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Phosphorus (P) sorption processes in soils contribute to important problems in agriculture: a deficiency of this plant nutrient, and eutrophication in aquatic systems. Soil organic matter (SOM) plays a major role in sorption processes, but its influence on P sorption remains unclear and needs to be elucidated to improve the ability to effectively manage soil P. The aim of this research was to investigate the influence of SOM on P sorption. The study was conducted in sandy soil profiles, and in topsoils before and after removal of SOM with H 2 O 2 .The results were interpreted with the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms. Our results indicated that SOM affected P sorption in sandy soils, but that P sorption also depended on specific soil properties (e.g. values of degree of P saturation (DPS), P sorption capacity (PSC) and pH) often related to land use. Removal of SOM decreased P sorption capacity in most of the topsoils tested; other soil properties became important in controlling P sorption. An increase in P desorption observed after SOM removal indicated that SOM was potentially that soil constituent which increased P binding and limited P leaching from these sandy soils.

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