Dairy Manure and Synthetic Fertilizer: A Meta‐Analysis of Crop Production and Environmental Quality

As pressure on the dairy industry to reduce its environmental impact increases, efficient recycling of manure nutrients through local cropping systems becomes crucial. The aim of this study was to calculate annual nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) budgets in six counties located in the Magic Valley, Idaho and estimate what distance manure would need to be transported to be in balance with crop nutrient demand given current dairy cattle populations and cropping systems. Our analysis suggests that crop N needs will not be met solely by manure, and synthetic fertilizer will need to be applied. However, to balance P with crop production, manure would need to be transported a minimum of 12.9 km from dairies and would have to replace synthetic fertilizer P on 91% of regional cropland. Education of producers and technical specialists would be necessary to improve the management of manure use in regional cropping systems. Technical solutions such as alternative diets for cattle and nutrient capture from manure streams will also likely be necessary to bring regional P into balance to protect environmental quality and improve the sustainability of the regional dairy industry.

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Plant uptake of nitrogen adsorbed to biochars made from dairy manure

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-94337-8 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Leilah Krounbi ◽

Akio Enders ◽

John Gaunt ◽

Margaret Ball ◽

Johannes Lehmann

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Crop Production ◽

Liquid Fraction ◽

N Uptake ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Dairy Manure ◽

Production Costs ◽

Available N ◽

Dairy Waste ◽

Pre Treatment

AbstractThe conversion of dairy waste with high moisture contents to dry fertilizers may reduce environmental degradation while lowering crop production costs. We converted the solid portion of screw-pressed dairy manure into a sorbent for volatile ammonia (NH3) in the liquid fraction using pyrolysis and pre-treatment with carbon dioxide (CO2). The extractable N in manure biochar exposed to NH3 following CO2 pre-treatment reached 3.36 g N kg−1, 1260-fold greater extractable N than in untreated manure biochar. Ammonia exposure was 142-times more effective in increasing extractable N than immersing manure biochar in the liquid fraction containing dissolved ammonium. Radish and tomato grown in horticultural media with manure biochar treated with CO2 + NH3 promoted up to 35% greater plant growth (dry weight) and 36–83% greater N uptake compared to manure biochar alone. Uptake of N was similar between plants grown with wood biochar exposed to CO2 + NH3, compared to N-equivalent treatments. The available N in dairy waste in New York (NY) state, if pyrolyzed and treated with NH3 + CO2, is equivalent to 11,732–42,232 Mg N year−1, valued at 6–21.5 million USD year−1. Separated dairy manure treated with CO2 + NH3 can offset 23–82% of N fertilizer needs of NY State, while stabilizing both the solid and liquid fraction of manure for reduced environmental pollution.

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Technical efficiency in crop production across agro-ecological zones in Ethiopia: A meta-analysis of frontier studies

Outlook on Agriculture ◽

10.1177/0030727019830416 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 48 (1) ◽

pp. 5-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Abebayehu G Geffersa ◽

Frank W Agbola ◽

Amir Mahmood

Keyword(s):

Technical Efficiency ◽

Crop Production ◽

Functional Form ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Model Output ◽

Ecological Zones ◽

Meta Regression ◽

Meta Regression Analysis ◽

Frontier Studies ◽

Agro Ecological Zones

This article investigates whether study-specific attributes account for systematic variations in reported technical efficiency (TE) scores in crop production. We conducted a meta-regression analysis using mean TE (MTE) estimates from primary frontier studies of Ethiopian crop sub-sector over the period 1991–2015. The estimated MTE of 66% indicates a capacity to increase efficiency in crop production. Results from a fractional outcome regression model revealed that reported efficiency estimates vary substantially across studies and agro-ecologies. We found that reported efficiency estimates are influenced by the frontier methodology used, the functional form assumed, assumptions about technology representation, the estimated dimension of the model, output aggregation and the publication outlet. We show that reported efficiency estimates are sensitive to variations in agro-ecologies. We argue for the need to consider differences in agro-ecologies when estimating TE because failure to account for this may bias efficiency estimates.

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Tillage Intensity Effects on Soil Structure Indicators—A US Meta-Analysis

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12052071 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 2071 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Márcio R. Nunes ◽

Douglas L. Karlen ◽

Thomas B. Moorman

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Soil Structure ◽

Management Practices ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Soil Health ◽

Health Assessment ◽

Aggregate Stability ◽

Soil Penetration Resistance ◽

Wet Aggregate Stability

Tillage intensity affects soil structure in many ways but the magnitude and type (+/−) of change depends on site-specific (e.g., soil type) and experimental details (crop rotation, study length, sampling depth, etc.). This meta-analysis examines published effects of chisel plowing (CP), no-tillage (NT) and perennial cropping systems (PER) relative to moldboard plowing (MP) on three soil structure indicators: wet aggregate stability (AS), bulk density (BD) and soil penetration resistance (PR). The data represents four depth increments (from 0 to >40-cm) in 295 studies from throughout the continental U.S. Overall, converting from MP to CP did not affect those soil structure indicators but reducing tillage intensity from MP to NT increased AS in the surface (<15-cm) and slightly decreased BD and PR below 25-cm. The largest positive effect of NT on AS was observed within Inceptisols and Entisols after a minimum of three years. Compared to MP, NT had a minimal effect on soil compaction indicators (BD and PR) but as expected, converting from MP to PER systems improved soil structure at all soil depths (0 to >40-cm). Among those three soil structure indicators, AS was the most sensitive to management practices; thus, it should be used as a physical indicator for overall soil health assessment. In addition, based on this national meta-analysis, we conclude that reducing tillage intensity improves soil structure, thus offering producers assurance those practices are feasible for crop production and that they will also help sustain soil resources.

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Benefits and trade‐offs of replacing synthetic fertilizers by animal manures in crop production in China: A meta‐analysis

Global Change Biology ◽

10.1111/gcb.14826 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 888-900 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Xiaoying Zhang ◽

Qunchao Fang ◽

Tao Zhang ◽

Wenqi Ma ◽

Gerard L. Velthof ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Animal Manures ◽

Trade Offs ◽

Synthetic Fertilizers

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Implications of leading crop production practices on environmental quality and human health

Journal of Environmental Management ◽

10.1016/j.jenvman.2014.11.024 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 151 ◽

pp. 267-279 ◽

Cited By ~ 41

Author(s):

Theophilus K. Udeigwe ◽

Jasper M. Teboh ◽

Peter N. Eze ◽

M. Hashem Stietiya ◽

Vipan Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Human Health ◽

Environmental Quality ◽

Crop Production ◽

Production Practices

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Abundance of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Bacteriophage following Soil Fertilization with Dairy Manure or Municipal Biosolids, and Evidence for Potential Transduction

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.02363-15 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 81 (22) ◽

pp. 7905-7913 ◽

Cited By ~ 49

Author(s):

Joseph Ross ◽

Edward Topp

Keyword(s):

Antibiotic Resistance ◽

Resistance Genes ◽

Horizontal Transfer ◽

Crop Production ◽

Agricultural Soil ◽

Antibiotic Resistance Genes ◽

Dairy Manure ◽

Soil Microbiome ◽

Resistant Bacteria ◽

Municipal Biosolids

ABSTRACTAnimal manures and municipal biosolids recycled onto crop production land carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can influence the antibiotic resistome of agricultural soils, but little is known about the contribution of bacteriophage to the dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in this context. In this work, we quantified a set of ARGs in the bacterial and bacteriophage fractions of agricultural soil by quantitative PCR. All tested ARGs were present in both the bacterial and phage fractions. We demonstrate that fertilization of soil with dairy manure or human biosolids increases ARG abundance in the bacterial fraction but not the bacteriophage fraction and further show that pretreatment of dairy manure can impact ARG abundance in the bacterial fraction. Finally, we show that purified bacteriophage can confer increased antibiotic resistance to soil bacteria when combined with selective pressure. The results indicate that soilborne bacteriophage represents a substantial reservoir of antibiotic resistance and that bacteriophage could play a significant role in the horizontal transfer of resistance genes in the context of an agricultural soil microbiome. Overall, our work reinforces the advisability of composting or digesting fecal material prior to field application and suggests that application of some antibiotics at subclinical concentrations can promote bacteriophage-mediated horizontal transfer of ARGs in agricultural soil microbiomes.

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Environmental quality and evolutionary potential: lessons from wild populations

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2005.3117 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 272 (1571) ◽

pp. 1415-1425 ◽

Cited By ~ 320

Author(s):

Anne Charmantier ◽

Dany Garant

Keyword(s):

Environmental Quality ◽

Environmental Conditions ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Experimental Manipulation ◽

Laboratory Animals ◽

Wild Populations ◽

Evolutionary Potential ◽

Morphometric Traits ◽

Major Step ◽

In The Wild

An essential requirement to determine a population's potential for evolutionary change is to quantify the amount of genetic variability expressed for traits under selection. Early investigations in laboratory conditions showed that the magnitude of the genetic and environmental components of phenotypic variation can change with environmental conditions. However, there is no consensus as to how the expression of genetic variation is sensitive to different environmental conditions. Recently, the study of quantitative genetics in the wild has been revitalized by new pedigree analyses based on restricted maximum likelihood, resulting in a number of studies investigating these questions in wild populations. Experimental manipulation of environmental quality in the wild, as well as the use of naturally occurring favourable or stressful environments, has broadened the treatment of different taxa and traits. Here, we conduct a meta-analysis on recent studies comparing heritability in favourable versus unfavourable conditions in non-domestic and non-laboratory animals. The results provide evidence for increased heritability in more favourable conditions, significantly so for morphometric traits but not for traits more closely related to fitness. We discuss how these results are explained by underlying changes in variance components, and how they represent a major step in our understanding of evolutionary processes in wild populations. We also show how these trends contrast with the prevailing view resulting mainly from laboratory experiments on Drosophila . Finally, we underline the importance of taking into account the environmental variation in models predicting quantitative trait evolution.

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A meta-analysis of single visit pollination effectiveness

10.1101/2021.03.12.432378 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Maureen L Page ◽

Charlie C Nicholson ◽

Ross Brennan ◽

Anna Britzman ◽

Jeremy Hemberger ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Crop Production ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Crop Plants ◽

Single Visit ◽

Pollination Effectiveness ◽

Visitation Frequency ◽

Floral Visitors ◽

The Difference ◽

Effective Pollinators ◽

Effective Pollinator

Many animals provide essential ecosystem services in the form of plant pollination. A rich literature documents considerable variation in the single visit pollination effectiveness of different plant visitors, but this literature has yet to be comprehensively synthesized. We conducted a hierarchical meta-analysis of 193 studies and extracted 1716 single visit effectiveness (SVE) comparisons for 252 plant species. We paired SVE data with visitation frequency data for 75 of these studies. Given the global dominance of honeybees in pollinator communities, we used these data to ask: 1) Do honeybees (Apis mellifera) and other floral visitors vary in their SVE?; 2) To what extent do plant and pollinator attributes predict the difference in SVE between honeybees and other visitors?; and 3) Is there a correlation between floral visitation frequency and SVE? We found that honeybees were significantly less effective than the most effective non-honeybee pollinator. Although not significantly different, honeybees also tended to be less effective than the mean community effectiveness. Honeybees were less effective as pollinators of crop plants and when compared to birds and other bees. Visitation frequency and pollination effectiveness were positively correlated, but this trend was largely driven by data from communities where honeybees were absent, suggesting that honeybees generally combine high visitation frequency and lower SVE. Our study demonstrates that non-honeybee floral visitors are highly effective pollinators of many crop and non-crop plants. While the high visitation frequency typically displayed by honeybees undoubtably makes them important pollinators, we show that honeybees are slightly less effective than the average pollinator and rarely the most effective pollinator of the plants they visit. As such, honeybees may be imperfect substitutes for the loss of wild pollinators and safeguarding global crop production will benefit from conservation of non-honeybee taxa.

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