Effect of soil physical properties on the long-term performance of planted Scots pine in Finnish Lapland

2010 ◽  
Vol 90 (3) ◽  
pp. 451-465 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Mäkitalo ◽  
V. Alenius ◽  
J. Heiskanen ◽  
K. Mikkola
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Scots Pine ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Height Growth ◽  
Site Preparation ◽  
Preparation Methods ◽  
Finnish Lapland

Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Norway spruce (Picea abies L. Karst.) forests dominate in Finnish Lapland. This study examined the long-term effects of soil physical properties and conditions measured in intact intermediate areas, as well as site preparation, on the survival and height growth of planted pine on eight experimental sites, 25-27 yr after reforestation. On the four originally spruce-dominated sites, pine survival was the highest on sites with a high soil air-filled porosity (AFP) near saturation (at -1 kPa), a high van Genuchten parameter, and a low soil water content (SWC) in situ, and height growth was the fastest on sites with a high soil AFP in situ and a high van Genuchten parameter n, and on sites reaching a soil AFP of ca. 0.20 m3 m-3 at a high matric potential after saturation. Survival, but not mean height, was enhanced on the spruce sites by intensive site preparation methods such as ploughing instead of lighter site preparation methods. On the four originally pine-dominated sites, site preparation affected the mean height but not survival. The use of SWC as a sole criterion for sites suitable for pine reforestation was tested and found to be uncertain. Key words: Boreal forest soils, soil water content, air-filled porosity, van Genuchten function, site preparation, reforestation, Scots pine

Influence of Long-term Cropping Systems on Soil Physical Properties Related to Soil Erodibility

2003 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achmad Rachman ◽  
S. H. Anderson ◽  
C. J. Gantzer ◽  
A. L. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Erodibility

Influence of Long-term Cropping Systems on Soil Physical Properties Related to Soil Erodibility

2003 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 637-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achmad Rachman ◽  
S. H. Anderson ◽  
C. J. Gantzer ◽  
A. L. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Erodibility

scholarly journals Stabilization of soil hydraulic properties under a long term no-till system

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 1281-1292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis Alberto Lozano ◽  
Carlos Germán Soracco ◽  
Vicente S. Buda ◽  
Guillermo O. Sarli ◽  
Roberto Raúl Filgueira
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Physical Properties ◽  
Hydraulic Properties ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Water Retention Curve ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Tillage System ◽  
Crop Sequence

The area under the no-tillage system (NT) has been increasing over the last few years. Some authors indicate that stabilization of soil physical properties is reached after some years under NT while other authors debate this. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the last crop in the rotation sequence (1st year: maize, 2nd year: soybean, 3rd year: wheat/soybean) on soil pore configuration and hydraulic properties in two different soils (site 1: loam, site 2: sandy loam) from the Argentinean Pampas region under long-term NT treatments in order to determine if stabilization of soil physical properties is reached apart from a specific time in the crop sequence. In addition, we compared two procedures for evaluating water-conducting macroporosities, and evaluated the efficiency of the pedotransfer function ROSETTA in estimating the parameters of the van Genuchten-Mualem (VGM) model in these soils. Soil pore configuration and hydraulic properties were not stable and changed according to the crop sequence and the last crop grown in both sites. For both sites, saturated hydraulic conductivity, K0, water-conducting macroporosity, εma, and flow-weighted mean pore radius, R0ma, increased from the 1st to the 2nd year of the crop sequence, and this was attributed to the creation of water-conducting macropores by the maize roots. The VGM model adequately described the water retention curve (WRC) for these soils, but not the hydraulic conductivity (K) vs tension (h) curve. The ROSETTA function failed in the estimation of these parameters. In summary, mean values of K0 ranged from 0.74 to 3.88 cm h-1. In studies on NT effects on soil physical properties, the crop effect must be considered.

scholarly journals Characterizing Soil Physical Properties for Soil Moisture Monitoring with the North Carolina Environment and Climate Observing Network

2012 ◽  
Vol 29 (7) ◽  
pp. 933-943 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weinan Pan ◽  
R. P. Boyles ◽  
J. G. White ◽  
J. L. Heitman
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Physical Properties ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
The North ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Soil Moisture Monitoring

Abstract Soil moisture has important implications for meteorology, climatology, hydrology, and agriculture. This has led to growing interest in development of in situ soil moisture monitoring networks. Measurement interpretation is severely limited without soil property data. In North Carolina, soil moisture has been monitored since 1999 as a routine parameter in the statewide Environment and Climate Observing Network (ECONet), but with little soils information available for ECONet sites. The objective of this paper is to provide soils data for ECONet development. The authors studied soil physical properties at 27 ECONet sites and generated a database with 13 soil physical parameters, including sand, silt, and clay contents; bulk density; total porosity; saturated hydraulic conductivity; air-dried water content; and water retention at six pressures. Soil properties were highly variable among individual ECONet sites [coefficients of variation (CVs) ranging from 12% to 80%]. This wide range of properties suggests very different behavior among sites with respect to soil moisture. A principal component analysis indicated parameter groupings associated primarily with soil texture, bulk density, and air-dried water content accounted for 80% of the total variance in the dataset. These results suggested that a few specific soil properties could be measured to provide an understanding of differences in sites with respect to major soil properties. The authors also illustrate how the measured soil properties have been used to develop new soil moisture products and data screening for the North Carolina ECONet. The methods, analysis, and results presented here have applications to North Carolina and for other regions with heterogeneous soils where soil moisture monitoring is valuable.

Long-term effect of biochar on soil physical properties of agricultural soils with different textures

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Zanutel ◽  
Sarah Garré ◽  
Charles Bielders
Keyword(s):  
Physical Properties ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Water Retention ◽  
Particle Density ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Soil Physical Properties ◽  
Term Effect ◽  
Silt Loam ◽  
Long Term Effect

<p>In the context of global soil degradation, biochar is being promoted as a potential solution to improve soil quality, besides its carbon sequestration potential. Burying biochar in soils is known to effect soil physical quality in the short-term (<5 years), and the intensity of these effects depends on soil texture. However, the long-term effects of biochar remain largely unknown yet and are important to quantify given biochar’s persistency in soils. The objective of this study was therefore to assess the long-term effect of biochar on soil physical properties as a function of soil texture and biochar concentration.  For this purpose, soil physical properties (particle density, bulk density, porosity, water retention and hydraulic conductivity curves) were measured in the topsoil of three fields with former kiln sites containing charcoal more than 150 years old in Wallonia (southern Belgium).  The fields had a silt loam, loam and sandy loam texture.  Samples were collected along 3 transects in each field, from the center of the kiln sites outwards. </p><p>Particle density and bulk density slightly decreased as a function of charcoal content. Because particle density and bulk density were affected to a similar extent by charcoal content, total porosity was not affected by the presence of century-old charcoal. Regarding the soil water retention curve, charcoal affected mostly water content in the mesopore range. This effect was strongest for the sandy loam. On the other hand, the presence of century-old charcoal increased significantly the hydraulic conductivity at pF between 1.5 and 2 for the silt loam, while no effect of charcoal was observed for the loamy soil.  The study highlights a limited effect of century-old charcoal on the pore size distribution (at constant porosity) and on the resulting soil physical properties for the range of soils and charcoal concentrations investigated here.  Further research may be needed to confirm the observed trends over a wider range of soil types. </p>

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