Effect of nitrogen fertilization on oxalate content in rhodesgrass, guineagrass and sudangrass

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of nitrogen (N) level on the dry matter (DM) yield, N concentration and oxalate content of some tropical grasses, namely Rhodesgrass (Chloris gayana), Guineagrass (Panicum maximum) and Sudangrass (Sorghum vulgare). Three levels of N as urea were applied (Standard- 260, Standardx2- 540 and Standardx4- 1,060 kg N/ha for Rhodesgrass; Standard- 380, Standardx2- 770 and Standardx4- 1,570 kg N/ha for Guineagrass and Sudangrass) in a completely randomized design and grasses were harvested twice at approximately two-month intervals. Dry matter yield tended to be higher with increased rate of N fertilizer in all species, while further additional N (Standardx2 or Standardx4) did not significantly (p>0.05) further increase DM yield, when compared with the Standard level of N fertilizer application. There was also a trend towards higher N concentration in plants as N fertilization increased in all species and it was increased significantly in Rhodesgrass and Sudangrass (p<0.05 or p<0.01, respectively). Further additional N (Standardx2 or Standardx4) application showed no significant (p>0.05) differences on oxalate content in plant tissue within species, when compared with the Standard level of N. The Rhodesgrass contained 0.11, 0.13 and 0.15% soluble oxalate and 0.23, 0.25 and 0.27% total oxalate with Standard, Standardx2 and Standardx4 level of N application, respectively. The Guineagrass contained 0.54, 0.50 and 0.42% soluble oxalate and 1.60, 1.56 and 1.45% total oxalate with Standard, Standardx2 and Standardx4 level of N application, respectively. The Sudangrass contained 0.06, 0.15 and 0.12% soluble oxalate and 0.22, 0.22 and 0.21% total oxalate with Standard, Standardx2 and Standardx4 level of N application, respectively The results from this study suggest that these grasses do not use further addition of N fertilizer (Standardx2 or Standardx4) to form high content of oxalate salts, when compared with the Standard level of N. In addition, the levels of oxalate present with these grasses are quite low as far as toxicity to animals is concerned.