Band application of treated cattle slurry as an alternative to slurry injection: Implications for gaseous emissions, soil quality, and plant growth

摘要

Animal slurry injection is considered the most effective solution to minimize ammonia (NH3) emissions at the field scale, but band application of slurry treated by acidification and/or solid-liquid separation may be a good alternative. The main objective of our study was to compare the overall efficiency of band application of acidified cattle slurry (Band-ARS), the liquid fraction (Band-LF), or acidified LF (Band-ALF) relative to raw cattle slurry injection (RSI). Two control treatments were also considered: the traditional broadcast application of raw slurry, immediately followed by soil incorporation (Broad-RS), and an unfertilized plot (CTR). A field experiment was performed to follow NH3, nitrous oxide (N2O), and methane (CH4) emissions, quantify plant yields and slurry nutrients use efficiency, and assess the impact on soil quality with special emphasis on enzymatic activity.