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ARS Home » Southeast Area » New Orleans, Louisiana » Southern Regional Research Center » Commodity Utilization Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #300051
Title: Phosphorus forms and mineralization potentials of Alabama upland cotton production soils amended with poultry litter

Author
item TAZISONG, IRENUS - Alabama A & M University
item SENWO, ZACHARY - Alabama A & M University
item CADE-MENUN, BARBARA - Agri Food - Canada
item He, Zhongqi

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/21/2014
Publication Date: 5/1/2014
Citation: Tazisong, I.A., Senwo, Z.N., Cade-Menun, B.J., He, Z. 2014. Phosphorus forms and mineralization potentials of Alabama upland cotton production soils amended with poultry litter. In: He, Z., and Zhang, H., editors. Applied Manure and Nutrient Chemistry for Sustainable Agriculture and Environment. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: Springer. p. 191-209.

Interpretive Summary: Alabama is one of the leading cotton and poultry producing states in the USA. To optimize cotton yield in Alabama Ultisols and other soils, poultry litter is usually applied to cotton fields. There is currently little or no comprehensive information available on the P forms, fractions, and their potential mineralization in Alabama Ultisols amended with poultry litter and cropped with cotton. Therefore, this chapter presents and discusses published and unpublished data on P forms and mineralization potential in Alabama cotton soils amended with poultry litter and managed as no-tilled, tilled, and mulch-tilled practices. Information presented in this chapter showed that poultry litter applied to soils affected many of the soil P fractions, and P dynamics and uptake. Future research should be focused on poultry litter P supplying potential in soils used for cotton production and the impact of P supply on mineral contents in cotton seeds, or vice versa. Such research would shed light on more efficient use of poultry litter for environmentally-friendly and sustainable cotton productions in Alabama and other US southern states.

Technical Abstract: The essential role of phosphorus (P) in almost all biological processes has led to its extensive studies. Phosphorus in its inorganic form (Pi) is required for metabolic reactions and energy transfer. In contrast, organic P (Po) forms become bioavailable usually after hydrolysis to Pi. Organic P dephosphorylation in the soil environment is largely dependent on the stereochemical and stereoisomeric structures of the compounds in question. In addition, Po dephosphorylation also depends on the types and enzymes sources involved in such catalytic activities. This chapter focuses on P fractions and mineralization potentials of different P forms in poultry litter amended soils of northern Alabama cropped with cotton. Phosphorus forms characterized by solution 31P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy showed orthophosphate to be the dominant form, accounting for 63.6 to 76.1% of the total P forms in these soils. A sequential fractionation was used to separate soil Pi and Po¬ into several fractions. The fractionation revealed that soil Pi was mainly associated with Fe and Al oxides and was not readily bioavailable. Water-, Fe- and Al- associated Pi increased in soils treated with poultry litter compared with the control. The Ca-Al bound Po was the most abundant fraction with more than 40% of the total Po but the Ca-Al bound Po values was lower for the control and no-tilled soils. Phosphatase enzymes were able to hydrolyze 7 to 62% water, 17 to 53% Ca-EDTA, 18 to 88% Na-EDTA, 40 to 77% H2SO4, and 50 to 75% NaOH extractable Po. Information obtained from this study indicates that P dynamics and uptake in cotton soils amended with poultry litter is not well understood. More research is needed to better understand the impact of poultry litter on P forms and mineralization potentials in cotton production soils.