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Field Trial Assessment of Biological, Chemical, and Physical Responses of Soil to Tillage Intensity, Fertilization, and Grazing

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Abstract

Soil microbial populations can fluctuate in response to environmental changes and, therefore, are often used as biological indicators of soil quality. Soil chemical and physical parameters can also be used as indicators because they can vary in response to different management strategies. A long-term field trial was conducted to study the effects of different tillage systems (NT: no tillage, DH: disc harrow, and MP: moldboard plough), P fertilization (diammonium phosphate), and cattle grazing (in terms of crop residue consumption) in maize (Zea mays L.), sunflower (Heliantus annuus L.), and soybean (Glycine max L.) on soil biological, chemical, and physical parameters. The field trial was conducted for four crop years (2000/2001, 2001/2002, 2002/2003, and 2003/2004). Soil populations of Actinomycetes, Trichoderma spp., and Gliocladium spp. were 49% higher under conservation tillage systems, in soil amended with diammonium phosphate (DAP) and not previously grazed. Management practices also influenced soil chemical parameters, especially organic matter content and total N, which were 10% and 55% higher under NT than under MP. Aggregate stability was 61% higher in NT than in MP, 15% higher in P-fertilized soil, and also 9% higher in not grazed strips, bulk density being 12% lower in NT systems compared with MP. DAP application and the absence of grazing also reduced bulk density (3%). Using conservation tillage systems, fertilizing crops with DAP, and avoiding grazing contribute to soil health preservation and enhanced crop production.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica, through FONCYT PID 279. The authors are grateful to Fundación Maní Argentino for the financial help given to this work. We would like to thank agronomic engineer Filormo Sayago, researcher and professor of the National University of Río Cuarto (Córdoba, Argentina), in memoriam of his work career and kind disposition to provide all the information necessary for this investigation. We are also grateful to the members of the Research Program “Development of Alternative Technologies for a Sustainable Agricultural and Livestock Production in the West of Río Cuarto (SeCyT-UNRC)”, for their assistance. Constructive comments on an earlier draft of this article by two anonymous reviewers are gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Fitopatología y Fisiología Vegetal, Camino 60 Cuadras km. 5, 5, Córdoba, 5119, Argentina

    Silvina Vargas Gil & Guillermo March

  2. Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto, Ruta 36 km 601, Río Cuarto, Córdoba, 5800, Argentina

    Analia Becker, Claudio Oddino, Mónica Zuza & Adriana Marinelli

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  1. Silvina Vargas Gil
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  2. Analia Becker
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  3. Claudio Oddino
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  4. Mónica Zuza
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  6. Guillermo March
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Correspondence to Silvina Vargas Gil.

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Vargas Gil, S., Becker, A., Oddino, C. et al. Field Trial Assessment of Biological, Chemical, and Physical Responses of Soil to Tillage Intensity, Fertilization, and Grazing. Environmental Management 44, 378–386 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-009-9319-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-009-9319-3

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