HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Hoeft, R. G. Articles by Walsh, L. M. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Hoeft, R. G. Articles by Walsh, L. M. Agricola Articles by Hoeft, R. G. Articles by Walsh, L. M.

Nitrogen and Sulfur in Precipitation and Sulfur Dioxide in the Atmosphere in Wisconsin¹

ABSTRACT

A monitoring program to determine the seasonal distribution of sulfur and nitrogen from the atmosphere and a greenhouse experiment to evaluate the absorption of atmospheric SO₂ by alfalfa (Medicago sativa) was conducted. Atmospheric SO₂ levels at all rural and urban locations were low in the summer months and increased markedly in the winter months and, on the average, the values in urban areas were about twice those in rural areas. The SO₂ collected 2 km from an industrial location was 10 to 15 times as high as the urban locations. At a distance of 5 km this value dropped to levels comparable to urban areas and to rural levels at 10 km. Sulfur (as SO₄) in precipitation followed the same seasonal and location trends as did SO₂ with 16, 42, and 168 kg of S/ha per yr being deposited in rural, urban and industrial locations, respectively. An overall state average of 30 kg S/ha per yr was estimated. Sulfur-deficient alfalfa plants grown in a greenhouse at Madison from January to May obtained as much as 73% of their S from the atmosphere. The amount of NH₄-N and organic N deposited by precipitation was highest during the spring months and lowest during the winter months. Both NH₄-N and organic-N were higher in areas adjacent to barnyards than in areas removed from the barnyard. However, NO₃-N deposition was relatively constant for all locations and was slightly lower in the winter months. Total N additions ranged from 13 to 30 kg/ha per yr, and an overall state average of about 20 kg/ha per yr was estimated.

Key Words: sulfur dioxide • alfalfa • air pollution • precipitation S • precipitation N

¹ Contribution from the Department of Soils, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis. 53706. Research supported by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. University of Wisconsin, Madison, Farmers Union Central Exchange, The Sulphur Institute, and Tennessee Valley Authority. Presented before Div. S-4, Soil Science Society of America, Aug. 26, 1970, Tucson, Ariz.

² Postdoctoral Fellow, Associate Professor, and Professor of Soils, respectively.

³ Appreciation is expressed to Mrs. K. L. Chen for the nitrogen analysis and to all of the cooperators throughout the state who assisted in collecting the samples.

Received for publication July 29, 1971.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				W. Stites and G.J. Kraft Nitrate and Chloride Loading to Groundwater from an Irrigated North-Central U.S. Sand-Plain Vegetable Field J. Environ. Qual., July 1, 2001; 30(4): 1176 - 1184. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. R. Frink, P. E. Waggoner, and J. H. Ausubel Nitrogen fertilizer: Retrospect and prospect PNAS, February 16, 1999; 96(4): 1175 - 1180. [Full Text] [PDF]