Soil phosphorus requirements for maximum growth of northern California subclover‐annual grass pastures

Abstract

Annual grassland soils of California are generally quite deficient in phosphorus (P), but the amount of fertilizer P required to obtain optimum pasture production is quite variable. This paper reports on the relationships between five soil‐P tests and the amount of applied P required to obtain near maximum growth of subclovergrass pasture on 12 sites representing four soil series in the north coastal range of California. Dry matter (DM) yield response curves resulting from application of nine levels of P were fitted to the Mitscherlich equation: y = a{l‐b([EXP(‐cx)]}, where: y = DM when x = kg/ha of P were applied, a = maximum DM when P was not limiting, and b and c are constants that were adjusted to give the best fitting curves buy an iterative algorithm. This equation was used to calculate the amount of P required to bring yields to 90% of the maximum DM represented by “a”; in the equation. Then the regression equations relating P requirements to soil‐P extracted by the Bray‐1, Olsen, and modified Olsen methods, and P sorbed by the soils in 17 hours or six days were computed. Phosphorus sorbed in 17 hours was most closely related to P requirement, followed by Bray‐1 P, modified Olsen, and Olsen, respectively. Virtually all the P applied was sorbed by all the soils in six days using the Fox‐Kamprath method and discrimination among soils on that basis was impossible.