David Wall

Research Officer

Research Interests

Improving the precision of fertiliser advice – more soil specific
Predicting soil nitrogen supply through soil N mineralization
Soil phosphorus dynamics and plant and animal P nutrition
Nutrient cycling and sustainability of farming systems
Soil pH and lime –interactions with nutrient efficiency
Organic manure management
Remediating heavy metal contamination in soils and produce
Editor of Teagasc nutrient recommendations for agricultural crops

Current Projects

Principal investigator on the following projects:

Fate of phosphorus fertiliser Inputs to agricultural soils; Quantifying gross P transformation rates and soil P supply (Mathematical modelling of soil biomass, SFI Funded, in collaboration with University of Limerick)
Evaluating the role of precision nutrient management in sustainable intensification of grass based dairy farms (RMIS 6568 (RURAGI funded in collaboration with UCD)
Strategies for control of cadmium contamination in horticultural produce in Ireland [RED-Cd-IRL ] (RMIS 6233) (Teagasc funded).
Variability in soil N and P availability and response to applied fertilizers in grassland soils (RMIS 6336) (Teagasc Funded in conjunction with Queens University Belfast and AFBI, NI).
Fertiliser N requirement to optimise yield and quality of spring barley (RMIS 6097) (Teagasc funded, in collaboration with University of Reading, UK)
Developing soil specific nitrogen advice (RMIS 6165) (Teagasc funded in collaboration with University of Aberdeen and James Hutton Institute, Scotland).
Lime and trace elements: quantification of the interactions between soil pH, nutrient efficiency and trace-elements for contrasting soil types (RMIS 6249) (Teagasc funded).
Predicting slurry variability using nutrient assessment tools: improving precision of nutrient advice (RMIS 6094) (Teagasc funded, in collaboration with Queens University Belfast and AFBI, NI).
Phosphorus requirements for grass and animal production, and interactions with soil pH and nitrogen (RMIS 6095) (Teagasc funded, in collaboration with Queens University Belfast and AFBI, NI).

Project partner on the following projects:

Sustainable nitrogen fertiliser use and disaggregated emissions of nitrogen on grassland and arable systems [SUDEN] (RMIS 6415), (DAFM funded).
Measurement and modelling of health impacts arising from the landspreading of biosolids (EPA funded, in collaboration with NUIG and UCD)
Soil Quality Assessment and Research [SQUARE] (DAFM funded, in collaboration with UCD)
Assessment of the supply of nitrogen from the soil to winter wheat in Ireland (RMIS 6013) (Teagasc funded, in collaboration with University College Dublin, Ireland).
Agricultural Catchments Programme – Nutrient source at field and farm level (RMIS 5868) (DAFM Ireland, funded).
Soil Status and protection (EPA STRIVE funded)

Education

2008 Ph.D.-Soil Science, North Carolina State University, USA
2004 M. Agr. Sc -Crop Science, University College Dublin, IRL
2001 B. Agr. Sc, University College Dublin, IRL

Professional Membership

Soil Science Society of Ireland
Soil Science Society of America
Fertiliser Association of Ireland

David has published many peer reviewed scientific papers:

McDonald, N.T., Watson, C.J., Laughlin, R.J. Grant, J., Lalor, S.T.J. and Wall, D.P. (2014). Soil tests for predicting nitrogen supply for grassland under controlled environmental conditions. Journal of Agricultural Science. doi:10.1017/S0021859614000264.

Mellander P-E, Melland A.R, Murphy, P. N.C., Wall D.P., Shortle G. & Jordan P. (2014) Coupling of surface water and groundwater nitrate-N dynamics in two permeable agricultural catchments. Journal of Agricultural Science, doi:10.1017/S0021859614000021.

Regan, J.T., Fenton, O., Daly, K., Grant, J., Wall^,D.P. and Healy, M.G. (2014) Effects of Overland Flow on Critical Soil Test Phosphorus Thresholds in Tillage Soils. Water Air and Soil Pollution, 225 (8), 1-13.

McDonald, N.T., Watson, C.J., Laughlin, R.J. Grant, J., Lalor, S.T.J. and Wall, D.P. (2014). Evaluation of soil tests for predicting nitrogen mineralization in temperate grassland soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 78 ( 3) 1051-1064

Brennan, R.B., Wall, D.P, Fenton, O., Grant, J., Sharpley, A.N., & Healy, M.G. (2014). The impact of chemical amendment of dairy cattle slurry before land application on soil phosphorus dynamics. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Dynamics, 45(16) 2215-2233.

Wall, D.P., Jordan, P. Melland, A.R., Mellander, P-E., Mechan, S., & Shortle, G. (2013). Forecasting the decline of excess soil phosphorus in agricultural catchments. Soil Use and Management, 29 (Suppl. 1), 147–154.

Mellander P-E, Jordan P, Melland AR, Murphy, P. N.C. Wall D.P., Mechan, S. Meehan, R., Kelly C., Shine, O. & Shortle G. (2013) Quantification of phosphorus transport from a karstic agricultural watershed to emerging spring water. Environmental Science & Technology. 47 (12), 6111-6119.

Wall, D.P., Murphy, P.N.C., Melland, A.R., Mechan, S., Shine, O., Buckley, C., Mellander, P-E., Shortle, G. & Jordan, P. (2012). Evaluating agricultural nutrient source regulations at different scales in five Irish catchments. Environmental Science and Policy, 24, 34-43.

Jordan P, Melland AR, Mellander P-E, Shortle G & Wall D.P. (2012). The seasonality of phosphorus transfers from land to water: implications for trophic impacts and policy evaluation. Science of the Total Environment 434, 101–109.

Mellander, P.E., Melland, A.R., Jordan, P., Wall, D.P., Murphy, P.N.C., Shortle, G., (2012) Quantifying nutrient transfer pathways in agricultural catchments using high temporal resolution data. Environmental Science & Policy. 24, 44-57.

Melland, A.R., Mellander, P.-E., Murphy, P.N.C., Wall, D.P., Mechan, S., Shine, O., Shortle, G., Jordan, P., (2012) Stream water quality in intensive cereal cropping catchments with regulated nutrient management. Environmental Science & Policy, 24,58-70.

Mellander P-E, Wall DP, Jordan P, Melland AR, Meehan R, Kelly C & Shortle G. (2012). Delivery and impact bypass in a karst aquifer with high phosphorus source and pathway potential, Water Research, 46, 2225-2236.

Wall, D.P., Jordan, P., Melland, A.R., Mellander, P-E., Reaney, S., Shortle, G., (2011). Using the nutrient transfer continuum concept to evaluate the European Union Nitrates Directive National Action Programme. Journal of Environmental Science and Policy, 14, 664-674.

Wall, D.P. Weisz. R., Crozier. C.R., Heiniger R.W and White, J.G. (2010). Variability of the Illinois soil nitrogen test across time and sampling depth in the Humid Southeastern USA. Soil Science of America Journal, 74:2089-2100.

View media presentations by David here.

Conor Murphy: Nitrogen mineralisation – capturing new insights into free N from soils (University of Aberdeen)

Leanne Roche: Fate and transport of nitrogen under spring barley cultivation on contrasting soils (University of Reading)

Ian Fox: Variability in soil N and P availability and response to applied fertilizers in grassland soils (Queens University Belfast)

Philip Murphy: Evaluating the role of precision nutrient management in sustainable intensification of grass based dairy farms (University College Dublin)