The main objective of the present study was to compare fertilizer types in their ability to increase the soil organic matter content without increasing potential P leaching losses. Differences in soil organic carbon content, crop yield, P-CaCl2, P-AL, P export by the crop and P leaching from soil supplied with three compost types, cattle slurry, farmyard manure or mineral fertilizers were compa...

Despite improvements in the use of soil conservation practices, crop rotation and nutrient management programs, significant concern still exists regarding soil erosion and nutrient losses in runoff from row crop production. In the US, states are required to implement water quality standards based on USEPA guidelines or other scientifically defensible methods (Ice and Binkley, 2003). Agroforestr...

Previous reports of crop losses to plant-parasitic nematodes have relied on published results of survey data based on certain commodities, including tobacco, peanuts, cotton, and soybean. Reports on crop-loss assessment by land-grant universities and many commodity groups generally are no longer available, with the exception of the University of Georgia, the Beltwide Cotton Conference, and sele...

In this study, a set of nitrogen reduction strategies were modeled to evaluate the feasibility of improving water quality to meet total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) in two agricultural watersheds. For this purpose, a spatial-process model was calibrated and used to predict monthly nitrate losses (1994-96) from Sand and Bevens Creek watersheds located in south-central Minnesota. Statistical compa...

Nitrogen (N) requirements of rice crop are met from both the soil and fertilizers. Because of acute N deficiency in most rice soils, fertilizer N must be applied to meet the crop demand. N fertilizer applied to rice crops is partially lost through different mechanisms, including ammonia volatilization, denitrification, and leaching. These losses may cause environmental problems such as pollutin...

A survey of 715 Holstein dairy farms in Pennsylvania was used to construct demographics for the average Holstein dairy farm. The average Holstein dairy farm was composed of 69 lactating cows; 11 nonlactating, pregnant cows; 44 heifers; and 18 calves. Milk production averaged 27.3 kg (60.0 lb). Crop area averaged 73.6 ha. Milk production, crop area and type, average county yields, and herd anima...

Nitrate losses from subsurface tile drained row cropland in the Upper Midwest U.S. contribute to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. Strategies are needed to reduce nitrate losses to the Mississippi River. This paper evaluates the effect of fertilizer rate and timing on nitrate losses in two (East and West) commercial row crop fields located in south-central Minnesota. The Agricultural Drainage and ...

A field experiment was conducted during 2006-07 and 2007-08 at Ludhiana to study the effect of different agronomic practices on growth, grain yield, malt yield and losses of malt barley (Hordeum vulgare L.).The study revealed that plant height, dry matter accumulation, grain and straw yield were statistically at par with different method of sowing during both the years. Similar trend was also o...

Essentially all plant species exhibit heritable genetic variation for resistance to a variety of plant diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, oomycetes or viruses. Disease losses in crop monocultures are already significant, and would be greater but for applications of disease-controlling agrichemicals. For sustainable intensification of crop production, we argue that disease control should as far...