Journal article
A slow release brown coal-urea fertiliser reduced gaseous N loss from soil and increased silver beet yield and N uptake
The Science of the total environment, Vol.649, pp.793-800
01/02/2019
PMID: 30176489
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Abstract
Increasing crop yield and fertiliser nitrogen (N)-use efficiency is important for productive agricultural systems with a reduced environmental footprint. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of slow release brown coal-urea (BCU) fertiliser on the gaseous N losses, biomass yield and N uptake by silver beet (Beta vulgaris L) compared to commercial urea. Two soils were amended with urea, BCU 1 (22% N) or BCU 2 (17% N) as N-fertiliser at the rate of 50 or 100 kg N ha(-1). Five gas sampling periods were undertaken to measure the loss of N as N2O and NH3. After 10 weeks, biomass, N concentration, and N uptake of silver beet, and mineral and mineralisable N of post-harvest soil were measured. BCU substantially increased fertiliser N availability and uptake by silver beet, reduced N2O emission by 29% and NH3 emission by 36% compared to urea alone, irrespective of soil type. Compared to urea, BCU blends increased biomass yield by 27% and 23% in a Tenosol and Dermosol soil, respectively. In addition, application of BCU fertiliser substantially enhanced the potentially mineralisable N and organic carbon content of soil. These results provide evidence that granulation of urea with brown coal (BC) can increase silver beet N-use efficiency and yield in different soil types, and more work is now required to validate this technology for other crops.
Details
- Title
- A slow release brown coal-urea fertiliser reduced gaseous N loss from soil and increased silver beet yield and N uptake
- Creators
- Biplob K. Saha - Monash UniversityMichael T. Rose - NSW Department of Primary IndustriesVanessa N. L. Wong - Monash UniversityTimothy R. Cavagnaro - Australian Wine Research InstituteAntonio F. Patti - Monash University
- Publication Details
- The Science of the total environment, Vol.649, pp.793-800
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Number of pages
- 8
- Grant note
- Brown Coal Innovation Australia Ltd (BCIA) Monash University
- Identifiers
- 991013125991102368
- Copyright
- (C) 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V.
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Science and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article