Abstract
Information on the effect of long-term management on soil nutrients and chemical properties is scanty. We examined the 30-year effect of tillage frequency and cropping sequence combination on dryland soil Olsen-P, K, Ca, Mg, Na, SO4–S, and Zn concentrations, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and cation exchange capacity (CEC) at the 0–120 cm depth and annualized crop yield in the northern Great Plains, USA. Treatments were no-till continuous spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) (NTCW), spring till continuous spring wheat (STCW), fall and spring till continuous spring wheat (FSTCW), fall and spring till spring wheat–barley (Hordeum vulgare L., 1984–1999) followed by spring wheat–pea (Pisum sativum L., 2000–2013) (FSTW-B/P), and spring till spring wheat-fallow (STW-F, traditional system). At 0–7.5 cm, P, K, Zn, Na, and CEC were 23–60% were greater, but pH, buffer pH, and Ca were 6–31% lower in NTCW, STCW, and FSTW–B/P than STW-F. At 7.5–15 cm, K was 23–52% greater, but pH, buffer pH, and Mg were 3–21% lower in NTCW, STCW, FSTCW, FSTW–B/P than STW-F. At 60–120 cm, soil chemical properties varied with treatments. Annualized crop yield was 23–30% lower in STW-F than the other treatments. Continuous N fertilization probably reduced soil pH, Ca, and Mg, but greater crop residue returned to the soil increased P, K, Na, Zn, and CEC in NTCW and STCW compared to STW-F. Reduced tillage with continuous cropping may be adopted for maintaining long-term soil fertility and crop yields compared with the traditional system.
Highlights
Long-term sustainability of dryland farming systems depends on soil quality and fertility (Karlen et al 1997; Liebig et al 2002)
In 1990 and 1996, grain yield was greater in no-till continuous spring wheat (NTCW) than fall and spring till continuous spring wheat (FSTCW), FSTW-B/P, and spring till spring wheat-fallow (STW-F)
Annualized crop yield, soil nutrients, and chemical properties varied among treatments due to variations in tillage intensity and cropping sequences after 30 years
Summary
Long-term sustainability of dryland farming systems depends on soil quality and fertility (Karlen et al 1997; Liebig et al 2002). In the northern Great Plains, wheat-fallow systems have been used as the traditional dryland farming practice since the last century (Peterson et al 1998; Halvorson et al 2000, 2002). In these systems, land is typically fallowed from 14 to 20 mo. Can reduce soil quality and fertility by increasing organic matter mineralization and erosion and decrease crop yields by the absence of crop during the fallow period (Aase and Pikul 1995; Halvorson et al 2000, 2002; Sainju et al 2007, 2009). The traditional farming system has become inefficient, uneconomical, and unsustainable (Aase and Schaefer 1996)
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