Vol. 12, Issue 1 (2023)

Author(s):
Avinash GJ, SR Patil, Suman Kumar Surendra, Apoorva MT and AG Durgude

Abstract:
The use of urea by the farmers as a source of nitrogen has been increased in the recent years. However, the nitrogen use efficiency of applied chemical nitrogen fertilizers is less than 50% due to leaching, volatilization, denitrification and surface runoff. These losses are undesirable because of environment concerns and the high cost of crop production. After application of urea to soil, it hydrolyses to ammonia and carbon dioxide in soil-by-soil urease enzyme which is under influences of soil factors. Thus, study of soil properties regulating soil urease activity are the most important in regulating the process of urea hydrolysis which is the main concern in improving the use efficiency of urea and minimize the problems related to use of urea. In this context, the present investigation was undertaken so as to understand the soil properties regulating urease activity in the Inception. Total 15 surface (0-15 cm) GPS based soil samples of an Inception with wide range of variations in soil properties from the Central Campus of the MPKV, Rahuri were collected and analysed for important physic-chemical and biological soil properties for the correlation studies with urease activity. Correlation studies between soil properties and urease activity from soil samples were analysed by simple linear correlation study. The present study results indicated that, the urease activity is positively and highly significantly correlated with organic carbon (0.87**), total nitrogen (0.806**), available nitrogen (0.61**) and Clay (0.52*). The content of CaCO₃ (-0.487*) has significant negative correlation with urease activity. The other soil properties studied i.e. pH, EC, silt, sand and microbial population did not show any significant correlation with urease activity in an Inception soils.