Microbial Biomass and Respiration of Soil Cultivated with Wheat Grown on Calcareous Soil as Influenced by Nitrogen Fertilization, Biofertilization and Farmyard Manure Application

Elsokkary, Ibrahim; Abd El-All, A. E.; Gomaa, H. E.

doi:10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2011.2708

Microbial Biomass and Respiration of Soil Cultivated with Wheat Grown on Calcareous Soil as Influenced by Nitrogen Fertilization, Biofertilization and Farmyard Manure Application

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Department of Soil and Water Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, El Shatby, Alexandria university , Egypt.

² Soil, Water and Environ. Res. Inst., El-Noubariya, Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Egypt.

10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2011.2708

Abstract

The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the influence of mineral N fertilizer alone or in combination with biofertilizer (B) or farmyard manure (FYM) on the microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) and soil respiration (SR) of soils collected at tillering, heading and harvest growth stages of wheat plant grown on calcareous soil. Field experiment was carried out at El-Noubariya Res. St., Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation. The experimental design was split plot in four riplicates where N was the main treatment (0, 30, 60 and 90 kgN/Fed) as ammonium nitrate, and biofertilizer: cerialin (B) or farmyard manure (FYM) was the sub-treatment. Phosphorus as superphosphate fertilizer and potassium as potassium sulfate fertilizer were applied to the soil before seed sowing during tillage practices. The seeds of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) variety Giza 168 were sown in Dec. 2007.
The obtained results showed significant increases in the levels of MBC, MBN and SR with increasing rates of
applied N alone and in combination with B or with FYM.
The levels of MBC were higher in soils (0 – 20 cm) collected at heading growth stage (mean values of 413.7
and 675.3 mgC/kg soil for N + B and for N + FYM treatments, respectively) than at tillering and harvest
growth stages. The levels of MBN were higher in soils (0 – 20 cm) collected at tillering (mean values of 225.3 and 352.1 mg N/kg soil with N + B and N + FYM treatments, respectively) than at heading and harvest growth stages. In addition, the levels of SR were higher in soils (0 – 20 cm) collected at heading (mean values of 173.4 and 281.4 mg CO2/kg soil with N + B and N + FYM treatments, respectively) than at tillering and harvest growth stages. These data suggest that combined use of organic manure such as FYM with mineral N fertilizer would maintain high microbial biomass in calcareous soil.

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