Long-Term Experiments for Sustainable Nutrient Management

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Innovative Cropping Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 April 2021) | Viewed by 5386

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory
Interests: environment; water quality; environmental impact assessment; environmental analysis; soil fertility; soil analysis; soil; fertilizers; environmental science; water chemistry
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Guest Editor
United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, National Soil Dynamics Laboratory
Interests: animal waste and industrial byproducts; soil nutrient management; soil fertility water quality; greenhouse gas emissions

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Agricultural sustainability relies on adopting management options that are sustainable and environmentally sound. Thus, assessments of how different agricultural management practices influence soil fertility, soil health, water quality, and air quality are needed. Long-term studies can be a resource for evaluating the sustainability of these agricultural management systems. While there are numerous studies available in the literature about long-term studies, there is a need for studies evaluating agricultural management practices from a systems approach. For example, it is well known that the implementation of conservation practices, including tillage and cover crops, reduces soil erosion and improves nutrient cycling. Still, there is limited research published on how the long-term interactions of these management practices affect nutrient cycling and water quality. In this Special Issue, we are looking for studies to address the interactions of tillage, soil amendments (gypsum, manure, etc.), cover crops, and fertilization practices on nutrient management and cycling, soil health, and water quality. In this Special Issue, long-term research is considered for experiments with the same management practices for at least five years under a mono-cropping system (including permanent pasture and hayfields) or for 10 years with crop rotations.

Dr. Javier Gonzalez
Dr. Dexter B Watts
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • long-term research
  • management practices
  • nutrient management and cycling
  • soil health
  • water quality

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1082 KiB  
Article
Soil Respiration under 90 Year-Old Rye Monoculture and Crop Rotation in the Climate Conditions of Central Poland
by Tomasz Sosulski, Magdalena Szymańska, Ewa Szara and Piotr Sulewski
Agronomy 2021, 11(1), 21; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11010021 - 24 Dec 2020
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2696
Abstract
This study, aimed at assessing the rate of soil respiration under different crop rotation and fertilization conditions, was carried out on long-term (since 1923) experimental plots with rye monoculture and 5-crop rotation in Skierniewice (Central Poland). The treatments included mineral-organic (CaNPK+M) and organic [...] Read more.
This study, aimed at assessing the rate of soil respiration under different crop rotation and fertilization conditions, was carried out on long-term (since 1923) experimental plots with rye monoculture and 5-crop rotation in Skierniewice (Central Poland). The treatments included mineral-organic (CaNPK+M) and organic (Ca+M) fertilization (where M is farmyard manure). Soil respiration was measured in situ by means of infrared spectroscopy using a portable FTIR spectrometer Alpha. CO2 fluxes from CaNPK+M-treated soils under cereals cultivated in monoculture and crop rotations were not statically different. Respiration of soil under lupine cultivated in crop rotation was higher than under cereals. N-fertilization and its succeeding effect increased soil respiration, and significantly altered its distribution over the growing season. Our results indicate that in the climatic conditions of Central Europe, respiration of sandy soils is more dependent on the crop species and fertilization than on the crop rotation system. Omission of mineral fertilization significantly decreases soil respiration. The CO2 fluxes were positively correlated with soil temperature, air temperature, and soil content of NO3 and NH4+. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Long-Term Experiments for Sustainable Nutrient Management)
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17 pages, 1719 KiB  
Article
Agricultural Nitrogen Budget for a Long-Term Row Crop Production System in the Midwest USA
by Sanku Dattamudi, Prasanta K. Kalita, Saoli Chanda, A.S. Alquwaizany and B. S.Sidhu
Agronomy 2020, 10(11), 1622; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10111622 - 22 Oct 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2206
Abstract
In the Midwestern United States, subsurface drainage (commonly known as tile drains) systems have been extensively used for sustaining agricultural production. However, the tile drains have raised concerns of facilitating the transport of agricultural chemicals from the fields to receiving waters. Data from [...] Read more.
In the Midwestern United States, subsurface drainage (commonly known as tile drains) systems have been extensively used for sustaining agricultural production. However, the tile drains have raised concerns of facilitating the transport of agricultural chemicals from the fields to receiving waters. Data from a long-term field experiment in the Little Vermilion River (LVR) watershed of east-central Illinois, USA, shows that the tile drain systems have contributed to increased nitrate N (NO3-N) to the receiving water body, Georgetown Lake Reservoir, over time. We conducted more than 10 years of research on fate and transport of NO3-N in tile drain water, surface runoff and soil N. Corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) were planted in rotation for this watershed. We evaluated N balance (inputs and outputs) and transfer (runoff and leaching) components from three sites with both surface and subsurface flow stations within this watershed, and N budgets for individual sites were developed. Nitrogen fertilizer application (average 192 kg ha−1 y−1) and soil N mineralization (average 88 kg ha−1 y−1) were the major N inputs for corn and soybean, respectively in this watershed. Plant N uptake was the major N output for both crops during this entire study period. Annual N uptake for the LVR watershed ranged from +39 to +148 (average +93) kg ha−1 and −63 to +5 (average −32) kg ha−1, respectively, for corn and soybeans. This data indicates that most of the soil mineralized N was used during soybean production years, while corn production years added extra N in the soil. Surface runoff from the watershed was negligible, however, subsurface leaching through tile drains removed about 18% of the total rainfall. Average NO3-N concentrations of leaching water at sites A (15 mg L−1) and B (16.5 mg L−1) exceeded maximum contaminant level (MCL; 10 mg L−1) throughout the experiment. However, NO3-N concentrations from site E (6.9 mg L−1) never exceeded MCL possibly because 15–22% lower N was received at this site. We estimated that the average corn grain yield would need to be 28% higher to remove the additional N from this watershed. Our study suggests that N application schemes of the LVR watershed need to be reevaluated for better N management, optimum crop production, and overall environmental sustainability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Long-Term Experiments for Sustainable Nutrient Management)
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