Agronomy Journal Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Published online 1 September 1970
Published in Agron J 62:595-599 (1970)
© 1970 American Society of Agronomy
677 S. Segoe Rd., Madison, WI 53711 USA
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Hughes, T. D.
Right arrow Articles by Welch, L. F.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by Hughes, T. D.
Right arrow Articles by Welch, L. F.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Hughes, T. D.
Right arrow Articles by Welch, L. F.

Potassium Azide as a Nitrification Inhibitor1

T. D. Hughes and L. F. Welch2

The effect of 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 ppm KN3 on nitrification in soil was studied at 30 and 10 C. At both temperatures, KN3 was an effective nitrification inhibitor. At 30 C, 75 ppm of added NH4 + disappeared in 2 weeks where no KN3 had been added as compared to 4 weeks at the 32 ppm KN3 rate. At 10 C, 4 weeks were required for the NH4 to disappear at 0 ppm KN3) whereas more NH4+ was present after 18 weeks than initially where 32 ppm KN3 was applied. Concentrations of (NO2- + NO3-)- N were found to be similar at all KN3 rates once the NH4+ had disappeared. This indicates that KN3 had no effect on mineralization-immobilization relationships. The soil pH for both incubation temperatures was 6.8.

The effect of 4 ppm KN3 in soil incubated at 30 C was studied at soil pH levels of 4.5, 6.0, and 7.5. The NH4-N and (NO2- + NO3-)-N concentrations during 4 weeks incubation indicated that KN3 did not inhibit nitrification at soil pH levels of 4.5 and 6.0 but that nitrification was inhibited at pH 7.5. At 30 C, KN3 does not appear to be an effective nitrification inhibitor for soils of pH less than 6.0.

Key Words: Soil pH • Soil temperature • Ammonification

1 Contribution from the Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station.

2 Former Research Assistant (now Assistant Professor of Turf Management, Department of Horticulture) and Professor of Soil Fertility, Department of Agronomy, University of Illinois, Urbana, 111. 61801.

Received for publication October 24, 1960.




HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
The SCI Journals Crop Science Vadose Zone Journal
Journal of Natural Resources
and Life Sciences Education		 Soil Science Society of America Journal
Journal of Plant Registrations Journal of
Environmental Quality		 The Plant Genome
Copyright © 1970 by the American Society of Agronomy.