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ABSTRACT
Root systems of subirrigated alfalfa plants and some associated soil properties have been studied. Under certain conditions a concentration of fibrous roots occurred in saturated soil above and below the water table. Roots occurred in abundance in pockets of fine sand and silt while adjacent pockets of moist sand and gravel were essentially devoid of roots. These observations and soil analyses suggest that root distribution is, in part, governed by nutrient availability.
Nodules occurred in abundance in the A horizon of a buried soil while the surface soil, which was more acid, contained roots without nodules and with only limited branching. Alfalfa roots penetrated soil horizons which contained much sodium. They branched extensively in a region of high sodium where calcium and magnesium were present in abundance.
Root distribution of subirrigated alfalfa suggests two important regions of water and nutrient sorption. These are the moisture fringe above the water table and the surface soil. Both should be considered when interpreting soil tests, evaluating results of fertilizer experiments, and explaining plant growth variations.
1 Published with the approval of the Director as Paper No. 675, Journal Series, Nebraska Agr. Exp. Sta. Presented before Div. IV, Soil Science Society of America, St. Paul, Minn. Nov. 10, 1954.
This investigation was supported in part by a grant from the American Dehydrators Association.
2 Assistant Agronomist and Instructor in Agronomy, respectively.
Received for publication October 29, 1954.
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