Soil quality indices following long-term conservation pasture management practices

Amorim, Helen Carla Santana; Ashworth, Amanda J.; Moore, P.; Wienhold, Brian J.; Savin, Mary C.; Owens, Phillip R.; Jagadamma, Sindhu; Carvalho, Teotônio Soares de; Xu, Sutie

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2020.107060

Cited by 23 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…• Soil quality (SQ) was investigated in a 16-yr wheat-soybean production system • No burning, high fertility, & irrigation improved soil organic C, total N, & yields • Reduced SQ under irrigation was linked to lower EC and K scores • Soil pH was the limiting factor for SQ in a notillage-high fertility system • The SMAF addressed the effects of long-term agricultural practices on SQ management goals (Amorim et al, 2020a;Karlen et al, 2006). The Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) (Andrews, Karlen, & Cambardella, 2004) is an example of a SQ evaluation tool and has been successfully applied to investigate the impacts of long-term conservation practices on SQ in numerous settings (Veum et al, 2015;Cherubin et al, 2016b;Amorim et al, 2020a;2020b;Karlen, Veum, Sudduth, Obrycki, & Nunes, 2019). Initially, a minimum dataset with soil biological, physical, and chemical indicators is defined, which can be obtained through principal component analysis (PCA) or expert knowledge (Andrews & Carroll, 2001;Cherubin et al, 2016a).…”

Section: Core Ideasmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, biological indicators such as SOC, microbial biomass C, and enzyme activity (Mbuthia et al., 2015; Nakajima, Shrestha, & Lal, 2016), and chemical indicators such as P and K (Amorim et al., 2020b; Karlen, Cambardella, Kovar, & Colvin, 2013) are sensitive to changes induced by long‐term management practices, and reflect the performance of soils for sustained crop productivity. The integration of individual soil indicators into an overall SQ index (SQI) can provide an overview of management practices at a regional scale and may assist land managers in decision‐making processes with respect to land use or function as a guide towards specific management goals (Amorim et al., 2020a; Karlen et al., 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) (Andrews, Karlen, & Cambardella, 2004) is an example of a SQ evaluation tool and has been successfully applied to investigate the impacts of long‐term conservation practices on SQ in numerous settings (Veum et al., 2015; Cherubin et al., 2016b; Amorim et al., 2020a; 2020b; Karlen, Veum, Sudduth, Obrycki, & Nunes, 2019). Initially, a minimum dataset with soil biological, physical, and chemical indicators is defined, which can be obtained through principal component analysis (PCA) or expert knowledge (Andrews & Carroll, 2001; Cherubin et al., 2016a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Soil quality indices as affected by long‐term burning, irrigation, tillage, and fertility management

Amorim

Ashworth

Brye

et al. 2021

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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Understanding the impacts of long‐term agricultural practices on soil quality (SQ) is key for sustaining agroecosystem productivity. This study investigated conventional and no‐tillage (NT), residue burning and no burning, residue level (high and low), and irrigation (irrigated and dryland) effects on soil properties, SQ, and crop yields following 16 yr of a wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] double‐crop system via the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF). A field experiment was conducted in the Lower Mississippi River Delta region on a silt‐loam soil. Bulk density, soil organic C (SOC), total N (TN), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and soil P and K from the 0‐ to 10‐cm soil depth were used as SQ indicators investigated individually and as an overall soil quality index (SQI). Following 16 yr, residue burning reduced SOC (1.1%) compared with no burning (1.24%). Irrigation resulted in greater soil TN than dryland management systems (p < 0.05). Reduced soil pH and extractable soil P and K occurred under NT, high residue, and irrigated treatments. Irrigation increased soybean yields, regardless of the tillage system. Burned, NT–high residue management increased wheat yields (3.45 Mg ha−1). Irrigation reduced SQ because of low EC and K scores. High residue reduced SQ compared with the low residue treatment within NT systems, owing to low pH scores. The SMAF indices identified the impacts of irrigation, NT, and optimal N fertilization on SQ. Monitoring of soil pH, P, and K may be needed to maintain SQ in long‐term wheat–soybean systems.

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Section: Core Ideasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Soil quality indices as affected by long‐term burning, irrigation, tillage, and fertility management

Amorim

Ashworth

Brye

et al. 2021

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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“…Developed by Andrews et al (2004), the Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) is a quantitative SQ evaluation tool that focuses on dynamic SQ properties. The SMAF method has become widely applied to assess soil responses to specific agricultural management systems over time and/or to compare and contrast various management practices (Amorim, Ashworth, Moore, et al, 2020;. The SMAF framework for conducting an assessment consists of (a) physical, chemical, and bio-…”

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confidence: 99%

Soil quality assessment of an agroforestry system following long‐term management in the Ozark Highlands

Ylagan

Amorim

Ashworth

et al. 2021

Agrosystems Geosci & Env

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The Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) is a quantitative soil quality (SQ) evaluation tool that is widely applied to assess soil response to specific agricultural management practices over time. Considering the reported SQ benefits of agroforestry (AF) systems and the potential usefulness of SMAF, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of tree species (pecan [Carya illinoinensis (Wangenh.) K. Koch] and northern red oak [Quercus rubra L.]), soil fertility source (poultry litter [PL] and inorganic N fertilizer [control]), and soil depth (0-15 and 15-30 cm) on SMAF-derived SQ indices after 17 yr of management at an AF site in northwest Arkansas. Averaged across soil depth, soil organic C scores under red oak with PL application had a lower score (0.48) than red oak fertilized with inorganic N (0.60) and pecan receiving long-term PL applications (0.60), which did not differ from pecan with inorganic N fertilizer application (0.51). Averaged across soil depth, the soil quality index (SQI) for pecan receiving PL applications was 1.1 times greater than that under red oak receiving PL and soils under pecan receiving inorganic N fertilizer. Soil quality assessments use in AF are novel, as SMAF has not been used to identify soil health in these systems, although specific tree crop codes need to be developed in SMAF. Results of this study demonstrate that soils planted under various tree species respond dissimilarly to fertilizer sources and that management may improve overall SQ.

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“…All areas have received annual poultry litter applications. Figure credit: Amorim et al (2020) . Continuous treatments included: hayed (H), continuously grazed (CG), rotationally grazed (R), rotationally grazed with a buffer strip (RB), and rotationally grazed with a fenced riparian buffer (RBR).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Long-Term Conservation Pasture Management Practices Influence Microbial Diversity and Antimicrobial Resistant Genes in Runoff?

et al. 2021

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Runoff from land-applied manure and poultry litter is one mechanism by which manure-borne bacteria are transported over large distances in the environment. There is a global concern that antimicrobial resistant (AMR) genes may be transmitted through the food chain from animal manures to soil to surface water. However, details are lacking on the ecology of AMR genes in water runoff as well as how conservation management practices may affect the runoff microbiome or minimize the movement of AMR genes. The aim of this study was to identify microbial community structure and diversity in water runoff following 14-years of poultry litter and cattle manure deposition and to evaluate the amount of AMR genes under five conventional and conservation pasture management strategies. Since 2004, all watersheds received annual poultry litter at a rate of 5.6 Mg ha−1 and were consistently managed. Surface runoff samples were collected from each watershed from 2018 to 2019, characterized using Illumina 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and enumerated for four AMR-associated genes (ermB, sulI, intlI, and blactx-m-32) using quantitative PCR. Overall, long-term pasture management influenced water microbial community structure, with effects differing by year (p < 0.05). Bacterial richness (Chao1 index) was influenced by pasture management, with the lowest richness occurring in the control (nearby non-agricultural water source) and the greatest under fields that were hayed (no cattle presence). Runoff bacterial richness in watersheds increased following poultry litter applications, indicating poultry litter is a possible source of bacteria and altered runoff community structure. The blactx-m-32 gene was not detected in any surface water sample. The remaining three AMR genes were absent in the non-agricultural control, but present in agricultural samples. However, there was no impact (p > 0.05) from pasture management on the abundance of these genes, indicating both conventional and conservation practices have similar ecologies for these targets; however, there was a greater detection of sulI genes from runoff in continuously grazed systems in 2019, with hay being lowest in 2019. Results illustrate that the edge of field buffer strips may increase bacterial richness in water runoff, but these changes in richness do not greatly impact target AMR genes in the United States largest land-use category.

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Soil quality indices following long-term conservation pasture management practices

Cited by 23 publications

References 49 publications

Soil quality indices as affected by long‐term burning, irrigation, tillage, and fertility management

Soil quality indices as affected by long‐term burning, irrigation, tillage, and fertility management

Soil quality assessment of an agroforestry system following long‐term management in the Ozark Highlands

Do Long-Term Conservation Pasture Management Practices Influence Microbial Diversity and Antimicrobial Resistant Genes in Runoff?

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