THE INFLUENCE OF PHOSPHATE DEFICIENCY ON NITRIFICATION

Ammonium sulphate applied to savanna grassland stimulated nitriteoxidizers in some plots but not in others. Extracts from the contrasting soils differed in suitability as growth media for nitrite-oxidizers. This difference could be eliminated by adding KH₂PO₄ or Na₂HPO₄ to the extracts. The concentr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Plant and soil 1974-12, Vol.41 (3), p.541-547
Main Author: PURCHASE, B. S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acid soils
Agricultural soils
Bacteria
Grasses
Grassland soils
Nitrification
Nitrites
Nutritional deficiencies
Savanna soils
Soil nutrients
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Summary:Ammonium sulphate applied to savanna grassland stimulated nitriteoxidizers in some plots but not in others. Extracts from the contrasting soils differed in suitability as growth media for nitrite-oxidizers. This difference could be eliminated by adding KH₂PO₄ or Na₂HPO₄ to the extracts. The concentration of available P was highest in soils where nitrite-oxidizers had responded to (NH₄)₂SO₄. Various soils were mixed with (NH₄)₂SO₄ and then incubated. In those containing less than 6 µg/g of available P, nitrate accumulation between days 4 and 11 was correlated with the concentration of available P. Between days 11 and 31 there was no such correlation. When a mixture of ammonia-and nitrite-oxidizers was grown in media containing various concentrations of P, nitrite accumulation was abnormally high where the P concentration was low. It is concluded that nitrite-oxidizers are more sensitive to P deficiency than are ammonia-oxidizers and that P deficiency is sufficiently severe in many Rhodesian soils to restrict the growth rate of nitrite-oxidizers, thereby restricting their ability to compete for nitrogen.
ISSN:0032-079X
1573-5036
DOI:10.1007/bf02185815