Abstract

There is substantial evidence that legume-derived Nitrogen (N) is transferred to neighboring non-legumes in grassland mixtures. However, there is sparse information about how deep rooted non-legume forage herbs (forbs) influence N transfer in multi-species grasslands.Red clover (Trifolium pretense L.) was grown together with perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and one of three forb species: chicory (Cichorium intybus L.), ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) or caraway (Carum carvi L.) in a field experiment. During the first year after the establishment, red clover leaves were labeled with N-15-urea to determine the N transfer from red clover to companion ryegrass and forbs.On an annual basis, up to 15 % of red clover N was transferred to the companion ryegrass and forbs, but predominantly to the grass. The forb species did not differ in their ability to take up clover N, but biomass production and soil N acquisition was higher in chicory and plantain than in caraway.Grass relied to a great extent on clover N, whereas forbs relied on soil N. Soil N-15-enrichment indicated that N transfer occurred in the upper soil layers and that a dependence on clover-derived N did not necessarily give grass a growth advantage.

Keywords

Grassland mixture; Red clover; Perennial ryegrass; Non-leguminous forb; N-15-leaf labeling

Published in

Plant and Soil
2017, Volume: 413, number: 1, pages: 217-230
Publisher: SPRINGER

SLU Authors

• Carlsson, Georg

  • Department of Biosystems and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Agricultural Science


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-016-3088-6

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/82566