Nitrogen mineralization of sewage sludge and composted poultry manure applied to willow in a greenhouse experiment

Nitrogen requirements for production of intensively cultured willow for use as a bioenergy crop coupled with the need for safe disposal of nutrient rich organic wastes provide an opportunity to reduce costs associated with bioenergy plantations. In order to minimize N leaching from sites treated with organic wastes, knowledge of the rate of N mineralization is needed. The objective of this study was to assess N mineralization rates of four organic residuals in a controlled greenhouse environment: composted poultry manure, composted sewage sludge, and anaerobically digested sewage sludge from two different municipalities. Thirty-six weeks after application, disappearance of the mass initially applied ranged from 20% to 50%. Gross nitrogen mineralization rate (N mass released expressed as a percentage of initially applied N) ranged from 12% to 57%. Non-composted treatments released greater amounts of nitrogen than composted treatments. Within composted treatments, net N release was estimated as 325 kg N ha^-1 for poultry manure and 86 kg N ha^-1 for sewage sludge. Syracuse and New York City sewage sludges, with 57% and 30% gross N release rates respectively, provided approximately 360 and 240 kg plant available N ha^-1, respectively. These estimates of N release suggest that the application rates could be halved and that sufficient N would be provided to meet crop needs and reduce leaching losses.