Changes in soil microbiotic properties such as microbial biomass and community structure in response to alternative management systems are driven by microbial substrate quality and substrate utilization. We evaluated irrigated crop and forage production in two separate four-year experiments for differences in microbial substrate quality, microbial biomass and community structure, and microbial ...

crop rotation is one of the essential practices in sustainable agricultural systems, be-cause of its effects on soil fertility and other benefits including a reduction in weed compe-tition. a field experiment was conducted at chaparsar rice research station, tonekabon, iran, from 2002 to 2003 to assess the influence of crop rotation, time of planting, and till-age depth on rice (oryza sativa l....

Winter cover crops have the potential to increase soil organic C in the corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotation in the upper Midwest. Management effects on soil C, however, are often difficult to measure because of the spatial variation of soil C across the landscape. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of oat (Avena sativa L.), rye (Secale cereale L.), ...

abstract this study was conducted under cold climate condition in khorasan during 2006-2008 growing seasons to evaluation of soil fertility in wheat-based double cropping systems under different rate of nitrogen and return of crop residues. a randomized complete block design with split-split plot arrangement and three replicates was used. main plots were five crop rotations namely: wheat-wheat,...

Organic farmers across Saskatchewan face soil phosphorus (P) shortages. Due to the restriction on inputs in organic systems, farmers rely on crop rotation and naturally-occurring arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) for plant P supply. Crop rotation is important for disease, pest, and weed management. Crops that are not colonized by AMF (non-mycorrhizal) can decrease colonization of a following c...

This study was aimed at evaluating the effect of crop rotation and various tillage systems onthe chemical and biological properties of soil in the years 2013-2015. The first order factorincluded cropping systems: a) crop rotation (pea – winter wheat – spring wheat) and b)monoculture of winter wheat, whereas the second order factor were tillage systems:1) conventional (CT), 2) reduced (RT) and 3...

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is the most often reported attribute and is chosen as the most important indicator of soil quality and agricultural sustainability. In this review, we summarized how cultivation, crop rotation, residue and tillage management, fertilization and monoculture affect soil quality, soil organic matter (SOM) and carbon transformation. The results confirm that SOM is not only ...

Our increasing dependence on a small number of agricultural crops, such as corn, is leading to reductions in agricultural biodiversity. Reductions in the number of crops in rotation or the replacement of rotations by monocultures are responsible for this loss of biodiversity. The belowground implications of simplifying agricultural plant communities remain unresolved; however, agroecosystem sus...

This study illustrated how crop residue-derived carbon interacts with non-residue carbon (e.g., native soil carbon) in agroecosystems and how carbon is allocated to soil organisms and respiration under different tillage regimes. The carbon dynamics in crop residue, soil microorganisms, nematodes and respiration were monitored using C-labeled corn residue. In addition, the carbon budget was esti...

Improving nitrogen (N) use efficiency in crop production is important for obvious economic and environmental reasons. Nitrogen fertilization of corn usually provides the greatest return on investment of any crop input; therefore, farmers and their agricultural advisors must insure adequate N is available for the crop to maximize yields and economic returns. Soil contains N in organic (soil orga...