Organic Carbon, Nitrogen Accumulation and Nitrogen Leaching as Affected by Legume Crop Residues on Sandy Loam in the Eastern Baltic Region

Abstract

Legumes have a wide range of positive effects on soil properties, including nitrogen and carbon storage, soil structure and the phytosanitary condition of crops. From an agronomic point of view, legumes are most valued for their ability to take up atmospheric nitrogen in symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The aim of this research was to determine the effect of legume residues (peas, fodder beans, narrow-leaved lupins) on the N (Ntotal) and organic carbon (Corg) accumulation in soil and N leaching under temperate climate conditions. The experiment was carried out in lysimetric equipment in 2016–2023. The effect of legumes on Corg and Ntotal accumulation in soil and N leaching were studied in a Fabaceae–Cereals sequence. Three species of legumes—peas, fodder beans and narrow-leaved lupines—were tested; spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was grown as a control treatment. The lysimeter surface area was 1.75 m2 and the experimental soil layer was 0.60 m (sand loam Haplic Luvisol). It was found that after harvesting, more residues were incorporated into the soil with lupines (p < 0.05), which, compared to pea and bean residues, increased Ntotal and Corg concentrations in the soil. There was a strong correlation (r = 0.95) between the Ntotal concentration in the soil and the N amount incorporated with residues. Mineral N released during residue decomposition was leached from the humic horizon under conditions of excess moisture in the autumn–winter period and increased the nitrate concentration in the lysimeter water. The increase in concentration was recorded within 5 to 6 months after the application of the residues. As a result, the N leaching losses increased on average by 24.7–33.2% (p < 0.05) during the year of legume cultivation. In the following year, after legume residue incorporation, the effect of residues on nitrate concentration and N leaching decreased and did not differ significantly from that of barley residues.