Influence of soil texture and tillage-induced changes on the susceptibility of legume-N to leaching
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Abstract
A legume underseeded in cereal represents an important source of nitrogen N, for the subsequent crop in the rotation and can provide a complementary improvement in soil structure. The extent to which the N benefit is realized depends on the rate of mineralization of the legume N in relation to the N requirements of the succeeding crop. The rate of N mineralization may vary with inherent soil conditions as well as properties such as bulk density that change as tillage practices are changed. The objectives of this study were: (a) to determine the influence of variations in soil texture, bulk density, and the volume fraction of pores, VFP, belonging to different size classes, on N-mineralization subsequent to red clover incorporation and, (b) to develop equations to predict the rates of N-mineralization on different soils.