The responses of two genotypes of white clover to addition of lime to an acid permanent grassland soil

Abstract

The response of white clover to addition of lime was studied in pots with an acid permanent grassland soil (pH 4.1), and a comparison made between a commercial cultivar (Blanca) and a white clover indigenous to the acid soil. The yield of both plants increased markedly with addition of lime, but the native genotype reached maximum yield at a lower pH. In both cases, however, only relatively small adjustments of pH were required to produce considerable increases in yield. The addition of lime reduced the amounts of A1 and Mn extracted by lhi ammonium acetate and 0 . 0 1~ CaC12, and increased exchangeable Ca. It was suggested that, although plant contents of Mn were high and those of Ca low, the effect of lime was not on the clover plant per se but on nodulation and the supply of N through symbiotic fixation. When no lime was added, both plants contained concentrations of N below that suggested as critical, and had only limited numbers of nodules on their roots. Excess A1 and/or Mn, or insufficient Ca may have been responsible for inhibition of nodulation at the low pH of the unlimed soil. Although the indigenous plant also grew poorly when no lime was added, it displayed a number of characteristics which may assist its performance and persistence under acid conditions in the field.

Soil Chemical Factors Limiting Plant Root Growth

“…Differential tolerance to low pH has been reported in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) (Jarvis, 1984) and soybean (Reddy and Dunn, 1987). Poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrina Wilde.…”

Does liming grasslands increase biomass productivity without causing detrimental impacts on net greenhouse gas emissions?

“…Many studies e.g. Jarvis (1984) and Poozesh et al (2010) reported that liming also increased the total number of grass species, the proportion of di-cotyledons and the nodulation of white clover and thereby, increased N through symbiotic fixation. In contrast, Pavlu et al ( 2021) reported no difference in species richness due to previously applied liming.…”

Laboratory studies of effects of lime on soluble Al, Ca, Mg and Mn in a pelostagnogley soil

“…Large responses in the growth of white clover were recorded when p H was adjusted by the addition of lime to this soil (Jarvis, 19846). Bulk samples of the soil were collected to a depth of 15 cm from a number of randomly chosen positions within a 10 mz area of permanent grassland (AGRI, Permanent Grassland Department, North Wyke, Devon; Grid Ref SX 650994) which had been undisturbed for at least 37 years.…”