New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts

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Effects of sheep night penning on soil nitrogen and plant growth

Y. J. ZHANG

Department of Grassland Science
Gansu Agricultural University
Lanzhou City, China 730070

Present address: Department of Grazing Management, National Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science, Nishinasuno, Tochigi 329-2793 Japan.

Email: zhangyj@ngri.affrc.go.jp

W. L. JIANG
J. Z. REN

Gansu Grassland Ecological Research Institute
Lanzhou City, China 730020

Abstract  A study on effects of sheep treading and excreta on soil and vegetation during night penning at 8 sheep nights m^-2 was carried out at Guizhou Weining Pasture Experimental Station from July to October 1998 with four treatments (UDT (urine+dung+treading), T (sheep treading), U (sheep urine), and D (sheep dung)) and an untreated control. Salix inamoena var. tetradenia was the dominant species in the natural vegetation. Sheep grazing and trampling removed almost all of the above-ground natural vegetation, but did not significantly affect soil bulk density, penetration resistance, and air permeability. The peak concentrations of ammonium-N (maximum 377 mg kg^-1) and nitrite-N (maximum 56.1 mg kg^-1) in soil for UDT were potentially toxic to plants. The concentrations of ammonium-N and nitrite-N for U were 139 mg kg^-1 and 28.1 mg kg^-1, respectively, and were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than those of D and the control. Crude protein (N <-> 6.25) in the leaves of Salix inamoena var. tetradenia in treatments UDT and U was significantly higher than in treatment D and the control (P < 0.01). The number of germinating branches of Salix inamoena var. tetradenia was fewer in UDT than in T after night penning, but those of two other shrubs (Elaeagnus uitidis var. delaragi and Hypericum detulum) did not differ between treatments. Herbage accumulation of the established pasture was much higher for UDT than for T.

Keywords  sheep night penning; urine; dung; treading; soil inorganic nitrogen

New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 2001, Vol. 44: 151-157

0028-8233/01/4402&3-0151 $7.00/0 (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand 2001

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (538K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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