Changes in Vertisol properties as affected by organic amendments application rates

Abstract

There is considerable global interest in using recycled organic materials because of perceived benefits to soil health and environment. However, information on the effects of organic waste products and their optimal application rates on the quality of heavy clay soils such as Vertisols is sparse. An incubation experiment was therefore conducted using five organic amendments at various rates to identify their optimal application rates, which could improve the quality of the Vertisol. Cotton gin trash, cattle manure, biosolids (dry weight basis 7.5–120 t/ha), chicken manure (dry weight basis 2.25–36 t/ha) and a liquefied vermicast (60–960 L/ha, volumetric basis) changed the soil chemical, physical and microbiological properties compared with a control where no amendments were applied, viz. higher light fraction of organic matter, nutrient content (N and P) and soil microbial activity. Higher application of chicken manure resulted in an increase in dry‐sieved mean weight diameter. Increasing rates of cattle manure increased exchangeable Na concentration and ESP. Although vermicast itself did not contribute a significant amount of N into the soil, when applied at higher rates (60–960 L/ha), its application resulted in increased concentration of NO3‐N in soil by amounts ranging from 43 to 429%. Optimal application rates for cattle manure and cotton gin trash were 30 t/ha, whereas for biosolids and chicken manure, the optimum rate was 60–18 t/ha, respectively.

Effects of pepper crop residues and inorganic fertilizers on soil properties relevant to carbon cycling and broccoli production

“…Much research has been carried out on the use of crop residues as organic amendments, including those of wheat, maize, cotton gin, as well as others (Barzegar et al ., ; Shafi et al ., ; Ghosh et al ., ). However, the use of pepper crop residues as a soil amendment has not been described in the literature although these are produced in large quantities in countries such as China, Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, Spain and USA (United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), ).…”

Pepper crop residues and chemical fertilizers effect on soil fertility, yield and nutritional status in a crop of Brassica oleracea

“…In agricultural areas, nutrients are removed from the soil by crop uptake, leaching and erosion (Ghosh et al, 2011). As a result of soil degradation, chemical fertilizers (CF) have become an essential input for crop productivity in most areas of the world.…”

“…In greenhouses, pepper is mainly grown as monocrop. Pepper crop residues (CR) (leaves, roots, sive amount of vegetable residues has been studied as an organic amendment such as wheat, mungbean, maize, straw, among others (Tejada et al, 2006;Ghosh et al, 2011), while the use of pepper CR as a soil amendment has not been described yet, although they are produced at high quantities in countries such as China, Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, Spain and USA (Sinsha et al, 2011).…”

Application of char products improves urban soil quality

“…Use of composted organic wastes as soil amendments can be an efficient waste reduction strategy that may have a number of beneficial effects on soil quality (Ghosh et al. , 2010, 2011), including reduced compaction (Bernal et al.…”