Author(s)

M. M. Sarong, A. S. Almendras-Ferraren, R. F. Orge

Abstract

Poultry litter application is an option in improving soil fertility of acid sandy soils although over application may promote environmental problems. Pot and laboratory experiments using uncharred (UPL) and charred poultry litter (CPL) at 4 levels (10, 20, 30, and 40 g kg⁻¹ soil) were carried out to evaluate their direct and residual effects on the fertility and microbial respiration in acid sandy soil. Peanut was used as the test plant. At 10 and 20 days of incubation (DOI), a linear trend on the direct effects of levels regardless of the type of poultry litter was noted on soil pH_H2O, organic C (OC), total N, and extractable P. Exchangeable Al and acidity on the other hand, significantly decreased with increasing rates of either UPL or CPL poultry litter. Interaction of types and levels of poultry litter also resulted in a significant change on soil pH_CaCl2, exchangeable acidity, OC, and total N at 10 DOI but at 20 DOI, significant change was only noted on soil pH_CaCl2 and OC. The residual liming benefit of CPL was superior to UPL. In general, the direct effects of application of uncharred or charred poultry litter resulted in better plant growth, nodulation, biomass, and N and P uptake than the control plants. The direct effects of UPL application resulted in a greater amount of CO₂ evolved than CP. The above results indicate that converting raw poultry litter into char may play an important role in reducing C emissions associated with organic matter enhancement practices and increasing C stocks in acid sandy soils.

Keywords

uncharred poultry litter, charred poultry litter, acid sandy soil, soil fertility, microbial respiration