Available Phosphorous and Organic Carbon as an Indication for the Evaluation of Bone Char and Bone Ash Applied to Calcareous Soil

E. Saleh, Maher; Khaled, Intisar; El-Gamal, Eman Hassan; Abdelsalam, Abdelsalam A; Kamh, Mahmoud A

doi:10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2023.305025

Available Phosphorous and Organic Carbon as an Indication for the Evaluation of Bone Char and Bone Ash Applied to Calcareous Soil

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Soil and Water Sciences Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, postal code 21545 El-Shatby, Alexandria, Egypt.

² Land and Water Technologies Department, Arid Lands Cultivation Research Institute (ALCRI), City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), 21934 New Borg El Arab City, Alexandria, Egypt.

³ Soil and Water Sciences Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Alexandria University, postal code 21545 El-Shatby, Alexandria, Egypt

10.21608/asejaiqjsae.2023.305025

Abstract

Modern agriculture's biggest challenge is finding sustainable and environmentally peaceful fertilizers. This study aimed to compare the physicochemical properties of some non-traditional P-Sources such as bovine bone-ash (BA-600 and BA-700) and bone-char (BC-600 and BC-700), and commercial phosphate rock (PR). Various extraction techniques were applied to assess phosphorus solubility and availability of the P-Sources mentioned above compared to single-superphosphate (SSP). Additionally, an incubation experiment was carried out to investigate the phosphorus availability and organic carbon in calcareous soil, which received different P-Sources and N-K fertilizers and incubated for up to 120 days (≃29 °C) arranged in a three-factor completely randomized design. The physicochemical properties of bone-char (BA-600 and BA-700) and bone-ash (BC-600 and BC-700) revealed that hydroxyapatite is present in both P-resources. Soluble and available phosphorus followed the order: BA-600>BC-600>PR for all extraction techniques. Relative to SSP fertilizer (100%), Soluble-P of water and diluted-H₂SO₄ (0.005 M) were nearly closed. In the incubation experiment, significant differences (P<0.05) were observed between the levels of N-K treatment, incubation time, and P-sources on soil pH, soluble calcium, and Olsen-P. Statistically, N-K fertilizers addition to P-sources-amended soil significantly (P<0.05) increased the calcium concentration in all treatments. Olsen-P was in order: SSP > BC-600 > BA-600 > PR > control; the highest significant incubation time was 80 days. The highest percent organic carbon was recorded in the BC-600 amendment after 100 days of incubation, with no clear effect for N-K fertilizers addition. Both BA and BC are potential phosphorous resources of a sustainable nature, with a preference for bone char as a source of non-microbially degradable organic carbon.

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