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Effects of Compost Addition on Soil Phosphorus and Nitrate-N Losses in Tile Drainage Water under Long-term Conventional Tillage and No-tillage

Published by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan www.asabe.org

Citation:  2012 Dallas, Texas, July 29 - August 1, 2012  121336986.(doi:10.13031/2013.41725)
Authors:   T Q Zhang, C S Tan, B L Ma, H.Y.F Ng
Keywords:   tile drainage, conventional tillage (CT), no-tillage (NT), nitrate-N, phosphorus

Understanding phosphorus (P) and nitrate-nitrogen (N) leaching from soils receiving organic amendments is important to accurately estimate total soil P and N losses, and thereby develop best management practices to control non-point source pollution. An experiment was conducted to determine soil P and N losses in tile drainage as affected by addition of yard waste compost on a Brookston clay loam soil which had been under long-term either conventional tillage (CT) or no-tillage (NT). Compost was applied at 75 Mg ha-1 in the fall of 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001. Tile drainage flows were monitored continuously from fall 1998 to fall 2001. Water samples were collected using auto-samplers and analysed for nitrate-N, total dissolved P (TDP), and particulate P. In the control plots (no compost), the flow-weighted mean concentrations of TDP and nitrate-N were averaged at 0.146 mg P L-1 and 14.7 mg N L-1 under CT, and at 0.0984 mg P L-1 and 7.6 mg N L-1 under NT, respectively. Compost addition increased TDP and nitrate-N concentrations to 0.265 mg P L-1 and 27.5 mg N L-1 under CT and 0.383 mg P L-1 and 15.0 mg N L-1 under NT, respectively. Total losses of TDP were similar between tillage regimes in the control plots, but increased by 140% under CT and by 177% under NT with compost addition. Compost application increased nitrate-N losses by 179% under CT and by 85 % under NT. Compost addition increased tile drainage losses of soil TDP, with a greater increase occurring under NT than under CT, while the effect on nitrate-N loss was greater under CT than under NT.

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