Simultaneous Extraction of Phosphorus, Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium from Soils and Potassium Recommendations for Crops in Southern Brazil

Simultaneous multi-element extraction has been increasing worldwide to improve soil laboratory testing quality and efficiency. This study sought to investigate the applicability of the Mehlich-1, Mehlich-3, and resin methods for simultaneous extraction of soil available P, K, Ca, and Mg as well as the effect of using conversion equations on nutrient recommendations for crops. Topsoil (0–20 cm) samples were taken from the most representative soil types used for crop production in southern Brazil with a wide range of chemical, physical, and mineralogical properties. Soil P, K, Ca, and Mg were simultaneously extracted using 1.0 mol L−1 KCl, Mehlich-1 and Mehlich-3 solutions, and membrane resin. The amounts of P extracted with the Mehlich-1 method were, on average, 50% lower than those extracted with the resin and Mehlich-3 methods. However, the resin method extracted the lowest amounts of K, Ca, and Mg. The use of conversion equations was suitable and it did not affect negatively the K recommendations for crops grown on soils of southern Brazil.