Gross nitrogen transformations and related N2O emissions in uncultivated and cultivated black soil

Abstract

A better understanding of the nitrogen (N) cycle in agricultural soils is crucial for developing sustainable and environmentally friendly N fertilizer management and to propose effective nitrous oxide (N2O) mitigation strategies. This laboratory study quantified gross nitrogen transformation rates in uncultivated and cultivated black soils in Northeast China. It also elucidated the contribution made by nitrification and denitrification to the emissions of N2O. In the laboratory, soil samples adjusted to 60 % water holding capacity (WHC) were spiked with 15NH4NO3 and NH415NO3 and incubated at 25 °C for 7 days. The size and 15N enrichment of the mineral N pools and the N2O emission rates were determined between 0 and 7 days. The results showed that the average N2O emission rate was 21.6 ng N2O-N kg−1 h−1 in cultivated soil, significantly higher than in the uncultivated soil (11.6 ng N2O-N kg−1 h−1). Denitrification was found to be responsible for 32.1 % of the N2O emission in uncultivated soil, and the ratio increased significantly to 43.2 % in cultivated soil, due to the decrease in soil pH. Most of the increase in net N2O-N emissions observed in the cultivated soil was resulting from the increased production of N2O through denitrification. Gross nitrification rate was significantly higher in the cultivated soil than in the uncultivated soil, and the ratio of gross nitrification rate/ammonium immobilization rate was 6.87 in cultivated soil, much larger than the uncultivated soil, indicating that nitrification was the dominant NH4+ consuming process in cultivated soil, and this will lead to the increased production of nitrate, whereas the increased contribution of denitrification to N2O emission promoted the larger emission of N2O. This double impact explains why the risk of N loss to the environment is increased by long-term cultivation and fertilization of native prairie sites, and controlling nitrification maybe effective to abate the negative environmental effects.