Earthworm activity and soil structural changes under conservation agriculture in central Mexico

Castellanos-Navarrete, A.; Rodríguez-Aragonés, C.; Goede, R.G.M. de; Kooistra, M.J.; Sayre, Ken D.; Brussaard, L.; Pulleman, Mirjam

doi:10.1016/j.still.2012.03.011

Cited by 54 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…They were also positively correlated with age ( P < 0.01). Individual VSA scores for earthworms were significantly positively correlated with MWD ( P < 0.01), showing that earthworm activity affects soil structural morphology and contributes to macro‐aggregation (Castellanos‐Navarrete et al ., ). Individual scores for mottles were significantly negatively correlated with mean ASI ( P < 0.05), and individual scores for roots and surface cover were significantly negatively correlated with pH ( P < 0.05).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of a visual soil examination and evaluation technique at site and farm level

Sonneveld

Heuvelink

Moolenaar³

2014

Soil Use and Management

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Visual soil examination and evaluation (VSEE) techniques are semi-quantitative methods that provide rapid and cost-effective information on soil quality. These are mostly applied at site or field level, but there is an increased need for soil quality indicators at farm level to allow integration with other sustainability indicators. The objectives of this study were to develop and apply a protocol for application of a VSEE technique at site level, to assess the VSEE observations against standardized laboratory analyses and to aggregate VSEE observations to farm level using an appropriate sampling design. The study was conducted at ten dairy farms in a reclaimed polder in the Netherlands with clay and organic soils. A stratified random sampling design was used to account for spatial variability in land use and soil series. VSEE was carried out using the Visual Soil Assessment approach. Results show that 81% of sites were assessed as good and the remainder as moderate to poor. For the clay soils, field observations of soil structure were significantly correlated with pH, bulk density, soil organic matter (SOM) and mean weight diameter of aggregates, whereas for organic soils, soil structure significantly correlated with pH, bulk density, organic C and SOM. The range in overall scores calculated at farm level was smaller than at site level, and most farms were assessed as good.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Application of a visual soil examination and evaluation technique at site and farm level

Sonneveld

Heuvelink

Moolenaar³

2014

Soil Use and Management

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“…Conversion of PT to CA, with crop residue mulch and cover cropping (Figure 4), can increase earthworm activity and also improve structural properties [85,86], but the conversion can also have implications regarding transport of agricultural pollutants into the drainage water [85]. Experiments conducted in central Mexico indicated that conversion of PT to CA improved soil surface aggregation and aggregate stability, increased water infiltration, and enhanced most parameters related to soil quality [87]. Therefore, risks of soil degradation can be mitigated through adoption of land use and management systems which improve soil biological processes, and introduction of beneficial organisms into soils by selective inoculation.…”

Section: Improving Soil/agro-biodiversitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Restoring Soil Quality to Mitigate Soil Degradation

2015

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Abstract:Feeding the world population, 7.3 billion in 2015 and projected to increase to 9.5 billion by 2050, necessitates an increase in agricultural production of ~70% between 2005 and 2050. Soil degradation, characterized by decline in quality and decrease in ecosystem goods and services, is a major constraint to achieving the required increase in agricultural production. Soil is a non-renewable resource on human time scales with its vulnerability to degradation depending on complex interactions between processes, factors and causes occurring at a range of spatial and temporal scales. Among the major soil degradation processes are accelerated erosion, depletion of the soil organic carbon (SOC) pool and loss in biodiversity, loss of soil fertility and elemental imbalance, acidification and salinization. Soil degradation trends can be reversed by conversion to a restorative land use and adoption of recommended management practices. The strategy is to minimize soil erosion, create positive SOC and N budgets, enhance activity and species diversity of soil biota (micro, meso, and macro), and improve structural stability and pore geometry. Improving soil quality (i.e., increasing SOC pool, improving soil structure, enhancing soil fertility) can reduce risks of soil degradation (physical, chemical, biological and ecological) while improving the environment. Increasing the SOC pool to above the critical level (10 to 15 g/kg) is essential to set-in-motion the restorative trends. Site-specific techniques of restoring soil quality include conservation agriculture, integrated nutrient management, continuous vegetative cover such as residue mulch and cover cropping, and controlled grazing at appropriate stocking rates. The strategy is to produce "more from less" by reducing losses and increasing soil, water, and nutrient use efficiency.

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“…In order to enhance the sustainability of agricultural systems, no-tillage has recently been promoted to reduce soil erosion and energy use as well as to increase organic matter content (Peigne´et al 2007). Several reports have shown that soil microbial biomass and activity is higher in NT fields (for review see Andrade et al [2003], Miura et al [2008]), and the abundance of several functionally important groups of soil organisms, such as earthworms (Jossi et al 2011, Castellanos-Navarrete et al 2012) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF; Borie et al 2006), is enhanced in the absence of soil tillage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Agricultural practices indirectly influence plant productivity and ecosystem services through effects on soil biota

Köhl

Oehl

Heijden

2014

Ecological Applications

121

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Abstract. It is well established that agricultural practices alter the composition and diversity of soil microbial communities. However, the impact of changing soil microbial communities on the functioning of the agroecosystems is still poorly understood. Earlier work showed that soil tillage drastically altered microbial community composition. Here we tested, using an experimental grassland (Lolium, Trifolium, Plantago) as a model system, whether soil microbial communities from conventionally tilled (CT) and non-tilled (NT) soils have different influences on plant productivity and nutrient acquisition. We specifically focus on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), as they are a group of beneficial soil fungi that can promote plant productivity and ecosystem functioning and are also strongly affected by tillage management.Soil microbial communities from CT and NT soils varied greatly in their effects on the grassland communities. Communities from CT soil increased overall biomass production more than soil communities from NT soil. This effect was mainly due to a significant growth promotion of Trifolium by CT microorganisms. In contrast to CT soil inoculum, NT soil inoculum increased plant phosphorus concentration and total plant P content, demonstrating that the soil microbial communities from NT fields enhance P uptake. Differences in AM fungal community composition resulting, for instance, in twofold greater hyphal length in NT soil communities when compared to CT, are the most likely explanation for the different plant responses to CT and NT soil inocula.A range of field studies have shown that plant P uptake increases when farmers change to conservation tillage or direct seeding. Our results indicate that this enhanced P uptake results from enhanced hyphal length and an altered AM fungal community. Our results further demonstrate that agricultural management practices indirectly influence ecosystem services and plant community structure through effects on soil biota.

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Earthworm activity and soil structural changes under conservation agriculture in central Mexico

Cited by 54 publications

References 45 publications

Application of a visual soil examination and evaluation technique at site and farm level

Application of a visual soil examination and evaluation technique at site and farm level

Restoring Soil Quality to Mitigate Soil Degradation

Agricultural practices indirectly influence plant productivity and ecosystem services through effects on soil biota

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