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Nitrate enhances N2O emission more than ammonium in a highly acidic soil

  • SOILS, SEC 5 • SOIL AND LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY • RESEARCH ARTICLE
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is produced naturally in soils through microbial processes of nitrification and denitrification. In recent years, the long-term application of nitrogen-heavy fertilizers has led to the acidification of tea orchard soils with high N2O emission. The present research aimed at finding out which process (nitrification or denitrification) dominates in N2O production, whether certain fertilizer managements could reduce N2O emission, and the effects of fertilizer management on the abundance of functional genes.

Materials and methods

Two nitrification inhibitors, 3, 4-dimethylpyrazole phosphate (DMPP) and dicyandiamide (DCD), combined with different N fertilizers (ammonium sulfate and potassium nitrate) were applied to highly acidic tea orchard soil in an aerobic incubation experiment. Both amoA and nosZ gene abundances from different treatments were determined by quantitative PCR. An anaerobic nitrate effect test was carried out using C2H2 inhibition method.

Results and discussion

The application of nitrate fertilizers significantly (P < 0.05) enhanced total N2O emission. A linear regression analysis between total N2O emission and average nitrate contents indicated that denitrification is the dominant source of N2O in this tea orchard soil. In the anaerobic incubation, no significant difference of N2O emission was observed between KNO3 and no KNO3 treatments before 96 h. Quantitative PCR revealed lower copy numbers of nosZ in nitrate-associated fertilizer-treated soils than the soils from other treatments. Compared with the control, ammonium fertilizers with DCD or DMPP significantly (P < 0.05) inhibited nitrate production as well as N2O.

Conclusions

These results showed that denitrification is the dominant source of N2O in this highly acidic soil. Nitrate addition could significantly inhibit the abundance of nitrous oxide reductase, therefore causing high N2O emission. The application of ammonium fertilizers with DCD or DMPP could significantly reduce N2O emission, possibly due to the effective inhibition of nitrate production.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Science Foundation of China (no. 31071869, 31272256, 41301251). The author greatly appreciates the skilled technical assistance and statistical guidance provided by Professor Yongguan Zhu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Sub-tropic Soil and Plant Nutrition, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Ying Huang & Huaiying Yao

  2. Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, 361021, China

    Ying Huang, Yaying Li & Huaiying Yao

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  1. Ying Huang
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  2. Yaying Li
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Correspondence to Huaiying Yao.

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Responsible editor: Yanfen Wang

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Huang, Y., Li, Y. & Yao, H. Nitrate enhances N2O emission more than ammonium in a highly acidic soil. J Soils Sediments 14, 146–154 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-013-0785-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-013-0785-0

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