An isotope study on nitrogen and phosphorus use efficiency and movement in soil in a mimicked vermicompost-based organo-mineral fertilizer

Vermicompost (VC), a stabilized organic material with high organic and humic carbon, and favorable aggregation properties, was tested as a fraction of organo-mineral fertilizers (OMFs), where organic and mineral fractions interact in hotspot areas with surrounding soil. Solutions containing 33P radioisotope and 15N-labeled mineral fertilizers were combined with VC at two ratios of organic carbon (Corg) to mineral nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) (OMF7.5C and OMF15C) to simulate OMF granules. Control treatments included unfertilized soil (N0P0), mineral fertilizer (MFNP), and sole VC at two rates (OF7.5C and OF15C). Nitrogen and P uptake by Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum) were measured over in 8 weeks. Furthermore, MFNP, OMF7.5C, and OMF15C treatments were incubated for 10 days without plant to measure atom% 15N excess and 33P radioactivity, as indicators of N and P movement from two soil layers (surrounding fertilizer hotspot and below it). In the pot study, OMF15C caused 24% lower biomass and less nutrient recovery derived from fertilizer (N, 11% and P, 8.5%), compared to MFNP. In the incubation study, OMF15C exhibited +19% atom% 15N excess in the combined two soil layers, relative to MFNP, and +28% 33P radioactivity in the soil surrounding the hotspot, and -89% in the soil below it. We interpreted this as a reduction in nutrient availability of the combined VC + mineral fertilizers, due to lower P mobility in soil. The combination of VC with mineral fertilizers can reduce P movement in soil. A higher Corg:N:P ratio resulted in lower nutrient use efficiency in 2 months. Adding low quantities of vermicompost together with mineral fertilizers reduces phosphorus movement in soil. Lower P mobility in soil caused by vermicompost is linked to reduced phosphorus uptake by Italian ryegrass. Vermicompost has potential as an organic matrix for organo-mineral fertilizers with low organic C content.