Journal article
Simulated seasonal responses of grazed dairy pastures to nitrogen fertilizer in SE Australia: N loss and recovery
KM Christie, AP Smith, RP Rawnsley, MT Harrison, RJ Eckard
Agricultural Systems | ELSEVIER SCI LTD | Published : 2020
Abstract
Evidence from farm level studies indicates that there is potential to improve nitrogen (N) fertilizer efficiency of Australian dairy farms. Increasing N fertilizer application rates to drive pasture dry matter production beyond an agronomic or economical optimum has the potential to result in detrimental environmental outcomes. Our study, using the biophysical whole-farm systems model DairyMod, modelled a range of N fertilizer rates on total N loss for five dairy sites through south-eastern Australia, using 18 years of historical climate. Nitrogen accumulation in plant biomass and soil N accumulation within and below the rootzone were estimated. Total N loss, in the form of volatilization, l..
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Awarded by Dairy Australia
Funding Acknowledgements
The 'More Profit from Nitrogen: enhancing the nutrient use efficiency of intensive cropping and pasture systems' project was supported by funding from Dairy Australia and the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (RRDP1716) as part of its Rural R&D for Profit program. The authors would also like to thank Murray Hannah and Graham Hepworth for their assistance with the statistical analysis.