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Influence of fertilizers on nitrogen mineralization and utilization in the rhizosphere of wheat

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Abstract

Plant roots and microorganisms play an important role in the soil N cycle and plant N nutrition through the release of extracellular enzymes. In the present greenhouse pot experiment, wheat (Triticum aestivum) seedlings were grown in a fluvo-aquic soil (Udifluvent) to investigate N mineralization and utilization in the rhizosphere of wheat. The soil received chemical fertilizer (15N-labeled urea), chemical fertilizer plus manure (common urea + 15N-labeled swine manure) or no N. Plant roots were separated from the soil with a nylon cloth, and 1-mm increments of soil moving laterally away from roots were analyzed for N, microbial C, and the activities of invertase, urease and protease. Chemical fertilizer plus manure promoted wheat growth and N absorption significantly compared with chemical fertilizer. 15N from both chemical fertilizer and swine manure accumulated significantly in the rhizosphere soil within 5 mm of the roots. Fertilized N could thus move easily laterally towards roots and there was no indication that movement through the soil limited plant N supply. A large proportion of fertilizer N was lost from the soil during the wheat growing period, and N utilization efficiency was 24% for chemical fertilizer and 30% for swine manure. In addition, faster rates of N mineralization, larger amounts of microbial C, and increased activities of invertase, urease and protease occurred in the rhizosphere compared with other parts of the soil. There was a significant correlation between microbial C and N mineralization rate (r = 0.968, P < 0.01) in the whole soil. Microbial C also showed significant positive correlations with activities of invertase (r = 0.892, P < 0.01) and protease (r = 0.933, P < 0.01). Further study showed that adding manure into soil increased microbial C and the activities of invertase and protease; adding urea stimulated urease activity in the same soil. Changes in soil enzyme activities in response to N fertilizers could be considered indicators for different fertilizer managements.

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Acknowledgements

This research work was supported by State Key Development Program of Basic Research of China (Project 2007CB109304). We thank the anonymous reviewer very much for the English review.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resource and Environment, Southwest China University, Chongqing, 400716, China

    Ling Yuan & Jianguo G. Huang

  2. Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China

    Ling Yuan

  3. Institute of Resource and Environment, Academy of Henan Agricultural Science, Zhengzhou, 450000, China

    Dejun J. Bao

  4. Tobacco Research Institute, Yuxi, 653100, Yunnan, China

    Yan Jin & Yuhong H. Yang

  5. College of Natural Resource and Environment, Southwest China University, Chongqing, 400716, People’s Republic of China

    Jianguo G. Huang

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  1. Ling Yuan
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  2. Dejun J. Bao
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  3. Yan Jin
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  4. Yuhong H. Yang
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  5. Jianguo G. Huang
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Correspondence to Jianguo G. Huang.

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Responsible Editor: Elizabeth (Liz) A. Stockdale.

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Yuan, L., Bao, D.J., Jin, Y. et al. Influence of fertilizers on nitrogen mineralization and utilization in the rhizosphere of wheat. Plant Soil 343, 187–193 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-010-0640-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-010-0640-7

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