Within-season grass yield and nitrogen uptake, and soil nitrogen as affected by nitrogen applied at various rates and distributions in a high rainfall environment

Abstract

A study was conducted to assess the effect of rates of nitrogen (N) fertilizer, and to compare the effectiveness of single and split applications of N on yield and quality of forage grass and on the potential for nitrate leaching. Three field trials were conducted at different sites in successive years, with plant and soil measurements made at each of four harvests. Extractable inorganic N was measured to 0.6 m in three depth increments prior to spring N application and after each cut in order to evaluate immediate and residual effects of the N fertilizer on plant growth, and the environmental implications of the applications. Response of yield and N uptake to N applications differed in the three trials. In all trials, the effect of N rate was greater than the effect of N distribution during the growing season. Although there were only small, whole-season yield increases associated with distributing the N over the season, the distribution of yield within the season was changed considerably. Soil data showed relatively little leaching of N during the growing season under contrasting weather conditions of the three growing seasons. Retention of N within the soil root zone contributed to residual effects on yield and plant uptake, and these effects frequently lasted to the end of the growing season. Crop response to N applications was apparently influenced by the N supplying capacity of the soil and the effect of weather on crop growth rate. Soil nitrate at harvest did not vary consistently with N application treatments in the three trials, other than having highest concentrations at the highest fertilizer rate. Soil nitrate was greatest after cut 1 and decreased sharply toward the end of the season following the single spring applications, whereas plots receiving equal distributions of N through the season had relatively high concentrations at all sampling times during the season. Soil extractable ammonium concentration was influenced by high rates of N application, but the effect was small and largely confined to the sampling after cut 1. The soil always contained about 10–15 mg kg−1 extractable ammonium in surface 0.3 m depth, with a tendency for slightly greater concentrations in early spring. Soil ammonium appears to be involved in soil and plant processes, but the exact magnitude and significance of its involvement could not be determined from the measurements made. The redistribution of grass yield by splitting the application of fertilizer N within the growing season would be beneficial for grazing systems. Unfortunately, soil inorganic N measurements will not greatly assist in determining the precise rate and distribution of fertilizer for varying field conditions. Key words: N response, N uptake, residual N effect, soil extractable N, N leaching