HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Johnson, D. D. Articles by Broadbent, F. E. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Johnson, D. D. Articles by Broadbent, F. E. Agricola Articles by Johnson, D. D. Articles by Broadbent, F. E.

Microbial Turnover of Phosphorus in Soil^1,2,

ABSTRACT

The phosphorus cycle in soils has been shown to be closely related to the carbon and nitrogen cycles. The investigation reported is an attempt to evaluate the effect of the energy status of the soil on this phosphorus cycle. A concept of a metabolic pool in the soil from which microbial, plant, and chemical processes takadknorganic phosphorus is presented. The addition of radioactive phosphorus to this pool and its subsequent uptake by the soil processes would allow the various fractions of the soil phosphorus which are actively turning over to be identified. The procedure used to evaluate this theory involved the addition of radiophosphorus and incubation of soil samples for various periods of time, after which the soil was leached with acid and then treated with cold and hot alkali solutions, the alkali solutions being further fractionated by the addition of acid. Total phosphorus and total radiophosphorus was determined on all fractions. The analysis of the data shows that certain of these soil phosphorus fractions do undergo rapid turnover. The possible importance of these rapidly turning-over fractions to the growth of higher plants is suggested.

¹ Radioactive phosphorus used in these investigations was secured from the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission, Oak Ridge, Tenn. The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance of Dr. C. S. Brandt of the U. S. Plant, Soil, and Nutrition Laboratory, Ithaca, N. Y. in the dispensing and counting of the radioactive materials.

² Presented before Section III, Soil Science Society of America, State College, Pa., August 30, 1951.

³ Graduate Assistant and Associate Professor respectively, Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y.