Potassium Buffering Capacity of Sandy Soils from Thua Thien Hue Province, Central Vietnam, as Related to Soil Properties

• Published in: Communications in soil science and plant analysis Vol. 40; no. 21-22; pp. 3294 - 3307
• Main Authors: Ninh, Hoang Thai, Hoa, Hoang Thi Thai, Ha, Pham Quang, Dufey, Joseph E
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA Taylor & Francis Group, LLC 01.01.2009; Taylor & Francis
• Subjects: Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; Biological and medical sciences; buffering capacity; cation exchange capacity; Central Vietnam; correlation; equations; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General agronomy. Plant production; K fertilization; leaching; Nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium fertilizations; nutrient availability; nutrient management; potassium; potassium buffering capacity; sandy soils; soil fertility; soil nutrients; soil pH; Soil science; soil texture; Soil-plant relationships. Soil fertility. Fertilization. Amendments; Vietnam; Asia; South east Asia; potassium buffering capacity; Potassium fertilization; Tropical zone; Provincial scope; Color; Property of soil; sandy soils; Sandy soil; Buffering capacity; Potassium; K fertilization; Central Vietnam
• ISSN: 0010-3624; 1532-2416
• DOI: 10.1080/00103620903325919

Most agricultural production in central Vietnam relies on sandy soils distributed along the sea coast. Because of their low exchangeable potassium (K) and low cation exchange capacity (CEC), careful adjustment of K fertilization on these soils is needed to minimize K leaching. Quantity/intensity curves were established on 24 sandy soils from Thua Thien Hue Province from which K buffering capacity (PBC) was calculated and compared with basic soil properties. Potassium buffering capacity was found to correlate best with soil texture and only a little with humus content, although these two characteristics are responsible for CEC. A simple equation based on sand content, which is easier to determine than clay content, is proposed to calculate optimum exchangeable K level as a function of target K level in soil solution.