Effects of agricultural management on sodosols in northern Tasmania

Soil Research ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 711 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. E. Cotching ◽  
J. Cooper ◽  
L. A. Sparrow ◽  
B. E. McCorkell ◽  
W. Rowley

Attributes of 25 Tasmanian sodosols were assessed using field and laboratory techniques to determine changes associated with 4 typical forms of agricultural management [long-term pasture, cropping with shallow tillage using discs and tines, cropping (including potatoes) with more rigorous and deeper tillage including deep ripping and powered implements, and cropping (including potatoes) where the potatoes were harvested when the soil was wet]. Soil organic carbon in the top 150 mm was 2.7% under long-term pasture compared with 1.8% in rigorously tilled cropping paddocks, and microbial biomass C values were 194 and 129 mg/kg, respectively. Readily oxidisable organic C concentrations were 1.8 mg/g and 1.3 mg/g, respectively. Infiltration rate was greater in paddocks with shallow tillage cropping than long-term pasture but was 43% less in paddocks which had grown potatoes and 70% less after a wet potato harvest. Dry aggregate-size showed no change under shallow tillage cropping compared with long-term pasture but decreased significantly in more rigorously tilled potato cropping paddocks. Aggregate stability in all cropped paddocks was nearly 50% less than in long-term pasture paddocks, with values in intensively tilled potato cropping paddocks approaching relatively low levels. Colwell extractable phosphorus (P) increased with all cropping, particularly after potatoes. Lower organic carbon and poorer physical properties were associated with paddocks which had grown potatoes, which adds weight to the view that cropping rotation and associated soil management practices are critical for sustainable management of Tasmanian sodosols. Farmers were surveyed about their views of the condition of their paddocks. They identified more healthy than unhealthy soil attributes under all management histories but reported more unhealthy soil attributes when potatoes were included in their rotation.

Soil Research ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 45 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. E. Cotching ◽  
J. Cooper ◽  
L. A. Sparrow ◽  
B. E. McCorkell ◽  
W. Rowley

Attributes of 15 Tasmanian sandy tenosols were assessed using field and laboratory techniques to determine differences under 3 typical forms of agricultural management: long-term pasture, cropping with shallow tillage using discs and tines, and cropping (including potatoes) with more rigorous and deeper tillage including deep ripping and powered implements. Soil organic carbon in the surface 75 mm was 2.6% under long-term pasture compared with 1.1% in rigorously tilled cropping paddocks. Readily oxidisable carbon concentrations were 2.3 mg/g and 1.0 mg/g, respectively. These differences were negatively correlated with the number of years cropped, which we viewed with concern. Infiltration rate was greater and shear strength less in cropped paddocks compared with long-term pasture. Dry bulk density was greater and total porosity and macroporosity were less in rigorously tilled paddocks. Subsoil compaction was apparent in paddocks which had grown potatoes. Cropping was not clearly associated with smaller or less stable aggregates. A survey of farmers' perceptions found that they identified more healthy than unhealthy soil attributes under all management histories. Significant negative correlations were found between the number of unhealthy attributes identified in a farmer survey and laboratory-determined water-stable aggregates and mean weight diameter of dry soil aggregates. The effects of cropping are not associated with a broad range of degraded soil attributes on these Tasmanian tenosols. tenosols, sandy soils, organic carbon, soil strength, aggregate stability, land management, cropping.


Soil Research ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 65 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. E. Cotching ◽  
J. Cooper ◽  
L. A. Sparrow ◽  
B. E. McCorkell ◽  
W. Rowley

Attributes of 15 Tasmanian dermosols were assessed using field and laboratory techniques to determine changes associated with 3 typical forms of agricultural management: long-term pasture, cropping with shallow tillage using discs and tines, and cropping (including potatoes) with more rigorous and deeper tillage including deep ripping and powered implements. Soil organic carbon in the surface 75 mm was 7.0% under long-term pasture compared with 4.3% and 4.2% in cropped paddocks. Microbial biomass carbon concentrations were 217 mg/kg, 161 mg/kg, and 139 mg/kg, respectively. These differences were negatively correlated with the number of years cropped. Greater bulk densities were found in the surface layer of cropped paddocks but these were not associated with increased penetration resistance or decreased infiltration rate and are unlikely to impede root growth. Long-term pasture paddocks showed stronger structural development and had smaller clods than cropped paddocks. Vane shear strength and penetration resistance were lower in cropped paddocks than under long-term pasture. Many soil attributes showed no significant differences associated with management. Including potatoes in the rotation did not appear to affect these dermosols, which indicates a degree of robustness in these soils. clay loams, organic carbon, soil strength, aggregate stability, land management, cropping.


2003 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 363-380 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. J. VandenBygaart ◽  
E. G. Gregorich ◽  
D. A. Angers

To fulfill commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, Canada is required to provide verifiable estimates and uncertainties for soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks, and for changes in those stocks over time. Estimates and uncertainties for agricultural soils can be derived from long-term studies that have measured differences in SOC between different management practices. We compiled published data from long-term studies in Canada to assess the effect of agricultural management on SOC. A total of 62 studies were compiled, in which the difference in SOC was determined for conversion from native land to cropland, and for different tillage, crop rotation and fertilizer management practices. There was a loss of 24 ± 6% of the SOC after native land was converted to agricultural land. No-till (NT) increased the storage of SOC in western Canada by 2.9 ± 1.3 Mg ha-1; however, in eastern Canada conversion to NT did not increase SOC. In general, the potential to store SOC when NT was adopted decreased with increasing background levels of SOC. Using no-tillage, reducing summer fallow, including hay in rotation with wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), plowing green manures into the soil, and applying N and organic fertilizers were the practices that tended to show the most consistent in creases in SOC storage. By relating treatment SOC levels to those in the control treatments, SOC stock change factors and their levels of uncertainty were derived for use in empirical models, such as the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Guidelines model for C stock changes. However, we must be careful when attempting to extrapolate research plot data to farmers’ fields since the history of soil and crop management has a significant influence on existing and future SOC stocks. Key words: C sequestration, tillage, crop rotations, fertilizer, cropping intensity, Canada


ael ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 180062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sindhu Jagadamma ◽  
Michael E. Essington ◽  
Sutie Xu ◽  
Xinhua Yin

Soil Research ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 465 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. G. Shepherd ◽  
S. Saggar ◽  
R. H. Newman ◽  
C. W. Ross ◽  
J. L. Dando

The effects of increasing cropping and soil compaction on aggregate stability and dry-sieved aggregate-size distribution, and their relationship to total organic C (TOC) and the major functional groups of soil organic carbon, were investigated on 5 soils of contrasting mineralogy. All soils except the allophanic soil showed a significant decline in aggregate stability under medium- to long-term cropping. Mica-rich, fine-textured mineral and humic soils showed the greatest increase in the mean weight diameter (MWD) of dry aggregates, while the oxide-rich soils, and particularly the allophanic soils, showed only a slight increase in the MWD after long-term cropping. On conversion back to pasture, the aggregate stability of the mica-rich soils increased and the MWD of the aggregate-size distribution decreased, with the humic soil showing the greatest recovery. Aggregate stability and dry aggregate-size distribution patterns show that soil resistance to structural degradation and soil resilience increased from fine-textured to coarse-textured to humic mica-rich soils to oxide-rich soils to allophanic soils. Coarse- and fine-textured mica-rich and oxide-rich soils under pasture contained medium amounts of TOC, hot-water soluble carbohydrate (WSC), and acid hydrolysable carbohydrate (AHC), all of which declined significantly under cropping. The rate of decline varied with soil type in the initial years of cropping, but was similar under medium- and long-term cropping. TOC was high in the humic mica-rich and allophanic soils, and levels did not decline appreciably under medium- and long-term cropping. 13C-nuclear magnetic resonance evidence also indicates that all major functional groups of soil organic carbon declined under cropping, with O-alkyl C and alkyl C showing the fastest and slowest rate of decline, respectively. On conversion back to pasture, both WSC and AHC returned to levels originally present under long-term pasture. TOC recovered to original pasture levels in the humic soil, but recovered only to 60–70% of original levels in the coarse- and fine-textured soils. Aggregate stability was strongly correlated to TOC, WSC, and AHC (P < 0.001), while aggregate-size distribution was moderately correlated to aggregate stability (P < 0.01) and weakly correlated to AHC (P < 0.05). Scanning electron microscopy indicated a loss of the binding agents around aggregates under cropping. The effect of the loss of these binding agents on soil structure was more pronounced in mica-rich soils than in oxide-rich and allophanic soils. The very high aggregate stabilities of the humic soil under pasture was attributed to the presence of a protective water-repellent lattice of long-chain polymethylene compounds around the soil aggregates.


Soil Research ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 218 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Kirkham ◽  
B. A. Rowe ◽  
R. B. Doyle

Changes in the soil structure and hydraulic conductivity of an Acidic Red Ferrosol were measured in a long-term (1968–2003) fertiliser experiment on pasture in north-western Tasmania, Australia. Studies were initiated following observations of both softer soil surface and cracking on plots that had received 15 t/ha of ground agricultural limestone. Liming decreased penetration resistance and increased hydraulic conductivity. These structural improvements were associated with increased mean dry aggregate size, a small increase in wet aggregate stability, higher exchangeable calcium levels, and increased plant growth, but a 9% decrease in total soil organic carbon in the surface 50 mm. This decrease in organic carbon was not associated with deterioration in soil structure, as may have been anticipated. This was probably because total organic C was still 82 g/kg on unlimed plots. Decreases in soil penetration resistance due to liming increased the likelihood of pugging from livestock but may improve ease of tillage. This research demonstrates that liming can improve the structure of a well-aggregated Ferrosol as well as its previously reported effects of increasing soil pH and yields of pasture and barley despite decreasing organic C.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9769
Author(s):  
Gábor Csitári ◽  
Zoltán Tóth ◽  
Mónika Kökény

The effect of two types of organic amendment (manure and straw incorporation) and various doses (0–200 kg N*ha−1) of mineral N fertilization on microbial biomass C (MBC), aggregate stability (AS), soil organic C (SOC) and grain yield were investigated in an IOSDV long-term fertilization experiment (Keszthely, Hungary). This study was conducted during years 2015–2016 in a sandy loam Ramann-type brown forest soil (Eutric Cambisol according to WRB). Organic amendments had a significant effect on AS, MBC and SOC, increased their values compared to the unamended control. The organic amendments showed different effects on AS and MBC. AS was increased the most by straw incorporation and MBC by manure application. The magnitude of temporal variability of AS and MBC differed. Presumably, the different effects of organic amendments and the different degrees of temporal variability explain why there was only a weak (0.173) correlation between AS and MBC. AS did not correlate with SOC or grain yield. MBC correlated (0.339) with SOC but not with the grain yield. The N fertilizer dose did not have a significant effect on AS and MBC, but had a significant effect on SOC and grain yield.


Soil Research ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 809 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Bell ◽  
P. W. Moody ◽  
R. D. Connolly ◽  
B. J. Bridge

The relationships between fractions of soil organic carbon (C) oxidised by varying strengths of potassium permanganate (KMnO4) and important soil physical and chemical properties were investigated for Queensland Ferrosols. These soils spanned a wide range of clay contents (31-83%), pH values (4·4-7·9; 1 : 5 water), and total C contents (12· 1-111 g/kg). Carbon fractions were derived by oxidation with 33 mM (C1), 167 mM (C2), and 333 mM (C3) KMnO4, while organic C and total C were determined by Heanes wet oxidation and combustion, respectively. Aggregate stability was determined by wet sieving soil from the surface crust after 30 min of high intensity (100 mm/h), simulated rainfall on disturbed samples in the laboratory. The proportion of aggregates <0·125 mm (P125) was used as the stability indicator because of the high correlation between this size class and the final rainfall infiltration rate (r2 = 0qa86, n = 42). The soil organic C fraction most closely correlated with P125 was C1 (r2 = 0·79, n = 42). This fraction was also highly correlated with final, steady-state infiltration rates in field situations where there were no subsurface constraints to infiltration (r2 = 0·74, n = 30). Multiple linear regression techniques were used to identify the soil properties determining effective cation exchange capacity (ECEC, n = 89). Most variation in ECEC (R2 = 0 ·72) was accounted for by a combination of C1 (P < 0·0001) and pH (P < 0·0001). These results confirm the very important role played by the most labile (easily oxidised) fraction of soil organic matter (C1) in key components of the chemical and physical fertility of Ferrosols. Management practices which maintain adequate C1 concentrations are essential for sustainable cropping on these soils.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 8619
Author(s):  
Orestis Kairis ◽  
Chrysoula Aratzioglou ◽  
Athanasios Filis ◽  
Michel van Mol ◽  
Costas Kosmas

The effects of four main practices tillage versus no-tillage, and intensive grazing versus extensive grazing, applied in characteristic agricultural and grazing lands of Crete Island were evaluated in situ using nine soil quality indicators. The following nine representative indicators of soil quality assessment were assessed using the rapid visual assessment methodology adopted at European level in the context of the EU research project iSQAPER: susceptibility to water and wind erosion, surface ponding (under cropping), formation of tillage pan, soil color, soil porosity, soil structure, susceptibility to slaking, infiltration rate, and biodiversity status. These indicators were measured in 48 agricultural field-plots to adequately represent the four above-mentioned practices and the different types of geomorphological patterns existing in the area. Additionally, 38 agricultural fields were sampled in the topsoil to assess cultivation practices (tillage, no-tillage) on soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable potassium, available phosphorous, and soil aggregate stability. Based on the indicators rating methodology, the appropriate statistical tests were applied and the soils under different managements were characterized in terms of their potential quality and their general agricultural value. The obtained data showed that in agricultural areas, significant differences were detected between tillage and no-tillage management practices for the indicators of soil structure and consistency and infiltration rate. In grazing land, significant differences were found for the soil quality indicators of susceptibility to erosion and infiltration rate for the corresponding practices of intensive and extensive grazing. Organic carbon content, exchangeable potassium content and aggregate stability were greatly affected in tillage versus no-tillage management practices.


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