Mineral nitrogen in soils of Lithuania’s agricultural land: comparison of oven-dried and field-moist samples

Abstract

Please use the following format when citing the article: Arbačauskas J., Masevičienė A., Žičkienė L., Staugaitis G. 2018. Mineral nitrogen in soils of Lithuania's agricultural land: comparison of oven-dried and field-moist samples. Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, 105 (2): 99- AbstractMineral nitrogen (N min = N-NH 4 + + N-NO 3 − ) in oven-dried and field-moist samples was investigated in 2011-2014 in five areas of Lithuania with soils of different texture (sand, sandy loam, loam and clay) and different mineral nitrogen (N min ) content. The samples were taken in spring (from late March to early April) and autumn (late October -early November), from the 0-30, 30-60 and 60-90 cm as well as from 0-60 cm soil layers. The aim of the research was to determine the influence of different methods of soil sample preparation on the concentrations of ammonium (N-NH 4 + ) and nitrate (N-NO 3 − ) nitrogen in oven-dried and field-moist samples and to assess the suitability of the obtained results for the development of agricultural plant fertilisation plans. According to the research results, drying of soil samples at a temperature of 35°C for 12 hours resulted in significantly higher levels of N-NH 4 + compared to those of field-moist samples. The N-NO 3 − concentrations in the field-moist samples, when stored at a 4°C temperature for 3 days, increased marginally compared to the oven-dried soil samples. Weak or moderate, however, statistically significant correlations were observed between N-NH 4 + concentrations in the oven-dried and field-moist samples. In order to perform faster chemical analyses of soil N min for making agricultural plant fertilisation plans, it is necessary to carry out analyses on oven-dried soil samples, and using the linear correlation equations, to convert the results of N-NH 4 + analyses into field-moisture data.Keywords: ammonium and nitrate nitrogen, preparation of samples for analysis.

The Variability of Nitrogen Forms in Soils Due to Traditional and Precision Agriculture: Case Studies in Poland

“…In contrast to our findings, Sądej and Przekwas [ 59 ] revealed that ammonium dominated over nitrate in soils. Similar results were presented by Arbačauskas et al [ 56 ] who documented that concentrations of nitrate also have a decreasing tendency through depth. Similar tendencies were also presented in our study.…”

“…It can be stated that for agricultural sites presented in this study, the concentrations of ammonium were lower than the average concentrations measured for Polish agricultural soils. According to Lee et al [ 54 ], the median concentration of ammonium in agricultural soils was equal to 4 mg kg −1 , whereas in Lithuanian agricultural lands, concentrations of ammonium were observed at the level of 1 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.00–0.30 m; 0.84 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.30–0.60 m; and 0.84 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.60–0.90 m. Nitrate concentrations measured in Lithuanian soils were equal to 6.45 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.00–0.30 m; 4.19 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.30–0.60 m, and 2.86 mg kg −1 at the depth of 0.60–0.90 m [ 56 ]. For comparison, Długosz and Piotrowska-Długosz [ 57 ] revealed that the average concentrations of the total N, nitrate, and ammonium in the soils of northwestern Poland were 1.99 g kg −1 , 17.1 mg kg −1 and 11.1 mg kg −1 , respectively.…”

“…It was also reported that nitrate is lost from clayey soils mainly by denitrification, which has an impact on the reduction of nitrate amount that can be released to groundwater. In this aspect, Arbačauskas et al [ 56 ] revealed that the concentrations of nitrate in light-textured soils were lower in comparison with heavier textured soils.…”

Effect of organic and mineral fertilisers on maize nitrogen nutrition indicators and grain yield

“…In each plot, the soil sample (300-400 g) consisted of four to five sub-samples, taken at randomly selected places. Mineral nitrogen (N min ) was measured via a spectrometric method as described by Arbačauskas et al (2018).…”

The content of mineral nitrogen in Histosols and its relationship with soil organic matter

“…Considering soil texture, N min scales of assessment in mineral soils are developed (Staugaitis et al, 2007;Arbačiauskas et al, 2014). Optimal terms of soil sampling for N min analyses are determined in different countries according to climatic conditions, the depths from which samples are taken for different agricultural crops and other methodological requirements Zhang et al, 2015;Arbačauskas et al, 2018). Most of these studies are conducted early in spring and autumn, less often in summer, as due to intense mineralisation of plant residues and organic matter in the soil, the content of N min significantly increases (Aurangojeb et al, 2017;Friesen, Cattani, 2017;Tripolskaja et al, 2017).…”