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Phosphorus status of calcareous and sodic soils treated with cheese whey

Robbins, C.W. and Hansen, C.L. and Roginske, M.F. and Sorensen, D.L. (1997) Phosphorus status of calcareous and sodic soils treated with cheese whey. Transactions of the ASAE. 40(1):143-148.

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Abstract

Acid cheese whey, made using phosphoric acid, contains up to 1200 mg total P kg-1 whey, and cultured
cheese or sweet wheys contain up to 500 mg total P kg-1 whey. Much of the 32 x 106 m3 of whey produced in the United
States each year is applied to soil. Whey P mobility has not been documented for calcareous or sodic soils. This study was
conducted to determine the ratio between ortho- and the more soluble organic P forms in freshly produced cheese whey,
and to determine ortho- and organic P concentrations by depth within calcareous and sodic soils within one to two years
of different whey rates and time of the year applications. Applications of up to 1050 kg P ha-1 in acid whey were applied
to a sodic soil (in green house lysimeters) and up to 750 kg P ha-1 in sweet whey were applied to calcareous soils
(field plots). Bicarbonate-extractable ortho-P did not move below 0.3 m in the sodic Freedom silt loam (fine-silty, mixed,
mesic, Xerollic Calciorthid) soil by the end of one growing season. Neither bicarbonate-extractable nor saturation extract
ortho- or organic P moved below 0.6 m in the calcareous Portneuf silt loam (coarse-silty, mixed, mesic, Durixerollic
Calciorthid) soil after three growing seasons or below 0.3 m in the calcareous Nibley silty clay loam (fine, mixed, mesic
Aquic Argiustolls) soil after two growing seasons. Even though the wheys contained up to 42% organic P, these soils
retained the applied ortho- and organic P against leaching. The winter-applied whey-P did not move deeper into the soil
than that applied during the growing season.

Item Type: Article
NWISRL Publication Number: 0931
Subjects: Soil > Amendments > Whey
Soil > Calcareous soil
Soil > Chemistry > Phosphorous
Mass Import - autoclassified (may be erroneous)
Depositing User: Dan Stieneke
Date Deposited: 20 Nov 2010 21:54
Last Modified: 22 Nov 2016 20:15
Item ID: 675
URI: https://eprints.nwisrl.ars.usda.gov/id/eprint/675