A dataset of physico-chemical properties, extractable organic N, N mineralization and physical organic matter fractionation of soils developed on loess silts, crystalline rocks and sedimentary rocks.

A network of 137 cultivated fields covering the wide diversity of soils, crop rotations and cropping practices throughout the region of Brittany (France) was monitored to collect data on soil organic nitrogen (SON) mineralization and to identify the factors that explain the observed variability. The dataset presented in this article contains all of the information about the soils, which were subjected to pedological description and in-depth analysis of their topsoil properties. The topsoil (0-30 cm) was sampled by mixing 30 samples to obtain one composite per field, which was divided into one sub-sample sieved at 5 mm to analyze soil microbial biomass (SMB) and SON mineralization via anaerobic incubation, and one subsample dried at 40 °C and sieved at 2 mm. The physico-chemical analyses included the particle-size distribution of five fractions; organic matter (OM); organic C; organic N; pH (water); pH KCl; CEC (Metson); CEC (hexamminecobalt); exchangeable Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn and Na (hexamminecobalt); Olsen P; Dyer P; and total Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na and P. Physical OM fractionation was used to characterize the 200-2000 µm and 50-200 µm fractions of particulate organic matter (POM). Finally, three chemical methods were used to determine extractable organic nitrogen (EON): hot KCl, hot water and phosphate buffer tests. This dataset covers a wide range of pedological situations and cropping systems, and is of great interest to scientists searching for soil properties that can explain SON mineralization. It provides original data on EON indices, SMB and multiple forms of P. This paper supports and supplements information presented in a previous article [1].

A dataset from a 3-year network of field measurements of soil organic nitrogen mineralization under a mild oceanic temperate climate.

Improved assessment and prediction of soil organic nitrogen (SON) mineralization is essential, as it contributes significantly to the nitrogen (N) nutrition of crops and remains a major economic and environmental challenge. SON mineralization is a function of soil properties, land use and climate, which led us to monitor a network of 137 cultivated fields covering the wide diversity of soils, crop rotations and cropping practices throughout Brittany (France). SON mineralization was quantified by the mineral N balance calculated for a maize crop not fertilized with N; it was determined by measuring soil mineral N (SMN) in the 0-90 cm soil profile in March (Ni) and October (Nf) and N uptake by the maize crop, and predicting nitrate leaching (Nleached) using the STICS model. SMN and plant N uptake were measured in triplicate. To predict Nleached, STICS was initialized at the date of Ni measurement. In addition, the experimental design was based on estimating SON for three consecutive years (2012-2014) to improve the accuracy of measuring mineralization. An indicator of the cropping system (I_Sys) was developed that integrated well the effects of crop rotation and the frequency of manure application; it can be considered a good index of effects of the cropping system on SON mineralization. This dataset may be used for a variety of applications, such as analysing effects of soil properties, cropping history and climatic conditions on SON mineralization, or evaluating the accuracy of soil-plant models (e.g. STICS, CERES).