. Compared with control without K fertilization, the application of K increased achene yield by an average of 406 kg ha–1for oil sunflower and 294 kg ha–1for edible sunflower. K application also increased 1 000-achene weight and kernel rate of both oil and edible sunflower. K fertilization improved the contents of oil, oleic acid, linoleic acid and linolenic acid in achenes of oil sunflower, and increased contents of oil, total unsaturated fatty acid and protein in achenes of edible sunflower. The average agronomic efficiency of K fertilizer was 4.0 for oil sunflower and 3.0 kg achene kg–1K2O for edible sunflower. The average IE of N, P and K under balanced NPK fertilization was 22.9, 82.8, and 9.9 kg kg–1for oil sunflower, and 27.3, 138.9, and 14.3 kg kg–1for edible sunflower. These values were equivalent to 45.5, 14.1, and 108.1 kg, and 39.0, 8.0, and 71.7 kg of N, P and K, respectively, in above-ground dry matter required for production per ton of achenes. The average harvest index of N, P and K was 0.47, 0.56 and 0.05 kg kg–1in oil sunflower, and 0.58, 0.58 and 0.14 kg kg–1in edible sunflower.

Denitrification in a Soil under Wheat Crop in the Humid Pampas of Argentina

The need to accurately estimate gaseous nitrogen losses from soils is required to have a better understanding of the processes involved as well as soil and environmental conditions, and management practices contributing to these emissions. The objective was to quantify the denitrification rate using undisturbed cores with acetylene, as related to nitrogen (N) fertilization rate in a spring wheat crop (Triticum aestivum L.) under conventional tillage. Soil denitrification losses remained low throughout most of the growing season, when water-filled pore space (WFPS) was below 60%, ranging from 0.79 to 447.3 g N2O-N ha-1•day-1 in the fertilized plot and was less than 47.3 g N2O-N ha-1•day-1 in the control. Denitrification rates were the highest when N fertilizer was applied after frequent and intensive rain. A good correlation was found between the logarithm of the daily denitrification rate and WFPS (r = 0.67, n = 90);however the NO3-N concentration was not a good indicator (r = 0.21, n = 90). Cumulative N2O-N losses by denitrification averaged 3.5 and 0.9 kg N2O-N ha-1 in the fertilized and unfertilized treatment, respectively, during a period of 4 months this difference was not significant. Most N2O-N losses occurred early in the spring;therefore sampling schedules need to focus on this period.

Effect of fertilization patterns on the assemblage of weed communities in an upland winter wheat field

Aims Understanding the response of farmland weed community assembly to fertilization is important for designing better nutrient management strategies in integrated farmland ecological systems.Many studies have focused on weed characteristics,mainly crop–weed competition responses to fertilization or weed communities alone.However,weed community assembly in association with crop growth is poorly understood in the agroecosystems,but is important for the determination of integrated weed management.Biodiversity promotes ecosystem productivity in the grassland,but whether it applies to the agroecosystems is unclear.Based on an 11-year field experiment,the cumulative effects of different fertilization patterns on the floristic composition and species diversity of farmland weed communities along with wheat growth in a winter wheat–soybean rotation were investigated.Methods The field trial included five fertilization patterns with different combinations of N,P and K fertilizers.Species composition and diversity of weed communities,aboveground plant biomass and nutrient accumulation of weeds and winter wheat,light penetration to the ground surface and wheat yield were measured at each plot in 2009 and 2010.Multivariate analysis,regression and analysis of variance were used to analyze the responses of these parameters to the different fertilization treatments.Important Findings Four dominant weeds(Galium aparine L.,Veronica persica Poir.,Vicia sativa L.and Geranium carolinianum L.)accounted for~90%of the total weed density in the 2 years of experimental duration.The residual weed community assembly was influenced primarily by topsoil available nutrients in the order P>N>K.Competition for nutrients and solar radiation between crops and weeds was the main indirect effect of fertilization on the changes in weed community composition and species diversity.The indices of species diversity(species richness,Shannon–Wiener,Pielou and Simpson indices)showed significant linear relationships with wheat yield.The balanced fertilization treatment was more efficient at inhibiting the potential growth of weeds because of solar radiation being intercepted by wheat.These results support the conclusion that wheat yield is favored by balanced fertilization,whereas the weed community is favored by PK fertilization in terms of density and diversity.However,the negative effects on wheat yield may be compromised by simultaneous positive effects of weed communities in the fertilization treatments,for instance,the NP and NK treatments,which are intermediate in terms of increasing wheat production and to a level maintaining a diverse community.