Nutrient leaching losses from a sandy soil in lysimeters |
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| Abstract: | Abstract Two lysimeter experiments were conducted on annual leaching losses of calcium (Ca), potassium (K), sodium (Na), chloride (Cl), sulphate‐sulphur (SO4‐S), and magnesium (Mg) (one experiment only) from a sandy soil in central England during 1988–1995 to provide information on typical nutrient losses under arable agriculture below 1.2 m (Experiment 1) or 1.5 m (Experiment 2). Total annual losses, in the absence of manure additions, were highly dependent on the amount of drainage; flow‐weighted average concentrations were similar between years within experiments. Concentrations, averaged over the duration of the experiments were 74 and 78 mg L‐1 Ca, 17 and 27 mg L‐1 Na, 11 and 8 mg L‐1 K, 74 and 77 mg L‐1 Cl, and 57 and 38 mg L‐1 SO4‐S for the two experiments respectively; Mg concentration was 17 mg L‐1. Applications of chicken litter were made to some of the lysimeters in the last three years, and all nutrients showed increased leaching as a result. Application rates akin to disposal (rather than for crop fertilization) produced the largest losses. Following a total application of 125 t ha‐1 over three years, average concentrations in water draining below 1.5 m in the final year were 57 and 277 mg L‐1 Ca, 22 and 75 mg L‐1 Cl, 7 and 14 mg L‐1 K, 22 and 57 mg L‐1 Na, 27, and 125 mg L‐1 SO4‐S for the untreated and manured soils, respectively. |
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