Rainfall climate limitation to slurry spreading in Ireland

Holden, Nicholas M.; Fitzgerald, D. L.; Ryan, Declan; Tierney, Harry; Murphy, Fionnuala

doi:10.1016/j.agrformet.2003.09.008

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…, 2010). However, the application of slurry to grassland has the potential to adversely affect water quality, a risk which is heightened when waste is spread in winter on saturated soils (Holden et al. , 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Livestock production based on grass is the predominant agricultural system in Ireland, the wetter regions of the UK and is widespread globally where humid climates are suited to grass production. In temperate climates animals typically graze outdoors in the summer and are housed in the winter to protect the grass and soil from being damaged by stock trampling (Holden et al, 2004). Winter housing leads to the accumulation of animal excreta (slurry and manure) which must be stored and recycled to land.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Manure nutrient recycling is important for the sustainability of agricultural systems: at the global scale 128.3 and 24.3 Tg ⁄ yr of N and P are applied as manure to land (Potter et al, 2010). However, the application of slurry to grassland has the potential to adversely affect water quality, a risk which is heightened when waste is spread in winter on saturated soils (Holden et al, 2004). There is substantial literature on key processes associated with the environmental impact of slurry application to grassland, such as emission of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere (Soussana et al, 2010), nitrate leaching (Smith et al, 2003), transport of pathogens (Smith et al, 2001a,b;Crowther et al, 2002;Brennan et al, 2010) and P movement (Wang et al, 2004) by overland flow to surface waters.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Does soil biology hold the key to optimized slurry management? A manifesto for research

Harris

Tyrrel

Ritz

et al. 2011

Soil Use and Management

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The application of agricultural biosolids to land is likely to increase on farms as pressures intensify to manage nutrients and carbon, especially with regard to slurry. Although much work has been carried out in this area, it has tended to focus on specific aspects of the application‐use cycle, without a coherent framework and notably the role of soil biology has been little studied in this context, or considered appropriately in the development and application of slurry management systems. In this review article we present a hypothesis that the configuration of the soil microbial community is determined by the history of long‐term inputs to which the community has been subjected and that the resultant configuration determines the instantaneous responses of the associated soil to the presence of slurries, and posit a set of critical questions which would effectively test this.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Does soil biology hold the key to optimized slurry management? A manifesto for research

Harris

Tyrrel

Ritz

et al. 2011

Soil Use and Management

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“…Slurry is a heterogeneous mixture of animal feces, urine, small amounts of bedding and washings/rainwater and is typically stored in storage tanks on farms. The recycling of slurry back to the farm in the form of fertilizer is a common practice for the sustainability of the agricultural sector (Holden et al 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of soil microbiota and nematodes to application of organic and inorganic fertilizers in grassland columns

et al. 2020

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Enhancing the role of the soil microbiota in plant phosphorus (P) and sulfur (S) supply through application of organic fertilizer could reduce dependencies on non-sustainable synthetic fertilizers. To compare the effects of organic/inorganic fertilizers on the soil microbiota, soil columns with Lolium perenne (ryegrass) were setup in a greenhouse and amended with an inorganic fertilizer, cattle slurry (organic), or urea (P-and S-free control). Ryegrass rhizosphere of the slurry treatment had significantly higher abundances of bacterial-feeding nematodes, mycorrhizal colonization, cultivable heterotrophic bacteria, phosphonate-and sulfonate-utilizing bacteria, arylsulfatase activity, available P and Variovorax asfA gene copies compared to the inorganic and urea treatments. Phosphomonoesterase activities, and gene abundances involved in organic P and S transformations (phoD, phoC, Burkholderia & Polaromonas asfA) were similar in all treatments. Grass dry matter yield, shoot uptake of N, P and S were significantly higher in the inorganic treatment compared to the urea and slurry treatments. Community compositions differed significantly between the three fertilizer treatments and included the bacterial, alkaline phosphomonoesterase-producing bacterial, fungal, AM fungal, and nematode communities. Bacteriodetes were found in higher relative abundance in the organic treatment while Acidobacteria were more abundant in the urea and inorganic fertilizer treatments. These community shifts correlated significantly with grass dry matter yield, uptake of N, P and S, mycorrhizal colonization, enzyme activities, abundances of bacteria and bacterial-feeding nematodes. We concluded that organic fertilization promoted soil microbes and nematodes which have the potential to support sustainable plant growth, provided that the overall nutrient requirements are met.

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“…In contrast, the high levels of DRP in runoff from the splash-plate treatment under high VSM levels (December and March), suggests that splash-plate spreading methods can exacerbate the magnitude of runoff P loss under wetter weather conditions. Although a number of authors (McGechan and Lewis, 2000;Jordan et al, 2007) have highlighted that the 'safe' application of slurry during the winter period can often be limited due to the absence of suitable weather conditions, a study by Holden et al (2004) predicted that in five years out of a tenyear period, suitable weather conditions for slurry spreading would be available for at least 10% of the winter period in Northern Ireland. The findings of the current study clearly demonstrate that provided spreading conditions are suitable, P concentrations in runoff from slurry applied during the 'winter' period (18 January) can be lower than from slurry spread in early Spring (1 March), thus highlighting that calendar-based 'closed periods' might on occasions actually delay slurry applications until a higher risk period.…”

Section: Effect Of Slurry Treatment On P Losses In Runoffmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of slurry application method on phosphorus loss in runoff from grassland soils during periods of high soil moisture content

McConnell¹,

Doody²,

Elliott³

et al. 2016

Irish Journal of Agricultural and Food Research

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Previous studies have reported that the trailing shoe application technique reduces phosphorus (P) in the runoff postslurry application when compared to the traditional splash-plate application technique. However, the effectiveness of the trailing-shoe technique as a means of reducing P losses has not been evaluated when slurry is applied during periods of high soil moisture levels and lower herbage covers. To address this issue, three treatments were examined in a 3 × 4 factorial design split-plot experiment, with treatments comprising three slurry treatments: control (no slurry), splashplate and trailing-shoe, and four slurry application dates: 7 December, 18 January, 1 March and 10 April. Dairy cow slurry was applied at a rate of 20 m 3 /ha, while simulated runoff was generated 2, 9 and 16 days later and analysed for a range of P fractions. Dissolved reactive P concentrations in runoff at day two was 41% lower when slurry was applied using the trailing-shoe technique, compared to the splash-plate technique (P < 0.05). In addition, P concentrations in runoff were higher (P < 0.05) from slurry applied in December and March compared to slurry applied in January or April, coinciding with periods of higher soil moisture contents. While the latter highlights that 'calendar'-based non-spreading periods might not always achieve the desired consequences, the study demonstrated that further field-scale investigations into the trailing shoe as a mitigation measure to reduced P loss from agricultural soils is warranted.

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Rainfall climate limitation to slurry spreading in Ireland

Cited by 11 publications

References 9 publications

Does soil biology hold the key to optimized slurry management? A manifesto for research

Does soil biology hold the key to optimized slurry management? A manifesto for research

Responses of soil microbiota and nematodes to application of organic and inorganic fertilizers in grassland columns

Impact of slurry application method on phosphorus loss in runoff from grassland soils during periods of high soil moisture content

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