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Evaluating the Potential of Legumes to Mitigate N 2 O Emissions From Permanent Grassland Using Process‐Based Models
Author(s) -
Fuchs Kathrin,
Merbold Lutz,
Buchmann Nina,
Bellocchi Gianni,
Bindi Marco,
Brilli Lorenzo,
Conant Richard T.,
Dorich Christopher D.,
Ehrhardt Fiona,
Fitton Nuala,
Grace Peter,
Klumpp Katja,
Liebig Mark,
Lieffering Mark,
Martin Raphaël,
McAuliffe Russell,
Newton Paul C. D.,
Rees Robert M.,
Recous Sylvie,
Smith Pete,
Soussana JeanFrançois,
Topp Cairistiona F. E.,
Snow Val
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
global biogeochemical cycles
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.512
H-Index - 187
eISSN - 1944-9224
pISSN - 0886-6236
DOI - 10.1029/2020gb006561
Subject(s) - fertilizer , grassland , environmental science , biogeochemical cycle , nitrous oxide , productivity , agronomy , nitrogen , legume , greenhouse gas , chemistry , ecology , environmental chemistry , biology , macroeconomics , organic chemistry , economics
A potential strategy for mitigating nitrous oxide (N 2 O) emissions from permanent grasslands is the partial substitution of fertilizer nitrogen (N fert ) with symbiotically fixed nitrogen (N symb ) from legumes. The input of N symb reduces the energy costs of producing fertilizer and provides a supply of nitrogen (N) for plants that is more synchronous to plant demand than occasional fertilizer applications. Legumes have been promoted as a potential N 2 O mitigation strategy for grasslands, but evidence to support their efficacy is limited, partly due to the difficulty in conducting experiments across the large range of potential combinations of legume proportions and fertilizer N inputs. These experimental constraints can be overcome by biogeochemical models that can vary legume‐fertilizer combinations and subsequently aid the design of targeted experiments. Using two variants each of two biogeochemical models (APSIM and DayCent), we tested the N 2 O mitigation potential and productivity of full factorial combinations of legume proportions and fertilizer rates for five temperate grassland sites across the globe. Both models showed that replacing fertilizer with legumes reduced N 2 O emissions without reducing productivity across a broad range of legume‐fertilizer combinations. Although the models were consistent with the relative changes of N 2 O emissions compared to the baseline scenario (200 kg N ha −1 yr −1 ; no legumes), they predicted different levels of absolute N 2 O emissions and thus also of absolute N 2 O emission reductions; both were greater in DayCent than in APSIM. We recommend confirming these results with experimental studies assessing the effect of clover proportions in the range 30–50% and ≤150 kg N ha −1 yr −1 input as these were identified as best‐bet climate smart agricultural practices.