Some Microbiological Studies in Salt-Affected Soils—III. The Effect of Some Inorganic Ameliorants on Nitrogen Mineralization

In vitro, application of inorganic ameliorants as gypsum, sulphuric acid and calcium chloride in saline-alkali soils increased the quantum of mineralized nitrogen products as compared to control. In unreclaimed and partially reclaimed soils, nitrite-N was observed to be accumulated. Ammonification rate was observed outstripping that of nitrification. At the initial stage, the differences in contents of available nitrogen between control and amended soils were low but they became larger as the days of incubation prolonged. Ammoniacal-N showed a fluctuating trend during the entire period of incubation while nitrate-N showed accumulation up to 75–90 days in all the cases. Mineralization process was higher under flushed condition than in unflushed ones.