No abstract

This study compared three dichromate-oxidation methods adapted for use with 100-mL digestion tubes and 40-tube block digester (for controlled heating), the Walkley-Black method, a loss-on-ignition procedure and an automated dry combustion method for the determination of organic carbon in soils of the northwestern Canadian prairie. The Walkley-Black method required a correction factor of 1.40. The modified Tinsley method and the Mebius procedure, adapted for use with 100-mL digestion tubes, recovered 95% and 98%, respectively, of soil carbon against the dry combustion procedure. The presence of elemental carbon in some soils probably caused, at least partially, the slightly incomplete recovery; thermal decomposition of dichromate may not have been accurately corrected for. A dichromate-oxidation procedure with controlled digestion at 135°C gave 100% recovery, but somewhat more variable results. The loss-on-ignition procedure, even when allowance was made for clay content of the soils, was the least satisfactory of the methods tested. All procedures produced correlation coefficients of 0.980 or better against the dry combustion method.

No abstract

The objective of this study was to find a suitable extractant(s) for plant‐available metals in metal contaminated soils. Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris L. ‘Fordhook Giant’) was grown in greenhouse pots on 46 Ontario soils varying in degree of contamination with metals. The soils had been contaminated with metals to varying degrees over a period of years. After 40 days, the plants were harvested and Zn, Cd, Ni, and Cu concentrations were measured. Each soil was extracted with nine different extractants: aqua regia, 0.01M EDTA, 0.005M DTPA, 0.02M NTA, 0.5N CH3COOH, 1N CH3COONH4, 0.6N HCl + 0.05N AlCl3, (COOH)2 + (COONH4)2, and H2O. Zinc, cadmium, nickel, and copper concentrations in Swiss chard were correlated with the amounts of soil Zn, Cd, Ni, and Cu removed by each extractant. Of the nine soil extractants, CH3COONH4 was the best predictor of plant‐available Zn if only extractable Zn and soil pH were included as independent variables in a regression equation. Acetic acid was the best extractant for prediction of both plant‐available Cd and Ni when soil pH was included in the equation. Attempts to find a suitable soil extractant for plant‐available Cu were unsuccessful.

The effects of tillage and preceding legume crops on N flux in the soil–plant system require quantification for developing sustainable cropping systems. We measured changes in soil and plant N under the influence of tillage [no till (NT) vs. conventional tillage (CT)] and previous crops [spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) green manure, and field pea (Pisum sativum L.)]. The study was conducted from 1994 through 1996 on a well‐drained sandy loam soil (coarse‐loamy, mixed, frigid, Typic Cryoboralf) near Fort Vermilion, Alberta (58°23′N, 116°2′W). Nitrogen uptake by wheat was increased by NT and legume crops. At seeding, CT soil had 28 kg ha−1 more NO3–N to 100‐cm depth than NT soil. Apparent net N mineralization in the growing season was 71 and 22 kg N ha−1, respectively, for the NT and CT systems. Previous crop effect on net N mineralization (kg N ha−1) was red clover (56) > field pea (51) > wheat (34). Approximately 18 kg N ha−1 was net‐mineralized from red clover residues compared with insignificant amounts from pea and wheat residues. Microbial biomass turnover's contribution to net N mineralization (28 to 40 kg N ha−1) was increased by NT and previous legume crop. Soluble organic N decreased by 7 kg ha−1 between seeding and maturity for all experimental treatments. The results indicate that N fertilizer recommendations should allow for greater mineralization of organic N under NT than CT and following a legume green manure.

The aim was to compare the effects of controlled-release urea (CRU) vs. conventional urea (hereafter called urea) on seed yield and N (i.e., protein) concentration, and N use efficiency (NUE). The treatments were combinations of tillage system [conventional tillage (CT) and no tillage (NT)], and N source (urea, CRU and a blended mixture), placement method (spring-banded, fall-banded and split application) and application rate (0Á90 kg N ha (1 ). There was no tillage ) fertilizer treatment interaction on the measured crop variables. Seed yield and crop N uptake and, to a lesser degree, seed N concentration generally increased with N application to 90 kg N ha (1 . Fall-banded CRU or urea generally produced lower crop yield and N uptake than spring-banded CRU or urea. Split application of urea (half each at seeding and tillering) resulted in higher seed yield and N concentration in at least 3 of 7 site-years than did CRU and urea applied at a similar rate. A blend of urea and CRU was as effective as spring-banded CRU (at Star City only). Seed yield, N recovery and NUE were higher with spring-banded CRU than urea in 2 site-years, and similar to urea in other site-years. We conclude that for boreal soils of the Canadian prairies, spring-banded CRU is as effective as urea, and in some years more effective, in increasing crop yield and N recovery; however, urea split application can be even more effective in addition to having an advantage in managing risk. TM is used for the convenience of the reader and no endorsement whatsoever of this product is intended.Abbreviations: CRU, controlled-release urea; CT, conventional tillage; FB, fall-banded; NPE, N physiological efficiency; NRE, N recovery efficiency; NT, no tillage; SB, spring-banded For personal use only.

. 2006. Nitrogen release during decomposition of crop residues under conventional and zero tillage. Can. J. Soil Sci. 86: 11-19. The litter-bag method was used in field experiments to determine nitrogen (N) loss patterns from decomposing red clover (Trifolium pratense) green manure (GM), field pea (Pisum sativum), canola (Brassica rapa) and monoculture wheat (Triticum aestivum) residues under conventional and zero tillage. Nitrogen contained in crop residues ranged from 10 kg ha -1 in wheat under both tillage systems to 115 kg ha -1 in clover GM under zero tillage. The patterns of N loss (i.e., release), particularly from GM residues, over 52-wk periods varied with tillage, i.e., residues lost N more rapidly under conventional tillage than under zero tillage in the first 5 to 10 wk after residue placement. Net N immobilization was sometimes observed, particularly under zero tillage. Where net N release occurred, it ranged from 22% of wheat N under conventional tillage to 71% for clover N under conventional tillage; it was positively correlated with residue N concentration and microbial activity, and negatively correlated with C:N and lignin:N ratios in one study period. The amounts of N released were 2 kg ha -1 from wheat, 10 to 25 kg ha -1 from canola, 4 to 18 kg ha -1 from pea, and 46 to 69 kg ha -1 from GM residues. Therefore, when grain is harvested, the remaining crop residues do not release much N to the soil in the first year of decomposition, but the N stored in soil is presumably released in subsequent years.

No abstract