Effect of forms of nitrogen supply on mobilisation of phosphorus from a phosphate rock and acidification in the rhizosphere of tea

Nitrogen (N) is the main fertiliser input to tea plantations because of the large removal of this element with regular harvests of young shoots in the field. The form of N supply is known to influence the uptake of other plant nutrients, notably phosphorus (P), through its effect on soil pH in the rhizosphere. A glasshouse study was conducted to test the effect of N form (NH +4, NO-3 , or both) on the transformation of soil P in the rhizosphere and its availability to tea (Camellia sinensis L.) plants fertilised with sparingly soluble Eppawala phosphate rock (EPR). Four-month-old tea (TRI 2025) plants were grown in rhizosphere study containers containing an Ultisol from Sri Lanka (pH 4 ·5 in water) amended with EPR and KCl at 200 g P or K/g soil, and mixed with (NH4)2SO4 (100% NH+4 -N), NH4NO3 (50% NH+4 -N and 50% NO-3 -N), and Ca(NO3)2 (100% NO-3 -N) at the rate of 200 g N/g soil, with a control (no N fertiliser), as treatments. Rhizosphere pH decreased compared with the bulk soil when N was supplied as NH+4 or NH+4 +NO-3 forms, and increased when N was supplied as NO-3. The cation{anion balance estimations in the plants showed that the plants had taken up more NO-3 than NH+4 even in (NH4)2SO4 treated soil, suggesting high nitrification rates, especially in the rhizosphere, in spite of using a nitrification inhibitor. More EPR dissolved in the rhizosphere compared with that in the bulk soil, regardless of the N form applied. The (NH4)2SO4 treatment had the highest dissolution rate of EPR in the rhizosphere, whereas Ca(NO3)2 treatment had the lowest, reflecting the degree of acidification in the rhizosphere. Resin-P and NaOH-Pi (inorganic P) concentrations were lower and NaOH-Po (organic P) concentration was higher in the rhizosphere than in the bulk soil. Plant and possible microbial uptake of P is the main reason for the decrease in resin-P and NaOH-Pi. The increase in NaOH-Po concentration in the rhizosphere is believed to be due to transformation of Pi to Po by the high microbial activity in the rhizosphere. The (NH4)2SO4 treatment caused the highest depletion of resin-P but lowest depletion of NaOH-Pi, probably due to the fixation of P by the soils at the low pH in the rhizosphere. The study revealed that the use of the NH+4 form of fertiliser can increase acidification in tea rhizosphere compared with bulk soil and this can enhance the effectiveness of PR fertiliser utilisation by tea plants.