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Title: NITROGEN MINERALIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION FROM COMPOST AND BIOSOLIDS DURING FIELD INCUBATION IN A SANDY SOIL

Author
item HE, Z - UNIV OF FLORIDA
item Alva, Ashok
item YAN, P - UNIV OF FLORIDA
item LI, Y - UNIV OF FLORIDA
item CALVERT, D - UNIF OF FLORIDA
item STOFFELA, P - UNIV OF FLORIDA
item BANKS, D - UNIV OF FLORIDA

Submitted to: Soil Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/1999
Publication Date: 2/1/2000
Citation: HE, Z.L., ALVA, A.K., YAN, P., LI, Y.C., CALVERT, D.V., STOFFELA, P.J., BANKS, D.J. NITROGEN MINERALIZATION AND TRANSFORMATION FROM COMPOST AND BIOSOLIDS DURING FIELD INCUBATION IN A SANDY SOIL. SOIL SCIENCE, 165:161-169. 2000.

Interpretive Summary: Composts and Biosolids are used as soil amendments to improve soil qualities such as soil structure, cation exchange capacity, and nutrient retention capacity. The above amendments contain appreciable amounts of nitrogen in organic form. The decomposition of the organic residue and subsequent release of inorganic nitrogen forms such as ammonium and nitrate eforms, which are plant soluble, is termed as mineralization. Field incubation technique was used to study the mineralization from different organic soil amendments. The mineralized N, during the first year, accounted for 23, 24, and 48% of total N in a yard waste, co-composted waste, and biosolids, respectively. The above provides an indication of the plant available N for the first year following soil application of the respective amendment.

Technical Abstract: Understanding the factors influencing water nutrient transport though soil profile is important for the efficient management of nutrient and irrigation to minimize nutrient leaching below the rootzone. Transport of NO3-N and NH4-N was studied in a Candler fine sand following a heavy loading of a liquid fertilizer containing ammonium nitrate. Both NO3-N and dNH4-N transported quite rapidly (within 3 d) and accumulated above the cla layer at about depth of 2.7 m. The concentrations of NH4-N and NO3-N approached background levels throughout the soil profile by 184 d. More than 50% of ammonium and nitrate contained in the spilled solution leached from the entire depth of soil profile sampled during the first 95 d. The cumulative amount of rainfall during this period was 329 mm, which accounted for 65% of the total rainfall for the entire study period. The concentrations of NH4-N and NO3-N at various depths within the entire soil profile reasonably predicted by the Leaching Estimation and Chemistry Mode (LEACHM) and compared favorably with the measured concentrations, however, there a few places with high concentrations. The cumulative amount of leachate at the bottom of the soil profile predicted by LEACHM represented 90% of total rainfall that occurred during the study period. This demonstrated a substantial potential for leaching of soluble nutrients through the sandy soil profile.