Premium
Nitrate Accumulation in Soils and Loss in Tile Drainage Following Nitrogen Applications to Continuous Corn
Author(s) -
Gast R. G.,
Nelson W. W.,
Randall G. W.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1978.00472425000700020021x
Subject(s) - loam , tile drainage , tile , soil water , nitrate , environmental science , drainage , precipitation , nitrogen , aeration , zea mays , hydrology (agriculture) , zoology , agronomy , soil science , chemistry , biology , geology , ecology , geography , geotechnical engineering , archaeology , organic chemistry , meteorology
Nitrate‐N concentration in tile water, loss from tile lines, and accumulation in soil profiles were determined following each of three annual applications of 20, 112, 224, and 448 kg N/ha to continuous corn ( Zea mays L.) grown on a Webster clay loam (Typic Haplaquoll) in southern Minnesota. Plots were isolated to a depth of 1.8 m with plastic to allow an accurate assessment of the area drained. Water flow through the tile lines occurred annually for approximately 6 weeks in the period from mid‐April through early July and constituted an equivalent from 20 to 46% of the precipitation during the flow periods and from 7 to 22% of the annual precipitation during the 3 years studied. There was relatively little increased NO 3 ‐N accumulation in the soil profile or loss from tile lines at the recommended application rate of 112 kg N/ha compared to that for the check treatment. Nitrate‐N losses through tile lines in 1975 (after 3 years treatment) were 19, 25, 59, and 120 kg/ha for the 20, 112, 224, and 448 kg N/ha applications, respectively, which had NO 3 ‐N accumulations in the 0–3 m soil profiles of 54, 100, 426, and 770 kg NO 3 ‐N/ha. Maximum NO 3 ‐N accumulation in the soil profiles occurred at a depth of about 1 m with little evidence of movement below about 2.2 m.