BACKGROUND: Generally, nitrogen (N) fertilization higher than the recommended dose is applied during vegetable cultivation to increase productivity. But higher N fertilization also increases the concentrations of nitrate ions and nitrous oxide in soil. In this experiment, the impact of N fertilization was studied on nitrous oxide ($N_2O$) emission to standardize the optimum fertilization level for minimizing $N_2O$ emission as well as increasing crop productivity. Herein, we developed $N_2O$ emission inventory for upland soil region during red pepper and Chinese milk vetch cultivation. METHODS AND RESULTS: Nitrogen fertilizers were applied at different rates to study their effect on $N_2O$ emission during red pepper and Chinese milk vetch cultivation. The gas samples were collected by static closed chamber method and $N_2O$ concentration was measured by gas chromatography. The total $N_2O$ flux was steadily increased due to increasing N fertilization level, though the overall pattern of $N_2O$ emission dynamics was same. Application of N fertilization higher than the recommended dose increased the values of both seasonal $N_2O$ flux (94.5% for Chinese cabbage and 30.7% for red pepper) and $N_2O$ emission per unit crop yield (77.9% for Chinese cabbage and 23.2% for red pepper). Nitrous oxide inventory revealed that the $N_2O$ emission due to unit amount of N application from short-duration vegetable field in fall (autumn) season (6.36 kg/ha) was almost 70% higher than that during summer season. CONCLUSION: Application of excess N-fertilizers increased seasonal $N_2O$ flux especially the $N_2O$ flux per unit yield during both Chinese cabbage and red pepper cultivation. This suggested that the higher N fertilization than the recommended dose actually facilitates $N_2O$ emission than boosting plant productivity. The $N_2O$ inventory for upland farming in temperate region like Korea revealed that $N_2O$ flux due to unit amount of N-fertilizer application for Chinese cabbage in fall (autumn) season was comparatively higher than that of summer vegetables like red pepper. Therefore, the judicious N fertilization following recommended dose is required to suppress $N_2O$ emission with high vegetable productivity in upland soils.