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The effect of soil nitrogen on grain legume yield and nitrogen fixation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

R. S. Jessop  and
Janet Mahoney
R. S. Jessop
Affiliation:
Victorian Crops Research Institute, Horsham, Victoria 3400, Australia
Janet Mahoney
Affiliation:
Victorian Crops Research Institute, Horsham, Victoria 3400, Australia
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Summary

Two field experiments examined the influence of soil nitrogen on grain yield, wateruse efficiency and residual nitrate accumulation of four winter grain legumes in a legume–fallow–wheat rotation. In the first experiment, conducted on a clay soil with a high total soil nitrogen content (0·194%), the three legumes Cicer arietinum, Vicia faba and Pisum sativum gave similar yields, with Lupinus angustifolius showing poor yields. Water-use efficiencies followed similar trends to the grain yields. Wheat yields and concentration of nitrogen in the grain, following a fallow after the legume crops, showed no differences from a full 2-year fallow. In the second experiment on a low fertility soil (0·081 % total soil nitrogen), Cicer arietinum gave the highest yield and the greatest water-use efficiency. All legumes and long fallow resulted in a similar increase in wheat yield when compared with a wheat-fallow-wheat rotation. The legume crops generally increased soil nitrate status between their sowing and the sowing of a wheat crop 2 years later; such increases were greatest with Pisum sativum at the high fertility site, with a suggestion of the reverse occurring at the low fertility site.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 105 , Issue 2 , October 1985 , pp. 231 - 236
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1985

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References

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