Transition to conservation agriculture: how tillage intensity and covering affect soil physical parameters

Sartori, F.; Piccoli, Ilaria; Polese, Riccardo; Berti, Antonio

doi:10.5194/soil-2021-113

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…The data of the European Conservation Tillage Federation (2017) about CA showed that only 5 % of the agricultural land in the 27 th members of the EU was under some of the elements of the conservational tillage technology, but the NT was applied scarcely (3.44 %) on the agricultural lands (Table 1). The availability of discrepancies in the results of short-term experiments related to the adoption of CA and due to unrealistically short time-frame for achieving the expected outcomes also could be considered as reasons restraining the adoption of CA in the agroecosystems in Europe (Mitchel et al, 2019, Sartori et al, 2022.…”

Section: The Adoption Of Ca and Nt On A Global Scalementioning

confidence: 99%

An overview of no-till technology in the concept of conservation agriculture

Kochovska¹,

Dimitrova²,

Kartalska³

2022

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This review article summarises some of the most important terms and definitions of the vocabulary used in conservation agriculture (CA) and no-till technology (NT). It also presents the concepts and foundation principle of CA. The article cites selected sources with detailed historical notes and a chronological narrative about the development of the concept of conservational agriculture, machinery, devices and techniques that no-till technology applies. Due to the vastness of CA as a subject, the current review deals very briefly with some of the topics such as economic benefit, weed control, cover crop and crop rotation, use of herbicides. The availability of controversial results about no-till does not allow any final conclusion about the feasibility of that technology. It could be expected that on different soils, in different geographical conditions, depending on the machinery used and the combination of particular elements of the technology, the outcome of its adoption is highly probable to be different. Despite this variability in technology adoption, in cases of no significant reduction in crop yield, the application of technology seems worthy due to the ecological benefits which it provides. However, there is another important consideration that should be taken into account in NT adoption - any expectations for quick revenue should not be considered feasible because ecological sustainability could only be achieved in a long-term application of CA and NT.

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Section: The Adoption Of Ca and Nt On A Global Scalementioning

confidence: 99%

An overview of no-till technology in the concept of conservation agriculture

Kochovska¹,

Dimitrova²,

Kartalska³

2022

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“…Conservation agriculture (CA) and other soil management strategies implying a reduction of tillage have been reported to reduce soil degradation -preserving soil structure and associated porosity -in different agroecological situations (Verhulst et al, 2010;Sartori et al, 2022), and in many cases they are indeed designed for this purpose (Virto et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of innovative long-term soil and crop management on topsoil properties of a Mediterranean soil based on detailed water retention curves

Aldaz

Giménez

Campo‐Bescós

et al. 2022

SOIL

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Abstract. The effectiveness of conservation agriculture (CA) and other soil management strategies implying a reduction of tillage has been shown to be site-dependent (crop, clime and soil), and thus any new soil and crop management should be rigorously evaluated before its implementation. Moreover, farmers are normally reluctant to abandon conventional practices if this means putting their production at risk. This study evaluates an innovative soil and crop management (including no-tillage, cover crops and organic amendments) as an alternative to conventional management for rainfed cereal cropping in a calcareous soil in a semi-arid Mediterranean climatic zone of Navarra (Spain), based on the analysis of soil water retention curves (SWRCs) and soil structure. The study was carried out in a small agricultural area in the municipality of Garínoain (Navarre, Spain) devoted to rainfed cereal cropping. No other agricultural area in the whole region of Navarre exists where soil and crop management as proposed herein is practiced. Climate is temperate Mediterranean, and the dominant soil is Fluventic Haploxerept. Within the study area there is a subarea devoted to the proposed soil and crop management (OPM treatment), while there is another subarea where the soil and crop management is conventional in the zone (CM treatment). OPM includes no-tillage (18 years continuous) after conventional tillage, crop rotation, use of cover crops and occasional application of organic amendments. CM involves continuous conventional tillage (chisel plow), mineral fertilization, no cover crops and a lower diversity of crops in the rotation. Undisturbed soil samples from the topsoil and disturbed samples from the tilled layer were collected for both systems. The undisturbed samples were used to obtain the detailed SWRCs in the low suction range using a HYPROP©device. From the SWRCs, different approaches found in the literature to evaluate soil physical quality were calculated. The pore-size distribution was also estimated from the SWRCs. Disturbed samples were used in the laboratory to assess soil structure by means of an aggregate-size fractionation and to perform complementary analysis from which other indicators related to soil functioning and agricultural sustainability were obtained. The approaches evaluated did not show clear differences between treatments. However, the differences in soil quality between the two forms of management were better observed in the pore size distributions and by the analysis of the size distribution and stability of soil aggregates. There was an overabundance of macropores under CM, while the amount of mesopores (available water) and micropores were similar in both treatments. Likewise, more stable macroaggregates were observed in OPM than in CM, as well as more organic C storage, greater microbial activity, and biomass. The proposed management system is providing good results regarding soil physical quality and contributing also to the enhancement of biodiversity, as well as to the improvement in water-use efficiency. Finally, our findings suggest that the adoption of the proposed practice would not result in a loss in yields compared to conventional management.

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“…Overall, while tillage reduction or cessation seems to alleviate the negative effects on soil structure and topsoil SOM, it also removes some of its beneficial effects especially in the short term. Kay and Vanden-Bygaart (2002) and Sartori et al (2022) speculated that in the short term, soil compaction would be expected as a result of tillage absence and traffic load, while crop yield and soil structure stabilization are expected in the mid and long term (> 15 years) (Rusinamhodzi et al, 2011) as a result of greater biological activity and SOM redistribution.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of agricultural management on soil aggregates and associated organic carbon fractions: analysis of long-term experiments in Europe

Panagea

Apostolakis²,

Berti³

et al. 2022

SOIL

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Abstract. Inversion tillage is a commonly applied soil cultivation practice in Europe, which often has been blamed for deteriorating topsoil stability and organic carbon (OC) content. In this study, the potential to reverse these negative effects in the topsoil by alternative agricultural management practices are evaluated in seven long-term experiments (running from 8 to 54 years the moment of sampling) in five European countries (Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy and UK). Topsoil samples (0–15 cm) were collected and analysed to evaluate the effects of conservation tillage (reduced and no tillage) and increased organic inputs of different origin (farmyard manure, compost, crop residues) combined with inversion tillage on topsoil stability, soil aggregates and, within these, OC distribution using wet sieving after slaking. Effects from the treatments on the two main components of organic matter, i.e. particulate (POM) and mineral associated (MAOM), were also evaluated using dispersion and size fractionation. Reduced and no-tillage practices, as well as the additions of manure or compost, increased the aggregates mean weight diameter (MWD) (up to 49 % at the Belgian study site) and topsoil OC (up to 51 % at the Belgian study site), as well as the OC corresponding to the different aggregate size fractions. The incorporation of crop residues had a positive impact on the MWD but a less profound effect both on total OC and on OC associated with the different aggregates. A negative relationship between the mass and the OC content of the microaggregates (53–250 µm) was identified in all experiments. There was no effect on the mass of the macroaggregates and the occluded microaggregates (mM) within these macroaggregates, while the corresponding OC contents increased with less tillage and more organic inputs. Inversion tillage led to less POM within the mM, whereas the different organic inputs did not affect it. In all experiments where the total POM increased, the total soil organic carbon (SOC) was also affected positively. We concluded that the negative effects of inversion tillage on topsoil can be mitigated by reducing the tillage intensity or adding organic materials, optimally combined with non-inversion tillage methods.

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Transition to conservation agriculture: how tillage intensity and covering affect soil physical parameters

Cited by 3 publications

References 48 publications

An overview of no-till technology in the concept of conservation agriculture

An overview of no-till technology in the concept of conservation agriculture

Effects of innovative long-term soil and crop management on topsoil properties of a Mediterranean soil based on detailed water retention curves

Impact of agricultural management on soil aggregates and associated organic carbon fractions: analysis of long-term experiments in Europe

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