Abstract
Cover crops can be a management practice used to improve soil health and increase resilience to extreme climate events in a typical midwestern corn–soybean (<i>Zea mays</i> L.–<i>Glycine max</i> L.) rotation. This study was conducted as part of a large regional project with a goal of studying how to make corn-based cropping systems more resilient to climate stresses. A field site was established in southeastern Indiana to study the effects of a cereal rye (<i>Secale cereale</i> L.) cover crop on soil physical and chemical properties in a no-till corn and soybean rotation. Soil measurements included water stable soil aggregates using the wet sieving method, bulk density and water retention using intact cores, and soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (N). After four years of a cereal rye cover crop, wet soil aggregate mean weight diameter increased 55% when compared to the no cover control in the 0 to 10 cm (0 to 4 in) depth and 29% in the 10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 in) depth. Bulk density, water retention, SOC, and total soil N showed no change between cover crop treatments. This research shows that a cereal rye cover crop can increase water stable aggregation in a relatively short time, but changes in other physical and chemical properties are more difficult to detect.
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