No abstract

Three field experiments were undertaken concurrently at one site to evaluate a range of surface-applied nBTPT-amended urea products (0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5% nBTPT w/w) on NH3 volatilization, grass yield and 15N recovery in the plant-soil system. Each experiment was repeated on five separate occasions over the 1992 growing season to cover a range of weather conditions. Total NH3 loss from unamended-urea ranged from 5.5% in early May to 20.8% in June. The inhibitor was highly effective in reducing ammonia volatilization and delaying the time at which maximum rate of NH3 loss occurred. Over all time periods the % inhibition was 50.4, 82.8, 89.0, 96.5 and 97.0% at the 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5% nBTPT levels respectively. There was no significant difference in the overall % inhibition in ammonia loss at different times suggesting that the effectiveness of the inhibitor was not dependent on climatic conditions. Over all times incorporation of nBTPT at the 0.05% level increased dry-matter yield by 9% compared to urea alone and increased the shoot recovery of N from 66.7% to 80.9%. Nitrogen saved from volatilization was taken up by the plant, however, the subsequent translation into dry-matter yield appeared to be adversely affected at the high inhibitor rates.There was no significant effect of inhibitor on 15N recovery in soil at any depth down to 15 cms. nBTPT significantly increased (p < 0.001) the % N derived from fertilizer (% N dff) in the shoot compared to unamended-urea and increased (p < 0.01) the shoot recovery of tSN from 32% up to 39%. Total 15N recovery in the soil-plant system was increased by up to 17% by amending urea with nBTPT. This urease inhibitor has been shown to improve the efficiency of urea however, its potential for the European market will be dependent on economic factors.

The effect of N‐(n‐butyl) thiophosphoric triamide (nBTPT)‐amended urea on herbage dry‐matter yield and nitrogen offtake by perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) was studied in fifteen grassland experiments at two sites in Northern Ireland between 1994 and 1996. The dry‐matter yield and N offtake with applied urea was only significantly lower than that with applied calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN) on four occasions. On these occasions nBTPT increased the yield from the application of urea making it almost as effective as CAN. There was no evidence of any adverse effect on grass production with repeated applications of nBTPT‐amended urea over a 3‐year period and no indication that its efficacy to reduce NH3, loss from ureatreated swards declined when used repeatedly on the same soil.

SUMMARYA field experiment compared the effects of urea, surface-applied either as a solid or liquid, at a rate of 100 kg N/ha, on ammonia volatilization from an established perennial ryegrass sward on three separate occasions during 1990 at the Agricultural Research Institute, Hillsborough, Northern Ireland. Total NH3 loss over 10 days from prilled urea for each of the three study periods was equivalent to 3.4, 9.1 and 4.4% of N applied. On two occasions, applying urea as a liquid significantly increased NH3 loss compared to prills, whereas on the third occasion there was no significant effect. Increasing the spray volume from 80 to 640 ml/m2 had no significant effect on NH3 volatilization.Surface application of urea as a liquid compared to the prilled form did not lower NH3 volatilization and therefore is not a strategy that would improve the efficiency of urea as a nitrogen source for temperate grassland.