HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Zhou, X. Articles by Smith, D. L. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Zhou, X. Articles by Smith, D. L. Agricola Articles by Zhou, X. Articles by Smith, D. L.

Management Practices to Conserve Soil Nitrate in Maize Production Systems

Dep. of Plant Science, Macdonald Campus, McGill Univ., 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste Anne de Bellevue, QC, Canada H9X 3V9;
Dep. of Natural Resource Science, Macdonald Campus, McGill Univ., 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste Anne de Bellevue, QC, Canada H9X 3V9;
Dep. of Agricultural and Biosystems Eng., Macdonald Campus, McGill Univ., 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste Anne de Bellevue, QC, Canada H9X 3V9.

^* Corresponding author (dsmith{at}agradm.lan.mcgill.ca).

ABSTRACT

Residual soil N following maize (Zea mays L.) harvest is susceptible to leaching over winter. There is no available information regarding the combination of intercropping system and water table control to conserve soil N in maize production systems. A 2-yr study was conducted to examine the effects of cropping systems (monocrop maize, and maize intercropped with annual Italian ryegrass [Lolium multiflorum Lam.]) and water table controls (free drainage, or subirrigation to establish water table depths at 70 and 80 cm below the soil surface) on conserving soil N, under climatic and soil conditions of southwestern Québec. The resulting six treatments were fertilized in the spring with 270 kg N ha^–1. The effects of adding fertilizer at 0, 180, and 270 kg N ha^–1 on monocrop maize with free drainage were also investigated. Soil cores of 1 m in depth were collected in the spring and fall of 1993 and 1994. In 1993, intercropping decreased the amount of NO^–₃-N in the top 1 m of the soil profile by 47% (92.3 kg N ha^–1) relative to monocropped maize at harvest time. Water table depth had less effect on soil NO^–₃-N content than cropping system. Both increasing water table depth and monocrop maize enhanced downward movement of NO^–₃-N during the growing season and following spring. More NO^–₃-N was present in freely drained subsoil under maize given 270 kg N ha^–1 than under maize given 180 kg N ha^–1.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				B. U. Ugwuegbu, S. O. Prasher, and D. Ahmad Bioremediation of Residual Fertilizer Nitrate: I. Laboratory Demonstration of an On-Farm In Situ Pollution Control System J. Environ. Qual., January 1, 2001; 30(1): 1 - 10. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				B. U. Ugwuegbu, S. O. Prasher, D. Ahmad, and P. Dutilleul Bioremediation of Residual Fertilizer Nitrate: II. Soil Redox Potential and Soluble Iron as Indicators of Soil Health During Treatment J. Environ. Qual., January 1, 2001; 30(1): 11 - 18. [Abstract] [Full Text]