Higher nitrate leaching under cattle slurry than under mineral fertiliser , but soil N as major source of leached nitrate

Summary in the original language of the document

Introduction
Animal manure is suspected to be a major source of nitrate leaching due to its low nitrogen (N) use efficiency by crops. However, actual measurements of nitrate leaching from animal manure under field conditions are scarce. In an on-farm field trial over 2.5 years, 15N labelled cattle slurry was used to trace the fate of manure N in the soil-plant system and to test whether more nitrate was leached after slurry than after mineral fertiliser application.