Adaptive multi-paddock grazing enhances soil carbon and nitrogen stocks and stabilization through mineral association in southeastern U.S. grazing lands

Restoring Soil Fertility on Degraded Lands to Meet Food, Fuel, and Climate Security Needs via Perennialization

“…Simple rotational grazing (RG) moves animals at low intensities with 2-14 pastures per herd (Briske et al, 2011;Roche et al, 2015). Management intensive grazing (MiG) moves animals at higher intensities with 16+ pastures per herd, and adaptive multi-paddock grazing (AMP) often includes 40+ pastures per herd (Teague et al, 2015;Barton et al, 2020;Mosier et al, 2021). Low intensity systems tend to have more fixed, planned animal movements, whereas more intensive systems are more flexible and tend to move the animals based on forage growth (Undersander et al, 2002).…”

“…There are many examples of improved soil fertility from perennial pastures that are rotationally grazed. When the perennial pastures are grazed, the animals keep nutrient cycles more closed and thus conservative, and as well-inexpensivemanure generated on-site provides organic C, N, and P inputs that can improve nutrient retention and availability (Elser and Bennett, 2011;Mosier et al, 2021). In AMP grazing systems, the use of fertilizers and other inputs is minimized or even eliminated; for example, Mosier et al (2021) found that unfertilized AMP pastures had more soil N than non-AMP pastures annually fertilized.…”

“…When the perennial pastures are grazed, the animals keep nutrient cycles more closed and thus conservative, and as well-inexpensivemanure generated on-site provides organic C, N, and P inputs that can improve nutrient retention and availability (Elser and Bennett, 2011;Mosier et al, 2021). In AMP grazing systems, the use of fertilizers and other inputs is minimized or even eliminated; for example, Mosier et al (2021) found that unfertilized AMP pastures had more soil N than non-AMP pastures annually fertilized. Rotationally grazed perennial systems have also been shown to improve soil health across physical, chemical, and biological indicators (Teague et al, 2011;Byrnes et al, 2018), also resulting in improved water retention and infiltration (McCallum et al, 2004;Teague et al, 2011).…”

“…Rotationally grazed perennial systems have also been shown to improve soil health across physical, chemical, and biological indicators (Teague et al, 2011;Byrnes et al, 2018), also resulting in improved water retention and infiltration (McCallum et al, 2004;Teague et al, 2011). The recovery of degraded land using perennial pastures that are rotationally grazed has been shown in both humid regions such as the southern U.S. (Machmuller et al, 2015;Mosier et al, 2021) as well as in semi-arid rangelands in Africa and the western United States (Teague and Dowhower, 2003;Badini et al, 2007;McDonald et al, 2019).…”

Managing plant surplus carbon to generate soil organic matter in regenerative agriculture

“…Soil microbial biomass produc-tion requires substantial quantities of N in addition to labile C. Soil microbes and SOM have low C:N ratio relative to plant litter (Paul 2007), and N-rich microbial products such as amino sugars are important precursors of MAOM (Kopittke et al 2020). Available N increases microbial C use efficiency, microbial biomass, and MAOM stocks (Cotrufo et al 2013;Mosier et al 2021). Applying chemical N fertilizers can counteract the beneficial effects of heightened N availability on MAOM generation by reducing belowground C flux in plants.…”