Abstract
The aim of the study is to describe the fate and transformation of nitrogen in grassland ecosystems. Field experiments were conducted using sandyloam soil under variabling conditions: Zen, fertilization, reduced slurry application(l20kg N $ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$), usual sluny application (240 kg N $ha^{-1}\;yr^{-1}$).Soil water samples were gathered with 120cm ceramic cups with initial pressure of 0.5 bar. Samples were collected twice a month and analysed for NO, colormetrically. Percolation was calculated as the difference between precipitation and potential evapotranspiration, and leaching as the product of percolation and nitrate content of the water h m the ceramic cups. The N$H_4$-N content in soil had no significant effect on slurry application, but high slurry application on grassland resulted in high N$O_3$-N content in soil. The NO, concentration in soil water was remarkably variable during the year. The average N$O_3$, concentration during experiment became the lowest(8.5 mg/e ) without slurry application and highest with 240kOa cattle sluny(25.3 mg4 ). For each of the three different amounts of cattle sluny applied (0, 120, and 240kOa), the amount of N$O_3$-N leached per year were 12, 23 and 29kg/ha respectively. On grassland under the climatic conditions of Allgau showed enormous nitrate leaching, which has a p a t potential of polluting the ground water. The high pool of mineral N in the soil are the source for N$O_3$ leaching. The leaching of N$O_3$ cannot be avoided completely, but minimized by optimizing N fertilization rate.
