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Restoration of degraded lands by adoption of recommended conservation management practices can rehabilitate watersheds and lead to improving soil and water quality. The objective was to evaluate the effects of grass buffers (GBs), biomass crops (BCs), grass waterways (GWWs), agroforestry buffers (ABs), landscape positions, and distance from tree base for AB treatment on soil quality compared with row crop (RC) (corn [Zea mays L.]-soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotation) on claypan soils. Soil samples were taken from 10-cm-depth increments from the soil surface to 30 cm for GB, BC, GWW, and RC with three replicates. Soil samples were collected from summit, backslope, and footslope landscape positions. Samples were taken at 50-and 150-cm distances from the tree base. b-Glucosidase, b-glucosaminidase, dehydrogenase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolase (FDA), soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), active carbon (AC), and water-stable aggregates (WSA) were measured. Results showed that b-glucosidase, b-glucosaminidase, dehydrogenase, FDA, AC, WSA, and TN values were significantly greater (P < 0.01) for the GB, BC, GWW, and AB treatments than for the RC treatment. The first depth (0-10 cm) revealed the highest values for all soil quality parameters relative to second and third depths. The footslope landscape had the highest parameter values compared with summit and backslope positions. The 50-cm distance of AB treatment had higher values than the 150-cm distance for all measured parameters. Results showed that perennial vegetation practices enhanced soil quality by improving soil microbial activity and SOC.

Cover crops (CC) improve soil quality, including soil microbial enzymatic activities and soil chemical parameters. Scientific studies conducted in research centers have shown positive effects of CC on soil enzymatic activities; however, studies conducted in farmer fields are lacking in the literature. The objective of this study was to quantify CC effects on soil microbial enzymatic activities (β-glucosidase, β-glucosaminidase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolase, and dehydrogenase) under a corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) rotation. The study was conducted in 2016 and 2018 in Chariton County, Missouri, where CC were first established in 2012. All tested soil enzyme levels were significantly different between 2016 and 2018, irrespective of CC and no cover crop (NCC) treatments. In CC treatment, β-glucosaminidase activity was significantly greater at 0–10 cm depth in 2016 and at 10–20 and 20–30 cm in 2018. In contrast, dehydrogenase activity was significantly greater in NCC in 2018. Soil pH and organic matter (OM) content were found to be significantly greater in CC. Overall, CC have mixed effects on soil enzyme activities and positive effects on soil OM compared to NCC. This study highlights the short-term influence of CC and illustrates the high spatial and temporal variability of soil enzymes under farmer-managed fields.

Sustainable vegetative management plays a significant role in improving soil quality in degraded agricultural landscapes by enhancing soil microbial biomass. This study investigated the effects of grass buffers (GBs), biomass crops (BCs), grass waterways (GWWs), and agroforestry buffers (ABs) on soil microbial biomass and soil organic C (SOC) compared with continuous corn (Zea mays L.)-soybean [Glycine max (L.)Merr.] rotation (row crop [RC]) on claypan soils. The RC, AB, GB, GWW, and BC treatments were established in 10-cm depth at summit, backslope, and footslope landscape positions. Within AB treatment, soils were collected from the 50-cm and 150-cm tree distance. Total microbial biomass and biomass of gram-positive bacteria, gram-negative bacteria, actinomycetes, rhizobia, fungi, arbuscular mycorrhizae, saprophytes, and protozoa were determined by phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis. Results showed that soil microbial biomass and SOC across all microbial groups were significantly higher (P < .01) under perennial vegetation treatments compared with RC. The footslope position exhibited the highest total microbial biomass compared with the summit and backslope positions. The sampling distance of 50 cm from the tree base demonstrated 16% greater total microbial biomass and 15% higher SOC compared with 150 cm. These findings highlight the influence of landscape on soil biological properties and show that perennial vegetation systems have the potential to increase soil microbial biomass and enhance agricultural sustainability in degraded RC systems.Abbreviations: AB, agroforestry buffer; AC, active carbon; AB150, agroforestry buffer at 150 cm distance; AB50, agroforestry buffer at 50 cm

Crop production is reduced by insufficient and/or excess soil water, which can significantly decrease plant growth and development. Therefore, conservation management practices such as cover crops (CCs) are used to optimize soil water dynamics, since CCs can conserve soil water. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of CCs on soil water dynamics on a corn (Zea mays L.)-soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotation at three soil depths over 3 yr. The study was conducted at the Chariton County Cover Crop Soil Health Research and Demonstration Farm (CCSH) in Missouri. Initial CC establishment occurred in 2012. Volumetric soil water content (VWC) was monitored at 15-min intervals with calibrated Waterscout SM100 soil moisture sensors (Spectrum Technologies) at three depths (10, 20, and 30 cm) in 2016, 2017, and 2018. Cover crop soils maintained numerically higher VWC values compared with no CC (NCC) at both 10-and 20-cm depths throughout the study period where the differences were significant in some weeks. The subsurface soil water recharge was greater in CC soils at both 10-and 20-cm depths compared with NCC in March 2017. The results imply that CC soils have maintained higher VWC levels during vegetative period of the CC growth where the differences were significant in some weeks compared with NCC at all three soil depths. These findings can be used to promote CC adoption for better soil water storage and develop CC management plans for corn-soybean rotations on claypan soils.

Perennial biofuel and cover crops systems are important for enhancing soil health and can provide numerous soil, agricultural, and environmental benefits. The study objective was to investigate the effects of cover crops and biofuel crops on soil hydraulic properties relative to traditional management for claypan soils. The study site included selected management practices: cover crop (CC) and no cover crop (NC) with corn/soybean rotation, switchgrass (SW), and miscanthus (MI). The CC mixture consisted of cereal rye, hairy vetch, and Austrian winter pea. The research site was located at Bradford Research Center in Missouri, USA, and was implemented on a Mexico silt loam. Intact soil cores (76‐mm diam. by 76‐mm long) were taken from the 0–10, 10–20, 20–30, and 30–40 cm depths with three plot replicates and two sub‐samples per plot replicate per depth. Soil hydraulic properties evaluated for each sample included: saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat), water retention, bulk density, and pore size distributions. Results showed with the test of Duncan's least significant differences that treatments of MI (1.18 Mg m−3) and SW (1.21 Mg m−3) had lower values of bulk density averaging across soil depth than CC (1.27 Mg m−3) and NC (1.31 Mg m−3). Management systems significantly increased Ksat with the biofuel treatments at 0–10 cm compared to NC system. The MI management showed a significant increase in macroporosity and fine mesoporosity as compared to other management systems. Slight changes have occurred in the measured soil physical properties for CC system compared to NC plots. Overall, increasing soil organic matter from more plant roots from long‐term biofuel cropping systems can improve soil water storage and crop productivity.

Soil water use and water storage vary by vegetative management practices, and these practices affect land productivity and hydrologic processes. This study investigated the effects of agroforestry buffers (AB), grass buffers (GB), and biofuel crops (BC), relative to row crops (RC) on soil water use for a claypan soil in northern Missouri, USA. The experiment located at the Greenley Memorial Research Center included RC, AB, GB, and BC established in 1991, 1997, 1997, and 2012, respectively. Soil water reflectometer sensors installed at 5‐, 10‐, 20‐, and 40‐cm depths monitored soil water from April to November in 2017 and 2018. Results showed significant differences in weekly volumetric water content (VWC) among treatments for all four soil depths in 2017 and 2018. Treatments of AB, GB, and BC had lower VWC (16, 37, and 18% on 9 June), (31, 35, and 20% on 18 August), and (43, 49, and 35% on 29 September) in 2017 and (46, 70, and 19% on 24 August) and (31, 34, and 17% on 5 October) in 2018, respectively, in the pre‐recharge periods for the 5‐cm depth compared with the RC. In the post‐recharge period, equal or occasionally slightly higher soil water occurred in the buffer and biofuel treatments compared to the RC. During recharge, larger increases in soil water due to better infiltration were observed in the perennial vegetative practices relative to RC. The results showed that these practices could significantly influence soil water use and storage compared to RC management, especially for eroded claypan landscapes.