Soil physical and hydrological properties as affected by a five‐year history of poultry litter applied to a cotton–corn–soybean rotation system

Abstract

Few studies were conducted to ascertain poultry litter (PL) and its residual influence on soil physical and hydrological properties. A field study was conducted on a sandy loam soil for 8 yr in corn (Zea mays L.), cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] rotations at Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station in Verona, MS. Poultry litter treatment was applied to the three crops at an average of 7.6 Mg ha -1 yr -1 in the first 5 yr. The inorganic fertilizer treatment was 224 and 100 kg ha -1 yr -1 for corn and cotton. Inorganic P and K fertilizers applied were based on soil analysis, but no synthetic N was applied to soybean. Soil properties and yields were measured in the first year (2015) and third years (2017) after stopping PL application and planting all plots with soybean. Applying PL for 5 yr significantly improved soil aggregate stability by 17%. Infiltration rate and saturated hydraulic conductivity was two to three times greater in soil amended with PL than with inorganic fertilizer. Poultry litter addition significantly increased field capacity and plant available water content by 20%. Those soil properties were not affected by the rotation treatments. Total soil C did not differ between PL and fertilizer treatment. Soybean yield was continuously increased by 8% in 2015 and 11% in 2017 after stopping PL application. Poultry litter application is capable of improving soil physical and hydrological properties, and its residual could sustain soybean yield for 3 yr after stopping applications.

Effect of Replacing Mineral Fertilizer with Manure on Soil Water Retention Capacity in a Semi-Arid Region

“…Feng et al [33] illustrated that poultry litter addition significantly increased plant available water content by 20%. Singh et al [34] indicated that long-term application of cattle manure and fertilizer increased soil porosity compared with no fertilizer at the microscale level in maize-soybean rotation.…”

Poultry litter physiochemical characterization based on production conditions for circular systems

“…Total C constituted the greatest fraction of both litter sources, with about 34% and 46% of the total dry matter in PL1 and PL2, respectively. Because of the high content of total C in litter, its land application may improve soil quality and crop production by increasing soil organic carbon and consequently enhancing soil aggregation and aggregate stability, increasing soil porosity and WHC, improving hydraulic properties of soil, and increasing soil microbial community (Adeli et al 2007;Yang et al 2019;Feng et al 2021).…”

“…Because poultry litter is loaded with high amounts of nutrients essential for plant growth, such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) (Ashworth et al 2020), it has traditionally been applied to agricultural land as an organic fertilizer (Sharpley et al 2009). Application of poultry litter to croplands is shown to improve soil fertility, earthworm and microbial communities, as well as soil physical and hydrological properties such as aggregate stability, infiltration rate, and hydraulic conductivity (Adeli et al 2009;Ashworth et al 2018;He et al 2019;Feng et al 2021). However, long-term land application of poultry litter has been shown to accumulate nutrients and trace metals in soil (Daigh et al 2009), and through runoff and leaching it has the potential to impair surface and groundwater quality (Sharpe et al 2004;Bolan et al 2010;McMullen et al 2014).…”

Influence of crop rotations and cotton monoculture on cotton field weediness

“…The benefits of crop rotation on soil physical properties are widely reported [9][10]. For example, when legumes are introduced in a crop rotation, macro aggregate formation increases because of deep roots, leaf drop, increased rhizosphere activity, and root exudates [11].…”