Nitrogen dynamics during till and no-till pasture restoration sequences in Rondonia, Brazil

The clearing of tropical rain forest in the Amazon basin has created large areas of cattle pasture that are now declining in productivity. Practices adopted by ranchers to restore productivity to degraded pastures have the potential to alter soil N availability and gaseous N losses from soils. We examined how soil inorganic N pools, net N mineralization and net nitrification rates, nitrification potential and NO and N2O emissions from soils of a degraded pasture responded to the following restoration treatments: ( 1) soil tillage followed by replanting of grass and fertilization, ( 2) no-till application of non-selective herbicide, planting of rice, harvest followed by no-till replanting of grass and fertilization, and ( 3) the same no-till sequence with soybeans instead of rice. Tillage increased soil NH4+ and NO3- pools but NH4+ and NO3- pools remained relatively constant in the control and no-till treatments. Cumulative rates of net N mineralization and net nitrification during the first 6 months after treatment varied widely but were hightest in the tilled treatment. Emissions of NO and N2O fluxes increased with tillage and with N fertilization. There were no clear relationships among rates of N fertilizer application, net N mineralization, net nitrification, NO, N2O and total N oxide emissions. Our results indicate that pasture restoration sequences involving tilling and fertilizing will increase emissions of N oxides, but the magnitude of the increase is likely to differ based on timing of fertilizer application relative to the presence of plants and the magnitude of plant N demand. Emissions of N oxides appear to be decreased by the use of restoration sequences that minimize reductions in pasture grass cover.