Managing Soil Carbon and Nitrogen for Productivity and Environmental Quality

Sánchez, José E.; Harwood, Richard R.; Willson, Thomas C.; Kızılkaya, Kadir; Smeenk, J.; Parker, E. R.; Paul, Eldor A.; Knezek, B. D.; Robertson, G. Philip

doi:10.2134/agronj2004.0769

Cited by 79 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…The results of Sanchez et al (2004) are general and can be applied to corn-based agroecosystems anywhere. In general, agroecosystems that make bett er use of short-and long-term C and N pools will tend to be more productive and environmentally sustainable than systems that rely on heavy applications of chemical fertilizers and herbicides.…”

Section: Soil Carbon Nitrogen and Nutrient Cyclingmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Emphasis will be placed on the importance of soil management, as illustrated in Fig. 2|1, particularly the unintended consequences of tillage, as the controlling factor in maintaining this delicate balance between agricultural productivity and environmental quality (Lal, 1998;Grandy et al, 2006;Robertson and Swinton, 2005;Sanchez et al, 2004;Sandor and Eash, 1995;Troeh et al, 1999).…”

Section: Objectivementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The extent, mechanisms, and factors controlling SOC stabilization at depth require further investigations for all types of tillage implements, especially inversion tillage. Sanchez et al (2004) investigated the impact of cropping system management on C and N pools, crop yield, and N leaching in a long-term agronomic experiment in southwest Michigan. Four management types ranging from conventional to transitional organic were applied to two crop sequences with and without legume cover crops.…”

Section: Soil Carbon Nitrogen and Nutrient Cyclingmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Challenging Balance between Productivity and Environmental Quality: Tillage Impacts

Reicosky

Hatfield

2015

Soil Management: Building a Stable Base for Agriculture

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Section: Soil Carbon Nitrogen and Nutrient Cyclingmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Objectivementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Soil Carbon Nitrogen and Nutrient Cyclingmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Challenging Balance between Productivity and Environmental Quality: Tillage Impacts

Reicosky

Hatfield

2015

Soil Management: Building a Stable Base for Agriculture

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“…The MCSE experiment was established in 1989, and the LFL experiment was established in 1993. Over the years, Bio management practices in both the MCSE (26,27) and the LFL (28,29) have resulted in higher levels of soil organic matter compared with Conv management. Thus, the more modest yield losses under Bio management in the MCSE and LFL could have resulted from improvements in soil organic matter.…”

Section: Effect Of Environmental Factors On Management Performance Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field-scale experiments reveal persistent yield gaps in low-input and organic cropping systems

Kravchenko

Snapp

Robertson

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Knowledge of production-system performance is largely based on observations at the experimental plot scale. Although yield gaps between plot-scale and field-scale research are widely acknowledged, their extent and persistence have not been experimentally examined in a systematic manner. At a site in southwest Michigan, we conducted a 6-y experiment to test the accuracy with which plot-scale crop-yield results can inform field-scale conclusions. We compared conventional versus alternative, that is, reduced-input and biologically based-organic, management practices for a cornsoybean-wheat rotation in a randomized complete block-design experiment, using 27 commercial-size agricultural fields. Nearby plot-scale experiments (0.02-ha to 1.0-ha plots) provided a comparison of plot versus field performance. We found that plot-scale yields well matched field-scale yields for conventional management but not for alternative systems. For all three crops, at the plot scale, reduced-input and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, reduced-input yields were lower than conventional. For soybeans at the plot scale, biological and conventional managements produced similar yields; at the field scale, biological yielded less than conventional. For corn, biological management produced lower yields than conventional in both plot-and field-scale experiments. Wheat yields appeared to be less affected by the experimental scale than corn and soybean. Conventional management was more resilient to field-scale challenges than alternative practices, which were more dependent on timely management interventions; in particular, mechanical weed control. Results underscore the need for much wider adoption of field-scale experimentation when assessing new technologies and production-system performance, especially as related to closing yield gaps in organic farming and in low-resourced systems typical of much of the developing world.field experiments | scaling | corn soybean wheat rotation | weed control | organic agriculture

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“…Cavigelli et al [34], for example, found improved GHG intensity (or GWP per unit grain yield) and GWP for an organic compared to no-till and chisel till systems in Maryland, USA to be due primarily to increased soil C [106] under the organic system compared to chisel or no-till systems. Sanchez et al [107], in a long-term (7 yr) study of comparative grain management systems in Michigan, found the enhanced ‗substrate diversity' of a transitional organic management system that combined green manures and compost enhanced both short (‗active') and long-term soil C and N pools.…”

Section: Soil C Sequestrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Carbon and Global Warming Potential Impacts of Organic Farming: Does It Have a Significant Role in an Energy Constrained World?

2011

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About 130 studies were analyzed to compare farm-level energy use and global warming potential (GWP) of organic and conventional production sectors. Cross cutting issues such as tillage, compost, soil carbon sequestration and energy offsets were also reviewed. Finally, we contrasted E and GWP data from the wider food system. We concluded that the evidence strongly favours organic farming with respect to whole-farm energy use and energy efficiency both on a per hectare and per farm product basis, with the possible exception of poultry and fruit sectors. For GWP, evidence is insufficient except in a few sectors, with results per ha more consistently favouring organic farming than GWP per unit product. Tillage was consistently a negligible contributor to farm E use and additional tillage on organic farms does not appear to significantly deplete soil C. Energy offsets, biogas, energy crops and residues have a more limited role on organic farms compared to conventional ones, because of the nutrient and soil building uses of soil organic matter, and the high demand for organic foods in human markets. If farm E use represents 35% of total food chain E use, improvements shown of 20% or more in E efficiency through organic farm management would reduce food-chain E use by 7% or more. Among other food supply chain stages, wholesale/retail (including cooling and OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2011, 3 323 packaging) and processing often each contribute 30% or more to total food system E. Thus, additional improvements can be obtained with reduced processing, whole foods and food waste minimization.

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Managing Soil Carbon and Nitrogen for Productivity and Environmental Quality

Cited by 79 publications

References 18 publications

Challenging Balance between Productivity and Environmental Quality: Tillage Impacts

Challenging Balance between Productivity and Environmental Quality: Tillage Impacts

Field-scale experiments reveal persistent yield gaps in low-input and organic cropping systems

The Carbon and Global Warming Potential Impacts of Organic Farming: Does It Have a Significant Role in an Energy Constrained World?

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