Yield and nitrogen uptake of rapessed (Brassica campestris L.) with ammonium and nitrate

Abstract

Water culture, growth chamber, greenhouse and field experiments were conducted to compare the effect of NH4−N and NO3−N on yield and N uptake of rapeseed (Brassica campestris L.). In water culture, the yields of 28-day old rapeseed plants grown at 14 μg N ml−1 were double with NO3 compared to NH4, but N uptake was little affected. There was no such effect when concentration was reduced to 3.5 or 7 μg N ml−1. The yield and N uptake of 26-day old rapeseed grown on six soils (pH 4.6 to 6.5) in pots in a growth chamber were much greater with NO3 than with NH4, although N concentration was more in the NH4- than the NO3-grown plants. In a greenhouse experiment with rapeseed grown on 12 potted soils, the N uptake of applied N was greater with NO3 than with NH4 on all soils. Averages were 63% with NH4 and 78% with NO3. However, NH4-fixation capacities of the soils were only weakly correlated with yield from the two sources of N (r=0.48) and the relation was similar with N uptake. In contrast to the behavior of water culture, growth chamber and greenhouse experiments, the 33 field experiments did not show consistent difference in seed yield with NH4 and NO3 applied at time of seeding. In nine field experiments where band application was used for Ca(NO3)2, (NH4)2 SO4, NH4 NO3, yield tended to be greatest for (NH4)2SO4. However, in 19 experiments on acid soils with and without lime, yields in most cases were similar with (NH4)2SO4 and NH4 NO3. Nitrification inhibitors were added to spring banded NH4-based fertilizers in five experiments, but the yields were not influenced.