[Terrapreta] urine & terra preta

[Sean K. Barry]

Hi 'terrapreta' list,

Urine can be a significant source of nitrogen.  From the abstract of the paper Michael just sent, it is ammonium bicarbonate-NH4HCO3, which carries this nitrogen.  The urea-(NH2)2CO is apparently volatile and degrades quickly.  Also, both this abstract and Adriana mentioned that urine also contains large amounts of plant available phosphorus.  Dr. A. D. Karve espoused the virtues of urine as a soil amendment, too.  Is urine just plain full of NPK?!

It is our hope that Terra Preta formation proves to make soil "hold" nutrients better than it would without the charcoal.  It is presumed that the mechanism for this is that charcoal enhances the growth of soil microorganisms and these are what "hold" the nutrients in the soil.  Does the kind of soil microorganisms that will do this matter?  Do they need to be "nitrogen-fixing" (Actinobacteria) and etc?Perhaps this combination of charcoal and urine as amendments to soil is a potent soil fertility enhancement because it is the nutrient "bank" (charocal => more microorganisms => more nutrient "holding" capacity) and a significant nutrient "deposit" (the NPK in urine) at the same time.

Currently, what is the requirement for nitrogen additions to soil which is cropped?  Doesn't this depend on the crop?  How much anhydrous ammonia, phosphorus, or potassium is applied per hectare or acre on average to agricultural land?  At what cost? How much of this deposited fertilization can be retained in the soil by adding charcoal?  

Regards,

SKB
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Michael Bailes<mailto:michaelangelica at gmail.com> 
  To: Terrapreta<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org> 
  Sent: Wednesday, October 17, 2007 1:50 AM
  Subject: [Terrapreta] Pee AKA human urine


  Received: 26 September 1994  Accepted: 23 January 1995  

  Abstract  Stored human urine had pH values of 8.9 and was composed of eight main ionic species (> 0.1 meq L–1), the cations Na, K, NH 4, Ca and the anions, Cl, SO4, PO4 and HCO3. Nitrogen was mainly (> 90%) present as ammoniacal N, with ammonium bicarbonate being the dominant compound. Urea and urate decomposed during storage. 
   Heavy metal concentrations in urine samples were low compared with other organic fertilizers, but copper, mercury, nickel and zinc were 10–500 times higher in urine than in precipitation and surface waters. In a pot experiment with 15N labelled human urine, higher gaseous losses and lower crop uptake (barley) of urine N than of labelled ammonium nitrate were found.
   Phosphorus present in urine was utilized at a higher rate than soluble phosphate, showing that urine P is at least as available to crops as soluble P fertilizers.
  http://www.springerlink.com/content/km386u8967256354/<http://www.springerlink.com/content/km386u8967256354/>and32P-tracer - plant nutrients - pot experiment 



  -- 
  Michael the Archangel

  "You can fix all the world's problems in a garden. . . . 
  Most people don't know that"
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