Transport and fate of pesticides in outdoor lysimeters

Outdoor lysimeter studies are used to predict the migration potential of environmental pollutants from top soil to ground water under semi-field conditions. Although most of the lystmeter studies with pesticides are performed according to pesticide registration requirements, the technical and experimental design of a lysimeter study may differ. The lysimeter system used at the Fraunhofer-Institute is described and details about the experimental procedure, e.g. collecting of the soil core, application of the test substance, leachate and soil sampling, are presented. The lysimeter design enables optional the simulation of a ground water level in a soil depth of 1 m and the simultaneous determination of the lysimeter weight.