Comparison of Rooting in Soil Parent Materials Using Undisturbed Soil Cores¹

Abstract

Root explorations under oats and soybean growing in cores taken from four commonly occurring soil parent materials in Illinois were compared after 8 weeks growth. Nutrient deficiencies were minimized so that the comparison was between the physical properties of the four materials. Root growth in the silty clay, silty clay loam, and loam tills differed by small amounts and was much less in all three than in the loess parent material. The variation of root weight was significantly correlated with bulk density. The 91‐cm soil cores were taken with a hydraulically operated corer, sealed in wax and stove piping, and used as individual plots in a replicated trial. In this way intersite variation was eliminated. Cores can be used for various types of plant and soil investigations.

Rooting Systems of Soybeans. I. Differences in Root Morphology among Varieties1

“…This concurs with recent reports by MitchelP (8,9) and consistently occurred in single-plant and row plots. Based on observed effects of soil properties on branching, (2,3,6,12) the depth of profuse branching of the taproot could be affected by changes in soil compaction and aeration related to the depth of cultivation.…”

“…The majority of the soybean root weight is contained within the upper 15 em of the soil when grown in undisturbed field soils 3 (2,8,9). In a quantitative analysis of the roots contained in 7.5-cm-diameter soil cores taken to a depth of 15 em within the soybean row, Dittmer (4) found that the primary lateral roots, although less numerous, exposed more surface area and occupied more volume than any other root division.…”

Corn yield in relation to soil, management, and weather variables in western Iowa

“…R improvement due to addition of quadratic 216 functions of the moisture stress and excess moisture indexes to the base yield regres sion model Table 32. Significant weather index interactions 218 selected for testing in the final model Table 33 (Fly and Romine, 1964;Murray, 1969;Salter et al, 1966;Black, 1968;Davies and Runge, 1969;Malo and Worcester, 1975;Henao, 1976).…”

The efficiency of pot trials, or trials on undisturbed soil cores, as predictors of crop behaviour in the field

“…They are not widely used but results of some studies on undisturbed cores (Bradley and Vimpany, 1974;Davies andRunge, 1969, Hudson, 1974;Smith and Gregg, 1982) suggest that they may overcome the problems of pot trials mentioned above. A recent study (Belford, 1979) reports that the hydraulic properties and aeration of undisturbed soil cores and their yields of winter wheat were equivalent to those obtained in the field.…”