Abstract
This paper reports the results of experiments to determine whether ammonia (NH3) loss can be reduced and nitrogen (N) use efficiency improved by using two relatively new commercial urea formulations rather than granular urea and urea ammonium nitrate. Four nitrogen treatments were applied at a rate of 40 kg N ha−1: granular urea, ‘Green Urea™ 14’ [containing 45.8 % N as urea and ‘Agrotain®’ (N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide) @ 5 L t−1 of urea as a urease inhibitor], ‘Nhance’, a fine particle spray [containing 46 % N as urea, ‘Agrotain’ @ 1 L t−1 of urea and gibberellic acid (applied at a rate of 10 g ha−1)] and urea ammonium nitrate in solution (UAN) surface applied. Ammonia loss was determined in autumn and spring using a micrometeorological method. In autumn, use of the Green Urea and Nhance reduced NH3 loss from the 30 % of applied N lost from the granular urea to 9 and 23 % respectively. Loss from all treatments in spring was very small (<2 % of applied N), because 4 mm of rain fell within 24 h of application onto an already wet site. The use of the Nhance and Green Urea instead of granular urea did not result in increased agronomic efficiency or recovery efficiency of the applied N, and this is most likely due to the presence of sufficient available N from both fertiliser application and the soil. A 15N study recovered 72.8 % of the applied N in the plants and soil, and showed that 30 % of the total N taken up by the plant was derived from the fertiliser, and 70 % from the soil.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cai G, Chen D, Ding H, Fan XH, Pacholski A, White RE (2002) Gaseous nitrogen losses from urea applied to maize on a calcareous fluvo-aquic soil in the North China plain. Aust J Soil Res 40:737–748
Chen D, Suter HC, Islam A, Edis R, Freney JR, Walker CN (2008) Prospects of improving efficiency of fertilizer nitrogen in Australian agriculture; a review of enhanced efficiency fertilizers. Aust J Soil Res 46:289–301
Dawar K, Zaman M, Rowarth JS, Blennerhassett J, Turnbull MH (2011) Urease inhibitor reduces N losses and improves plant-bioavailability of urea applied in fine particle and granular forms under field conditions. Agric Ecosyst Environ 144:41–50
Douglas LA, Bremner JM (1971) A rapid method of evaluating different compounds as inhibitors of urease activity in soils. Soil Biol Biochem 3:309–315
DPIV (Department of Primary Industries Victoria) (2011) Fertilising dairy pastures—nitrogenous fertilisers. http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/agriculture/dairy/pastures-management/fertilising-dairy-pastures/. Accessed June 2012
Eckard RJ, Chen D, White RE, Chapman DF (2003) Gaseous nitrogen loss from temperate perennial grass and clover dairy pastures in south–eastern Australia. Aust J Agric Res 54:561–570
Feyter C, O’Connor MB, Addison B (1985) Effects of rates and times of nitrogen application on the production and composition of dairy pastures in Waikato district, New Zealand. New Zeal J Exp Agric 13(3):247–252
Frank DA, Evans RD, Tracy BF (2004) The role of ammonia volatilization in controlling the natural 15 N abundance of a grazed grassland. Biogeochem 68(2):169–178
Freney JR, Leuning R, Simpson JR, Denmead OT (1985) Estimating ammonia volatilization from flooded rice fields by simplified techniques. Soil Sci Soc Am J 49:1049–1054
Galloway JN, Townsend AR, Erisman JW, Bekunda M, Cai Z, Freney JR, Martinelli LA, Seitzinger SP, Sutton MA (2008) Transformation of the nitrogen cycle: recent trends, questions, and potential solutions. Science 320:889–892
Grant CA, Jia S, Brown KR, Bailey LD (1996) Volatile losses of NH3 from surface applied urea and urea ammonium nitrate with and without the urease inhibitors NBTP or ammonium thiosulphate. Can J Soil Sci 76:417–419
Harper LA, Catchpoole V, Vallis I (1983) Ammonia loss from fertilizer applied to tropical pastures. In: Simpson JR (ed) Gaseous loss of nitrogen from plant-soil systems; developments in plant and soil sciences vol 9. Junk Publishers, The Hague, pp 195–214
Hornik K (2009) The R project for statistical computing. http://CRAN.R-project.org
Hoult E, McGarity J (1986) The measurement and distribution of urease activity in a pasture system. Plant Soil 93:359–366
IFA (2011) Urea consumption Australia. http://www.fertilizer.org/ifa/
Isbell RF (1996) The Australian soil classification. Australian soil and land survey handbook. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne
Jarvis SC, Scholefield D, Pain BF (1995) Nitrogen cycling in grazing systems. In: Bacon PE (ed) Nitrogen fertilization in the environment. Marcel Dekker, New York, pp 381–491
Koenig R, Proctor C, Johnston W (2007) Golob C (2007) urea and ammonia volatilization in dryland grass seed systems. Western Nutrient Management Conference, Salt Lake City
Leuning R, Freney JR, Denmead OT, Simpson JR (1985) A sampler for measuring atmopheric ammonia flux. Atmos Environ 19:1117–1124
Meyer RD, Olson RA, Rhoades HF (1961) Ammonia losses from fertilized Nebraska soils. Agron J 53:241–244
Mosier A, Kroeze C, Nevison C, Oenema O, Seitzinger S, van Cleemput O (1998) Closing the global N2O budget: nitrous oxide emissions through the agricultural nitrogen cycle. Nutr Cycl Agroecosyt 52:225–248
Prasertsak P, Freney JR, Denmead OT, Saffigna PG, Prove BG (2001) Significance of gaseous nitrogen loss from a tropical dairy pasture fertilized with urea. Aust J Exp Agric 41:625–632
Quin BF, Blennerhassett JD, Zaman M (2005) The use of urease inhibitor-based products to reduce nitrogen losses from pasture. In: Currie LD, Hanly JA (eds) Proceedings of the workshop developments in fertiliser application technologies and nutrient management, Fertiliser and Lime Research Centre, Massey University, Palmerston North, 9–10 February 2005 pp 288–304
Quinfert (2011) Quinfert : optimising production, protecting the environment. http://www.quinfert.com.au/index.php. Accessed Feb 2012
Rawluk CDL, Grant CA, Racz GJ (2001) Ammonia volatilization from soils fertilized with urea and varying rates of urease inhibitor NBPT. Can J Soil Sci 81:239–246
Rayment GE, Lyons DJ (2011) 7A2b Total soil-N, semi micro Kjeldahl - automated colour, FIA. In: Rayment GE, Lyons DJ (eds) Soil chemical methods. Australasia, CSIRO Publishing, pp 104–108
Sanz-Cobena A, Misselbrook TH, Arce A, Mingot JI, Diez JA, Vallejo A (2008) An inhibitor of urease activity effectively reduces ammonia emissions from soil treated with urea under Mediterranean conditions. Agric Ecosyst Environ 126:243–249
Sanz-Cobena A, Misselbrook T, Camp V, Vallejo A (2011) Effect of water addition and the urease inhibitor NBPT on the abatement of ammonia emission from surface applied urea. Atmos Environ 45(8):1517–1524
Sherlock RR, Black AS, Smith NP (1987) Micro-environment soil pH around broadcast urea granules and its relationship to ammonia volatilization. In: Bacon PE, Evans J, Stonier RR, Taylor AC (eds) Nitrogen cycling in temperate agricultural systems. Australian Society of Soil Science, Australia, pp 316–326
Stiegler JC, Richardson MD, Karcher DE, Patton AJF (2010) Foliar nutrient uptake by cool-season and warm-season turfgrasses. Green Section Record, Jan-Feb, pp 7–9
Turner D, Edis R, Chen D, Freney J, Denmead O, Christie R (2010) Determination and mitigation of ammonia loss from urea applied to winter wheat with N-(n-butyl) thiophosphorictriamide. Agric Ecosyst Environ 137:261–266
Vaio N, Cabrera ML, Kissel DE, Rema JA, Newsome JF, Calvert VH II (2008) Ammonia volatilization from urea-based fertilizers applied to tall fescue pastures in Georgia, USA, 10.2136/sssaj2007.0300. Soil Sci Soc Am J 72:1665–1671
Watson CJ, Miller H (1996) Short-term effects of urea amended with the urease inhibitor N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide on perennial ryegrass. Plant Soil 184:33–45
Watson CJ, Stevens RJ, Laughlin RJ (1990) Effectiveness of the urease inhibitor NBPT (N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide) for improving the efficiency of urea for ryegrass production. Fert Res 24:11–15
Watson CJ, Akhonzada NA, Hamilton JTG, Matthews DI (2008) Rate and mode of application of the urease inhibitor N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide on ammonia volatilization from surface-applied urea. Soil Use Manag 24:246–253
Wilson JD, Thurtell GW, Kidd GE, Beauchamp EG (1967) Estimation of the rate of gaseous mass transfer from a surface source plot to the atmosphere. Atmos Environ 16(8):1861–1867
Zaman M, Nguyen ML, Blennerhassett JD, Quin BF (2008) Reducing NH3, N2O and NO3–N losses from a pasture soil with urease or nitrification inhibitors and elemental S-amended nitrogenous fertilizers. Biol Fert Soils 44:693–705
Acknowledgments
The authors thank the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, the Grains Research and Development Corporation, Incitec Pivot Ltd and ARC for funding the project. Laboratory and field assistance was provided by Mr M. Mahoney, Dr X. Chen, Associate Professor R. Edis, Y. Liu, L. Chen and M. Benfell.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Suter, H., Sultana, H., Turner, D. et al. Influence of urea fertiliser formulation, urease inhibitor and season on ammonia loss from ryegrass. Nutr Cycl Agroecosyst 95, 175–185 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-013-9556-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-013-9556-y