Abstract:
A laboratory incubation study was conducted to find out the pattern of transformation
and mineralisation of applied urea under submerged condition in the three major rice soils of
Kerala. The hydrolysis of urea to ammonium was influenced by the soil reaction and organic
matter content. The formation of oxidised N products like nitrate and nitrite was meagre due to
lack of adequate oxygen to carry out the process of nitrification. This avoided the chances of N
loss through denitrificalion in the waterlogged rice soils.