The effects of poultry manure versus inorganic fertilizer use on copper, manganese and zinc concentrations on soils under raspberry cultivation

The effects of poultry manure versus inorganic fertilizer use on copper, zinc and manganese concentrations and the sustainability of metal contents under raspberry cultivation was investigated on two aeolian soils in the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia. Total elemental analysis by a teflon bomb procedure using reverse aqua regia and hydrofluoric acid was done on soils sampled at three depths (0-15 cm, 15-30 cm and +40 cm) and results were compared to metal contents extracted by the Mehlich III method. High variability of some of the soil data was attributed to mixing of the loess capping with the underlying glacio-fluvial outwash material, differences in site conditions of the test fields, variations in sampling depth, and inadequate analytical reproducibility at the low concentrations found in some of the soils. For the variables tested, differences between sites most often occurred in the first 30 cm and never at the +40 cm depth. Higher contents in the 0-30 cm depth than in the lower depths indicated an enrichment of the surface layers either by anthropogenic inputs or by bioaccumulation. Poultry manure applications had a significant effect on organic matter content, total and available manganese, and total and available zinc in both soils studied. The comparison of the manured versus the inorganically fertilized site indicated that zinc was the metal most effected by the manure application. The other metals were not significantly increased by poultry manure amendments. The comparison of the site that had been under long-term raspberry cultivation against the site that had been only recently converted to raspberries from long-term pasture cover, showed that long-term raspberry cultivation reduced metal and organic matter contents in the 0-15 cm depth and increased these variables in the 15-30 cm depth. It was hypothesised that this was in direct response to differing biocycling patterns under different land uses. Total and available manganese and zinc were strongly interconnected and their correlation to the organic matter content appeared most interesting in terms of fluxes between the various soil components. inorganically fertilized site indicated that zinc was the metal most effected by the manure application. The other metals were not significantly increased by poultry manure amendments. The comparison of the site that had been under long-term raspberry cultivation against the site that had been only recently converted to raspberries from long-term pasture cover, showed that long-term raspberry cultivation reduced metal and organic matter contents in the 0-15 cm depth and increased these variables in the 15-30 cm depth. It was hypothesised that this was in direct response to differing biocycling patterns under different land uses. Total and available manganese and zinc were strongly interconnected and their correlation to the organic matter content appeared most interesting in terms of fluxes between the various soil components.Land and Food Systems, Faculty ofGraduat