Plant and Soil

, Volume 301, Issue 1–2, pp 203–214 | Cite as

Evaluation of laboratory-based measures of soil mineral nitrogen and potentially mineralizable nitrogen as predictors of field-based indices of soil nitrogen supply in potato production

  • Mehdi Sharifi
  • Bernie J. Zebarth
  • David L. Burton
  • Cynthia A. Grant
  • Gregory A. Porter
  • Julia M. Cooper
  • Yves Leclerc
  • Gilles Moreau
  • Walter J. Arsenault
Regular Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Accurate estimation of soil nitrogen (N) supply in the field is required to optimize fertilizer N management and to minimize environmental N losses in humid environments. Laboratory-based measures of N availability were evaluated as predictors of field-based indices of soil N supply within potato production systems. Pre-plant soil samples (0–15 cm) were collected from a series of forty treatments in established potato trials located in Atlantic Canada and Maine, USA. Total plant N uptake at topkill with no fertilizer N applied (PNU0N), PNU0N plus soil mineral N to 30 cm depth at harvest and relative yield were considered as field-based indices of soil N supply. The potentially mineralizable N (N0) was determined by aerobic incubation at 25°C and periodic leaching for 24 weeks. A series of laboratory-based measures of soil N supply were measured in soil samples. Pre-plant soil nitrate or total mineral N at 0–30 cm depth was the best single predictor of PNU0N (r = 0.67 and 0.71, respectively) and relative yield (r = 0.58 and 0.61). The ultraviolet absorbance of 0.01 M NaHCO3 extract at 205 nm (NaHCO3-205) was suitable as a predictor of PNU0N and relative yield in each growing season, however, the relationship between this parameter and PNU0N or relative yield varied somewhat among years. A combination of pre-plant mineral N plus N mineralized in the first 2 weeks period of incubation after re-wetting is proposed as a more robust measure of N availability compared with use of mineral N alone.

Keywords

Field experiment Long term aerobic incubation Plant N uptake Potentially mineralizable N Soil mineral N Solanum tuberosum 

Abbreviations

HKCl–NH4

Extractable NH4–N with 2 M KCl at 100°C

ISNT

Illinois Soil N Test for amino sugar-N

k

Mineralization rate coefficient

KCl–NO3

Extractable NO3–N with 1.7 M KCl at 0–30 cm soil depth prior to planting

KCl–NH4

Extractable NH4–N with 1.7 M KCl at 0–30 cm soil depth prior to planting

MBC

Microbial biomass C by chloroform fumigation extraction method

NaHCO3–200

Ultraviolet absorbance of 0.01 M NaHCO3 extract at 200 nm

NaHCO3-205

Ultraviolet absorbance of 0.01 M NaHCO3 extract at 205 nm

NaHCO3-260

Ultraviolet absorbance of 0.01 M NaHCO3 extract at 260 nm

NaOH-DD

Direct-distillation with NaOH (12.5 M)

N0

Potentially mineralizable N

PNU0N

Total plant N uptake measured at topkill with no fertilizer N application as a field-based index of soil N supply

PNU0N+SMNh

Total plant N uptake measured at topkill with no fertilizer N application plus soil mineral N at 0–30 cm soil depth measured at harvest as a field-based index of soil N supply

POM-C

Particulate organic matter C

POM-N

Particulate organic matter N

Pool-I

The flush in mineral N which occurs in the first 2 week period of incubation at 25°C following rewetting

Pool-II

Cumulative amount of N mineralized between 2 and 24 weeks of incubation at 25°C

Pool-III

N0 minus pool-II

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Notes

Acknowledgments

Funding was provided by the GAPS program of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Technical assistance was provided by H. Blizzard, G. Decker, D. Janes, M. Levesque, K. Pickering, and K. Terry.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2007

Authors and Affiliations

  • Mehdi Sharifi
    • 1
  • Bernie J. Zebarth
    • 1
  • David L. Burton
    • 2
  • Cynthia A. Grant
    • 3
  • Gregory A. Porter
    • 4
  • Julia M. Cooper
    • 2
  • Yves Leclerc
    • 5
  • Gilles Moreau
    • 6
  • Walter J. Arsenault
    • 7
  1. 1.Potato Research CentreAgriculture and Agri-Food CanadaFrederictonCanada
  2. 2.Department of Environmental ScienceNova Scotia Agricultural CollegeTruroCanada
  3. 3.Agriculture and Agri-Food CanadaBrandon Research CentreBrandonCanada
  4. 4.Department of Plant, Soil and Environmental ScienceUniversity of MaineOronoUSA
  5. 5.McCain Foods (Canada)FlorencevilleCanada
  6. 6.McCain Foods (Canada)Grand FallsCanada
  7. 7.Crops and Livestock Research CentreAgriculture and Agri-Food CanadaCharlottetownCanada

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