Mineralisation of catch crop residues and N transfer to the subsequent crop

Abstract

Catch crops (CC) are widely used to reduce nitrogen leaching from arable cropping systems. However, the mineralisation rate of different catch crop species, and the fate of the mineralised N remain unclear. In this study, we performed an analysis, based on N mineralisation incubation experiments, to test and parameterise a simple mineralisation model (SMM), based on a first order decay, for different catch crops. For brassicas and legumes, the C:N was confirmed to be a good predictor of both, the amount and rate of mineral N release of CC residues. For grasses, the mineralisation rate could not be well predicted by the C:N, which might partly be due to a very limited dataset. The SMM was then linked with the Agricultural Production Simulator (APSIM) and used to predict the N release from CC residues of either brassicas or legumes, and its fate, including N leaching and N uptake by a subsequent spring barley (SB) crop. APSIM simulations were set up for a period of 20 years and for two sites with different temperature and soil conditions in North-West Europe, Foulum in Denmark and Kiel, Germany. Simulated N uptake by the CC was higher in Kiel compared with Foulum, with an average of 14.8 kg/ha for the crucifers and 16.8 kg/ha for the legume in Foulum, and of 33.2 kg/ha for the crucifers and 51.4 kg/ha for the legume in Kiel. CC increased yield of SB on average by 5 to 7%, due to transfer of N. This N transfer resulted in an average reduction in N leaching by 59% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Foulum, and by 83% (brassica) and by 43% (legume) in Kiel. N fertilisation of CC is not of any benefit in most of the 20 years of simulation.