The use in grass production of clinoptilolite as an ammonia adsorbent and a nitrogen carrier

Clinoptilolite-rich tuff (NZ) from the Zlatokop deposit (Vranjska Banja, Serbia) was studied as a nitrogen carrier for grass production. The mechanism of binding ammonium cations present in aqueous solutions by NZ was examined, as well as the possibility of adsorption of ammonia released in fresh cattle manure during its fermentation. The NH4+ binding from solutions proceeded via an ion-exchange process that followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. Adsorption isotherms studied at 298-318 K followed the Freundlich isotherm equation. The NZ readily adsorbs ammonia liberated from manure and the addition of 10 wt. % of NZ to manure can preserve up to 90 % of ammonia. The potential benefit of this effect was examined in greenhouse pot experiments with Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum, var. Macho) using three different types of soil (silty, clayey and sandy). The zeta potential measurements showed that the stability of their colloidal dispersions differed mutually and that the addition of NZ affected the stability and nitrogen cycling differently. All results indicated that NZ could be applied in grass production

Effects of Formic Acid Preservation of Fishbones on the Extractability of Ammonium Lactate–Acetate Soluble Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, and Potassium

Fishbones contain significant amounts of plant nutrients. Fish residues may be preserved by acidification to pH < 4, which may affect the chemical extractability, and the plant availability of nutrients when applied as fertilisers. Grinded bone material from cod (Gadus morhua) heads was mixed with formic acid to investigate if this would increase the concentrations of ammonium lactate–acetate (AL)-extractable nutrients. Two degrees of fineness of fishbones (coarse 2–4 mm; fine < 0.71 mm) were compared at pH 3.0 and 4.0 plus a water control in a laboratory study over 55 days. Samples for measurement of AL-extractable P, Ca, Mg and K were taken on day 2, 15, 34 and 55. Whereas more formic acid and thereby lower pH clearly increased the concentrations of AL-extractable calcium (Ca-AL) and magnesium (Mg-AL), AL-extractable phosphorus (P-AL) was only significantly increased in finely grinded bones at pH 3. After 34 days at pH 3, 6% of the total content of P was extracted by AL in fine fishbones. In the water control, about 1% of the P was extracted, possibly from phospholipids. This P-AL concentration was well above P-AL extracted from acidified coarse fishbones (pH 3 and 4) and from fine fishbones acidified to pH 4. With acidification, about 30% of total Ca and 100% of total Mg were extracted by AL, and the Ca-AL and Mg-AL concentrations were closely correlated. A possible reason for lower P-AL in coarse fishbones at pH 3 and 4, and in fine fishbones at pH 4 than in water controls may be a precipitation of apatite from phospholipids and dissolved calcium.publishedVersio

Effects of struvite application on soil and plants: a short‐term field study

The soil P concentration commonly declines over time by organic management, if the farm does not acquire enough fertilisers or other inputs containing P from outside. An interesting source to supply farms with P is struvite (magnesium‐ammonium phosphate). This mineral easily precipitates when the concentrations of these nutrients is high enough, such as in a toilet separating urine. Struvite may be produced in a wastewater treatment plant, as a method to reduce the P concentration in the water reaching the recipient. If struvite is allowed as a mineral fertiliser in the general fertiliser regulation of the European Union,which is currently under revision, this mineral may be allowed also in certified organic agriculture. A wastewater treatment plant in Hamar (south‐eastern Norway), Hedmarken inter‐municipal wastewater corporation (Hias IKS) has developed a patented method to precipitate struvite efficiently. A sample of struvite produced by this process at Hias was sent to Tingvoll (north‐western Norway) to be tested in an experimental field with perennial ley, called “SoilEffects”. This experiment, established in 2011, is used to study the effect on yields and soil characteristics when the slurry from the farm’s herd of organic dairy cows is anaerobically digested to produce biogas before being applied as fertiliser. Non‐digested and digested slurry are compared in two levels of manure application, low and high (30 or 60 tons of slurry per ha and year), and with a control with no manure application. Eight replicates are available of each treatment, and to half of these plots, struvite was applied shortly before the slurry was applied, in the end of April 2018. We applied an amount of struvite corresponding to 40 kg P per ha. Before the application, soil samples had been collected from two depths, to study the effect of struvite on soil characteristics. Yields of ley were recorded in the two cuts, which occurred in June and August. The yield level at the 1st cut was generally low due to drought, but the increase in yield was significant with application of struvite in the plots receiving no manure, and with low manure application. At the 2nd cut, yield levels were generally higher, and again a positive effect of struvite was found in these treatments. On average, the total yield (sum of yields at the 1st and 2nd cut) was 2.4 tons of dry matter (DM) per ha with no application of manure or struvite, and 4.1 with application of struvite. In treatments receiving a low amount of manure, the mean total yield was 5 tons per ha with no struvite, and 6 tons with struvite application. In treatments receiving high amounts of manure, the mean total yield was 6.4 tons per ha without struvite, and 6.2 with struvite. The concentrations of minerals in aboveground plant material from both cuts were analysed, and new soil samples collected after the 2nd cut of ley. Application of struvite increased the P concentrations in plant material and the concentration of AL‐extractable P in soil. Struvite further increased the concentration of magnesium in plant material and soil. Soil pH increased from spring to autumn by application of manure, but the application of struvite reduced this effect. The amount of P being adsorbed to oxides of iron and aluminium in the experimental soil from a solution containing dissolved phosphate was also recorded. The soil has a certain amount of such oxides, and long‐term application of P in manure, as well as application of P in struvite, could possibly reduce the amount of P being adsorbed from the solution. However, no significant differences were found between soils which had received low or high amounts of manure over several years, and we did not find any effect of struvite application on this characteristic in this soil

Nutritional composition of bilberries (<i>Vaccinium myrtillus</i> L.) from forest fields in Norway – Effects of geographic origin, climate, fertilization and soil properties

Effects of different environmental factors (origin, climate, fertilization and soil properties) on berry nutritional quality were studied in eight forest fields of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) in Northern-, Mid- and Southern Norway. No clear trend between locations could be found, however untargeted multivariate analysis of metabolite profiles revealed clear segregation patterns between locations. Anthocyanin, and phenolics content, and titratable acidity were significantly affected by mineral fertilization (Mid-Norway), while organic fertilization did not show any significant effects (Northern Norway). Bilberry chemical composition was affected by harvest time point, as indicated by a potentially higher nutritional quality regarding the content of phytochemicals when harvesting at mid or towards the end of the production season (Southern Norway). Regional and annual climate had strongest impact on the nutritious content of bilberries. Significant differences were found between locations, however previous findings on increasing anthocyanin content with latitude were not confirmed due to environmental impacts confounding the population effects

Nitrogen Mineralization of Apple Orchard Soils in Regions of Western and South-Eastern Norway

The mineralization of nitrogen in apple orchard soil will increase the soil supply. An incubation study to test the soil potential and the validity of analytical methods was conducted at 3, 8, 15, and 20 °C for up to 128 days on soils from western and south-eastern Norway. Soils with the highest pH showed the highest mineralization. The mineralization increased with increasing temperature and time, but start-up N reduced mineralization. The mineralization cannot be estimated from standard soil chemical parameters because the different C/N ratio indicates organic material of different origin and quality. The increase in NO3-N started very quickly and ranged from 17 to 182% and 12 to 64% after 8 days at 3 °C and 20 °C, respectively. There was no correlation between total N in the soil and the amount of mineralized N. On average, the mineralization increased by 5–7% for a change of 1 °C in the interval from 8 to 15 °C in the soil. The chemical extraction method using heated KCl correlated well with the mineralization data. On average, the chemical method estimated 30 kg N ha−1, which corresponded to 0.48% of total N. Recommendations for N fertilization based on total N in the soil overestimate the contribution of plant-available N in most cases

Rhizosphere Organic Anions Play a Minor Role in Improving Crop Species' Ability to Take Up Residual Phosphorus (P) in Agricultural Soils Low in P Availability

Many arable lands have accumulated large reserves of residual phosphorus (P) and a relatively large proportion of soil P is less available for uptake by plants. Root released organic anions are widely documented as a key physiological strategy to enhance P availability, while limited information has been generated on the contribution of rhizosphere organic anions to P utilization by crops grown in agricultural soils that are low in available P and high in extractable Ca, Al, and Fe. We studied the role of rhizosphere organic anions in P uptake from residual P in four common crops Triticum aestivum, Avena sativa, Solanum tuberosum, and Brassica napus in low- and high-P availability agricultural soils from long-term fertilization field trials in a mini-rhizotron experiment with four replications. Malate was generally the dominant organic anion. More rhizosphere citrate was detected in low P soils than in high P soil. B. napus showed 74–103% increase of malate in low P loam, compared with clay loam. A. sativa had the greatest rhizosphere citrate concentration in all soils (5.3–15.2 μmol g−1 root DW). A. sativa also showed the highest level of root colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF; 36 and 40%), the greatest root mass ratio (0.51 and 0.66) in the low-P clay loam and loam respectively, and the greatest total P uptake (5.92 mg P/mini-rhizotron) in the low-P loam. B. napus had 15–44% more rhizosphere acid phosphatase (APase) activity, ~0.1–0.4 units lower rhizosphere pH than other species, the greatest increase in rhizosphere water-soluble P in the low-P soils, and the greatest total P uptake in the low-P clay loam. Shoot P content was mainly explained by rhizosphere APase activity, water-soluble P and pH within low P soils across species. Within species, P uptake was mainly linked to rhizosphere water soluble P, APase, and pH in low P soils. The effects of rhizosphere organic anions varied among species and they appeared to play minor roles in improving P availability and uptake

Foredrag Øko2020, Fellessesjoner Landbrukets Økologikongress 2020

Foredrag Øko2020, Fellessesjoner Landbrukets Økologikongress 2020 (Ikke alle foredraga er publisert) Hva er jordhelse? "What is soil health?"Joel Williams (foredraget holdes på engelsk) Jordanalyser og gjødslingsplanlegging som verktøy i økologisk landbruk, Tore Krogstad, NMBU Presentasjon av inspirasjonsbøndene og deres inspirasjonstorg Tanker om jordmikrobiologiens rolle i landbruket - og erfaringer fra prosjekter, Kamran Scalchian-Tabrizi, UiO Stikk spade og finger i jorda. Praktiske råd om bedring av jordkvaliteten, Kari Bysveen, NLR Slik arbeider jeg med jordhelse, Anders Hørte, Inspirasjonsbonde Trusler mot jordas fruktbarhet - endringer i moldinnhold over tid, Hugh Riley, NIBIO Hvordan kan økologiske produsenter bidra til reduserte klimagassutslipp? Sissel Hansen, NORSØK Praktiske eksempel fra jordkarbonprosjektet, Hege Sundet, NLR og Inspirasjonsbonde Hellek Berge Hvordan kan vi få et velfungerende marked for norsk økologisk mat? Dagens og morgendagens matforbruker – hva, hvorfor og hvordan? Annechen Bahr Bugge, SIFO. Paneldialog ledet av Aina Bartmann med representanter fra de tre dagligvarekjedene om marked og grossistledd, utfordringer og muligheter Norgesgruppen ved bærekraftansvarlig Inge E. Næsset, Rema 1000 ved sjef for samfunnsansvar og miljø Kaia Østbye Andresen og Coop Norge ved miljøsjef Knut Lutnæs

Metoder for jordanalyser

Manualen beskriver metodene tørking og sikting av jord, volumvekt, tørrstoff og glødetap, pH, AL-metoden for bestemmelse av lettløselig P, K, Mg, og Ca, syreløselig K og plantetilgjengelig Cu. Manualen er i første rekke utarbeidet til bruk for laboratorier som analyserer jord i forbindelse med gjødslingsplanlegging i det praktiske landbruket

Efficiency of combined waste resources as N and P fertiliser to spring cereals

N-rich waste resources have potentially good effects if applied as fertiliser to spring cereals. P fertilisation effects of meat and bone meal are strongly determined by soil pH, whereas P in bottom wood ash seems to have almost the same availability as easily soluble P in mineral fertilisers. K fertilisation effects were hidden by the soils ability to provide plants with plant available K.publishedVersio

Efficiency of combined waste resources as N and P fertiliser to spring cereals

N-rich waste resources have potentially good effects if applied as fertiliser to spring cereals. P fertilisation effects of meat and bone meal are strongly determined by soil pH, whereas P in bottom wood ash seems to have almost the same availability as easily soluble P in mineral fertilisers. K fertilisation effects were hidden by the soils ability to provide plants with plant available K.publishedVersio