Agricultural use of organic amendments: A historical perspective

1992 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 181-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
James F. Parr ◽  
Sharon B. Hornick
Keyword(s):  
Crop Residues ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Organic Amendments ◽  
The United States ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Land Resource ◽  
Land Grant University ◽  
Resource Base ◽  
Agricultural Use

AbstractAgricultural research conducted in the United States since establishment of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and Land-Grant University System in 1862 has shown that regular and proper additions of organic materials are very important for maintaining the tilth, fertility, and productivity of agricultural soils, protecting them from wind and water erosion, and preventing nutrient losses by runoff and leaching. Several millennia earlier, Roman agriculturists were advocating crop rotations, green manuring, composts, legumes, farmyard manures, crop residues, wood ashes, seaweed, and sewage wastes for supplying humus and nutrients to restore or enhance soil productivity. Even earlier, Asian farmers also used these practices to maintain healthy and productive soils. Today the most serious problem in U.S. agriculture and agriculture worldwide is the widespread degradation of agricultural soils through erosion and the consequential decline in productivity. In view of how much information is available on the benefits of organic recycling on agricultural lands, one wonders why we aren't doing a better job of protecting and conserving our land resource base. We discuss strategies for using organic resources more effectively to achieve a more sustainable agriculture for the future.

scholarly journals An Improved Economic Land Classification System for Spatial Linear Programming Models

1976 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-55
Author(s):  
Ronald J. Williams ◽  
Daryll E. Ray
Keyword(s):  
Linear Programming ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Technical Information ◽  
Land Resource ◽  
Resource Base ◽  
Technical Data ◽  
Enterprise Budgets

Spatial linear programming studies in agriculture require establishment of a land resource base so representative enterprise budgets can be constructed to reflect productivity and limitations of each region's agricultural land. To relate the land base to budgeting procedures requires an economic classification of agricultural soils. Ideally, this classification would group together those soils requiring similar cultural practices and having the same yield capabilities. Costs and returns can then be computed for selected agricultural enterprises within each classification. Technical information on agronomically based soil classifications is available through agricultural experiment station reports and the Soil Conservation Service. These reports give an abundance of detailed physical and chemical soil data on a county basis.Because technical data are extensive, a problem exists in translating this information into economic groupings suitable for use in constructing budgets. Economic classification of soils for a spatial study should be pragmatic but detailed enough to ensure a meaningful linkage of enterprise budgets to the soil.

scholarly journals Steering microbiomes by organic amendments towards climate-smart agricultural soils

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristof Brenzinger ◽  
Ohana Y. A. Costa ◽  
Adrian Ho ◽  
Guusje Koorneef ◽  
Bjorn Robroek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Community ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Agricultural Soils ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Organic Amendments ◽  
Mineral Fertilizer ◽  
Crop Growth ◽  
Soil Microbiome ◽  
Mineral Fertilizers

AbstractWe steered the soil microbiome via applications of organic residues (mix of cover crop residues, sewage sludge + compost, and digestate + compost) to enhance multiple ecosystem services in line with climate-smart agriculture. Our result highlights the potential to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions from agricultural soils by the application of specific organic amendments (especially digestate + compost). Unexpectedly, also the addition of mineral fertilizer in our mesocosms led to similar combined GHG emissions than one of the specific organic amendments. However, the application of organic amendments has the potential to increase soil C, which is not the case when using mineral fertilizer. While GHG emissions from cover crop residues were significantly higher compared to mineral fertilizer and the other organic amendments, crop growth was promoted. Furthermore, all organic amendments induced a shift in the diversity and abundances of key microbial groups. We show that organic amendments have the potential to not only lower GHG emissions by modifying the microbial community abundance and composition, but also favour crop growth-promoting microorganisms. This modulation of the microbial community by organic amendments bears the potential to turn soils into more climate-smart soils in comparison to the more conventional use of mineral fertilizers.

Soil amendments and water-stable aggregation of a desurfaced Dark Brown Chernozem

1995 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haiguo Sun ◽  
Francis J. Larney ◽  
Murray S. Bullock
Keyword(s):  
Crop Residue ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Organic Amendments ◽  
Aggregate Stability ◽  
Phosphate Fertilizer ◽  
Animal Manure ◽  
Water Erosion ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Animal Manures ◽  
Maximum Stability

Aggregate stability, which influences soil resistance to wind and water erosion, can be improved by the application of organic amendments. In spring 1992, a desurfaced Dark Brown Chernozem in southern Alberta was amended with six animal manures, four crop residues and two rates of phosphate fertilizer, to determine their efficacy in restoring soil productivity. Eroded check (no amendment) and topsoil check (no desurfacing) treatments were left for comparison. One year later, wet aggregate stability at five levels of aggregate pre-wetting was determined. Aggregate stabilities of crop residue-amended soils were significantly higher (P < 0.01) than those of soils treated with animal manures or fertilizer/checks at all wetness levels. Significant (P < 0.01) quadratic response and plateau relationships between aggregate stability and soil water content showed that there was a threshold moisture content for maximum stability. With the onset of rainfall, aggregates on the crop residue-amended treatments would reach maximum stability sooner than those on the fertilizer/check treatments, thereby decreasing the potential for water erosion. Stability of air-dry aggregates showed weak positive relationships with organic and inorganic C. Amendment of eroded soils with crop residues is likely more effective in limiting erosion than amendment with animal manures or chemical fertilizers, at least in the first year after incorporation. Key words: Soil erosion, aggregate stability, animal manure, crop residue

scholarly journals Implication of O2 dynamics for both N2O and CH4 emissions from soil during biological soil disinfestation

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen Wang ◽  
Xuehong Ma ◽  
Gang Wang ◽  
Guitong Li ◽  
Kun Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Wheat Straw ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Organic Amendments ◽  
Soil Disinfestation ◽  
Hypoxic Area ◽  
Hypoxic Fraction ◽  
Biological Soil Disinfestation ◽  
Straw Incorporation

AbstractSoil O2 dynamics have significant influences on greenhouse gas emissions during soil management practice. In this study, we deployed O2-specific planar optodes to visualize spatiotemporal distribution of O2 in soils treated with biological soil disinfestation (BSD). This study aimed to reveal the role of anoxia development on emissions of N2O and CH4 from soil amended with crop residues during BSD period. The incorporation of crop residues includes wheat straw only, wheat straw with biochar and early straw incorporation. The anoxia in soil developed very fast within 3 days, while the O2 in headspace decreased much slower and it became anaerobic after 5 days, which was significantly affected by straw and biochar additions. The N2O emissions were positively correlated with soil hypoxic fraction. The CH4 emissions were not significant until the anoxia dominated in both soil and headspace. The co-application of biochar with straw delayed the anoxia development and extended the hypoxic area in soil, resulting in lower emissions of N2O and CH4. Those results highlight that the soil O2 dynamic was the key variable triggering the N2O and CH4 productions. Therefore, detailed information of soil O2 availability could be highly beneficial for optimizing the strategies of organic amendments incorporation in the BSD technique.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document