An empirical model for estimating nitrate leaching as affected by crop type and the long-term N fertilizer rate

Abstract. An empirical model was developed for prediction of annual average nitrate leaching as affected by the long-term rate of N fertilization and crop type. The effect of N fertilization was estimated from annual values of nitrate leaching obtained from two Danish investigations of drainage from pipe drains with four rates of N fertilization on a loamy sand and sandy clay loam from 1973-89. The effect of crop at normal N fertilization was estimated from 147 observations of annual nitrate leaching obtained from field measurements. The nitrate leaching model consists of a relative N fertilization submodel and an absolute submodel for specific combinations of crop, soil and drainage at the normal rate of N fertilization. The relative submodel is Y/Y _lN= exp[0.7l(N/ N₁– I)], where Y is the nitrate leaching (kg N/ha per year) at fertilization rate N , and Y _IN and N₁ are the corresponding values at the normal rate of N fertilization. The relative submodel is valid for cereals, root crops and grass leys fertilized with mineral fertilizer at N/N ₁ < 1.5, and on the prerequisite that the fertilization rate N has been constant for some years. To illustrate the use of the relative leaching submodel, estimated values of Y _IN corrected to mean annual drainage for 1970 to 1990 in Denmark for spring cereals and grass on sandy and loamy soils are given as input to the relative leaching submodel. The model can be used for sandy to loamy soils to estimate the mean nitrate leaching over a number of years.     

Effect of nitrogen inputs to cereals on nitrate leaching from sandy soils

Abstract. The effect of nitrogen fertilizer inputs to cereal crops on nitrate leaching after harvest was tested on 21 experiments on sandy soils in England. At small nitrogen fertilizer rates leaching increased very little with increasing inputs, while at high rates more than half of any additional nitrogen could be accounted for as increase in nitrate leached. In many cases the response fitted two straight lines. Nitrogen offtake in grain also fitted two straight lines, with a form which complemented the leaching response. The gradient averaged 0.52 kg N in grain for every additional 1kg N applied below the break point, but only 0.05 kg/kg above. The break points were generally close to or above the economic optimum N input. The effect of inputs on leaching could he quantitatively related to nitrogen offtake in grain, assuming a constant ratio of nitrogen in grain to total nitrogen uptake. The results show that fields receiving N inputs in excess of the economic optimum cause a disproportionately large nitrate loss. However because of uncertainty in predicting the break point in advance, modest further reduction in leaching will occur by reducing inputs to somewhat below the expected economic optimum.     

Nitrate leaching and adsorption in a Kenyan Nitisol

Abstract. ¹⁵N labelled NH₄NO₃ (fertilizer N) was applied at a rate of 50 kg N ha^–1 to an Ando-Humic Nitisol and two maize crops grown on it. About 20 months later, soil cores were taken to a depth of 2.5 m. Leached fertilizer N was found between 1.4 m and 1.8 m deep and was delayed relative to net drainage by between 4.2 and 4.9 pore volumes. Anion exchange capacity (AEC) increased ten-fold down the profile, up to 2.9 cmol_ckg^–1. The delay to fertilizer N leaching was predicted to be between 4.1 and 5.3 pore volumes when calculated from the AEC and from an equation relating delay due to AEC in laboratory columns of repacked soil obtained by Wong et al. (1990b). It was concluded that the nitrate leaching delay equation was also valid in undisturbed field profiles. Two concentration maxima for mineral N were found, which did not usually coincide with the fertilizer N and were thought to result from mineralization of soil organic matter and plant residues at the end of each season. The delay equation overestimated their leaching delay but the results were considered close enough to support the hypothesis for their formation.     

Potassium retention and leaching in an organic crop rotation on loamy sand as affected by contrasting potassium budgets

Abstract. In organic farming, potassium (K) deficiency may become a significant problem due to nutrient import restrictions. Knowledge about potential K leaching in systems with different K budgets is therefore important for effective agricultural management. We investigated the effect of four organic farming systems (two livestock densities in combination with two types of organic manure) on crop yields, K leaching and K balances in a six course crop rotation from 1993/94 to 1997/98. Average K concentrations in soil water extracted by means of ceramic suction cups at 1 m depth were 0.6 mg K l⁻¹ corresponding to a K leaching loss of 1.5 kg ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ which was less than expected from values reported in the literature. Variation in K budgets from −12 to +30 kg ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ did not affect K leaching. In an additional experiment with application of 988 kg K ha⁻¹ as KCl, K leaching accounted for only 0.2% of the applied K although 40% of the accompanying Cl was leached. The main part of the applied K was retained in the topsoil. It was concluded that K leaching was a result of the fertilizer history rather than of the current K budget.     

Nitrate leaching losses under Miscanthus grass planted on a silty clay loam soil

Abstract. Nitrate leaching under newly planted Miscanthus grass was measured for three years. The crop received either no fertilizer-N or an annual spring application of 60 kg or 120 kg N ha^-1. During three winters soil water was collected from porous cup probes installed 90 cm deep. Nitrate leaching was calculated from the mean drain flow recorded in two drain gauges multiplied by the mean nitrate-N concentration in the soil water solutions collected. In the first year soil water nitrate concentrations were high on all treatments and N losses were 154, 187 and 228 kg ha^-1 respectively on the unfertilized treatment and those that received 60 or 120 kg N ha^-1. Leaching losses in the second and third years were, in turn, 8, 24 and 87 kg ha^-1 and 3, 11 and 30 kg ha^-1 for the unfertilized treatment and for the 60 and 120 kg N ha^-1 treatments respectively. Leaching losses were closer to those recorded under extensively managed grassland than arable land. The large losses in the first year were probably due to the previous agricultural management at the site and excessive inputs of N on the fertilized plots. In the second and third year, lower drainage volumes may also have influenced losses. The results show that Miscanthus , once established, can lead to low levels of nitrate leaching and improved groundwater quality compared with growing arable crops.     

The effects of crop husbandry and nitrogen fertilizer on nitrate leaching from a shallow limestone soil growing a five course combinable crop rotation

Abstract. Nitrogen (N) leaching losses from a shallow limestone soil growing a five course combinable croprotation (oilseed rape, wheat, peas, wheat, barley) were measured from 1990 until 1995 using porous ceramic cups, at 60 cm depth, and drainage estimates. The crops were grown with three husbandry systems and two levels of N fertilizer. The husbandry systems were designed to reflect local practice (Standard), the best possible techniques to reduce N loss (Protective) and an Intermediate system which was a compromise between the two. Nitrogen was applied at full and half recommended rates. Drainage started during September in four years and November in one year, with above average drainage in three years. Losses of N were largest after peas (58 kg/ha) and oilseed rape (42 kg/ha), and least (17 kg/ha) before peas sown in spring after a cover crop. Over five years, the Protective management system, which used early sowing and shallow cultivation wherever possible, lost least N (31 kg/ha/y) and the Standard system, with conventional drilling dates and ploughing as the primary cultivation, lost most (49 kg/ha/y). Halving the N fertilizer decreased N loss by 11 kg/ha/y, averaged over the rotation. None of the treatments gave mean drainage water nitrate concentrations of less than 50 mg/l, averaged over the five years. Changes to arable cropping alone will not eliminate the need for other measures to control nitrate concen-trations in public drinking water supplies.     

Nitrate leaching losses and their control in a mixed farm system in the Cotswold Hills, England

Abstract. Nitrate leaching was measured for four years at the Royal Agricultural College 's Coates Farm in the Cotswolds, England. Coates is a typical Cotswold mixed farm with thin, well-drained calcareous soils especially prone to leaching. Over the duration of this study there were dairy, sheep and arable enterprises on the farm. A 'Farm Gate' nitrogen (N) budget was constructed. Small 120 m × 20 m 'farmlets' were sited in ten fields across the farm, covering all parts of the rotation, as the sites for detailed measurements. Each farmlet received the same management as the rest of the field in which they were situated. Using ceramic probes inserted to 60 cm, soil water was sampled every two weeks throughout the winter drainage season. The annual drainage varied from 135 mm under grassland in 1996/7 to 600 mm under cereals in 1998/9. Average N losses by leaching were determined mostly by rainfall and were 65 kg N ha^–1 yr^–1, accounting for 25% of the N inputs. Especially leaky parts of the rotation were the ploughing out of a lucerne ley and the grazing of stubble turnips with sheep, both typical Cotswold farm practices. The research highlights some of the difficulties in developing practicable, profitable management practices to decrease nitrate losses.     

Nitrate leaching after cut grass/clover leys as affected by time of ploughing

Abstract. Nitrate leaching after one year of a cut grass/clover ley was measured in two succeeding years to investigate how the postponing of ploughing leys from early to late autumn or spring, in combination with spring or winter cereals affected leaching of nitrate. The experiment was conducted as three field trials, two on a coarse sandy soil and one on a sandy loam soil. For calculation of nitrate leaching, soil water samples were taken using ceramic suction cups. The experiments started in spring in a first year ley and ended in spring three years later. Total nitrate leaching for the three year periods for each trial ranged between 160–254 and 189–254 kg N/ha on the coarse sand and 129–233 kg N/ha on the sandy loam. The results showed that winter wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) did not have the potential for taking up the mineralized N in autumn after early autumn ploughing of grass/clover leys, and that the least leaching was generally found when ploughing was postponed until spring, and when winter rye ( Secale cereale L.) was grown as the second crop rather than spring barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.). Nevertheless, leaching was generally high in the winter period even when winter rye was grown. On these soil types ploughing out should be postponed, whenever possible, to spring. Crop systems that maximize the utilization of mineralized N and thereby minimize nitrate leaching need to be further developed. Based on N balances, the data were further used to estimate the biological N fixation by the clover.     

氮肥用量和水分淋溶对土壤和小麦氮素平衡的影响

:利用标记15N尿素研究不同施肥量和淋溶对小麦生长的影响 ,结果表明水分淋溶对小麦生长的影响不明显 ;地上部生物产量与肥料利用率成正相关 .小麦根系越发达 ,收集到的淋溶液越少 ,损失的肥料N越少 .施用相同量的氮肥 ,淋溶处理的氮肥利用率略低于正常浇水的处理     

Nitrate leaching from a shallow limestone soil growing a five course combinable crop rotation: the effects of crop husbandry and nitrogen fertilizer rate on losses from the second complete rotation

Abstract. The field experiment tested the effects of three management systems on nitrate leaching losses from a five crop rotation on the Lincolnshire Limestone in Eastern England. The Standard system was similar to farming practice in the area. The Protective system integrated individual practices which were expected to decrease nitrate losses (e.g. cover crops, cultivation delay in autumn and reduced intensity, manipulation of drilling dates and, during the first few years of the first rotation, straw incorporation). The Intermediate system was a compromise between the two extremes. All crops were grown at full and half recommended nitrogen rates. This paper reports data from the second full rotation (years 6–10), thus enabling the medium-term effects of continued management practices to be investigated. Average annual nitrogen leaching losses at 49, 35 and 25 kg N ha^–1 for Standard, Intermediate and Protective systems, respectively, were significantly different. The respective flow-weighted average NO₃ concentrations were 167, 131 and 96 mg l^–1. Thus, adopting nitrate retentive practices through the rotation was able to substantially decrease losses. The Protective system was as effective as in the first full rotation, demonstrating that 10 years of such practices had not failed in the medium-term. However, continued minimal cultivation caused serious problems of weed build-up. The cost of weed control and yield loss caused by grass weeds made cereal production uneconomic in some years. Thus, rules for nitrate leaching control need to be tempered with practical and agronomic considerations. Also, few (if any) management techniques tested guaranteed that nitrate losses would be small in all years, as the interaction with winter weather, particularly rainfall, was of vital importance.     

Nitrate leaching from a small catchment in central England

Abstract. Flow and nitrate concentrations were measured weekly for four years at twelve stream-water monitoring sites in a catchment in the English Midlands designated as a Nitrate Advisory Area. Farm surveys and satellite images have provided soil and land use information. Measurements show the nitrate load to be dominated by discharge, with large variability due to differing weather conditions from year to year. Within-year variability in nitrate concentrations is also related to weather conditions, with high concentrations when field capacity is reached if this occurs late in the year. There is also clear evidence of dilution of nitrate during intense storms. The effect of changing weather conditions makes it impossible to identify catchment-scale changes in leaching due to changes in agricultural practice over a period as short as four years. Measurements from a major spring in the catchment show an increasing trend in nitrate concentrations through the period. There is some evidence that the greatest N leaching to streams in the catchment is associated with intensive grassland on soils which are naturally poorly drained.     

长期施肥对土壤氮矿化的影响

Two field experiments were conducted in Jiashan and Yuhang towns of Zhejiang Province, China, to study the feasibility of predicting N status of rice using canopy spectral reflectance. The canopy spectral reflectance of rice grown with different levels of N inputs was determined at several important growth stages. Statistical analyses showed that as a result of the different levels of N supply, there were significant differences in the N concentrations of canopy leaves at different growth stages. Since spectral reflectance measurements showed that the N status of rice was related to reflectance in the visible and NIR （near-infrared） ranges, observations for rice in 1 nm bandwidths were then converted to bandwidths in the visible and NIR spectral regions with IKONOS （space imaging） bandwidths and vegetation indices being used to predict the N status of rice. The results indicated that canopy reflectance measurements converted to ratio vegetation index （RVI） and normalized difference vegetation index （NDVI） for simulated IKONOS bands provided a better prediction of rice N status than the reflectance measurements in the simulated IKONOS bands themselves. The precision of the developed regression models using RVI and NDVI proved to be very high with R2 ranging from 0.82 to 0.94, and when validated with experimental data from a different site, the results were satisfactory with R2 ranging from 0.55 to 0.70. Thus, the results showed that theoretically it should be possible to monitor N status using remotely sensed data.     

Use of long-term monitoring data to derive a relationship between nitrogen surplus and nitrate leaching for grassland and arable land on well-drained sandy soils in the Netherlands

The decrease in nitrogen (N) use in agriculture led to improvement of upper groundwater quality in the Sand region of the Netherlands in the 1991–2009 period. However, still half of the farms exceeded the European nitrate standard for groundwater of 50 mg/l in the 2008–2011 period. To assure that farms will comply with the quality standard, an empirical model is used to derive environmentally sound N use standards for sandy soils for different crops and soil drainage conditions. Key parameters in this model are the nitrate-N leaching fractions (NLFs) for arable land and grassland on deep, well-drained sandy soils. NLFs quantify the fraction of the N surplus on the soil balance that leaches from the root zone to groundwater and this fraction represents N available for leaching and denitrification. The aim of this study was to develop a method for calculating these NLFs by using data from a random sample of commercial arable farms and dairy farms that were monitored in the 1991–2009 period. Only mean data per farm were available, which blocked a direct derivation of NLFs for unique combinations of crop type, soil type and natural soil drainage conditions. Results showed that N surplus leached almost completely from the root zone of arable land on the most vulnerable soils, that is, deep, well-drained sandy soils (95% confidence interval of NLF 0.80–0.99), while for grassland only half of the N surplus leached from the root zone of grassland (0.39–0.49). The NLF for grassland decreased with 0.015 units/year, which is postulated to be due to a decreased grazing and increased year-round housing of dairy cows. NLFs are positively correlated with precipitation surplus (0.05 units/100 mm for dairy farms and 0.10 units/100 mm for arable farms). Therefore, an increase in precipitation due to climate change may lead to an increase in leaching of nitrate.     

中国农田氮淋失相关因素分析及总氮淋失量估算

通过对我国近 10 年 382 组农田 N 素淋失数据进行统计分析,发现水田的 NO3--N 淋失量与土壤体积质量、有机质、全 N（TN）、黏粒含量百分比显著负相关,与施 N 量、灌水量显著正相关;旱地中 NO3--N 淋失量与全 P（TP）、粉粒含量百分比、土层深度显著负相关,与土壤中 TN 含量、砂粒百分比含量、施 N 量、降雨量、灌溉水量显著正相关。水田中总 N 表观淋失率平均值为 2.19%,95% 的置信区间为 1.56% ~ 2.82%;旱地中总 N 表观淋失率平均值为 4.35%,95% 的置信区间 2.88% ~ 5.82%。根据 2008 年中国统计年鉴计算出 2007 年我国总 N 淋失量达到 0.644 Tg,约占我国总施 N 量的2.80%。     

氮磷配合对土壤氮素径流流失的影响

大田试验研究结果表明 :增施N、P均能增加作物的产量和减少水土流失 ;当N、P用量分别达到 5 5 .2kgN/hm2 和 90kgP2 O5/hm2 时 ,泥沙有机质和全氮流失最少 ,流失量分别为 2 0 89和 1 75kg/km2 ;当N、P用量分别为 5 5 .2kgN/hm2 和 4 5kgP2 O5/hm2 时 ,土壤矿质氮流失最小 ,其流失量仅为 2 7.9kg/km2 ;作物对土壤氮素的吸收 ,可减少土壤氮素的流失 .     

Progress in studies of nitrate leaching from grassland soils

Abstract. The large input of research effort on aspects of nitrate leaching over the last two decades has produced many innovative scientific and practical results. The MAFF Nitrate Programme has enabled considerable progress to be made in unravelling much of the complexity of the grassland nitrogen (N) cycle, and identifying gaps as essential first stages in providing improved managements for N in grassland systems. From a practical standpoint, there have been key outputs which have allowed the identification of options for policy, and which should allow grassland farmers to increase the efficiency of N use throughout their farming system and thereby improve the sustainability of their enterprises. As well as quantifying N transformations, transfers and losses, other important outcomes have been the development of user-friendly models of N cycling (NCYCLE and variants) and an easy to use field kit to determine mineral N in pasture soils. The use of modelling to produce fertilizer recommendations with a Decision Support System and of new approaches developed within the Programme, in particular system synthesis desk studies, and 'farmlet' investigations to determine the consequences of modifying N flows and losses, have allowed us to produce solutions to satisfy the dual aims of meeting environmental and economic production targets.     

Nitrate leaching as influenced by soil tillage and catch crop

Because of public and political concern for the quality of surface and ground water, leaching of nitrate is of special concern in many countries. To evaluate the effects of tillage and growth of a catch crop on nitrate leaching, two field trials were conducted in spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) under temperate coastal climate conditions. On a coarse sand (1987–1992), ploughing in autumn or in spring in combination with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) as a catch crop was evaluated. Furthermore, rotovating and direct drilling were included. The experiment was conducted on a 19-year-old field trial with continuous production of spring barley. On a sandy loam (1988–1992), ploughing in autumn or in spring in combination with stubble cultivation and perennial ryegrass, in addition to minimum tillage, was evaluated in a newly established field trial. For calculation of nitrate leaching, soil water isolates from depths of 0.8 or 1.0 m were taken using ceramic cups. No significant effect of tillage was found on the coarse sand; however, a significant effect of tillage was found on the sandy loam, where leaching from autumn ploughed plots without stubble cultivation was 16 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ higher than leaching from spring ploughed plots. Leaching was significantly less when stubble cultivation in autumn was omitted. Leaching on both soil types was significantly reduced by the growth of a catch crop which was ploughed under in autumn or in spring. It was concluded that soil cultivation increased leaching on the sandy loam but not on the coarse sand, and that the growth of perennial ryegrass as a catch crop reduced leaching on both soil types, particularly when ryegrass was ploughed under in spring.     

Nitrate leaching loss following application of organic manures to sandy soils in arable cropping.

Abstract. Experiments were set up at two sites to measure nitrogen (N) leaching loss from applications of separated pig/cattle slurry and cattle farmyard manure(FYM), during winters 1990/91–1993/94 (site A) and from broiler litter and FYM, during winters 1990/91–1992/93 (site B). The manures were applied at a target rate of 200 kg ha^-1 total N during the autumn and winter to overwinter fallow or top dressed onto winter rye. The total N in leachate was calculated from leachate N concentrations, in samples collected using ceramic cups buried at 90 cm, and an estimate of drainage volume. Nitrogen losses were greatest following manure applications in September, October and November but losses following applications in December or January were not significantly elevated above those from untreated controls. Losses were consistently lower from FYM than from broiler litter or separated slurry. The presence of a cover crop (winter rye) significantly reduced overall N leaching compared with the fallow, but only reduced the manure N leaching losses at one site during one winter when a high proportion of drainage occurred late. The incorporation of a nitrification inhibitor (DCD) with manures applied in October did not significantly reduce the manure N leaching.