Effect of cumulative fertilizer dressings on the phosphorus status of mineral soils II Comparison of two phosphorus testing methods

Abstract

Soil samples collected from field plots before onset of fertilization trials and after seven years of cultivation with annual P additions of 0, 30 or 60 kg ha-1, were analyzed for water-soluble P (Pw) and acid NH4-acetate-extractable P (PAAc). In all soil samples, the P test values correlated closely (r = 0.93***). However, they differed significantly in the clay soils where PAAc amounted to 59—96 % of Pw . In the coarser soils, the acetate solution extracted 70—365 % of the water-soluble P, but the difference between the methods remained insignificant. In both soil groups, the molar ratio of NH4F-P to oxalate-soluble Al explained 90 % or more of the variation in the P test values. The soil samples were divided into different P content classes according to the acetate test calibration scheme. In various P classes the test values tended to differ statistically significantly: in the lower classes acetate extracted P more and in the higher classes less than water did. Only in soils ranked as satisfactory in P the test values were about equal. When the rating scale limits given for the advisory soil testing were applied to the water extraction, in most soils the difference between the P testing methods was of one P class. The fertilization recommendations based on the acetate and water extraction tests were compared.