Abstract
Three separate greenhouse experiments were conducted to determine the bi-directional N transfer in a peanut and rice intercropping system using the direct 15N foliar feeding technique at N application rates of 15, 75 and 150 kg ha−1. When peanut was used as the 15N donor plant, the atom % 15N in the rice shoot was consistently higher than in control rice, indicating that 15N transfer from peanut to the associated rice crop occurred. The percentage of N transfer (%NT) from peanut to the associated rice was 9.9%, 5.7% and 4.2% at the three N application rates, respectively. The N transferred from peanut to rice was 22.6, 15.5 and 8.2 mg N plant−1, accounting for 10.9%, 6.4% and 3.1% of the total N accumulated in rice plants at the three N application rates, respectively. When rice functioned as the 15N donor plant, the %NTs were 4.4%, 2.1% and 1.4% and represented about 5.2%, 3.4% and 2.4% of total N accumulated in peanut shoot at the three N application rates, respectively. The net directional N transfer was from peanut to rice and this was calculated by the difference in the bi-directional transfers and was mainly due to peanut root decomposition. Thus, the %NTs were 10.7%, 6.3%, 5.1% and 3.5% on 28 July (the day on which peanut shoots were cut), 8 August, 28 August and 8 September, respectively, and correspondingly, the N transferred from peanut to rice represented 6.0%, 5.8%, 5.1% and 3.2% of the total N accumulated in the rice plants.
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Acknowledgements
We gratefully acknowledge the National Nature Science Foundation of China (project No. 30070446 and 30200036) for financially supporting this research work. We greatly thank Dr Miller at Rothamsted Research, UK for his suggestions and his careful revision of the English.
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Shen, Q., Chu, G. Bi-directional nitrogen transfer in an intercropping system of peanut with rice cultivated in aerobic soil. Biol Fertil Soils 40, 81–87 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-004-0737-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-004-0737-3