Runoff, soil loss and soil physical property changes of light textured surface soils from long term tillage treatments

Soil Research ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 789 ◽  
Author(s):  
IJ Packer ◽  
GJ Hamilton ◽  
TB Koen
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Loss ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Conservation Tillage ◽  
Physical Property ◽  
Soil Disturbance ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Textured Surface ◽  
Direct Drilling

A long-term tillage trial was conducted (1981 to 1987) on loamy textured soils to quantify changes in runoff, soil loss and some soil physical properties due to conservation tillage practices. Two sites were established, one at Cowra on a sandy loam textured soil, and the other at Grenfell on a loamy textured soil. The tillage treatments imposed were direct drilling (DD), reduced tillage (RT) and traditional tillage (TT), with grazing at both sites, and a direct drilling ungrazed (NT) treatment at Cowra only. Runoff and soil loss were measured using a rainfall simulator, and sorptivity (S), saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat), bulk density to 40 mm (BD4) and 100 mm (BD10), organic carbon (OC) and water stable aggregates (WSA) were measured annually. Runoff decreased significantly in the minimum soil disturbance treatments (NT and DD) at Cowra. Runoff did not decrease in the stubble incorporation treatments despite a significant increase in OC and WSA. Decreases in runoff were due to the development and maintenance of porosity, particularly macropores. Changes in other soil physical properties were generally not significant owing to temporal variability. The regression relationship between OC and WSA, although significant, had little practical value because of high prediction error. Although improvements in soil physical properties were measured, a period of at least five years of cropping at both sites was required before they became significant and consistent.

scholarly journals Stabilization of soil hydraulic properties under a long term no-till system

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 1281-1292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis Alberto Lozano ◽  
Carlos Germán Soracco ◽  
Vicente S. Buda ◽  
Guillermo O. Sarli ◽  
Roberto Raúl Filgueira
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Physical Properties ◽  
Hydraulic Properties ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Water Retention Curve ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Tillage System ◽  
Crop Sequence

The area under the no-tillage system (NT) has been increasing over the last few years. Some authors indicate that stabilization of soil physical properties is reached after some years under NT while other authors debate this. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the last crop in the rotation sequence (1st year: maize, 2nd year: soybean, 3rd year: wheat/soybean) on soil pore configuration and hydraulic properties in two different soils (site 1: loam, site 2: sandy loam) from the Argentinean Pampas region under long-term NT treatments in order to determine if stabilization of soil physical properties is reached apart from a specific time in the crop sequence. In addition, we compared two procedures for evaluating water-conducting macroporosities, and evaluated the efficiency of the pedotransfer function ROSETTA in estimating the parameters of the van Genuchten-Mualem (VGM) model in these soils. Soil pore configuration and hydraulic properties were not stable and changed according to the crop sequence and the last crop grown in both sites. For both sites, saturated hydraulic conductivity, K0, water-conducting macroporosity, εma, and flow-weighted mean pore radius, R0ma, increased from the 1st to the 2nd year of the crop sequence, and this was attributed to the creation of water-conducting macropores by the maize roots. The VGM model adequately described the water retention curve (WRC) for these soils, but not the hydraulic conductivity (K) vs tension (h) curve. The ROSETTA function failed in the estimation of these parameters. In summary, mean values of K0 ranged from 0.74 to 3.88 cm h-1. In studies on NT effects on soil physical properties, the crop effect must be considered.

Long-term effect of biochar on soil physical properties of agricultural soils with different textures

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Zanutel ◽  
Sarah Garré ◽  
Charles Bielders
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Water Retention ◽  
Particle Density ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Term Effect ◽  
Silt Loam ◽  
Long Term Effect

<p>In the context of global soil degradation, biochar is being promoted as a potential solution to improve soil quality, besides its carbon sequestration potential. Burying biochar in soils is known to effect soil physical quality in the short-term (<5 years), and the intensity of these effects depends on soil texture. However, the long-term effects of biochar remain largely unknown yet and are important to quantify given biochar’s persistency in soils. The objective of this study was therefore to assess the long-term effect of biochar on soil physical properties as a function of soil texture and biochar concentration.  For this purpose, soil physical properties (particle density, bulk density, porosity, water retention and hydraulic conductivity curves) were measured in the topsoil of three fields with former kiln sites containing charcoal more than 150 years old in Wallonia (southern Belgium).  The fields had a silt loam, loam and sandy loam texture.  Samples were collected along 3 transects in each field, from the center of the kiln sites outwards. </p><p>Particle density and bulk density slightly decreased as a function of charcoal content. Because particle density and bulk density were affected to a similar extent by charcoal content, total porosity was not affected by the presence of century-old charcoal. Regarding the soil water retention curve, charcoal affected mostly water content in the mesopore range. This effect was strongest for the sandy loam. On the other hand, the presence of century-old charcoal increased significantly the hydraulic conductivity at pF between 1.5 and 2 for the silt loam, while no effect of charcoal was observed for the loamy soil.  The study highlights a limited effect of century-old charcoal on the pore size distribution (at constant porosity) and on the resulting soil physical properties for the range of soils and charcoal concentrations investigated here.  Further research may be needed to confirm the observed trends over a wider range of soil types. </p>

Suboptimal fertilisation compromises soil physical properties of a hard-setting sandy loam

Soil Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes Lund Jensen ◽  
Per Schjønning ◽  
Bent T. Christensen ◽  
Lars Juhl Munkholm
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Nutrient Management ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Animal Manure ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Pore Characteristics ◽  
The Impact

Nutrient management affects not only crop productivity and environmental quality, but also soil physical properties related to soil tilth. Previous studies on soil physical properties have focussed on effects of fertiliser type, whereas the effect of fertiliser rate has been neglected. We examined the impact of no fertilisation (UNF) and different rates of mineral fertiliser (½NPK and 1NPK) and animal manure (1½AM) on an ensemble of soil physical characteristics, with the amount of fertiliser added at level 1 corresponding to the standard rate of plant nutrients for a given crop. Soil was from the Askov long-term field experiment, initiated in 1894 on a hard-setting sandy loam. We assessed clay dispersibility, wet-stability of aggregates, aggregate strength, bulk soil strength and soil pore characteristics. The soils receiving 1NPK and 1½AM had similar soil physical properties, the only differences being a wider range in the optimum water content for tillage and more plant-available water in the soil amended with 1½AM. Suboptimal fertiliser rates (UNF and ½NPK) increased clay dispersibility, soil cohesion and bulk density, and reduced aggregate stability. The physical properties of soils exposed to suboptimal fertilisation indicate that the level of soil organic matter, including active organic binding and bonding materials, has become critically low due to reduced inputs of crop residues. While long-term suboptimal fertilisation compromises soil physical properties, crop-yield-optimised rates of mineral fertilisers and animal manure appear to sustain several soil physical properties equally well.

Characterizing the soil physical condition in reduced tillage systems for winter wheat on a fine sandy loam using small cores

1992 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
pp. 395-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Carter
Keyword(s):  
Winter Wheat ◽  
Physical Properties ◽  
Physical Condition ◽  
Prince Edward Island ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Air Permeability ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Tillage Systems ◽  
Fine Sandy Loam ◽  
Direct Drilling

A tillage study was conducted in Prince Edward Island with winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) over two seasons on a Gowanbrae light fine sandy loam, a Humo-Ferric Podzol. One-pass mouldboard ploughing, shallow tillage using a rotary harrow, and direct drilling were evaluated for their effects on crop productivity and soil physical properties. Direct drilling increased plant survival but not grain yield in the first year compared to the other tillage systems. Leaf diseases significantly reduced crop performance under shallow tillage and direct drilling in the second year. None of the tillage systems had adverse effects on soil strength at field capacity over the 0- to 350-mm soil profile depth, as penetrometer resistance values were < 1.5 MPa. Differences in soil macro-aggregation and organic carbon distribution between tillage systems were noted in the Ap horizon. Sequential measurements on soil cores equilibrated at 6 kPa tension for macropore volume, air permeability at low air pressure (0.25 kPa), oxygen diffusion rate (ODR) at 0.65 mV, and shear strength indicated that the soil physical condition was within the optimum range for root growth, over the 0- to 240-mm depth, in each tillage system. In addition, relative compaction was maintained at a low level in all systems. The quotient of air permeability and macropore volume, as an index of pore continuity, indicated that the relatively large macropore volumes under mouldboard ploughing were less efficient in conducting air than the macropores under direct drilling. These differences in pore continuity were most prevalent at the lower soil depth.Key words: Soil physical properties, soil compaction, Podzolic soil, winter cereals

scholarly journals Effects of soil physical properties on soil loss due to manual yam harvesting under a sandy loam environment

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pius Olufemi Olusegun Dada ◽  
Olusegun Rasheed Adeyanju ◽  
Olayemi Johnson Adeosun ◽  
Johnson Kayode Adewumi
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Loss ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Soil Physical Properties

scholarly journals Soil Physical Properties and Potato Yield in No-till, Subsurface-till, and Conventional-till Systems

1999 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 240-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Mundy ◽  
Nancy G. Creamer ◽  
L. George Wilson ◽  
Carl R. Crozier ◽  
Ronald D. Morse
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Conservation Tillage ◽  
Potato Production ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Plant Population ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Greenhouse Study ◽  
Ct System ◽  
Potato Growth

Conservation tillage using residue from a cover crop grown before potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) production has been infrequently and inconclusively studied. The objectives of this study were to 1) conduct a field study to evaluate soil physical properties, and potato growth and yield, in conventional-tillage (CT), no-tillage (NT), and subsurface-tillage (SST) systems and 2) conduct a greenhouse study to evaluate the effect of soil bulk density (ρb) on potato growth and yield. Potatoes (`Atlantic') were planted into residue of sorghum-sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench × S. sudanense (Piper) Staph] at two sites in eastern North Carolina—Plymouth into Portsmouth fine sandy loam and Lewiston into Norfolk sandy loam. Potatoes in the NT and SST system emerged more slowly than potatoesplanted conventionally. There were no differences in plant population or size by 8 weeks after planting at Plymouth, but plant population and size were less in NT and SST systems at Lewiston. Reducing tillage also affected soil compaction, increased soil moisture early in the season at both sites, and increased ρb at Lewiston. Yield of U.S. No. 1 potatoes planted in NT and SST systems were comparable to potatoes planted in a CT system at Plymouth, but were less than potatoes planted in a CT system at Lewiston. There were no differences in yield between potatoes planted with NT and SST. In the greenhouse study, ρb did not affect leaf area or tuber yield or tuber grade. Specific sites and soils may allow for comparable potato production with no or SST, but further research, conducted on different soil types would promote further understanding of the impacts of reducing tillage in potato production.

Influence of Long-term Cropping Systems on Soil Physical Properties Related to Soil Erodibility

2003 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achmad Rachman ◽  
S. H. Anderson ◽  
C. J. Gantzer ◽  
A. L. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Erodibility

Influence of Long-term Cropping Systems on Soil Physical Properties Related to Soil Erodibility

2003 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 637-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achmad Rachman ◽  
S. H. Anderson ◽  
C. J. Gantzer ◽  
A. L. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Erodibility
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