Surface Application of Lime–Silicate–Phosphogypsum Mixtures for Improving Tropical Soil Properties and Irrigated Common Bean Yield

Abstract

Core Ideas Soil acidity limits crop production in tropical regions. Soil amendments mixture can be a strategy to alleviate subsoil acidity. Subsoil profile acidity reduces common bean grain yield. The movement of surface‐applied lime to subsurface soil layers is slow, and, consequently, liming requires a long period of time to become effective. Thus, it is important to develop strategies to increase the efficiency of acidity amendments practices in order to improve the chemical properties of tropical acid soils in no‐till systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of applying mixtures of silicate, lime, and phosphogypsum to the soil surface in tropical no‐till systems on soil chemical properties and leaf nutrient concentrations, yield components, and grain yield of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). A field experiment was performed during two growing seasons (2004 and 2005) in a field with Typic Acrustox soils. Among the treatments, the silicate–phosphogypsum mixture was more effective for ameliorating soil acidity at a depth of 0 to 0.20 m over a short period of time (6 mo). The application of soil amendments separately or in mixtures increased the soil pH to 0.40 m depth 18 mo after application. Combining the surface application of phosphogypsum with lime and/or silicate effectively increased the NO3−–N, SO42−–S, and Ca2+ levels at soil depths of up to 0.40 m over a relatively short period of time, resulting in a higher base saturation in the deepest layer evaluated (0.20–0.40 m). Compared with the control treatment, the mixtures of soil acidity amendments and phosphogypsum resulted in greater Ca, S, and Si concentrations in the leaves and increased the grain yield of the common bean by >22% over two growing seasons. Long‐term studies are required to establish the frequency of reapplication and the residual effects of soil amendment mixtures.

Impacts of Phosphogypsum, Soluble Fertilizer and Lime Amendment of Acid Soils on the Bioavailability of Phosphorus and Sulphur under Lucerne (Medicago sativa)

“…The pH (CaCl 2 ) results in this study showed an opposite trend to pH (H 2 O), especially for unlimed MO soil as its pH (CaCl 2 ) increased slightly with PG. This confirmed what was reported recently about the increase of soil pH at depths of 0 to 5 cm by Crusciol et al [ 27 ], after the surface application of phosphogypsum. Further, this result corroborates early reports by Toma et al [ 4 ], who found that gypsum application decreased pH (H 2 O) while pH (CaCl 2 ) did not.…”

“…Phosphogypsum is used in agriculture all over the world, for example in Brazil, Spain, Australia, India, Pakistan, USA and Egypt [ 18 , 19 , 20 ], either as soil amendment under the category “Calcium sulphate” or as fertilizer [ 21 ]. Several benefits of PG application in agriculture have been reported worldwide for saline/sodic soils [ 22 , 23 , 24 ] or acidic soils [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ]. However, research on PG application on acid soils has mostly focused on its effects in alleviating the toxic effects of high Al bioavailability or used in providing calcium for crops [ 27 ].…”

“…Several benefits of PG application in agriculture have been reported worldwide for saline/sodic soils [ 22 , 23 , 24 ] or acidic soils [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ]. However, research on PG application on acid soils has mostly focused on its effects in alleviating the toxic effects of high Al bioavailability or used in providing calcium for crops [ 27 ]. Studies examining PG effects on soil fertility in general and on P and S availability in acid soils (pH ≤ 5) for legumes are limited; to date, there has been no research on PG use in NZ grasslands.…”

Gypsum Rates and Splitting Under No-Till: Soil Fertility, Corn Performance, Accumulated Yield and Profits

“…In NT, Poaceae such as corn (Zea mays L.) (Caires et al 2011a) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) (Vicensi et al 2016) have shown increased yields after gypsum application. The Fabaceae crops, such as soybean (Costa and Crusciol 2016) and common bean (Crusciol et al 2016;…”

Influence of gypsum application on sugarcane yield and soil chemical properties in the brazilian Cerrado

“…Agricultural or mineral gypsum (CaSO 4 .2H 2 O) is being widely used as source of nutrients such as calcium and sulfur and to adjust aluminum toxicity in the deeper soil layers (Caires et al, 2006;Nora and Amado, 2013), after correction of the pH in the surface layer by liming. Some studies have indicated that gypsum is an important complement to liming in the presence of high Al 3+ levels in the subsoil (Soratto and Crusciol, 2008;Caires et al, 2010;Crusciol et al, 2016). Thus, gypsum is considered a subsurface amendment for root growth, reducing toxic levels of aluminum and increasing calcium levels in the soil profile (Caires et al, 2002;Pauletti et al, 2014).…”