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Publication Date
1977
Description
The accumulation of nitrogen and humus in soil under perennial grassland plants was studied between 1965 and 1974 in a trial laid out on carbonated reddish brown sandy loam moraine of original levels of 0.22 % humus and 18 m %1 nitrogen, the C: N ratio being 7 .2. Nitrogen and humus accumulation in the moraine was found to proceed the faster, the higher were the yields of above-ground and underground plant matter. In the course of 10 years, the humus content in the upper 5 cm of soil reached 1.92 to 2.26 % for the higheryielding variants (grasses+ 150 kgN/ha, grasses + white clover), the nitrogen level being 100 to 126 m %. The highest accumulation rates were reached in the 6th and 7th years, when intensive decomposition of the root matter started. In the 7th year, the C: N ratio in the upper soil layer attained its maximum of 11 to 13, whilst in the lower horizon it was just 6 to 7. The studies have shown the great influence of perennial grassland plants on soil formation, a fact of tremendous importance with regard to the improvement of low-humus soils.
Citation
Sau, Arnold, "The influence of grassland plants ort the accu1nulation of humus and nitrogen in the soil in the conditions of the Estonian SSR" (1977). IGC Proceedings (1977-2023). 9.
(URL: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1977/sess3/9)
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The influence of grassland plants ort the accu1nulation of humus and nitrogen in the soil in the conditions of the Estonian SSR
The accumulation of nitrogen and humus in soil under perennial grassland plants was studied between 1965 and 1974 in a trial laid out on carbonated reddish brown sandy loam moraine of original levels of 0.22 % humus and 18 m %1 nitrogen, the C: N ratio being 7 .2. Nitrogen and humus accumulation in the moraine was found to proceed the faster, the higher were the yields of above-ground and underground plant matter. In the course of 10 years, the humus content in the upper 5 cm of soil reached 1.92 to 2.26 % for the higheryielding variants (grasses+ 150 kgN/ha, grasses + white clover), the nitrogen level being 100 to 126 m %. The highest accumulation rates were reached in the 6th and 7th years, when intensive decomposition of the root matter started. In the 7th year, the C: N ratio in the upper soil layer attained its maximum of 11 to 13, whilst in the lower horizon it was just 6 to 7. The studies have shown the great influence of perennial grassland plants on soil formation, a fact of tremendous importance with regard to the improvement of low-humus soils.
