Determining nitrogen fate by hydrological pathways and impact on carbonate weathering in an agricultural karst watershed

Identifying the nitrogen (N) fate is complicated and a great challenge in karst watersheds because of the co-existence of natural pools and anthropogenic sources. The objective of the study was to use stable isotopic composition of dual-isotope (δ¹⁵N_Nitrate and δ¹⁸O_Nitrate) and LOADEST model approaches to trace N sources, pathways in karst watershed. The study was conducted in the Houzhai watershed, which is a typical agricultural karst watershed from July 2016 to August 2018, to reveal the N fate and the coupled carbon(C)–N processes occurring in the riverine-watershed with agricultural activities. We found that the wet deposition of total nitrogen (TN) flux was 33.50 kg hm⁻²·a⁻¹ and dissolved nitrogen (DN) flux was 21.66 kg hm⁻²·a⁻¹. The DN runoff loss was 2.10 × 10⁵ kg·a⁻¹ and the loss of DN during the wet season accounted for 95.4% over a year. In the wet season, NO₃⁻-N daily efflux was 977.62 ± 516.66 kg ha⁻¹·day⁻¹and 248.77 ± 57.83 kg ha⁻¹·day⁻¹ in the dry season. The NH₄⁺-N efflux was 29.17 ± 10.50 kg ha⁻¹·day⁻¹ and 4.42 ± 3.07 kg ha⁻¹·day⁻¹ in the wet and dry seasons, respectively. The main form output load of N was NO₃⁻-N which was more than 30 times as much as NH₄⁺-N output loss. The NO₃⁻-N caused by rainfall contributed 11.82%–53.61% to the export load. Nitrate from soil contributed over 94% of the N to Houzhai river caused by N leaching. In addition, manure and farmland soil were the main sources of groundwater in the Houzhai watersheds, the contribution rates were 25.9% and 22.5%. The chemical N fertilizers affected carbonate weathering strongly, and the HCO₃⁻ flux caused by nitrification due to N fertilizers application in soil accounted for 23.5% of the entire watershed. This study suggested that carbonate weathering may be influenced by nitrogen nitrification in the karst watershed.     

Preparation of nitrogen and phosphorus-enriched paddy straw compost and its effect on yield and nutrient uptake by wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Summary A nutrient-rich compost from paddy straw was prepared using urea and Mussoorie rock phosphate for N and P enrichment respectively. Inorganic N was partly conserved in the compost by the addition of pyrite. Citric-acid-soluble P also increased with the addition of pyrite. Compost containing about 1.6% total N and 3.3% total P was found to be a good source of P for a wheat crop and also supplied a significant amount of N to the plants.     

Nitrogen and phosphorous in a loam soil of central Italy as affected by 6 years of different tillage systems

Tillage practices can influence content and dynamics of soil N and P. A field study was conducted on a loam soil (Typic Udifluvent) in Italy, to determine mineral and organic N and P concentrations at the end of 6 years of different tillage systems. Maize (Zea mays L.) was cropped since 1970, and managed since 1994 with deep ploughing (DP) to 40 cm, ripper subsoiling (RS) to 40 cm, shallow ploughing (SP) to 20 cm and minimum tillage with harrow disk (MT) to 10 cm. At the end of the sixth year, soil was collected in 10 cm increments to a total depth of 40 cm. Surface concentration of total N was higher with MT than with RS, SP and DP, but differences disappeared at lower depths. Soil water content was lower under DP and SP treatments than under MT and RS. Residual NO₃-N in the soil profile was not different among tillage treatments. During 6 years, MT increased soil quality, by enrichment of organic N and improvement of soil water content at the surface. Moldboard ploughing was a less sustainable tillage system in this environment.