Pulses Help Growers Reduce Fertilizer Expense

DONALD - May 7/01 - STAT -- Pulse growers can measure the effectiveness of nitrogen fixation in pulse crops by the degree of pinkness inside nodules which form on the plant's roots.

John Lovett, managing director of the Australia's Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) says nitrogen fixation occurs best in nodules that have a rich supply of leghaemoglobin. It supplies the oxygen needed to fix the nitrogen while, importantly, keeping it away from the enzyme (nitrogenese) involved in the process.

"This leghaemoglobin is pink. Therefore, if the legume nodule is pink on the inside, it will be fixing more nitrogen into your soil," Lovett said.

Australia plants an average of 4.85 million acres of pulses annually. These plants return an estimated 800,000 MT of nitrogen annually to soils across Australia, which would otherwise have to be artificially added.

Canada is seeing a similar impact from expansion of the pulse industry in that country. Seeded area during the past five years has averaged 3.8 million acres, but seeded area is expected to range between six and 7.5 million acres annually in the coming five years. This suggests over a million tons annually of nitrogen may be returned to Canadian soils.

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