Nitrate leaching from reseeded pasture

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Shepherd, M. A., Hatch, D. J., Jarvis, S. C. and Bhogal, A. 2001. Nitrate leaching from reseeded pasture. Soil Use and Management. 17 (2), pp. 97-105.

AuthorsShepherd, M. A., Hatch, D. J., Jarvis, S. C. and Bhogal, A.
Abstract

Nitrate leaching and soil mineral N status under grassland were measured on three contrasting soils, spanning winters 1995/96, 1996/97 and 1997/98, in Western England. The soils investigated were a freely draining silty clay loam (Rosemaund), a well drained loam (IGER 1) and a poorly drained clay loam (IGER 2). The effects of reseeding (ploughing and resowing grass) at IGER 1 and IGER 2 in autumn 1995 or 1996 were compared with undisturbed pasture. Reseeding at Rosemaund, in autumns 1995 or 1996, or spring 1996 was compared with undisturbed pasture of 3 sward ages (2, 5, >50 years). Nitrate-N leaching losses during the winter immediately following autumn reseeding ranged between 60 and 350 kg N ha(-1) in 1995/96, depending on soil type, sward management history and rainfall. Losses were much less in the following winter when treatments were repeated (10-107 kg N ha(-1)). Reseeding in spring had little effect on soil mineral N content or leaching losses in the following autumn, compared with undisturbed pasture. Similarly, leaching losses from autumn reseeds in the second winter after cultivation were the same as undisturbed pasture (1-19 kg N ha(-1)). The effect of ploughing grassland for reseeding was relatively short-term, in contrast to the effect of repeated annual cultivation associated with arable rotations.

KeywordsSoil Science
Year of Publication2001
JournalSoil Use and Management
Journal citation17 (2), pp. 97-105
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Funder project or codeDelivering Sustainable Systems (SS) [ISPG]
Soil Science and Environmental Quality (SSEQ)
Project: 2430 4020
Project: NT 1522
ISSN02660032
PublisherWiley

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