Comparison of chemical fractionation methods for isolating stable soil organic carbon pools

Stable soil organic matter (SOM) is important for long‐term sequestration of soil organic carbon (SOC), but the usefulness of different fractionation methods to isolate stable SOM is open to question. We assessed the suitability of five chemical fractionation methods (stepwise hydrolysis, treatment with H₂O₂, Na₂S₂O₈, NaOCl, and demineralization of the NaOCl‐resistant fraction (NaOCl + HF)) to isolate stable SOM from soil samples of a loamy sand and a silty loam under different land use regimes (grassland, forest and arable crops). The apparent C turnover time and mean age of SOC before and after fractionation was determined by ¹³C and ¹⁴C analysis. Particulate organic matter was removed by density fractionation before soils were exposed to chemical fractionation. All chemical treatments induced large SOC losses of 62–95% of the mineral‐associated SOC fraction. The amounts of H₂O₂‐ and Na₂S₂O₈‐resistant SOC were independent from land use, while those of NaOCl‐ (NaOCl + HF)‐ and hydrolysis‐resistant SOC were not. All chemical treatments caused a preferential removal of young, maize‐derived SOC, with Na₂S₂O₈ and H₂O₂ being most efficient. The mean ¹⁴C age of SOC was 1000–10000 years greater after chemical fractionation than that of the initial, mineral‐associated SOC and mean ¹⁴C ages increased in the order: NaOCl < NaOCl + HF ≤ stepwise hydrolysis ≪ H₂O₂≈ Na₂S₂O₈. None of the methods appeared generally suitable for the determination of the inert organic matter pool of the Rothamsted Carbon Model. Nonetheless, our results indicate that all methods are able to isolate an older, more stable SOC fraction, but treatments with H₂O₂ and Na₂S₂O₈ were the most efficient ones in isolating stable SOM.     

有机肥无机肥配施对稻田氨挥发和水稻产量的影响

在南方红壤区双季稻田进行田间试验,研究等氮、磷、钾量条件下,有机无机肥配施对稻田氨挥发及水稻产量的影响。结果表明,有机无机肥配合施用能显著地降低稻田氨挥发,减少氮素损失,提高氮肥利用率。单施化肥(尿素),其氨挥发损失达37.8%,而单施有机肥和有机无机肥各半配合施用,氨挥发损失分别为0.7％-1.0％和7.2％-18.2％。田间氨挥发持续的时间,早稻约在施肥后20d,晚稻为9-10d。虽然有机无机肥各半配合施用的水稻产量与单施化肥的相近,均比对照提高约70％,但前者的氮损失少,其氮肥利用率为34.9％,高于化肥处理(33.2％)和有机肥处理(28.0%)。有机无机肥配合施用对提高水稻产量和降低氮肥环境负效应的综合效应最佳。     

Extractable nitrogen using hot potassium chloride as a mineralization potential index

Inorganic nitrogen (N) in soils is a primary component of soil‐plant N buffering. This study was conducted to determine if non‐exchangeable ammonium‐nitrogen (NH₄‐N) could serve as an index of potentially mineralizable organic N which is an important sink in N buffering. Four long‐term winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) experiments that had received annual fertilizer N at 0 to 272 kg N ha^‐1 were used. Soils from these experiments were extracted by four 10 mL portions of 2M potassium chloride (KC1) at room temperature followed by extraction with 20 mL of 2M hot KC1. Extraction at 100°C for four hours using 3 g soil and 20 mL 2M KC1 was found to be the most effective. Hot KC1‐extractable NH₄‐N minus room temperature KCl‐extractable NH₄‐N was considered non‐exchangeable NH₄‐N. Non‐exchangeable NH₄‐N was correlated with the long‐term N rates, and believed to be a reliable index of potentially mineralizable organic N. The relationship was linear for NH₄‐N where the lowest N rate had the lowest extractable N. The mean non‐exchangeable NH₄‐N concentration ranged from 8.42 to 16.34 mg kg^‐1; whereas, nitrate‐nitrogen (NO₃‐N) ranged from 0.07 to 1.87 mg kg¹. Total inorganic N extracted was similar to that mineralized in a 42‐day aerobic water saturated incubation. In addition, using a linear‐plateau model, extractable NH₄‐N was highly correlated with long‐term average yield (R²=0.92). For the soils evaluated, this method provided a rapid measure of potentially mineralizable N.     

Origin and properties of humus in the subsoil of irrigated rice paddies

Stability of humus in the plow layer soil is considered to affect the quantity and quality of dissolved organic matter leached from the plow layer soil. Therefore, a model experiment was conducted to analyze the effect of soil reduction under submerged conditions on the stability of humus in the plow layer soil. The changes in the stability of humus in the plow layer soil during submerged incubations with and without rice straw application were evaluated based on the changes in the binding type of humus. Binding type of humus in the plow layer soil was analyzed by successive extractions of organic matter with water, 0.25 M Na₂SO₄, 0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0), 0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 10.5), and 0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 10.5) with NaBH₄. Amounts of Fe, Mn, and Mg in each fraction were also determined to estimate the relationships between humus and metals.

The successive extraction of humus indicated that the amount of organic carbon which was extractable with the (NaBH₄ +0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇) solution decreased while that of the 0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0}-extractable organic carbon increased during submerged incubation with rice straw application. The origin of the increase in the amount of organic carbon in the Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0)-extractable fraction during submerged incubation was investigated further by another incubation experiment using ¹³C-glucose as a reducing agent. Atom- 13C% analysis showed that the contribution of organic carbon derived from compounds other than glucose to the increase in the contents of humic acids and fulvic acids in the Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0)-extractable fractions was ca. 80%. Therefore, it was concluded that the binding type of humus changed from (NaBH₄ + Na₄P₂O₇)-extractable to Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0)-extractable humus under reducing conditions. Since the amounts of organic carbon and Fe increased in the Na₄P₂O₇ (pH 7.0)-extractable fraction and decreased in the (NaBH₄ +0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇)-extractable fraction simultaneously, iron reduction was presumably associated with the change in the binding type of humus in submerged paddy soil.     

Applicability of 0.01 M CaCl2 as a single extraction solution for the assessment of the nutrient status of soils and other diagnostic purposes

Abstract

The applicability of 0.01 M CaCl₂ solution as a single extraction agent for soils as a basis for fertilizer recommendation was tested on a variety of soils both from the Netherlands and from some tropical countries. Air‐dry soil samples were subjected to extraction with 0.01 M CaCl₂ and to several conventional extraction procedures, and the results were compared. In the soil suspensions pH was measured, whereas in the extracts Na, K, Mg, P, different extractable N‐forms and Zn were measured. The values found in CaCl₂ extracts are discussed in relation to results of other extraction procedures and as to their potential value in soil quality assessment. It is concluded that a single extraction procedure with 0.01 M CaCl₂ can be applied for fertilizer recommendation purposes. The possibility of determining different extractable N‐forms (NH₄, NO₃, soluble organic N) significantly enhances the value of the method in predicting the N‐fertilizer needs. Furthermore it was found that the concentration of Zn in 0.01 M CaCl₂ extracts was a good indicator of phytotoxicity in a polluted area. Additional advantages of this extraction are low costs, simplicity and repro‐ducibility.     

Differential response of mineral-associated organic matter in tropical soils formed in volcanic ashes and marine Tertiary sediment to treatment with HCl,NaOCl, and Na4P2O7

Quantitative knowledge of the amount and stability of soil organic matter (SOM) is necessary to understand and predict the role of soils in the global carbon cycle. At present little is known about the influence of soil type on the storage and stability of SOM, especially in the tropics. We compared the amount of mineral-associated SOM resistant to different chemical treatments in soils of different parent material and mineralogical composition (volcanic ashes – dominated by short-range-order aluminosilicates and marine Tertiary sediments – dominated by smectite) in the humid tropics of Northwest Ecuador. Using ¹³C isotope analyses we traced the origin of soil organic carbon (SOC) in mineral-associated soil fractions resistant to treatment with HCl, NaOCl, and Na₄P₂O₇ under pasture (C₄) and secondary forest (C₃). Prior to chemical treatments, particulate organic matter was removed by density fractionation (cut-off: 1.6 g cm^?3). Our results show that: (1) independent of soil mineralogical composition, about 45% of mineral-associated SOC was resistant to acid hydrolysis, suggesting a comparable SOM composition for the investigated soils; (2) oxidation by NaOCl isolated a SOM fraction with enhanced stability of mineral-bound SOM in soils developed from volcanic ashes; while Na₄P₂O₇ extracted more SOC, indicating the importance of Al-humus complexes in these soils; and (3) recently incorporated SOM was not stabilized after land use change in soils developed from volcanic ashes but was partly stabilized in soils rich in smectites. Together these results show that the employed methods were not able to isolate a SOM fraction which is protected against microbial decay under field conditions and that the outcome of these methods is sensitive to soil type which makes interpretation challenging and generalisations to other soils types or climates impossible.     

Application of the Berthelot reaction to the determination of ammonium‐N in soil extracts and soil digests

Abstract

The phenol‐hypochlorite‐ammonium reaction of Berthelot can be utilized in manual procedures for the analysis of NH₄‐N in a variety of soils applications, including total N measurement in soils, particle size separates and soluble organic matter fractions, and in measuring NH₄‐N in soil extracts. A simple, convenient, and versatile procedure is described.     

Chemical fixation of ammonia to soil organic matter after application of urea

Chemical fixation of NH₃ to soil organic matter was studied in two Swedish soils with different contents of organic matter: a clay soil with 2.3% C and an organic soil with 36.6% C. ¹⁵N‐labelled urea was applied at different rates to both sterilized and non‐sterilized soils. After 10 days, the soils were extracted and washed with K₂SO₄ and determined for total N and atom% ¹⁵N excess. Urea N was recovered as non‐extractable N in sterilized soil corresponding to 9.7% of supplied ^l5N‐labelled urea in the organic soil and 2.2% in the clay soil. Since no biological immobilization is thought to occur in the sterile soil, this non‐extractable N is suggested to be chemically fixed to soil organic matter. Owing to urea hydrolysis in the clay soil, pH increased from 6.3 to 9.3 and in the organic soil from 5.7 to 6.9 and 8.8, respectively, at the low and high urea supply.     

Arylamidase Activity as an Index of Nitrogen Mineralization in Soils

Abstract

The enzyme arylamidase [EC 3.4.11.2] catalyzes the hydrolysis of N‐terminal amino acids from arylamides. Because it has been proposed that this enzyme may play a major role in nitrogen (N) mineralization in soils, studies were carried out using short‐term laboratory incubations under aerobic and anaerobic conditions and chemical hydrolysis of soil organic N to assess the N mineralization in a range of 51 soils from six agroecological zones of the North Central region of the United States. The enzyme activity was assayed at its optimal pH value. With the exception of the values obtained for field‐moist soils incubated under anaerobic conditions, the amounts of N mineralized by all the biological and chemical methods studied were significantly correlated with arylamidase activity, with r values of 0.54*** for the amounts of inorganic N produced under aerobic incubation, of 0.44** for anaerobic incubation of air‐dried soils, of 0.53*** and 0.55*** for the amounts of ammonium (NH₄ ⁺)‐N released by steam distillation with PO₄‐B₄O₇ for 4 and 8 min, respectively; and of 0.49*** and 0.53*** for the amounts of NH₄ ⁺‐N released by steam distillation with disodium tetraborate (Na₂B₄O₇) for 4 min or 8 min, respectively. The amounts of N extractable with hot potassium chloride (KCl) were most significantly correlated with arylamidase activity (r=0.56***). Arylamidase activity was significantly correlated with organic carbon (C) (r=0.49***), organic N (r=0.55***), and fixed ammonium (NH₄ ⁺)‐N (r =0.42**).     

Nitrogen‐uptake by plants following soil incubation

Abstract

Many methods of evaluating organic soil nitrogen (N) mineralization and N availability indexes have been proposed. Chemical methods are more rapid but they do not measure the soil microorganisms and plant root activities. Incubation‐leaching procedure may remove some of the readily mineralizable soil organic N compounds. Continuous‐incubation procedure may sometimes increase soil acidity or cause toxins accumulation. The objective of this study was to determine, in a greenhouse experiment, the relative capabilities of 10 soils with organic matter (O.M.) content ranging from 2.38 to 8.63% to supply plant‐available N by combining two procedures, i.e., soil incubation and plant N‐uptake. In method one (M₁), N‐uptake by 3 successive oat crops of 8 weeks each, without soil preincubation was studied. Method two (M₂) involved a soil preincubation of 8 weeks, and the subsequent determination of N‐uptake by two successive crops of oats (Avena sativa L.) of 8 weeks each. No soil‐leaching was used. The results show that there was a large difference in plant N‐uptake according to soil organic matter. The highest correlation between soil O.M. and plant N‐uptake (r = 0.91**) was given by the first crop following incubation. The N‐uptake by the first crop in M₁ (without soil incubation) was much less correlated with soil O.M. (r = 0.74*) and was significantly influenced by soil initial NO₃ and NH₄‐N. The results of this study show that the preincubation of soil samples minimized the influence of soil initial mineral N and that a preincubation was necessary before the plant N‐uptake measurement, even on a 8‐week cropped soil period.     

Comparing tests for soil fertility. II. The hydrogen peroxide/sulfuric acid treatment as an alternative to the copper/selenium catalyzed digestion process for routine determination of soil nitrogen‐kjeldahl

Abstract

A two‐step digestion with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)/boiling sulfuric acid (H₂SO₄) ("peroxy treatment") in the absence of heavy metals catalysts is proposed as an alternative to the copper (Cu)/selenium (Se) catalyzed digestion process for the routine determination of soil Kjeldahl‐nitrogen (N). Sixty‐eight samples from pedotypes representative of the Mediterranean environment, with contrasting features and use, were chosen in order to ensure the largest variability of total N and organic carbon (C) contents. The average soil N content was 0.223 g/100g for the H₂O₂ treatment, and 0.196 g/100g for the Cu/Se one, with significant difference between the means and with limits ranging from 0.042 to 0.678 and from 0.025 to 0.696 g/100g for H₂O₂‐N and Cu/Se‐N, respectively. The amounts of soil N determined by the contrasted procedures were strictly dependent on the respective organic C contents, and they correlated each other by the highly significant linear regression: Cu/Se‐N = ‐0.017 + 0.955/H₂O₂‐N, R² = 0.910***. The goodness of fit of this equation was not significantly improved when the organic C and the Al‐Oxa contents were introduced as accessory explanatory variables in multiple regression models. This should allow an easy and quick data conversion with no need of additional laboratory analyses. Altogether, the achieved results clearly show that the tested methods work with homogeneous performance under a range of soil properties, providing evidence that the current digestion procedure by heavy metals catalysts could be conveniently replaced by the less hazardous “peroxy”; treatment. This really represents an attractive innovative procedure for routine determination of soil Kjeldahl‐N with reference to the environment safety concerns.     

Presubmergence and green manure affect the transformations of nitrogen‐15‐labeled urea under lowland soil conditions

The effect of presubmergence and green manuring on various processes involved in [¹⁵N]‐urea transformations were studied in a growth chamber after [¹⁵N]‐urea application to floodwater. Presubmergence for 14 days increased urea hydrolysis rates and floodwater pH, resulting in higher NH₃ volatilization as compared to without presubmergence. Presubmergence also increased nitrification and subsequent denitrification but lower N assimilation by floodwater algae caused higher gaseous losses. Addition of green manure maintained higher NH₄⁺‐N concentration in floodwater mainly because of lower nitrification rates but resulted in highest NH₃ volatilization losses. Although green manure did not affect the KCl extractable NH₄⁺‐N from applied fertilizer, it maintained higher NH₄⁺‐N content due to its decomposition and increased mineralization of organic N. After 32 days about 36.9 % (T₁), 23.9 % (T₂), and 36.4 % (T₃) of the applied urea N was incorporated in the pool of soil organic N in treatments. It was evident that the presubmergence has effected the recovery of applied urea N.     

Evidence that fungi can oxidize NH4+ to NO3− in a grassland soil

The contribution of bacteria and fungi to NH₄⁺ and organic N (N_org) oxidation was determined in a grassland soil (pH 6.3) by using the general bacterial inhibitor streptomycin or the fungal inhibitor cycloheximide in a laboratory incubation study at 20°C. Each inhibitor was applied at a rate of 3 mg g^?1 oven‐dry soil. The size and enrichment of the mineral N pools from differentially (NH₄¹⁵NO₃ and ¹⁵NH₄NO₃) and doubly labelled (¹⁵NH₄¹⁵NO₃) NH₄NO₃ were measured at 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 hours after N addition. Labelled N was applied to each treatment, to supply NH₄⁺‐N and NO₃^?‐N at 3.15 μmol N g^?1 oven‐dry soil. The N treatments were enriched to 60 atom % excess in ¹⁵N and acetate was added at 100 μmol C g^?1 oven‐dry soil, to provide a readily available carbon source. The oxidation rates of NH₄⁺ and N_org were analysed separately for each inhibitor treatment with a ¹⁵N tracing model. In the absence of inhibitors, the rates of NH₄⁺ oxidation and organic N oxidation were 0.0045 μmol N g^?1 hour^?1 and 0.0023 μmol N g^?1 hour^?1, respectively. Streptomycin had no effect on nitrification but cycloheximide inhibited the oxidation of NH₄⁺ by 89% and the oxidation of organic N by more than 30%. The current study provides evidence to suggest that nitrification in grassland soil is carried out by fungi and that they can simultaneously oxidize NH₄⁺ and organic N.     

Effect of the nitrification inhibitor nitrapyrin on the fate of nitrogen applied to a soil incubated under laboratory conditions

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of the nitrification inhibitor nitrapyrin on the fate and recovery of fertilizer nitrogen (N) and on N mineralization from soil organic sources. Intact soil cores were collected from a grassland field. Diammonium phosphate (DAP) and urea were applied as N sources. Cores were equilibrated at –5 kPa matric potential and incubated at 20 °C for 42 to 56 days. Changes in NH₄⁺‐N, accumulation of NO₃^–‐N, apparent recovery of applied N, and emission of N₂O (acetylene was used to block N₂O reductase) were examined during the study. A significant increase in NH₄⁺‐N released through mineralization was recorded when nitrapyrin was added to the control soil without N fertilizer application. In the soils to which N was added either as urea or DAP, 50–90 % of the applied N disappeared from the NH₄⁺‐N pool. Some of this N (8–16 %) accumulated as NO₃^–‐N, while a small proportion of N (1 %) escaped as N₂O. Addition of nitrapyrin resulted in a decrease and delay of NH₄⁺‐N disappearance, accumulation of much lower soil NO₃^–‐N contents, a substantial reduction in N₂O emissions, and a 30–40 % increase in the apparent recovery of added N. The study indicates that N recovery can be increased by using the nitrification inhibitor nitrapyrin in grassland soils at moisture condition close to field capacity.     

酸性水稻土有效磷测定方法的研究

土壤有效磷的测定是合理施用磷肥的重要依据之一。土壤中磷素含量的局部变异较大,不同的田块常不相同;加之各种作物对土壤磷素的要求也不一样。因此,选择能够较好地反映土壤有效磷水平的化学方法,在当前生产上是有一定意义的。     

FTIR‐spectroscopic characterization of humic acids and humin fractions obtained by advanced NaOH,Na4P2O7, and Na2CO3 extraction procedures

Aim of our study was the development of the methodological basis for the characterization of humic fractions of a long‐term field experiment. Humic acids (HAs) were extracted from three layers of a nontilled soil using three different extractants (1 M NaOH, 0.1 M Na₄P₂O₇, 1 M Na₂CO₃), and the humin fraction was enriched. NaOH as extractant for FTIR analysis of humic substances yields higher resolved IR spectra, especially in the important regions of stretching vibrations including aromatic and aliphatic groups and in the fingerprint area including amides, aliphats, and aromats than the other extractants. The NaOH extraction has lower extraction yields as compared to Na₄P₂O₇ and Na₂CO₃ and represents a different part of the soil organic matter (SOM). This is reflected by lower C : N ratios and higher E₄ : E₆ and fulvic acid–to–humic acid ratios as compared to the other extractants. The FTIR band areas of HA fraction obtained by NaOH showed an increase of the aromatic and carbonyl groups and a decrease of amide groups with increasing soil depth. Aliphatic groups showed contradicting results: The bands of the stretching vibrations increased, and the band of the bending vibrations decreased. We assume that band interactions in the bending vibrations were responsible for that phenomenon under the assumption of an increase of aliphatic groups with increasing soil depth. The IR bands of the enriched humin fraction showed a decreasing trend in case of both aliphatic bands deriving from stretching vibrations and an increase of aromatic characteristics with depth. Our study led to the conclusion that HA fractions obtained by 1 M NaOH represent a small and dynamic fraction indicated by the measured yields in combination with values of N_t, C : N, E₄ : E₆ ratios, and ratios of fulvic acids (FA) to HA. The humin fraction has a high contribution to the total organic C and represents a more stabilized fraction of SOM which still shows changes in its aromatic and aliphatic characteristics with soil depth.     

Use of diffusion for automated nttrogen‐15 analysis of soil extracts

Abstract

Studies to evaluate the use of diffusion for automated ¹⁵N analysis of inorganic N in soil extracts showed that serious error can arise from use of the Devarda's alloy recommended for steam distillations and that the error can be avoided by using a commercial product of higher purity. These studies showed that serious error can also arise when NO₃ ^‐‐N is diffused following NH₄ ⁺‐N and that separate diffusions should be performed for NH₄ ⁺‐N and (NH₄ ⁺ + NO₃‐)‐N. Other work demonstrated that the plastic specimen containers employed for diffusion can be reused if acid‐washed, that diffusions can be performed using either light or heavy MgO without ignition to decompose carbonate, and that labeled NO₂‐is completely removed from soil extracts by treatment with sulfamic acid before diffusion. A comparison of ¹⁵N analyses by steam distillation and diffusion using extracts from two soils revealed better agreement for the soil having a lower content of organic matter. Substantial differences in analyses by the two techniques for the soil having a higher organic‐matter content were attributed to enzymatic conversions of inorganic N during the 6‐d diffusion period.     

Simulating the dynamics of glucose and NH4+ in alkaline saline soils of the former Lake Texcoco with the Detran model

The turnover of organic matter determines the availability of plant nutrients in unfertilized soils, and this applies particularly to the alkaline saline soil of the former Lake Texcoco in Mexico. We investigated the effects of alkalinity and salinity on dynamics of organic material and inorganic N added to the soil. Glucose labelled with ¹⁴C was added to soil of the former Lake Texcoco drained for different lengths of time, and dynamics of ¹⁴C, C and N were investigated with the Detran model. Soil was sampled from an undrained plot and from three drained for 1, 5 and 8 years, amended with 1000 mg ¹⁴C‐labelled glucose kg^?1 and 200 mg NH₄⁺‐N kg^?1, and incubated aerobically. Production of ¹⁴CO₂ and CO₂, dynamics of NH₄⁺, NO₂^– and NO₃^–, and microbial biomass ¹⁴C, C and N were monitored and simulated with the Detran model. A third stable microbial biomass fraction had to be introduced in the model to simulate the dynamics of glucose, because > 90 mg ¹⁴C kg^?1 soil persisted in the soil microbial biomass after 97 days. The observed priming effect was mostly due to an increased decay of soil organic matter, but an increased turnover of the microbial biomass C contributed somewhat to the phenomenon. The dynamics of NH₄⁺ and NO₃^– in the NH₄⁺‐amended soil could not be simulated unless an immobilization of NH₄⁺ into the microbial biomass occurred in the first day of the incubation without an immediate incorporation of it into microbial organic material. The dynamics of C and a priming effect could be simulated satisfactorily, but the model had to be adjusted to simulate the dynamics of N when NH₄⁺ was added to alkaline saline soils.     

Assay of urease enzyme activity in an ammonium‐fixing soil

Abstract

Rates of substrate disappearance and product formation were compared as measures of urease enzyme activity in an NH₄‐fixing and in a non‐fixing soil under tris‐, borate‐ or non‐buffered assay conditions over 4h at 37°C. Tris‐buffered urease activity of the NH₄‐fixing soil was 119 μg urea‐N hydrol./g/h or 116 μg (KCl‐extractable) NH₄‐N/g/h indicating prevention of NH₄ fixation by the buffer; without tris, NH₄ production rates amounted to only 35% of coresponding urea hydrolysis rates. Equal rates of urea disappear‐ ance and NH₄ formation occurred in the non‐fixing soil irrespective of buffer amendment.

Tris‐inhibition of NH₄ fixation during 4h incubation at 37°C, however, depended on NH₄ Cl rate and buffer strength. 0.025–0.10 M tris (pH 9.0) reduced NH₄ fixation to negligible amounts at < 0.03 M NH₄C1 whereas, at 0.06–0.24 M NH₄Cl, substantial NH₄ fixation occurred in the presence of 0.05 M tris; NH₄ fixation in unbuffered soil, however, always exceeded that in tris‐buffered soil. Borate buffer (0.06M, pH 10) did not influence the extent of NH₄ fixation.

Tris significantly enhanced urea hydrolysis in the slightly acid, non‐fixing soil but not in the moderately alkaline NH₄ ‐fixing soil indicating an effect of soil type on pH optima of urease enzyme activity. The urease activities of both soils in borate were considerably lower than in tris, possibly because of the combined effects of excess alkalinity and high substrate concentration.     

Chemical and biological characteristics of alkaline saline soils from the former Lake Texcoco as affected by artificial drainage

 Soils from the former Lake Texcoco are alkaline saline and were artificially drained and irrigated with sewage effluents since the late 1980s. Undrained soil and soil drained for 1, 5 and 8 years were sampled, characterized and incubated aerobically for 90 days at 22±1  °C while production of CO₂, available P and concentrations of NH₄ ⁺, NO₂ ^– and NO₃ ^– were monitored. Artificial drainage decreased pH_H2O, water holding capacity, organic C, total N, and Na⁺, K⁺, Mg²⁺, B, Cl^– and SO₄ ^2– concentrations, increased inorganic C and Ca²⁺ concentrations more than 5-fold while total P was not affected. Microbial biomass C decreased with increased length of drainage but bacteria, actinomycetes, denitrifiers and cellulose-utilizing bacteria tended to show opposite trends. CO₂ production was less in soils drained ≥5 years compared to undrained soil but more than in soils drained for 1 year. Emission of NH₃ was negligible and concentrations of NH₄ ⁺ remained constant over time in each soil. Nitrification, as witnessed by increases in NO₃ ^– concentrations, occurred in soil drained for 8 years. NO₂ ^– concentrations decreased in soils drained ≤1 year in the first 7 days of the incubation and remained constant thereafter. It was found that artificial drainage of soils from the former Lake Texcoco profoundly affected soil characteristics. Decreases in pH and Na⁺, K⁺, Cl^– and SO₄ ^2– concentrations made conditions more favourable for plant growth, although low concentrations of inorganic N and available P might be limiting factors. Received: 1 December 1999