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DISTRIBUTION OF FORMS OF NITROGEN IN A PODZOLIC SOIL PROFILE FROM GARPENBERG, CENTRAL SWEDEN
Author(s) -
NÔMMIK HANS
Publication year - 1967
Publication title -
journal of soil science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.244
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1365-2389
pISSN - 0022-4588
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2389.1967.tb01508.x
Subject(s) - hydrolysate , humus , chemistry , soil horizon , nitrogen , composition (language) , amino acid , zoology , ammonia , hydrolysis , soil water , biology , biochemistry , organic chemistry , ecology , linguistics , philosophy
Summary The chemical nature and distribution patterns of the forms of N in a podzolic soil profile from central Sweden, developed under a stand of Norway spruce, were studied. Total N, native fixed NH 4 , acid hydrolysable‐N, and the amounts of ammonia, hexosamine, and amino‐acid N in the hydrolysate were determined. From 17 to 27 per cent of the N was insoluble in 6N HC1, the highest percentage being in the A 2 horizon. Amino‐acids in the acid hydrolysates decreased from 50 per cent of the total N content of the soil in the humus layer (A 0 ) to 24 per cent in the B horizon. Amino‐acid composition varied little in samples from different horizons. Hexosamine‐N was 11–14 per cent of the total soil N, tending to increase with depth. Approximately 15 per cent of the total soil N was found in the soil hydrolysate as NH 4 . Values for native fixed NH 4 extracted by N HF: N HCl were 34–80 ppm but were reduced to 10–17 ppm when corrected for the NH 4 released by N HCl only. The figures thus obtained are considerably lower than those reported by other workers.