Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 June 2017
Kikuyugrass was analyzed for nitrate (expressed as KNO3) and soluble oxalate concentration after it was grown for 8 wk in nutrient solution supplemented with KCl, NaCl, or NH4NO3; fertilized in the greenhouse with urea and KNO3 at 112 kg N ha-1; and fertilized in the field in Hawaii and Panama with urea at 56 and 112 kg N ha-1. Both treated and untreated kikuyugrass grown in nutrient solution contained toxic levels of nitrates and soluble oxalates. Plants treated with urea in the greenhouse contained 0.4% nitrate (nontoxic) 72 h after treatment whereas those treated with KNO3 contained 2.36% nitrate (highly toxic). Fertilization of kikuyugrass with urea in Panama and Hawaii did not significantly affect soluble oxalate concentration, but nitrate concentration increased to potentially lethal levels (over 1.5% as KNO3, dry wt) in plants from Hawaii.