Abstract
A 5-month laboratory incubation experiment was conducted to study the immobilization-mineralization of N in soil to which dried or composted 15N labelled ryegrass (Lolium italicum L.) had been added. Cellulose was added to dried ryegrass to give a C/N ratio similar to that of composted ryegrass. Exchangeable NH4 + and NO3 −, HCl-hydrolyzable N forms, microbial biomass N, NaOH-soluble and insoluble N were monitored during incubation. Dried ryegrass brought about a significant increase in total and labelled exchangeable NH4 +, while a rapid immobilization and a subsequent slow release of exchangeable NH4 + was observed in soil with composted ryegrass, together with a resistance to degradation of the labelled humic substances. Compounds synthesized during the composting process and resistant to microbial decomposition probably caused an increase in the amino-acid fraction of soil. These findings suggest that composting can reduce the risk of N losses.
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Zaccheo, P., Crippa, L. & Genevini, P.L. Nitrogen transformation in soil treated with 15N labelled dried or composted ryegrass. Plant Soil 148, 193–201 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00012857
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00012857