Absorption and partitioning of applied 15N in a black pepper + erythrina system in Kerala, India

The fate of applied N in soil and its relative uptake by black pepper vine and erythrina tree on which the vine was trailed, were determined using 15N-labelled urea. Rapid depletion of 15N from 0-50 cm root zone was noticed due to heavy leaching during rains. The isotope content of the soil fell below the detection limit within one month of urea application. Both the vine and support tree absorbed N from the labelled fertilizer applied to the soil basin of the vine. Fertilizer use efficiency in black pepper vine was very low, in the range of 6 to 12%. On the other hand, the contribution of applied urea towards N uptake by erythrina support tree was 24 to 40%. Poor utilization of the applied N by the vine was, besides leaching of the nutrient, due to the severe root competition from the support tree. The overall utilization of the applied N was 51.4% by the vine and tree put together when N was applied at the rate of 25 g plant^–1 and 31.0% for the dose of 50 g N plant^–1.