Seasonal Effects on Leachate Quality from an Ozark Highlands Managed Grassland Using Automated, Equilibrium‐Tension Lysimeters

Abstract

In regions with concentrated broiler (Gallus gallus) production, land application is a useful means of managing broiler litter (BL). However, surface and subsurface water quality issues may arise when continued annual BL application to fields occurs for extended periods. The application of manure follows seasonal guidelines for surface water quality protection. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of BL rate (0, 5.6, and 11.2 Mg litter ha −1 ) and season on drainage and leachate water quality over an 8-yr period (2003-2011) in the Ozark Highlands with karst geology using automated, equilibrium-tension lysimeters. During the 8-yr period, seasonal drainage was unaffected by season or BL rate, averaging 118 mm per season. Averaged across BL rates, seasonal leachate pH, electrical conductivity (EC), flow-weighted mean (FWM) NO 3 -N, dissolved organic C, S, and Zn concentrations, and NH 4 -N, Cu, Fe, and Se loads differed (P < 0.05) among seasons. Averaged across seasons, seasonal leachate EC, FWM PO 4 -P, total P, and S concentrations, and Ni load differed (P < 0.05) among BL rates. With the exception of As and Se, seasonal FWM leachate Cd, Cr, Cu, and NO 3 -N concentrations were at least five times smaller than their maximum contaminant level for drinking water during any of the four seasons. Since rainfall patterns seasonally change in many regions of concentrated poultry production, seasonal differences in the leachate water quality response to continuous annual application of BL are important to help tailor best management practices to protect soil and water resources in regions underlain by karst geology. Abbreviations: BL, broiler litter; DOC, dissolved organic carbon; EC, electrical conductivity; FWM, flow-weighted mean. Citation: Brye, K.R., A.L.M. Daigh, and R.L. McMullen. 2018. Seasonal effects on leachate quality from an Ozark Highlands managed grassland using automated, equilibrium-tension lysimeters. Vadose Zone J. 17:160082.

Lysimeters in Vadose Zone Research

“…Different types of lysimeters can be used for that purpose, and Singh et al (2018) describe the various devices and discuss their use and limitations. Lysimeters with a suction‐controlled bottom boundary are excellent tools to monitor and quantify nutrient and contaminant fluxes and to detect seasonal leaching patterns (Brye et al, 2018), to detect effects of crop management on water and nitrate fluxes (Ochsner et al, 2018), to quantify leaching of pesticides (Kupfersberger et al, 2018), to determine the degree of preferential flow of the pesticide atrazine (Torrentó et al., this issue), and to quantify recharge (Nocco et al, 2018).…”

Soil–Water Dynamics Investigation at Agricultural Hillslope with High-Precision Weighing Lysimeters and Soil–Water Collection Systems

“…The lower boundary condition controlled by the dynamic pressure head ensures that lysimeter soil-water dynamics closely correspond with that of the field with respect to upward and downward fluxes [18]. These kinds of lysimeters are used for studying the temporal dynamics of soil water storage [19,20], water and matter budgeting [21][22][23], and determining seasonal leaching patterns [24], among several other applications [25][26][27][28][29][30].…”