Evaluation of the Activities of Urease and Phosphatase Enzymes and Changes in Some Chemical Characteristics of Soil Amended with Compost and Vermicompost under Corn Cultivation

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Former Graduate Student, Sari Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources University Soil Science Department

2 Assaeiate Professor, Sari Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources University Soil Science Department

3 Instruetor, Sari Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources University Soil Science Department

4 Assistant. Professor, Gilan University Soil Science Department

Abstract

To investigate the changes in some chemical characteristics of soil and the activities of urease and alkaline phosphatase, a randomized complete block design experiment  with three replications was conducted in 2008. The main factor was fertilizer treatments (T1= no fertilizer, T2= chemical fertilizer (potassium sulfate, triple super phosphate and urea at the rate of 100, 120, 225 kg.ha-1, respectively), T3 and T5 20 Mg.ha-1 compost and vermicompost, respectively, T4 and T6 , 40 Mg.ha-1 compost and vermicompost, respectively). The secondary factor was the number of years of fertilizer application i.e 2006, 2006+2007, and 2006-2008. Soil samples were taken from 0-20 cm depth at the end of 60th day of application. Organic and inorganic fertilizers were applied at seedling stage. After preparation of the soil samples, the amounts of organic matter, total nitrogen, available phosphorous, urease and alkaline phosphatase activities were determined. Results indicated that with the application of compost and vermicompost, the activities of urease and alkaline phosphatase increased and, with further increase in the amounts of organic fertilizers, the activities of the enzymes intensified. The maximum activities of urease and alkaline phosphatase enzymes was observed at, respectively, 40 Mg.ha-1 vermicompost treatment (114.00  mgN-NH3. g-1soil 2hr-1) and (33616.67 µgPNP. g-1 soil hr-1). The minimum activities of those two enzymes were recorded for the control treatment and equaled (35.79  mgN-NH3. g-1soil 2hr-1) and (1144.90 µgPNP. g-1 soil hr-1), respectively. Increasing the rate and the number of times of organic fertilizers application enhanced the amount of soil organic matter, total nitrogen, and available phosphorus, whose maxima were measured for the 40 Mg.ha-1 vermicompost treatment. Furthermore, there were signification differences among the number of years of fertilizer application in regard to enzyme activities and changes in chemical characteristics. The maximum enzyme activity and changes in soil chemical characteristics were observed in the treatment consisting of three continuous years of application.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Soil Research
Volume 25, Issue 2
September 2011
Pages 113-123

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