A field study of phosphorus mobilisation from commercial fertilisers

Abstract

Fertilisers contribute to phosphorus (P) exported from agricultural catchments in south-eastern Australia. Phosphorus concentrations were initially measured in overland flow caused by rainfall after broadcasting either single superphosphate [SSP, Ca(H₂PO₄)₂] or diammonium phosphate [DAP, (NH₄)₂HPO₄] blends to pastures. In addition, P concentrations in overland flow were measured at intervals down border irrigation bay before and after fertiliser application. The period between fertiliser application and irrigation varied from 1 to 10 days.

For the rainfall-induced overland flow, total dissolved P (TDP) concentrations were higher where DAP rather than SSP had been applied. For the irrigation study, sampling position behind the wetting front, irrigation pre and post fertiliser application, and irrigation number post fertiliser application explained 49.7, 20.5, and 15.2% of the total sum of squares, respectively. TDP concentrations were highest in the wetting front and diminished with distance behind the wetting front. For the irrigation before, and 2 irrigations following, fertiliser application, concentrations in the wetting front were 2.3, 17.6, and 6.5 mg TDP/L, respectively. In general, wetting front concentrations were c. 4 times the mean concentrations for the bays. As most P is exported when the wetting front enters the drainage network, sampling behind the wetting front would appear to underestimate P exports. The TDP concentration decreased as the time between fertiliser application and irrigation increased but the effects were variable between farms and fertilisers. Contrary to the rainfall induced overland flow study, in the irrigation study higher TDP concentrations were measured where SSP rather than DAP had been applied. This finding is explained in terms of differing rates of P mobilisation from the 2 fertiliser blends and an interaction with soil hydrology. The rapidly infiltrating water at the wetting front of irrigation-induced overland flow is likely to carry with it P mobilised at, or near, the soil surface and P infiltration will be proportional to mobilisation rates. It is suggested that higher rates of P mobilisation from DAP than SSP would reduce P exports in border irrigation systems where DAP is applied to the soil.