Premium
Effects of Natrustoll (Solonetz) Soil Horizons and Nitrogen on Growth of Tall Wheatgrass 1
Author(s) -
McGinnies William J.,
Ludwig Jim R.
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj1977.00021962006900030046x
Subject(s) - agronomy , pasture , forage , nitrogen , biomass (ecology) , agropyron , yield (engineering) , soil water , chemistry , environmental science , biology , soil science , physics , organic chemistry , thermodynamics
Abstract Vast hectarages of potentially valuable pasture land in Colorado and Wyoming are dominated by saltgrass ( Distichlis stricta (Torr.) Rydb.), an undesirable pasture component. Saltgrass meadows could possibly be revegetated with a more valuable forage species such as tall wheatgrass ( Agropyron elongatum (Host) (Beauv.). A greenhouse study was conducted to evaluate the effects of the A, B, and C horizons of a solonetz soil on herbage yield of tall wheatgrass; the effect of N application was also investigated. Yields of plants grown in soils from the A horizon were highest, those from the B horizon where somewhat lower, and those from the C horizon were very low. Mixtures of A and B horizons usually produced higher yields than the A or B alone. Plants grown in any soil mixture which included the C horizon showed reduced yields. The deleterious effect of the C horizon was attributed to its high Na‐salt content. Nitrogen, applied at rates equivalent to 56 to 448 kg N/ha, significantly increased herbage yield. Compared to no N application, the highest rate resulted in a three‐fold increase in yield. The highest N efficiences in terms of total biomass produced per unit of N applied were obtained from rates of 112 and 224 kg N/ha which produced 39 and 37 kg of additional biomass per kg of N applied, respectively.