Thirty-four years of no-tillage and cover crops improve soil quality and increase cotton yield in Alfisols, Southeastern USA

Nouri, Amin; Lee, Jae‐Hoon; Yin, Xinhua; Tyler, Donald D.; Saxton, Arnold M.

doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2018.10.016

Cited by 167 publications

(114 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…In our study, all WCC treatments increased MWD, likely due to WCC residue being incorporated into the soil. Cover crops have been shown to improve dry aggregate size distribution compared to when no cover crops were used (Nouri, Lee, Yin, Tyler, & Saxton, ). Both the wet and dry control plots at Leyendecker, and the wet control at Los Lunas, also increased MWD.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Winter cover crops effects on soil properties and sweet corn yield in semi‐arid irrigated systems

2020

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Winter cover crops (WCCs) can bolster agroecosystem services, including improving soil and crop yields. However, information is lacking about WCCs in irrigated crops in the semiarid climates of the southwestern United States. We chose three WCC species for their ecological attributes: hairy vetch (Vicia villosa, nitrogen fixation), rye (Secale cereale, nutrient sequestration; allelopathy), and mustard (Brassica juncea, biofumigant). Crops were planted in either monoculture or 2‐ and 3‐way combinations to evaluate agroecosystem services. Sweet corn (Zea mays L.) was planted approximately 2 wk after WCC termination. Neither monocultures nor mixtures consistently produced the most biomass, as WCC biomass production differed between site and year. The highest yielding cover crop was vetch (4302 kg ha−1) followed by mustard–vetch (3528 kg ha−1) and rye–vetch (3130 kg ha−1), all within the same site year, and rye (3016 kg ha−1) in another site year. Cover crops generally increased mean weight diameter of soil aggregates (a measure of dry soil aggregation) over time, with values nearly doubling in mustard–vetch and mustard–rye–vetch plots at one site. Wet aggregate stability increased by as much as 18% in mustard and 27% in mustard–vetch plots. Fertilizer requirements decreased compared to fallow plots in the second year in all WCC plots except for rye at one site, and vetch increased sweet corn yield compared to dry fallow plots in 1 yr by an average of 43.1%. These results demonstrate that WCCs can have positive effects on dry aggregate stability and potentially cash crop yield in irrigated, semiarid agroecosystems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Winter cover crops effects on soil properties and sweet corn yield in semi‐arid irrigated systems

2020

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“…[60] reported that in a silt loam soil, increased root impedance in water deficit periods because of reduced soil moisture content was the main reason for soybean yield loss. Previous studies have shown that no-tillage may increase [61,62] or decrease [63] crop yield compared with tilled systems. In a meta-analysis conducted on 678 studies worldwide, reference [24] showed a general decline in legumes yield under NT compared with conventional tillage.…”

Section: Effect Of Tillage Systems On Soybean Yieldmentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Physical Properties and Soybean Yield as Influenced by Long-Term Tillage Systems and Cover Cropping in the Midsouth USA

et al. 2018

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A better understanding of the effect of long-term tillage management on soil properties and yield is essential for sustainable food production. This research aimed to evaluate the 37-year impact of different tillage systems and cover cropping on soil hydro-physical properties at 0-15 and 15-30 cm, as well as on soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr] yield. The long-term experiment was located in Jackson, TN, and the different treatments involved in this study were no-tillage (NT), disk (DP), chisel (CP), moldboard plow (MP), and no-tillage with winter wheat [Triticum aestivum (L.)] cover crop (NTW). Forty-five days after the tillage operation, MP showed a comparable bulk density (BD) with NT, NTW, and CP at 0-15 cm depth. At surface depth, No-tillage systems increased cone penetration resistance (PR) by 12% compared with the reduced tillage systems, and 47% relative to MP. Wet aggregate stability (WAS) at surface depth was 27% and 36% greater for NT systems than for reduced and conventional tillage systems, respectively. Similarly, the geometric mean diameter (GMD) of aggregates was significantly higher under NT and NTW. However, water infiltration and field-saturated hydraulic conductivity (K fs ) did not differ significantly among tillage systems. The greatest soybean yield was obtained from CP and DP, producing 10% higher yield than NTW. Overall, 37 years of no-tillage, with or without simplified cover cropping did not result in a consistent improvement in soybean yield and soil physical properties with the exception of having improved soil aggregation.

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“…The effects of tillage practices on soil structure and structure‐related properties like pore size distribution and crop productivity are being discussed for a long time (Munkholm, Heck, & Deen, ; Nouri, Lee, Yin, Tyler, & Saxton, ). The impacts of tillage systems on soil quality have generally been assessed through measurements of bulk density (Sharma et al., ), porosity (Pires et al., ), penetration resistance (Moraes, Debiasi, Carlesso, Franchini, & Silva, ), hydraulic properties (Strudley, Green, & Ascough, ) and aggregate stability (Çelik et al., ) because of their high sensitivity to disturbance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating the long‐term effects of tillage systems on soil structural quality using visual assessment and classical methods

Çeli̇k

Günal

Acar

et al. 2019

Soil Use and Management

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Current agricultural practices and their impacts on the sustainability of crop production can be evaluated by simple and reliable soil structure assessment tools. The study was conducted to determine the effects of long‐term (2006–2017) tillage systems on structural quality of a clayey soil using the visual evaluation of soil structure (VESS) and classical field and laboratory measurements. A field experiment with seven tillage systems, representing both traditional and conservation tillage methods, was conducted on a clayey soil in the Cukurova region, Turkey. Soil samples from 0–10, 10–20 and 20–25 cm depths were analysed for mean weight diameter (MWD), porosity and organic carbon. Penetration resistance (PR) was determined in each treatment plot. The VESS scores (<2) of upper 0–5 cm indicated a good structural quality for all tillage systems. The VESS scores were positively related to PR and MWD and negatively to macroporosity (MaP) and total porosity. In reduced and no‐till systems, poorer soil structures were observed in subsurface layers where firm platy and angular blocky structures were defined. Mean VESS score (3.29) in 20–25 cm depth where PR was 3.01 MPa under no‐till indicated a deterioration of soil structural quality; thus, immediate physical interventions would be needed. Lower VESS scores and PR values under strategic tillage which was created by ploughing half of no‐till plots in November 2015 indicated successful correction of compaction caused by long‐term no‐till. The results suggest that the VESS approach is sensitive and useful in distinguishing compacted layers within the topsoil.

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Thirty-four years of no-tillage and cover crops improve soil quality and increase cotton yield in Alfisols, Southeastern USA

Cited by 167 publications

References 49 publications

Winter cover crops effects on soil properties and sweet corn yield in semi‐arid irrigated systems

Winter cover crops effects on soil properties and sweet corn yield in semi‐arid irrigated systems

Soil Physical Properties and Soybean Yield as Influenced by Long-Term Tillage Systems and Cover Cropping in the Midsouth USA

Evaluating the long‐term effects of tillage systems on soil structural quality using visual assessment and classical methods

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